Making sawdust

So there's not a ton of work I can do aboard Cupcake when the weather is cold. Instead, I've been picking away at little projects I can take care of in my workshop. 

It may seem like a small thing, but I finished a little spice rack for the galley. It holds 10 jars, is made of teak and cedar, and it gets the job done. Side note: the cedar is from a tree I cut and milled myself. Very Little House on the Prairie.

The other little project I wrapped up over the weekend is an innovation of which I am very proud. For years I've wanted a way to have a vise aboard the boat. But I didn't want to take up a whole lot of space with one and I didn't know how to mount it so I could have a stable platform and still move the vise around when I need. 

This year I realized that a traditional bench vise was big and cumbersome, even a small one. So I got this drill press vise and mounted it on the underside of a storage bin lid. This lid is the one that covers the space where the refrigerator compressor lives, so the space taken up by the vise is otherwise wasted. I'm hopeful the trip will go so smoothly there won't be a need to use the vise, but now I've got one if it's needed.

(The extra holes in the lid could be seen as a measuring error. I choose to think of them as a different mounting option.)

Bleak

On Sunday Ellen and I dropped the new fabric for the cushions off at the prison. Moss wasn't available but wanted to see what the prison looked like. You can see from the picture that there is not much in this world more bleak and dreary than a prison in the winter.

In Maine, February lasts for at least two months: February and so-called March. So settle down, lay in a good supply of firewood, and spend this time studying the navigation charts because there is not much that can be done on the boat. (WeatherUnderground is predicting 10-12 inches of snow on Wednesday.)

Moss wants to talk about choosing the fabric so I'll leave that to her. What I will mention is that our first boat (Cupcake) was a 1960s Pearson and its upholstery was period-correct vinyl. Our second cruising boat was a 1970s Tartan (Cupcake) and it had period-correct brown plaid. This Cupcake had period-correct blue velour but we are shaking things up with 1990s-style ultra suede. ULTRA suede. Like suede, but much more ultra.

Courtesy flag

We are starting to collect gear for the trip. Here's Moss with the Bahamas courtesy flag. It's nice to think that a year from now the flag will be flapping in the tradewinds. Today it sits in a box. The weather is cold and snowy here.

Prison bound

Yesterday Ellen and I got all the cushions from Cupcake's cabin off the boat and into the truck. This morning we delivered them to the Maine Correctional Center in Windham for new upholstery and foam. The cushions were original to the boat (that's 32 years of getting sat upon by sailors) and have lost some of their bounce. Also, they all have buttons sewn into them and those buttons catch on bathing suits. It's never a good time to have your bathing suit yanked by an old button. 

So we will have fresh cushions in a month or so. It's interesting to consider that the upholstery is being done by people with almost no freedom to go where they like. But the cushions (as well as the boat and crew) are privileged to roam wherever in the world we desire.

First post

Ok, in the interest of getting something started on the website and blog, I'll jump right in. The first picture is from 2016 of the Cupcake Cup (annual dinghy race we host in Freeport). Gratuitous boat shot.

The second picture is the mattress for the v-berth. It's got the mattress pad that Ellen tailored to fit the triangle. She also sewed up a fitted comforter, two sets of cotton sheets and a third in flannel. The flannel isn't exactly what we need for the Bahamas, but it will be a treat on chilly summer nights in Maine.