Friday, February 8, 2013

Ticktock. Ticktock.

I'm still here in Utah dealing with this....

While Martin is still in France working on this...

Life really has a way of throwing a wrench into plans.

Weather is still BAD in France, so Martin will keep his troops working to fix and repair things on the boat and hopefully they can pull Amara out of the harbor next week.

In the meantime, time is ticking away and our timeline is shrinking, but we know we can still pull this off.  Just not as smoothly as we would have liked.

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Picture of the Day

Good thing we both aren't afraid of heights!

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Plan? What Plan?

Evening at the harbor in Canet.  Yep, Martin is still there.
Remember when I mentioned in an earlier post that Martin said that I needed to start learning to deal with ambiguity?  Oh, and remember when I said that Lily and I were leaving this weekend for the Canary Islands? Well, given the happenings these past two weeks, plans are changing.  Martin is still sitting at the marina in Canet on Amara and little Lily is sick.  So sick that I am sitting here writing this post from her room in the hospital.  Poor thing has Respiratory Syncytial Virus, better known as RSV.
Our little sickie.
Anyway, with Martin still not sailing and me sitting in Lily's hospital room, it is highly unlikely that Lily and I will be going anywhere this weekend.  Plus, if we went, we'd be hanging out in the Canaries for a good 10 days waiting for Martin and Amara to show up at the dock.  So, it's really not Amara's fault and it certainly isn't Lily's either.  Life happens, and sometimes at an escalated level.  Time to regroup and figure out Plan B.
Martin's temporary home.
Martin had some positive things happen regarding Amara's paperwork today but, of course, they are still waiting for a few more parts; but hey, it's only Tuesday.  Martin is sure that they should be able to push out of the marina by Friday.  So, Lily and I are going to sit tight here in Salt Lake and figure out if we should still meet Martin and crew in the Canaries or just let them sail through and we'll meet up with them in St. Maarten at the end of February.

The hard part is that it has already been two weeks since Martin left.  We hate being apart from one another.  Luckily, we can Skype or do FaceTime, but we miss each other.  Another 3 weeks is pushing it for both of us.  In the past, we have been apart from each other for up to 6 weeks, and we have always stay connected via satellite phone, email, texting, etc., but it's hard.  We have never gotten used to it.  Taking this into consideration, I'll see where Lily is health wise this next week and then make a decision.  

Given our immediate setbacks, I know it's all just temporary.  We're still moving forward with our sailing adventure and I am certain that this is all going to come together and be a memory.  Oh, and I'm still trying to deal with that silly word, "Ambiguity."
On the bright side, things are looking up here.
* Marina photos by Garry.  Thanks, Garry!

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Canet's Weather Update

Martin exploring a castle in Perpignan, France.
I just got an update today in an email from Martin.  It reads:

"It's very windy here in Canet today.  The wind gusts have registered 57 knots or 65 miles an hour on our anemometer. The wind picks the water up off the surface and turns it into spray right here in the marina! Our rigging is clanking away and Amara is rattling and shaking like crazy.  I'm very glad that we are still tied to the dock!"

So, what to do when the weather isn't in your favor?  Be a tourist!  Martin and Garry explored the town of Perpignan.  It is a lovely medieval city about 15 miles from Canet.


More about the boat tomorrow...  Until then, you can find me packing.  Still packing.

Friday, February 1, 2013

Meet My Captain

Amara tied to the dock in Canet.
I got this in my inbox this morning of Martin up on the flybridge of Amara.  It is so nice to see the smile on his face, given the intense conversations we've had this week discussing the not so pretty things about owning a boat.  Fixes, constant and eternal fixes.

Martin and Garry are now living on the boat full time, meaning they are working around the clock to get this girl out of the harbor and on her way.  There seems to be a break in the weather this coming week.  So if they can just get all these repairs done, she just may be getting on her way.  Fingers crossed.

All I'm thinking now though is that I see blue skies behind Martin, a smile on his face and him standing on the boat that we both love.  My weekend is starting off well.