What an amazing warm march with lots of cherry blossoms and good times. Karen and Rob are such good mates…sailing zen to to the max.
The Waters of March
All posts by Uffdah!
Winter is for Boat Work
And this winter we got lots done. Here Karen is removing the old crumbling flotation from the 1977 Melges M20 that our friend Eric Hall converted to an I20. That styrofoam looks like it might be 30 years old! Karen had to crawl below deck to pull out the yukky stuff. And she went below again to install the newstuff…very brave!
Stew spent his time on windward sheeting cars for both I20s. Those sure work nice when dropping the traveler in a puff. Stay tuned for a shot of the new traveler support Stew bedded across the Melges cockpit. Nice!
The big unexpected job was late March and early April when a sidestay broke on Whistlebritches leaving us without a mast in the middle of the Potomac. New gooseneck, shrouds and a different mast hinge were all installed. The boom vang should work better with this new configuration.
Aggie Was Here!
Our nutty Aggie departed this life on Thursday January 12, 2012. She apparently died of a stroke at home on the settle where she slept. Aggie was a special girl who always seemed to leave an “impression” on those who knew her. If you would like to add a comment below, we will treasure it as we attempt to collect our memories of this sweet dog. We want to extend a special “thank you” to Angie and Mary of Capitol Critter Sitters, who found Aggie’s body and are always so incredibly thoughtful and kind. For that matter, we want to say “Thank You” to everyone who attempted to understand and comfort this curious little beast during her 11 years with us.
Much love, Karen and Stew
Goodbye Mike
We are very sorry to say that Mike (aka Miguel Lopez) died at home, Tuesday, Dec. 6. Our buddy was 11 years old, going on 12. He had been diagnosed with cancer in September and hung on for more than two months with his usual good humor and big ol’ smile. We always felt he was just on loan to us. So it helps a bit to think someone else might be enjoying this angel now.
In lieu of flowers or a card, we would love if you shared a “Mike memory” here on this page, in the comment box below the photos… or on any of the picture pages you can open by clicking on the thumbnails below. Thank you and much love, Stew, Karen and Aggie.
Kite Aerial Photography
The camera is suspended from the line, which is attached to the kite, creating a bit of a shock absorber. A battery powered servo rotates the camera rig every 30 seconds and snaps a picture. Winds can blow the camera around, so we use a fast shutter of at least 1/400 second. It takes about 12 mph of wind to lift the rig. On this day, we had 15-20 mph and the kite shot up like an elevator with almost no coaxing. The view is of the Congressional Cemetery on Capitol Hill. It is a 35-acre burial ground with about 55,000 “residents.” The river is the Anacostia, a tributary of the mighty Potomac. Big thanks to kite wrangler Rasheed Willis for his exceptional work on this project.
