A Year at Sea...

December 21st, 2005 we sailed Crossroads literally in to the sunset and under the Sunshine Skyway Bridge out of Tampa Bay. That was the official beginning of our travels. We have covered many miles of ocean and visited a chain of beautiful islands but mostly we have met some really great people. This was brought home to us a few weeks ago as we had a small 1-year anniversary party aboard Dragonfly. Jeff and Una gave us a wonderful photo collage of some of our closest sailing friends to remind us of all the great times we’ve had. They also presented us with a 4-roll pack of plumbing-friendly toilet paper in honor of all the not-so-great times. We laughed, we cried, we toasted with Champagne.

Glenn

When I think back to the scary feeling I had this time last year it amazes me how far we have come, and then there are still days when I feel just as green and scared as I did a year ago. I thought we would have more time to lie in the hammock and make homemade bread. I did not realize how social the journey would be. When I think about the friends we have made over the past year it blows me away. I know without a doubt we have made life long friends. I am sure that 25 years from now we will still get together with Kim and Don from “Moonrise” and talk about the gulf stream crossing. (Oh what a night!) Every time we see phosphorescence in the water we will think of Jeff and Una from “Dragonfly” and remember that beautiful night in the Spanish Virgin islands and Christmas in Antigua. I am looking forward to going to Boston for my job and reuniting with Jill and Dean from “Delilah” and reminding Glenn and Jill about the day that Dean and I were the only ones to take the correct trail on the Hash in Grenada or the horror of the boat work on our boats in Trinidad. I will always be beholding to Gary from July Indian for diving down on our stuck anchor in Staniel Cay. I can imagine meeting up with Cliff and Melanie from “Cliff’s Note” in DC and going shopping and talking about the waterfall trip in the Dominican Republic.

I think it will take many years to really process a trip like this but I know one thing for sure we have met some wonderful people over our journey and I will miss them a great deal.

Looking back on the day we left St. Pete 12-21-05, I recall being mixed with emotions. I was both excited and scared. The thought of leaving the comforts of St. Pete with the Public’s grocery store and shopping malls, yoga studio, washing machine, showers, etc. I am not sure how long it took me to adjust to the life of cruising but now it is hard to imagine anything else. Oh don’t get me wrong, when we return to Memphis I will be loving the washing and dryer and large refrigerator. But I will dearly miss the open water and the freedom of being at sea.

I continue to be amazed at how many people helped us pull this dream off. We could not have done this without our Memphis community of friends and family.

Thanks you for sticking with us on our journey…

Michele

Happy New Year's 2007

Recently our niece Lauren and her best friend Emily spent 10 days with us on Crossroads. To be honest, I was a little worried. I mean, after all, 10 days in a small space could seem like a very long time. Instead, we had a ball and the time flew by.


On New Year’s Eve day we started by visiting artist Nancy Nicholson at her studio. She showed us the steps she goes through to make potter’s clay from the hard clay lumps she digs up. It was great to see an artist at work and she was kind enough to show us paintings and pottery pieces that were not on display at her gallery in town.
The girls were also excited because earlier that day they had a “Dr. Phil sighting” on one of the mega yachts. Later that day we joined Dragonfly and took Mr. B’s cab up to Shirley Heights for a sunset view, barbeque, and steel drum concert. The view from the old fort at Shirley Heights is hard to beat. We could see the inner and outer anchorages of English Harbor as well as Falmouth Harbor where Crossroads was anchored. Believe it or not, after all that it was just 8:00 pm – still 4 hours to go to make it to midnight. We headed back to the boat to get ready for New Year’s Eve at Nelson’s Dockyard. This turned out to be a great venue to people watch in a very diverse crowd of cruisers, yacht crew and locals. We settled into a spot and quickly starting meeting people. The first in our cast of characters was a guy we named “Spinnaker Jim”. He was wearing a black wig and the remains of a spinnaker that was torn in an Atlantic crossing. He reminded us of our good friend Jim Fain. We thought the guy was going to be a little crazy, but as it turned out he was one of the more focused, sane guys we met all night. Most of the people we met were young and male, I guess due to the magnetic attraction of our 18-year-old guests. Everyone thought Glenn and I were Lauren and Emily parents. I know it’s a compliment, but we are used to being the cool, young aunt and uncle and becoming the parents put a different spin on things. We danced and watched the fire works over beautiful English harbor. It was a great way to bring in 2007.

New Year’s day we made a big breakfast and the girls went for a kayak ride. That afternoon we took the girls on a hike where they saw their first baby kid goat. Glenn made his yummy chili for dinner (ground beef, not goat). Needless to say we all crashed early. Tuesday we slept in and went in to town for our big shopping excursion. We loved the gallery that Nancy owns but were having trouble deciding what to buy. Glenn and I have been looking for “real” art throughout our journey. Strangely enough, we have not found much amazing art, mostly the “paint by numbers” looking un-original stuff. At Nancy’s gallery, Glenn and I could have bought a million things for our next house. So with our Christmas money in hand we bought pottery and art.

We left Falmouth harbor later that day to sail to Carlisle bay - big mistake. It was windy as all get out and the waves were huge. We only had 5 miles to go but boy was it a rough introduction to sailing for Emily. We had a rolly restless night and left for Jolly harbor early the next day. We decided to take a mooring on the inside to guarantee that we would be in a very calm harbor. The girls quickly took off for the beach. Friday the girls and I took the bus into St. John’s and Glenn rode his bike in and met us for pizza. St. John’s is the cruise ship harbor so there are lots of shops and sights to check out. Saturday was the last day of the girl’s trip, so they opted for an easy day on the beach. Our stay in Antigua was one of the highlights of the journey for me. I loved sitting on the foredeck of the boat at night watching the stars with Glenn and the girls. We spotted Orion and Cassiopeia and watched a beautiful full moon light up the harbor.

We want to give a special thanks to Jann and David for lending us their daughter and sending all our favorite goodies. Glenn is extremely grateful for the supply of honey and peanuts. I am very thankful for the lifetime supply of mucinex and People magazine. One day we hope to repay your kindness.

Michele

Guest Blog from Lauren Christensen

My trip to Antigua was the trip of a lifetime. Being with Glenn and Michele and being able to see their dream in motion (literally) was something I will never forget. So much of their experience, as well as mine, was not just where you are but whom you meet along the way. I loved meeting their sailor friends: Jeff and Una, as well as Melanie and Cliff, and how hospitable they all are toward each other. Not only did I meet fellow cruisers but also some very interesting locals.

Within the first 24 hours of our trip Michele had taken us to see a local artists gallery. Instantly I feel in love with her work and not only met her but was invited to her house to see her studio and how she works. She explained every step of the process from digging the clay herself on the other side of the island, to pugging the clay, and finally glazing it. Her name is "Nancy Nicholson" and I defiantly recommend a trip to Antigua just to see and purchase her work.

I also got a very realistic view on what living on a boat is all about. Glenn and Michele were very hospitable and wanted us to feel at home. Unlike a home on land there are "procedures" to life on a boat. Our first lesson was how to use the potty, followed by a small lesson in water conservation. To Emily and I using the least amount of water possible turned into a game. We learned how to brush our teeth in a cup and not to stack dirty dishes (why make the other side dirty if its not already). It turns out our efforts worked because for 4 people in 10 days we used less than one tank of water! Emily and I also scrubbed the "green beard" along the water line, scraped barnacles off of the bottom, and cleaned the dingy. We sailed in 30-knot winds with 6-foot seas and experienced a rolly anchorage.

Living on a boat and being detached from the crazy pace of my normal life really helped me to prioritize what is important to me. Glenn and Michele have demonstrated that following and achieving your dreams is truly possible and I am grateful that I was able to experience a small portion of this with them.

Lauren Christensen

St. Martin/ 1-13-07

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We arrived in St. Martin last night. Wednesday we had an awesome night sail to St. Bart's. We sailed the whole way from Antigua, great winds and calm seas. The best night sail we have had to date. We quickly did St. Bart's with the rich and famous. Due to high winds we decided to sail to St. Martin and anchor in the lagoon. Nice calm harbor! Yeah! my favorite. We will spend the next couple of days updating our website.

Michele