Back to Sea

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Monday, March 21st, 2011
9:50pm

I sit soggy at the computer after a healing jacuzzi session at the Hotel Coral Marina. This Jacuzzi might possibly be magic. Not the magic that transforms your hair-do or bank account... but the magic that happens when you need to bubble off the last few months of hectic boat work, flights, family visits, BBQ's, parties, and late night pow wows with desert spirits... and of course.. Vegas. This trip to the US was exactly that. A Trip.

We had the most amazing time catching up with old friends, family and making new friends. We hit the ground running and did not stop. To know you have limited time to see people, see new sights, re-visit favorite locations, and stock up on anything American you want, because you have no idea when you will return... keeps you running like a crazy person.. until this morning. 30 minutes after a squall packing gale-force winds and sideways rain woke us up... (ahhh nice day) we found ourselves throwing the dock lines, waving at a few friends and we motored out of San Diego Harbor flanked by a US warship... military helicopter chop chop chopped slowly overhead and rolling swell from the past couple days of stormy weather rocked us into the arms of mother ocean. Mom wasn't so calm and relaxed today. She did not cradle us lovingly and welcome us home. Actually Ol' mother ocean seemed a tad bit pissed off (excuse the expression).. or more like "agitated" I should say. Afterall, she had been dealing with one relentless blow after another for a few days... rain, wind, swell, hail, more wind, waterspouts, thunder and lightening.. I would be a bit churned up myself if it were me.

So there we were, laughing as we plunged through waves, 40 knot winds and rain that felt like "liquid ice" stinging our faces. That will help you realize you are alive. And if that doesn't, Jonny (a long time friend from Hawaii who is joining us for this leg) found out that he was alive by making the poor decision to go below to make a hot cup-o-joe. Needless to say, his stomach did a few somersaults and I enjoyed filming "Jonny's journey to the depths of sea-sickness" being played out on deck. From a cheery Jonny, to a quiet Jonny, to a ginger ale sipping Jonny who exclaimed "My mind is happy! I don't give a #$%@ what my body is feeling." Good thing. Next thing we know he is helping us fish by chumming the cool Pacific waters and I next find him lying sideways on the deck looking like a crash victim... "meditating". Ahhhh... we are home. Life is good.

The ocean did calm a bit and the winds were good... so we made great time and arrived with Jonny upright and smiling... Brett cheerily marveling at the swell that will create "monster epic waves", Cyrus relaxed and thrilled to be on the water... & Colby couldn't get the smile off his face as the light turned to apricot and we entered the basin at the marina. People are ready at the deck, sea lions twirl at the surface, lines are ready, they wave us over.. all is perfect! Then the unexpected. Because in all good days, you must have the unexpected.. the "geesh, this never happened before"- moment.

We hit a rock. Yep.. a ROCK... cleverly marked by a buoy that was floating 20 feet away from this location that was cleverly marked "BOAT". Now, you must understand that we have had a month of discussions with this marina. We have been here before. They know our draft of 12 feet and it has been mentioned in EVERY SINGLE EMAIL for the past month. And this hazard has NEVER been mentioned to us. Not once. right in the middle of the basin and not where the "BOAT" buoy was (if that is what it is supposed to be marking) AFTER we hit the rock, they whistle (NOW?) and tell us to go further to our port. Gee... really.

Now, we just bumped the lead bulb on the bottom of our keel, but we went to San Diego in part to get new bottom paint. We now have scratched that paint on DAY ONE in Mexico. Cyrus was so angry, he actually threw up his hands and said a few loud words to the dock workers which I will not repeat here. Any other captain may have launched themselves mid-air to strangle them, but Cyrus being Cyrus, stayed eerily calm... but as stern and angry as I have ever seen him in my life. I feel for the marina office when he goes to "talk" to them in the morning. I feel it is good that he has a night to calm down... and thus, Jacuzzi therapy. Healing waters washing away the hectic past months, the bills, taxes, phone calls and sneaky rocks. Bless the person who created bubbly warm water. Bless them.

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