Mike here once again.

Greetings from Forever Friday, still berthed at Las Olas Marina, Fort Lauderdale. Mary flew back home to So Cal on January 15th so she could assist her siblings with their mom who had suffered a medical emergency. She (mom) is getting better, day by day, but is facing a lengthy recovery. Mary returns to the boat (and her lonesome husband) this coming Tuesday. Later next week–if the stars & planets align–we will cross over to the Bahamas for another chapter in our trip.

So what have I been up to, should you ask? I thought about sitting on the sofa, eating Bon Bons, and watching Oprah. ‘Cept I’m not an Oprah fan, so I figured I’d at least be somewhat productive while I’m here. Having neither a car, nor even a bike, I have been mostly limited to using my dogs (feet)…which is great exercise! I have been trying to walk between 4-6 miles, and occasionally 9-10 miles per day. Great exercise aside, I am able to afterwards guzzle a couple-three beers on the upper deck with a lot less guilt (as if!).

A constant visitor to our dock is Ms Manatee (I’m hoping she’s a “she,” by the way she likes to roll her eyes at me). The term “Sea Cow” couldn’t fit these docile creatures any better–they spend their waking hours mowing vegetation & chew their “cud.”

Another constant visitor to the docks is one of several iguanas…scary bastards in that you can walk right up to them and they don’t budge a muscle until they’re ready…just my luck the thing would sprint up my leg and I would launch myself into the water while squealing like a little girl. Macho? Nah…I think not. Especially when some of these critters are 3 and 4 feet long! Yeah…this one’s just a little tyke–but I never seem to have my camera around when Godzilla is around. <sigh>

One of the projects I recently completed was the swapping out of our anchor light. Our current (stock) model showed signs of water ingress, and I figured as long as I was replacing it I would upgrade and do it right. So…it’s only money, right? I purchased an LED replacement that was equipped with a photocell. The photocell was nice for a couple reasons; one–I am forgetful sometimes & am prone to leaving our “anchor” light on until late morning while anchored; and two–occasionally we hang out somewhere later than we anticipated & don’t get back to the boat until after dark. This new light will turn itself on at dusk, and then back off at dawn. Super!

Yesterday (Friday), I decided to tour the surrounding waterways by dinghy. Dropping the dinghy in the water, I headed south under the Las Olas Bridge, and turned right (west) at New River. Man…this place makes Newport Beach look like the handout line for government cheese. Below are a few examples:

To those of you who are a bit on the “nerdy” side (like me) –and if you care to–there is an app that lets you follow our progress when we are on the move. Using “Nebo,” ( https://nebo.global) you can open the app & see where in the world we are. This satellite-based app (I believe it is free) will let a registered user use their iPhone, iPad, or Droid to see where other users are physically located. There is a caveat…if a Nebo user is stagnant for a couple-three days (example: sitting in a marina after “logging out of last journey) their icon will disappear. This is overcome by starting a new journey for a few minutes (even if one does not move) and then stopping it again. This “refreshes” one’s position on the Sat map.

Or…I guess one can always document their foot travels too! Below is one of my walkabouts…2.5 miles each way to my Chase Bank.

Preparing for Mary’s return–and our Bahamas departure–I have been doing just a bit of provisioning. Rented a car for a day & visited Trader Joe’s and our local Publix (grocery store). Mary was foremost in my thoughts at Trader Joe’s:

Finally…some of the most memorable moments are shared with people we meet along the way. Cruisers of all stripes, types of boats, etc, all have so much in common. The caliber of people met on our voyage has been fantastic. I had the privilege of meeting and sharing the past week or two with new found friends on two different boats. Both boats hail from Quebec, Canada, and their crew are French-speaking (Naturellement!). Neither crew knew the other prior to pulling into this marina, but after seeing the Canadian Flag astern, and especially the Quebec Provincial Flag, well, friendships were quickly formed.

Daniel and Nathalie are sailing down the east coast on a 32 foot monohull, while Chris and Sylvie (and son Alexi) are aboard a 40-something foot Lagoon Catamaran. Invited for Sylvie’s wonderful Spaghetti dinner aboard the Cat, an evening of good food & good cheer was hard to beat.

Both crews departed this morning for the Bahamas. Hope we meet up again soon.

Salute, mes amis ! Voyages sans danger

That’s it for now…thanks for once again bearing with me as I punish literary norms.

M&M