Bucket Showers

It's Florida's hot season, so, this piece about beating the heat caught my attention. But, it seems to me that this isn't just a good tip for staying cool. It's a good idea for being on a boat and having limited access to running water. I've been hiding inside from the heat today, but, if I need to head to the marina to work on the boat, a hoseful of water over the head may be the way to go.

Primitive Hand-Washing Machine

A lot of people recommend the WonderWash for doing laundry on-board.

I have not tried it myself as yet, but, reviews seem to indicate that it's a good option as long as you remember a few things:

• Don't overload it.
• Use it in an area you don't mind getting wet.
• Refresh it every so often with a bit of vinegar.
• Don't use too much detergent.

I'm a fan of trying the cheapest and most low-tech option first, then scaling up. This Instructable for a primitive hand-washing machine showed up today. Worth reading for the wry humor, at least, as the instructions are pretty basic. Plus, I like their idea of having a second bucket with holes drilled in the bottom to use for a spin cycle. If this truly does get clothes clean, it also has the advantage of saving space. The canister can be used for other purposes in between washes.

I might give this a try with a few items of clothing to see just how well it works.

More Working Travel Options

While I can work online from anywhere, I also love the idea of having local work and volunteer opportunities. These seem like great ways to meet people while traveling and get an insiders' look at your destination.

I have come across a few websites that hooks up hosts and travelers willing to work. Some are for pay, others are volunteer opportunities:




Help Exchange

I'll just paste the site's description here, since it sums it up so well:

HelpX is an online listing of host organic farms, non-organic farms, farmstays, homestays, ranches, lodges, B&Bs, backpackers hostels and even sailing boats who invite volunteer helpers to stay with them short-term in exchange for food and accommodation.

WWOOF 

Opportunities to work on organic farms all over the world. I've been wanting to do this for years.

WorkAway

This is another with a blend of paid and volunteer opportunities. Hosts include everyone from B&Bs looking for workers to individuals seeking pet sitters.

Cooking on a Boat

I stumbled across a great blog about cooking in a galley. She even has a book available for those who are going to be without internet.

The Health Dangers of Living in Small Spaces

The New York Times recently posted an article about some micro-sized apartments proposed to go in New York City. While a lot of what is discussed is only relevant to apartment living or living in a highly populous city, some of the concerns and advice could apply to people sharing the confines of a liveaboard boat, as well. In particular:

• Modular spaces where you constantly need to convert the room get tiring.
• Lack of privacy causes stress.
• We are happier when we have places that telegraph something about our identities.

The third concern is pretty well taken care of by the boat itself. Who am I? I'm someone who lives on their boat. But, when looking for a full-time liveaboard boat, it'd be good to keep in mind that the more work you need to do each day to make the space work -- say, collapsing the table to make your bed -- the more likely you are to tire of your new living arrangement.

This island sounds like the most charming place on the planet.

Home Canned Tuna

Home canned food sounds like it will be a valuable commodity to have during full-time sailing. A few people on the sailing boards have mentioned having to process large amounts of tuna. There is a great recipe and post about tuna on Mrs. Wheelbarrow's Kitchen. Her beautiful jars look delicious!

Red Lentil Trail Mix

Red lentils are great. They're high in protein and fiber, and their small size means they cook quickly.

I already knew that they are air-popped and added to Indian snacks... but, I'd never seen them baked and added to crunchy trail mix before.

I have not tried this recipe yet, but, I have to say that I am intrigued.




Red Lentil Trail Mix (adapted from Three Many Cooks)

Makes about 3 1/2 cups
1 cup red lentils
Assorted add-ins such as dried fruit, nuts, chocolate and seeds

Soak lentils in water to cover until rehydrated. Drain and spread in a rimmed 13- by 9-inch baking sheet.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Bake lentils on the middle rack. Stir once or twice to promote even baking. Bake until crisp, about 20 to 25 minutes.

Let cool to room temperature.

Mix lentils with remaining ingredients

Living in a small space

This is going to be one of our biggest challenges. My husband and I both have clutter problems that we will need to train ourselves out of before hitting the high seas.

I found some great advice about living in small spaces on the blog Off-Grid in Alaska. I recommend not just this article, but the whole blog. It chronicles the author's move to the Alaskan bush, living in a tent for a year and building a cabin.

Great Online Sailing Resources

I found a list of some really useful navigation sites: http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2009/06/google-maps-for-boaters.html

My favorite so far is Earth NC. It took me a little while to figure out how to use the router, but, once I got it down, I was able to draw prospective routes and calculate the approximate distance we'd have to travel.

Crabbing

Blue crabs are plentiful off Florida's Gulf Coast. A salt water license includes permission to use traps, as well. You can have five traps per person. Found some great information about blue crabs here, including a tutorial for building your own crab traps.

Sunday sailing

We got out on the boat yesterday for the first time in nearly two months. The freshly varnished teak looks great. Going to have to get the bottom scraped this week, since it's been awhile since we've been in the water (too cold!)

I met an old man on the dock while Simon was out grabbing supplies. I wish I'd had a pen and paper to take notes as he casually rattled off all of the sailing options within a few hundred miles, and the conditions of each. He's insisted that we take the boat down to Long Beach, Florida sometime. It's not too far away, so, we'll give it a look.

Reupholstering the cabin

Our boat came with ugly mildewed and worn blue denim cushions inside. We washed it all, but, we're still not crazy with the way they all look.

I finally took measurements to find out how much fabric we'll need. Turns out that doing all the cushions will require about 20 yards. On a forum I looked at, people were saying not to bother with Sunbrella inside the cabin. Since the stuff costs at least twice as much as the option we are looking at, I'll take their word for it for now.

Supplies are looking like they'll cost about $200, plus my time sewing the cushions. I've never done zippers or piping, so, this will be a new experience. We're having a sample of some fabric that we like sent here:

Gonna have to see if we still like it when we see it in person. I liked a different coral pattern, but my husband thought the tone of blue was too light:

Could be that when we get samples, we'll hate them both, lol... will see soon.

Visiting Museums on the Cheap

This morning, I got to wondering whether there were nation or worldwide reciprocity programs for museums. Reciprocity is great: you become a member at one museum, and get free admission at a number of others. I'm a member of a couple of local museums that offer recips with other local museums, and we have gotten our money out of the programs many times over.

After a bit of searching, I found two different reciprocity programs for museums. The ASTC Passport program establishes reciprocal benefits between 300 science museums worldwide. For those interested in visiting other museums throughout North America (mostly art museums, from the look of it) you can join a museum that is a member of NARM, North American Reciprocal Museums.

Making a living while cruising

We hope to start cruising before retirement kicks in, so, we're going to need some income while we are out and moving. Luckily, we both have pretty portable skills (he has years of serving and bartending experience, I'm a freelance copywriter). But, I love the idea of having (somewhat) passive income, as well. There's a post on the Cruiser's Forum that is just brilliant. The author lays out a step by step plan for creating a profitable "expert" website.

Everyone knows a bit about something. And, if that something is specific enough, it would not be too difficult to establish yourself as THE online expert. I'm going to be brainstorming to determine just what that something is for me and the hubby.

(btw, I figure this would be a good place to mention this: if you love this idea, but aren't a writer, give me a jingle. I've written dozens of expert articles on dozens of subjects, and I can provide you with authoritative content for your expert site.)

Varnish, sand, varnish...

sand, varnish, sand, varnish....

All the teak needs refinishing. We let it go too far (honestly, I think the guy who owned the boat last did a less than awesome job) so, nearly everything has had to be taken down to bare wood.

We're going with varnish again this time (Helmsman, if you're curious) but, if this does not last the way we'd like, I think we'll strip all the varnish down and oil the teak in the future.

Readers, where do you stand on the oil vs varnish debate?

I swear, I really do think about things that are not food

My husband and I got a small pressure cooker (6 qt) as a wedding present. I wondered for awhile if it were possible to use it as a pressure canner, and if it wasn't, why not.

It turns out that pressure canners need to be larger, since warm up and cool-down times are included in processing times for foods, and those time periods are much shorter for pressure cookers.

The smallest pressure canner/pressure cooker on the market is this, the 12 quart Mirro. You can do 5 quarts or 8 pints. While I'm still pretty leery of the idea of operating a pressure canner on a moving boat, home canning some goods before sailing seems like a smart way to save money and add variety.

More lazy food

So, everyone on the sailing & preparedness forums is absolutely mad for this Hormel Roast Beef and Gravy. I was pretty dubious, but, even people who appear to be pretty good cooks like the stuff. Always one for a new experience and a dinner I can have prepared in 5 minutes flat, I picked up a can.

And, you know what? They're right. The meat is really tender, like a well-cooked pot roast. The gravy is reasonably flavorful, and is just fine after adding some red pepper flakes & ground black pepper. I meant to stir in a dollop of horseradish, but I discovered I'm out. Simon and I ate the gravy over baked potatoes for lunch, and it was a satisfying meal. I think the beef & gravy would also make a good basis for a stew if you added some cabbage, carrots, potatoes and other vegetables.

The only problem with the stuff is the price. At both the grocery store and Amazon, the stuff sells for over three bucks a can, which is a lot for what you are getting. You can bring it down to $2.88 a can if you use Subscribe & Save at Amazon, but, I'm not sure I'm comfortable having a canned roast beef subscription.

Still, if I find it cheap enough, this will probably make it into the food rotation.

Trashy Couscous

This totally shouldn't work. I shouldn't share this recipe. It's too embarrassing. However, it's just to weird, cheap and easy not to make note of.

I found this recipe on a now-defunct blog several years ago. It stuck in my head because it was so moronically brilliantly simple.

TRASHY COUSCOUS
1 can condensed vegetable soup
1 can water
1 cup couscous

Heat the soup & water on the stove. Add the couscous. Cover and let it sit for 5 minutes.

This is shockingly good, considering the humble ingredients. I bet it would work with other condensed soups, too.

So, what's this blog about?

My husband and I bought our first boat about a year ago. She's a 25' Catalina. We're having the time of our lives.

We plan, once the kids are at college, to buy a bigger boat and sail full-time. That's about six years from now. So, for the time being, I'm reading up and learning all I can. This blog is a place to store the good ideas, and maybe help out someone else if they stumble by.