Stuck in Paradise

I know we should have left Hawaii by now, but we are still here.

The good new is - we like it.  We are surrounded by wonderful friends and amazing scenery.  Can't complain!

Practicing for Whack-A-Mole

Plus, there has been a lot going on - and we hate to miss any fun stuff!

Doug finally quit work - yeah.

It was great to have a paycheck and all of those discounts, but it was sure hard to get our projects done.

Doug's re-retirement party

Doug's gang at West Marine threw a get together at the Aloha Beer company.

As you can see, his new buddies are very young. Ha!

We had a great time, plus treated ourselves to one more night in a luxurious hotel with a tub - ah...

The Last Bath...

It is going to be a very long time before I get to soak in a tub!

Not complaining, just saying.

Beautiful shot of the surf in Waikiki

So, we enjoyed ourselves in the big city one more time. 

More good news - we are actually getting our projects done:

The Chain Gang

Our new seat covers

• Got our new chain - just need to put it on the boat
• Finished re-bedding ports - finally
• New bilge switch installed
• Sewing projects completed (thanks to Tiana)
• Fuel tank retrofit complete
• Engine has been checked and blessed
• Windless is being rebuilt
• Varnishing in progress
• Craigslist is trying to sell our excess stuff
• And lots more going on

BBQ at the marina

On top of all of the projects, we are having a great time with our dock buddies.  There are several of us that are leaving Hawaii, so we are all busy working on projects, sharing, and celebrating.

Doug relaxing...

Another beautiful sunset

Mai Tai walks, Marina BBQs, Bon Voyage potlucks, and lots of time spent on the dock just socializing.

No wonder we haven't left yet, we are way too comfortable!

Don't get me wrong, we still have stuff to do.  But we think we will get out of here before the end of May.

Good thing or I am going to have to go provisioning again.  Oh my!

No Wind!

Egg delivery

It is very strange - our NE trade winds always blow - sometimes too much.  But not for the last month! 

We either have zero wind or it is blowing out of the west.

Both are bad for us, so we aren't going anywhere until the trade winds come back.

Grocery receipt - wow

Which is good, because we aren't ready to go.

We are still working on projects and provisioning - of course. 

Rebedding another port

But, we are getting closer:

• order/buy list is down to 1 page
• only 2 ports left to rebed
• 1 locker left to inventory
• provisioning 75% complete
• stashing and stowing 50% complete
• need to do more work up the mast
• final check on the rigging
• that kind of stuff!

Plus, we need to get out of the marina and do a final calibration on our new autopilot and check out our new anchor system, plus run our watermaker.

We want to make sure everything is working perfectly before heading south.  Next stop is 10 days away!

Celebrating Kara and Aaron's upcoming wedding

Of course, we still are making time to spend with our dock buddies - we are going to miss them.

We aren't going to be here for Kara and Aaron's wedding celebration, but wanted to throw a party in their honor.  Lots of fun and food was had by all!

Hope their lives are happy and full always.  And we are looking forward to meeting Aaron one of these days...

Awwwww

The latest weather forecast shows the trade winds are coming back Wednesday - yeah!

So, guess we will stay for the big Marina party on Saturday and start looking for a weather window.

We better get busy!

PS:  A few provisioning tips:

• The best place to provision for non-Costco size stuff:  Don Quixote.  It caters to the Japanese, but they have lots of stuff at great prices. 
• Non-refrigerated eggs are very difficult to get in the States.  We were fortunate that Kalei Eggs made an exception and sold us 120 of them - score.
• Don't buy too much. Of course, I am definitely not following my own advise!