Friday 17 April was the day we should have handed over the keys to our rental and be fully in escape mode onboard Saboteur. You may recall we pushed back this date by two months as we need a new motor.
The good news is our motor arrives this week.
Happy dance.
It may seem that while we are waiting, we are running out of things to do… Well, that is not 100% true… There is always moving aboard preparation tasks to be done. However, finding things that can be done fairly quickly and not either get in the road of or be hindered by the other work that is happening on the boat is the challenge.
There is still a lot of work that must be done prior to moving on board. If you recall the two dogs and the cat are joining us. To that end we need to install safety-line netting. That’s for the dogs (and some humans). The cat will ignore it. Safety-line netting runs along the boat, from the deck up to the first safety-line for approximately 40cms and in theory catches little animals before they slide over the edge as well as beach towels, hatch covers and the like. And maybe the odd human. The investment of $210 and a few hours to install it will pay for itself in the long run. Not to mention the hours of entertainment for our neighbours as Martin and I work out how to install it.
As we have never had to install safety-line netting before,
the fastest way to learn about it is Google.
A couple of weeks ago armed with our research, we visited our local chandler Muir Marine to find out what is the best product to buy. It is one of those things we can easily order on-line but have no idea if we are getting the right product, quality etc. Plus, I love supporting the local businesses. The three chandlers we frequent are staffed by people with a passion for the water and usually with many years of experience on the water and their vessels of choice. I could lose myself in there for hours just wandering, tinkering and listening to people’s stories. However, we are always keen to pick up what we came for and get back to Saboteur and get on with it.
We received a call to inform us that the netting the we have ordered had arrived. Awesome, we picked it up and headed to the boat to set about installing it. We get there and decide that we need to clean the safety lines. A task that has taken considerably more time than it should. Notwithstanding, at the halfway point I decide I want to scrub the deck. As you do…
I grab our deck broom which has reasonably stiff bristles and start scrubbing with the hose and boat wash. It is an improvement but not brilliant. Martin, jumping in to join me plies the deck with more water and boat wash. We were about to grab a stiffer scrubbing brush (an old fashion hands and knees scrub) when at the same time our neighbour pipes up and offers us the use his gurney.
Woohoo!!! The result, as you can see is amazing…
Our moving aboard preparation has constant interruptions.
None more delightful and insistent then Moo (the dog)
telling me that he really needs to go to the toilet…
Naturally, halfway through a job. Martin grabs their leads and takes them for the almost 1km sprint to their favourite grassy knoll. It needs to be a sprint. Simple because we don’t want Moo weeing on anyone’s mooring lines.
I noticed he had forgotten his key. I follow him barefoot. If you recall I am only learning to walk in thongs (flats, jandals, flip flops) and to walk fast in thongs would be a guaranteed disaster. My right foot is learning much faster than my left… Ha, ha…
I find Martin already on his way back. Others were coming and going through the gate so there was no real wait. As we wander back to the boat, the sun was getting low on the horizon and we turned our attention to dinner. The safety-lines, deck and of course the netting will wait for another day.
Additionally, our neighbour is going to set off some commercial mould killing gas bombs on our boat before we leave. While the boat is open, including some ceiling panels now was never a better time to do so. We will report on this product. It should remove all mould from all nooks and crannies that would otherwise be impossible to reach. Other boaties may want to know about this.
Meanwhile back at home, we are still on a deadline to move out. We still have so much moving aboard preparation to do before we can move on. And we have had to rethink what we are doing with our remaining possessions. COVID19 has put an end to our garage sales and selling things on Market Place. Much of it is too good to go to the tip.
Furthermore, we have decided to stick around South East Queensland (and work) until later next year. A little extra cash won’t go astray. And so, we are going to take a different berth. One with a storage shed. This will help with each tools and working space to finish our moving aboard preparation tasks. We can also set up my painting easel, some gym gear, a fridge and a table and chairs. We can now take our time to sell/rehome our remaining possessions.
And with that decision our move becomes much easier. I feel like I can relax a little more and enjoy the beauty and pleasure of everyday mundane things.
