Today's the Day

...to celebrate the year's passing and greet the new one. With all the turmoil and upset during the past year, I think survivors should be truly thankful. Let's hope that the new year is gentler and kinder to everyone. Our hearts go out to those who are suffering the effects of the recent Tsunami and of course our men and women in harm's way in Iraq. Likewise to those in poor health or on the horns of one or another dilemma our hearts go out to them as well.

Yesterday dawned bright and clear and a warming trend began which brought our temps up to around 70 degrees. Our tennis group got underway at 8 am and after that I spent the remainder of the day helping a friend launch his sailboat from it's place in dry dock. He found this old Cape Dory sail boat up in New England and had it shipped down here by truck; did a rehab job on it in dry-dock and yesterday was the big day. It took three of us and a whopping crane to get it into the water but the big job was getting the mast installed. The crane held the mast and the three of us worked to steady it , untangle the shrouds and stays and solve the puzzle of where the heck each one needed to be attached. All compounded by the rocking of the boat at the quaside ; we were temporarily moored directly behind a magnificant vessle under construction at the boat yard called California Pride...it will be a dinner cruiser on completion and will carry several hundred passengers for dining excursions, I understand to be berthed in LA or San Diego. It's over 100 feet long and has a 40 foot beam. We almost lost the mast when they started the engines of the big boat to do some testing or some such thing, as the prop's turbulance was considerable and unexpected.

Anyhow we got it rigged and away from the dock by 4 pm and Connie sailed it alone to his dock a few miles downstream, arriving a couple hours after dark...his wife blinking the dock lights so he could make out his mooring destination. Glad he's a good sailor as I felt one of us should have been with him but we needed to move the two vehicles and gear to his house. Anyhow all went well and the Cape Dory is secure in it's new Florida home with lots of work remaining on the topsides... and the helpers none the worse for wear but a bit grimy and hungry.

© 2004 David Agniel