Although the primary focus of this past weekend was to start the process of moving aboard, that wasn’t all we did. We started at Susan’s house on Friday where we did the last of the cleaning in preparation for the real estate open-house that was scheduled for Sunday. We were still cleaning as we moved out the door early Saturday morning. Next we went to a flair training and hands-on practice session that was held by the Coast Guard Auxiliary at Esker Point Beach in Groton. It was an interesting and informative session where we got to shoot off some flairs which proved both entertaining and educational. The 12-gauge flairs were unimpressive, with the Orion High Performance 12-gauge being the worst of the bunch, sporting a dismal 75% failure rate on flairs that were well within their expiration date. The 25mm areals seem to be the best.Next we went to our old marina to see our friend’s new catamaran. They had bought a new Fontaine Pajot, Mahe 36 and had it sailed over from France by a delivery crew. This was their first weekend on their new boat and they were busy settling in themselves when they weren’t busy showing off their beautiful new cat.
After that it was back to work for us. With the help of our friend Tom we managed to mount our new solar panels and bend on the main and genoa sails. That was a big job and we were glad to have a third set of hands to help out. We also tried out the storm jib on the new inner forestay location which looked great; hooked up the GPS and cleaned the boat.
Susan’s elderly dog Casey joined us as usual but the poor thing seems to be fading fast. Her appetite is almost gone in spite enticements of smoked turkey and fresh liverwurst. Casey is also having a hard time moving around. Comments along the dock ranged from “that’s a really old puppy” to “what’s wrong with your dog” and this comment from the oldest guy on the docks; “might be time for that dog to bite the bullet”. Many offered genuine sympathy and related beloved dog stories of their own. We’re closely monitoring her quality of life and hope Casey passes painlessly in her own good time.
I’ve noticed that people often freely speak of much loved pets that have passed but rarely speak of deceased people. I wonder if that is just a cultural thing or if it’s a universal human trait. On our trip around the world it will be interesting to be on the lookout for signs that will help me understand where my own boundaries lay between the two.
I’m no anthropologist but it seems to me that we humans define our cultures differently in several major areas; how we deal with our dead, how we raise our young, what we eat and the way we prepare it, religious beliefs & practices, gender rolls and how we express ourselves creatively. It will be interesting to notice the differences between cultures in these areas as we make our way through different cultures that make up our world. But first we still have two houses to sell, a ton of stuff to deal with and the need to finish preparing Gypsy for the journey. Will we get it all done? Probably not but I don’t see any show stoppers at this point.
146 days
