The rest of Sept.

A moment of reflection, the past 2 weeks have been awesome, first on Sept. 18th, we were married on the aft deck of "THE LADY STAR" at 1700, I really have to say without bias that it was a awesome wedding, My mom was here and even took a tour of the " LADY STAR" my mom is afraid of boats,so it was the first time in 2 years that she had been on board,along with 2 of my sisters.the reception was super, then Sunday morning it was really awesome to wake up with the ring on my left hand, and a wife, happy days. Then Sunday night we were called and told that Pam's Mom had past away, she had been hospitalize for awhile, it came as a total shock, it took a day to get everything squared away to go up to Sharpsville,Pa. the trip up was 12hrs long, traffic was not to bad. the viewing was held Wed. afternoon from 4 to 7. the funeral was Thursday at 11, with a High Mass, it was very different to a Southern Bapt. country boy. Friday we headed home after we got home at 2300 hrs I got a call from my mom telling me that my favorite aunt Rose was in the hospital having her left knee replaced so on Sunday we went to Fayetteville to the hospital to see her and over to see my uncle Paul,also my favorite uncle. also to interduce my new bride to them, they have been married for 62 years, then we left to come home , after we got home it started to rain, on Monday I started having a sinus attacked and it put me in bed for two days and it rains until Thursday night, we got 22.5 inches of rain in 4 days, we were in a deficit now we have surplus of 5 inches, back to work on Thursday, now it is the weekend, Saturday, cloudy and very cool and breezy 20mph winds. tonight we go down to 54, so I guess fall is here, hello to the month of Oct.

good morning

Well here is the week end before our wedding and it is getting a little hectic around here, so far about 100 people have RSVP to wedding, the crew is getting a little anxious,from the admiral, Pam,the capt, Blue, he is just running and jumping all over the place, me the lowly deck hand, got to go and see what the wedding cake is going to look like, got to go and get the ribbon for the flowers, meet with the pastor tonight, and I thought all I had to do was show up at the corrected time on the right day and the right place, but oh no the Admiral has other plans go figure. on top of this got several projects on the LADY STAR, that have to be done, and no breakfast for me this morning, cook is on strike,

how time is flying by

Wow, here it is Sept.05 another summer is gone, it has been really busy since I posted, several projects have been done and the our wedding is fast approaching, yes it is still on, Pam has not change her mind or thrown me overboard,It is awesome morning today, the humidity is down, last weekend I wash " THE LADY STAR " all over, then this week we prepared for a visit from Hurricane Earl, who through the good graces of God, did not grace us with his presents, a little wind a shower or too. had to rent a mini storage room, and haul a bunch of stuff off the flying bridge, like suit cases, and just junk now I can get up there, the galley is now done until Pam wants to change the counter tops,not for awhile. this morning I got to change out the bilge pump switch, then install a new shower pump system and pump, the previous owner had removed and let it dump into the bilge,I got to run a new drain line to a through hull fitting above the waterline. also got the front stateroom cleaned up and where we can move around in there, oh yes we now have a new member of the crew He is Capt Blue,oh yes I have been demoted to a lowly deck hand, lol, he is a 8 week old black kitten, he is a mess all over the boat, all hours day and night,loves to eat and play and sleep, he is a trip and half,well I have finished my coffee and time to get busy on the projects, thirteen days to the wedding, catch you later

A busy weekend

well it is the 4th of July weekend, Sat, we went to Cola.S.C. it was my mom's 81st birthday, all of my brothers and sisters where there except one brother were there, oh yes there are 6 of us in this motley crew, 3 guys and 3 gulls, lol, it was great, also got to see my grand son, who is 6 months old and sorry his mom will not allow any pics to be posted, go figure; boy he is a spitting image of his dad, is very good natured and very laid back, for a baby, strong, has the most bluest eyes you will ever see or stare into, a real lady killer, going to be a hand full later in life. We grilled out and everyone had a great day, came back to THE LADY STAR on Sunday and boy it felt good to be back, after a 5 hr drive, and it was really great to sleep in our own bed. We stop on the way back in a little town called Fair Bluff and walked down their river walk, they have expanded it another quarter mile, it is up above the river, it was awesome, cool breeze and shady the whole way.Once we got back to the boat, we had a little problem with the rear head, oh yes it just decides to quit working, the pump motor froze up, and so after checking it out, off to West Marine to check on a new pump unit, 500.00 just for the unit or I can buy a new head for 500.00, different head so back to the boat and on line I go to compare heads, well, it was getting late and the fireworks where beginning, so we watched 9 different shows from our bow and flying bridge it lasted for 2 hrs and was just awesome by now it was 11.30 and I was just to tried to fool with any thing, so off to bed.

I, the Admiral, am fighting with the ants that decided to visit us. Every drawer and cupboard I open I see those little things scurrying. I have emptied the drawers and cupboards in the galley. Washed everything down and sprayed. I don't know where they are coming in at. I had to spray the aft deck and the Captain sprayed the lines and hoses going to the boat. I think we should get those things that trap the ants. I am spraying the bed before I put the clean sheets on it. I don't want to be woke with them crawling on me. Well, I had better back in the galley and get supper on. Talk to you guys later.

Another project

well this morning I slept in until 8am, which was a job, cause at 430 my eyes flew open, I just said no way and every 30 minutes my eyes would fly open again, finally got up at 8, turn on the computer and realized that the shelve above the hard drive had collapsed down, so shut it down and tear down everything and move, desk, ac unit so I could access the hard drive in its cabinet, and every thing in it to, reworked the shelve and the surround sound system for the rear state room, refasten the shelve with longer screws, then re route all the cables and the hard drive location and the surround sound system, then reset up the desk and printer, all done and went to power the system and it would not, power was not the problem, the hard driver just refuse to run. it 45 minutes to get it to work, finally it did, what a relief, as usual Pam had a lot of patience with me and not once did she say you should have put longer screws in the shelf before you put all the equipment in that cabinet, LOL

Recent photo:

hmmmm, where to start, I have finish the lights in the Salon and they look and work great, the next project was installing a potable AC unit, it took sometime to get the exhaust ducted out had to find 5" insulated duct that was flexible, fund it and the AC is up and running, temp till we can replace the salon main AC looking at the Mermaid units, it is a complete self contain unit and not a split unit like we have now. well Miss Pam decided that we needed a love seat instead of a couch, and it was being very crowded in here , so I agreed and she was right we do have more room and and a new coffee table to boot, and still more room and do a lot more of cuddling on the Love seat, lol. to get mr. couch out I had to remove the sliding glass doors, then out it went. I honestly shed a couple of tears, but embrace the love seat with open arms. ok, maybe it took about 20min to warm up to it, now the next item on the list, I washed the top half of THE LADY STAR this past weekend, after we went to the blue berry festival sat, this past week end and it was wall to wall , food was awesome, car show super, it has been a very busy month of June and we are only half through it.ok, Miss Pam and I have agreed on a time for our wedding time, Its 5pm on Sept. 18th at Harbour Village Marina, Hampstead, N.C., slip C36 , reception at the club house afterwards, BYOB, we will party, well my typing is getting worse because my 2 fingers are tired. It is an open invitation. Come as you are, very casual.
Pam has finished a year of school with 3 more to go. She finished with a 95%. I am very proud of her. She made the deans list again. I think that is an awesome accomplishment. She is getting started on her HoneyDo list. She made it herself, no help from me. She will be working hard getting our home ready for the wedding.

well it has been a while since our last post, it has been a little rushed around here for some time, warm weather really brings out new projects, the latest being installing new salon lights, going to LEDs overhead puck lights, got them at home depot, and since we are using them to replace the 12 volt floursant lights under our valances [which are over 200 a piece and there is 10 of them]35 for a set of 3 is less and a lot cooler temp wise,we are not using the transformer that comes with the pucks lights, will work on them today, Pam has started a excise program and she wants to get into a size 2 Wedding dress in stead of a 3, don't ask me but it means I have to walk with her everyday about 4 miles, ouch the backs of my legs are killing me this morning, go figure I still fit in my shorts and tee shirt and dockers!!!!!!!! so why do I have to walk????, We set the date , it will be Sept.18th ,no we have not set a time, it will be on "THE LADY STAR" and the guests on the grass in chairs behind "THE LADY STAR", reception to follow at the club house, it is a causal wedding , guest come as you are, yes this is your invitation, my project list is getting longer because of this wedding, ARRR. well Pam is cracking the whip for me to get busy

It was a great weekend. Enjoyed the outside. One of the boats in the marina was sinking and my Captain, the Marina Master, and another boat owner helped to pump the water out. It was exciting, but I felt bad for the owner. When we came back from our walk, Charles got busy and rewired the sound system so we have music in the stateroom. Sounds nice, Babe.
Charles got some bad news yesterday. A very good friend of his passed. I tried to keep him busy so he could get through the day.
It is official. My Captain proposed, and I, the Admiral, accepted. I am SO happy. I know we make a great pair. Living on "Lady Star" has brought us very close. I will update the progress of the plans when we decide when we are going to tie the knot.
Today has been productive for me. I finished cleaning up after his project. I also started to tackle the stateroom and head.
Beautiful weather, but getting chilly again. Oh well, I guess we are in the yo yo time of the weather in NC.

Well yesterday was another project crossed off the list for me and it made Pam, the ADMIRAL happy, I installed a LED light fixture over the sinks in the galley, its a 10 led fixture, it is manfacture by Grote, a little pricey but it was free for me, I had a little rough time installing it cause had to cut a new mount hole , it mounts flush and the bottom of the cabinet could not be removed so using my jig saw and only a 1" clearance so had to cut at angle, not a good way, then had to go a get brass screws and a on off switch, wired it in and wow it works, now all Pam has to do is clean up the fine saw dust, but it really lights up the galley, oh yes wait I hear my name being called it is MR couch and Mr TV calling, catch you later, Capt Charles

The winds got fierce last night. Our pans hang and they were clinging against each other. It was like wind chimes. It calmed down as quick as it started. Today is going to be a beautiful day. It is suppose to hit the 70's and sunny. The captain is replacing the light above the sink in the galley so I can see what I am cleaning and making sure it is clean. I am going to clean the grill and finish the laundry for the week.

He said we are going to have surround sound on the boat. He is getting ready to rewire her. He wants music in the stateroom and on the aft deck and in the pilot house. It will be nice to be able to hear the music while on the deck without blasting the stereo.

We have gotten a few tips on saving space, which is precious to us. I would like to get the knives out of the 2 blocks and drawers. Also the spices are in a large rack and on a shelf. I am use to having a lot of wall space so I can hang things. Not so now. I am trying to get everything I need to use while I am cooking in the galley. That will be my project for the summer.

It is getting warm out so I am going to tackle that grill. It is a large round electric grill. Has a heavy top. I am thinking of what I can put it in to soak all the crud off. Thinking again, makes my head hurt....LOL...See you guys later. Have a great weekend.

Well, today Charles decided that he wanted to rearrange the salon. He had to switch sides with the large sofa and computer table. While he was doing that I was scrubbing the oven. When I was finished with that I cleaned the porthole above the sink in the galley. Now when I look out I keep wanting to close it. It is already closed. Now that is clean....LOL. When Charles was moving the couch and moving the rug, he needed help. I had to pick up one end of the couch so he could move the circuit breaker that had gotten stuck. When I did that I heard a snap and my wrist started to throb. Not sure what I did to it. Really hurts though. After we were done with the salon I made tuna fish salad sandwiches. They hit the spot. Not sure what the rest of the day will bring to us. It is sunny, but windy and still chilly. Waiting for tomorrow. Suppose to be in the 60's with light winds. I really need to get this winter crud off me. Need the fresh air. I need to make a pitcher of sweet tea. Oh yeah, we are getting the water turned back on tomorrow. I have more than a weeks worth of laundry to do. Yes, spring is just around the corner. I can see a glimpse.

Getting the galley finished by this weekend. Looking forward to this weekend. They are calling for nice weather. Going to be in the 60's and sunny. It is about time. The captain and I are going to be able to take some of the weather proof stuff off and open her up. I love the fresh air coming in the windows. It looks like spring is around the corner. We are fixing the bow head for our weekend guests. We are going to start Lady Star up this weekend to check out the engine and see what needs to be done to move her. We are looking forward to taking our daily and nightly walks again. My school is coming along fine too. My GPA after two semesters is 3.75. The captain is working hard and doing whatever he can to keep me happy.

Today had been a depressing day. It is cold, windy, and raining. I opened the blinds in the salon to let some light in and it didn't help much. Yesterday I was busy with school work and then started to tackle the start of spring cleaning. I am starting in the galley, since that is mostly my domain. I sorta made a mess, but had it cleaned up by the time the captain came home. As I look at the project, I see it will take me a few days to complete. Since it is raining and ugly outside this is the best time to do it. I think the oven is going to be the worst of it. It is small and not much room to get inside when the door is open...as you all have probably experienced. This is my first time living aboard, so I have to bend and twist to get things done. At least I know I still can get into those unusual positions. HA HA. Well, back to work. Just wanted to update this journal.

Hi guys!! Today is sunny but still on the chilly side. The winds are rocking us a bit. We have a couple of projects to tackle today. Last night after we turned our water pump on we found a leak near the water tank. We fixed it without any problems and now the pump only runs when we turn the water on. That was easy. We found a leak under the aft head sink and are proceeding to correct that one too. Oh what a life!! We are also in the process of changing our lighting in the salon. We are thinking tracking lights. Any suggestions? I am going to open the blinds and let the sunshine in. I have posted some pictures of the sunset of last night. Sitting on the aft deck and enjoying the lights of the sky is one of the quirks of living aboard. I will let you know how we did with the projects for today.

Just a few pictures of the Feb snow

Our home!!

Feb. 27, 2010

I know it has been quite awhile since I have posted. We have both been busy. The captain works full-time and the admiral is a full-time student. Lady Star had her first Christmas tree in 2009. We decorated a little, knowing that we would need to find room for the decorations and tree. Our New Year's was quiet and peaceful. The first couple months of this year have been colder then usual. It is the end of Feb. and still in the lower 30's with windchill in the 20's when we get up in the morning. Our highs have only reached the high 50's. Our marina has had the water shut off three times. Off for a couple of weeks then on for a week. The second time we had the water shut off, it was off for 3 weeks to the day. It was on for less then a week and off again. Where is the warm weather? During this cold spell we have fixed most of the air leaks. We have stayed nice and toasty on her. Just waiting 'til we can open up the aft deck.
We are aiming for a cruise this summer. She needs some work before we can set out. I have made a list for the captain and I to tackle. We are taking one task at a time. I am looking forward to cruising south of here and just relaxing. I am hoping to keep a journal here so we can see our progress in action. I will try to post everyday.