thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving to you  all!

Just a quick post to say how thankful we are to have people in our lives who are curious about and support us in our adventures. Some days it's easy to forget how blessed we really are. We take so much for granted and complain about silly little things, which are clearly small potatoes compared to all the terrible things people have to contend with around the globe. We are grateful. Blessed. Full of thankfulness for all the gifts we've been given.

in for the winter.

This post is oh, about a month overdue. Apologies for that! Life has been hectic, shall we say?

At the end of last month, we took the trek back down to Larsen Marine to have Interlude pulled for the winter. Why did we go alllll the way back down to Waukegan to have the boat pulled when there is a lovely facility for boat storage just across the marina, you ask? Well, Interlude is having some work done over the winter. When we had the survey done, the major issues were major, yes, but nothing to keep us from enjoying her for the remainder of the season, and after all the waiting we'd done to finally own her, we weren't exactly happy at the prospect of having to wait 6-7 months to get a feel for her. As part of our storage agreement, Larsen would pull her out, do all the engine winterizing and then have her repairs done, hopefully by year end, at which point, we'd be able to begin doing our little projects on her. Here's hoping January, February, and March are mild months!

Josh's mom and dad drove up on Thursday night so we could be aboard her bright and early Friday. We left a car at Larsen and one at the marina in Racine and sailed, or rather motored down all day Friday. I was down with some seasickness, which is the second time it's happened on Interlude and I think the trick is to have a full to the brim stomach. I'll do more experimenting in the spring, otherwise it could be an uncomfortable life :( We got to Larsen around 5:30 and docked with the greatest of ease (a skill we are working on. 36' is a whole lotta boat to dock!). Josh's mom and I drove up to Racine to get the second car while Josh and his dad unloaded the boat, took down the sails and got her a little closer to ready for winterizing. According to Paul, Josh's dad, taking down the sails was a pain, so we've got that to look forward to when we launch in the spring.

Saturday, Josh and his dad went back and winterized some of the systems. They drained the water tank and filled it with "pink stuff", basically antifreeze, emptied the sump and filled it with more pink stuff and did more work to get the other systems prepared for the cold. I should have been there, but Josh said it was tight quarters with the two of them, let alone four of us. And hopefully we'll only have to do the winterizing bit one more winter after this!

So Interlude is by now out of the water, her bottom cleaned, engine flushed, and she's probably in the shop. We haven't had any updates on the progress but once we do, we'll go up and check on the workmanship of the repairs and start planning our projects. 

another state, another lake.

We're just sitting here at the laundromat, washing clothes (our trip has been extended a few days and undergarments are waning in availability of cleanliness), watching snow lazily float down, reflecting on the last week. It's been full of adventures, to be sure. Turns out Minnesota is a beautiful state FULL to the brim with culture, bustling cities and minuscule hamlets, amiable locals always ready with a smile, and miles and miles of pristine wilderness, complete with thousands more than 10,000 lakes.

I tagged along with Josh to northern Minnesota for a site visit in Cohasset. We are staying in Grand Rapids at one of those places with the giant waterslides (!) about an hour and a half drive from both Duluth and Bemidji. It's a smallish town with a Walmart, Target and a few chains but also lots of rich history. For instance, THE Judy Garland was born here (I toured her childhood home for a mere $8), taconite was mined here, and at the turn of the century, logging was a boon industry. Oh, and did I mention the photo "Grace" was taken by a photographer here in town? See here for full story: http://www.gracebyenstrom.com/history.html

The point is that we love adventure. Everywhere we travel, fun is had. Small town, big city, wild wild wilderness of northern Minnesota, you will find us in the throes of discovering excitement and things of interest around every corner. This is what makes me certain we'll thrive in a life as gypsies afloat. We truly believe that life. is. beautiful.

wish list part 1: the galley

There are PLENTY of things we will need for Interlude before we undertake any adventures in the spring/summer and luckily for us, Christmas will be here before we know it (INSANE! Seriously cannot believe it. Le sigh).

Josh is making a list and checking it twice by marking up a copy of Defender's catalog and I am beginning my list of "wants" as well, based on preference, and lots and lots of blog reading. The list will be divided into a few parts. Since I'm the kitchen expert, let's start there:

Dish rack (this one will require some searching, as the space for EVERYTHING in our galley is extremely precious so probably something foldable and stowable.)
Pressure cooker—As of now, I have no idea how to use one. I'm accepting applications for a tutor on how to get the most out of it.
Pots, pans and skillets—I am looking into various options for this. Some companies sell ones with removable handles that are nesting, which I like. However, the quality and sizes of pots and pans don't really mesh up with what I want. I'm also torn about whether or not I want nonstick (some blogs say it cuts down on water usage for cleanup). 
Baking pans—Since the oven is only 13x13x9, I will be limited. I think they're quarter sheet jelly roll pans (9 or 10x13) and they will all have lips to prevent dripping, also probably nonstick. I'm also going to have at least 2 casserole dishes (a 9x13 and either a square 8x8 or a 8x10?) and in my dreams, a pizza stone. That might be a no go, since I've only seen one.
Colander—I made the mistake of asking for some flat folding cookware including measuring cups and a colander for Christmas last year. While they are fine, they are made of silicone which holds onto greasy stuff (veggie oil, etc.) and are hard to get totally clean AND they don't really save me any space. Sad trumpet.
Microplane—So many uses and I've never had one!
Mixing spoons—Electricity is a hot commodity on a boat, so most likely I will not be taking a blender, mixer, or food processor, so that means I will be getting some kick ass arm muscles from whipping egg yolks and beating batter. It also means I need to: A) get used to beating batter by hand and B) find some spoons and spatulas that will make my baking life as simple as possible.
Cutting board—Something durable with a handle and ridge around the edge to prevent spillage.
Mixing bowls—Nonslip bottom, nesting and possibly a handle. Again, this is part of the "elbow grease" part of baking and I will probably buy a few pretty soon to see which style suits me best.
Knives—Still looking around. Definitely need a filleting knife, maybe a boning knife (and the accompanying knowledge of how to fillet a fish and make sushi!), and probably a cleaver. I have a few that I really like by Victorinox so I will probably start there. This also means we'll need a good non-electric sharpener.
Coffee maker—We already have begun to do some research on this. We'll probably end up with an Aeropress or a Bialetti stovetop espresso maker.
Thermal grocery bags—for all the cold shopping in the Caribbean heat!

I'm sure there are a ton of things I haven't even thought of, but it seems like a good start. 

christened!

Over Josh's birthday weekend, we hosted some of our favorite people for the first time on Interlude. We had a birthday celebration luncheon, an afternoon sail, and once we brought her back to the dock, we even christened the boat!

Here are a few videos and photos from those festivities :) Enjoy!

big meals, tiny kitchen.

This is what I imagine cooking in a studio apartment in Manhattan halved is like. Cooking on a 36 foot sailboat is no joke. If you like canned tuna and cold pop tarts for every meal, maybe this is a non-issue but for big eaters--fans of food, if you will--it's a Macguyver sized pickle to be in. Last weekend was a trial run for next summer, when we plan to live on the boat for the season and it was interesting.

I did a fair bit of prep work in my home kitchen for the occasion--cooked a ham, precooked the ground beef for lasagna, made a mashed potato casserole, tossed together chicken salad, cooked and seasoned chicken for tacos, and bought a few pre-made things to snack on. 

I also hadn't thought about the steps involved with firing up the whole shebang. First you go on deck to open the propane tank valve, then you flip a switch on the electrical panel, then you flip a switch near the stove, then you turn a knob, push it in, and turn another knob to spark the pilot light. Boom. Your burner should be going. You have to hold the knob pushed in for 15 seconds so the flame is sustained before you can switch it to your cooking temp. If you want to fire up the oven, you have to keep the stove burner on for a few minutes then physically light the pilot light on the oven. I was a little worried I was going to have a fireball on my hands, but once we figured out exactly what we were doing, it fired up in no time. 

The first oven adventure was to cook a lasagna and garlic bread. The oven is only 13"x13"x9". It'll fit a 9"x13" flat pan or casserole dish. That's about it. It looks as if there was another rack in there at one time, so I may do some searching to see if I can get another one and double my cooking capacity. It also has a broiler but is very, very, small. I had to shift the bread every few minutes to keep the tops from getting burned. I do have to say that the lasagna was delicious. 

Saturday morning was the first foray into breakfast cooking, and unfortunately, I forgot a skillet. The eggs and the sausage both got cooked in a little saucepan. They weren't pretty, but tasted just fine. The hash browns were perfect!

The rest of the weekend was more cooking on the surface and in the oven. I didn't take too many photos, and what I did take, were terrible, as you can see :( The moral though, is that everything tasted fine. I might not ever cook a souffle in the oven, or make hollandaise sauce on the stove top, but I think that we'll get along just fine once I am able to have the kitchen fully stocked and figure out how to best utilize the limited prep spaces and awkwardly shaped fridge. 

elbow room.

Living on a boat is like living in a doll house. Every single space is small and even if you're only 5'5 like me, you feel like Andre the Giant—knocking your head when you climb out of bed is commonplace, the shower causes more tingling from hitting your funny bone than a comedian, the library is teeny tiny, and you'll miss the kitchen if you blink. It will provide a challenge.

Two people, on a boat our size can probably handle it. Interlude has a decent beam (which means her width from port to starboard) but after maneuvering around each other last weekend and the promise of plenty of visitors in the future makes me a little nervous. Maybe I should learn to be a contortionist and lose a few pounds or invest in a helmet to avoid concussions (seriously, last weekend, I knocked my head no less than 6 times)?