Quiet Sunday

The first thing that I did morning was to check the bilge to check the ingression of water from having run the engine to move the boat to the SDYC. As I expected there was water. 4 liters of water flowed ino the bilge during 40 minutes of engine time: 1 liter every 10 minutes. This disappointed though did not suprise me. It disappointed me because after the last time I treated the stern gland by tightening the packing and squirting grease it was dripping about one drop per second. It didn't surprise me because there seems to be too much movement in the propeller shaft in that area. Soon, maybe today, I will expose the stern gland area and have a look while the engine is turning the propeller here in the slip.

I uttered the unthinkable to Arnold: the possibility of yet another haulout in Mexico to repack the stern gland, see what can be done about the propeller shaft swing, and drop the rudder to have a close look at the rudder post setup. He took it well, understanding that my return to Austalia will be much easier (and safer) if I can eliminate the bulk of this inflow of water. I have been told that Mexican boat yards have an excellent reputation for this sort of work. I've had advice that La Paz is a good place for this. If we do this haulout I'll want a fast and clean job: advance planning and agreement, haulout, execution of the plan, then back into the water as quickly as possible. Yes, I know, there is always the unexpected; but I'm hoping that there are enough skills, materials, and parts on hand to avoid long delays. Arnold would not have to hang around and perhaps jump on a bus and do some touring.

Jak Mang has highly recommended Baja Coral marina
in Ensenada. http://www.hotelcoral.com/ I looked a the web site and the place offers amazing value. We could keep Pachuca there for one month at the cost of $520 and have access to the resort facilities such as showers in the health club, jacuzzi, pool,
exercise equipment, etc. Wow. What a delicious choice: a month in a world class resort or pushing on for the warmth and fishing of the Sea of Cortez.

We were visted by Rob Nikzad who had flown from San Francisco for a few days of work. It was neat to see him here. We had met in Honolulu, saw each other in San Francisco, and now he was here in San Diego. After a pleasant 30 minute chat sessiion in the cockpit enjoying the sunshine Rob bid his farewell and walked over to the next yacht club for an afternoon of sailing on a classic schooner.

Later in the day I hopped on the bicycle for some hunting and gathering. I made it to Von's in a surprisingly short time, because we no longer have to traverse the length of Shelter Island to get to the commercial area. While I was away Arnold went for a swim in the club's pool which he enjoyed very much. (I noticed that this yacht club also has 5 or 6 tennis courts.) I returned with some groceries and a bachelor's survival pack: two bags each with three Arbee's roast beef rolls, at only $5 per bag. We went into the evening munching on Arbees, sipping wine, and watching Jay Leno on the internet. (Can one wonder why we have spent 78% of this circumnavigation in port?)

But life back in Australia goes on for me. Lately it has been financial good news and bad news and good news. I got my first income tax refund in years - over $1000. But then accounts came in on repairs to my venerable house in the hills that I plan to completely renovate when I return. In recent months I have transferred $6,000 as deposits for electrical work and a complete septic system. The new septic system has been installed at a cost of $10,500 and I must transfer another $7000 before I leave Sand Diego.

But I'm not complaining. That little old house (set on a wooded 3/4 acres of land with a pleasant valley view) is bringing in a phenomenal rent that makes me flush with shame. And Reg just told me that property values in Darlington, our little "village", have gone up 23% in the last year.

This is consistent with other indicators that I have been getting for months: the Western Australia economy is booming. There is a high demand for labor with workers flocking into the state and the housing situation tight. It is all to do with the phenomenal demand for WA's natural resources. As an example, see last September's announcement of approval of the $37 billion Gorgon offshore natural gas project at http://www.joc.com/node/413423
Given the economic gloom and doom in most advanced economies Western Australia seems to be operating in a parallell universe. For all I know it could be the most economically prosperous place on the planet at the moment. This has all come at a beneficial time for me because the concomitant strength of the Aussie dollar (hovering at around 0.9 USD) has helped me immesurably in my heroic attempts to bolster the US balance of trade by spending obscene amounts on boat repairs and equipment during my stays in Honolulu, Port Townsend, and beyond.

The photo is of a smiling Rob Nikzad arriving for the visit yesterday.