Janice aboard Seaweed,
living the good life afloat...

• Phone Saga, Lessons Learned. The articles Phone Saga, lesson 1 and Phone Saga, lesson 2 detail the cell phone problems I experienced plus the solutions I implemented to prevent a repeat. For those that prefer all the information on one page, this is the combination of those two links. Enjoy.
  Categories:  Boats,  (in the comments of Phone Saga, lesson 1) Books, Characters, Locations, Pets, Wild Things,
   

• Phone Saga, lesson 2. As written about in Phone Saga, lesson 1, I have a history of phone problems. So far all of the issues I have experienced are a direct result of my own mistakes. At least two flip phones ended up falling overboard. Recently, I broke the screen on my phone. Many of my friends' phone numbers had not been uploaded to the cloud so I totally lost a way to contact said mariners. When you live aboard your own boat, maintaining nautical friendships are critical. The latest event, aka Lesson 2, thankfully had a better outcome than the last teaching moment.
  Categories:  Characters, Locations, Wild Things,
   

• Phone Saga, lesson 1. Less than 20 minutes after a friend said "be careful or you will break your phone" I dropped said iPhone7 onto the sidewalk. The screen shattered. So too did my world. Perhaps that is a bit hyperbolic, however not having my phone numbers accessible was disheartening. I lost everybody, almost. A lessons was learned.
  Categories:  Boats,  (in the comments) Books, Characters, Locations, Pets,
   

• Mangrove Munching Manatee. In the spring and summertime manatees come through the canal where I am based. There is a lovely mangrove behind my Seaweed. That mangrove is brimming with life. I do so enjoy the variety of critters, small and large, who have made the mangrove home. One family of green herons have been consistently nesting in the trees each spring. I wrote about them in the Green Herons article.
  Categories: Books, Gear, Money, Wild Things, YouTube Channel,
   

• Too Much Stuff - Step Edition. Over the past 16-plus years on Seaweed I have done a magnificent job of filling every nook and cranny aboard her to the brim. This has not done great things for my waterline. In 2013 I began the Becoming Clutter-Free webpage of articles I used to help me on this whole journey. Alas, I fell off the wagon. Unfortunately I am so very good at acquisition. I need to take the first step to reclaim my sanity and welcome you to join me.
  Categories:  Becoming Clutter-Free, Boats, Characters, Gear, Locations, Money,
   

• A New Age in Boating Series. Attending the St. Pete Boat Show earlier this year solidified some ideas I have been pondering of late. This page, A New Age in Boating Series, contains all four articles posted on the topic. Links to the individual articles are A New Age in Boating (part 1),  A New Age in Boating (part 2), A New Age in Boating (part 3), and A New Age in Boating (part 4). Enjoy.
  Categories: Boat Talk, Boats, Characters, Gear, Locations, Memory Lane, Money, Pets, Security,
   

• A New Age in Boating (part 4) Visiting the St. Pete Boat Show is fun. As always the show featured a wide range of vessels, from larger motor yachts to high performance fishing boats, sailboats and lots of family fun center console boats. The variety was outstanding. Being able to introduce my neighbor Shelley to the boating world made the event particularly interesting. There is nothing like stepping aboard a boat to get a feel for what life afloat can be.
  Categories:  Boat Talk, Boats, Characters, Gear, Locations, Pets, Security,
   

• A New Age in Boating (part 3) Modern boats are beamier (wider) than those of decades ago. They are more spacious than ever before. Boat owners today expect all the amenities of life ashore and new boats deliver. They are far faster than those of my youth. For many new boats, that speed is accomplished by turbo powered engines. The newest iteration of power for faster boats is the improved version of the outboard motor with *EFI.
  Categories:  Boat Talk, Boats, Characters, Locations, Money, Security,
   

• A New Age in Boating (part 2) In A New Age in Boating (part 1) I described what I see as a pivotal trend in the boating world. Over the years we have evolved from sail to steam, then onward in the 20th century to gasoline and diesel powered cruising vessels. Now I believe the latest propulsion method may be here.  The new, updated version of the outboard motor with *EFI has arrived.
  Categories:  Boat Talk, Boats, Characters, Gear, Locations, Memory Lane, (in the comments) Money,
   

• A New Age in Boating (part 1) In January my friend Shelley and I were able to spend time at the St. Pete Boat Show here on the Gulf coast of Florida. Shelley is a detail oriented neighbor who has recently moved to the region. We had a great time seeing what is new and improved. Today I will both reminisce and share with you what I consider a major evolution in the boating world.
  Categories:  Boat Talk, Boats, Characters, Locations, Memory Lane, Security,
   

• 2024 St. Pete Boat Show Weekend. The new year has arrived and life is once again looking better for me. This weekend the St. Pete Boat Show is the place to be. I have been attending for several years, starting back in 2008 when a whole bunch of us came down to outfit a 40' sailboat for an around the world adventure. Boat show bargains were found in abundance. As always I am interested in new products coming onto the market. Viewing the boats for sale is quite illuminating too.
  Categories: Boats, Characters, Locations,
   

(this is the Archive for year 2024)