Heavy Lifting

It hasn't exactly been all that exciting here the past couple of days, but rather, exhausting! And also very satisfying! It feels so good to be in the pre-departure frenzy stage -- a place we've been before, so we can appreciate the odd combination of fatigue and anticipation! We've been working like crazy, getting provisions aboard, getting items stowed properly, and getting the boat organized, as well as getting a few odd chores accomplished here and there. For instance, Ron spent some time repairing one of the struts that lift up our master cabin bed frame so that we can access the storage space beneath it. The screws came out of the wood where they attached the strut to the bed frame, so he had to rework that area with wood filler, and re-drill it. Not that he wasn't busy enough dealing with oil and filter changes on the generators, as well as checking out the Nitrox compressor re-installation, among other mechanical projects. 

I spent my days happily organizing the galley; the first day tackling an onerous task...cleaning, scrubbing and sanitizing the refrigerator and freezer. The breaker to the frig got switched off at some point during Equinox's stay on the hard, so in the Florida heat, the unit became, um...a giant mold incubator. (Yuk!!) Scalding water, soap, and Clorox Clean-up to the rescue, along with a great deal of elbow grease and an even greater amount of time. Glad that's done, and happily, the refrigerator is shining once again! 

But, I have to admit, I secretly love this stage of things: making the galley clean and gleaming, organizing and arranging things, all the while imagining the new anchorages we'll be enjoying, thinking of the  dinners we'll have aboard there. Knowing how special life is out there, I can't wait to return! Once my cleaning chores ended, so did my reveries in the galley, for I then became a pack mule. 

What faced us next was a mountain of boxes, bins and packages that needed to be hauled aboard, unpacked and organized, sorted and stowed. We were more than happy to start moving it aboard, since boxes have been crowding our foyer entrance for a month now, growing exponentially. Filled with all sorts of goodies, from extra cruising guides, additional courtesy flags, new dive skins, masks, cases of wine, fresh bed linens, towels to new galley pots and pans, we had it all awaiting Equinox's return. Everything from a new waterski (to replace the one broken this past July) to holding tank filters, boxes of Parmalat to gift cases of vodka and Bloody Mary mix (conveniently on sale at Sam's Club, which worked for us!)....we had everything but the proverbial kitchen sink and the walkable area was getting thin!

The cart at Sam's Club was filled to the brim!

I also needed to move my pantry back aboard. I'd taken all foodstuffs out of Equinox's pantry and storage area before we hauled the boat, fearing it would be adversely affected by baking in the August and September heat. So...while the empty cabinets were daunting, they allowed me to wipe everything clean before re-provisioning. We'd stocked up on coffee, various canned goods we've found we can't live without (mushrooms, black olives, diced tomatoes and corn), toothpaste and other toiletries, and then ... just hauled. Box. After box. After box. After box. 

So...we're in the midst of it, and .... well, reveling in the fatigue once more. It's all part of the experience: beating back the mountain, hauling and moving, step by step, getting things stowed, for we know what rewards await us. We'll get there again!