Maintenance Weekend

When are we EVER going to go hiking again?




This was chore weekend. Get the deck furniture out , fix the bullfrog, masthead light and ready the speedboat for launching. But what enjoyable chores.



We escaped work about 5:30 on Friday, and left Bellevue in a rainstorm. We endured the northbound traffic and a transformation began. Dark clouds in the rear view mirror and brightening skies ahead. By the time we hit Anacortes it was clear sunshine.



We were one of the last 10 cars on the 8:10 ferry and the sunset was the perfect way to end a work week.

Sunset from the ferry followed by sunrise from the Cabin. The visual treats continue.

After breakfast at the house, we got the deck furniture out. Chore one done. Then it was off to the boat. The bullfrog dinghy steering was frozen and Dad had made a makeshift tiller that actually worked very well. We lowered the dinghy off the davits and Rex and I motored over to the launching ramp.

Back to the boat, Dad hoisted me to the spreaders on the mast to tackle the masthead steaming light. It hadn’t worked in years and really should be working. As expected I had to take the fitting off, and as expected my preloaded set of tools in the boson’s chair didn’t contain what I needed.



The pause waiting for tools gave me time to take some pictures.

As Dad was running tools and tape up to me via the line for the signal flags, I got a text message. With the blackberry wedged in my pocket, I didn’t immediately look at it. Then my other cellphone in the cockpit rang. Then my black berry rang. Something was up.



Seems that my mother, who was driving around island with Jodi on an Art tour, had snagged a stump and ripped the front bumper off the car and would we immediately come to their assistance? A more inopportune time would be difficult to imagine with me half way up the mast with a partially disassembled steaming light.



We needed a new light, so I removed it and was lowered back to the deck. We packed up the tools and drove to the scene of the accident.



I wish I would have taken pictures because initially it looked pretty ugly. In the process of parking at one of the artists homes on the art tour, Mom had run over a very small, but very sturdy, 2 inch ‘stump’ poking about 10 inches off the ground. When she went to leave and back out, the stump caught the front bumper and as she backed away about half the front bumper separated from the car and was draped out on the ground. Initially it looked like tow truck material.



Then the magic of snap together engineering became evident. There were 2 interior plastic pieces that were also on the ground impeding the front wheel, but by lifting them back in place and literally snapping the front bumper back in place it was fixed in about a minute. Surprised the heck out of me.



That being done we went back and dropped the dinghy, now on a trailer, off to get the steering fixed and went back to the house. The speedboat was towed out of its winter storage and a bit of simple green and armor all cleaned it up nicely. Ready to go.



At this point, it’s nearly time for dinner, so let the cocktail hour begin. More stunning scenery from the deck, a fantastic dinner, followed by dessert on the deck.

As the cabin faces east, we don’t get the direct sunset, but we do see the sunset’s effect on the opposing shore as well as Mount Baker in the distance. As the unseen sun sets behind us, the islands light up in a golden glow then colors recede with Mount Baker holding the last view of the sun until it too is left in twilight as the sun drops below the western horizon behind us.

A good day.