Day 169, Year 4 A Star is Born

Day 169, Year 4 A Star is Born
Date: Thursday, April 9, 2009
Weather: Sunny Day That Went Pear-shaped; Winds S/SE 25 and Stormy
Latitude: 06 degrees 29.091 minutes N
Longitude: 099 degrees 18.117 minutes E
Location: Ko Lipe, Butang Group, Thailand

This is the second log I have sent today. The first was to introduce our new grandson., Ziggy Milo Handley. At that time the skies were blue and things were great. And then everything went pear-shaped. That means everything went to hell in a hand basket. But more about that in a minute. First I must tell you about our little celebration on the beach at Ko Lipe in Ziggy’s honor. Our friends, Donna and Gerry of Scot Free II presented me with jar of marinated artichoke hearts and Mark with a cigar. Now this was a first for Mark, but he actually took one puff in Ziggy’s honor. After dinner, we found a little store that sells the beautiful Chinese lanterns that you light and they soar high in the sky. Donna and Gerry launched the first one in Ziggy’s honor and then Mark and I launched ours. It went up and up and up as if it were trying to reach the full moon. A number of children that had gathered uttered the Thai equivalent of ‘wow’ and we were all in wonder of the light that just rose higher and higher in the sky. All I could think is that a new star is born-our Ziggy.

Now back to the really terrible day of sailing. The winds increased to 25 knots right on the nose, the seas became VERY choppy, and Windbird hobby-horsed into the waves with the bow digging deep bring tons of green water over the deck. We haven’t had conditions like this since our crossing from Norfolk to St. Martin. If anything was going to leak, it would do it today. The good thing is that only the forward cabin hatch leaked (which it always does) and the forward Dorade over the v-berth leaked (which it always does). But then we remembered that we had not caulked the holes in the deck where the toe rail ripped away back in the Java Sea. We had plugged the holes but then cleaned them out to install the new piece of toe rail. That never happened, so we got water in the cabinets on the starboard side of the boat. We had all the sails stored in the v-berth and I thought maybe that was why the bow was digging deep into the water. But I went below and pulled them to the middle of the boat and the result was not much better. All I really did was make a mess of the inside of the boat. Once the weather conditions eased a bit, I spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning. At this point it seems that there is so much to do to get the boat ready to leave that we will never make it. But I know we will, hard as it might be.

We didn’t get to check the internet here to see the pictures of our newest grandson, but we will make it to Malaysia tomorrow and be able to get a phone card so we can talk to Justin, Jo, and Ziggy on their Friday evening. We are so anxious to get to high speed internet tomorrow so we can see the photos of Ziggy. We will pass those along when we reach Telega Harbor.

090409 Day 169a Butang Group (Ko Lipe), Thailand–A Star is Born
From 090409 Day 169b Butang Group (Ko Lipe), Thailand–A Star is Born Video

Day 169, Year 4 Introducing Ziggy Milo Handley

Day 169, Year 4 Introducing Ziggy Milo Handley
Date: Thursday, April 9, 2009
Weather: Sunny Day; Winds SE 15
Location: Sailing from Ko Rok Nok to Ko Lipe, Thailand

It’s a boy! Ziggy Milo Handley was born Tuesday night at 11:47 pm. He weighs 6 pounds 10 ounces and Justin says he is really cute. After 18 hours of labor at home and then 10 hours of labor in the hospital, Ziggy had to be delivered by C-section. Jo and Ziggy are still in the hospital recovering but should be home soon. Justin said he and Jo finally got a nap after three straight days of no sleep. So all is well in New Mexico. Justin, Jo, and Ziggy, we love you!

Ziggy Day One

Day 168, Year 4 Is No News Really Good News?

Day 168, Year 4 Is No News Really Good News?
Date: Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Weather: Sunny Day; Winds E 15; Rain in Late PM
Latitude: 07 degrees 12.944 minutes N
Longitude: 099 degrees 03.728 minutes E
Location: Anchored Between Ko Rok Nai and Ko Rok Nok, Thailand

We have heard nothing Justin or from Heather since late yesterday, so I’m afraid I have no update on what is happening in New Mexico. We have always heard that no news is good news, but we really don’t feel that way right now. We can’t wait to hear something soon. We have changed our sailing plan for tomorrow to take us to Ko Lipe. This is an island in the Butang Group where there are lots of little tourist backpackers. I’m sure that means there is internet and cell phone capacity there, so at least we can make a call by late tomorrow afternoon to see what is happening. We are obviously anxious but there’s not much we can do from here. I’ll post a log as soon as I hear anything.

We spend our sailing days continuing to organize the bits and pieces left over from the refit. We have hundreds of screws, bolts, nuts, washers, and miscellaneous parts that need to be stowed away. Tomorrow I hope to get much of the cleaning of the inside of the boat done. Ceilings, walls, cabinet doors, and floors should be washed and wiped down with vinegar to prevent mold and mildew while we are gone. So that’s tomorrow’s job.

The great thing about today is that we were able to use the headsail to assist our motoring south. If we had the mainsail up, it would have been a great sailing day, but we were happy with motor sailing. It is wonderful to be back in the water and traveling through the beautiful islands of Thailand. We had Gerry and Donna of Scot Free II over for dinner tonight and we saw Judy and David of Freebird when we arrived. It is also wonderful to be back out here with our cruising friends.

Day 167, Year 4 Happy, Happy, Happy Wishes for Justin and Jo

Day 167, Year 4 Happy, Happy, Happy Wishes for Justin and Jo
Date: Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Weather: Another Sunny Day; Another Late Afternoon Downpour
Location: Ao Maya Bay, Ko Phi Phi Leh, Thailand

What a day! Somehow our life is not intended to be boring. We got up at 7 am and expected to leave the Boat Lagoon at 9:30. But then all hell broke loose. Mark took the computer up to cockpit so that he could get a wireless signal to post pictures. Before doing this, he checked email and we got an update from Justin and Jo explaining that Jo’s labor was beginning. Actually it began a couple of days ago with her water breaking with no contractions following, but somehow we didn’t receive those emails. We immediately tried to call J & J but got no answer, so we called our daughter Heather. She explained that there had been a sequence of emails that we did not receive and immediately forwarded them to us. We received them almost immediately and got ourselves up-to-date on the happenings in New Mexico. While all of this was transpiring in the cockpit, Muzza was finishing our canvas work and Luck was waiting to drop the lines and bid us farewell. I was very torn between leaving and staying so that I could have better communication, but in the end, I knew if we didn’t leave this morning we would never get to Malaysia in time to connect with our flight to the US. So we cast off with me in tears hoping that we would be able to keep in touch via HAM email.

We motored south to Ko Phi Phi Leh and arrived just before the late afternoon/evening rain. Donna and Gerry of Scot Free II were here waiting for us and we got together on Windbird and caught up on sailing news.

We are now checking our email and have heard from Justin. The birthing process has begun in earnest and it looks as though they are going to be able to have the home birth that they had planned with a mid-wife attending. This is wonderful news as they had thought they might have to go to the hospital. So please send your most positive thoughts their way. By this time tomorrow, I should have a report of a new grandchild. Justin and Jo, we are thinking of you. We love you and can’t wait to hear about the birth of our newest grandchild.

090407 Day 167 Boat Lagoon, Phuket, Thailand–Leaving Boat Lagoon