How do you pee at 30 degrees?

Ed and I arrived aboard Great Mates on January 7th at her dock located at Marathon Key, FL.

My PC was in for repairs so I couldn't record our journey - but it's back....yippee!

This last week has been chilly and true sweatshirt weather yet not without learning and meeting all kinds of new folks and situations.

The first morning after arrival, we awoke to the gentle rocking of the boat and had our coffee afterwhich, Ed proceeded to the shipstore to find a newspaper. He was gone a good bit and returned excited to share with me a new story. While at the ship store a fellow said, "excuse me mate, can you tell me where I can find a ....... (some kind of tool) to which Ed replied, "well, there's a new West Marine just up the road, do you have a car". "no" Ed volunteered, "well, I have a rental car and I'd be happy to take you there". Hence the story continued. This fellow and his crew were taking a trip to deliver a boat to Mexico. So after the proper tools and quick repairs were made, Ed and I helped them push off and wished them well.

Next interesting meeting was a group of 6 fellows on a 65' Choey Lee (the maker of our boat) and they had pulled in for some "autopilot" repairs. They were on their way to the Cook Islands (near Austrailia). I baked them some chocolate chip cookies and wished them "God speed" and a few days later they were off. They anticipated a 3-month journey.

On Monday, our friend from Ed's work arrived for a few days and he was a great help to Ed in repairing some items. We took him back to KW in the rental car on Wednesday and turned in our "wheels". There's a bus that runs from KW to Homestead on a daily basis so we caught it and got off right outside our Marina.

Now on to our lives on Great Mates. It continues to evolve.

We've met people like Richard, from Memphis, TN, and Robin and Jim from somewhere (we can't tell you or they would kill us) and then some neat people from Bermuda, who have told us all about their business there as well as the politics there. How totally interesting.

And then the transients we've met. Cindy. She has lived and worked aboard since '98. A woman my age and such a delight. She's taken all kinds of certifications, from dive instructor to chef and from my best guestimants, does them all very well... She and her husband also raise Swiss Mountain Dogs on a small farm in Virginia. She shared with us all of the places they've lived as dive instructors and all the folks she has met and worked for as a result of working for a specific yaght company. What broad horizens this woman painted for us as we ensued the conversation.

Well, the next few months will be most interesting as the weather changes and we meed more people. As I told my mother in a conversation today via phone that I love this life...the experiences, the people we meet and definately living aboard. We are blessed.

God's peace to all who care to share in our journey.

Lisa