We're leaving Marathon tomorrow to stay in John Pennycamp State Park. We're looking forward to being at a dock for a little while and not having to take a dinghy to shore! Right now, the winds are whistling and the boat is rocking and rolling. But winds are supposed to be 15 knots in the morning, so we'll see!
Yesterday, Patti and I walked to Publix and took a taxi LOADED with groceries to get ready for our crossing. The boats are sitting lower in the water now! We came back and disposed of all the boxes and put everything in ziploc bags, both for freshness and space. I wish someone had a camera to take a photo of us in the dinghy. Chuck and I barely fit with all the groceries. We each sat on a pontoon and the dinghy was overflowing with groceries.
We're loaded with staples, canned goods, pasta, rice, canned meats and fruits and lots more. We just need to pick up a few things at the last minute and we'll restock the freezers right before we head to the Bahamas.
Last night we went to Dockside for dinner. There was a band, Florida Straits, playing and they were pretty good for only three pieces. Of course, Chuck said they needed a keyboard player. There was a drummer, lead guitarist and bass player. Only the lead guitarist sang. They were amazingly good for their size. They played Doobie Brothers, ZZ Top, blues and Jimmy Buffett...a little bit of everything. Hmmm, maybe it was the Bahama Mamas I had. Chuck faced the TV to watch the football game and I enjoyed the band. Everybody was happy.
Today was laundry day. I had four loads. Patti only had two. I took Jazzy with me and we were four hours getting laundry done and just as I called for Chuck to pick us up, the sky turned black and it poured! About a half hour later, it stopped and he came to get us in the dinghy. He no sooner hooked the dinghy line and it started pouring again, so he waited with us for another 30 minutes or so. So Jazzy and I were at the laundry room for a total of five hours. Good conversation with other boaters but not my idea of a fun day!
Tonight Patti served cheeseburgers with homemade potato salad and chips. Pudding with cool whip for dessert. Nothing like a good, juicy burger once in a while. Delicious.
Tomorrow morning we have to pull the motor back onto the sailboat and hook up the dinghy for traveling. Chuck hooked his bicycle onto the inside of the starboard aft railing.
I think we hope to be on the water by 8:30 a.m. Wayne will take Sailor to shore, then take his motor off. It's about a 50 mile day on the water tomorrow. Destination: John Pennycamp State Park. We plan to spend some time there snorkeling, then work our way back to Dinner Key/Miami for a weather window to cross.
I need to find a Verizon Wireless store in Miami to get a Blackberry. The woman I dealt with at Hamilton Mall gave me misinformation and when I called to increase my broadband card to a global plan, I was told that if I had used my broadband card this month in the Bahamas, my bill would have been $55,148! That's not a typo. More than $55,000 dollars to be online. And they don't give credit for not knowing how it works there. She told me some poor soul just returned from a vacation and only checked his e-mail five times on his trip, for just 10-15 minutes each time. His bill was over $10,000 and he was stuck having to pay it!
So my new phone I got in August won't work there. I can't afford to use the broadband card there. That gives me two options to be able to stay online and pay my bills: rely on hot spots to piggyback on someone else's connection or get a Blackberry with a global data plan for $69.95 a month. This according to the Global Support Team rep at VZW. I'd rather get the Blackberry, which I wanted anyway, to be sure my bills get paid on time. Then I'll still be able to keep in touch with our kids and grandkids and my Facebook friends.
Hopefully, I'll have some photos tomorrow.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment