SHIP'S LOG:
Thursday was supposed to dawn overcast, clear by noon, and be sunny and bright and breezy all day long. Thursday dawned overcast, got down right cloudy and dark in the afternoon, rain occasionally and there wasn't a breath of wind!!!! The accuracy of NOAA is remarkable. I whiled away the afternoon clean the cockpit cushions, the cockpit seats and the area beneath the teak grating of the deck in the cockpit. The only good things that I can say about it was that it killed time and I found $1.35 in change beneath the dirt under the grating.
The cloudiness( and occasional rain) continued through the afternoon so i moved on to reworking the storage in the lockers inside ABISHAG. I discovered lots of stuff I had forgotten I had, didn't find stuff I thought I did have, and, in general, ended up with more space, less mess and easier access. All good things!!!!!
I went off and had dinner with friends and spent a lovely evening until I had to hustle back to catch the last launch ride out to ABISHAG. I then settled down to listen to the Red Sox get creamed by the Yankees (ugh!) and went and slept the sleep of the just! A pretty good day all around.
Friday dawned absolutely clear with a north wind blowing about 15knots. So quite naturally, I had a doctor's appointment which I couldn't miss and didn't get back to the boat until about 2pm when, much to my surprise, the weather picture was unchanged! On went the engine, off went the wheel ties, all the lines were singled up, the main sheet was released and the main was unfurled . . . . well not all the way. About half way out it jammed and I do mean jammed! Half in, half out and all twisted. From what I could see, it appears that it folded in on itself when it was last furled and I ended up with a big wad of cloth jammed in the furling cowling. A lot of tugging and pulling, and pulling and tugging, and not a little colorful language, and I got it all the way out only to watch a rip begin at the spot of the last repair and continue down the seam. It meant a a trip to the sail shop which mean first, I had to get the sail off the furler in the mast. It is not a particularly hard task but it is cumbersome. Then, I had to fold (that's being kind) an rather unruly sail and stuff it in a bag so that I could haul it off to the sail shop. By the time I got it there, it was 4:30pm and there was no change for any work to get done, though Kevin, hearing my tale of woe ("The damn mainsail furler has never worked right!!!!") agreed to come down the next morning to check it out. John the Sailmaker shared with me the fact that upon examining the sails I left with them last fall, he had found two dead mice in the old mainsail bag. It just keeps getting better.
Actually, I got a strange email from my old insurance agent, the company that got ABISHAG covered initially by ZURICH when I purchased her. The email, followed by a phone called from the agent was inquiring if I wanted to renew my insurance? Boat Insurance? Yes. Full Coverage? Yes. Hull coverage too? Yes. Not by Zurich? No, another company we do business with. Do you want to renew? YES!I am not sure how or why but, insurance is insurance . . . now to find the money for the premium.
Saturday I took ABISAHG into the dock as Kevin's hip is almost as bad as mine and that would make it easier. of the opinion that the simplest, least expensive, and "it will probably work just fine" thing to do is to "hollow the main." Every sail is designed and built with a certain curve in it. The more curve (the fuller the sail), the more powerful it is. The less curve (the flatter the sail), the less powerful it is. Kevin is of the mind that the main is cut too full and so, when I want to furl it, it tends to fold over itself and we get a jam. Re-cutting the sail (hollowing out the luff - it would take too long to explain that) and making its shape flatter will do that and so we will take a shot at that. That's the first step and hopefully the only step that will be needed. Kevin also pointed out that the Genoa could use a little work as some of the threading is miss and before it blows out, it would be a good thing to replace it. If they get a free machine at the shop, I'll do it this week.
I have detected that "bilge odor" again in the boat which means I have neglected to keep it spotless. So in goes the bilge cleaner, a cup of Joy dish soap ( best stuff for cutting grease, and after it sloshes around in the bilge for a couple of days, in go the microbiotics which will eat most of the mixture up. It is supposed to rain for a day or two, and with the sails off the boat, I ain't going nowhere.
MASTER'S PERSONAL LOG:
Eventually every little things is going to be alright. 'nuf said!
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