OUCH! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

SHIP'S LOG:

Well, the proposal from the Marine Repair-er showed up today. The total outlay for the proposed work, a "good faith estimate" as they like to say in the marine trade, is 24 MUs or in real money $11,936.80. OUCH! ! ! ! !

Of course, and thank goodness, the vast majority of it will be paid by the Insurance Company, the total less my $1,600 deductible. and afterwards, if I am lucky, they will only double my premiums. Not feeling particularly lucky, I fully expect to get dropped like a hot potato, but I can't blame them though. Let's see: incident #1 tow plus repair work = $14,000; incident #2 tow plus repair work = $17,000 for a total of $31,000! Considering that my yearly premium is, or was, $1,200 in these tough economic times, it is a losing proposition even for a company who business is "risk taking." The fun task of the spring will be finding another insurance carrier if possible. Just think of the conversation I'm going to have to have with the agent. On second though, I don't want to think about it.

It is quite possible also that there will be some downward adjustment, possibly as much as 50%, in my compensation this spring as well. OUCH! ! ! ! ! I have been trying to unload the condo so that I can get rid of its bills and payoff the credit card debt. The realtor says that, strangely, there is an increasing interest in the condos at the present time. So I have dropped the price and hopefully it will be attractive enough to get it sold. they I can pay off the mortgage, the taxes and the credit cards and still actually have a few bucks left to repair my retirement fund.

The crazy part of this financial disaster that we call the American economy is that those things that most people counted on to be financial bellweathers against tough times have become, in many cases, more of a hinderance than a help. If you own a house with a mortgage that has an adjustable rate, you know of what I speak. If I can unload the condo, I hopefully won't have to unload ABISHAG. Yes, that's right, I have to consider selling my boat. Of course right now there aren't a whole lot of boats selling. I have a dear friend who works for a finance company that specialize in boating loans. She has worked all the winter shows so far and there has been little in the way of loans going on. From what she and others in the marine business say, I suspect that there will be a sudden increase in boat "thefts," "accidents" that total boats, and irrecoverable "sinkings" that are of a "suspicious nature" if the financail scene doesn't improve by the end of summer. Many marinas took a real beating from the high fuel prices of this past summer and it had a ripple effect through the industry back then. Fewer people bothered to launch and even those who did, didn't go out as much. This was especially true for power boats. Those that actually saw water were used as "summer cottages" as opposed to being used as boats. I know I commented previously about the dearth of boating traffic over the summer months as indicated by the lack of traffic on the VHF Marine radio channels and it was probably worse than i imagined. This coming season should be even worse. The yard wherein ABISHAG slumbers the winter away already has had abandonments, boats hauled and whose owners, went sent the bill, just ignored it. Surely there will be more by spring.

It is a real buyers market so selling the boat will make selling the condo look easy by comparison. Check the boating web pages shows some incredible deals available. Sellers are dropping their prices by huge chucks of cash trying to unload their boats and having little success. I am hoping that I won't have to get into that craziness.

MASTER'S PERSONAL LOG:

I have come to the conclusion that God really doesn't have a plan. I have come to believe that God will make all things right and good. It may not sound like all that much of a difference but it is. Rather than following a script, I can just do what comes naturally, make my choices, good and bad and, in some way, God will get involved and bless the good and correct the bad. Unfortunately, it also seems that it is still not a part of God's plan or of his making good. that I win Powerball. I thought . . . .maybe . . . and bought a ticket on the off chance . . . . not even one number. I was one off on several numbers such that if I had had the adjustment it would have made for a nice financial windfall. As it was, no numerical adjustment, no windfall, only god saying once again, "Trust me, like it says on the money!"