Hurricane Earl....in the can...CUT!

2AM....water level up about two feet from normal....wind about 15 knots....light rain falling.

Docklines all secure....and Dock electric still hooked up and working....both Air Con's doing their thing.

Frady did a shore sweep....and came back to finish his slumbers.

Me....back to bed to sleep the sleep of the honest!

What Kind of Mood Is Earl Going To Be In?

Awoke to a dead calm day....overcast.....and quiet.....less Blue (neighbors wee doggy) barking away at whatever yappers bark at.

Coffee brewing....checking the weather reports and guesses about Earl. Thus far, the weather guessers say we will have Tropical Storm weather tonight....possibly Hurricane weather. Now if Obama and his crew of Economists could be as forthcoming! First order of business was to feed Frady who is loving the return to his regular Fancy Feast offerings....he and every other Cat seems to hate the gravy style for some feline reason.

Second order of business is to feed me....coffee is brewing and there are the usual bagels....John Wayne style...cold...without butter....but quick! Then off to fill fuel cans....buy a pair of reading glasses then back to the boat to remove the Bimini. Except for running the extra bow line and the two creek lines we are ready for Earl.

Noon.....weather forecast is improving slightly....seems Earl has held to a more northerly course and that should keep it further offshore. Peak winds are thought now to be about 60-65 mph which should pose no problem. The surge should be no more than three or four feet probably which is not too extreme.

Shannon called me saying she has been feeling really bad.....went to the Doctor yesterday without any real result. Sure hope she feels better.....or it is off to Myrtle Beach to see about her.

Am holding off stringing the creek lines....neighbor boat ran his...and instantly a fellow in a 26 foot ex-USN motor whale boat had to run up the creek. He came from just around the corner...and had three days warning to move the boat....and seemed bothered the creek lines were in the water.

I met the legendary Bobby Cahoon this morning at breakfast up in Bayboro at Charlies Cafe. I met him when he roared into the parking lot and cut me off for a parking space I was trying to pull into...then said he had not seen me.....imagine that...a big blue one ton Dodge four wheel drive pickup truck with my smiling countenace at the wheel....and he could not see me! I reckon he ought not be driving if that is the case.

Why is it....rude Redneck Goobers play stupid when challenged about their bad manners? Is it really ignorance or just more bad manners on display? Funny thing....I have been here since May....hang out in Oriental....and know of this fellow by name and reputation long before I meet him by chance in Bayboro. Sorta tells the story I think! Thus....it appears the big bag of wind around today is not just Hurricane Earl.

Earl turned north and northeasterly.....should pass offshore of Hatteras....leaving us with a bit of wind....and some high water but nothing of any consequence.

Dollar Beer and Captain's Call at the Silo's tonight....that trumps Earl!

Frady went after a Snake this afternoon....it wound up in a draw....Snake slithered off....and Frady stayed un-bit! The Ship's Cat was strutting afterwards! So long as he holds to our agreement on the "Catch and Release Program".....where he catches them, brings them to me on the boat....releases them...and I chase them down and release them back to the wild...we will be okay. I reminded him yet again today...."NO SNAKES!"

Time to jump in the Rain Locker and head off to the Silo's for Captain's Call!

Going Blind One Pair of Spectacles At A Time!

Today was rig for Hurricane Earl day.

Took down the Genoa (large furling sail on the front of the boat) and stowed it away down below. Removed all the enclosures from the Bimini Top....stowed them below. Moved all the Jerry Cans, Dock box...and other clutter to the bed of the pickup....filled the boat water tank....replaced the water in the four Jerry Cans on the deck and stashed them in the cockpit....got the bad news on the Freezer Compressor....er ist kaput!

Doubled up all the dock lines, rigged a line that will pull forward on the bow....normal lines pull aft due to being pulled so far forward on the end of the dock.

Then the fun began.

I was down to rigging my cross creek lines. Which meant pulling the two spare anchor lines from beneath the aft stateroom bunk. The smaller line but larger bundle fought leaving its cozy hiding place. Since you have to hold the mattress up with one hand...and wrestle the line with the other....makes for some good exercise and sailorly language. I think I scared the bigger line into crawling out of the locker on its own.

Retired to the dock....stretched out the lines...and untangled them where the Gremlins tied them into knots over the past year...when they weren't fiddling with the electrical or propane systems. Got them sorted out....the lines.,..not the Gremlins!

Raided the Sailcraft surplus chain for the use of creek lines stash.....got a couple of short lengths of chain and toted them back to the boat. Now came the fun part....laying out the chains and anchor lines (spending an hour untangling the anchor lines where the Gremlins had made a silent strike in my absence) and began to "Tie Wrap" the lines and chains together. The goal is to have the creek lines politely lurk on the bottom after being tied to a piling using a very simple nautical knot called a Bowline.

It is called a simple knot because any idiot can tie the thing in any manner of ways...one handed, two fingered, two handed, under tension, no tension, all one has to do is find an idiot to tie the thing for you and you are good to go. No idiots were found until Ol' Don showed up and showed me a half dozen ways to tie that simplest of nautical knots. I hope Don is around when it comes time to do this for real.

Now....the cross creek lines are rigged, stashed in the Dink in readiness for tomorrow. I am sure the Gremlins will hold a drunken party in the Dink tonight and really sort out the creek lines for me so deploying them will be a soul destroying experience. The Gremlins just want me to have something to talk about I am sure.

As to going blind....when you find a wee tiny miniature screw lying on your bed....get a piece of duct tape...and wrap it securely with the tape and put the tape in a safe place. As every decent Redneck and Shade Tree Home Repair expert knows....you can always find Duct Tape. You cannot always find that damn screw after you put it into the box with all of the other screws you have stashed away. I found such a screw....and immediately put it into the only designated screw box on the boat where it hides today after I discovered it belonged to my nice pair of sunglasses with the cute little six power bi-focals. That shall turn out to be an Eighty Nine Dollar Screw if I have to replace the sunglasses!

If one takes a Safety Nap....do not sleep on your only pair of reading glasses. The Gremlins will come have a barn dance on them while you slumber! I must add a stop at the Bayboro CVS tomorrow before the storm.....or it will be a very boring evening listening to a movie.

Alright Earl.....despite the best efforts of the Luna C Gremlins Local 416....I'm ready for ya!