Weather forecast for December 26, 2016:
Turner Marine, Dog River, Mobile, Alabama
Cloudy, low 63 high 72.
Southeast winds 8 to 13.
Light chop.
Captain’s Log: December 18 – December 25, 2016
A very Merry Christmas to all of our family and friends! We hope that you had a wonderful Holiday; we missed you!
The XO and I spent all day on Sunday, December 18th, and Monday, December 19th shuttered up inside s/v Perfect Love as both days were cold and rainy. I can report that all major leaks have been eliminated so, in spite of the heavy rain, we were high and dry.
Over two full months have passed since I last had the chance for a proper workout so, feeling a bit blobish and suffering from a touch of cabin fever, we decided to join a gym. Planet Fitness is about five miles away and, besides a full range of weight equipment, cardio machines and clean locker rooms, it boasts tanning beds and massage beds and offers unlimited guest privileges (for ‘black card’ members only). Shirley joined at the ‘black card’ level (her company will cover the monthly fee) and I am her ‘unlimited’ guest. We worked out on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, wrapping up each session with nice, long, hot showers in clean and spacious locker rooms (a nice change from the marina facilities).
On Wednesday, December 21st, I presented Shirley with her Christmas present and, as I had expected, she was thrilled with her shiny, new Saniflow Sanimarin model 35 up-flush commode. She reciprocated by presenting me with my very own, shiny, new Saniflow Sanimarin model 31c (compact) commode. The full-sized model 35 will be installed in the forward head.
After our gift exchange we gleefully retired the trusty old Lowes 5-gallon bucket, which had served us so well during our first four weeks aboard. The commodes are not yet plumbed but we did partially commission the model 35; on a nightly basis it is lined with a fresh plastic bag that is then ‘primed’ with two scoops of kitty litter. This configuration, although not the final solution, provides the XO with a much more comfortable seat while answering nature’s call.
Accomplishments for the week include, but are not limited to:
The delivery of the bottom paint
The installation of the thru-hulls, seacocks and tail-pieces for the forward and main heads
The above list, although seemingly short, is significant as it clears the way for the launch of s/v Perfect Love. By New Years Day the bottom will be sanded and painted and by January 5th she will, after eight years, four months, three weeks and six days, be back in the water!
On Wednesday evening we went to Callahan’s Irish Social Club with our friends Margot and Jerry from m/v Let It Be. Margot and Jerry discovered Callahan’s while searching for brew pubs on the Internet. What a great place! Callahan’s reminded us of our favorite dive bar and live blues venue, Mansion Hill, in Newport, KY. Wednesday nights at Callahan’s feature great live music; many local musicians can be spotted in the audience and, if moved by the spirit, perform cameos with the three-piece (bass, mandolin, acoustic guitar) head-liners. The music was terrific and the company was even better. To top off a wonderful evening, I actually met the personification of ‘me in 10 years’.
I can’t remember anything about Thursday (Wednesday night must have been even better than I originally thought). Shirley tells me that we had Margot and Jerry over for cocktails and a tour of s/v Perfect Love after which we went over to m/v Let It Be for a delicious soup and more conversation.
After about one week on the hard, having a few minor blisters repaired and new bottom paint applied, m/v Let It Be was picked up on Friday morning by the travel–lift and set gently back into the water. Margot and Jerry, anxious to embark upon the next leg of their Great Loop adventure, were at the fuel dock topping off their tanks by noon. They graciously invited us to join them for the cruise across the bay to Fairhope, Alabama, and, after arranging for one of the yard hands to pick us up in Fairhope the next morning, we quickly accepted.
With blue skies and calm seas we motored across the shallow bay to the Fairhope Municipal Pier where we tied up in the small, well-protected basin for the night. We walked into town and had a great meal at The Dragonfly. After the meal we strolled around town for a while, stopping at an ice cream parlor among other places, before heading back to the boat. Later that evening we had oysters-on-the-half-shell (Margot’s first) at Shux’s Oyster Bar. On Saturday morning we (the four of us) took a walk along a very scenic beach. Having a lengthy passage ahead of them, Margot and Jerry departed the Municipal Pier at 11:30, heading for the ICW. TJ, our driver, picked us up thirty minutes later and we were back at Turner Marine by 1:00pm.
Shirley and I had previously decided that our Christmas Eve activities would commence at approximately 6:00pm with Midnight Mass as the finale, so, after killing a few hours in the afternoon, we cleaned our respective acts up and were down the ladder and heading for the Jeep at the targeted time.
On our drive into town we chanced upon ‘Christmas Nights of Lights’, a drive-through, synchronized holiday lights and music display set up in the parking lot of Hank Aaron Stadium, the home of the local minor league baseball team. We took a chance, coughed up the $6.00/person entry fee and were blown away by the experience; it was over the top!
From there we headed downtown and ended up at a bar (name forgotten) on Dauphin Street. We sat at the bar, had drinks and a bang-bang shrimp appetizer while conversing with our new friend Jack, the bartender.
Jack, an expert on the Mobile Mardi Gras (the original, predating New Orleans), has been bartending at the same dive for 31 years. He enlightened, tutored and educated us on all things Mardi Gras-related. We talked about the procession schedules, the parade routes, Joe Cain, the Merry Widows, and on, and on. He presented Shirley with a fist-full of the traditional Mardi Gras beads (the official colors being purple, green and gold) without her having to ‘earn’ them. He suggested that we continue to stop by the bar, which we fully intend to do as it is likely that Jack, besides being a nice guy, will be our ticket to a front row seat for the 2017 celebration.
We left the bar having two hours to kill before the doors opened at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception. We parked the Jeep directly across the street from the front doors of the Basilica and I proceeded to take a short nap while Shirley browsed Facebook on her iPhone. At 10:45pm the doors opened and we walked in.
The Basilica is absolutely beautiful. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Mobile and boasts a choir and pipe organ second to none. Being an ex-alter boy schooled in the Latin tradition, I found the ceremony moving as it conjured up many pleasant memories of my youth. I even dredged up some of the Latin and did a few crude translations for Shirley, who was fascinated by the pomp and ceremony and had many questions. I was very pleasantly surprised to hear a bit of live Gregorian Chant during the mass.
There was one encounter that night in church that left both of us sad, reflective, curious and moved to compassion (which rarely happens to me). A gentleman, who looked to be in his mid-fifties, entered and sat in the pew directly in front of us. A bit later I noticed, and pointed out to Shirley, that he looked as if he were crying. Throughout mass he quietly cried, trying to hide his grief from those around him. We speculated that he had lost someone dear, and probably recently. Shirley has experienced such loss more than once but I have not; I have been very, very fortunate. I was captivated by this sad, lonely, suffering man; his poignant misery left a deep mark upon both of us.
Oddly, coincidentally, we experienced something very similar on Christmas Day while walking the beach on Dauphin Island. A woman, crying, her teenage daughter a step or two ahead of her, stood barefoot in the receding surf and tossed a handful of ashes to the wind and sea. A somber man followed ten yards behind, his hands cupped together as if holding water, or ashes. A tearful farewell to a lost loved one?
We slept in on Christmas morning. The day broke sunny and warm so, after a few boat chores, Shirley packed a terrific picnic lunch and we then headed to Dauphin Island. We spread a blanket on an abandoned stretch of sand and Shirley then proceeded to collect sea shells from which she constructed a sea-shell Christmas tree. We talked, laughed, ate salmon on crackers and drank bourbon and red wine. Although we dearly missed our family, it was a new and wonderful way to celebrate Christmas!
May your tomorrow bring fair winds and following seas!