Calgon: Take Me Away!
Remember those Calgon commercials in the 1980’s showing someone in a chaotic and stressful environment throw their hands up and scream “Calgon: Take Me Away!” and then poof, they were transported to a nice, serene bubble bath? That is exactly how we feel, yet no matter how many times we utter the magic phrase, we are still stuck here at the shipyard- still hot and smelly – no luxuriant bubble bath. It has been one of those weeks….
On Monday, we met our target splash date and Shearwater was in the water by 5:00 p.m. We celebrated with the Grenada Marine staff at the yard’s rum shop/restaurant. There were still many things left for the workers to do on the boat, but all of those could be done while we were in the water. Being in the water also gives us a chance to run all of our systems 24/7 to ensure that everything is in ship shape before we sail out of here. We ran the generator, two air conditioners, freezers, fridge, appliances, navigational systems, engines, radios, water systems, etc. And sure enough, we began to find problems here and there, and had those fixed. After three days of constant running, our generator decided to quit. So, we are still here waiting for them to find out what’s the problem.
It is wonderful to have so many people working on our boat each day to get everything as it should be. However, it has been a tiring week as there is no peace and quiet, no time to sit and rest. It is so hot at the dock, without the benefit of the ocean breeze that you get of being anchored. The boat is filthy as people track there muddy feet all over each day. Our only salvation has been our air conditioning units (when they can be turned on), ice cold Carib beer, and strong, dark Grenadian rum.
Our plan is to leave here tomorrow, come hell or high water!
Gumbopirate 