As 2014 Christmas Approaches

Our granddaughter Savannah has been singing "all I want for Christmas is my two front teeth" since  December 1st.

Not an easy picture to identify those missing  teeth, but they're her upper incisors right in the front.









Our Pixie has been so lovable lately curling up in both Sue's lap and on me. 

If you look closely, you can see her "skin only area" on the right front of her face.

Many times a day we find ourselves checking on Pixie to see if she is sleeping or wants to "go outside".  She appears to be saying that she doesn't want any additional treatment and to be perfectly honest: "just keep my water dish filled and make sure I have some snackies before I go to bed."


I'm sure many of you have tried to reply below in the comments section, but we know that it isn't easy. 

In fact, I have attempted to leave messages for myself and found them discarded or lost so if you would like you could email either Sue or myself at:  sue@englers.com or don@englers.com and we'll respond to you.

Pixie Update

It was haircut time for the Pix 'cause Mommy was saying she is beginning to look like a slight sheep. Well I did agree and neither of us remembered Pixie's last haircut.

 Usually I like to trim her on the side porch so we can sweep her ample hair to the ground and the birds love to pick it up for their nests. But with cooler weather and rain, I brought a piece of plywood into the downstairs bathroom to help complete the chore.

I love the #7 blade with Pix

Doesn't she look happier!

Our little girl has lived through the frightful melanoma scare that begun this past summer; She is living proof that GOD answers prayers! 

Finishing the Winter Cover



The last step of adding grommets

We are so fortunate that our boat is placed very close to one of the  bright mercury vapor security lights of the marina.  It has been so helpful for working on the outside of the boat, especially since darkness reaches us at about 4:40 now.


View forward from the seahood

After all is installed and tight, Sue is cleaning up

View from amidships

All tight and ready for the snow storm coming on Wednesday

One of the twenty grommets in the bow cover

The charm of working with this lighter weight fabric is that it stretches and is easily sewed, however I still must reinforce the grommets with at least 6 thicknesses of fabric.

Tying down the bow cover




 





Removal of Feathering Max Prop for Reconditioning

This past summer both Sue and I have noticed more vibration coming from our drivetrain. On many dives to the prop for cleaning, I began wiggling both blades and felt there was more clearance in the blade than necessary.

I started to wonder when the last time this prop has been reconditioned (not when we owned the boat). I even dove on another sailboat that had a Max Prop to feel its clearance and it wasn’t quite as loose as mine.

Soon after Jubilee was brought on land, ten days ago, I began walking around the yard testing clearances of other boat’s props.  I determined that Jubilee seemed looser and needed reconditioning.

Easy removal - cotter pins and socket head screws

I found more support from Jerome of PYI, dealer of Max Prop on the west coast. He found that this prop was installed on Jubilee in Rochester, NY in 1988.  That is 26 years of questionable use; except for the trip to the Bahamas and all the motoring we did in the ICW.  Jerome also added that the split pin through the locking nut was done in the late 80s and since the middle 90s, a double pin is used to retain the gear mechanism.

I also found that this prop was installed improperly in 1988.  This is an 18” prop with 16 degrees of pitch, running in forward, turning counterclockwise, was set for reverse.  However this didn’t matter since the pitch is the same in forward or reverse.  This prop was usually good for 7.5 knots in flat water, at 2500 rpm, and we usually sail much more than we motor.

I'll be sending everything to PYI next week in hopes that their rebuild will give us a smoother ride in the spring.


I had to use a wheel puller to break the taper on the shaft

Preparing to Close-in the Bow Area

Since the weather is becoming a little nippy, we needed to expedite the bow cover. We needed a support, so I grabbed the spinnaker pole which resides in the top of our garage.


loaded for travel



red flag attached!





 

main support for bow cover

our camera room is large enough to layout
the entire cover and pin together

We've taken the measurements and cut the cover material to size, now to sew it and try the first fitting!  Don seems to enjoy his time behind the sewing machine and how intricate he can made the cover fit.

 

doesn't he look happy?

 

Reporting about Pixie:

On Thursday, 13th November, Pixie had her final exam after her radiation treatments and she is doing fabulously!

I captured an image while both Sue and she were sleeping together on the loveseat in the living room.  If you look closely
you can see the affected area on her right side is clean of any scabs or skin infections.  We're both happy for her total recovery and she acts so much younger now.

 



Covered and Prepared for the Snowy Winter

On November 5th we covered Jubilee's cabin area and cockpit.  We brought the dinghy home to give

us room to prepare to extend the winter cover to the bow section, since we haven't sewed it yet. We dropped the boom to the deck for safety reasons and moved all of the halyards within the mast. All work inside can now proceed with the cover on and the heaters connected.

Inside the cover



Ready for the harsh winter weather

Pixie & Mom waitin' for me to leave

Out of the Water on Election Day!

Jubilee was lifted out at 9:30, washed her bottom and placed in the cradle before 10:30 AM. 

http://www.delawarecitymarina.biz/


Lifted high above the water

Washing the hull

pretty clean