WAITING….

Last full week of June

So this was cruising life. Letting go of all your plans and waiting….waiting on weather, waiting on boat parts, waiting on repairmen, waiting on crew, waiting…at least that was how it seemed.

We were so proud to make it to Virginia by June 1 as required by our insurance. We were excited to finally be in Chesapeake Bay. We studied the maps, the charts and talked to anyone who would chat with us about this expansive bay we wanted to explore. We were here and finally ready to begin our adventure, together.

But here we sit at York River Yacht Haven in Gloucester Point waiting….A generator repairman returned this week because it still was not working. This particular repairman seemed more thorough than the previous one. After two days of examining everything including the flow sensor, and lots of trial and error, it was finally discovered that a jellyfish had made its way into the through hull. Once it was blown out, the generator began to work with fervor. Dang, it took four days of repair over two weeks for a jellyfish. Moreover, during the repair process, a part was broken. The good news was that we could order the part and have it delivered. The bad news was that it would probably take a week to get it. So we wait….

Another reason we were waiting…was for our new ac to be delivered, which finally arrived. The unit weighed 180 lbs. While we got it to the dock behind the stern with a dolly, we had no idea how we would hoist it onto the boat. Nevertheless, tomorrow the AC technician was coming…or maybe he was coming in two days, only time will tell.

It had been bloody hot and humid for the last several days. Our little portable ac unit had barely kept the saloon cool, much less the hulls. However, after a deluge of rain, a cool front had slid in behind it and we were most grateful.

Thus, amid better spirits of not being so hot, of hopefully having the generator fixed and of the new ac unit arrival, we spent time contemplating. So this was cruising life?

Is this what we expected? Do we enjoy it? Are we glad to be here out of our otherwise ordinary lives? I think we both agreed that we were truly fortunate to be waiting in this beautiful cove, at a marina that has amenities such as a swimming pool, laundry, restaurant, and super nice staff. In addition, we had made some good friends in a short period of time with whom we have dined, sailed, and laughed. They even lent us their car when they flew back to DFW.

Tonight, it was in the 60s and I finally put the blanket back on the bed. We watched sailboats slide by and listened to birds twitter in the trees. Yes, we had not planned to spend weeks on end at a marina waiting for repairmen, boat parts, etc., but it sure beat going to work every day, coming home and then doing it all again tomorrow. We conceded that this adventure may have stalled for a bit but even the waiting provided opportunities for adventure with novelty everywhere.

There were new restaurants to discover, new people to meet, farmers markets and flea markets to peruse as well as Virginia to explore which was steeped in history. After all we were in the middle of the historic triangle between Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown. So if waiting we must, here was as good a place as any!