Dancing
with Mother Nature Creates a Scramble to Key West: January 24 2018
The
course showed me that I gravitate toward “street photography” which has my
camera right on target. However, after
much research I decided to buy the 10-year newer version of my camera: Nikon
D3400. The biggest impact of the new
camera on the blog is that the pixel size per picture is MUCH bigger than with
my old camera which means that each photo takes up A LOT more memory. I’m playing with that so that the blog photos
are crisp but not too hoggy with download size.
You might see changes here and there.
As always, if you want to see a larger version of any blog photo –
simply single click on the photo and a larger version will display.
Back
aboard and curled up warmly in bed it was early morning dark when the wind came
up…quiet, quiet, quiet…BANG…get up?!
Yep, out of bed went Erin to check the mooring line after the particularly
loud bang (all okay). When the sun rose
it was onto a slow and lazy Sunday.
Chris has decided on the Lewmar H3 for our new windlass and the order
was made. This piece of boat tackle is
the motor/pulley system that mechanically lowers and raises our anchor and its
chain which makes it super important for us who like to anchor. This decision came after loads of research and
reviews on the internets including kudos from Practical Sailor. We spent the rest of the day hanging out with
Bill and Louise at their condo; they organized and we did laundry in the
background. After a good bit of progress
we stopped for sundowners and nibbles. I
experimented with pinwheel roll-ups and will definitely make this appetizer
again. Plus, they travel well in a
cooler (recipe below).
Heavy
morning dew means deck work is delayed until the decks have dried (Jan 16). This gave us a chance for a walk on the beach
followed by breakfast at Reese’s. The
tide was out which made the sand easy for walking; however, our quick pace made
it hard for me to find shells. Even so, I
managed to spot a couple of keepers…and the early morning light was
beautiful. Reese’s is a homey place with
a major cow theme tucked in the mini-mall beside Print Shop Ink. Fueled up we were ready for the day! Bill and Louise swung by and off we went to
pick up supplies; West Marine, Ace Hardware, Lowe’s, Home Depot, Total Wine. Wow, you guys are awesome!
We
were back to the boat, decks were dry and it was time for Stage 1 of the
Windlass replacement; fill the not needed deck holes from the old windlass with
epoxy. Chris has gotten good at this
skill which makes him quick and not messy.
Prep and clean-up close at hand made for an efficient project. Our busy day was rewarded with a peaceful
sunset – cheers!
Stable
weather means that we keep moving forward with the windlass replacement project
(Jan 17). While the morning dew was
drying we had dropped eggs on toast - extra delicious with Farmer’s Market
multi-grain bread. Chris is practicing for
his major hole filling fiberglass job and needs another tool for the job. Sadly, our initial excitement about the
inventory at The Goodz was a strike out…drat…so we went further afield to
Gavin’s Ace Hardware on San Carlos Boulevard.
Okay,
Chris is ready to make the first cut into Barefeet’s deck followed by a 12-to-1
scarf in five gradients for added strength when the new fiberglass is laid
(1/4” depth and 3” square)…gulp…here goes.
Looking good but it will be a slow, tedious process despite the
plugged-in Dremel (no way a battery model would have had the endurance for this
job). And we might need more bits?! Chris grinds while Erin keeps the shop vac continuously
sucking fiberglass dust. Both of us have
breathing masks and eyewear – fiberglass should never be taken lightly and
should not be ingested. We finally
called it a day with sundowners on the top deck beside cheddar cheese and triscuit
crackers. So far so good. But I won’t let work zap my food creativity
so I made chicken fried rice for dinner.
It was a first-time success and chef Jet Tila is batting a thousand for
me (his Pad Thai was also a success back in Boston). Honest, the fried rice tasted like it came straight
out of your favorite Chinese restaurant (recipe below). Thanks Jet Tila (https://chefjet.com/).
Bbbrrr…50
degrees F at 1.30pm (Jan 18). We’ve got
the boat heater on (powered by the generator) and hot coffee in mugs. No fun.
This cold front should pass by tomorrow and be back into the 70s. We took the time inside to order more drill
bits from McMaster-Carr rather than schlepp all over the greater Fort Myers
area (https://www.mcmaster.com/#). Dang – our cleverness was slapped down by
winter storms which will delay delivery until Monday. Fortunately, Bill and Louise swooped to the
rescue with a lift back to Gavin’s Ace Hardware (Jan 19). You guys are lifesavers! After several hours with metal bits (that
wore out) and grinding stones the grinding above and below the deck was done;
stair steps were carved then smoothed to a slope. Yeah! Now some thinking
before glassing. And it’s off to lively
Bonita Bill’s for dinner where Loretta kept us fed and our glasses full despite
a packed house for karaoke (http://www.bonitabills.com/). What a hoot!
The
boat has been dictating most of our schedule lately so today we started with a
schedule of our own which did not include Barefeet (Jan 22). A lovely sunrise accompanied us to the Plaka
Restaurant for a tasty diner breakfast. Later
we explored the length of Fort Myers Beach via trolley. It’s only a total of about 8 miles to Lovers
Key State Park but we checked it all out.
Trolley driver Larry has been in Fort Myers Beach since 1966 and filled
us in along the way; every day starts with two trolleys but ramps up to eight
during peak hours…and Spring Break is cheek to jowl mahem. We returned with a walk along the beach to
finish out our non-boat morning. But now
it’s back to boat stuff. We filled up
with diesel and water at Ballard Oil ($2.79/gallon – ouch). Former bull rider, Tom, kept us entertained while
the tanks filled with stories about rodeo competitions and hijinks between
competitors…and about periodically out driving the local Sheriff. So how did an 80-year old former rodeo guy
(still wearing his boots, gun and hat) wind up on a shrimp dock?! Well, his wife said no more bulls or horses. But Tom says that’s okay (with a twinkle in
his eye) because he still has his saddle.
Boat work continued as Chris drilled new deck holes for the windlass and
I dinghied ashore to do a load of laundry.
Phew – that is it for today.
Now back to the windlass replacement
project and straightening up after the passage…and showers for us. It was a bit more drilling and filling with
epoxy on the deck. This two-part epoxy
is quite the science experiment. Once it
kicks it generates A LOT of heat. I
placed the plastic cup of kicked epoxy in a metal bowl with water but it still
became a smoking vesuvious.
There are leaves on the trees and no sign that hurricane Irma passed through
less than six months ago (that devastation is, sadly, concentrated in the
middle Keys). Yes, even the chickens are
still roaming around and pecking the ground.
We look forward to settling into Key West with manageably sized boat
projects and time to explore this zany, creative, colorful place. Off we go!
Erin’s
Pinwheel Roll-Up Appetizers
½
cup deli ham, chopped
8
oz cream cheese, softened
½
cup cheddar cheese, grated
½
teaspoon garlic powder
4,
8” tortillas
Sprinkle
of fresh basil (optional)
Jet
Tila’s Perfect Fried Rice
Ingredients
Rice
3 tbsp cooking
oil
4-6 garlic cloves,
coarsely chopped
2 eggs, lightly
beaten
4 cups day
old rice, long grain or jasmine
1/2 tsp salt
1-2 tbsp thin
soy sauce
1 tbsp oyster
sauce
1/2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp white pepper
2-3 green onions,
chopped
Chicken
& Marinade
3-4 oz. chicken,
sliced for stir fry
1 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vegetable oil
pinch of salt
Directions
1)
Combine
chicken marinade in a small bowl and reserve.
2)
In
a large skillet, heat oil until a wisp of white smoke appears. Add the eggs and
lightly scramble until just set.
3)
Stir
in the chicken and garlic cook for about 2 minutes, until chicken is almost
cooked through.
4)
Fold
in rice pressing down in small circles to separate rice grains. Add salt, thin
soy sauce, Oyster sauce, and sugar. Continue to fold for about a minute or two.
Don't be afraid to scrape rice stuck to the bottom of the pan. Cook until rice
absorbs the sauces and is slightly crisp on the edges.
5)
Fold
in green onions and white pepper, cook for an additional minute. Serve
immediately.
Mexican
Shepherd’s Pie
(serves 4)
1lb
hamburger
1
packet taco seasoning
1
can corn, drained
1
can red or black beans, rinsed and drained
1
packet instant potatoes
1
cup cheddar cheese, grated (or more – as you like)
1
(4oz) can green chiles or jalapenos (depending on your spice preference)
1)
Brown
hamburger and season with taco seasoning packet per packet instructions. Set aside.
2)
Hydrate
potatoes per packet instructions. Goose
flavor with cheddar cheese, peppers and whatever else you like.
3)
Layer
9x13 casserole: taco seasoned hamburger, corn, beans and potatoes. Add more cheese sprinkled evenly on top
(optional).
4)
Bake
at 350 degrees F for approximately 30 minutes until heated through and lightly
browned.