San Diego, California...Boat Projects...Part IV

Rebuilding the head...a messy job,
but someone has to do it
 and that someone was me.

Some might think that I am constantly blogging about various boat projects that need to be completed and wonder whether Osprey was truly ready for this voyage.  The truth is, Osprey is a sturdy, safe and well maintained vessel that is more than capable of the type of cruising Richard and I have planned.  At the same time, she's a lazy boat in that she doesn't rebuild her head (toilet), change filters, tune her engine, apply Cetol to her woodwork, polish her brightwork, complete sewing projects...the list goes on; I think you get the point.

We moved the sewing sweatshop from Seattle to San Diego.

That said, there is always something to do on a boat.  And these are really just maintenance projects; sometimes there are projects that are the result of some system failure like a clog in the domestic water system, which needs to be addressed as soon as possible and other times they are projects that we are just getting around to like making an awning for the bow of the boat so we can keep the hatches open during warm weather when it's raining. 

Nothing lifts the spirit like Cetol-ing the woodwork.

In addition, remember, Osprey is our home, and just like all of you landlubbers, we need to clean house on a regular basis, defrost the fridge/freezer, do laundry, shop for groceries (and typically lug them over a mile back to the boat)...and this, that and the other thing!  But I know that I'm not getting any sympathy from anyone reading this given that I am on a sailboat heading down to Mexico for the winter and then off to the South Pacific for the cruise of a lifetime.  Then again, for all of you out there that think that this trip is nothing more than sailing from one tropical location to another (which we will do), and enjoying frou-frou drinks with umbrellas or cold beers on the beach (which we will also do), the cruiser's definition of cruising/sailing is more like repairing your boat in tropical locations!  Okay, so San Diego isn't quite tropical, but we are getting there, and the repairs and time spent working on the boat is ongoing (Oh, poor me!).