Well, since it's been a handful of months, I guess it's time to recap. Didn't do anything for Halloween this year, since I was stuck at home. Christmas for the family actually didn't go too bad, though a bit limited in whom could visit and be visited. We were some of the fortunate ones not terribly affected by the COVID pandemic. It almost feels bittersweet in that we were able to have a good ending to our year, while knowing that even helping others as much as possible couldn't possibly restore what some had lost.
There hasn't been a lot in the sailboat realm to speak of. The marina has already informed members that they have pre-sold all the slips for the upcoming season already. No doubt people want to make up for what they missed last year. I was able to enjoy it a bit, but I'm sure many others weren't. They've made other changes there as well. No longer will the yard be totally strewn with vessels on the hard. In an effort to tidy the appearance up and make it easier on staff and guests alike, the marina is no longer offering storage for boats that are not paying for a slip in the water. Now, there will surely still be some boats that don't make it in the water, even after paying for the season, but that's the nature of boats and working on them. Many boats have been removed from the property though, including that C&C 37' that I had secretly hoped to make a deal with the owner on. Oh well. Plenty of other boats to be put in the sea.
I do have my deposit fully paid, and will be paying my slip fees this month and next. Then the only thing I need to do is go up to the boat sometime prior to launch and re-run my halyards the correct way. Surely third time is a charm? I had purchased new main and headsail halyards when I purchased the boat. The first year, I had them on backwards. Last year, I got the orientation right but messed up and ran them over the tang for the forestay on the masthead. It was usable, and fortunately for me it didn't chafe the lines over the few times I was out last summer. I do plan on doing it right this year.
Otherwise, it'll be creature comforts. I really don't foresee any major purchases this year. Last year, I purchased the replacement outboard, put extra batteries and a larger solar panel on, a 2nd anchor and a Raspberry Pi computer for navigation. There was also the replacement Richie compass, and the fridge/cooler. I probably have been spending approximately fifteen hundred, to two thousand dollars each of the last couple years. This year? I could pick up a new fixed VHF, dedicated depth display, finish putting covers on the cushions and purchase new material for the cushion backs in the salon and still be way under budget. I guess we'll see how that ends up. I'm hoping that this year I can finally convince myself to tackle the manual labor style projects. It is hard though, to go up and have sunshine and winds and not leave the dock. But, I do want to finish the cushions for the cabin, finish up the painting around the trim, and just generally get things in shape. Spoiler Alert - This could very well be the last year of ownership for this particular sailboat. More on that later.
Ok, that's all for anything sailing related. Back to stuck-at-home-itus news. In October, I upgraded my computer and bought a fancy foldable racing cockpit to play with. At the end of that post, I mentioned wanting more. To recap the hobby timeline:
I purchased my first steering wheel and pedal set in the middle of August. After a handful of times playing with it clamped to my desk, I ended up upgrading at the end of October to the new wheel and cockpit. And prior to Christmas, I placed and order and received...
This is more how it stands now. You can see in the back of the desk, the 3D printer has a new home. I picked up that GS66 laptop used for a good price, which is being used to run the iRacing. Eventually I will have a dedicated desktop built for that duty, which will then power triple 32" monitors. I actually bought one of them, but since the 35" ultrawide in that picture works better for racing then a single 32" will, they've temporarily swapped duty. I am pretty excited though. I started a second YouTube channel - I think I have 4 subscribers now? Well, ok, 1 is me, but still. It'll be a place to just upload random stuff whenever I feel like it. I also managed to get my first win in a race! I'll likely make a post specifically to detail that process. The build, not the win.
It wasn't long after it was delivered that we were hit with a pretty hefty snowstorm, leaving over a couple feet of snow blanketing the hillside (and yard). So it's sat pretty much untouched since then but will be revisited soon. There's a lot of work to be done, and a lot of it that can't be done for a while anyway. First order of business though will be to do all the measuring, and sorting out what goes where. That will then let us layout the electrical system, and go from there. Then there's the matter of electric and plumbing - electric is easy enough, but plumbing might need to get creative.
Also in the very beginning of December, I managed to finally finish rebuilding the front end of the Mustang after a run in with a deer. Geico wanted to total the car due to mileage and condition versus their estimated repair cost. Instead, I fixed it myself for less than 1/3rd their estimate (which was missing things anyway). The only minor thing is that the bumper cover was reused with a crack in it, instead of a replacement. Too cold for paint anyway.
Before:
And here's the after:
Not too shabby I guess, for a backyard DIY-er.
