We lived on a 37' Tartan Blackwatch...and she's beautiful; we love her; have called her home for 3 years; and, if I have my way, are keeping her. However, she's a open ocean racer that had a table added. Needless to say (at least to sailboat fanatics) we slept in the v-berth. The only other "beds/berths" are a cushion that my 5'2" mom almost fit on when she visited also affectionately known as the bench around the table, and a pull-out that is so bad only one friend has dared to use it (think storage area for clothes baskets). There are no "rooms/cabins," no privacy and no more than 4' of floor in one direction for a baby to learn to crawl on. A month away from my due date, we decided to shop for a new boat.
With the current economy, a house sounded like a good idea. It's the right time to buy, right? Well, it turns out that housing is only depressed 20% maximum, if you can find what you want at the price you want, etc. Yacht brokers and surveyors are automatically taking 30% off the BUC (think Kelley Blue Book for boats). So, at a value ratio, we realized that this may be our one chance before our retirement to get the yacht of our dreams. This put us in a bit of a quandry though...what to do with kidlet if he showed up before we found It. (read the next post...)
Our first day out hunting led us to the yacht broker that I will refer everyone to for the rest of my life. He is an affiable grey-haired gentleman that believes in old-school honesty and matching an owner with a boat, not just trying to sell a commission (conatct me for contact info). At first he showed us a few larger yachts that we were interested in, but didn't like once on-board caused by our misperceptions of what we truly wanted. Then we met our new home...she's a Shannon 50. For those not acquainted with sailboats, or boating in general, this is one of those yachts that you envy, not own. They are all custom made, cost a fortune, and are worth every penny and then some. She was professionally maintained for the past 22 years by one man for a couple who cruised on her and have now "retired" again.
A month of banks and paperwork and hand-wringing later, she was ours for the price of a house mortgage. It is worth it.
Now that you know the particulars of our situation, the following adventures will be drafted by Poseidon's life.
9.7.09
The First 48 Hours...(07.07.09 - 09.07.09)
It doesn't matter where you live; what you have prepared for...as a matter of fact nothing matters other than sleep, diapers and feedings. The paperwork was not completed, so we were still on the 37' boat, and doing just fine. A shaped foam pillow sat next to the cat's bed in our v-berth was the perfect size for an 8#, 21" baby boy. Who would have guessed?
(As you can tell I am catching up my posts from notes, so should be up to date soon!)
(As you can tell I am catching up my posts from notes, so should be up to date soon!)
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