Surreal Sights

I'm a bit overwhelmed by all this new technology. Today is our first day of reliable Internet in over 2 years! Wow! Unlimited internet, fast enough to stream Netflix and its all our own. Amazing. Those of you out there who have fast internet connections- count your lucky stars- some of us have gone without for a while- and its hard getting along in the world today without the Net. And what a wonder a fast internet connection is! This hopefully explains our spotty posting situation a bit. To add to the surreal nature of having the internet at my fingertips- Mother Nature has provided an otherworldly backdrop in the hubbabaloo coming up the coast partly due to short lived Tropical Storm Nicole. Here in Baltimore we have gotten several inches of rain in a short period of time, which, coupled with strong winds has brought the water above the docks.

It never fails to amaze me- that strange mindspace that takes hold when Mother Nature brings water over the docks. Last time Justin and I were in a flood, when the storm surge from Hurricane Isobel swamped downtown Annapolis, we ran out and purchased a blow up raft and paddled around downtown. It was a wonderfully surreal experience shared by hundreds of people, as Annapolitans put aside their aloof nature to frolic in the rising waters downtown. One can't help but be pulled by the otherworldly nature of flooding. Suddenly I'm transported back to my days wading in any body of water I can find and I can't help myself but to slosh down D dock in search of adventure.

Of course I wasn't alone.... Natural 'disasters' have a way of bringing out the child in all of us!

Justin sloshing down D Dock.

There really is a dock under there! Its about 10 inches underwater at this point- nearly impossible to see the dock due to low turbidity.

Earlier in the day, while I was away at work, Justin came home to 20-30 mph winds, high waves, and lots of trash.

See the large wave rolling along the bottom of the boat? We've not seen waves that big since we moved in over a year ago.

Here you can see a wave breaking over the dock. All the trash was deposited after it was initially swamped at around noon.

Portrait of 'Freedom' with Trash, circa 3pm.

From about 3:30 to 7:30 the water level remained constant at about an inch below the docks out on E-pier where we live. Since around 8pm its been raining, and last check at about 9:45pm the water has swamped the docks and is rising. High tide is at 12:48am- we've got about 3 hours to go- thus begins the waiting game. There's no telling how much the water will rise- too many factors: possible high wind, possible no wind, waterflow from all the rain we are currently receiving, and high tide itself. Too many variables- now's the waiting game. When the water rises- you need to be awake to ensure you are letting out your lines to keep up with the rising waters- otherwise your lines will do their job a little too well- holding your boat fast to the dock as the water rises and letting water flow into thru hulls that were never made to be below the waterline. Even a rise of 1-2 feet can be the end of a neglected boat. Wait we shall- all nighters like this only come around every few years- and thus far the excitement has kept me awake.

Viaje Del Sueno- Dream Trip

The night before last we went to wish two of our friends: Karla and Brian, Bon Voyage, as they prepare to leave on their adventure, a five month wandering around South America! (You can check out their adventure on their blog). Reading over their inaugural musings naturally led me to muse a bit about our adventure- Pala. Way back in November, when we coined the name for our blog- "On the Adventure," we knew this was indeed an adventure we had embarked upon!

Ah! Dreams! We understand the ineffable pull of the adventure. We too are called to a different kind of life- since 2008 we have been shaping a turtle shell meant to follow us across our wanderings- first by sea, and then, perhaps... if the time comes, by land. We are in the middle part of the preparation- putting finishing touches on the shell and hardcore debt paying begins in the next month- as we hunker down and watch the totals fall towards freedom- we hope in 5 years- when we are 32- we will shove off into the blue expanse- and head south, toward the equator- to begin our wanderings. Until then, we will continue to build the knowledge we need to explore the watery world, and hone the discipline necessary to bring about the nest egg necessary to enjoy it! With much love, we wish our friends Karla and Brian the best of experiences and happiness on their adventure- may it be all that you've hoped for and more than you ever imagined it could be!


Stay tuned to the Adventure as we begin a retrospective of before and after photos, bringing all up to speed on our last year and half of reshaping Pala. We begin this project in preparation for our "work in progress" party this spring! (Too soon for a boat-warming! Though, am I fooling myself if I say- perhaps next spring we'll be warming?)

Snow Daze

This is the first post I ever wrote- but, as luck would have it, it got saved as a draft, not posted. So, here's a blast from the past- Circa December 22, 2009- Three months ago today- to start out our blog!


You know, it seems to me that a perfect Christmas Card photo opp always happens after you have already made and sent out your cards.


What a way to start our blog-I just love this picture!



As you can see in the pic, Justin and I have a festive tiny Christmas Tree, which has garnered lots of compliments since we put it up last week. Thanks to Dad, we found a cute little cedar that didn't seem to mind donating its top to our cause. This is the boat after we cleared it off the first time.