April 2010
We have been full time live-aboards since we sold the house in March. Despite the immense change in actual living space, we have had no problems adjusting to life on Orion. Things are working out great and we are as happy as can be! With Rick still working I have the day to sort out stuff and arrange things the way I want them...all of which is so much easier now that we are here 24/7. There is no more rush at the beginning and the end of the weekend to put food and clothes on the boat and off the boat...Orion is our house now and we take her with us...how kewl is that? Little by little we are getting things sorted out. Life seems so much simpler now. Just the way we had envisioned it! Our new community in Salinas is wonderful and diverse. Nothing is ever boring here...from the locals to the live-aboards to the cruisers...everybody has a story to tell. We have adjusted to living with nature more and usually go to bed after the sun goes down. The facilities at Marina de Salinas are very nice, the staff is extremely friendly, and there is an atmosphere of peace around the place.
Our 18 year old cat Whiskers is a regular boat cat now...Whiskers the Sailor Cat is what we call her. I guess you can teach an old cat new tricks after all...grin. She sleeps most of the day curled up in the salon, just being happy and content with her new life on board. She is starting to explore on her own once in a while...getting up on deck, roaming around and getting into the dinghy to drink the rain water that pools in one corner...we are very proud of her for not being a "fraidy cat"!
Back to living on Orion: There are a million things to sort out and re-arrange and make new, but it is so much fun to do it when you know that this is it...this is your dream and it is coming true! Everything in a boat needs its place and it has to be a secure place, because stuff tends to tumble and fall when the sea gets rough. A Morgan 41 Out Island has a ton of storage spaces...quite unbelievable actually...and I am finding out quickly.
First we needed to sort out the tools, because that would free space in the closet. We had two huge tool boxes that came with the boat when we bought it. They were incredibly heavy and smack in the middle of the best storage space for clothes! Needless to say that this is a man's err Captain's job...tools and tool boxes are not for the faint of heart. So Rick set to work one day, because he didn't want to listen anymore to my bickering telling him nicely to please sort out the tools. It took a rainy and stormy Saturday...and he got it done! I helped purchase some small canvas tool bags and some zipper pouches and then left him the heck alone. We work as a team...I let him do his stuff and he let's me do my stuff. I am happy to report that all the tools are now stowed away in said canvas tool bags and zipper pouches, which makes them easy to store and easy to carry...Best of all, they are out of the closet :o)
Having this chore out of the way we went sailing the next weekend...to Coffin Island, as you might have guessed. Spent a nice Saturday and Sunday there and returned refreshed for the upcoming week. I made omelets filled with vegetables and cheese. Even the Sailor Cat enjoyed the trip, curled up, and fell fast asleep on the sail back to Salinas. Too cute! 
Back in Salinas, the next day we observed a Marsh Hen balancing on the dock lines. Whiskers got interested, but decided to let the bird be a bird. Good decision by our Sailor Cat :o) That beak looked awfully long...
