Falcon's Log 38
June 17, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys (Cont.)

It's 1:30 PM and I haven't been off the boat yet. I HAVE been working the huge file system and am nearing an end to that, and
I think I might have found a cure for the consistently failing Lightning AT&T Sierra cellular Internet card. It always seemed to
be overheating so, on a whim, I tried cable-tying it to my old CPU heatsink, as shown below.
So far, it seems to be working fine. There was a little bit of the conductivity glop still on there and it helps with the connection.
For right now, I'm about to take a break from the computer to let everything else cool off.

So, there I was, all set to post up and get off when sure as hell, the internet goes away. Naturally, I'm thinking it's the modem
still overheating or something, but a call to AT&T confirms the service is DOA in my area just now.
June 18, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

The internet went out yesterday afternoon and was still out last night. Right now I'm on line and have updated the sight - at
least, yesterdays post, so far - but my modem is still showing a red light and - oops, there it goes - it no longer sees the
modem - now it sees it again and I'm hooked up - you know what? I don't think they've got the problem fixed yet. It's apt to be
a little flaky for a while. I still have a lot left to do on the drives - small in number but big in size - so I'm going to try posting this
and I'll be back later.

I rowed in and took a walk to Publix where I got split green peas, coffee, whole grain brown rice, dark brown sugar, dried
onion, ground garlic, and a half gallon of green tea with ginseng and honey. It's a treat, cold and sweet. When I got back I
finally finished all the backup work. I think the two backup drives each have 326 Gigs of files. They are duplicates, so if one
just does get into crack and O-D's, the other should make it. I also have the main onboard active backup drive clean and
formatted so I can continue to clear the C drive and store the stuff on this one, prior to sorting it and filing it on the two backup
drives. I haven't been doing this in the past, which is why the job of cleaning up the backups takes two or three days.

I stopped into the AT&T store on the way to Publix to sit in the cold air conditioning and finally talk with a guy who knew less
about AT&T than me. It was a fun and coooool visit that did nothing but cool me off. They weren't even aware that their
internet was pooched yesterday. They were delighted to find out the reason they were unable to connect new users' laptops
was because there was nothing to connect to. Yeah, that's the crew I want holding my lifeline when I'm dangling from a cliff.
Thank God for loafers and Velcro sneakers or those dudes would be barefoot.
The internet signal is back to full strength and speed
and I can finally just slip the modem heatsink on the
porthole lip and monitor it from the chair.

Tomorrow will be a sewing and laundry day - and that
special day when I pay the next months rent. I'll also add
more loads to my laundry card. You pay for loads at the
front desk and they add them to a 'credit card' that you
swipe through a money grubber on the machine. I know
it probably isn't really called a money grubber, but I don't
know the real name so I'll just call it what it does. Small
machines; $2 per load to wash and the same to dry.
Luckily there's no dirt in Florida so we get to wear our
clothes longer. Speaking of which, I need to stop into K
Mart, just the other side of Publix, and pick up a half
dozen or so new pairs of shorts. I was thinking about
going down to the Salvation Army Store in the other
direction, but Kim said the prices there were too high, so
I thought I'd try K Mart first.
June 19, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

This will be a bit of a busy day with sewing, laundry and bill paying, plus a few other things on the list that'll be getting done
as well. It clouded up last evening well before sunset and I had no thoughts of trying to get a sunset picture, but all of a
sudden the inside of the cabin lit up with a bright orange glow and I took a couple of shots. One is the of the two light patches
that illuminated the fans, and the other is why. The sun found a single slot to peek through just before sinking out of sight.
I am starting a pot of Pinto beans for lunch and filling the dinghy with things to go ashore. In a short while I'll row in and get
started.

It's now 5:40 PM and I'm just getting back to the boat. The dinghy was so full of stuff heading in that I was just a bit worried
about it sinking, either when I stepped aboard, or on the way in. Truth was, however, that the stuff in the boat wasn't heavy,
just bulky. I paid my rents and got the okay from the guy behind the counter that when I came in to pay the locker rent on the
first of the month, that he would pro-rate the monthly mooring rent for the end of June and let me pay that as well, then I
would be able to pay both rents on the first of the month, just when my check comes in. Suits me to a 'T'.

I decided to lace the edges of the intermediate and forward shades together to save time and money. The problem was,
when I dug out my small grommets, I was about 20 short. I took a walk down to Home Depot with Bob and we talked about his
impending departure to Corpus Christy, Texas. He has two crew flying in and will be here for about one more week waiting
for them. When we got to Home Depot I found the grommets, but they had to be purchased with the little tools - once again *
now I have about 8 sets of them - and I could only get 24 grommets. The secret of high grommet sales is that they
deliberately short you at least 10% to 20% of the little washers that are required for each grommet. I would think this was an
accident of manufacture, but it is so consistently true - as in, every freaking package, count them sometime - I do - that I know
it to be a sales tool to increase volume. That packages will say '24 grommets', which they have, but they are short some of
the backing washers so at least 4 or 5 of the grommets are useless. The best way to get them is order bulk online, but who
needs that many grommets?

When we got back, my laundry was done so I folded it and stashed it in my locker and we went across the street to the
'Stuffed Pig' and had a sandwich and Key Lime pie for lunch. It was very good.

After more talk in the big room, I went back to the work area and started on the canvas. I finally got everything done and got
back to the boat at about 5:15, and after opening everything up, I hung the shades to get a look at them. I like it. I'd show you,
except that I left my camera in the locker and I'm too played out to row back in for it. Tomorrow, I promise. It looks real good.

Now I have to clean up and make the bed with new 'summer linen' and cook supper. The Pinto beans I boiled this morning
are all swelled up like Groober's Goiter and I just lit the fire under them again. It looks like I get about a week, maybe a little
more, out of one of those 1 pound bottles of propane, but it does work excellent and I love it. I added chopped onions, sea
salt, ground garlic, and a touch of fish sauce to the beans. I think they will need to cook for about 40 minutes to be ready to
eat. I'm getting used to this. I really liked the rice I made the other day as well. Just whole grain brown rice with fish sauce.
June 20, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

We haven't had much for rain lately and the forward shade has a couple of hundred little holes in it, so I'm still wondering how
that aspect is going to play out. I'll come up with the right fix soon enough and take care of the issue anyway. Like, today
when I go in to get the camera, I'll set up at the table and make a small sandwich bags worth of tiny circular patches of the
same blue cloth. I should also price out Sunbrella to get an idea how much I will need to complete everything new in a year or
so, plus sail covers and foredeck sailbags for the jibs. I'll be making the new style of sail covers that act as lazy jacks and are
modeled after Doyle's 'Stack Pack'.

Because I don't have the camera but always like to have pictures, I'll post some ancient shots from the time before time. (I just
watched Lord of the Ring)
Above are shots of me standing on a snowbank with our old family camp in the White Mountains of New Hampshire in the
background. To the right is my first Roadracer. It was a converted Kawasaki 175 dirt bike, and it did very well. Below are a
Yamaha 650 twin that I bought new and eventually chopped. It had a great engine, but handled like the frame was made of
cooked spaghetti. And the other is a 1974 Harley Super Glide that I loved with a passion usually reserved for sex.
And that's the kind of cameras we had in those days. Hard to believe, isn't it?

Above average wind made the row in and out only a bit harder, but I got the stuff out of the locker and made at least a couple
of hundred of those little blue Sunbrella dots in 7/16 inch and 1/2 inch sizes. It's almost 2 PM now. While on shore I got a call
from Don and Barb, who are on their way to a spot to move the boat that is about in the middle of the state, up the
Okeechobee River to a place near the Glades Boatyard. They have decided to take safe haven and wait out the hurricane
season rather than take a chance that might result in their having to desperately dodge a stampeding hurricane.

I got a couple of pictures of the boat and sunshades on the way back, and then some from the deck. I think I might lower the
front shade to just below the forward boom and incorporate a steel cable in it for support. That will mean narrowing the thing
a bit, but compared to the other work I've already done on it, that's easy. It's coming along, and it's very comfortable on board.
There is still a lot to do as far as finishing it - you can see the loose corners on the aft edge of the intermediate shade - but it's
coming into shape. It has to be easy to put up and take down. For right now, that lacing is a bit of a pain, But I'll eventually
replace it with a zipper and Velcro. For now, it just has to work and it does.
June 21, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

Early this morning we had a real high gust of wind come through, then several more of lessening intensity for the next 20
minutes or so. Right now, there is thunder rumbling around to the Southeast and it looks like it might be a patchy weather
day. It's just about time for me to be bringing the two 5 gallon water jugs in with me every trip to refill the forward tanks. I've
completely emptied the starboard tank and am working on the port. So far, I have not used the aft tanks at all. They have
remained empty since I drained them at Rivertown. Also, I only partially filled the port forward tank because I've been under
the impression that it might leak. I'm pretty sure it does if filled all the way up, which would indicate the top fitting. I haven't
attended to it because it means - once again - lifting the floor.

I also need to get some hose at Home Depot to complete the installation of the shower sump pump and I have to do
something about the much ballyhooed bilge 'dryer' pump that runs like a scalded ass ape, but no longer pumps. Those pumps
are notorious for getting a nose hair - or some similarly giant chunk of debris - in one of the valves and failing completely until
it is disassembled and manually cleaned. I may wrap a bit of no-see-um screen over the tip of the pick-up tube to prevent a
re-occurrence, if that is the problem.

So, guess what? For a couple of weeks I've been cleaning my fuel tank holds, constantly checking for diesel leaks and
inspecting everything I could for the constant whiffs of diesel fuel I was getting near the companionway. Understandable
since I had the diesel leak in the storm on the way down. So, the big power catamaran next to me with the 4 55 gallon drums
of diesel (empty) on deck, went away for part of a day about 5 days ago and disposed of the drums somewhere. He probably
left them wherever he filled the ships tanks. Now, no more diesel smell on my boat. Things that make you go, hmmm.

The wind has suddenly picked up again and there are big dark clouds all around us. Time to close up the boat. Be back later.

The rain has come and gone and we are once again warm and steamy. It was cool and breezy for a while there, though it
required keeping the boat closed up for most of it.

I am still working on updating the huge volumes of backups and archives. Today I've been working on the items specific to
this website and the writing. Some time ago I noticed a couple of Google hits for 'Orion's Child' and 'Orion Child'. It never
really concerned me because I'd only 'tossed' that name at the big Sci Fi novel that heads my list and never truly considered it
as the final title of the book. I've always been waiting for something more catchy or unique or memorable to float to the top.
Nothing has yet, but I've decided to remove the entire 'Books' section from the site for now. The 'Orion's Child' Google hits
refer to a Sci Fi e-zine, or internet magazine, that began life in 1984 as a typical paper serial, went defunct and has been
revived as an e-zine. It was almost interesting until I scanned the website and found it plastered with scantily dressed young
women whose sole purpose in life is to attract 12 and 13 year-old boys to the site. I'd like to have a couple of posters, but the
site misses me by a mile.

Orion Child is a Facebook page and a blog and the personal handle of at least one internet socializer. I didn't investigate that
any further. Of course, I have complete back-ups of everything I've removed from the site and can easily replace it if and
when the time comes. My vision of the future, however, tells me I will be developing all new covers and names and a new
style for, not only the Book section, but the entire website. To endure is to evolve and I will approach the marketing and sales
of the books with the best technique I can muster at that time. The name of the site will remain the same. The format and
appearance will change.
June 22, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

Trying to update the website last night with the old OS was a long and tedious bout with frustration. I finally just pulled the
plug on the thing and went to bed. I tried again this morning with W7 and am checking the online site page by page to see
how it is. So far, it looks good.

Well, I just checked every page and it looks okay to me. If anyone sees anything wrong, please be sure to let me know so I
can fix it. I will be trying to get Corel loaded today and some other things. I'm not sure if I need the Norton Anti-Virus with W7.
I'll have to try to find out. I'll be back later. It's a little gusty outside and I'm not relishing the row in.

The Corel went right in. Awesome. I also discovered I had to get the Norton Anti-Virus installed and have done that, as well
as Acrobat 6 and the HP printer/copier/scanner thing. I am now loading Paragon Partition Manager - a great program I have
used in various incarnations for many years - and will install Irfanview and some more Adobe stuff - if I can.

So far I have only been unable to load Microsoft Office and I'm just not concerned with it. I'm using Sun Open Office and it
easily converts all Word files to OO (Open Office). The last incarnation of my manuscripts is to Adobe In Design anyway, so
Word is not a problem to be losing. Besides, I think I have an older copy of it somewhere that will work if I really need it.

It's 11 AM and I'm hungry.
June 23, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

It has been a long day of wins and losses in computerland, but it has to be done sooner or later. There is a significant
learning curve on W7 and I'll get through it one way or another. I also loaded Linux Ubuntu on another drive and I'm learning
that as well. It will be my main system, with Windows remaining as the website and web access tool, but all serious work
being done on Linux where security is a far smaller risk than Windows.

This is pretty late for getting posted the first time today, but I did something in my previous incarnation of Windows that made
it impossible to save posts to the site - for some ridiculous reason. I actually had to start all over again for the 4th time today. I
am winning, though and prefer the mental stimulus of computer work to that of learning French. (They say learning a foreign
language holds off dementia for a few more years.)
June 24, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

By downloading the site from the Internet this time, instead of simply loading where I'd always placed it before, I discovered
that W7 places things in different areas than previous versions of Windows. Well, Vista probably did the same thing, but who
wants a Don Knotts fastball when you've got Nolan Ryan right there? There is still the problem of the spell-checker. It seems
to me that I am being required to add the same items to the open dictionary that I added yesterday.

It's 8:53 AM and I've already been at it for a while, but I now think I have the thing in good shape and knowing the new
motherboard will be coming in another week or so makes me wonder just how far I should go with this. The important part is
in getting the Linux completely usable and being able to migrate back and forth with ease.

I can see I have to get more pictures here or speak in nautical terms or risk a dwindling readership. I wouldn't blame anyone
anyway - I hardly read the thing myself. The wind is still blowing pretty good out there, and always from the East and South. I
wonder if that's some element of 'Trade Winds', or are we still too far North for that. It seems to me there is a passage from
the Bahamas to the Virgins that is referred to as the 'Thorny Path' because you're always going into headwinds and the seas
they drive. Most people go down to Luperon and crawl the coastline Eastward between bouts of wind and waves.
The row in and back was even worse than I'd anticipated. It
felt a little desperate at times, with waves rocking the boat,
spray coming aboard and the only way to make headway was
to angle 45 degrees into the wind and row like hell. I almost
missed Falcon coming back out and had to bear down and
drive for her. At least it's not cold or rainy.

We are getting some occasional sprinkles, but not much to
speak of. I'm going to have to stay off the computer for much
of the time for the next few days. All this time with everything
lit up has taken a bit of a toll on the batteries. Yesterday, to
make matters worse, (I just had to try it), I had the TV on
behind me for most of the day. I sometimes do run everything
if I'm waiting for an hour or more for huge files to transfer.

The flag is at half-mast because the weak-ass flagpole was
falling down, not because Rush Limbaugh ran out of drugs.
Most of the moorings here are empty. A lot of people have taken down their sun shades, but some who haven't have paid the
price. The light gray ones on the little Catamaran are shredding. This wind is forecast for at least another week. Suits me - I
have enough food and stove fuel to last a month.
June 25, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

There was very little wind when I woke up at 6 AM this morning. Thinking I might be able to row in for more water - I got ten
gallons yesterday and would like to get another 30 or so - I stuck my head up out of the center hatch to see if it really was
calm. A gust of wind hit me so hard I looked like Joan Rivers with a fresh face lift. It was horrifying and panicked seagulls flew
away screaming. So, it's still windy.
Last nights sunset was really not much to speak of until the very end when light suddenly shone between the layers of clouds
after the sun was below the horizon. Nearly the entire sky lit up, but it was darker than usual and I tried with and without the
flash to see how it would render. The real scene lies between these two automatic exposures. The first is too bright and the
second too dark. I'm going to have to take my son Matt's advice and learn how to go into manual mode and set my own F
stop and exposure. I am also looking at new cameras. Not for right now, but in a month or two. Matt recommends a Sony unit
that produces exceptional panoramic shots that I think would be great for these sunset and other outdoor photos.
I've become much more familiar with both Ubuntu and W7.
For the first time, I have EVERYTHING in Ubuntu working to
my satisfaction, and I've found the fragile zone on W7. Yes,
that's right, I've gutted, skewered and roasted the FOURTH
version of W7 this morning and have been rebuilding it for
the past two hours. In the process I sent a 500 Gig hard drive
to float listlessly in limbo for over an hour, but finally figured a
way to snag it with a software glitch and haul it back to life.

I just lost the mouse. It started getting flakey and extremely
slow. Naturally, I had a spare and it works fine. To the right is
a little boat that this guy has tied up to his big boat and never
takes out - except when the wind is howling. Then, he motors
it upwind all the way across Boot Key Harbor, then sails hell
bent for leather all the way downwind, then goes back and
does it again. A lot like sledding in the winter up North. It's
pretty colorful and I like it.
June 26, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

The wind is down a bit today. It has been a solid 20 knots for a week now with only small periods of lesser winds, but today it
is maxing out at 15 with more stretches of lighter stuff. Don't get me wrong about one thing - it has been VERY comfortable on
board the boat without having to run any fans or anything else. It really has been great. Some folks have hinted at selling me
their old or unused outboard motors, but I'm not there yet. I sort of like the solitude. Those people who were sailing their
dinghies around have temporarily thrown in the towel. The water is warm and easy to swim in, but still, taking two dunkings
just trying to get to the showers seems a little counterproductive.

The computer is all fixed up again and I'm liking it very much. W7 is really just a turbo version of Vista, but it seems okay. It
does much better than my previous setup, and the Ubuntu 10.4 is outstanding. I got the 64 bit version because, 'why not? I
don't expect it to work anyway', but it is a vast improvement over previous versions and it works great. Of course, I'm going to
have to go through a bunch of this again when the new motherboard gets here, but all the learning curves with the newer
software have been accomplished and I expect the new build to be fast and easy. I will still need to get a new mouse - next
month - and I'll probably do a bit of 'internal enhancement' work in the case before buttoning up the whole thing (extra cooling
issues), but those are minor things and don't worry me.

I am getting much more into the writing and setting up for it, as well as a lot of online research to get back up to speed on a
few issues. I'm going to row in and take a walk to Publix in a bit to pick up a loaf of bread and some peanut butter and
marmalade for snacks.

I put 10 gallons of water into the forward starboard tank and filled the jugs again as soon as I got in. I went into the cruisers
lounge and found Bob and his fly-in crew from Texas. There was supposed to be a woman as well - Bob was really kinda
hoping she'd make it, but she never showed. Anyway, I thought Bob should have taken the Eastern route back along the
coast, but he kept insisting on crossing toward the Yucatan and heading to the Port Lavacca or Corpus Christy area in one
long offshore shot. After waiting and planning and fretting until he finally got some crew help - one guy - a big storm slapping
the Yucatan around made the decision for him. He's taking the Eastern route and following the Florida Coast to Mobile Bay,
then Louisiana and finally on to Texas. He may have to degrease the boat when he gets home. The truth is, he would have
been home two weeks ago if he'd gone alone and followed that route in the first place. Of course, Monday morning
quarterbacks always call the right plays.

After saying goodbye and good luck, I walked up to Publix and got the bread and fillings, got caught in a shower and had to
wait under a tree for ten minutes, then walked back in a perfect Southern Florida steam bath as the rain baked off the hot
streets. The row back was straight into the wind all the way, but with only 15 knots of breeze there was no chop and not
much resistance.

I'm getting ready to epoxy, screw and fiberglass down the edges of the cabin sole so filling the water tanks will no longer
cause the floorboards to rise up, like they have been doing. Getting this done will also mean I'll be able to sort out the final
storage solutions inside the boat and clean up a lot of the last remaining clutter. I know I should be doing some sewing, but
rowing in and out in the high winds is really a little more fun than I'm up for first thing in the morning.

I called Tiger Direct last night because the order I placed on the 23rd - whatever day that was (based on whatever day this is)
- was still just sitting there as an 'estimate' waiting for the salesgirl (Dee from Miami) to ship it out. The new sales dude sent
me right back to her and she put me on hold for 10 minutes, or, until I hung up and called again. This time I got another sales
guy and quickly told him NOT to send me back to her - she's obviously too busy screwing up someone else's order just now -
just, please, see what he could do about moving it along. He says, 'No sweat! No shipping for the inconvenience and you'll
still have some store credit left for later and it will be shipped out immediately'. Bingo. Squeaky wheel gets the grease.

I also got the $100 rebate for my AT&T Lightning modem and immediately applied it to my phone bill. Another sweet break
that will make this coming month much better when thinking about Limo rides, globe-trotting to Paris and steak and lobster
dinners. I still can't do any of that, but I'm CLOSER and that's the point.

I'm out of aspirin and have a pretty good headache, so I'm going to row back in and cross the street to the Pakistani
convenience bazaar. I'll be back later.

Got some pain relief and got to watch a little golf on one of the lounge TV's. The only match I could find was the LPGA where
Christy Kerr has a five shot lead on the field. I really don't care if it's male or female golf - they all play so much better than me
that it's great to watch. Someday I'd love to be able to play twice a day every day until I'm bored with it. Honestly, I have no
idea if it would be a long time or a day and a half.

Hey, it's Saturday. I found out watching the golf. It's the third round. I also just downloaded and set up the latest version of
Google Earth and guess what?!! My boat and Ken and Sandy's boat, and Eddie and Sandy's boat, and RJ's boat, and all the
rest are now shown in the Seafood Shack Marina!! A place in history, you know, for a year or so. It was taken when Roger
was running Mahina La out of there and living on board the Hunter.
June 27, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

I only got moderate and temporary relief from the headache yesterday and it came back full force last night and pushed me
out of bed at 4 AM this morning. I will need to go back to Publix and get a 50 pack of the BC powder that works as good as
anything I can take. There are some allergy medications that work well, but at a serious risk to my liver - a risk I am not
prepared to take. The only way I have of keeping the Hep C in check is to maintain a healthy liver until such time as a cure
arrives. If it never does, well, it'll still be my best defense against the disease. Thanks again, VA.

Christy Kerr now has an 8 shot lead over the field. It's a very 'Tiger-esque' romp. I hope I get to see some of it today.

I got the aspirin and took it and tried to lie down and ease the headache, but not much luck. It just makes me sick to my
stomach and doesn't have much effect. The only thing to do is wait it out. It usually only lasts for a day or two, then fades
away for a few more weeks. I just have to keep up with eating and drinking whether I feel like it or not. It's 12:30 now and
cloudy and breezy, but not as bad as the past few days.

Donny Skype-called and we talked for an hour and a half. Sometime during the conversation, my headache went away. I
watched the end of 'Citizen X' - an awesome film - and - - - Holy crap! Christy Kerr won the LPGA Major by 12 strokes! Talk
about Tiger-esque! What a romp! The LPGA hasn't seen that kind of dominance since Annika Sorenstam was in her peak.
She once shot a 59! . . . . . . . Where was I? . . . . . Oh, yeah. I just turned on the Golf Channel and watched the leader board
rather than row in only to discover too many people watching Andy Griffith and Bonanza reruns from 40 - 50 years ago. Just
as well. There were only two holes left when I was ready to go in anyway.
June 28, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

It's beautiful, coolish morning with a slight breeze and horizon to horizon cloud cover. The sun is just beginning to burn
through the low clouds to the East and it looks like it might be a nice day. I no longer have a headache and slept well until
about 5:30. I did get out just as dawn was lightening the sky and tossed the camera around for a few shots.
The dawn wind has picked up and I'll see what it looks like at about 8:30 or 9 AM. I should go in to get more water and to cut
down a sail or two and get to sewing new seams on them. For right now, I'll be working on the writing.

I went in and cut down the foresail to the right size for Falcon. The old (but brand new) Bahamian Sloop mainsail, once 400
square feet, is now about 200 square feet, And I don't think it will be very hard to complete. Next, I'm going to cut down the
Bahamian Sloop jib to fit Falcon, then I'll get these sewn up and tried out. I want to be sure these are done and done right
before I tackle Falcon's Mainsail. It isn't quite big enough, and unlike the other two sails that all I have to do is trim them down
and do the edges, I will have to add a bunch of heavy cloth to the main, and I may have to make some serious adjustments to
it's shape and draft.

The main that I'm starting with is Donny's old mainsail from Dulcinea. It is a heavy and bulky sail and has definitely seen
better days. My thoughts are that I will know better what I must do in reclaiming the majority of the old main and adding to it
and enhancing it so it will do the job on Falcon for a while, AFTER I complete the other two, easier sails. You have to
remember that almost without exception, every 'specialty' job like this that I jump into on this project is a 'first' for me. It will be
my first real foray into making a suit of sails for a boat. But, like everything else, I'll just do it and make it work. If it comes out
REALLY bad, I'll find some way to blame BP or Dick Cheney.

I've done a lot of work on one of the novels today and - I suppose a thing is good for all of us - I can't get into any real talk
about them. There is a peculiar element about a story in formation that makes it adventurous and exciting as it percolates
between ones ears and their fingertips, an excitement that drives the writer - and hopefully, the reader, later on - that drains
away like sand in an hourglass if the reader talks about the project. After all, the entire notion of writing a novel is to tell a
story, and once it's been told, it's sort of 'over'. It's best if the writer only tells it once.

Another sad thing about writers and their stories was revealed in a meeting with Robin Cook at a party in Naples some ten or
so years ago. It was just a regular local party and he was a 'drift in' like most of the other people. If you remember, Robin
Cook is the author of 'Coma' and all those other medical mystery stories. He has since died. Anyway, nice guy, great guy to
talk to, very friendly, and he starts telling you about the new book he's writing - - and he keeps telling you - - and explains
things - - again - - and again - - and you look around the party and realize that everyone else there ALREADY did their time
standing here and they are quick to divert their eyes so you can't make believe they said something that could give you and
opening to escape - - and it seems like midnight but the sun is just setting and you think maybe the pork is bad, or you could
fake it and make a getaway - - NO!! It's Robin Cook! He'll know you're faking - - you're doomed. Do your time. Take it like a
man and never, ever, walk up to Robin Cook and say 'Hi' again. I just don't want anyone to relate cautionary tales like that
about me. I mean, more than they already do. There's nothing wrong with a little of that. Everybody has something. When I
was a kid it was my long list of trouble with the Police and how I was the kid your mother told you not to play with. Being
potentially boring is several rungs up the ladder from that, so I'm good with it.

Espin just called. He and Barb got a sudden surprise from her laptop when it suddenly went black and will not come back at
all. They did the battery removal thing and multiple reboots and had no luck. I recommended that he also pull the Ram, the
hard drive and the motherboard time battery and allow about 15 minutes for all micro capacitors to drain flat, then try it one
more time. If that doesn't work, it's off to the geek desk at Circuit City or something.
June 29, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

I want to get into the work area early today and see what I can accomplish on the sails. A number of things concerning the
assembly of component pieces to the sails and getting them fed through the sewing machine has been occurring to me since
I started working on them again yesterday. Probably the single biggest problem has been the application of the huge
grommets at the corners. These are done by sailmakers on big presses and I neither have one, nor am I able to get access to
one, and I'm damn sure not going to carry a sail onto the bus and take a three hour trip somewhere, counting on someone to
do it while I wait so I can get out of making two trips for every sail.

The answer is to hand sew bronze or stainless steel rings into position and splay several wraps of webbing into the body of
the sail to distribute the load. It will take more time, but it can still be done effectively by myself with the resources I have at
hand. I'll remember to bring the camera in today and get some shots of how effectively I'm hogging huge areas of the work
shop.

A big sail repair project has out-hogged me and there has been no way for me to get anything done today - well, except that I
DID get the jib cut down and ready to sew. I forgot the camera, so I came back out to the boat, ate, and went back in with the
camera. By then the other project was under way and I was out for the day. On the bright side, the golf channel played a
re-run of the LPGA fourth round and I got to see every minute of it. I sat there with a guy named Terry who is about 75 and
has a 38 year old girlfriend from Thailand. She is quite cute and it's oner of those things that makes you say hmmm. I also
spent at least an hour talking with both Terry and a guy named Dwayne, who used to live in the Haverhill, Plaistow, Kingston
area where I spent so much of my youth. We had a pretty good time jawing until I came back to the boat. I spent about ten
minutes here before I realized I'd forgotten my camera in the work space and high-tailed it back there for a second round of
'how to mend sails' with 4 youngsters from an Islander 37 that has come from Texas. They have their hands full right now. I
gave them an extra old sail I have no use for and a piece of new sailcloth that is perfect for their boat but too light for mine.
The extra stuff just keeps on finding it's way out of my custody.

So, three trips in and out with the dinghy today, and the wind blowing pretty good, but not 20 knots - maybe 15 or so. I AM
kicking the crap out of my oarlocks. They are absolutely wearing out. I'm going to have to get some much better ones soon. I
had to repair the set I have now today and almost lost one on the second trip back. I have $20 in gift certificates for West
Marine, and that's just right up the street. Maybe I'll check them out.
June 30, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

It rained a little just before sunset, then the horizon brightened as the sun tried to break through. I too the opportunity to try
something Matt is trying to teach me about the digital cameras and took several shots. The first is without the flash, the
second is with it, and the third is with the flash opened, but my finger blocking it. One of these days - maybe even today - I'm
going to dig out the cameras Owners Manual and figure out hoe to do what he's been talking about, which is to use the
manual modes and force the aperture and speed I want when taking these shots.
I still have one more day to wait out for cash in the account, so there'll be no walk to West Marine or Publix today. I'll go in to
the showers and see what's going on, and I may go over to Home Depot and pick up a 1 pound bottle of propane to cook with
(I think my last bottle is about to sputter out), but other than that, today will be a 'work on the writing' day.

The kids are still working doggedly, though amateurishly, at repairing the shredded jib. They at least do have the sense to try
to make it exactly as it was before flogging itself to death. I suppose it will last until the wind blows hard and that is all they are
prepared to provide. They will learn more later on down the road. Experience is the best teacher, you know, unless you're on
dope. Then it's just something you laugh at and never really figure out.

I'm going to row in once more and take a walk to Home Depot. Be back later.

I got two small bottles of propane for under $6 and came right back, forgetting to check for oarlocks. I watched a half hour of
sports news and returned to the boat, then made a big pot of split green peas, lentils and black-eyed peas.

The sun hardly came out today but I still got 107 AH. It thundered some, but so far, no rain. It is now 8 PM and I'm about to do
a little computer stuff and watch the sucky movie 'Doom'. The one good thing about the whole movie - which was almost
completely shot in pitch black darkness so they could use crappy sets and ridiculous 'monster' make-up - is that the 'hot' girl
in the movie is played by none other than Rosemund Pike, the strikingly beautiful actress who starred as 'Jane Bennett' in the
latest version of Jane Austen's 'Pride and Prejudice', with Keira Knightly. The woman is a stunner, but even her great looks
can not save the lame film.

I hope those kids finish their sail by tomorrow so I can get back to work. They are lame, so I'm sure they believe my visits are
to admire the young girls (I truly WOULD be in sad psychological condition if that were true) and not because I am
increasingly anxious to see them vacate my damn work spot. Just get OUT! Out, out! Damned Spot. . . Shakespear . . . I got
culture.
The first shot, taken by just turning the camera on
and point and shoot, still has the best detail and
clarity and is the best looking of the three shots. That
certainly may not always be the case, but it is here. I
think the slower shutter speed accounts for it and
slow shutter speeds are something that you can't
often get away with when taking pictures from the
deck of a boat.

I can't help but wonder how the kids made out with
their sail repair project last night. They seemed
insistent on staying up all night and working in the
parking lot, but I'm sure the rain might have altered
those plans. They were using a borrowed, brand new
looking, Sailrite sewing machine, and if it had been
mine there is no way they would have had it out in the
rain. I tried to convince them to just pay the $5 and
leave the project all set up in the shop for the night,
but they were pretty sure they wouldn't do that.
July 1, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

The first month of the dreaded hurricane season is gone and we are now getting ready for the 4th of July. I say 'we' almost as
if I care and if there is some good golf in TV I might even go in and masquerade as someone celebrating, but actually, of all
the 'ho hum', 'stay up late and watch the same things I've already seen a thousand times before' holidays, the 4th of July
ranks as a close second to New Years Eve - amateur night, if you will. That special evening when too many people stay up
later than they should, drink more than they should, then drive home when they should be in a taxicab. I know. I did it and I
shouldn't have. I could have gone without it and missed nothing of use or importance. Still, if you have kids you have to bring
them out to these things. They just love Parades and Fireworks.

I'm counting on getting a lot done today. The last of my debts will be paid off and my payment date will be adjusted in the
marina office, as well as my locker rental getting paid. I will take my two West Marine $10 gift certificates to the store and get
a new Battery Switch with them. They will bring it down to less than half price and I'll get the battery bank back to where it
should be. I'll also be able to once again isolate every battery and allow them to deep cycle effectively and independently.

There will be quite a bit of walking today so I'll be starting early, probably to West Marine first. I may get a pair of oarlocks
there if they stock the galvanized steel units for about $5 each. I'll want to replace them with bronze later on, but no way can I
spring for the $28 each price tag just now. To save a few steps, I'll have the envelopes all addressed and ready with me
when I get to the Post Office to get the last two money orders. That way I can just step aside, fill out the MO's and stuff them
and mail them, all in the luxury of air conditioning. Once my business at the front desk of the Marina Office is concluded, I'm
done the essentials for the month and it's time to hover around any space-hogs in the workshop.

The kids are still in the workspace today rinking that poor sail into a cocked hat. It doesn't matter - I can wait. I walked about a
mile West to West Marine - hey, I just had de javu or something - and got the battery switch for $21 and 2 $10 gift slips, then
walked back past the marina and went to the Post Office, about a mile in the other direction, and got the money orders and
mailed them out. I also stopped at the desk in the cruisers lounge and got my rent adjusted and the storage place paid for
another month. Total expenditures today: about $550, plus, I still have to go on line and pay the rest of my last months phone
bill - about $22. That'll happen in a minute. Some time around the 15th of the month, I'll pay July's phone bill and that will be
the end of the 'tight' times.

I did go into that Salvation Army place on the way to West Marine and check for pants and shorts. $4 and $5 and not a
chance of finding anything I could even wear. I stopped for a while in the lounge and watched some golf, came back to the
boat to eat, then went back and watched some of the tournament Tiger Woods is playing in this weekend. He's not quite
there with his approach shots yet and it's costing him birdies. Still, he's only 3 shots out of 1st place.

The last thing I did before coming back to the boat was to check the package area and I found the new motherboard, so
tomorrow might be a new computer day. We'll see how I feel after posting in the morning. I should also get the new battery
switch installed and start doing individual deep cycling of the batteries again.

It's 5:10 PM and I'm going to start winding down for a while. I might be back later. Oh, by the way, June was the highest traffic
month ever since I started logging traffic in February of 2008. I'd better start getting some books up online pretty soon.

I just tried to get in touch with Chris 'Jammer' Garrett without success. For this reason, if I don't hear from him in a few days, I
have to remove his links from the Home Page out front. His web site is gone and his Flickr page hasn't been posted to since
October 15th of last year. Too bad. He's a nice guy, but you know, people move on and don't always keep you up to date.
The main reason I have this website - aside form eventually, possibly, selling books from it, is to keep those friends and
family who wonder where I am and what I'm up to, posted.
July 2, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

Any minute now it will be time for me to do what backups need doing, then break down the computer and start all over again,
only this time with a brand new, much updated motherboard. I certainly hope it boots and posts. It would just be so nice to
have that part of a new motherboard work for me. The last two MB's I got from Tiger Direct refused to start. There is a nice
aspect in that they took them back and refunded my money, but all things being equal, I would have preferred that they work
instead.

Tiger apparently missed the cut this weekend. That does relieve me of the burden of having to row in and hog a TV while
waiting impatiently for the kids to finally finish that poor sail and get out of the way. I'll just stay here today and get the battery
switch in and the computer upgraded. Be back later.

The computer didn't work - I'm back with the old setup. It's difficult to say why, but the motherboard would not boot. In fact, as
soon as I turned on the power, it would start beeping incessantly and refuse to light up. I called Tiger Direct and got a
shipping label and a refund and it will be going back on Monday.

It is possible that my old Intel Duo 2 4400 processor or the DDR2 553 Ram is suspect, and I talked with the guy at Tiger
Direct about that, but with the Intel Help Center (it's an Intel MoBo) closed until Monday, there's no way to check it out. I will
send the board back and probably order another just like it, but this time I'll add new Ram and MAYBE a new CPU.
Meanwhile, I still have to install the battery switch and I might even look around at MoBo/CPU packages. Maybe an AMD item.

The battery switch is in and the cycling of the batteries has begun in earnest once again. I will run each battery alone on the
inverter until the inverter starts wailing about low power, then switch to the next battery and put the discharged one in the
queue for recharging. This is the best way to extend the life of these deep cycle batteries.

I hope those kids finish up their sail patching marathon in Marathon (chortle chortle) - you just never get to say 'chortle' any
more - and get out of the work area. So, check it out (I didn't know this), you don't have to be on a mooring ball here. You can
anchor out (if you can find a spot) and just pay a much lower 'Dinghy Fee', and you still get the showers, one pump-out a
week, a parking place, use of the work space, the lounge, the WiFi and TV.

Jammer just called and is on the phone right now. I'll bring you up to speed when he gets off the phone.

We ended up talking for about an hour and a half and it was good to catch up. His mother has just had a nerve 'move'
surgery on her elbow that was giving her a lot of displacement. It seems his young half sister has passed away as a result of
lifestyle. Sad, but not my place to divulge more than that. Chris, himself, is in college and doing well. Job hunting has been
fruitless so he's taking the 'up-training' option a lot of people are doing today. He sort of recommended I give Newegg another
look as far as computer parts, so I just did and found I might be able to get the same components from them as from Tiger
direct, for a little less. The thing is, we're talking $2.24 less on an order of $249.00. Part of my good treatment at Tiger Direct
might well come from the fact that I have dealt almost exclusively with them for the past 10 or more years. Being a regular
customer that has spent some thousands of dollars over the years might still have a degree of influence that I am not willing
to risk for the price of a small coffee at Starbucks.

I just managed to fit in a latrine call when Espin called. Almost as soon as we started talking, the second battery on the
'discharge' trail went into the tank and the inverter started shrieking. I jumped up and swapped to the 3rd battery, then sat
down and started talking to Espin again. No sooner did my keester hit the cushion than my phone started squeaking like a
little pig with it's nose caught in the garden gate. Dying phone battery. Espin said he'd call back tomorrow morning and here I
am again, back at the computer. I do have a lot of computer work to do about now. Maybe tomorrow it's about time for me to
fire up the engine for an hour or so and whack some jolt back into these batteries. It'll also be good for the engine. And while
it's running, I can practice looking around contemptuously at sailboats with smaller engines. It's a skill with amazingly small
opportunities for use, but there's not much else to do while you're just running the engine.
July 3, 2010 - Moored In Marathon, Florida Keys

Starting very early, probably around 6 AM, I took another run at the new motherboard. It occurred to me that I had 2 different
sets of Ram cards in there at the same time and it might just work if I tried the newest, best set first. Amazingly, it started out
well, but after 6 episodes of loading W7 in various configurations, I threw in the towel. The MoBo will not complete the
installation. Every time, on the very LAST installation reboot, it hangs up and will not go any further. I noticed that my  
GEForce 8600 video card was blistering hot and shut the unit down and removed it, a little worried that it was toasted.
Thinking that might have something to do with it, I plugged into the on-board video and started again with exactly the same
result. So, here I am, once again back on the old MoBo, which, by the way, has been very patient and polite with me,
performing flawlessly every time. You know, except the PCI Buss which is no longer speaking to me.

I will return the motherboard and get a whole new package of MoBo, CPU, RAM, and quite possibly, a new video card and a
CPU fan. We'll see. It might take a little time to do it reasonably. This is working fine for now. I hardly mind having to prime it,
fill the tires, flush the radiator and wash the windows before starting it every morning.

I don't know how this is happening to me, but I must be getting old or something. The years are just flying by. It turns out that
the CPU I've been using for who knows how long, has been out of production for over 4 years. I have 2 different sets of RAM
that are incompatible on the same MoBo, and Fred Flintstone wrote Graffiti on the back of my old MoBo when he threw it
away. Really, I'm a little surprised at how old everything is, but I'm glad my video card survived the incredible heat trip it took,
and the best of my RAM will hold up fine for a while, so when the store credit shows up from the return item, I'll be ordering a
MoBo/CPU combo package and will only need to push another $80 at it to get it. And a new CPU cooling fan.

I went in and watched golf for a while. I kept giving up the TV for short periods because there were three little girls about 8 -
10 years old running around playing and they'd come to the TV area to flop down in the comfy chairs and catch their breath.
I'd switch the channel to that Cable Kids channel and leave to talk with some of the other guys. The golf was okay (oh, yeah,
'Nickelodeon' or something), then when the kids left, I went back and watched more golf. None of these kids have TV on the
boats and I feel too guilty to try to make them watch golf. Even I don't like watching golf, it's just that there's nothing else on.

I ran the engine for a while and I may do it again tomorrow. I'm getting the batteries up to snuff again - - - I think.