Expediton to Kits Beach on board SV GIRI

It's been a year since the GIRI left the dock.  Tom Kennedy and several others had tore out the cabin to access the hull. Plates were welded in where the ultrasound showed thickness of steel wanting. The mast, broken in the crossing from Hawaii to Vancouver the year previous, was repaired, with a new welded shoe. Then the bottom was epoxied and painted with all manner of costly things having been completed while the boat was weeks out of water in Mosquito Creek.  Tom was a mensch. He's off right now rebuilding a cloth plane wing that was broken on his friends plane when a careless hangar operator dropped the door on it.  Before that he was redesigning a propeller to fit a chevy car engine torgue.  Tom literally likes to get things moving.
I got the GIRI out a few times after that with a couple of winter sails to assess what further needed to be done.  The exhaust system on the Yanmar motor gave up the ghost. It was a jury rig from the jury rig before so I figured James Geisbrecht needed to make a definitive improvement to the system. I'd done a jury rig at 3 am with a tsunami warning bobbing about in English Bay working frantically so I could catch the tide change to get through First Narrows back to dock.  Deck painting, sail repairs, and sundry other things got done that year.  James installed a new Newport Dickinson stove with diesel filter when the old one which had lasted over a decade finally died.  Too sooted up and the interior overheated once too many times. It could be revived but a new one was better.  Prettier too.
The big project was the cleaning and a woman with the organization ""It's a Wonderful Wife" that does detailing of homes took on the gargantuan job of cleaning every nook and cranny. Tom had taken out the cabin so Barry, the welder,  from Mosquito Creek could do his job without setting the boat on fire.  All this industrial work and the exhaust system breaking so the boat was filled with smoke had left a lot of grime.  It was restored to pristine and healthy condition. Kirk stayed on the boat over the winter while I moved out to my new RV in Burnaby.   I'd had the new propane water heater installed but water supply was iffy on the dock in winter so with a full time job I wasn't keen on dealing with hauling water if the pipes froze.  Kirk tolerated the interruptions for work to be done and loved being on the water.  He's a hopeless romantic that way.
James replaced all the windows and finally got the new hatches with new windows done and I moved back on the boat again.  It's home.  But it's a moving home and a frighteningly expensive home if it doesn't actually move.  So an expedition was planned.
Joseph Blackburn, diver, (former US Navy) did the hull cleaning removing a year of growth and barnacles.  Gilbert was highly skeptical of this denizen from the deep barking warning when he broke surface, not understanding how his friend Joseph who himself has dogs, could transform into this underwater bubble blowing creature.  Angel the cat was queen of her domain. She sailed with me solo to Hawaii and has lived on the boat most of her life. It's a delight seeing how at home she is.  I'm sure when she's around there's not a mouse or rat anywhere to be found. She's explored every nook and cranny of her domain.
Laura arrived with her bags looking very summerish. We had sunshine.  A break of it. The boat was ready.  I'd bought groceries earlier. Laura stowed below while I cleaned up the deck for sea.  An expedition was planned!  Finally I started the diesel engine.  Smoke and water came out the exhaust.  James' work didn't explode.  I untied us from the dock and the GIRI was in motion.  We barely made it under First Narrows because the tide was turning against us.  It was sunset over Vancouver.  The lights were beautiful.
Compared to the last very chilly winter sailing to Saltspring when Laura and I transitted Coal Harbour this was a balmy summer evening.
We came out in English Bay  with dusk.  I actually had to remember to put on the navigation lights when a little boat passed by and I saw he had his on.  The new mast light Tom installed was a beauty of a torch. The autopilot is still making great S turns and being annoying but better than hand steering which I really don't like. Might as well be riding a Harley if one has to hand steer.  Boating is for sitting back and drinking coffee and looking at the stirling surroundings.  Vancouver all lit up was a joy to see. I've been doing this for a quarter century and I still take pleasure in seeing Vancouver lit up at night.  It's a truly beautiful and incomparable city. The snow capped mountains over North Vancouver watch over the bay.
We only drove the boat the hour to Kits Beach where I anchored in 25 feet.  I was thankful the winch worked and the chain wasn't tangled. Everything went well. All systems worked.  Except when I tried to start the new Dickinsen stove.  The diesel wouldn't fill the pan.  No fuel.  I got out the wrenches and went through the system. Sure enough there was air in the pump.  I can't say I knew this but I did the drill and found the problem much to our pleasure.  It was warm enough not to have the diesel stove on but with it, it was like a cabin with a little wood fire. The slight chill went and the whole interior came alive.  Now with the morning rain falling new skylight hatches, it's a delight to have the little flame blazing.
A great sleep at anchor.  The cat and dog crowded Laura and I on the bed but it's hard to do more than shove them off knowing they'll sneak back on when they hear me snoring.  When I finally got out of bed to have a morning coffee they were quite pleased having themselves concluded that I was the problem.  They stayed in bed with Laura while I had coffee on deck enjoying being on my boat and the beautiful view.
This is a great expedition.  Kits Beach.  There's some boats with sails up doing a race thing over  by the Royal Vancouver Yacht club.  The sun is trying to break through.  Asking myself, do I want to run around on deck messing with sails or have another coffee and read a book in the warmth and comfort of my cabin, I conclude I'd rather go below.  Laura is sleeping in.  I like the motion of bouncing about at sea.  Everything I could want is here in this little mobile home.  If the sun comes up I might go up and lie on deck.  Today sun tanning would definitely be preferable to yacht racing.
The 'expedition' to Kits Beach is success. All systems work. Next weekend maybe I 'll get the sails up and cross the Strait to Nanaimo.  I've never seen the pleasure in sailing with a lot of other boats and crew around circles in a little marked out space in the bay.  It's like running around a gym or doing laps in a little  pool.  I've got an inkling I could head out right now for the Marquesas and be there next month.  Sailing over to Nanaimo this summer will be fun mostly because the return sail is usually so much fun with 25 knots of steady winds bringing the boat home on a Sunday.  Crossing Georia Strait isn't like crossing the Pacific Ocean but it's still often hours of joyful sailing.  I suspect the guys who sail in little circles would argue their case. They like messing with sails. I loved trade wind sailing which is like gliding forever. You only have to set the sails and days go by before you have to make an adjustment and rarely do you have to change tack.  A whole lot of glorious time for lounging, reading books and drinking coffee looking at the wonders of the sea around.  God's marine world is truly glorious.  For now I'm enjoying having my home in motion.  Maybe next week I'll get out a fishing rod too. Loved the salmon I caught out here last year. Still can remember the taste of it barbecued right off the hook. Life is so good at times like this. God is good. God is great.  Thank you Lord of all Creation.

Night on the Boat with Angel and Gilbert

I love sleeping on a boat.  I imagine weightlessness in space would be even better. The world is a great water bed.  My dreams are fluid.  Last night I dreamed a little girl was teaching me to use IPAD2 showing me her family christmas pictures while friends roamed about a mansion. I was wearing a leather jacket and this fine wise oriental gentleman had brought me a writing case, in as much to say that nothing in life is stationary.
Meanwhile I was being woken on the hour by Angel, the cat, whose first night it was back on the boat. Angel had to spend a while ashore while the hatches and windows were being repaired. She'd have got in the way of work with her coming and going.
She loves the boat too.  We've sailed thousands of miles together.  When Gilbert, by 'monkeydog', climbed into bed, Angel hissed him away from my side and cuddled into my arm pit.  It's her place. Gilbert was definitely miffed but accepted his place at the foot of the bed.
I've cut Angel's claws this morning.  Every time I turned over she'd dig in then leave, then Gilbert would sneak in, then Angel would return.  I'm tired this morning. But the hull is being cleaned today.  Then the boat will be ready to go out again. Must check the tide tables. With all the work on the boat and a friend being here it's been many months since the GIRI left dock.  Always an exciting time and exciting day.
But sleeping at anchor is even more enjoyable than sleeping tied to a dock. I don't know about sleeping when the boat is in motion on autopilot.   I must have faith that things won't go bump in the night.  I prefer being tethered to something.  I'm conservative that way, maybe even reactionary.
I got up this morning and listened to Carrie Underwood singing, "How Great Thou Art".  My friend, Dr. Bernie used to sing that to me while playing his banjo. I'm sure it was a favourite of my mom and aunt's.  I was raised on gospel.  Tears come to my eyes as I listened to the song.  I don't know how much is nostalgia, how much is form mom and aunt sally, how much the simple beauty of the song and the pure way that Carrie Underwood sings this classic.  A whole lot more is the desire to give 'my utmost for his highest'.
I think of Leonard Cohen's song, I want a new name, this one is covered up in shame.  So then I listened to Elvis Presley doing How Great Thou Art and then Christine Aguileria. I didn't find a gospel song of hers on you tube.  It's just that I loved her with Cher in Burlesque.  It was fun to surf the internet. So much of my time is so regimented. I rarely just kick back and break program.  Next I hit Lady Gaga and finally Britney Spears.  I thought I was back in high school after that.  I remembered the girls in the hall and all the competition among them and us guys being dazzled by their carrying on.
That's what came to mind watching Aguileria, Gaga, and Spears. They're all so talented and their videos such works of contemporary art.  But I went back to Underwood and listened to Jesus, take the wheel.  That had my mind sliding off on the Road Less Travelled, remembering the girls my parents liked from our church and how I'd taken a different track.  Most days I think "different' rather than better or worse. I think that what was, was the best path with what was possible at the time.  I imagine God redeeming life constantly.
So many times in life there are these 'crossroads'. That sign was in the Britney Spears video.  There are always choices and yet what of destiny.  Lady Gaga sings "Im born that way".  The philosophical questions of the ages coming through girl music.  Wonder what Neitche and Goethe would have looked like in bikinis or in their case shirtless in boxers.  It's not the Beatles or Steppenwolf or Paul Simon or Gordon Lightfoot, the Guess Who or Leonard Cohen.  It's not Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon or Joan Baez either. I listened to the Tripods from Australia recently too, comedy, thanks to the nephews.  It's been a while since I bought a Steve Matthews Band or John Mayor record enjoying the music as contemporary culture. The last cd I bought was Johnny Reed.
I rarely listen to music if I'm not driving. In the truck it's FM, AM or CD. Mostly I'm listening to Third Day driving down the freeway on my Harley electriglide doing 70 mph.  I find motorcycles and Christian spiritual music go together with prayer. In the truck I've got Mercy Me playing this week and ?Neededthings.  House of James is a favourite stop in Abbotsford to stock up on Christian CD's on road trips.  I like to be reminded of the 'higher things'.
I want to know God. I want God to be the 'polestar' of my life.  I figure with God at the helm or God at the wheel the journey can only be the best possible life worth living.  I want to allign my own life with the highest possible life available of all the choices.  I want to be with God and follow in his footsteps.  I want to live to the fullest.  As St. Paul said, I"d like to pray unceasingly.  I meditate on the sacred wonder of life.
How Great Thou Art touched a chord on that journey. the other songs were so much fun too.  Makes me want to get out my own guitar and write songs of love and Jesus singing, playing to the Lord of All Creation.
Best I shower and get ready for the day.  God inspired the maker of indoor plumbing.  He is surely a saint in heaven.  The guy who found this coffee and the girl who made it are surely saints as well. I think my dream was of the afterlife.  Jesus said in his father's world there were many mansions and that he'd go ahead and prepare one for his disciples.  C.S. Lewis', Great Divorce ,the play about the afterlife put on this year by Pacific Theater, showed the choices we have.  I'd like to walk upright.  Despite enjoying my furry friends who disrupted my sleep something terrible I'd prefer to evolve than devolve.  There's this idea of a homo spiritus that can follow homo sapiens. I'd like to take that journey.  Today I pray that I follow the high road.

Gilbert Hay

Gilbert Hay is a 6 week old cockapoo. His father was Jimmy, a shadow poodle while his mother was Angel, a fancy cockerspaniel.

Deborah Mitchell, former US Navy Commander, after 20 years of service including time in Guam, moved to Coupeville, Whidbey Island to fulfill her dream of raising dogs.

Dtresor Kennels http://web.breedersclub.net/dtresors/ is a located in her delightful homestead in the country. I was really pleased to find Gilbert so well cared for and with such great personality. Something to do with having ducks and geese for neighbours and lots of happy dogs for company.

He was shy at first but he loved to be held and soon his little tongue was licking my neck. Deb was a wealth of information. Though I'd raised puppies I was very thankful for all her thoughtful advise. She's really a great lady. Hard to think of her in Navy uniform.

Then Gilbert and I were alone together driving home in my Ford Ranger Truck. With high pitched cries he let me know he didn't like being in the cage. I got him out while he peed with excitement all over my blue jeans. He preferred my lap after that. Then he curled up on the armrest and slept most of the way home. I took a couple of rest stops, taking him on a beach where he ran along behind me. I'm his mommy and his safety obviously. He only walked at a truck stop to follow me and let me know he preferred to be carried.

At the Border all that Deb had given me was just what they needed. I only had to pay the duty or tax or whatever it was for having spent more than my day's allotment. Nothing really. Then Gilbert and I were back on the road again. I liked that I passed a few Harleys and he took an interest in the 'loud pipes'.

When I got him back in town Laura was overjoyed to meet him, friends right off. Angel, the cat, on the other hand sniffed him over and was initially curious and friendly but when he bounded across the bed to her like they were long lost friends, she hissed. At puppy high speed he returned to my side and burrowed under my back. A while later he poked his head out and looked over at Angel with new found respect. Maybe because Angel has his mother's name he got a little confused but Angel the cat nipped that in the bud.

Now he's napping with his little head on the pillow.

I phoned my 91 yo Dad this morning and apprised him of the new member in the family. All the guys where he lives wanted to know the breed and he had trouble remembering it was a "cockapoo....I knew it was a cockle something." My cousin Wayne, the logger, had one who road everywhere with him in his truck. Best of friends.

Gilbert Hay was the friend of Robert the Bruce in Scottish history. Another Gilbert was a poet and then of course there's Gilbert and Sullivan. He's a musical sort of guy. Already he's showing the personality of a poet and the loyalty of a king's best friend.

Admiral Angel

Admiral Angel likes to take the highest position in the cabin. When there's a bit of wind or she just wants to nap she prefers my sock cupboard/drawer a place where she weathered the worst of seas and several knockdowns on my winter sail down the coast to San Francisco and then across the Pacific to Hawaii. She was not impressed.