"And the Hits Just Keep on Comin'!"

"Tropical Depression Nine" has now become "Tropical Storm Hermine."

New course projections still have it making landfall at or near Carrabelle.

Annie is now stripped of her mainsail with two extra stands in place... all that is left to do is wait and see.

I am a little concerned when she is still 350-400 miles away and we are already getting extreme tides.

Fair seas and God bless!

Foresight is 20/20?

The old saying, "Hindsight is 20/20" is simply another way of saying, "I missed something I should have seen before it happened." At least, that seems to be the truth when I've used that saying.

At 58 years old, I prefer foresight.

"Tropical Depression Nine" has a new flight path as of a few minutes ago, and Carrabelle is smack dab in the middle of that path.

Today, I employed my "Foresight." I went to Home Depot, purchased four building anchors, (you know, the kind they use to strap down mobile homes and storage sheds), drove to the boat, located my hurricane straps that came with the boat, and secured her four corners. The yard is supposed to bring two more stands for Annie this evening, (they are stand poor here because Annie has had only four stands since she arrived here). Once the stands are added, Annie should be adequately propped up and strapped down, (say a prayer, knock on wood, cross your fingers).

"Nine" has the entire Gulf of Mexico to travel, so things could change... for better or worst... yeah, I prefer "Foresight."

Six inches of compacted shells... then hard dirt... Good.

Look close... topside prep has begun aft starboard.

WWL 1335 LBS. Working Weight Load

Definitely need two more stands!

Fair seas and God bless!

Can Annie Dodge Another Bullet?

If you remember, exactly one year ago today, Annie dodged a bullet, Tropical Storm Erika... (click here for that post). The question is, can she do it again?

At this time, the storm does not have a name but is being referred to as, "Tropical Depression Nine." I'm not sure what her name will be if she advances to tropical storm strength, but she is out there and is looking seriously in our direction.

In the meantime, we'll continue to work on prepping Annie for her topside paint, bottom paint, and re-splash.

Not in the center of the projected track, but still too close.

This track is almost a direct hit.

Fair seas and God bless!

Lagun Table and Reefer Work

Today I was able to get two projects done... The Lagun Table Mount install and Reefer rework.

First project, The Lagun Table Mount. This was an easy project compared to a lot of other boat projects I've done on Annie. Everything I needed to do the job was in the Lagun package, (with the exception of the table top which came in via, you guessed it, Amazon).

I decided to go with a Bamboo Table Top that matched my Reefer top. (Plus, at $48 bucks, it was easy to handle on my meager budget).

The whole project took less than an hour and I'm already in love with the functionality of the Lagun Table Top Mount.

Check out the install pics...

Second project, Reefer Work. Now, for those of you who are not familiar with nautical terms, the "Reefer" is the Refrigeration Unit. (I'm not sitting around the boat smoking funny cigarettes).

When I installed my refrigeration unit, (click here), I basically divided the box in half; half of the ice box was freezer and the other half was refrigeration. The freezer section contained the evaporator plate and the divider in the icebox had 1" holes drilled in it allowing some of the icebox side of the box's cold air to flow into the refrigeration side - one side froze and the other side was cold but not freezing. I said all that to say this... I discovered I did not need much freezer space I as I thought I would but I definitely needed more refrigeration space; hence, the project.

Using starboard, I fabricated a small protective rise to protect the copper tubing feeding the evaporator plate. Then using the built-in icebox tapper/shelf ledge, I fabricated a sliding shelf out of starboard that reduces the size of the freezer and provides extra space for refrigeration.

I may have to play around with the airflow holes to get both sides the right temperature, but this will provide far more needed space of the refrigeration aspects of the Reefer.

Check it out...

Before with wire shelf...

Before without wire shelf... box is divided evenly in half.

1/4 of box is now freezer and 3/4 is refrigeration.

Shelf slides easily over for one sided access.

Don't worry, I will wash it clean before using it... :)

Fair seas and God bless!

Waiting... Waiting... Waiting...

The last couple of weeks have been busy and next week will follow suit.

Last week I was able to visit my son, my daughter, (she was also visiting), daughter-in-law, and all of my grandchildren in San Francisco, CA. It was great being able to see them all together... memories I will take with me to Saint Lucia next year.

This week has been spent getting ready for another trip to Central Georgia. I have been unable to do much boatwork on Annie due to a monstrous uber storm that has been sitting over The Forgotten Coast and spinning for the last four days... just spinning and spitting inches of rain in the area. I did drive down to inspect my recently rebedded V-Berth hatch to verify it was not leaking water and to my pleasant surprise, it was not.

My Lagun Table Mount arrived today and my tabletop will be in tomorrow.

BTW, do not buy the Lagun Table Leg stateside... Stateside companies mark it up to ridiculous prices... buy it here... MARINE TEAK. Though it is an English based company, their price is reasonable, affordable, and it arrived within four days from placing my order.

As soon as the tabletop arrives, I will head down and do the install. I'm very excited about the Lagun Table Mount. It will be perfect for Annie. Check out the video below...

I'll take lots of pictures of the install and post them as soon as I can.

Meanwhile, Annie sits waiting... waiting... waiting... for my return. Next big project, prep and paint her topside, bottom, and splash her. The rest of her projects will be completed at dock.

Fair seas and God bless!

That's not water intruding... it's old epoxy. I need to paint there.