Kittywampus is Sold!

Well, this post is a bit dated, as it has been a few weeks since it has happened, but Kittywampus is sold.  Captain Man has worked almost 2 years in revamping this boat, so that we could take her south.  We were hoping to make that journey last winter, but she just wasn't ready.  So, the work continued into the spring, (and still some).  Kittywampus is a beauty, and all his hard work shows.  It is with mixed emotions that she is going to someone else after all the efforts, but we feel good that the proud new owners will use and enjoy her.  Captain Man will be taking her to Mobile, Alabama very soon to meet up with the owners.  

I met Captain Man over 10 years ago and he introduced me to the world of cruising.  Since then, I have been privileged to enjoy four great boats...Cats Away, Felix, Fat Chance, and this boat.   With Cats Away, I visited Captain Man in the Bahamas for extended trips.  But Felix and Fat Chance, I stayed on the boats while cruising and I got attached to the boats.  Especially Fat Chance.  And now, it's the same for Kittywampus.  We haven't sailed her much at all, but we have been working on her for a long time.  For boaters, it is a labor of love.  Not only do you want the boat to look nice, but your life depends on her while you are at sea.  Captain Man goes to great lengths to assure any boat is sea worthy and safe, but for me it goes a little beyond that.  Some may think I a bit touched when I say this, but there is a sort of kinship with the boat when you are on the water...with just you, your partner and the boat.  All are dependent on each other for survival.  So, yep, I do get attached to any boat that takes us on that journey.

But, it is always great to know or feel that the new owners are going to respect that kinship...and I know for Captain Man, (the one who has done such extensive work on this boat), it makes him feel good to know that the owners will use and enjoy her as much as we had hoped to do.

So to the new owners...Congratulations on obtaining Kittywampus!!  She is a beauty,  sails great and I know she is happy to be back on the water.  I hope you have many, many wonderful adventures on this great vessel.

Beauty with Aging!

A lot has happened since my last post...and hopefully I will be able to share soon.  So in the midst of everything going on, I am trying to keep my anxiety to a manageable level by keeping up with my walking.  This morning, as I walked through through town, I had to stop and snap a few pics of the beautiful, old oaks around the Episcopal Church.  They are gorgeous!  

I bet these have weathered some tough times through out the years.  The gnarly branches look as though they have been twisted back and forth, probably through several major storms.  

This morning there were two squirrels scampering about the limbs, don't know if they were playing with each other or scurrying about getting ready for stormy weather.  I have always heard that animals can tell if bad weather is approaching.  I am hoping these two were simply full of energy and happy to be playing on this ole tree, and not in a tizzy trying to get ready for something we don't want to see around here.  

Anyway, stopping by these old oaks this morning got me to thinking, with age comes beauty.  Beauty in that the outside appearance reflects our experiences that make us who we are.  When these beauties were planted or seeded by the wind, they probably would not be been described as "beautiful trees".  But now they are beautiful old trees.  For this oak, the passing of time is revealed by its size and twisted branches, showing how it weathered its life.  For us, we have our scars, gray hair and wrinkles...showing how we've weathered our lives. The scars, wrinkles, twisted or gnarled bodies...they are a representation of what we have been through, of what we have seen and experienced.  To live life's experiences and wonders, well that is beautiful. 

So, in this era of fashion and beauty, with ads of young, beautiful people without scars, wrinkles, sags, or graying or receding hair, and "anti aging creams, lotions, potions, etc.", why don't we view aging as a beautiful experience.  The next time you see an elderly man or woman, embrace their beauty... those wrinkles you see are real beauty marks. 

Early Morning Beauty

I arose early this morning, greeted by a wonderful sunrise.  The sky was beautiful.  And the temperature was perfect.  Almost a bit chilly!

Calm waters at daybreak

The morning sky just before sunrise

It's hard to believe we are on the last leg of summer, and this morning Mother Nature gave us a hint that the season will be changing.    A breath of fresh air, without the heaviness that we have been feeling over the last few months.  It was so nice that Captain Man and I had coffee in the cockpit.  Haven't done that in a while!  During our morning walk, I noticed the water lilies are now brown, getting ready for their dormant period.  Also, some of the trees are beginning to change colors.

I know there are many who will be sad about summer coming to an end...but I welcome the cooler temps.  Every season has its beauty, and I feel privileged to live in this area where we can experience all four seasons.  Here, we can enjoy each time of the year without getting too tired of one particular season, before the next one rolls around.  And this morning...a glimpse of autumn...put a smile on my face.

80th Birthday!

My sweet dad turned 80 last week, and we celebrated his birthday this weekend.  Yep, that's eighty candles being lit on his birthday cake, however by the time the last ones were lit, the first ones were melting into the frosting!  He blew them out in one breath and I am surprised the smoke alarm did not go off.  

It was great spending the day with him.  He does not do social media, so he will never see this post, but wanted to share with all how fortunate I am to have him for my father.  He still works part time as a farmer, plants a garden every spring that is large enough to feed the county, and continues to enjoy his tobacco chew, despite our warnings for him to quit.  Dad is a man of few words, instead we know what he stands for by the way he lives.   He's a good man, who has always work hard, and a man who would give you his last dollar if you needed it.  Love you Pop!

Ocracoke

Entrance to Silver Harbor Lake

For those of you that have never been , you should really go to the charming little island of Ocracoke, the "Pearl of the Outer Banks".  Captain Man and I take the boat and dock at the National Park Service Docks, in Silver Lake Harbor, but if you are not a boat owner, you can take one of several ferries that make the trek to the island each day (a few times).   This little village is a tourist Outer Banks hot spot, but maintains the island village charm, and we love it.  

We left our dock last Sunday morning and headed that way.  A beautiful sail and we were there by lunch time.  After getting the boat secure and tidied up, we headed for our favorite spot, SmacNally's.  It's on the harbor, in front  the charter fishing boats dock, so we enjoy having a beverage and watching the sport fish boats come in with their catch.  It seems they were having a great run with fishing, as we saw plenty of Mahi, tuna, spanish mackeral and even a hugh grouper (our favorite).  

A pitcher of Mimosas at SmacNally's

 

 

The next day, we rented bikes and rode to the beach, thinking we would enjoy a picnic on the ocean side.  It was hot!!! We stayed for about an hour, and then looked at each other with "what in the world are we doing" looks on our faces, and packed up, headed back into the village, for a spot at our favorite bar.  

Walking back towards Captain Man hoping he is ready to get somewhere much cooler!

It's interesting, when I was younger, I could have stayed there basking in the sun for hours, not anymore!  But, it was fun, and it is always great to sink your toes into sand.  Later, we walked around the village shops, ate great seafood, and enjoyed another wonderful sunset together.  The next few days were spent eating, walking, reading, napping, and just plain relaxing. 

Lemon ice cream on the porch!

Amazing Ocracoke sunset view from cockpit of Kittywampus

We left Thursday morning, heading to Oriental to spend a night, before winding down our week long vacation.  It was a wonderful, relaxing few days in one of our favorite places on the water. 

Leaving Ocracoke

After having such a relaxing week, it will be hard to get back into work mode again.  Ugh!

Sailing to Oriental

I came home from work on Friday and Captain Man suggested we take Kittywampus to Oriental for a long weekend trip.  WooHoo!! We get to sail the boat and relax for a few days.  So, early Saturday am we left the dock and headed towards Oriental.  By car, Oriental is approximately an hour away, by Kittywampus, well...a tad bit longer.  We sailed south on the Pamlico, crossed the Hobucken Canal into the Bay River, then down the Neuse River to Oriental.  I was pleasantly surprised...we had light winds and the boat was swishing through the water.  Nice!

Heading to bow of boat to check out his new "watch"

 

Of course, the captain was playing around a bit with the boat, trying out his new gadget...a Garmin smartwatch that wirelessly interfaces with the navigation electronics (chartplotter, radar, etc).  So...basically, he can wear it on his wrist, ( it looks like a watch), and can navigate the boat with it.  Worked really well, and he was smiling.  Me, I was enjoying the sun, breezes and views.

Enjoying my coffee in the cockpit as we head south on the Pamilco River.

 

A view of the Hobucken Canal, which links the Pamlico River to the Bay River.

By 3:30pm, we were at the Oriental Marina, ready to freshen up and head to the Toucan Tiki bar to meet a friend.  Afterwards, dinner at M&M's.

  Captain Man backed her into that slip flawlessly.  . 

Sunset view from the porch of Toucan Restaurant

Leaving Oriental, heading home

Another beautiful morning!

Early Monday morning, we left the marina and headed home.  A short trip, but relaxing and fun.  It's great to be back on the water.  This little trip...we felt like cruisers again.   Can't wait for our next excursion....next week we are headed for Ocracoke!

Breakfast Guests

One of the many perks of staying on your boat is having unexpected guests stopping by.  It's not unusual for boat enthusiasts, fellow boaters, interested passerbyer's, etc, to wonder over and ask questions or to simply stop and daydream.  However, a couple of mornings ago, we had guests stop by of a different sort.  I was inside the salon and heard noises coming from outside.  Rather loud noises...so I got up to see what was going on.  Too my surprise, I was greeted with about 50 geese, about 15-20 feet from  the  cockpit of the boat.  I was so excited,  probably scared  them with  my     squeal of delight, and hurried back inside to get our camera.  Of course, I could not put my hand on it, so I grabbed my pad to grab some photos of the geese.  By the time I got back in the cockpit, the flock had moved further away from the boat, but I did manage to get a few pictures.  The pictures are not the best quality...as our camera would have done a better job, but still I managed to grab a few pics to share.