Ha! Welcome to the Nomad world! Very pleased to see you are doing ok. I did send you a couple notes after you went silent but when I didn’t hear back I paused (not cancelled) my subscription (a couple months ago) thinking maybe you had gone off the grid, but would eventually return. It’s now unpaused!
Turns out I was pretty much on the mark with that. And it’s even better than I imagined!
What a wonderful story. I’d be pretty content on the road if I wasn’t on the boat. The best part, other than the characters you meet, is that you are “home” no matter where you go. And as you say, in relative terms, its pretty cheap living.
So we are in Bay City MI now. On the boat from 01 April through late October. Then we have a rented condo in Myrtle Beach from November-March. It’s not what we want. But as long as Gail’s parents (now 98 and 96) continue to defy the actuarial tables and family histories of death at an early age we are stuck. They are in an assisted living facility, 120 miles away, and her mother expects a visit once a week. So we can’t even take off for a month and enjoy the Great Lakes. Both her parents are jabbed and double boosted and since they got their 2nd booster last November their brains have literally melted down. It’s very sad. Her dad was already struggling but her mom had most of her cognitive function. But after the 2nd booster she deteriorated within weeks.
Gail’s brother lives 5 minutes away from them and has visited 3 times in the past year. Her sister lives in PA and has a million excuses why she can’t come to visit. So the “problem middle child” who always got the short end of the stick as a kid ends up being the one they count on and the only one whose name they remember. And I now have favored son-in-law status, which was definitely not the case for 40+ years. So there is that.
So I’m restless as hell and lacking motivation because without something to plan for out on the horizon I’m crabby. But I can’t change the picture and I’m sure once they are gone we will both recognize we did the right thing.
I took a road trip to NC last week to visit a couple of my good friends from when we lived there. It was good to get away for a few days and Gail enjoyed her alone time.
Looking forward to hearing more about your adventures and the other stuff too.
Oh! Did you email? I’m afraid there were probably other emails I missed that were associated with email account linked to this Substack in a six month time span. I’m sorry about that!
Thanks for the re-subscription. :) I’ve felt badly about not writing, but I hope to make up for it soon. (I certainly don’t expect with such infrequent writing that people will continue with paid subscriptions and many others dropped off as well.)
I’ve been in a bit of a holding pattern for a couple of years now. Professionally you could say I’m trying to get my life restarted.
“I’d be pretty content on the road if I wasn’t on the boat. The best part, other than the characters you meet, is that you are “home” no matter where you go. And as you say, in relative terms, its pretty cheap living.”
Exactly.
How big is SV Blessings? Cool name. :) You guys have a slip at a marina? Do you ever take it out at all just for day sailing?
I follow a few channels where people are circumnavigating. I dream of attaining those skills.
I haven’t had my dinghy out in nearly two years. I’m too busy working. There is the additional issue that it’s kind of difficult to lift onto the roof of my car on my own, and i don’t have a trailer. :P
You can see the Minifish leaning against the fence in one of my pictures. :)
But recently I did meet a nice retired gentleman in VA Beach who offered for me to come sailing on his Catalina with he and his wife, and to introduce me to his cheap yacht club where there is frequent racing (I think $60-$80 a year membership).
I just need to find the time to go out there and take him up on the offer! Between work, RV maintenance, and family, it’s been difficult to do. Maybe this autumn.
Sorry to hear about your wife’s parents. The amount of chronic illness all around is disturbing and depressing. I see it, too.
I try to limit my consumption of news. I’ve learned over the course of the last 15 years, as things get worse and worse culturally and politically, that the actions one can take to insulate oneself from harm haven’t really changed. They are broadly the same as they’ve always been.
Since no precise details that I learn about current events will really change my action plan, I’ve gotten pretty behind on “news.” I do skim and follow the general outline but I don’t have time anymore to be reading dozens of articles daily. I used to spend all day on a microscope and the text to speech function made that easy. I don’t have that kind of time anymore.
I want to hear more about living aboard! Come on man, it's been 1.5 years and no articles! ;)
Good morning. Thanks for the reply and all the news.
I don’t recall if I sent an email or just posted something on your last Substack post. I’m 68 now so I can blame anything and everything on CRS. Haha.
We are in a marina. Bay City is our home port. Since 1990. We own a share in a non profit corp that owns the marina and that entitles us to a slip. We rented ours out while we were gone.
We rarely go daysailing. That is a hassle. Too much stuff to put away.
Here’s more than you probably need, or want, to know about our gracefully aging floating home.
Blessings is 35 feet LOA. 40 feet with the solar panels and dink hanging on davits.
Beam is 12 ft. 80 gallons of water, 40 gallons of diesel (which is a big tank for a 35ft sailboat*), 30 gallon holding tank, 600AH house bank, 100 amp alternator, 100 amp AC charger, 2500 watt inverter, two chart plotters, radar, sonar, satellite weather, AIS, 30HP 3 cylinder diesel, 2000KW generator,
We built a custom fridge, 4 cubic feet, freezer is .5 cubic feet, insulation is R30 on 2 sides, R40 on 2 sides, R50 on the bottom. Fridge is always the biggest Amp draw on a boat, so it should be well insulated, not adjacent to the hull, have square corners, and top and bottom access. The original fridge missed all the marks so we ripped it out (2010) and built our own. It’s incredibly efficient, using about 30AH per day.
We have a long list of all the other things we did back in 2008-2010 to change it from a boat to a home, but most of them are things that need to be seen to make sense. One important thing we did was to remove the windlass and install an oversized windlass with 2500lbs of torque. The original windlass had 600lbs. We have 225 ft of chain and a 45lb anchor and I wanted enough pulling power so we could exit an anchorage (if needed) without a working engine in 25-30knots of wind.
We have a full enclosure around the cockpit, which adds another ‘room’ and makes the boat seem bigger than it is.
*40 gallons is a big tank for a 35 ft boat.On average we burn 4/10ths of a gallon per hour. So that’s 100 hours of run time at 6 knots, for a range of about 600NM. When we were cruising we carried 20 gallons on deck (along with 20 gallons of water and 10 of gas) so that made our total theoretical range under power about 900NM or 1000 statute miles. There are not many 35ft sailboats that could go that far. And if we cut the speed to 5 knots consumption drops to 3/10ths, which increases the range proportionally. Much of this is due to a custom prop that we paid an ungodly amount of money for, it’s a variable pitch prop that is constantly adjusting itself based on RPMs, boat speed, and sea conditions. There are less than 100 of these PYI props ever made and most of them are in Europe.
Whenever the boat is out of the water other boaters come and look at the prop and ask “what the hell is that”. It does take a lot of maintenance and we would haul out every 6 months to change the zincs and do the maintenance.
Ok. That’s a long answer to a simple question.
So are you in FL? Are you going to be in FL this winter? We will be in Myrtle Beach. FL just a days drive away. We love road trips so maybe a personal visit might be in order.
Thx for the info on your home, sounds wonderful. I’ll bet on a sq ft basis we are pretty close. Yes, we can stay off the grid for about 60 days if we are careful. But being in the Great Lakes means from Nov-March we have to be elsewhere. I don’t like it, but I can’t fix it. So I am more mopey than usual. Which has been true my entire life. If I have no forward looking plans or something I can’t fix I get mopey and cranky. Plus I’m having facial pain and back pain issues that may, or may not, be related. I’m supposed to get some physical therapy, but not until late Sept. so they want me for 12 sessions. I can only do 5. One of the issues living in two places.
Myrtle Beach, SC. Actually Sunset Beach which is south of Myrtle Beach by about 10 miles. We have a condo rented for the winter, from 01 November 1-March 30. Then the boat goes back in the water on April 7.
Ha! Welcome to the Nomad world! Very pleased to see you are doing ok. I did send you a couple notes after you went silent but when I didn’t hear back I paused (not cancelled) my subscription (a couple months ago) thinking maybe you had gone off the grid, but would eventually return. It’s now unpaused!
Turns out I was pretty much on the mark with that. And it’s even better than I imagined!
What a wonderful story. I’d be pretty content on the road if I wasn’t on the boat. The best part, other than the characters you meet, is that you are “home” no matter where you go. And as you say, in relative terms, its pretty cheap living.
So we are in Bay City MI now. On the boat from 01 April through late October. Then we have a rented condo in Myrtle Beach from November-March. It’s not what we want. But as long as Gail’s parents (now 98 and 96) continue to defy the actuarial tables and family histories of death at an early age we are stuck. They are in an assisted living facility, 120 miles away, and her mother expects a visit once a week. So we can’t even take off for a month and enjoy the Great Lakes. Both her parents are jabbed and double boosted and since they got their 2nd booster last November their brains have literally melted down. It’s very sad. Her dad was already struggling but her mom had most of her cognitive function. But after the 2nd booster she deteriorated within weeks.
Gail’s brother lives 5 minutes away from them and has visited 3 times in the past year. Her sister lives in PA and has a million excuses why she can’t come to visit. So the “problem middle child” who always got the short end of the stick as a kid ends up being the one they count on and the only one whose name they remember. And I now have favored son-in-law status, which was definitely not the case for 40+ years. So there is that.
So I’m restless as hell and lacking motivation because without something to plan for out on the horizon I’m crabby. But I can’t change the picture and I’m sure once they are gone we will both recognize we did the right thing.
I took a road trip to NC last week to visit a couple of my good friends from when we lived there. It was good to get away for a few days and Gail enjoyed her alone time.
Looking forward to hearing more about your adventures and the other stuff too.
Sending Blessings from S/V Blessings. Eric.
Oh! Did you email? I’m afraid there were probably other emails I missed that were associated with email account linked to this Substack in a six month time span. I’m sorry about that!
Thanks for the re-subscription. :) I’ve felt badly about not writing, but I hope to make up for it soon. (I certainly don’t expect with such infrequent writing that people will continue with paid subscriptions and many others dropped off as well.)
I’ve been in a bit of a holding pattern for a couple of years now. Professionally you could say I’m trying to get my life restarted.
“I’d be pretty content on the road if I wasn’t on the boat. The best part, other than the characters you meet, is that you are “home” no matter where you go. And as you say, in relative terms, its pretty cheap living.”
Exactly.
How big is SV Blessings? Cool name. :) You guys have a slip at a marina? Do you ever take it out at all just for day sailing?
I follow a few channels where people are circumnavigating. I dream of attaining those skills.
I haven’t had my dinghy out in nearly two years. I’m too busy working. There is the additional issue that it’s kind of difficult to lift onto the roof of my car on my own, and i don’t have a trailer. :P
You can see the Minifish leaning against the fence in one of my pictures. :)
But recently I did meet a nice retired gentleman in VA Beach who offered for me to come sailing on his Catalina with he and his wife, and to introduce me to his cheap yacht club where there is frequent racing (I think $60-$80 a year membership).
I just need to find the time to go out there and take him up on the offer! Between work, RV maintenance, and family, it’s been difficult to do. Maybe this autumn.
Sorry to hear about your wife’s parents. The amount of chronic illness all around is disturbing and depressing. I see it, too.
I try to limit my consumption of news. I’ve learned over the course of the last 15 years, as things get worse and worse culturally and politically, that the actions one can take to insulate oneself from harm haven’t really changed. They are broadly the same as they’ve always been.
Since no precise details that I learn about current events will really change my action plan, I’ve gotten pretty behind on “news.” I do skim and follow the general outline but I don’t have time anymore to be reading dozens of articles daily. I used to spend all day on a microscope and the text to speech function made that easy. I don’t have that kind of time anymore.
I want to hear more about living aboard! Come on man, it's been 1.5 years and no articles! ;)
Good morning. Thanks for the reply and all the news.
I don’t recall if I sent an email or just posted something on your last Substack post. I’m 68 now so I can blame anything and everything on CRS. Haha.
We are in a marina. Bay City is our home port. Since 1990. We own a share in a non profit corp that owns the marina and that entitles us to a slip. We rented ours out while we were gone.
We rarely go daysailing. That is a hassle. Too much stuff to put away.
Here’s more than you probably need, or want, to know about our gracefully aging floating home.
Blessings is 35 feet LOA. 40 feet with the solar panels and dink hanging on davits.
Beam is 12 ft. 80 gallons of water, 40 gallons of diesel (which is a big tank for a 35ft sailboat*), 30 gallon holding tank, 600AH house bank, 100 amp alternator, 100 amp AC charger, 2500 watt inverter, two chart plotters, radar, sonar, satellite weather, AIS, 30HP 3 cylinder diesel, 2000KW generator,
We built a custom fridge, 4 cubic feet, freezer is .5 cubic feet, insulation is R30 on 2 sides, R40 on 2 sides, R50 on the bottom. Fridge is always the biggest Amp draw on a boat, so it should be well insulated, not adjacent to the hull, have square corners, and top and bottom access. The original fridge missed all the marks so we ripped it out (2010) and built our own. It’s incredibly efficient, using about 30AH per day.
We have a long list of all the other things we did back in 2008-2010 to change it from a boat to a home, but most of them are things that need to be seen to make sense. One important thing we did was to remove the windlass and install an oversized windlass with 2500lbs of torque. The original windlass had 600lbs. We have 225 ft of chain and a 45lb anchor and I wanted enough pulling power so we could exit an anchorage (if needed) without a working engine in 25-30knots of wind.
We have a full enclosure around the cockpit, which adds another ‘room’ and makes the boat seem bigger than it is.
*40 gallons is a big tank for a 35 ft boat.On average we burn 4/10ths of a gallon per hour. So that’s 100 hours of run time at 6 knots, for a range of about 600NM. When we were cruising we carried 20 gallons on deck (along with 20 gallons of water and 10 of gas) so that made our total theoretical range under power about 900NM or 1000 statute miles. There are not many 35ft sailboats that could go that far. And if we cut the speed to 5 knots consumption drops to 3/10ths, which increases the range proportionally. Much of this is due to a custom prop that we paid an ungodly amount of money for, it’s a variable pitch prop that is constantly adjusting itself based on RPMs, boat speed, and sea conditions. There are less than 100 of these PYI props ever made and most of them are in Europe.
Whenever the boat is out of the water other boaters come and look at the prop and ask “what the hell is that”. It does take a lot of maintenance and we would haul out every 6 months to change the zincs and do the maintenance.
Ok. That’s a long answer to a simple question.
So are you in FL? Are you going to be in FL this winter? We will be in Myrtle Beach. FL just a days drive away. We love road trips so maybe a personal visit might be in order.
I really love the great lakes. I spent a lot of time on Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence as a kid. Mostly fishing in motorboats, though. No sailing.
Your floating home sounds similar in size to my RV actually.
Beam is 8 feet.
66 gallons of fresh water.
50 gallon gas tank.
25 gallon grey tank, 25 gallon black tank.
Only 100 AH house bank, but I’m only operating lights and a water pump which are all sparingly used. I haven’t run the furnace in quite awhile.
I’m mot as well-equipped to survive off grid as you are! But one doesn’t need to be when one is on land. :)
I’m not in Florida! But I could be…. hah!
You will be in Myrtle Beach, FL? Not Myrtle Beach, SC? Is that correct?
Hmmm.
:)
Or do you mean Myrtle Island or Myrtle Grove over on the panhandle?
hmmmm.... :)
Thx for the info on your home, sounds wonderful. I’ll bet on a sq ft basis we are pretty close. Yes, we can stay off the grid for about 60 days if we are careful. But being in the Great Lakes means from Nov-March we have to be elsewhere. I don’t like it, but I can’t fix it. So I am more mopey than usual. Which has been true my entire life. If I have no forward looking plans or something I can’t fix I get mopey and cranky. Plus I’m having facial pain and back pain issues that may, or may not, be related. I’m supposed to get some physical therapy, but not until late Sept. so they want me for 12 sessions. I can only do 5. One of the issues living in two places.
Myrtle Beach, SC. Actually Sunset Beach which is south of Myrtle Beach by about 10 miles. We have a condo rented for the winter, from 01 November 1-March 30. Then the boat goes back in the water on April 7.
More info to come. Glad to see you writing again.
I'm only a 6 hour drive away. We'll get together! :)