How About a Wine Tasting?

While I was cruising in Margarita, Venezuela, I was contacted by a cruiser friend who wanted me to buy him a case of a certain wine.   Since it's much cheaper in Margarita than most of the Eastern Caribbean, I told him that was no problem.  We knew we would meet up again during the next few seasons. 

I wrote down his description of the wine - what picture it had on the label and the type.  Unfortunately, he didn't remember the name of the winery or brand.  OK, I didn't think it would be a problem to buy a case and I knew just the store to get it in, they had a great selection. 

On my next trip to the store, I went to the wine section and scanned the bottles, to my amazement, multiple brands of that same type appeared with the same type of picture, an old fashioned picture of a mother cradling her baby.  There were at least 10 different brands.  I decided not to buy anything that trip, but had contact with him in the next few days.  He said he didn't know which brand was good, but just pick any one and it would be fine.

Great, now it's my decision - and there's so many!!  I decided this was a good excuse to have a wine tasting party.  That way, we would all rate the different wines and I would buy what the majority thought was the best of the bunch.  I talked to a few people and they thought it was a great idea and a wonderful excuse for a party - like we needed excuses! 

A California couple on a catamaran insisted that we do it on their boat, they said they were wine connoisseurs after having lived in California.  We decided what type munchies we should have and I bought numerous bottles of that type wine and settled on a date. 

We all gathered together on the catamaran.   Because the California couple had been to many wine tastings and had some of their own, they wanted to organize the tasting.   Fine by me, I knew they were more experienced than I was.  We had a great time doing the test and surprisingly, a lot of us agreed which were the better wines.  Everyone agreed that the party was a success and that it was great to do something different for a change.

My friend and his wife were thrilled when I delivered the case of the most popular wine and thought our selection was great.  I told them the story and thanked them for the wonderful party we had.

Betty Karl

http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Want to be a Landlord?

Way back when I had a really good job, I decided that buying rental houses or a duplex would be a great idea.   It all started when I got divorced and bought my first house.  I was ready to move to a nicer house in about a year and I was convinced that I should keep my first house as a rental.  It worked pretty good, my second batch of tenants took pretty good care of the house and when I was ready to sell it, purchased the house from me.  They had lousy credit and the only way they could own is to take over my mortgage and get a second one.  I took a balloon mortgage from them for a certain length of time and made out pretty well with the interest. 

During that time, I was ready for more experimentation with being a landlord.  I had a friend who was a real estate broker who would call me when he had a property he thought I might be interested in.  I had a real estate license myself, but never worked at it.  I did know quite a bit about the area I was in and the values of properties there.  I figured I could buy properties, paint, recarpet or tile and make them look a lot better than what I'd been seeing.  So, I bought a duplex.  Started fixing up one side, got it rented out.   Fixed up the other side, got that rented. 

Most of my tenants were single moms and I had a couple long-term ones in that duplex, after I weeded out a few deadbeats.  If people didn't pay rent on time, I charged a late fee.  I would work with them if I saw any indication they would be paying soon.  If they didn't pay after my written warning, and I had a bad feeling about not seeing any money, I could go to the county office and start eviction proceedings.  While those proceedings are going on, they are living in your house/apartment without paying rent.  You know that they're not taking care of the place, in most cases, they're damaging it.  To make things worse - even though you'll never see any money from them, you have to pay to have them evicted - and wait a certain length of time before the officials actually go out and physically move the people out.  Most of my non-paying renters knew exactly how many days they had until the officials showed up - and left the day before.

Even so, I had a positive cash flow on this property, so I bought the house next door and fixed that up, rented that out.  And a year or so later, I bought another one in another area of town.  Still the same problems, but all of these had good cash flow.  Tenants would break things and expect immediate response to their problems.  My response to their problems was determined on their prompt (or otherwise) payment history. 

After every tenant left, I would have to repaint the entire place.  It wasn't too bad, since these were small units.  I became a very good painter.  Sometimes I had to replace carpeting, sometimes I could just get it cleaned.  After one couple left, there was a large hole in the drywall where it looked like he shoved her head through it - just the right size and height.  One dog chewed up one of my doors and there were other unsavory damages and leavings.

One young couple was very good with paying rent - and as a bonus, they would bring big bags of bagels, since they worked in a bagel restaurant.  One month, they were late and I thought it was odd, since they had always been on time.   I drove up to the house, knocked on the door, no answer.   Looked in a few windows and saw that all their furniture was gone.  They left with no notice, but at least they didn't do much damage.  I was kind of disappointed with them, because they had been so nice.

When I left to go cruising, I sold all the properties because I knew no one would manage them like I would.   I did try a management company for a few months, but there were always excuses for no cash flow and they were making my mortgage payments late.

Yes, I made money while I had them, made a little when I sold them because I bought them right.  No, I won't do it again.  It was way too much of a hassle and I just don't want to deal with it.  But, every once in a while, I see a fixer-upper house and my mind starts telling me I could make some bucks if I just bought it, repainted, recarpeted.......   NO!!

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Vacation!

Vacations are great.  Weeks before you leave, you find yourself getting more excited about leaving.  You're deciding what clothes to bring for the destination you planned.  You might even go out and buy a few new things to take with you.  Be sure your camera batteries are charged, the camera is clean and you have enough memory cards to take with you.  Get out the passport, can't forget that.   About this time, I have my suitcase in my extra room and I have tossed things in there that I absolutely can't forget.

Finally, the day arrives and you get up extra early for the drive to the airport, doing a last minute check of all the things you need to remember.   Don't forget the pre-printed boarding passes, what a great idea they came up with!  I usually find myself driving to the airport in the dark, reaching the parking area at dawn.   Even though I've allowed myself plenty of time, I always think there will be a holdup.  Security is always a holdup - even though I have nothing on but my clothes, when I go through the scanner, it seems that they always have to pat me down.  I don't think I fit their profile, but something prompts them.  Or their scanner is defective?  This time, they even took my glasses and put them in a container to go through their scanner with all the other luggage.  I'm sure there's a reason for that, I just can't figure out where I'd hide anything in my glasses.

Then you sit and wait to board the flight and endure the change in planes at another airport and finally arrive at your destination.  Within hours, you are whisked away from your life and have been placed in a totally different location with a totally different agenda for the week.  It feels great!  You just know you're going to have a great time and things will look different when you get back home.

You do all the things you planned - hiking, snorkeling, sailing, eating the local food so different from where you live.  You're happy and content just sitting and gazing at your surroundings for extended times.   It's so different from where you live, and you want to imprint it in your memory because you know a photo will only be a reminder of the great view you are seeing. 

Too soon, it's all over and you're packing to go home.  In some ways, it feels good to be going home because you're relaxed, you just know that things will be easier to deal with.  OK, so maybe you haven't missed your job, and you're not anxious to get back there, but maybe it won't be so bad when you get back.  Maybe they've kept up the work so you don't have a stack of it.  You can always hope. 

All too soon, you're back home.  The house is the same, the cat is whining that you left her for a full week.  It doesn't matter that she's had company once in a while and she's had food and water and sleeps most of the time anyway.  What she's really upset about is that YOU weren't there to be with her, but she gets over it and is much more affectionate than usual. 

Back at work for the first few hours, or maybe even a couple days, work doesn't even seem that bad.  Then you realize no one kept up with things and you have a pile of problems to deal with.  Did you really think that someone would take care of things like you did?  Silly thought.  After a few more days cleaning things up, you're pretty much as stressed as before you left.  Then you start thinking you maybe should have "missed" your flight home.  

Most people go back into their lives, happy with the memories and stories and they will be content to wait for next year's vacation.  I never quite get that feeling.  You realize that the wanderlust you've kept hidden deep inside has surfaced, like a monster you've kept at bay.  You want to become the perpetual tourist, the permanent traveler.  No one understands except possibly another kindred soul. 

Betty Karl

http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Senior Pets

                                             


I adopted my teeny kitten in Trinidad in 1999 when she was four weeks old and named her Sloopy.  Since she was feral, I spent extra time with her so that she would bond with me and be a good pet.  It worked, and she's a very affectionate cat, on her terms.

Earlier this year, I noticed a lump near her shoulder and took her to the vet.  This is where she shows her true feral colors.  She crouched in her cage in the back seat and  yelled all the way to the vet's office.  In the waiting room, she was quiet.  She was fine in the exam room.  Until they opened the door and tried to get her to come out.  Not a chance.  They had to raise the back of the cage and basically pour her out.  She came out hissing. 

I always bring a heavy beach towel to the vet's office because I know that there's no way a stranger is going to touch her, even in her own home.  In a strange place, she doesn't want to be touched by anyone, including me.  She's just in survival mode.  By the time the vet tech put on long, thick gloves and tried to hold her still so the vet could check out the lump, she was growling and hissing at me.  Kitty swearing.   After all, I was the one who brought her to this torture chamber and allowed these people to manhandle her.

After the vet checked the lump, they let her walk around the room and crouch in a corner, glaring at everyone.  As we talked, the vet looked at me and said, "But, is she a good pet?"  It was humorous, in a way, because no one would believe that she was an affectionate pet if they had seen that display of wildness.  I explained that she's was always fine at home and even though she's stubborn and wants everything her way. 

She and I have been together for over 13 years.  Recently, I've been noticing that she sleeps more than usual.  She's still climbing all over the place, but I've noticed that she sometimes has trouble jumping on the bed or sofa to be with me.  On some occasions, she misses the first time and then sits down with a confused look on her face to contemplate why she didn't quite make it up on the sofa.  Then she tries again and makes it the second time.  She's also more vocal if there's not enough food in her dish.  In her mind, the last half dozen little pieces of food are not worth eating - she wants a big pile!

I know she's getting old and I'm going to lose her one day.  It will be a very upsetting time and I'll swear, yet again, that I'm not having any more pets.  Then, one day, I'll see a tiny little kitten that desperately needs a home - and so the cycle will begin again.

Betty Karl

http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Lost in Georgetown, Bahamas

Georgetown, Bahamas is a gathering place for cruisers who come down from the northern states, stay for a few months and then go back to the northern states for the summer months.  Some cruisers do this year after years, but a small percentage of adventurous cruisers go further south to the island chain.

Because cruisers keep coming back year after year, it's a very social place.  Cruisers are a social bunch anyway, but while staying in one area for months at a time, it becomes more social than usual.  There are multiple beaches in the area, Volleyball Beach and Hamburger Beach are a couple popular beaches.  Yes, there is volleyball at Volleyball Beach and there is food at Hamburger Beach.  There are cookouts on the beach, get-togethers at the local eateries and happy hours happen on lots of boats in the different anchorages. 

There are multiple anchorages in the area and as many as 500 boats at any time during the season.  Unless you're paying strict attention, or have your GPS with you, this could be a problem getting home after dark with the forest of masts that don't look familiar, especially if you've had a few.

Cruisers usually have their VHF radios on when they're home and awake.  It's like a party-line, everyone can hear what you're saying.  One night, we were home having a quiet evening and it was probably about 10 PM.  A call came on the radio requesting the location of a certain boat.  After listening to numerous conversations with a few other boats, we learned that the owner of the boat mentioned had been circling the area in his dinghy and couldn't find his way home.  One of his neighbors took pity on the guy and went outside to signal him with a flashlight.  Turns out he wasn't even in the general area, but did find his way eventually.

Everyone we saw the next day was chuckling about it and teasing the poor lost soul.  We shared our secret of finding our way home - we had put reflective tape around the top of the mast.  That works well, we found it helpful a few times.  Of course, that's assuming you remember to have a flashlight with you.

Betty Karl

http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Car Dings!!

You're right - the photo has absolutely nothing to do with car dings - but it's prettier than car dings....

Last year, I was driving around in a 1996 Toyota.  It had served me well for 5 years but I knew the time was coming that it would need work done on it.  Expensive work.  The car was homely, basic white with gray interior - not fifty shades of gray, maybe only one or two.  The body was in decent shape, not very many dings in the doors, no dents, just a bit of rust around the top of the windshield.  I parked it anywhere and didn't worry about it getting dings in it - after all, it was old.

I had been searching for a car to buy and I found a 2006 Toyota that was in pretty good shape, mileage that was considered low today but years ago, would have been considered high.  It had a couple dings on the body, but everything seemed OK.  They even replaced the steering rack when they noticed the boot on it was ripped. 

So I bought it and it came home with me the same day.  Since then, I've been taking better care of it than I did my old white Toyota.  The color is called Desert Tan, which I consider a gold, with light brown interior.  I have probably washed it more times in the past 8 months than I ever washed my old white Toyota.  I've even waxed it. 

Usually I park way out in the parking lots and hike to the entrance of stores.  Sometimes I don't, when I'm in a hurry.  I try my friend's theory - if you park between two cars and you're only going in for a short while - you'll be OK because usually the same two cars are still there when you come out.  Well, maybe it works for him - but it hasn't for me. 

I don't know how this car seems to collect so many dings from other people's car doors.  One of them even scraped the paint off and made a slight dent in the driver's door.  I left it in airport parking last month and a few new ones appeared, I had no control over where it was parked. 

I don't know if people are more careless than usual.  Maybe it's because people are fatter than they were 20 years ago, and they can't get out of their cars without damaging other cars.  Maybe people just don't respect anything anymore.  I'm not sure what it is, but this car has collected more dings in 8 months than my homely looking car did in 5 years, and it was parked anywhere it was convenient. 

It's depressing.  I wanted something nice for a change and I can't have it.  Times like these, I wonder what I did in my previous life - I must have had one hell of a time!

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Garage Sale People

As usual, the picture doesn't relate to the content of my blog (usually), but it's just to make it a little more interesting

I had a garage sale a couple days ago.  I really needed to clean out stuff I had packed away and hadn't been using.  I mean, really, how does someone end up with 3 different desks in a small house?  Well, it was easy, I kept seeing ones I liked at other garage sales....

My sale gave me a chance to watch people and analyze them.  It was very interesting, especially having recently come from a job where everyone was complaining and unhappy, and that included the staff as well as the customers!

I kept an open mind and as I watched everyone.   I realized that, for the most part, people were friendly, and considerate of my belongings.  Some of them wanted to have discussions about what was for sale and why.  I got into a couple long conversations with a few people who wanted to know more about things I had done and wanted to know what it was like. 

There were a few others who tested my patience - there were a couple of women with a child who was allowed to touch everything, play with things and ended up breaking something, which they didn't pay for.  At least they purchased some things, which made it all worthwhile. 

One man had a smartphone out and was checking prices on it, criticizing my pricing.  Since I had already checked the pricing the previous week, I knew I was underpriced by more than half from the new cost of the item.  What he wasn't checking was the size of the items, both of which came in numerous sizes and I had the largest sizes of each.   He assumed he was right and kept muttering about people overcharging.  I said nothing because there were other people around and didn't want to create a scene, so I just walked away from him.   I'm sure it was his way of requesting a lower price, but that doesn't work with me.  I wouldn't have taken a nickel off for someone like him.  I'm not sure what an arrogant man like that was doing at a garage sale. 

The people who joked with me and nicely asked for a lower price or offered a lower price got the deals - quickly and happily.  One woman was buying things she was going to make craft projects from - not that they were craft objects, but everyday objects she was going to paint and arrange and hang.  She kept picking up things and I gladly gave her a package price she was thrilled with and I was happy to let her have them.  She was one of the more fun, likeable people of my day. 

It does take all kinds and certainly the day was a lesson in how to get the type of service you want in a store or other business situation.  Now, if we could somehow train some of the harder-to-deal-with people, the world would be a more enjoyable place.

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

A Week Without Facebook

I just returned home from a week in upstate New York visiting my brother and his family.   It was good to get away and good to see them again, since I hadn't been there for five years.  They kept telling me that the week I was there was the best they've had all year.  And then they accused me of taking it back with me, because it was reported they would have rain for about 4 days when I left.  They kept telling me how warm it was, and since I'm from Florida, I felt silly having long sleeves on.  They were in shorts and I was in jeans, but I was perfectly comfortable.

My brother has a computer and I checked my email a couple times a day and a few other things while I was there.  I decided I should stay away from Facebook and other sites where I waste too much time.  I didn't even play one game of Spider Solitaire, and I'm really addicted to that!  Instead, we spent quite a bit of time in the evening in front of the TV.  I still don't have a TV, I watch a few shows on my computer and that's the extent of my TV knowledge.  Amazing how many channels there are, how much stuff that I've never heard of.  And I probably don't want to ever see most of it again.

I really didn't have withdrawal symptoms from the lack of Facebook.  I'm sure I missed some fun pictures and funny little signs.  When I got back, I didn't have the impulse to scroll down for hours looking for things I had missed.  I was fine.   Of course, now that I'm back, I do spend time looking at postings from everyone and making a comment or hitting like.

If you know anyone who thinks they can't live without Facebook, Twitter, or other sites, let them know it really is possible to survive without it.  It's an interesting site and I enjoy it but it's not the end of the world if I don't keep up with what everyone is doing.  Try it, see how long you can last.

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Customer Service?

Have you noticed there is very little customer service left in the States?  You can never find someone to help at Walmart and even if it's a 24 hour Walmart  - and the electronics department doesn't open until 9 AM, at least at my store.  If you do find someone, chances are they don't work in that department.....  If you call any office (except mine, it seems), you'll have to listen to a voicemail forest, pressing different numbers to try to get someone to talk to - if you're lucky.  Most of the time, you get to talk to a machine and maybe get  a call back in a couple days - or not.

I use internet in numerous places, mostly at home and at a couple different offices I work in.  In all those places, I get the message that my browser is "not responding".  This could mean that it will wake up sometime soon, far in the future, or never.  Usually, I get out of the program and go back into it.  It's frustrating.  Sometimes it's just slow.  I've had better, quicker service in places like Trinidad and Venezuela.

At home, my provider would give me a "great deal" if I had a home phone - also known as landline.  The deal would get better if I had a TV to connect to their great service.  All I need or want from them is internet service - good, reliable internet service.  And for that, I pay quite a bit per month because they penalize me because I don't want a phone or TV.   For the price they charge, I would expect great service, I would really like to get great service.  They entice you with the fact that it's "road runner", assuming we're all going to think it's really quick.

A few nights ago, I was on the computer at home on the internet.   I have a laptop with a router, which means I can take the computer anywhere in the house and it still works, very convenient.     Anyway, the other night, all of a sudden, it stopped working.  No excuse, no storms in the area, nothing going on.  I went in where the modem was and of course, there were no lights blinking.  OK, cable was out, according to my modem. 

I called up the service center and got some woman on the other end of the phone who told me to reboot the modem, which I had already done - I've been through this before with them.  Then, she said it looked good on her end and it should be working.  OK, but there are still no lights on my modem.  Somehow, she learned that I had a router and told me that must be the problem - she told me to disconnect everything - again - the modem and the router, both from power and the incoming cable.  After half a minute, she tells me to connect it all together again.  Then it magically works. 

She started telling me that every once in a while, the router needs to be "refreshed" and there was nothing wrong with their service.  Seems like I never had that problem at work, where there is also a router.  Also, the router in question is relatively new, having only been in service for a couple months.  The previous router worked for a few years without being "refreshed".  I told her that and then asked her where she was.  She had a bit of an accent I couldn't place, I knew she wasn't in India - I know that accent.  She told me she was in the Philippines.  I don't know how long that's been going on.

As a side note, that same company supplies the company I work for with internet - I had to call their office one day.  Seems that I can get a human on the phone but the office that takes care of the business accounts doesn't open until 9 AM.  What about the businesses who open at 8 AM?

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

The Urge

Most of us have urges – they could be as benign as a shopping spree, you just had to do it. A lot of my urges have to do with food – mostly things that are poisonous – cookies, candy, sweets of all kinds. I know they’re bad for me, I know it as I savor the taste of the chocolate. When the urge strikes, sometimes you just have to go with it, it’s unstoppable.

My most powerful urge was so strong it could be labeled a “force”. Once started, there was no stopping me. That would be the urge to go cruising on a sailboat to the Caribbean. I dreamed about it for years and finally, I realized I absolutely HAD to do it! There was no waiting until retirement – I kept thinking I may never live that long. This force became so strong that I had a panicky feeling that if I didn’t take steps to make this long-time dream come true that I would regret it forever.

It didn’t matter to me that I had to sell numerous houses (some of them producing income). Didn’t matter to me that I had to sell my 1966 red convertible Mustang that I loved. I was determined, I was going to do it, no matter what. I realized that we would lose track of friends when we left, they would keep in touch for a few years, but then life would get in the way and we would lose touch with them. People always say they’ll stay in touch, but usually they don’t. As far as I was concerned, I knew I was never coming back to the same place.

Now if you’ve read this far, you’re thinking about what a stubborn person I can be. I’m not really, but like I said, this powerful force was driving me and I’d I had convinced my partner that I would take care of everything, if he would go with me – I told him how much fun it would be and the wonderful places we’d get to visit. Unfortunately, even though he did go with me for a time, he would have been happy to stay behind and keep on working and having two days off per week and maybe a week off sometime during the year.

I was tired of working to pay for a house, cars, insurance and all the things necessary to live on land and keep a job. I was never getting enough time off to recharge. Every year, I had taken trips to the islands, diving or Windjammer cruises. Every year, I was so unhappy to be headed home, it was all I could do not to cry on the plane. When I took a vacation, I tried to convince myself that I didn’t mind being back at work – for about 2 hours and then I realized how far behind I was. It felt like punishment for being gone for a week and having a good time.

Obviously, I have a bad case of wanderlust – I always want to go places and see things I’ve never seen before. Possibly I have gypsy or nomad blood somewhere in my past. Maybe in my previous lives, I never got to go anywhere and I’m trying to make up for it in this life. Whatever it is, it’s a very strong force – the urge to travel.

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Medical Costs Outside the U S

 

LaGuardia, Venezuela

 

 

Medical care is always scary, but especially so if you happen to be in a foreign country and need something done. Most of my medical care has been in the States, but I have had medical procedures done in two other countries where I happened to be when I needed something done. I needed to be a hospital patient in both cases, luckily only on an out-patient basis – meaning I was in and out on the same day.

The first was in Trinidad, a simple procedure and I had been to this doctor numerous times during my visits to Trinidad - I liked him and trusted his judgment. I can’t say it was enjoyable because when I woke up in the recovery room, I was freezing, no blankets. However, I can’t say anything bad about the care I received there.

I also had imaging and lab tests done there. In the States, we go to the doctor to get the order, go to the x-ray facility and then go back to the doctor for him to tell us what’s wrong, or not. In Trinidad, we get the order, go to the imaging facility, and then sit in the waiting room for them to develop the film and print the reports – and they hand it to us. Great, no visit to the doctor unless we think there’s a problem or we need further discussion with him. This saves time, money and makes much more sense. Same with the lab, although I had to go back on another day since the blood testing took more time to complete.

All of these services, and medications, cost way less than it would have in the States. You can actually afford to go to a doctor and pay for it in these places.

My second experience was in Puerto LaCruz, Venezuela. I went to the hospital for checkin, much more complicated since I had to go through their translator, my meager Spanish was not enough. They were great – in the recovery room, they had a nice blanket on me AND a hose pushing heated air under it! I was nice and warm, very comfortable. Again, this was done at a fraction of what it would cost in the States.

Medications were easy to obtain in Venezuela also, and cost only a tiny percent of the money we fork out in the States for the same thing. Certain medications that require prescriptions in the States were available over the counter there also.

A cruiser woman I knew was having treatment for cancer in Puerto La Cruz while I was there. Her husband told me that they had gone back to the States for a visit and checked in with their former doctor. He went over all the information they had brought back with them and told them that the treatment she was getting in Venezuela was the same that he would have ordered for her if she had been treated there in the States. And way more affordable.

If people go out of the States to get medical care and receive the same level of care we have here, why are our costs so high? The cost of insurance is outrageous and I don’t think it’s going to get any better. Doctors pay amazing amounts for malpractice insurance because they are open for lawsuits for any reason a lawyer might think of. Drug companies say the cost of medications is high because of the research and development, not to mention advertising, of any new drug. If that’s the case, why are the same medications available from the same companies in these other countries at a fraction of the cost? And yes, we’re talking about the name brand drugs, not generics.

I know what my opinion is and I’ll let you draw your own conclusions, but think about the information in the previous paragraph. The answers are there.

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

　
　
　

 

How To Buy a Boat

  Sea Turtle

Back in time, I was looking for a sailboat to go cruising in.  You know, just sell everything, hop on the boat and get out of the States for an unknown time frame.  Destination – Caribbean!

We went to a large yacht sales office in St Petersburg, Florida and one of the salesmen started showing us some used sailboats, about 35’.  We spent a good part of a day looking at all kinds of boats.  The only thing that caught my eye was a 35’ Morgan with a centerboard and an aft cockpit.  It seemed solid and the layout was pretty good, although I grew to hate the fact that the galley was along the starboard side of the boat instead of being a little U or L shaped area near the companionway. 

We were going through the storage lockers, looking under the cushions and generally poking through things.  My partner found the cable that brings up the centerboard or lowers it and started playing with it and checking the little winch for it.  He jiggled things around for a while, then left the cabin to talk to the salesman on the dock. 

I sat down and looked around, just soaking up the atmosphere – it really didn’t have a bad closed-up-boat smell.  Then, I realized I heard an alien noise, there was water gurgling and it wasn’t the waves lapping the hull on the outside.  This was inside the boat!   Not a good sign! 

I called up to the guys on the dock – “Hey, I hear water running in, you better check it out!”  I heard the salesman make a comment to my partner, “She’s just hearing the waves on the hull.”  Furious, I stuck my head out the companionway and said “You can think that or you can stop this boat from sinking, it’s up to you.”  And I climbed out and got on the dock with them. 

Something about my attitude worried the salesman and he decided to check below and see what was going on.  Sure enough, when my partner was checking out the cable for the centerboard, something snapped and allowed the water to leak in the bilge from the tube encasing the cable.  It was the last touch that it needed to break apart from age and use.

We left the salesman there dealing with the problem and went home.  I did like the boat and it was the only one I liked that was in my price range.  The next weekend, we called the salesman to see if the boat had been saved and what the story was.  The problem had been fixed and the boat was still available. 

We went to see it again and decided to make a low offer, figuring the owner would be glad to get rid of it because it was just costing him money at this point.  The offer was accepted and in a short time, the boat was ours and would take us from Sarasota, Florida and on to the Bahamas, through to the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and then to the Virgin Islands and down the island chain to Grenada.  And that’s where I found another boat I liked…….

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G
 

Nassau Rum Factory Tour

                                   

 

We got into Nassau at the end of a long day, just squeaking by a cruise ship that was on the way out the pass.  We anchored near town and got settled for the night.  The next day, the captain searched for an old mooring, the best way to stay put in Nassau since the tides run through the anchorage at a good pace.   He finally found a giant old ship’s anchor and attached our anchor chain to it.  We were now stuck for the duration.
 

We got together with a couple off another cruising boat and decided we should do a tour of the Bacardi Rum factory.  We found out from the locals which bus to take to get close, then we would have to walk up the road to the actual factory.

We arrived about noon the next day and walked into the welcome center.  It was set up as a small bar, with all the products displayed against a mirrored wall behind the bar.  The friendly bartender gave us a great big smile when we asked about the tour.  We weren’t smiling when he told us that the factory was closed for another two weeks.  But, he said, have a seat and I can serve you some of our products, whatever you want, mixed with whatever you want.  OK, then we started smiling.
 

We sat there for a few hours, listening to his stories of the island and the factory.  He was the perfect spokesman for the factory, he kept us entertained and made sure we weren’t upset about the lack of factory tour.  We sampled quite a few of their products, and of course, bought some to take back to the boat. 

Later in the afternoon, we decided it was time to wander down the road to the main road to catch our bus.  He told us he was going to close up anyway, and he would take us to the bus stop so we didn’t have to walk.  Good thing, I was really too relaxed at that point to think about walking very far.

No factory tour for us that trip, but we sure did have a nice relaxing time with a good storyteller from the islands.

 

Betty Karl

http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Salt Cay, Turks & Caicos

 

 

 

 

We left Grand Turk about 9:30 one morning, got to Salt Cay about 11:30, a nice little sail.  We anchored, had lunch, then dinghied to the island.  We stopped at the Brown House (which is NOT brown) and talked to Michelle, who we had known from Marathon. This is a huge house, full of history, and she was trying to refurbish it into a Bed & Breakfast.  Lots of work to be done, but it's a gorgeous setting.

She imported 14 cats from the Marathon fish house when she left.  When she walked around town, they followed her and the locals were in awe of this woman with all these cats. 

We had dinner that night with Michelle and she talked about moving there and how she was adjusting to island life.  She showed us her art work, she had collected plastic fishing floats and painted windmills on them to sell to tourists.  We decided that we should stay there a couple days, it was a very quiet island, the kind of place where you could disappear and never be found.

Town is about a mile long, dirt road, buildings built along the waterfront.  Everyone had a stone fence with conch shells cemented into the tops of the fences.  Old stone or wood houses are falling down right next to newer ones.  It’s all very picturesque.  Less than 100 people live on the island.  Right across from the houses on the beach are the salt pans.  They are still very well marked with stone walls separating them.  Most of the windmills were broken up, but someone was refurbishing them and one looked like it almost might work. 

We walked to the navigation light on top of the hill, an old cannon was found there and had been refurbished.  An old cemetery was on the way, with its own stone fence and iron gate.   Most headstones looked centuries old,  none marked, only a few newer-looking concrete box-type coverings, and only one of those was marked with name and dates. 

Horses and donkeys wander around the entire island, including the town area.

During the evening, we noticed cows appearing on the beach right after sunset.  We noticed a bull (with horns) wandering around the streets in town also.

Along the way, we collected some of the fishing floats that had washed up on the beaches and rocks of the island.  We took them back to Michelle so she could paint more windmills for the tourist trade.  She was so happy, she presented one she had finished the day before.  We were so happy to have a memento of our stay in this unique little island paradise. 

We sailed away the next day, on to more islands and more unique experiences. 

 Betty Karl

http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Chacachacare - Trinidad's Abandoned Leper Colony

                                                       http://youtu.be/DYT1Exsgjjy

Chacachacare is an island about 7 miles off the coast of northern Trinidad.  For years now, it has been inhabited only by the lighthouse keeper, iguanas and other wildlife.  It does include Trinidadians who arrive on boats for weekend camping and cookouts.  Cruisers also anchor there for weeks at a time.

In the past, it was a leper colony, but since leprosy was brought under control, the last patients left in the early 1980s.  It was just abandoned, no one bothered to clear out the furniture, medical equipment and records or other personal items.  The buildings are slowly being reclaimed by Mother Nature and time.  This was one of my favorite places in Trinidad, the buildings were great examples of wonderful architecture of the islands, set on the hills surrounding the bay.  Large windows and doors brought in the light and fresh air – no air conditioning for this community. 

The community was self-contained and included a bakery, hospital/clinic, movie theater, library,  numerous churches and dormitory-like buildings for the patients.  Patients well enough to work built the buildings, worked in the gardens and helped in other areas.  Patients were taken care of by Dominican nuns, who lived in buildings across the bay.  There are a couple cemeteries on the island, most notably, one by the nun’s quarters that contained graves of the deceased nuns who had worked there. 

These days, it’s deserted most of the time.  When we were there, we would always take a hike up to the lighthouse, about an hour walk.  There were great views of both Venezuela and Trinidad from the top of the hill.  The lighthouse keeper was always friendly, they had a rotating staff, but they still got lonely being the only person living on the island. 

Unfortunately, Chacachacare was downwind from Trinidad and the bay was open to the east.  During heavy rains, trash would flow into the rivers to the bays of Trinidad and over to Chacachacare, catching in the big open bay.  Every time we would go over there to stay in a quiet, uninhabited place for a while, we would go over to the beaches and make a big pile of the trash and burn it, trying to clean up the place for the next visitors.  The idea caught on and we found that other cruisers were also cleaning up the place when they went over. 

I felt like the island was a museum of sorts, a look into the lives of people who were unfortunate to have a disease that separated them from everyone they knew.  Some patients spent most of their lives there and had no idea what life would be like when they moved back to Trinidad when the colony closed.  Cleaning up the beaches in the bay was the only way I felt that I could show my respect for the island and the people who had lived there.

Betty Karl
Chacachacare slide show - http:/youtu.be/YT1EXsgjjyY

Arriving in the Dominican Republic

We left Sandy Cay in the Turks and Caicos right after noon - weather report says 10-15 knots of wind, 5' seas, sounded good. Reality is another story altogether - 20-25 knots of wind, and over 8' seas. We were making good time with double reefed main and tiny part of the jib, about 5-6 knots.

 At over 30 miles out, I was off watch, trying to nap in these lumpy seas and smelled electrical wires burning. Of course, my first thought was that we were hours from land in any direction and the water was VERY deep where we were – all in a flash. I kept sniffing, trying to locate the source of the smell – of course it was in the engine area. I finally located the general area and called my partner down to investigate further while I went up on deck to be sure everything was OK.


The problem turned out to be a faulty monitor that was supposed to check for fumes in the bilge area. Luckily, it wasn’t something critically important and since I couldn’t sleep, it was found right away when the problem happened.

I was sitting at the wheel when my partner came up to the cockpit to tell me what it was and that it could remain disconnected until it could be fixed. As the nervousness left my body and I relaxed, I realized I could actually smell land. It smelled distinctly like rich garden soil, green growing things, very lush vegetation smell. We had heard and read that this would be noticed, but I didn’t realize how powerful the smell would be. Possibly it smelled even better after the scare we’d had.

By dawn, we were only about 5-6 miles out, and in the distance we were seeing very high hills, then more mountains in the background. The smell of land was definitely more noticeable.

So much of a change from the Bahamas and Turks & Caicos - what a nice difference in its own way. We found our way into Luperon harbor with no problem and went into the inner harbor and anchored. The hills all around the anchorage were lush green vegetation, palm trees on the tops of hills, so very different from Florida and the Bahamas. 

Such a great landfall, a new island, new country, new day and so different!   So happy to have arrived safely.

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Beach Shopping

 

 

All through the Bahamas we walked beaches and the shores that were lined with porous rock known as “ironshore”.  On many of these beaches, especially in the outislands, we found objects on the beach, trash thrown over by boats, lost overboard, or tossed into the water from an islands east of where we were and guided by winds and currents to distant shores. 

Yes, it was litter that didn’t belong in the ocean, most of what we saw were plastic bottles of all shapes and sizes and colors.  Every once in a while we found plastic fishing floats, some covered in a line net and others not.  I was hoping that one day I’d find a glass fishing float covered in net, but I was never that lucky.  I spent quite a bit of my cruising life on these beaches, just looking for one. 

While we were in the Turks and Caicos, we went for a hike with a singlehander we knew.  The three of us walked quite a long way and ended up on a rock bluff on the windward side of the island.  The singlehander decided to climb down to the rocky shore where the surf was breaking against the rocks below.  After a while, he climbed back up to the top of the bluff where we were, grinning like he’d won the lottery.  In his hands, he had a small glass float, about 8” across, that he’d found down on the rocks.  It was a little scratched up, but still whole.  You could tell it was hand blown, a pontil mark on one side and the glass was thicker on the opposite side than the rest of the ball.  It had a little bit of a green tint to it and there were ripples in the glass that were on the inside surface. 

We talked about it all the way back to our boat, wondering about the origin of the float.  We wondered where it had traveled on its way to the rocky shore where it had been found.  We had found many of the large plastic ones, but none of them could compare with this treasure.

We got back to our boat and climbed into the cockpit to have a drink and admire the treasure.  Imagine my surprise and delight when he handed it to me and told me that he found it for me because he knew how much I wanted one.

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Seasick? Landsick.

 

Many people get seasick.  They leave the dock or a calm anchorage and get out the pass to the heaving, rolling ocean and the motion makes them seasick.  I've heard that it gets so bad that some people wish they were dead.  People who know that this happens to them decide to put on a patch, take a pill or some other precaution to alleviate the symptoms of mal de mer.  Of course, many people don't even bother with boats if this happens to them.  Unfortunately, they're missing out on some good experiences as well.  I have also known people who have crossed oceans or have sailed around the word, popping a pill before each long passage.  They say it goes away in a few days when they keep sailing day after day.

I'm the opposite, I have not yet been seasick.  I actually find the movement of the boat through the water, up and over the waves, heeled over and sliding along, to be very calming and relaxing.  I have been known to sit up in the cockpit on my watch and get so relaxed that I find my eyelids closing, then I shake myself awake.  When it gets to the point that the waves are crashing on the bow and tossing water over the bimini, it does get a little annoying, but it still doesn't make me seasick. 

After a passage where the waves have been active, I do have a different problem.  I get landsick.  My body gets so used to the motion of the boat sailing along that once I reach dry land - it's not moving but I feel like I still am.  I get vertigo if I go into a building and am closed in.  I once had to leave the customs office in St Lucia because I was getting nauseated and feeling dizzy.  I have trouble walking a straight line, and no, I didn't have any rum before I landed and went ashore.  One evening, we went to dinner with a few other sailors after a passage between islands.  The restaurant was nice and they put us at a corner table where the lights were low.  I sat there for about 5 minutes before my stomach was sloshing around way too much for me to eat anything.  I had to get out of there, it was getting worse the more I sat there. 

Other people have reported the same symptoms and whenever I've talked to someone about this, it's always the people who never get seasick that will feel the landsickness coming on once they get on dry land.  I always feel much better out in open air, even though I will still have some slight dizziness.  My only total cure comes when I get back to the boat and step aboard. 

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Merida, Venezuela

 

My trip to Merida, Venezuela came about when I was talking with a cruiser friend of mine who was in the same marina at Puerto La Cruz a few years ago.   We were both having work done to our boats and decided we needed a break.  So we did some research about how to plan the trip.

 

The easiest (and most reasonable) way to get to Merida is to get a taxi to downtown Puerto la Cruz to the bus station.  It's best to get a ticket a day or so in advance, so you can be sure to get a seat.  Be sure to wear heavy clothing - never mind that it's 90 degrees out, trust me, you'll need them.  Also, you might want to bring a little pillow and a blanket, the bus ride is 18 hours.  The air conditioning is so cold that everyone looks like they're in cocoons during the trip.  Apparently, the air conditioning units are engine driven and there is no way to regulate the temperature - so it comes out COLD.  They stop every few hours so you can have some food or a bathroom break.  There is a head on the bus, but if you use it, go early.  Toward the end of the trip, it seems to get very unpleasant in there.  Wherever you go, take your own roll of toilet paper, or tissues.  My friend laughed at me when she saw me pack the roll, but during the trip, my roll turned into "our" roll and she never laughed at me about that again.  Even at the "truck stop" places you stop for food, you will need it.  The bus has movies, some are American ones, with Spanish subtitles, but there were a couple Spanish ones that didn't have subtitles.   Actually, none of them were worth watching. 

 

It was an adventure, but certainly a trip never to forget, the teleferico was an amazing trip in itself.  It felt like a bus ride, but you look down and there is no road, only a valley far below.  There wasn't much of a noticeable sound and the car is moving slowly, so it was an eerie feeling floating along.  At the top of the mountain, 32 degrees, there was so little oxygen up there, we were stumbling around, giggling and feeling drunk.  It was all I could do to take a few pictures of the area.  It was a real shock to people who have lived at sea level for years.

 

If anyone ever gets the chance to be in the neighborhood, I'd recommend this trip.

 

Betty Karl

 

You Tube video of Merida, Venezuela - http://youtu.be/zHHpAzJU4a

Island Fever book  - http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Bait and switch ads?

 Baby Mangrove.

 

 

 

I realize that my photos sometimes (mostly) do not reflect what I'm writing about here, but they're probably better than a picture of this subject...

 





Last November 15, I went into Dick's Sporting Goods to purchase something that was advertised on the internet and in their local sales flier.  They didn't have any of the item left.   I went to the front counter to get a rain check and the girl commented that she knew exactly what I wanted, she had been writing those tickets all week.  I should have known then.....

It is now January, they have not called me to say that the items had arrived and I could come to pick them up.  OK, almost two months seems like enough time to get stock in.  I called the store today and was informed that they haven't had any of those items in since early November.  I asked her if they had any in at the beginning of the sale of the item.  I got what I'd call a non-answer, some mumbling about them running out of them quickly.  This was supposedly a "manager" I was speaking with. 

I then asked her if they expect any of the items in within the next month and she stated that she had no idea and the buying was all done by the corporate office.  Yes, Dick's Sporting Goods is quite a big organization, you'd think they would have fantastic buying power.  By that time, I knew I most likely was not going to be able to use that rain check at their store, the price had probably gone up dramatically and they were not willing to honor the lower price. 

I was somewhere else this morning and saw those exact items for sale at a dealer that was not a large organization.  That reminded me that Dick's never called me about those items.   Obviously, that dealer probably doesn't have the same buying power as Dick's does.  So, if that local dealer could find that product available to stock, why can't Dick's?

Anybody have that same type of experience at Dick's?  Elsewhere?

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

Vandalism Warning

Someone in my neighborhood went around this evening, it had to be after 5:30, and taped folded notes to our doors.  I went out to the car to get something and noticed it.  It said that a few cars in the neighborhood had been vandalized the night before, and things stolen from them.  Supposedly, the police have told them that none of the vehicles were locked.  The note says the police will patrol more often.  That’s good, since they almost never patrol here unless they pull someone over on the main road and they pull in here to get their ticket.  Or they’re checking out the pedophile who used to live here, but since he died, they don’t check up on him anymore.  So, they really don’t patrol in here much at all.  Also, our “security” people will be patrolling – I’ve heard we have them, but I’ve never seen any security people around here.  I think they’re a myth.  

I was home,  lights were on, I wonder why they didn’t ring the bell or knock to let me know that there’s a problem here.  I could have found the notice tomorrow morning when I went to work.  It really doesn’t matter, since I always lock my car – ever since I saw a movie where some guy was mad at someone and opened the guy’s car door to take a leak inside.   

The message also says to report to the policy anyone who does not belong here or who is suspicious.  Half my neighbors are suspicious, so I’m just not looking. 

I’m hoping this silly message doesn’t keep me awake listening for noises in the dark.  My cat sure wouldn’t be much help with a burglar – she would just yawn and curl up again.  I’m sure it’s just kids from a few blocks over, they always shortcut through here. 

I’m not worried.   I don’t really think I am.  Well, maybe just a little, after all, I just got that “new” car a few months ago. 

 

Winter

Most people think of winter as cold.  People who live in the northern States have the idea that Florida is warm all the time.  This is to let them know that some people who live in Florida (and points further south) think that any temperature below 70 is cold.  That would be me. 

Today was an overcast day, high was about 55, about 10-15 mph winds and I was freezing!   Mostly, I stayed inside, with the heater on, still cold.  In the winter, I pretty much stay cold, and I'm sure that some of it psychological.   I know it's cold outside, so no matter how warm it is inside, I feel cold.  Did I just hear someone say something about a wimp?  Yes, that would be me.

I was raised in upstate New York, so I know what really cold is.  I lived in Florida for years and it's a damp cold as opposed to a drier cold up north.   Not to mention that my blood got really thinned out.   Then, I went cruising and spent years in the Caribbean, where I almost never got cold, except sometimes on night passages.  Especially in the winter, with the breeze and no sun - yes, the wimp got cold.  The picture above is from Union Island, by the way. 

After cruising, I moved back to Florida where the summers are nice and warm - actually they seem warmer than the Caribbean, except maybe Trinidad.  The winters here seem to have gotten colder than when I lived here before cruising, but it's probably me being a wimp again.

Yes, I am lucky I don't have snow to shovel.  I do have ice frozen on my car on some mornings when the dew has frozen and I have to turn on the car heater - I don't have an ice scraper.  I would never be able to live anywhere north of here.   I keep saying I need to move further south........

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G

New Haircuts

I always cringe when I have to go in for a haircut.  I wait until I can't stand it anymore, can't do anything with it and it's annoying me.  Then, I impulsively head for the salon and take my chances with whoever is free at the time.

When I was cruising on the boat, I cut my own hair.  I must admit, I did a pretty good job at it.  Other cruisers commented that they were impressed with the job I did.  It was cut short, a few inches long all the way around.  In the beginning, I tried to get my partner to do at least the back, since it was hard for me to do, but he was not good at it, just took lumps of hair and whacked it off where he thought it should be.  After fixing up a few of those experiments, I decided I did it better myself.

One time I was in Venezuela, a friend was going for a haircut in a local salon and convinced me I had to go and get a "professional" haircut after all my years of cutting it myself.  OK, I decided I'd take a chance, it would grow back anyway.  It was the worst haircut I've ever had  - she couldn't get one side to match the other in length, so she kept going from one side to another and clipping more off until I nervously told her it was enough.  I figured I could even it up and hope it would grow FAST!  It was SHORT!   I felt naked - quick, get the hat!

That was the end of my foreign haircuts while cruising.  While I was waiting for the boat to sell and planning to move back to land, I decided to let it grow a little longer.  While it grew, I'd trim the bad ends off and kept it looking decent. 

I've now let it grow about shoulder length and simple - it has to be simple because it won't do anything anyway  - no curl at all.  Any curl put in lasts about 5 minutes and I can't stand all that mousse or spray. 

I go to the same place now to get it trimmed and that gives me a little bit of security that I won't be scalped.  A new haircut feels good, the ends are fresh and they behave a little better than when they're split or old.  Maybe next time I won't wait until I can't stand it before I get it trimmed again.

Betty Karl
http://amzn.com/B009RCO02G