It's possible you have noticed that we did, in fact, not get back on the boat Jan 15 as advertised.... Let me just catch you up, and welcome you into the Swirling Chaos that is OUR LIFE...
Had we known then what we know now, we would have kept on going down to Mobile, and left her there. This is what we call 'foreshadowing'... But since time travel is not yet an option, we went back to ATL as planned, and had a great Thanksgiving/Christmas with the kids (young adults).
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| My family is so YUMMY! |
We had built a sales web-site for the boat, and sent it out to some boater places. During our winter break Rick drove back to AL a couple of time to show the boat to people looking to start their loop in the spring. We even had one very serious prospect, but his wife wanted a different boat. That was OK - we really were hoping to finish the Loop in the spring, and give it to a boat broker on the East side of FL.
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| We got a giggle out of this picture from Europe, that was making the rounds in the boating community This is why everyone is so careful at the locks - just one big boi can break the system for weeks. See how he bumped the upper door a bit too hard?! People - this is ALSO FORESHADOWING.... |
So January came and we found a real estate agent and started working in earnest to get the house ready for sale. In these modern times the agent comes with a stager (who told me all the things that had to leave the house/be rearranged prior to showing) and a pre-inspection (which produced a 50 PAGE - I am not making that up - list of things for Rick to 'fix'). So it quickly became clear that getting back on the boat in Jan was not an option. In fact we felt happy to be around to hear about Will's challenges with working full time, and studying for the MCAT. And Rick was pleased to support him with great meals every day after work, and every night! Then we realized that it would be best to be around for the week when the house is shown (in today's world there is one week of marketing, one open house, and then competing bids - all in one week 🤞) - since we knew it would be IMPOSSIBLE for Will to keep the house in great shape for that week. When pigs fly, maybe... So we resolved to get back on the boat (if it didn't sell first) in mid-Feb and finish up the Loop, once the house was sold but prior to moving out.
Dear Reader - that is NOT. GOING. TO. HAPPEN. Because, of course not. Between our marina and Mobile Bay lie 2 locks that we need to get through. A week ago the first of these, Demopolis Lock, suffered a major break. As you know, America has an infrastructure problem. And the lock system, built in the 30s with a 50 year life span, is even lower on the priority list then roads and bridges. The sill inside the upper door of the lock fell apart. You can see in the pic below that the left hand part has collapsed. So this is like having someone drill a big hole right below your door. Even though you close the door, there is no way to stop the water coming in - and, therefore, no way to raise boats up and down. The Army Corps of Engineers is saying it’s a 30-90 day fix. So now we are having to be as flexible as Gumby... Friends of ours, also stuck in Demopolis, are going to hire a trailer to move their boat down to Mobile and put it back in the water there. But our boat is big enough that this would require an escort and special permits - the rough estimate is $5000. So that's not going to happen. We are going to focus on the house, and on William, and then we will see what is up with the Demopolis Lock. So that plate (finishing the Loop/selling the boat) can remain in the air while we deal with the ones closer to crashing into the ground!
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| The Army Corps, using 3 tugs and 6 barges, managed to drop emergency ‘Stoplog’ gates and stop the flow of water. You can see they are working through the night - there is a HUGE amount of pressure on from the companies with barges stacked up on either side of this lock. There just is no other easy way to get to Mobile. Don’t we know it… |
So - we intrepid explorers will have to wait to finish our Loop. And it may not happen at all. But that is OK. We are cheerful and present in the moment, and just waiting to see how else the universe wants to test us!!!
XO
