(Semi-)New Blog Links on our Sidebar

A while ago we added links to our blog sidebar that will take you to a few more blogs owned and operated by some new friends.  Each of these friends is unique and interesting.  I’ve mentioned before that time cruising is like the time spent at overnight camp where a day is like a week and a week like a month.  This is unavoidable since you essentially live together and see each other every single day.  You borrow onions from each other, you help a friend heal from a fall, you sight-see together, you eat together, or you just chit chat as they pass you on the dock or in the yacht club. Here’s a bit about some of them:

Andiamo III:  While there are four in the Andiamo crew, we don’t know Gene very well as he’s been back in the States working as a helicopter pilot for most of our time here.  But the coolest thing is that Tami is also a helicopter pilot.  If she wasn’t so incredibly nice and positive and chipper all the time, she’d be totally intimidating.  She’s one of those ridiculously capable women – she does the pink jobs (a great cook, etc) but also the blue jobs (changing propane tanks and fixing the heads as examples) since Gene is gone so much. AND she runs the La Cruz Kids Club out of the goodness of her heart.  She and Gene have both served in the Armed Forces too.  And she does push-ups with a dress on! Her kids are great too.  Christian and Harrison are the same age and have become best friends – inseparable.  They do not get on each other’s nerves eventhough they spend every waking moment together (and sometimes their sleeping moments too).  While Abigayle is only 9, she and Danielle get along really well too – she’s adorable and fun to be with.  We’ve spent a lot of time with them, and their dog Toby (also known as Cookie, due to his resemblance to Michael’s first dog).  They left for the States on Wednesday for a short visit with Gene, and it was a sad goodbye.

Eyoni – Ethan and Nancy and their 6 year old daughter Zada were friends of ours from cruising last year, but we’ve only just added their blog to our sidebar.  They too are knowledgeable, generous, smart and funny.  Nancy is perhaps one of the best story-tellers I know with a quick dry wit and I love spending time with her.  She’s had two recent medical set-backs (all healable), the latest being a severe fall with a torn meniscus which she is currently mending.  She’s also more creative than anything I can ever catch up to – making Easter bags out of felt, no-bake cookies, painting eggshell pieces glued to paper, making party hats for Zada’s Littlest Petshop animals, and the list goes on. They’re not sure whether they’re headed south to Central America or back into the Sea of Cortez this summer, given the medical delays.  We’re waiting to see.

Ceilydh-  This boat’s name is pronounced Kay-lee, but notwithstanding I passed their boat for days, I had no idea where Diane, Evan and their daughter Maia lived thanks to the Gaelic? Celtic? spelling.  Anyway, Ceilydh is crossing the Pacific and leaving at the same time we are, so I’m sure you’ll be hearing lots more about them.

Hotspur- We met Meri, Jim and their kids Tim and Carolyne last year in Mazatlan but our paths keep crossing.  They are a fun bunch, and Meri writes a beautiful and honest blog.  They’ll be spending their summer in the Sea of Cortez and after that, who knows.

Toast Floats – This is actually the name of Karen ‘Toast’ Conger’s blog about her journey with husband and 3 kids aboard their sailing catamaran Don Quixote, which has been in La Paz for the last year while they lived on land in New Zealand.  They’ve recently returned to Mexico to make the jump across the Pacific.  Toast and I have spent a few emails comparing notes for preparation.  And she’s a great writer too.

Del Viento – Interestingly, we’ve never met these folks but made an exception to our rule about really knowing the people whose blogs we follow.  Michael and Windy plan to set sail soon with their two young children after buying a boat which is currently in Mexico. This has been a life long dream for them, and they’ve carefully planned for years to make it happen. They just put their house on the market, a huge step towards cutting the dock lines.  We’ve been in touch through emails and comments, and wish them well on their journey.  Besides, Michael is an awesome writer.

There are other friends too (Safety Cat and Taking Flight to name a couple) who aren’t keeping blogs so to them we say: Get started!  We want to know where you’re at each step of the way.

As we are rushing to get going, I wish I could write more, add photos, and so on, but Michael is calling me to complete these last minute tasks before we pull out.

-Barb