I’m getting antsy. Having become accustomed to freedom and constant change, I’m feeling a bit stagnant in this marina slip. I’m no longer afraid of getting sucked into a land life and not leaving. Now I’m positive I will want to go out there again when the time is right. Heck, I want to go right now.
There are some impediments to our heading out into the great blue yonder at this very moment, though, so, as usual, I need to cool my jets and practice patience. Aside from a few minor things, there’s nothing keeping us from day trips or even an over-nighter. The weather in August in Florida is not very conducive to sailing away. Heat and hurricanes aside, there just isn’t that much wind on the Florida gulf-coast when the water temperature and air temperature are so close. It’s great weather for anchoring and swimming, though, so I’m looking forward to that.
As for a date of departure, that may be awhile. We have checked a few substantial things off the list we made at the beginning of the year: have a baby (check), repair structural damage to boat (check), pay exorbitant tax bill (check), renovate interior of boat (check), buy washer/dryer (check). So now Jay’s out with his nose to the grindstone, working to replenish the cruising kitty. When the time comes, we’ll have to decide whether to use that money to do a few more things on our list or to travel and put the projects on the back burner. It’s hard to stop when you’ve got momentum and the boat is looking so good—and when you find local workmen who are skilled and dependable.
On the flip side, many things that we want to change we have learned to live with, and we could manage another season without fixing them. If it comes down to buying a heater so we can survive a Florida winter or using the money to head South, I will vote for the latter.
One thing affecting a DOD is Jay’s work. One must make hay while the sun shines and that may mean working for six months or a year so that we can save up to travel again. Another question that has an impact on our plans is when will we be ready to travel with Rachel? If I’m trying to nurse a baby, homeschool the kids, wash diapers, feed everyone, and keep house, what kind of a first mate am I going to be? Do we need to take on crew? If the answer is yes to crew, then we’re back to the projects question because we’d need to make a habitable space for an extra person.
The answers to the questions “when/where are we going next?” are veiled in mystery, and until we have done the day-in-day-out for a while, we aren’t going to know. That means my planning and implementing our next year of homeschool and taking care of things on the home-front without complaining. But I miss the blue water, the unimpeded sunset, and the clear starry skies at night. I feel the lines chafing and I just can’t wait to see what the next journey will be like.