Sunday, March 17, 2013

Still Wondering, or, What Have I Done?


This seems to be my go to when in the airport getting ready to
travel.  Good ol' messenger bag, water bottle, and a sausage,
egg, and cheese McMuffin.  Don't judge me.  I was up early as
all get out to catch a plane and all I had was a lousy cup of
coffee.
 

When I stepped off the plane in Townsville I was greeted by
33 C. (91.5 F.) temperatures and 95% humidity.  This was at
12:30 pm local time.  What am I doing?  The ferry ride is quite
short compared to what I'm used to in New Zealand.  Only
takes about 20 minutes.  As we departed the terminal I noticed
they run their Coastguard here the same way as NZ.  All
volunteer.  Familiar ground.
Providence V on my first day.

Cleaning, wiping down, and re-organizing the saloon. (2 day job)

Re-painting and texturing all the hatches

My first sight on Magnetic Island was of my home to be for the near
future.  She's a beautiful all wood schooner built as a replica 1/2 size
in 1988.  Her name is Providence.  I am also made aware of what
kind of work I have lined up for me.  No small feat.  She's in need of
some general TLC and a neat freak's eye.  (Where I come in)  The
owner works for a cruise line as an engineer and spends 49 days at
sea, then 17 days at home where he tries to balance a wife, family, and
business.  What am I doing?



One of the things I have had to get used to all over again is living in a very small, restricted space.  My kitchen is the navigation station, engine access, communications station, bar, and pantry.  All in a place just over 6 ft. x 6 ft. x 6 ft.


 Yet, I still manage to cook for myself.  And healthy even!  The people on the boat next to me were jealous of veggie stir-fry.  Lizzy, you'd be proud of me!


Just when I was really starting to despair a bit,
things started looking up.  First, I spotted the
elusive Bikini Tree.
You have to get up early in the morning and travel to the far reaches of the island to observe it in its native habitat. 


















In the past two weeks we have had more and more bookings for sailing.
We are currently in the tail end of cyclone season here and the weather has
been a bit fickle.  The true end isn't until April, but may hay while the sun shines,
right?
 
One of the random perks of living on a boat in a marina is that you get to  enjoy your neighbors' toys and gadgets sometimes.  The gentleman on my right side and his wife have a 55 ft. launch with these amazing blue L.E.D. lights off the stern.  When they turn them on it illuminates over a 100 ft. semi-circle behind their boat.  Instant aquarium!  I have spent many evenings watching the tens of thousands of fish swimming around.  Mesmerizing, entertaining, and cheap!



Of all the experiences I have had in the past month, for good or bad, I still feel incomplete.
I am currently working on getting accepted to University of Tasmania or NZ Maritime
School.  I'm living on a sailboat on an even smaller island than Waiheke.  And Lizzy is not
here to share it with me.  To give me here special kind of insight and reality to decisions
I'm making.  This is the longest we have been apart in almost 2 years.  Miss you Lizard.






More to come.....








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