Food Food Food

My friend chris asked today what do you think about most?

Food Food Food

Food of course. It gives us life. It can make us happy and content and also misery and regret. Its the greatest thing in the world. The most powerful thing in the universe. Adam and Eve and one apple. I see the connection. Do you?

Well I am back on a diet. AGAIN. I had lost about 28 lbs gained 5 back on last boat trip. Imagine that. So today i joined curves. Curves is a workout center just for women. I had been going to a gym in the next town with a friend of mine but she bailed out and I just havent been able to make the time to go lately.There is always something else going on. But curves is in the town I live in just 5 min away. So Im gonna try to go 3 mornings a week before I go to work. Wish me luck Im not much of a morning person but it looks like it might be the only time I have just for me. Thats Ok no one else wants to be around me in the mornings anyway. Heck I dont want to be with me first thing in the morning. That first hour just really sucks. It doesnt matter if its 6am or 12 noon it still sucks.

So food being the topic today the cowboys lunch consisted of

Rare roast beef

boiled potatos drizzled with butter and sprinkled with garlic

speckled butter beans

turnip greens with ham hocks

biscuits

yum yum real man food

Oreneta posted some cool pics so here are a couple of mine for her little one

these are my toes in the Bahamas and aboard the sailing vessel Wahine and one of a Bahamian hermit crab im not sure why they ended up before the text and I cant figure out how to move them

Terrie

I cant sleep

So it is 3:17 am and I cant sleep!!!

My husband is snoring like a freight train. I have tried counting backward from like a zillion.
Counting sheep. Shooting sheep. I took sleeping pills a couple of hours ago. Didnt work. I am really confused how a human being can make so much noise in his own head and not wake up. I was really thinking of putting a pillow over his head. So I got up and came down stairs to check my friends blog that is in spain. Oreneta Aground. Im not sure how to make this a link. My mind is a bit fuzzy. Buy she always has the most thought provoking comentaries on life. You should check it out. AND she just got a new camera so Im hoping to see lots of pics af Spain. I would love to visit there. Theres something to dream about.

I have had areally busy week.
Where I work ,A large cattle ranch, has had a couple of big events. This past Friday we served about 260 people lunch. Thats every employee the mother company has. The occasion was 1 million man hours without a lost time accident. WOW
Then the very next day we served about 578 people a big dinner. And Im talking big. 14oz newyork strip steak, swamp cabbage, baby green limas, new red potatoes, rolls, sweet iced tea, there was also as apps swamp cabbage fritters corn on the cob grown on our ranch that was picked the day before YUM and BBQ sausage. Oh yah and a full bar. YEH. Did I mention this is A working cattle ranch. So this means drunk cowboys. Yeh again. Always fun to watch. So my friends abroad are probably a little confused by this menu. Yes Chris we ate 14oz of rare beef right off the grill. Prepared by wacking large slabs beef into slightly large slabs of beef. Seasoning
and grilling just long enough to leave marks on each side. New red potatos and lima beans are self explanatory but swamp cabbage you say what is this swamp cabbage you talk of??
Well
This is actually the heart of the local cabbage palm that grows here in abundance. The men folk go off into the woods with chainsaws, hatchets and other emplements of injury. Cut down the tree. Then they boot it. Pull the outside husks off. Not an easy job Im told. Put in the back of a pick up truck and haul back to main building my dining hall. This is about a 2 day job as it took 2 full pick up trucks full. Then they trim it down to just the center or heart of the palm. Chop it up and put it in a large pot really large pot with fat back , bacon , onions and seasoning and boils slowly until tender. Its actually pretty good.
Fritters are the swamp cabbage after its cooked mixed into a thick batter and deep fried kinda like a hush puppy. Very yummy.

Well i got off the subject a bit and now I could really go for a midnight snack except its about 3:45 AM Maybe breakfast.
So my week was really busy planning these 2 events as the guy Im told is my boss this week, Thats a whole nother post, has not been here long enough to have planned one of these events yet. So a lot of the ordering of groceries has fallen on me. Thats a whole lot of food that has to be brought in to dining room that is used on a daily basis to feed 30 cowboys, fence crew and mechanics. Also paper plates, cups, napkins, salt ,pepper, ect ect,....
Why they planned these 2 days one after other is beyond me. They didnt have to do the work. They being THE BOSSES. Well they saved money on tent rental. It take a large one for that many people. Oh and porta potties, tables and chairs and ect ect..
For the most part I love my job. I really do. The men I cook for everyday are very thankful to get a hot lunch and are easy to get along with. They have become like a part of my family. I know what they like , what they don't, I know when they are fighting with their wifes, when their kids are sick, when the mother inlaw is visiting you get the idea. The last time we spent a month on the boat I was so worried about leaving them that I had A dream that we took them and my crazy cat along with us. When I told my husband about the dream he said "O.K they can come but the cat stays home"! :) They were all fine when we got home. One of the cowboys wifes had agreed to fill in for me and she fed them pretty well. But they were all glad to see me.
Which has as always led us to our boat.
We have recently started planning our summer sails.
I dont think we will take the time off this year that we did last year. UGH. But we our going to try to take a week or 2 and go to The Dry Tortugas. Thats off the west coast of the Florida Keys. Its is the small island chain that is home to Fort Jefferson and an old light house. Thats about it. Its dry as in now fresh water. No wonder the military didnt use that Fort for very long. It was a prison for a short time. But the snorkeling and fishing is awesome. And it has a great anchorage. The boys and a couple of friends stopped out there when we went to the Bahamas last year before my husband picked me up in the Keys. They got off the boat and I and my father inlaw got on. This enabled me to work an extra week and them to see what was going to brake before we left the states. I will try to upload some pictures of Fort Jefferson and maybe that pot we cook the cabbage in.
4:03 Am maybe I will try to take a nap before I go to work.
By for now
Terrie
well i cant find the pics Ill look later

Look I found them.

My Best Friends Wedding

So my best friend got married today.
Well I just got derailed in what I was about to write. As I JUST sat down to type, my 6 year olds wails from the upstairs alerts me that he has hurt himself. By the time I run upstairs I here my husband saying" what did you cut yourself on?" he replys "I DONT KNOOOWW?" My husband says "thats gonna need stitches". All this happens in the time it takes me to climb one flight of stairs. When I get there ,there is my naked son sitting on the landing ,he had been in the bath tub, holding his foot that has an inch long gash on his ankel. So you have to ask the all important question. Scar or stitches? My little one cries scar scar scar. Hes never even had stitches but he knows he doesnt want them. Amazing.

So you wanna go cruising? Here is a good practice drill. Raise a couple of (insert here)children, pets, husbands. They are always hurting them selfs or are sick. Whip out the handy dandy first aid kit. My son calls it the boo boo box. And apply handy dandy stera strip Or some call it butterfly tape. First aid creme and band aid. Wah Lah All better. Mooommmm my boo boo hurts I need ice cream. Now its all better!

Now what I was gonna tell you was that my best friend got married today. We have been best friends since second grade WOW. So the last few days have been crazy and i havent had time to talk to you. So here are my thoughts for the day.

You just never know how things are gonna turn out. She has been married before has 4 children from 2 different guys. He has never been married no children. And i have been worried for sometime that this was not the guy for her. He is gonna want kids some day. well as it turns out he did want kids someday. And now he has four of them that i truly beleive that he loves as his own. And as I sit wondering MoMMMM I need a drink.

OK
So as i sit here wondering how im gonna get the gunk out of my hair and rubbing my aching feet. I think back to second grade. Well i cant really remember second grade so all through grade school high school. Births, divorces, marriages, deaths and all the things we have been through together. How have I managed to keep such an awesome friend for so long. She is more my sister than my sister.We can talk everyday or not see each other for a month and she is always with me. In my heart, mind, and spirit. I have been told it is rare to have such a lengthy friendship. I have a couple of other friends from grade school but their the kind of relationships that take a lot of work. She is the friend that is always there no questions asked when you need her. Pick you up , take you home, Or bury the body whatever the need may be.
I have A stange ,but nice, Contentment setting in that she is happy ,this man loves her and her children and all is right with the world.
So they say good things come to those who wait, OR, everyone gets what they deserve in the end, OR at first you dont succeed, try and try again OR never give up. Pick one:)

Well you knew it would happen. This turns to sailing. Thats a little less I will worry about with my best friend happily married, when we sail off on our great adventure. OK thats a fat lie!
I will always worry. Thats what I do.
Life is a big adventure.
The adventure continues.
Rambling from an exhausted mind.
Terrie

To be announced

Sometimes my life feels like a TBA to be announced notice. I just never know whats gonna happen. Where is life taking me? I surely don't know most of the time. It makes me bit on edge some days and other days it what drives me. The great unknown.
I have always wanted to own my own bussiness. A great little shop where i can make awesome little cakes and cookies. Where I'm the boss and I can play the music as loud as I want and no one bugs me. And no one says Oh by the way! and then proceeds to change your plans for the entire course of your day without blinking an eye. But just lately when i came soooo close to doing just that, quit my job open my own shop and jump feet first into it, things start to change. Theres a big word attached to owning your own bussiness. RESPONSIBILITY!! You see my husband and i have another dream. Getting on our sailboat and sailing off into the great unknown. Unknown to us anyway. And we are making great strides to actually doing this. We have a few major hurtles to get over but we are getting closer. I would like to say in 2 or 3 years. But there are some major questions. Do we sell everything and just leave. We could do that now. But what happens if we hate it what do you have to come back to? If i own a shop who do i leave in charge. It would have to be someone I can trust. Good luck finding that elusive person. Well the point of this meandering dialog is this. Everything happens for a reason. Good or bad it all works out in the end.

But you know the boat has come a long way!

just venting

My husband is for the most part a very witty man. If you read his last post I'm sure you gat a chuckle but not for the same reason I did.
So let me vent for a minute.

First The lawn. I mow the lawn usually. He piles "stuff" in it. He leaves "stuff" laying all over it and claims " I was gonna pick it up" Really

Second The boat kinda found us its a Karma thing.

Next Inadequate tools HAH between my husband and his dad who is usually with us those two could make major repairs on a battle ship. And as far as space goes our lovely boat is very spacious its not like he has to stand on his head to work on the engine. You can do jumping jacks in our bathroom.
And We our on the verge of making enough power to sell the surplus.
So when my husband talks about the difficult time sailors have I think he must be talking about OTHER sailors, things hes seen on OTHER boats, or helped to fix on OTHER boats. Not our Wahine who is almost perfect (in our minds) that we should probably change her name to Mary Poppins. Heck she has more cabinets than the first place Robert and I lived in when we were married.

Now if we could just stop running out of water!
Love ya Honey

A quick note

I would like to take the time to thank my father for the pictures on this blog.

He has been taking pictures for as long as i can remember. Now he has a 12 meg digital so he can shoot all the time and he has taken to it like a fish to water. He loves the boat and it is one of his favorite subjects. You should try this link and look at some of his stuff .http://homepage.mac.com/waddy1/PhotoAlbum1.html

So you want to live on a sailboat?

So you want to live on a sail boat?

Sounds like fun!

No yard to mow, if you don't like the neighbors you just up the anchor, it smaller than a house even a small one so it is easier to keep up with right?

First you have to find one that you can live with.

Now that you've found "your" boat you have to work on it, even the new ones. You should get used to it because from the minute you you call yourself a boat owner your work begins some times even before that. Odds are good that "your" boat will have been someones boat before it was your boat, so the first thing you feel like doing is cleaning, some thing else you should get used to. After that you need to look into every part of the boat, this part is fun, you never know what you are going to find.

Ok, so far this sounds like moving into a house right.
Remember all the stuff you found while you were cleaning Your boat , you cant put it in the yard that you don't have to mow. And the cleaning well it is not like a house, how often do you clean the ceiling,walls,floors,outside walls,roof,and foundation of your house????


Wow this is a lot of work.



How does this sound . Just for fun, lets pretend that we are going to live on the boat, go get all the stuff you think you will need for a week to live in you home, food ,water, clean laundry and entertainment and put all of this into one room. Now turn off the power to your house, for a week you are going to use a 2kw gen set. for the sake of fairness anythings that you have forgotten will have to be retrieved using a wagon, you know the Little red one. If it makes you feel better you can make little motor sounds it is now your tender. Hey better start the gen set your food is getting hot. Speaking of hot food, how are we going to cook? Gas stove, bar-b-que? Get the wagon you forgot charcoal for the grill. Hey while you were out the gen set ran out of gas, bet you thought it would last longer. Back to the wagon. Don't cheat you have to pull the wagon to the store, not just to the car.

Now that you'r back lets eat,and do the dishes. tired yet? Better fill the gen set the food is getting hot. Now that the food is getting cold lets relax for awhile. If we were on the boat something somewhere on the boat would need to be fixed, oiled, greased, tightened, loosened, cleaned, put away, or at the very least looked at. Well what are we going to do now? SLEEP.

In the morning you can do it all over again except you'll need to pick a major appliance, disassemble it ( with inadequate tools ), reassemble it, and repeat until it works again.

After a week of this you will have a working knowledge of most things in your house, realize that you use too much power and water, you will go to bed earlier wake up earlier ( the gen set needs to be started ) and you will realize that you need to make some changes to the way that you live.
If you ae wondering "is it worth it" look at some of the pictures in this blog.

Boat magic

It's a strange thing.

A boat has the ability to change its size.

When you buy it, it is just right, when you work on it, it is big, when you need to paint it, it is too big.

When you get her out to sea she is perfect,

when you get her out of sight of land she starts to shrink,when the sea starts to build she gets realy small.

The nice thing about "Boat magic" is that if you take care of her she WILL take care of you.

Hi I'm Terrie's husband Robert.

This is a shot of her the last time we hauled her, going back into the water. What you see is the product of 18 months of hard work and the decks are not done yet. During this haul out I gutted the after "cavern" the reason I say cavern is because a "cabin" is too small to define the space.

you don't understand until you rebuild it, boat magic. The layout that was in there when we bought her was not working for us and I had much work to do to her hull in this area. Previous neglect had made her weak.I cut out an area 4 feet tall 6 feet long and 4 frames that had rusted to the point that I was afraid to touch when she was in the water. After repairing the hull, stripping all the paint, repainting, and rewiring we put her back in the water.

Hey remember that Boat magic, the hull of Wahine is galvanized,when she was built, before the paint they flame applied zinc to the entire hull. We stripped her by hand, sandblasting would have removed all of that protection. She was built in 1963, that's 44 years, it's still working so I ain't fixing it. The boat grew as we stripped her by hand, Boat magic.

Robbies new boat

So whenever anyone asks Robbie who boat is that (wahine)? He always with a big grin would say "thats MY boat" so we finally found a boat that a six year old boy and his mother who is just really learning how to sail can handle. These pictures are of Robbies first lesson. Which was far less eventful then what I guess could be called the shakedown cruise. My husband and I launched the boat near where we bought it and were going to take it up river to where we keep Wahine. Not far just a few miles. The wind was ripping and I (remember I'm still learning) thought this was going to be great. Well what I didn't keep in mind was this little boat was not Wahine. There was actually to much wind. Never thought of that! Oh yah did I mention it was cold. Really cold for Florida. We tipped the boat almost over and it was completely swamped. We did verify by doing this that it would indeed not sink in this event. Did I mention it was cold. So we bailed and we bailed and we bailed. She was really clean when we were through. Robert made some adjustments and away we went. I had never been in a boat this small and I would have to say it was quite invigorating, or maybe I was just really cold. We did make it to the boat dock at the marina without any more dousings. It was actually a lot of fun. Don't tell Robert I admitted that. Robert and Robbie have fallen in love with that little boat and I'm sure I will to once I figure it out. I should probably think of a name for her. What do you think?

SPEED!!!!!!!!
THIS ONE WAS DONE AT Fort Meyers beach over spring break this year. We had good wind and could make 7 and 8 Knts . WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

the pics

This is the sailing vessel Wahine.

She was built in 1963, has been around the world, and is still going. We found her in a boat yard in very, very sad shape. After years of work, some intense, some not we took her to the Bahamas for the summer. This picture is from a day trip we made with a family thay had never been sailing. We are moveing at about 5 Kts, easy day.

Posting Pictures

Well i have been messing with this things for what seems like forever and still cant manage to get a picture to post. Maybe Ill have better luck tomorrow.

What is a Blog Anyway?

Well I've just discovered Blogs! What is a blog? How do I Blog? What should I put on my Blog?