April 20, 2008

Back on Track
We’re back into the routine in Majuro. Had a couple days of pouring rain, which was good initially, as the tanks were dry. But after all the jugs are full, the rest is just a waste. Today the sun has come out, so spirits are rising and the dry-out is happening. It’s good to be back in internet access and BBC on the radio.
Ted’s job has dried up. The owners have put many thousands of dollars into this “toy” powerboat, and it will be many more thousands to finish it. Ted has thought from the beginning that it was a waste, and I guess the owners have come to the same conclusion. Ted and Doug still want to rent the shop space to do their own projects and maybe some paying ones, and it looks like that is a good possibility.
We’ve talked to Richard and Chris on Windswept and seen the boat. They are doing remarkably well. And the boat has very little damage. The living accommodations are intact. They lost one wind generator and one solar panel, but still have one of each left. Neither was hurt, and they did well with making good, concrete decisions at the height of their ordeal. Chris said she saw what the engineers did to get the engine going (bleed fuel lines and hand pump fuel from the tanks) and she realized that a year ago Richard would have been able to handle that with no problem, but the Alzheimers has taken hold and he just couldn’t problem-solve.
Richard wants to replace the mast and Ted has talked to him about building a Gougeon wing mast. Ted has the expertise to manage the project and under his supervision Richard could work with him. It would be by far the cheapest option to get the stick back up. The deck fitting pulled out, and that caused the mast to come down. They were both standing next to the roller furling jib, up forward, getting ready to set the sail, when all of a sudden it tore out of the deck and came down. As they were standing forward they were clear of it. It was crashing up and down on the cabin top and they managed to tie down the end, and it then broke. They cut it loose, so lost the top 2/3 and the jib, but saved the bottom of the mast with the winches and the main, as well as the boom. The rigging wire is gone, but they still have a good bit of hardware to work with. Looking at the remains sitting on their deck reminded us of our broken mast sitting on our deck in St Croix after hurricane Marilyn. They are both in good spirits and have the ability to look at the bright side.
I’m still unable to get work. Was at the hospital yesterday to get our prescriptions refilled, so stopped to see the Chief Nurse. She said that they would be hiring the new grads from the College of the Marshall Islands, and 2 Philippino nurses that they’ve been planning on for a long time. But there are 4 others besides myself looking for work, and there is no telling when that will happen. I wouldn’t expect it now for many months. So we’re going through a bit of our savings. But it is only 11 months till Ted starts getting social security, so we’re counting down!! Karen