Note: This post was written in May, just after we arrived back in Maine for the summer, but for reasons that are unlikely to be made clear in the near future it disappeared shortly after it was published. You may note that when I wrote it, we still intended to return to the boat in the fall – but that plan changed abruptly in June.

Meanwhile the rumors are flying. Even had some friends call and say “We just heard you’ve given up Cruising!?”

No.

No, we are not done cruising, but there are some things that need to be accomplished ashore before we venture out again. It’s quite possible that our future cruising will look very different than before, but we and Sionna are very definitely headed out again.

Anyway, this blog is – at best – mired in my shore-side lethargy. The unknowns of the situation, and my discontent with how things stand, have sapped my will to write, and you, dear reader have had nothing to read as a result. My apologies.

So consider this post a flashback to a simpler time. Meanwhile I’m a one-handed carpenter as I recover from shoulder surgery, Nicki’s new business in Real Estate Investment is developing slowly, and the house we are rebuilding in Maine is progressing, albeit slowly now with my shoulder…

Life happens when you make other plans.

It always feels like a mixed blessing, this seasonal cruising thing.

On one hand, Sionna is tucked away in a safe place, securely tied to the ground and well inland. She’s as safe in our absence as we can make her.

On the other hand, our home and magic carpet of nautical dreams is alone, baking in the sun, while we are waiting for summer, layering clothing, and looking for work.

And here we are, in “the most beautiful cruising grounds in the world” (as we were told by some folks in the British Virgin Islands) with no boat. It feels strange, and disjointed, and not a little disquieting.

But of course, this last season wasn’t without it’s challenges and down days. The two months we spent in Maine for eye surgery meant that we got to experience a real slice of winter again – a very good reminder of why we decided to do our cruising in the south in the first place. Being away from it made the whole season feel really disjointed though. We’d just about got used to being on the boat, the pace of the day, and then packed everything up and moved ashore. Then moved back…

So naturally we’re looking ahead, wondering how to arrange our next season aboard, but more immediately we’re trying to line up our summer work, so that we can afford to HAVE our next season on the boat.

There are uncertainties. There are concerns and quandaries, and choices to be made. Our trip back north took 7 days, and included a visit with my (Keith’s) brother and sister-in-law at their new home in a clothing-optional community in western Florida – a very new but surprisingly comfortable experience for us – as well as visits with three sets of cruising friends in three separate cities. It was a social whirlwind from which I think I’m still recovering, but it sure was nice to see those folks again. It reminds us why we cruise.

Oh, and the sunsets, of course. We do miss those sunsets.

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