A New Journey Begins for OverEasy - 2020/2022

[NiceAft]

OverEasy,

I think it may be time to change the name of this thread from “ A New Journey Begins for OverEasy” to “The Continuing Adventures Of OverEasy, Tune In Again Next Week”

[Highlander]

Ray u for got the Drum Roll


And the Drama continues !


J

[OverEasy]

Whoa! What an intro! Those are some cool graphics!
Way too cool for an “FOF” like moi
Nice though!



We’re more like kinda lower key sorta…. https://images.app.goo.gl/XdmtVc3rCmrUE4oS9

[dlandersson]

I especially like the "Tune in next week" part

OverEasy,

I think it may be time to change the name of this thread from “ A New Journey Begins for OverEasy” to “The Continuing Adventures Of OverEasy, Tune In Again Next Week”

[OverEasy]

Hi All!

What a beautiful day!
We can finally see our lawn!!!
We haven’t seen the lawn since mid December.
MacGreggor is ecstatic!
This is fantastic!




There is yet hope for liquid water again!!!

As you might expect we’re going stir crazy with our off schedule delays.
We’re still up in NH unintentionally spending our “snowbird winter” in hip deep snow in something of a holding pattern due to my unplanned health issues. Hopefully this last go-round of antibiotics have done the trick. Appointment tomorrow and results next week.

The plans we had for our SC home DIY Incremental Renovation Plans and those modifications for Over Easy have yet again been thwarted
It’s getting kinda ridiculous

While we are anything unique and the challenges others have overcome in the past two years have been substantially more challenging we thought there may be some interested in the Back Story:

We did up our plan back in the early Fall of 2019 after taking an early retirement offer in 2016, selling our home, moving to another up here in NH and then going through several back surgeries/recoveries concurrent with it all. (Yes, I’m a glutton for punishment… )
Fix up an old family home in SC that needed a new A/c system, replace a 30 year old worse for wear roof, remove a chimney, renovate the interior, replace the plumbing, strip to joists and reconstruct a deck and cast a RV pad with sewer /power/water hook ups. We had already removed the over grown impenetrable jungle that had become what had once been a front and side yard (yes it really was an impenetrable jungle complete with vines, trees with three inch thorns that burned you when pricked, snakes and other unpleasant critters ).

Then for a reward we planned and went on a low budget family four week trip to visit our older daughter on her Peace Corps assignment in Morocco For the Christmas/New Year Holidays which was wonderful! The people there are absolutely beautiful and wonderful and kind and considerate! Once there we drove though a stunningly beautiful country and had a great time. Met many many many exceptional people. (It helped that our daughter had become fluent in three dialects of Arabica while she was there…. I’m lucky to sorta know english ) My daughter is also conversational in French as well. The Admiral knows some French as well. The younger daughter is like a sponge and in little to no time had picked up enough language to go shopping at the local markets with her sister. They definitely didn’t get any linguistic capability from me! Now my Mom taught herself to speak four languages ( Polish, Russian, German and English) pretty much on her own growing up in WWII… I digress….. Morocco has a rich history, a beautiful coast-mountains-desert along with fantastic people.

We also made a side trip to Spain and then to France via a ferry across the Mediterranean Sea to Gibraltar on the coast of Spain. There we stayed on Houseboats in the harbor at the base of the Rock of Gibraltar. The girls used the bicycles to go explore the area and then hiked up an incredible trail to the top! They had a fantastic time and even made unexpected “friends” with a couple troops of the Gibraltar Monkeys along the way. The Admiral and I took the cable car to the top and got the aerial view. A late lunch (dinner) was had together at a great restaurant at the top with beautiful and stunning views in nearly every direction. The meals and views were worth every
Pound!

We then drove through Spain along the coast with a couple stops. One was in the Pyrenees Mountains for the girls to hike up a mountain ridge trail while the Admiral and I found a wonderful little home spun restaurant where without a common language made friends with the proprietor and staff while having the best Fresh Rabbit Paella I have every tasted. Then, as it apt to happen in mountain regions, the Pyrenees no exception, the weather suddenly turned without warning from sunshine to a very cold lashing rainstorm. The girls used their skills and experience to shelter up during the worst of it but realizing they were not prepared to actually spend the night up there worked their way down together arriving back at the start lot well after dark. Absolutely no cell service in the region. It was a bit anxious for the Admiral and I as we waited for them not knowing what was happening or which of the several trails they were returning on. After about 3 hours after full darkness had settled in they emerged from the forest! Cold, wet and hungry but in cheerful spirits for their adventures. Quite the bit of excitement for everyone! They had been prepared (as any good Girl Scout should be for the unexpected with extra water, snacks, windbreakers and flashlights in addition to their phones. The LED headband lites are fantastic but somewhat limited in duration so they used them sparingly to navigate the trail down. They even when through a cave tunnel along the way! Quite the hike!

After Barcelona and the Salvador Dali Museum we travelled north up into France through the Cherbourg Brittany region visiting the Christmas fairs and the Puy de Dome volcano. The girls again wanted to hike up to the puy de Dome summit but the weather looked iffy. Getting to the trail head it started to flurry but they were determined…up until we say some pretty hardy hikers coming back down the trail a bit worse for wear. They had turned back and didn’t advise going up. Not only was the weather turning but the trail guide had a substantial typo in how long the hike would take. We thanked them, had a good laugh and instead we all took the modern Cog Tram up to the top. Halfway up the wind and snow picked up considerably to say the least. Both girls were begrudgingly appreciative of the change in plans. Once at the top everything was in snow, ice and wind with intermittent white out conditions. The plucky girls took on the challenge of hiking on to the Roman ruins up from the tram station while the Admiral and I enjoyed some nice wine, fromage, bread and pates in the Cafe. Eventually the intrepid adventurers return and warmed up with some delicious hot chocolates.

From there we went on to spend Christmas in Bayeux in Normandy near where the Allies landed. There we visited the D-Day Memorial and then the D-Day Museum. Quite moving and interesting and humbling to first hand see and appreciate the significant sacrifices made to fight for Democracy, to conquer Fascism, the Nazis. The rows upon rows of headstone stretching out make one feel humble. My Father was in the amphibious engineers who established and reconstructed the Mulberry Harbor System to get the men and supplies ashore. He had done the same previously at the landings at Anzio (Italy). The Admiral’s Dad came in a few months later with the fight up to cross the Rhine River and then on into Germany. The men who fought and now rest beneath all those tombstones and those that survived the untold battles know the true cost of what it takes to have a Democracy. (Not a bunch of loud mouthed cr#$&@l clown car pseudoscience whining wannabes POS who attempt to wrap themselves in the very flag they def#@&e and dese#$@%e by their very words and actions. There isn’t a Hole hot enough or deep enough or punishment severe enough for those dam#$@&e individuals in my perspective. I won’t debate the issue. Enough said.)

New Years was spent in Paris on a Midnight River Cruise in front of the Eiffel Tower. It was wonderful and for us a once in a lifetime event! The Louvre was fantastic even if I had the see it from a wheelchair. (During the trip my back injuries became progressively inflamed and debilitating.) We also got to the Musee de l’air et de l’espace ( National Air and Space Museum of France). What a place! It has everything from the early Montgolfier gallons, to dirigibles, to Bleriot (and his Bleriot XI crossing of the English Channel ) to the planes of WWI, the inter-war years, WWII through to the current Ariane launch vehicles that launch satellites and deep space interplanetary probes. Both Louvre are exceptional places to see and explore. If we were to ever be fortunate enough to go back we would plan on spending several more days in each place.

We returned back down through France to Barcelona Spain then flew back into Morocco. Our older daughter had to get back to her assignments but not before we got to have an exceptional dinner with eight or so of her fellow Peace Corps Volunteers I’m Morocco. These are some of the best, brightest, energetic individuals I have had the opportunity to meet and share a long meal with. The time passed way too quickly. We continued our travels in Morocco (sans older daughter ) until it was time to return home. My mobility issues continued to worsen but didn’t diminish my appreciation of Morocco or it’s wonderful people, who went out of their way to be helpful, kind and courteous to a fault. Having to be wheeled through an airport wasn’t a highlight but the Air Moroc personnel were extremely helpful and considerate as were the Moroccan TSA personnel.

After arriving back Stateside and in SC I was pretty much flat on my back with muscle relaxants and pain meds while the back issues sorted themselves out over time. Then COVID-19 hit and our collective world ground to a halt. With a full scale worldwide pandemic flaming though the world’s population it wasn’t the time or place to be tearing down walls-doors-windows-plumbing-electrical or traveling anywhere. So our renovation plans were put on hold and we concentrated on healing, staying healthy and navigating a new pandemic environment based on science and facts and common sense instead of wishful thinking… Our older daughter was suddenly evacuated from Morocco back to the States. After going through quarantine she joined us in SC. As COVID-19 cases gain momentum and deaths accumulated (some of them in our own neighborhood) I must admit that things didn’t look very good at all as our local SC hospitals were being overwhelmed with severe cases. The brief forays hunting for TP and sanitizers were almost welcome comic relief. Our older daughter was accepted for a Masters Program at the University of Vermont! Wow! She started in August 2020 so that got us out of our southern cocoon and headed north… after getting our younger daughter started in her classes at UofSC.

We finally had to get back up north to NH in September to look after our primary home there. The Lawncare guys had stopped (because I believe they had gotten sick and then closed their business to recover). We quarantined once there and did what we could do. That’s when we found Over Easy our Mac26X which was one of the better things to happen on 2020! We winterized the house and headed back south for the winter of 2020-2021. We still couldn’t go ahead with the renovations or having contractors in the house nor did we want to risk any potentials of injuries to our selves given the lack of medical services availability. So as a Plan B we did our initial modifications to get Over Easy more prepared to cruise the ICW. It was fun and it took our minds off of other less happy things. We took a slip in the Marina. What a great way to get started with getting used to our new to us Over Easy and leisurely exploring all the wonderful estuaries surrounding us. At the time there was still no vaccine available so the renovations had to wait.

Finally a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccination was available!!!
What a relief that was I can barely articulate. For the first time in a year there was a chance that our world might stand a fighting chance.
We got vaccinated when we qualified as did our daughters. By then our younger daughter had decided to take the Spring Term off as she was rethinking her life plans, wanted a break and wanted to travel the back roads of the United States while doing some hiking and rock climbing. So the Admiral and I decided to try some travel of our own which led us to our live aboard experience on Lake Champlain VT for 70 nights described previously.

Note, after the COVID-19 vaccines proved effective and our local hospitals became less unhindered for the first time in over a year we attempted to get some current quotes from some good contractors… the problem was they were either booked or had become too pricey for our limited budget. So we revised our SC renovation plans into bite size bits we could do ourselves after we got back from Lake Champlain in mid November 2021. Some light weight aspects were done and moved but we held off on the heavier aspects of the plan for the Christmas and New Years Holidays back up here in NH starting in mid December with a return planned for early January. Then suddenly —==> BINGO! Well that didn’t work! The surprise medical issues upset the plans yet again leaving us in a holding pattern up in NH. So much for the plans of mice and men… again

Hopefully the test results come back negative next week. Our delays have consumed about two+ months of relatively unproductive albeit uncomfortable occasional painful off planned time…. If so we’ll make our way back down to SC, replace a door or two and maybe a window or two on the renovation plan. Then we’ll lift off and deinstalled the old existing Tohatsu 50hp engine and controls onto a stand (we have yet to fabricate …….) so we can possibly use it for a fishing runabout ..TBD. Once that’s accomplished we travel north back to NH for the installation of our new Suzuki engine and controls in late June or early July. The rest of the Summer will be getting some yard remodeling done up there. Primarily a regraded driveway with old shrubs removed to improve drainage away from the house rather (than towards it ) and possibly some retaining walls and fill to level out some of the backyard towards the pond. It’s a plan anyway . At this point I’m not holding my breath. A plan and $1 might get me a free cup of coffee…maybe

Hopefully somewhere in the midst of all that we’d very much like to get back to Lake Champlain VT for awhile to enjoy its exceptional beauty and variety. Maybe even over to the Great Bay here in NH and wet our toes out into the Atlantic by Portsmouth. We can only hope at this point

So much for now. Hope I haven’t bored anyone to tears but as you can probably guess I’m not enjoying my health issue delays when there is still so much to do and experience. Admiral says I’ve always been a lousy patient.

“Time is always short in life so be kind, considerate, protect others, be brave, have courage, be responsible, seek justice, embrace truth, be adventurous, create, build, fix, comfort others, be ambitious and always try to do the next right thing within your capabilities (even if you fall down just pick yourself to continue on) to make a better - fairer - more equatable - safer home/community/State/country and World for you, your children and your children’s children.” is something that my father shared with me over his life. His grammar might have been a bit off but the intent came through. Still gotta whole lotta ‘to do’ on the list.

Best Regards
Over Easy

[NiceAft]

Great post.

Pre COVID, we did a lot of traveling, mostly though Asia.

Spain is a beautiful country. forty-seven years ago we honeymooned in Spain and Portugal. Just before COVID hit, we spent a week in Barcelona, I hope you got to see more than the Salvador Dali museum. Be glad that you did not get to meet their internationally famous pickpockets. While there, we took a sunset sail on the Mediterranean. I talked the captain into letting me take the helm for awhile. He became confident enough with me handling the boat (over a 30' Beneteau), he took a nap.

Morocco is on our list to visit.

We have tentatively scheduled a cruise in September (we can cancel if we don't feel the time is right) from Copenhagen to Boston via Norway, Iceland and Greenland.

It will be great to finally get back to seeing the world up close.

Again, you posted a great story. With all of the dates you spoke of, I had to go back and see when you posted.

P.S.The best muscle relaxant I've found is a good single malt Islay.

[Highlander]

Hi Ray
If u ever decide to do the Hawaii trip let me know I,ve got a boat already beached their u can use for Free


if thats too big for I,ll let u sail this one



Now no need for the flattery I,ll save u the trouble


for those who don,t know we r good friends even tho he is a Moderator


Well maybe not now !
but if we ever do meet up u bring the case of wine for dinner & I,ll bring my own glass


No pun intended
J

[OverEasy]

:

Actually that paint job on the hull is kind cool original artwork.

I can’t even imagine the size of the dishwasher the glass goes in…

One glass of wine that big and I’d be hung over into next year!

[OverEasy]

Hi All

Our sojourn up here in NH has been extended by the Doc today after a follow up visit… Fribble
New antibiotics for a couple weeks more. This wasn’t part of the plan

Earliest we can now consider hauling up anchor and heading south looks to be early April…2xFribble

Time to modify the plans …. Again

At this point I guess we have to pare things down on the mod list for this year… we are going to most likely have to push off any fresh and grey water system, the AC electrical system, the dodger and the arches… but realistically with three months of delay it’s just what is.

But at least things are manageable and all part of the journey… Both the planned and unplanned make the adventure.
MGratefully no one is currently shooting/bombing/shelling or invading at the moment. My heart goes out to the Ukraine people at this time. Our problems are less than minor at this time….

Best Regards
Over Easy

Addenda:
Snow made an Encore appearance too
So we get to enjoy our winter wonderland a bit longer.

[OverEasy]

Hi .NiceAft!

That must have been a beautiful day of sailing in Spain.
You must have had a great time with fond memories!
Yes we would very much like to return again to the area and spend more time there if/when that fates allow.

We’ll there was good news today from the Doctor!
Seems that the last round of antibiotics has done the trick of knocking down the infections ‘below detectable limits’ was the phrase used!
They want a follow up exam in July to make sure that both the surgery is doing it’s job and that the infections remain away.
So I’m taking it as pretty good news! Especially after the past several months.

This years boat mod and use plans have been pretty well scuttled at the present time though as have the SC house repairs anticipated.
We’ll be up in NH through to the first week of May now before we can get back to SC and the it will only be mainly to remove the old Tohatsu 50 and pick up Over Easy to bring her North for her new engine installation.

We’ve pretty much given up on keeping to any plans this year and will just be grateful to do what we can do.
( That’s kind of hard for a guy whose prior life was product design, developmental and crisis project management … … )
It is what it is and based on recent experiences things could be a whole lot worse …..

We’ll just have to take things easy for a bit.

Please keep the Ukrainian People in your thoughts and prayers as what they are going through makes nearly everything pale in comparison.
Please consider doing what you can to help with the humanitarian relief needed for these innocent people, elderly, families, children whose lives have been devastated by this unprovoked aggression. There are numerous reputable organizations such as the International Red Cross who are there to help these refugees and people within Ukraine.

Best Regards
Over Easy

[dlandersson]

OverEasy,

I think it may be time to change the name of this thread from “ A New Journey Begins for OverEasy” to “The Continuing Adventures Of OverEasy, Tune In Again Next Week”

[OverEasy]

Did you know that down south they have “automated ice fishing”?
Yeah, it’s called an “ice maker” and they stew their catch in sweet tea!

(No more having to saw blocks from the lake……and fillet them into cubes with a chisel!)

[NiceAft]

:

Actually that paint job on the hull is kind cool original artwork.

I can’t even imagine the size of the dishwasher the glass goes in…

One glass of wine that big and I’d be hung over into next year!

One glass of wine that big, and the mortuary won't need to do any embalming

[OverEasy]

Hi All!

Winter is


Winter is going


Winter is GONE!!!


We finally have “ice out” here in NH!
The Loons, the Geese, the little Beaver and couldn’t be much happier at the moment!

Hopefully we will be able to head back to SC by the end of April to pick up Over Easy and bring her back North for her new engine and some new adventures!

Best Regards
Over Easy
dust

[OverEasy]

Hi All!

Boy, the past 5 months have been a journey unto itself with medical and other issues requiring us to delay our departure from NH to SC!
Original plan was to “just” spend Christmas and New Years 2022 in NH with our daughters….. That wasn’t to be with a surprise health crisis, surgery and recovery complications (brought on due to surgery delays brought on by all the state’s hospitals being overcrowded due to Unvaccinated Covid-19 cases that surged in January).

Finally seem to have beaten back the secondary internal infections (and a case of bacterial pneumonia) … Doc finally gave the OK to travel this week! Hip Hip Hurrah! It’s been a long slog to say the least!

The time hasn’t been all lost….
-> We were fortunate to get several trees removed and a through yard clean up accomplished with the help of a couple of professional contractors as these were well beyond my current capabilities.
-> We have completed about 65% of the basement rewiring here incrementally (the remainder we hope to finish in July when we return from SC).
-> The Admiral finished her USCG Operator’s License Course with flying colors! She is rightfully very happy about that!
-> We got to spend more time with at least one of our daughters!
-> We got to see and experience a NH Spring and Maple Season!

So this week we are headed south to SC!
While primarily to remove our our Tohatsu and prep Over Easy for her trip north to have her new Suzuki engine installed there are several months of deferred chores to be addressed. Hopefully the weather cooperates enough to get a week or so on the waterways and estuaries! Hopefully we get to miss at least some of the Memorial Day travel congestion….

The long awaited Suzuki engine installation is scheduled for the second/third week of July so it’s only a short time in SC before we have to head back north.

What chores don’t get done will be waiting for us in the Fall…
The mods for the hard Dodger, rear arch, solar panels, mast tabernacle, new mast bow support, head deck pump-out, fresh & grey water storage, moving and reinstallation of A/C from Port to Starboard, 115 VAC electrical panel and deck fittings, etc… have all been pushed off by about a year (or more) now as the Admiral (& I) would like to get several of the bigger pending shore based house & yard mods accomplished this year like the kitchen (SC) and driveway & landscaping (NH). Currently the start of our anticipated ICW travels are now pushed out into 2023 but it’s not that far off. We will still attempt to get a few smaller trips into 2022 with our new Suzuki both up North (Lake Champlain? The Great Basin? Lake Winnipesaukee?) and down South (Beaufort? Savanna? Hilton Head? Edisto Island, Lake Murray?) We’ll just have to see what time allows before winter settles in again.

Gratefully to be here, to be still exchanging airflow, watching the seasons change and grumbling about all the stuff that needs to yet be done!! (Beats the alternative! )

Best Regards,
Over Easy
fudt