It is 2245 hours and Bear has been asleep for a while. I am so thankful that she is recovering from the back thing. By now, I am starting to sound like a commercial for Key West. Really, everyone should visit this place before leaving the planet. Tonight is the first time since we arrived here that I have stayed up this late. We stayed aboard most of the day and I used the time to start the weather checks (dang, Texas is getting hammered). Tonight, even late in the evening, dinks are transiting to and from the mooring/anchorage field. The sights and sound are wonderful, except for the boat about three slips away that has a bad a/c pump. It is really rare that motor vessels (those without sails) will acknowledge we "blow boaters". Tonight, whilst delivering trash to the can at the end of the dock, someone said "goodnight sailor". Sorta touches my soul. Tonight marks a milestone in our quest for that which we may no be able to do much longer (years). This is part of life's cruise with Bear which we have dreamed of for so long. It is the absolute best French fries and gravy we can have (Merkelites know what that means).
We saw a sailing ship (that's right, a ship meaning that she could land a boat on her deck) leave harbor today. The crew was chanting sea songs as they hoisted sail the hard way- no winches (or wenches) to a sea song. One, two, three and heave ho. She is magnificent and she left harbor the right way. Fair winds.
Tomorrow is the day when we start monitoring the weather and planning the next passage. Mind you, said passage will be short and to a protected anchorage. We are rested and ready to do some anchoring behind some key with other sail boats. Why Knot has not tugged at the dock lines until today. Methinks she is giving us a chance to let Bear fully recover. Funny how she knows when that is important to the crew. She is like a puppy, as mentioned earlier referring to my A.D.D. and she lets us know that it is time to go.
During our stay, which was admittedly too long, we saw old friends, repaired ship and became tourists. How bad is that? Soon, we will be making our way north toward Safari, our friends from Port A and a rendezvous with my old Commanding Officer from Vietnam in Jacksonville. That is a meeting we never thought possible some 38 years ago in a bunker in Fire Base Bastogne, Vietnam, the Republic Of.
Spc, Brown, of the 101st died yesterday in Afghanistan. As always, we toast those who gave it all and to those young lions still on watch. Sleep tight for they are on duty.
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