Just another day

My usual domestics day, since getting out of town proved to be fruitless.   Mama-nature sure does know how to get her message across.    Mucho Mal Destruction all along the NC/TN areas.  I already posted a pic of I40 being washed out: Lord only knows how many backroad bridges were taken down,,,(I know of at least one)   Thats gonna take some time to rectify.

So I contemplated going kayaking, solo, again,,, and dammit, the desire is just not there today.  

Thats not to say I ain’t playin’ with kayaks,,,,

Three projects (Two definite, one will see about)   Finish Selkie for Brudda B.    Make Lyssa Mo’Mine….

I have to finish Selkie or I have no where to work on Lyssa.  Selkie has been taking up a lot of real estate on my porch this summer, and yah, I really need to ‘finish what I started’,,, and to be honest, it hasn’t felt like as long as it has been.   I started that ‘fix’ back in March!!!  Ho-shit!,,, gitbizzy dood!!!

Right now, I’m waiting for resin to cure so I can put on another layer of glass over the Ballistic Nylon I laid in the floor.   It’s all attached to the ribs ‘floating’ above the skin.   The whole point is to make it so Selkie no longer steals shoes, essentially becoming an entrapment point.   (there is a reason I am a barefoot paddler,,,)   This is probably going to be a three day process, but then, close up her skin, seal the seams, and she is done.  

And I could have had her done MONTHS ago, ‘ceptin’   Me got lazy,,,,   Pointing that finger right back at the culprit,,,  I know it, and I kinda feel guilty about it.   Is what it is, and you can’t change the past, no matter how much the lefties want it so.

As for Lyssa,,,   I already pulled that rear bulkhead (there is still one between the aft compartment and the cockpit.  not touching that one.) and now, I am slowly working on sanding off all the epoxy from the hull.   It worked, but, Even with the talcum to make it white, that shit yellowed something nasty.   She got ugly on me.   I didn’t really notice it until I had to do the repairs from last race, but the difference is GLARING.    Clean her off, and re-gel.   Make her shiny and bright again.     There are a couple of other things I want to deal with while she is in dry dock, but nothing as intesive as a hull makeover.

In the meantime, BlueJean is going to be riding high, and Lyssa takes her spot in the racks on the porch.   When Selkie is finished, I swap them out,,,,

Yes, there is a kayak on Buffalo 24/7 (unless its on the water being used) Sometimes two!!!   My Kayaddiction is strong!!!

as for that third project,,,,    Lizzy, the Nordkapp.    I keep tossing this one around, and I even started on it at one point, before Selkie needed repairs.   Lizzy has been hanging in the rafters all summer, in peices: Literally in peices.   Hatches and bilge pump removed, cockpit coaming cut free, and I started to work on making the cockpit opening something a bit more modern: Keyhole style, not that dinky Ocean cockpit that started causing me anxiety when paddling.

Problem being, I am not 100% certain my anxiety was all due to that cockpit.  Lizzy’s breed is ALWAYS described as “lively” or ” Demands attention”.  She is NOT a stable boat.   Only when loaded with gear (through 10″ hatch covers,,,,) will they settle down.  Not that I am even certain of that as I never tried her loaded like I load Lyssa; I have only the word of other users for such.    SO, I keep putting her on the back burner, considering my options, and one of those options is to retire her.    Selling is off the table now that the cuts have been made.  (not totally true: I COULD put it all back, but would need to get a matching deck gel coat to make her look good again.   I’m not worried about looks as much for the modifications, at least, not until I know one way or the other, if they worked.)

Then again, my skills have grown, and Lyssa, who felt ‘lively’ to me a year ago, is now my goto boat for everything (ceptin’ WW)   Maybe, finishing Lizzy will be that “Long Boat, highspeed cargo hauler” that I have been on quest for.   (guess I just made up my mind on that third project, eh?)

ANywhoos, y’all stay safe out there while the Political Zoo is off its leash.  Hopefully, things will start to improve after January of ’25,,, I won’t hold my breath that things settle after Nov 5th,,,,

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