New boat!!

I caught Jim down in the engine room, and I'm going to bet he was down there negotiating with Westin about the new boat. I'm still guessing there is a lot more people down there than just Westin. Maybe they are blackmailing him, threatening a lawsuit about working or living conditions. And who else might be down there? Maybe co-workers or family, or maybe they hired Jim to smuggle them from Minnesota to Florida. This could explain Jim not letting me in on what's happening, as I could be called as a witness, which would upset our happy little ship, that's for sure. Maybe they are Minnesota Vikings, sneaking out of town.

Speaking of our happy little ship, you do recall yesterday's posting, don't you? For the memory-impaired, that's when I showed photos of the boats we have been looking at, presumably to house all of the extra passengers, but Jim isn't saying. Well, apparently we aren't getting either of them for the reasons I explained yesterday. He has decided on the one depicted above; it just needs a little work, and those guys are just the ones to do it. I'll keep you posted.

More hot news! We pulled up to the dock on Friday after a long run down the Tenn-Tom with not much more to be excited about than arriving. I staggered off the boat, happy to be on land and then saw a familiar boat, "Baby Grand," a beautiful 32' Grand Banks trawler that I happen to think is one of the most handsome boats ever built. This is what boats are supposed to look like! It is the temporary home of Peg and Bob Olsen, our friends from Lake Superior who are doing the whole Great Loop with some of Sally's and my charts. (If we can't do the Loop again, at least our charts can.) We found them later in the day and spent most of Saturday sightseeing and dining with them. I really miss this part of that journey, networking and hanging out like this with people like them; we are going too fast for relationships like this and were sad to leave them behind today. Check out their blog at www.babygrandadventure.blogspot.com for some terrific writing and what the Great Loop is really about. I am sooo jealous....