Ok, first of all, how has October gone by so quickly?
We’ve been in Charleston for about a month now. For quite some time, we’ve been saying, “We’ll do that in Charleston”. This was such an easy out for major projects that we need to complete but didn’t have the time or resources. We had been planning a refit, so our to-do list naturally grew. Now we’re here. Now it’s time!
It’s all about, “ripping off that Band-Aid”. We decided that the first logical step of our refit was to stop all un-wanted water from entering the boat. We only have this issue from above the waterline (thank God!). Windows, hatches, decks and portlights all have minor issues, but they can lead, and have led to larger issues. So first, let’s stop any more damage from building.
In order to fix these, we must disassemble a LARGE portion of the boat. All cushions are being taken out to keep from damage. All ceiling panels are being removed so that we can access deck hardware and repair water damage around our hatches. That means many lights need to be disconnected. While the ceiling panels are out we have access to wiring. We should look at that in this process. We need to follow those wires, so we need to empty our cabinets. The cabinets will be emptied, this is a great time to sand and paint those! We need to remove the windows. This is a great time to paint around those windows. We might as well epoxy coat the edges of the exposed plywood to keep from more water damage…. You may get the point I am trying to make; the list is expanding quickly and the only sensible thing we can do is keep moving forward with one foot in front of the other. The prize at the end of this process is that “Resilience” will be in beautiful shape. For now, we must accept that our home, office and beloved vessel will be torn apart for the next few months.
We’re encouraging folks to come visit us in this process. We have invited the Charleston community and anyone else around to come take a look. This is an exciting time and the, “before and after”, will be a lot of fun to see! As of now we plan to haul Resilience out of the water for the month of January to re-paint the hull and bottom as well as address some mechanical, structural and rigging issues. Come February we hope to be back in the water and by March we will have that final “after” product to show and then it will be time to head back out to sea.
If you’re wondering how we are paying for all this work, we’ll tell you. First of all, we are doing 99% of the work ourselves. The hours we are committing to this refit are staggering. Secondly, we are fortunate to have the support of leading marine companies who are helping us to get the necessary products we need. Finally, we are asking for support from our community the big one, the whole world, to help our effort financially. We don’t have all of the parts and labor we need, and we must ensure that we have a strong financial foundation as we set sail into next year. As we look to the future, from tomorrow and onward, we want to do all we can to collaborate with others to protect the planet we love and support all the people who live here. Please consider supporting our work so that we have the resources we need to do our best.