In about 3 week we would have been on board for either 19 or 20 years. Which ever, it has been the best time of my life. Live my Dream, pretty much so. No dreams are ever perfect, but this was close. The work involved and the expense was more then expected. The places we have been and the people we have met have been beyond expectations. The people we met in the Turks and Caicos and traveled to the Windward with were among my favorite acquaintances. The time we were in Gulf Breeze after Hurricane Ivan were a perfect location with perfect people to get ready for a cruise.

Beside the people and the places, the learning experiences of getting a Boat ready for such and adventure and then caring it out was a challenge. The mate says that the skipper must be not only a sailor and navigator, but a mechanic, electrician, rigger, and every other type of trade ever invented. That is where the learning comes in. I have come back and know more then I would have dreamed. One thing, I have not learned to sail my boat as well as she could be sailed. I must admit that we motor sailed a lot more then I would have ever thought. A lot of this was for our own comfort and convenience. We should have gone slower and sailed more. The problem was to get to an anchorage by late afternoon and not leaving before the sun came up.

While still working, working on the boat was a distraction. I easily could be drug away from work to work on the boat. That was not good. But it was fun and the boat was ready. The time we got the boat was about the time my career started on a downward trend. The recruiting business was making major changes, which did I did not adjust to. I got into the Yacht restoration business. I was to limited in my capabilities which limited my income. The last was as a financial advisor. As I was trying to learn the business we had 3 major setbacks in the economy. That did not help. I never got to where I could develop new clients with sufficient wealth. God looked out for this dumb one. And he blessed me with a dream life. A great mate Mary and a great boat and home Nightwatch

Like I mentioned last week, this blog was based on getting a boat and going cruising. I guess we have been there and done that. Unless I get another boat, and I do not think that will happen, this blog is finished. On to the next chapter of our life.