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American Spirit II - Day 420; Two Months Until We're Home; a Liesurly Day in Foraleza; Oil & Filter Change; & Jeanine on Civetta II Cooks Dinner for Us and Civetta; Monday, March 2, 2015



One year ago today:

"Day 58; Leaving Galapagos; Sunday, March 2, 2014. Up at 6:00 AM to get ready for meeting with Immigration at 8:00 AM at The Rock restaurant and bar - to have passports and papers stamped to clear out of the country. While sitting in the cockpit having a cup of coffee after sun rise, I watched a marine iguana swim by on its way to the rocky shoreline. A dive boat going out of the anchorage at a high rate of speed missed the iguana by 5 feet, but it didn't bother it in the slightest. It just kept swimming with its head above water."


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Two months to go until we're home, on May 2nd!

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I woke up at 4:30 AM due to turning over in bed and the pain from my cracked floating rib woke me up. That's right, a rib is cracked. So says Dr. Derry from Avocet. Apparently we have two floating ribs. Who knew? I actually feel relieved that its the rib and not the kidney, because a bruised or damaged kidney just sounds worse than a simple cracked rib. I mean, everyone has cracked or bruised a rib in their life, haven't they? I'm also told to take 2,000 milligrams of Ibuprofen a day for 5 days. No problem; plenty of Advil on board.

Up at 8:00 AM. I notice Heidi, who said last night that she was getting up to go running with Vlado from Civetta II at 6:30 AM, was still in bed. Actually, since Heidi didn't nap at all after getting to Fortaleza Sunday, I figured she might sleep in today. I'm up at 8:00 AM because I have to drop off the laundry before 10:00 AM so it gets back to us today. The laundry here is more expensive than many places we go to because a hotel is doing it. For example, $8.00 to clean and fold one bed sheet.

At 8:35 AM a heavy rain shower hits the boat. Yesterday we got hit at 8:15 AM. Like the weather in the East coast of Florida, we get our rain here first thing in the morning. Then it clears up during the day, only to rain again around sunset.

No cooked breakfast today. That might be a first. Just a banana, orange, apple or a pear; or a combination of these. Because we all ate so much for dinner last night at the Brazilian steak house, so no-one is hungry. We'll have a light lunch later in the pool area; and then a normal dinner after sunset.

At 10:30 AM we drop off our laundry with Johnny from Rally control. Rally control had found a cheaper laundry for us to use, so we're going with them rather than the expensive hotel laundry. The laundry is doing 3 sets of sheets and pillow cases, and some non-essential personal items. We've learned our lesson in giving essential clothes to a laundry to lose or steal. So the laundry doesn't get any special polo shirts, pants, or long sleeved shirts. Nada. Joel does give them one pair of shorts. I don't give them any as I only have 2 pairs total. Since mine are non-cotton I can easily wash them on the boat while we're under way.

At 11:08 AM I head to the pool area. Heidi will follow me shortly. I continue reading the book 'Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters Most in the End." A very depressing book, so far. Growing old apparently s____.

For pre-lunch Heidi and I have onion rings; followed by a hamburger with cheese. The cheeseburgers are good, but lack any lettuce, tomato and pickles. I'm OK with that, but Heidi expected more. Joel is changing the oil and a filter on the boat engine, so he doesn't join us until much later.

Heidi tried out a hammock nestled under a bunch of palm trees along the water, but eventually returns, saying it was actually very cool in the shade. Throughout the day we hop in the fresh water pool to cool off.

I'm back on the boat at 3:30 PM. Nap time. I was falling asleep in my pool chair. Heidi gets back to the boat around 5:00 PM. I get up then. Joel is back on the boat a short while after her.

At 5:15 PM I notice that Chicka-lu is anchored just in front of us. Something is wrong. I get on the radio and find out that 3 out of 6 bolts have broken. Something to do with their propeller shaft? Its fixable, by them; as they've had this problem before. The 'gator proof' yellow dingy from Avocet is used to tow them to the anchorage outside of our marina. They are a very deep draft boat, and they're been bouncing on the bottom while in the marina during low tide. So they're moving.

Joel naps at 6:30 PM. At 7:05 PM a heavy rain shower hits us, just at dinner time. Heidi and I took our towels and swim suits off the life lines just in time. Joel's tower and swim suit are...getting rinsed again.

Dinner at 7:30 PM is on our boat, with the white rice cooked a special way by Vlado; and with Jeanine making the main course, an Italian dish and a recipe from her Mother; and a salad. Red and white wine is in abundance. Our dinner party breaks up at 8:45 PM. After Heidi does the dishes, Joel and Heidi then occupy the cockpit and play games on their phones; followed by a call home. I'm still reading my book on my Kindle. Heidi is the first to bed, followed by Joel. I'm last, as usual.

Tomorrow is 'fuel day;'and we'll get our laundry back sometime during the day. I won't final provision until Wednesday, the day before we leave. We don't need much in the way of provisions, just maybe some more eggs and fruit. We'll see.

Brian Fox

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