I’m going to Argentina at the end of the month and I’m freakin’ as to all the work I have to do.
The dinghy project is at the top of the list. Rebuilding the Dyer midget, as usual, was/is more work than I had expected.
Carla and I are sooooo excited to have her finished though. A proper rowing & sailing dinghy is essential to our plans. Plus the little Honda 2hp will fit nicely on the back if I’m lazy.
I’m replacing all the trim with almond wood, adding a wave-shaped breast hook (too cool), enclosing the aft seat so it will be a water-tight storage compartment, and refinishing and spraying every surface. 
Carla is the best helper/partner in the world, no wonder I’m marrying her 
.
We are also learning to spray paint and considering this practice before attempting Splendid’s hull which is a monster of a spray-job with my little HVLP gun.
In the next 4 weeks we need to finish the dinghy, bug-out of the Bambu house, and I’m thinking to build a mooring. I know, I know, I HATE moorings but this is a bit of a 
“if you cant beat’em, join’em” deal. We are planning on leaving this area as soon as we can and I could sell the mooring for what I have into it when we go. We are also planning on doing some day-charters when we get back and it would be really handy. I’m thinking it is the safest way to leave Splendid for the month I’ll be away.
Wow, so the US government shut down, that’s pretty major, all because some people don’t want to have affordable health care for the people? Seems pretty silly to me. When I’ll be in Argentina I’ll be able to walk into a hospital without any ID and get care if I need it regardless of my nationality or income. It’s so funny to me the things some people fight over.
Well, on November 22, I’m getting married for the first time in my life. I don’t know that much will change in my life as I’ll still be waking up
with my best friend every day. It will be easier for us traveling as we will have American, Croatian (EU), and Argentina passports aboard. Options are good.
I can’t wait to post pictures of the the Dyer when she is done.
I’m really bummed I haven’t had the time to blog the way I like to but I’ve just been sooo f’ng busy. I don’t like it at all, and once we return from Argentina I’m hitting the breaks hard. I need to slow back down to a pace I can manage.
Peace, Love, and Coconuts guys.
Cheers
– Alex
The dink looks incredible. I hope you both have wonderful travel, good times with friends and family and an amazing wedding.
Jeff
Wait till you see her when she’s done ;)
Im pretty excited to continue my journey with Carla. Cant wait to oost Patoginia pictures :)
Cheers
OBSMACARE is more complicated. It will be more expensive, all governed employees are exempt, IRS makes decisions that should be the Dr.s, old people have to take end of life classes to understand why the system is letting them die & if you ate too poor to buy their ins. You get a $4500+ tax penelty and then the IRS can steal you accounts and your house. There is more, but I haven’t talked to one person who now favors this system. It sounded great until they put it in writing
Gary,
That doesn’t sound like affordable / socialized health care at all, “end of life classes”, sounds like something out of “Logan’s Run”. Im happy to hear the IRS is closed :)
My future brother-in-law is getting bitten by the sailing bug. If anyone knows of any great boat deals in Florida, please let me know.
Peace.
Gary,
That doesn’t sound like affordable / socialized health care at all, “end of life classes”, sounds like something out of “Logan’s Run”. Im happy to hear the IRS is closed :)
My future brother-in-law is getting bitten by the sailing bug. If anyone knows of any great boat deals in Florida, please let me know.
Peace.
Don’t mean to start an endless thread about healthcare, but I just wanted to get this off my chest. I absolutely can’t understand how public healthcare is so controversial in the U.S. when all of Europe, Canada, Mexico and even poorer South American countries have various forms of it. This is not rocket science people, hell, it isn’t even controversial in the rest of the world. It’s not like Canadians are in the throes of some sort of socialist dystopian nightmare. They’re not carting old people off into furnaces and nobody is being force fed medications… Eh. Whatever. Americans are nuts.Don’t mean to start an endless thread about healthcare, but I just wanted to get this off my chest. I absolutely can’t understand how public healthcare is so controversial
Yodamouse,
Im with you, it’s just F’n ridiculous to me! How can we screw something up as simple up as helping our own sick, injured, and old? There is no price tag or “affordability” on health care, nor is it something that is debatable.
It’s all going to come tumbling down soon.
Peace.
Yodamouse, It is all about money. Though you cant convince the average American that. America is money hungry. Most Americans consider themselves Christian and therefore do not want to realize they are worshipping money. All it takes is to step away from America for a while to see where our hearts lie. Consumerism is destroying our fine country from within. I read recently the insurance lobbyists poured tons of money into Obamacare. That alone scares the hell out of me.
I once thought I could retire from the US Army and have enough to sail the world. That is not the case. With all the taxes and control the US has on our funds I would end up owing more than I make in retirement funds. Every year I read about a new “tax” or “fee” the IRS wants. Plus I could not give up my citizenship without losing ALL of my retirement benefits. Twenty four years down the drain if you ask me.
Charles,
You are correct, consumerism is certainly a big part of what is destroying what I believe was once the greatest example of a self-directed republic of the people. But it is also the entitlement philosophy of so many in this country now. People feel they are “owed” virtually everything. Tax those who have worked hard all of their lives to actually build companies that employ hundreds of workers, so those that don’t have cell phones can get them for free. (Yes, there really is a program for this.) People feel they are entitled/have a right to have a job. Guess what, if you are not qualified or willing to work hard you are not entitled to that job.
And you are oh so right to be terrified of Obamacare. All you have to do is look at the disaster of a rollout that is occuring with it right now. The government can’t even get the website to work properly to sign up. And wait until you see the very personal questions they ask. Guess how secure that information is? Just look at the pathetic sharing of private information between the IRS and Obama administration. Obamacare is a complete disaster. Government is almost never the answer. It is only the new nanny state entitlement society that believes it is. But guess what, you can only tax those that are working so much before the system collapses. And guess what, having the insurance (Obamacare) does not mean you are going to get treatment. They are two very different things. But alas the sheep are easily confused. I find it absolutely amusing that people acually thought Obamacare was going to be “free.” What a joke. Sorry for the rant – but I work hard every day trying to support a family of 5. I don’t particularly like it when others try to tell me they are entitled to the same things I have when they have not put in all the effort to achieve them. To me am entitlement society is the opposite of a free society. I will always choose freedom over safety, security, etc.
I’ll end my rant with this:
If you want total security, go to prison. There you’re fed, clothed, given medical care and so on. The only thing lacking… is freedom.
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Hate to be a big downer, but I gotta chime in here …
I’m all for government supported healthcare, as a matter of fact, I don’t believe any reasonable person would mind allocating a portion of their tax dollars to fund a system that provides quality medical care to their citizens. At least I don’t. But I’m not for THIS corrupt US government taking over heathcare.
Obama Care, or as the multimillion dollar rebranding and celebrity endorsed marketing campaign (paid for with our tax dollars) refers to it, the Affordable Care Act, is a whole different animal and entirely different from other government healthcare regimes. And for the record, it’s way different from the Canadian government run system … which is actually quite good.
Read the “repercussions” section of the act in the fine print: If you refuse to sign up you will be penalized for “non-payment” and subject to yearly fine. If you fail to pay the fine your drivers license will be suspended until paid, and if you go 24 consecutive months with “non-payment” and you happen to be a home owner, you will have a federal tax lien placed on your home. You will be given the choice to either forfeit your bank information so that they can easy “automatically withdraw” your “penalties” weekly, bi-weekly or monthly, or the goons will simply garnish your wages. Does this sound like a free country?
But wait, it gets better…
Durring your online enrollment the USGovt captures your computer IP address, name, address, email, passwords, bank account details, employer details, and other private info required to sign up, then hands it over directly to the NSA where all your meta data and computer activities can be cross-referenced and linked using sophisticated algorithmic software used to build a profile on you, that then can be used for whatever the Orwellian regime decides will serve its purposes. Also, this info is shared with other government agencies (like the IRS) and law enforcement as well. So far so good?
One of the most sinister unmentionables in the new affordable health care law is perverse financial incentive the USGovt has to see you die. If the unelected bureaucrats appointed to oversee who lives and who dies deny you coverage, the US Govt saves money, and if you die, they not only get to remove you from the Social Security payroll but they also get to snatch some of your wealth through estate taxes.
Lastly, the most cruel irony of all, is this Affordable Care Act is totally unaffordable! 90%+ of the population actually sees a significant increase in the cost of their healthcare insurance on this program, not to mention the future tax increases everyone gets to look forward to that will be used to prop up and bail out this giant government bureaucracy and entitlement program.
This is the perfect example of what can go wrong when irrational and uninformed Big Government worshippers shove complex socialist programs down everyone’s throats. It is yet another example that EVERYTHING the USGovt gets it’s hands on it royally screws up, costs soar out of control, and quality goes down the drain. It also shows the danger of government taking over an entire industry in a giant power grab and creating a centralized command and control system run by a corrupt, incompetent government dominated by tyrants and fools.
If you thought healthcare in the US was expensive before … just wait till it’s free.
– Contrarian
It will undergo many, many revisions, but old system was on crash course for rocks for rocks with baby boom medical demand forecast and increasing non insured population% anchor. I’m on front line treating, and good care costs, but who pays? Free, if you guys provovide your cell number, I know alot of my folks who could help, always. Yea, system flawed, but like any boss or mngt., most employee will complain, no matter what, and when asked to help manage, most decline the offer and stay on sidelines. I think the general idea of getting everyone on the team is good, or feelings get. Or, move to another team? A boat will never be perfect, and I doubt alex expects his neighbor to fix it just because he lives in the anchorage?
I must say im for a universal health care plan like tbe rest of the civilized world has. What we had was absolutely unacceptable. I’d bet my bottom dollar that the government already has all of our personal information though. It will be interesting to see what transpires in the following months.
I think the analogy of fixing motors and providing care to the poor is a bit like comparing apples to oranges though. Every developed nation on earth provides its people with some sort of universal care but ours?
It’s good to be on the outside looking in ;)
Called medicaid, have treated thousands in need. And write this down, I work in Hillsborogh county/ Tampa. If you ever get real sick, and I honestly pray you dont, I love your site and am a fan of out the box thinking, you can apply and receive Free care here, fill out form. Can anchor off Davis island, claim county residency, get health card, done..seriously, could save your life one day? One of few counties which offer this service. Do you pay for the EPirb life saving service, or is it free? Bad topic for me, I bust my ass everyday, its a service in the end.
Capt ron,
The epirb service is free.
Cool to know about the medicaid thing, however I don’t see being in the states any time soon, I hear your closed
I know it’s a soar subject for many, myself included. I sat in a shit-hole of a hospital in Brooklyn and watched my mother die because she missed getting her health care that year by $800. She was too tired to work hard enough to make the minimum the previous year as she unknowingly had cancer.
As I’ve stated a few times on facebook I’m not for Ocare one way or the other, I just don’t know much about it. All I know is that all other developed countries have some sort of universal health system, and most like the UK & Argentina you don’t need to fill out anything or even give an ID. I received great care in Canada as an American and didn’t have to pay a cent. If your sick you get care regardless of social-class or nationality, simple. This kind of system sounds very different than Ocare which has the IRS in charge of peoples health, inherently a bad idea and lots of forms to fill out.
peace.