Boat in the Water

Chestnut Neck did a sea trial of Voracious C and gave her a clean bill of health. So, we got to the marina around 9:30 Saturday morning and were excited to see the boat in the water and ready to go.

Had some problems with the nav system at the dock but chalked it up to insufficient battery power and assumed that once the engines were going that the charge from the alternator would alleviate the GPS problem. That idea was a bust and we had problems all the way back to Brant Beach. We ended up using the iNavX program on the iPhone which worked admirably. When you're as green a navigator as I am never leave the dock without plenty of backup electronics.

I've run aground before in the channel that goes toward LBI from Little Egg Inlet. There are two marked channels there and you can't pass from one to the other without going over a sand bar that's much too shallow for Voracious C so I know to be careful. But we ended up stuck and waiting for high tide before Tow Boat could come and haul us off. Didn't get away unscathed this time. Based on the vibrations I'm thinking we bent a prop.

Stop with the Swine Flu Headlines!

Aren't we all tired of the H1N1 publicity?  It's important to think about the numbers when you read about disease risk.  Less than 1,500 have been sickened world wide with 140 of those being in the US and Canada.

How do the odds of getting this flu stack up to the odds of getting a really deadly disease like Coronary Artery Disease?  Well, 13 Million people in the US have CAD so that makes it about 100,000 times more likely that we'll get CAD than Swine Flu. There is so much more to gain by changing our diets and quitting smoking than by buying face masks and keeping our kids home from school.

Let's turn off CNN and have a salad for lunch.

Yea New Windows

Window Wizards came today and replaced the junky basement windows with glass blocks!  $1,425.  We think it really dresses up the place.  Of course the rest of the downstairs is an eye sore but this is a step in the right direction.

Next step, get rid of the moisture by grading the property so that the water runs away from the house!

So Long Wall Street

Last year, in the wake of The American Stock Exchange (AMEX) being bought by The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), I agreed to accept transitional employment and a severance package that would start in the summer of 2009. And today was my last day with NYSE.

My plan is to take much of the summer off and engage my 14 year old in doing other things than playing video games. He and I will get to spend time relaxing at the beach AND will be constructive in setting up the new house.

Put in a Quart

Yesterday got a warning message that the oil level was low in the car.  The dip stick confirmed that it was about a quart low so I added a quart.  I'm wondering if this has anything to do with the overheating last weekend.  No bluish smoke from the tail pipe.  Doesn't seem to be burning oil.