JAN CLIMBS
THE MAST
Isle of Venice,
Ft. Lauderdale
Kito knocked on Shibumi's hull and said that his dad would like me to help him raise mom to the top of Super Star's mast. I had been watching the sky all morning. It was gray and windy. Not a wonderful day for a mast climb, but John needed some critical measurements from aloft so he could order standing rigging before they departed for the Bahamas.

John handles Jan's safety line as I hoist her aloft with SuperStar's windlass. Jill was on the dock with the camera.

Despite the wind, Jan went easily to the top, made the measurements and fixed a sticking windvane.

THE PAST FEW DAYS
The past two days have been quiet. We took several walks to the beach, which is just across the Intra-Coastal Waterway, eight blocks away. Things are starting to get lively down near the beach. College spring breakers are in town. Many of them wearing Mari Gras beads and gyrating to the loud music streaming from numerous bars along HWY A1A.

After dinner each night we have either sat around the pool or in the cockpit of the Sailing Vessel SuperStar, drinking wine, talking sailing and telling tall tales.

John, the captain of SuperStar, is quite a story teller. Some of his tales, I'm sure will wind up in this web-site some day.

As I type this Jill is preparing a dish to take to a "pot luck" all the boater's are having on the docks... assuming it stops raining.

On Monday, Rybovich Spencer sent a technican from West Palm Beach to put the "finishing touches" on our oil leak saga. We don't know how successful this attempt is because we will not have Shibumi's diesel under a load for a couple of weeks.

We have tentatively decided to stay along the Isle of Venice for two weeks to get our autopilot replaced... another "find" at the Miami Boatshow. Life would have been much easier traveling down the ICW with a functioning autopilot... so hello VISA. Life should be more pleasant going north... whenever we do.

But everything is tentative in the cruising community. If the weather looks too good and the wait seems too long we will reshedule the installation and head south to Boot Key and Marathon where Jill wants to get our refrigeration refurished... the Miami Boatshow strikes again.

Tuesday we bought new lines for our new and old fenders and fitted them to Shibumi using the FenderGrips we found at (dare I say it) the Miami Boatshow. I also wired new speakers for the stereo in the main salon.

Today, Jill hung some neat little storage hammocks in the forward cabin. That will help get some soft goods out of the way in the main salon. The rain we are getting today is helping to keep Shibumi's deck clean. I have had to wash it every other day because it is so easy to track dirt and grime on board from the gardens surrounding the docks.