Sometimes, you measure the days by the number of projects you get done.

Ann cleaned the cabinet in the bathroom which had flooded-probably with rainwater, but we’re not sure yet-then made a great cabbage salad and fresh cookies for our dinner out (more on that in a bit)-so technically there were more than two boat projects, but…whatever…

My contribution was that I found a loose bolt on the alternator, just by a chance look in the engine compartment. Could have been a big problem down the road, now averted. I also fixed the anchor winch. When we went to use it yesterday, it was frozen. We hadn’t touched it in a week or two and it wouldn’t budge. I had visions of broken chains inside it-and since it’s completely sealed, there’s no fixing something like that. I put down the anchor hand over hand, but that was in light air. Started taking it apart today and got to the “gypsy” which is the part the chain rides on. I thought, “That doesn’t look right” since there was another part embedded in it and looked at the mechanical drawing in my equipment binder and found there’s a part called a “cone” that is the thing the brake compresses that stops the chain from going out. OK, thought I, I’ll get a pick and try and dig around the outside. Very careless moments later, I managed to gouge myself with a rusty pick. Since we’re in the tropics where a lot of heebie jeebies can form on deep cuts, I actually deep cleaned the cut with soap, then with an antiseptic pad, then added some antibacterial cream and a band aid. Finally I covered the whole thing with a good dose of duct tape which is my usual first line solution.

Anyway, after the pick issue, I went back up and tried the other option. A good rap on the thing with a hammer. The “cone” instantly fell out, almost dropping into 60 feet of water. Whoops! But, solution found. Then I lightly greased everything per the manual and put it all back together. Problem solved. Two boat projects complete, time for a beer.

So that was most of the day. There was also the requisite visiting around the anchorage to chat people up and then we got invited to La Fiesta for dinner. Angelina, David and their daughter Natalie. Delightful people. David is Aussie, Angelina was raised in Portugal, but is an Indonesian mix and Natalie was born in Singapore and has been living on the boat for all of her six years. A delightful little girl. We even got to meet her pet hermit crabs. Dinner was a fantastic Wahoo curry (no it didn’t come from a store) and Ann’s wonderful Thai cole slaw salad (recipe courtesy of Lisa on Orcinius) and chocolate chip cookies a la Joaner (Ann’s sister).