Do you remember when after the Summer Vacation, the first task back at school is to describe what you have been doing during the summer season. Well, the practice stops early on since nobody would volunteer past a certain age to ask what you had actually been doing.
For Christmas, New year not much time to get into trouble, but here it is. Just enough.
My son Chauncey, has a house in Charleston in South Carolina. He actually lives in New-York City, but after a long detour for extended family future I hope, he picked me up in Newport R.I. and we drove of. We had done the trip before, but on the day before Christmas it not the easiest way to get on the road. Riding South, having to go around N-Y, Washington D.C and with everything in between, eventually we had to stop in a real flee back Motel by 3 in the morning. Five hours later, back on the road again.
I like Charleston. Usually, for me a stop over on boat deliveries when the season turns to go South again for the large migrant fleet from the North and from Newport in particular.
Christmas came. Received presents, but did not gave any. My contribution: to feed; cook and liquor the whole lot for a week and half. I thought a fair deal for five people.
My daughter Dominique escaped the Holidays by being Chef on Topaz, the majestic J Class boat in St. Marteen and the B.V.I. Altogether the best.
Well, Chauncey worked on the house. Sefton, his half brother and I cleaned the yard, cleared all debris; a good thing. But the highlight was about the boat. The delivery from Harbor Spring Michigan of the Lone Star 14', an aluminum launch. Built in 1955, with an 18 H-P Johnson outboard of the same age. We managed to spend on safety gear just to be legal 1/4 of the boat value. Including miscellaneous equipment, fenders, dock lines etc. West Marine here we go again. That figures. Anyhow, launching came. The boat is riveted and it was a relieve to see no leaks. We had a beer baptism and Ammy broke the aluminum can on the aluminum boat.
Meantime and all together, I got in touch with the owner of one of my designs that he actually built for, and by himself. As a parentheses, one of the great pleasures of my life and business, is to have boats "statues" all over the world; I feel like Felix de Weldon. I can hardly stop somewhere, where someone, somehow has built, bought or dream of owning one of my designs. I met with Gil the owner and had a great time going over the product of his own hands. Very few people build boats these days; the used marked is filled with cheap, reasonably priced and or downright give away presents. This a solid steel boat with length on deck of 38' and 4'-6" draft, thanks to the twin keels configuration. She is a Bluewater ketch having sailed the blue wonder down to the West Indies a few times.
Time to go back home. After dropping Chauncey in New-York, I continued onto Newport through the worst blizzard I had seen in a long time. All safe and well, back to work on 3 new projects. This year will be good.
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