Author Archives: Mark
Boats and Birthdays
I recently celebrated my birthday. What better way to do this than to enjoy a few days aboard Cream Puff. As a part of my birthday celebration we went to the boat with a list of nothing. Usually, I have an assignment listing of chores needing to be done, checked, learned, cleaned or lubricated. This […]
My $45,000 Rental Car
I am flying to St Petersburg ahead of Cindy and need a rental car for 4 days until Cindy catches up with me. Being the very tight fisted individual I am with money, I check all the web sites, discounters and wholesale groups for the best possible price for car rentals. After all, a car […]
Dirty Bottoms
Cream Puff is out of the water once again. We recently had bottom paint applied. The purpose of the bottom paint is two fold. First, it protects the fiberglass hull from direct contact with the salt water that can cause pitting and blisters (not good). Second, it prevents growth of barnacles and all sorts of […]
Please Don’t Kill Me
Cindy and I just returned from a fantastic 10 days aboard Cream Puff. Every time we are aboard we become more motivated to eradicate our land life and step in the world of fulltime cruising. When we have mentioned full time cruising to our – land – friends in passing, often the question of safety arises. They […]
Amelia Island
We just got back from Amelia Island. Great restaurants, a historic downtown, fluffy sandy beaches and sunshine make this a fantastic spot. To read about our adventure please click here.
Wow! That’s a Big One
I don’t often stop to think about the forces on the rigging or the sails. But, once in a while something will make me pause in awe of Cream Puff. During our recent jaunt to Key West, we noticed the Sunbrella covering on our genoa was looking a little shabby. The genoa is the front […]
Guy Humor
I think this is hysterical, but then again I’m a guy. This is a toy at one of the stores on Duval Street called KIDs In All Sizes. I wanted to add this on our Key West post but needed to figure out how to edit the video and add sound. I figured it out. […]
A Little Bird
This is really amazing. So here we are about 18-20 miles offshore. We are making our way into Tampa Bay. The winds are easterly, blowing away from the land. It is almost dark. All of a sudden a little bird crashes into our boat. We normally see gulls and the occasional hawk this far our […]
Key West
We recently took a trip to Key West for some key lime pie. To read about our stormy adventure, our dancing with the stars, fine food and to view some brilliant pictures, please click here.
Cream Puff Gets Her Bottom Scraped – Oh My!
After the St Petr Grand Prix race, some serious work was scheduled for Cream Puff. We are overdue for a haul out and bottom maintenance. Every couple of years, paint is applied to the part of the hull that is underwater. This prevents bottom growth such as barnacles, algae, and such. It also protects the […]
St. Pete Grand Prix
I can check one more thing off the bucket list. I went to my first Grand Prix race. For the past 11 years, St. Petersburg has hosted the IZOD Indy Car race. For about a month in downtown streets are slowly shut down and converted into the raceway. The track consists of a combination of […]
We Recently Installed Type B AIS
I am selling a lot of stuff on eBay getting ready for our downsize. Items that we figure we do not want to keep or store. We had a huge construction dumpster at the house a couple of weeks ago and we filled it up in one day. It is truly amazing how much junk […]
Magic Number
How much does it cost to go sailing? This is a question we asked for years and years. We never seemed to get a straight answer. You would think Cruising World or Boater’s World magazines, that I subscribed to for years pre-internet, would shed some light on what is perhaps the single most pondered question […]
Ringing in the New Year
Each year on January 1st for the past 15 years, or so, I have updated a spreadsheet tracking our savings for the little sailing adventure gig we have planned. January 1st is a big day in our house. It begins with a hearty breakfast followed by an annual event that has never been missed in […]
Dog Island – It Wasn’t Meant To Be
At this very point in time our plan was to be at Dog Island for a few days. About a week ago, while on Cream Puff getting things ship shape for the trip, I came down with the crud. And, being the kind sharing person that I am, I passed it to Cindy. Between the […]
