Oct 14, 2013 | Flotsam
A few years ago we moved our upcoming retirement lifestyle into a more maintenance-free existence.
Condo living was not my residence of choice. I wanted to step out my front door, touch grass, plant a garden, harvest my herbs.
It wasn’t too long though after moving into our apartment that I finally got the concept.
Being away for extended periods requires either a reliable someone to care for things
or a home where we could just lock the door and walk away carefree.
…carefree…
And this year, after spending almost four months onboard our little chalet on the water,
I have come to appreciate our little land home even more.
The problem now though is where to store all the boat things at the end of our first season.
… the solution…
…gives the impression of security doesn’t it?…
…first load, sails and cushions…
…the elevator reminds me a military installation…
…or maybe a prison…
…as I descend to retrieve the keys that I forgot in the car…
…our little 8’x8’…
…climate controlled…
…accessible whenever we wish…
…affordable…
…ours for as long as we need it…
Jul 3, 2013 | Flotsam
The boat came equipped with storage hammocks….
They’re great for stashing things.
They became the catchall for all the bits and pieces
that came into the cabin
but after a couple of weeks
they started to look really ratty.
The appearance of disorder really upsets my ‘cat’ sensibilities
So to appease,
François spent the day installing a much better system…
…a series of stainless steel rods…
…along starboard (dining table) side…
…and port (galley) side…
Oh oh…was that last screw too long?
…Whew, didn’t pierce the hull.
…now we have a more orderly coffee/washing up area…
…and better storage for cooking utensils…
…and plenty of storage in the
dining/reading/mapping/blogging/entertainment station..
… with lots of hooks to hang wet gear and life vests…
…and our collection of hats…
…the Kat is now calm again…
Jun 16, 2013 | Flotsam
This is the first of what will no doubt be a long line of boat mods…
Our floating chalet has minimal but adequate galley comforts but the existing ‘plumbing’ had to be adjusted
The original water source for the galley sink was basically a collapsable camping jug with a hose to the sink that kept twisting…
and collapsing…
So after a visit to our local hardware store and a little more than $10 later, François had made a change that worked really well….
…a more solid container…
not red but I can live with this improvement…
… a good brass fitting
…a good tight seal
wrapped with marine fusion tape
(am becoming a huge fan of this stuff – and it comes in red too)
…jug filled and back under the sink
Voila!….a steady stream of water
