WE START NORTH!!!

We are sailing north from Seattle this afternoon. We're asking for safe passage and wanted to do a proper ceremony. So we googled it and didn't find any two that matched, so we figured we'd write our own heartfelt plea.

The cermony:
Oh , Ran - and Aegir - Goddess and God of the sea respectively (we know who really runs the show), we are requesting safe passage for our humble craft with leaky holding tank and non-functional oven, and a couple of bikes strapped on the deck, containing two souls, Monique and Blain, and one unsuspecting dog Chance, who might have a soul, but we'll leave that up to you two.

Northward we seek, to plunder dockside coffee shops for free WiFi, and into the land of the ice and snow where the blah blah go and the north wind - blow. Admittedly, what we know of Norse mythology is from that Led Zepplin song, and a childhood book on Gnomes, but still, it seems like a good idea to splash a bit of rum your way (even though it's from the Carribean, and probably out of your jurisdiction).

Please enjoy the rum. It's not the best, but had a nice lable and was reasonably priced. If we run into you up there in a pub, you can owe us one.

All the best to the deities and demi gods.

PS. We did kind of change the name of our boat to Oystercatcher. We hope it's not a problem since you're both so cool.

First big stop is Bellingham to see Blain's cousin Krista and family.

Why is there a photo of the toilet in this episode?
Well, we've been learning a lot about our newly purchased appliances and appurtenances, lately, and we thought you might want to as well. No siree, nothing like propane and sewage leaks to get the adrenaline flowing around a boat.

Blain tried to fix the oven thermostat and wound up blowing fuses and breakers. He finally took it in to a pro shop to get some advice. They caught instantly that he had tried to screw the gas line down crimping a wire. Well, that also explains the gas leak... And the electrical short.

Chance just wanted to find a comfy spot amidst the mayhem. We were heating water for tea on the BBQ for a few days.

This is where the stove was - or is supposed to be. It nearly when from here into the ocean, but there are state and federal laws that prevented this idea from going too far.

Blain is working in the sun. Oven insulation showing. Favorite t-shirt showing, too.

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Our youngest sailor to date.

Avery, cute little offspring of Elin and Wes, formerly of Anchorage, kind of enjoyed a sail out and around a bit. She hated the life jacket we borrowed for her, even though it really matched her eyes. At 10 months, I guess you don't really care about these things.

We were thoroughly enjoying a dang fine day with sails flying and the boat doing great. Wes proved handy with a winch handle. Blain even almost sort of helped with a diaper change. Then a minor disaster struck. The holding tank decided to drain onto the shoes under the fore berth.

YUCK, said Mo. And a few other choice rhymes.

Over the next two days we troubleshot and cleaned, and cleaned some more. Blain found a clogged vent and we hope that might help with the situation. We hope to start heading northward on Tuesday, so cross your fingers all goes well.

Memorial day work break.

A quick spin between boat chores to see what the low tide brought in. I'm holding a small goeduck. Think clam strips. Mo is holding a glass of wine. Chance is holding out for a cooked one.

Chance and his girl pal Alita enjoyed some shephardy fun.

We were wondering why people laugh and take photos when we go by in the kayak with a dog or two. I guess we are a bit of a spectacle.