David Burgess

We flew back into Tampa late on Saturday night and spent the night at Mary Alice's house. On Sunday afternoon the three of us went to the Museum of Fine Arts to attend a Marly Music Series performance. We saw David Burgess play the guitar and it was amazing. He plays Brazilian guitar music, and we enjoyed the show so much we bought a CD.

Trip to DC

We are back in Sarasota after five days in Washington DC seeing friends, going to (three) Red Sox games, and having a bunch of fun.

We flew out of Tampa on Tuesday direct into Washington National.... which is about 2 miles from the condo where we used to live in Alexandria.

(waterfront in Old Town Alexandria)

We stayed at Katie's house and finally met Jackson Hurley Vaca, who is now 3 months old and absolutely beautiful. He is a great baby and both Bill and I really enjoyed spending time with the newest edition to the Vaca family. He is one happy little boy. And of course we loved seeing Alex, who is almost 4 and is just the best.

So we got to DC on Tuesday afternoon and, after dropping our stuff off at Katies, met Mark at Nationals Park for the Red Sox vs. Nationals game. It was a lot of fun and there was a new attendance record set (thanks Boston!) The new stadium is truly awesome and we had a ton of fun all three nights. Our seats were on the first base line on Tuesday and the third base line Wednesday and Thursday nights. We went to all three games early to walk around and explore the new stadium and watch batting practice. We went with Mark and Fred on Tuesday, Mark and Sara on Wednesday. Katie, Rico, Alex, and Jackson went to the Thursday night game and Alex joined us for a bit. Thank you Sara and Mark for getting us tickets!!!!!!

(Loving the new ball park)

We really enjoyed ourselves in DC. In addition to the Red Sox games I enjoyed long walks with Katie around Old Town and Bill and I caught up with friends at Bugsys. We also did a tour of the new Capital Visitors Center, which was awesome. We went to the Library of Congress and explored a few DC neighborhoods around the new stadium. I met Sara for coffee at Foggy Bottom and went in to the State Department to see everyone one day. It was really nice to be there.

(Capital)

(Library of Congress)

And on Friday we spent the day in Annapolis and went to Amy and Juan's new house. After catching up with the Watsons we met Joe and Nancy at their new boat before dinner at Tsunami. We had such a nice night with our dear friends. The new boat is amazing, and at 11:00 pm when we looked at the clock and realized it was time to drive back to Alexandria, Bill and I just didn't want to leave! We both realized how much we love Back Creek and we are so happy for Joe and Nancy and their new boat. Hopefully we will be able to spend more time in Annapolis in the (near!) future.

(Flowers at the farmers market in Alexandria)

Saturday Katie, Alex, Jackson and I went to the Farmers Market in Alexandria early before we met the Sullivans. There were 11 of us for brunch and we had a blast. It was so great to see Fuzzy and Mary and their three amazingly beautiful children who have grown since the last time we saw them when they visited Mary Elizabeth in Annapolis 3+ years ago! Afterwards we went back to Katie and Rico's house so the kids could swim in the pool.

(Enjoying the pool)

Bill and I really had a great time in DC. The weather was beautiful. We are so thankful to be able to see our great friends; we loved seeing everyone and catching up. DC (ie Alexandria and Annapolis) simply feels like home to us.

Enough said.

Happy Fathers Day

Happy Fathers Day to everyone. Hope you have a great day. 

It is another sunny H-O-T day here in Sarasota. There is actually a heat warning. The heat index is at 100+ degrees. Needless to say, we are looking forward to a day spent on the boat down below watching the Red Sox and the Masters and enjoying a home cooked Sunday meal. 

Enjoy the day. 

 

Well the boat repairs continue. They have fixed the generator, replaced a few batteries, fixed the stereo and DVD player, and have ordered lots of parts that they are waiting on before they can proceed with more repairs. We are happy and thankful for the progress.  I have included a few pictures of some of the things that were fried when we were stuck. Amazing that nothing caught on fire. 

Bill and I had a great week. Saturday night we went to a magic show here in Sarasota and Bill was picked to go on stage and participate. It was actually a really good show and we would go back. Sunday I went to a craft / jewelry / sidewalk sale at St. Armand's circle, which is a beautiful place. Wednesday we went to St. Petersburg and I went to the library while Bill golfed. We had a nice dinner with Mary Alice, Fred, and Monika Wednesday night. We have seen a few movies (there is a movie theater right here in downtown Sarasota) and have tried a few more new restaurants.  Other than that, not a whole lot is going on. We leave Tuesday for Washington, DC and will go to St. Pete on Monday night to see Mary Alice and since we are flying out of Tampa. 

 

 

 

 

view of one of many parks in Sarasota  from the bow of Mary Elizabeth

Well, it has been an exciting and busy week since we got struck by lightning. They have started work on the boat and so far have replaced a few batteries and fixed the generator. Ken, the guy who is coordinating all of the work said it will take a few months for everything to be back to normal. We are thankful that we are here in one place for the summer. Now we just have to decide whether to stay in Sarasota or to move to Bradenton where the mechanics are to cut down on labor costs (they are on the clock when they get to the shop so driving time will be billed to us). Since we have already paid for our slip here in Sarasota, it might be less expensive to stay where we are instead of paying for two slips. Either way, we know we'll go to Snead Island next week to have the boat hauled and inspected. 

So besides boat maintenance and coordination of mechanics etc. we have been busy. On Wednesday we went to St. Petersburg for a few days. I volunteered at the library and then Bill, Mary Alice, and I went to dinner with Mary Alice's friends on Wednesday night. We had a really nice dinner and enjoyed meeting great people. We stayed in St. Pete until Thursday afternoon. 

We have a marina friend -- a single dolphin who comes by every morning and afternoon. The dolphin has a mangled dorsal fin and surfaces every 45 seconds or so. He must have been hit by a boat. He is quite cute and friendly though and has come right up to the boat to check us out. 

We are on the transient dock of the marina, which is nice because most of the time it is very quiet. We are the only liveaboards so have the place to ourselves. 

It has been very, very hot (which we are still getting used to) and very, very muggy. I guess that is to be expected in Florida in June. Not looking forward to August..... 

We are looking forward to our trip to DC that is coming up. Sara and Mark scored Red Sox vs. Nationals tickets, which we are excited for. And we'll finally get to meet baby Jack. 

That's really about it. We have been keeping busy exploring Sarasota (including St. Armand's Circle, which is really neat). There is a farmers market and a crafts fair this weekend that I am looking forward to. Hope everyone has a great weekend. 

 

the boat will continue to be torn up while they do the repairs

 

our slip at Marina Jack

Strike One

I know that I said I was only going to post once a week....but we had to share.

At 6:15 this morning, we were struck by lightning in the slip here in Sarasota. It was a HUGE scary bang that startled me awake (Bill was already awake in bed). Bill noticed that the AC in our cabin was off -- and then quickly that EVERYTHING was off. No lights, no bilge, no head, no AC, no nothing. Then we smelled THE smell; something electrical. We immediately turned everything off (both AC and DC power) but we still weren't 100% sure what happened until we went topside and saw the windex shattered and lying on the dock. There is nothing left at the top of the mast at all!!! No anchor light, no VHF antenna, no stereo antenna, no windex. At least we won't have to sweat as much when we go under the fixed bridges..... 

Bill and I immediately began assessing the damage. And it is extensive. 

There is no rhyme or reason to what the lightning fried. The engine will start but there are no gauges (and the generator won't start at all.) The TV works but the DVD player doesn't. The freezer yes, refrigerator no.  The radar/GPS unit works topside but not down below (which is bad since the 'brains' are down below.) The windlass works but the bow thruster doesn't (the windlass and the bow thruster share a battery and breaker.) The lightning also fried the circuit board on the water maker, the single side band radio, the satellite phone, the tank indicator, and the alternator.

It could have been worse. First and foremost, both of us are OK and there was no fire. We did have a lightning rod at the top of the mast which saved a few systems. The AC is working, which we are thankful for since it is 90 degrees today. And the computer thankfully isn't toast (it was charging overnight). 

We had someone come and do a full evaluation / survey this morning and a claim is already in with the insurance company. We are very lucky that someone so capable and experienced was able to come out right away. He said that he handles about 6 boats a year that have been struck by lightning and he has seen worse. Oh, and did you know that Tampa Bay is the lightning capital of the world? 

We will have to get the boat hauled next week at Snead Island (about 2 1/2 hours away via the ICW) since we don't know where the lightning actually exited the boat. It could have been through the prop shaft or a thru hull so we have to have the boat pulled to make sure. Bill will also go up the mast to inspect the shrouds and the spreaders in case the bolt exited somewhere up the mast. 

So we'll keep you posted.

Settling in

 

Well, in the few short days that we have been here, Bill and I have managed to do a lot! Cindy, Boyd, Bill and I explored a little of Sarasota on foot on Sunday and Monday. We ate at three really great restaurants.... There are literally more than a dozen restaurants within walking distance -- which is really nice. The Selby Library is also within walking distance. My grandmother volunteered at the Selby Library every winter when she and my grandfather were 'snowbirds' and lived in Sarasota. It is a fabulous library. Very crowded and fully staffed. The only downer was that I had to pay ($40!!!) for a library card since we aren't official residents of Florida. I think it will be worth it though. I checked out a bunch of cookbooks (since we are both want to eat at home more to be healthier and to save money [ironic since there are all these great restaurants around]). I also got a book on knitting since I am planning on joining a knitting circle that meets on Monday nights. 

Cindy and Boyd took off on Tuesday and Bill and I did boat chores. On Tuesday Mary Alice came for a visit. The three of us went out for a fabulous birthday lunch and then drove back to St. Pete. We picked up the car and I also met with the Librarian at the Museum of Fine Arts in St. Pete (which has a great Warhol exhibit right now that I am excited to see!) I will be volunteering there once a week while we are in Sarasota. It is a great library; bigger than I would have thought (20,000 holdings), and open to the public. One of the coolest things is that there are four women who come in every Tuesday and do book binding. What an amazing craft. I hope that I am able to meet them and get a lesson (or at least observe). 

So now that we have a car, we have been exploring a little farther than the marina. I joined a gym that is about 15 minutes away. And I found the supermarket, Blockbuster, CVS, etc. -- all places we will use regularly while we are here for three months. Today we had a mechanic on board to flush the AC units. We had a mail shipment so we now have the replacement faucet for the galley (yeah!)

So these pictures are the views from Mary Elizabeth in her new home. We really are in a great spot. There are parks all around us and the marina is great. They even recycle. 

On another note, we received this email (to our gmail account) and thought I would share. We don't know the sender, but she somehow found the blog and enjoyed the pictures. It's funny (and amazingly cool) how the blog has reached many people. Another example -- Bill recently received an email from a friend of his sisters who somehow found our site. Awesome! 

Thanks so much for posting the pictures of the regatta.  We live in Tennessee and could not get to Key West for the big event, so we appreciate the pictures and info that have been posted on the web.  The 10-yr old Batman is our grandson and The Joker is our son-in-law.  It was a fun experience for them and a treat for us to see the pictures and info. Thanks!  Grammy and Grampa in Knoxville

Lastly, since we are going to be in Sarasota for the next three months (and not necessarily cruising, which is what this blog was originally supposed to be about) I think that will do just one big blog entry once a week.