Getting Ready, aka, Provisioning

Every household has different ways of operating. And every “boat-hold” has different ways of operating. Some women are handy with tools and engines. Some men love cooking. That, however, is not the case in either our house or boat-hold. Just as John doesn't “do” provisioning and cooking, I don't “do” engines. I offer no apologies for either of us. It's just the way it is, and we're both happy with that!

That said, organizing the boat for a 2 plus month excursion involving season changes and the potential for unexpected guests, is a huge job. But after 10 years of doing it, I've learned to be ready for any and every thing; and fortunately I'm pretty organized. (On the other hand, I could take lessons from my daughter-in-law, Sara. She is a master at it!) But because we take a different boat north each year, it's almost like starting over every time. My list consists of not only clothes and food, but hundreds of items for the galley, heads, staterooms, our portable office, personal items, books, and everything else it takes to be self-sufficient and away from home for an extended period of time. And, because this is not simply a pleasure trip, we also have to bring everything it takes to run our business plus all our boat show supplies and equipment. Yikes.

For the sake of this blog, there are three things you should know about me: 1) I am list maker, 2) I am a seeker of sales, and 3) I am not a “foodie” (My foodie friends actually feel sorry for me when I tell them I basically eat to survive.) So about two months prior to scheduled departure I take my list, seek out items on sale, tick them off, one by one, make piles and fill boxes. And I cook. I fill our freezer with chili, stew, pot-roast, meatloaf. That way I don't have to rely on restaurants being in the area where we stay for the night, nor do I have to do a lot of cooking on board. I can just defrost it!  Many of our cruising friends set their itinerary based on what restaurant they want to visit next. We prefer to pick our marina or anchorage first, and then if there's a restaurant nearby, fine. If not, I'm all set!

Bringing the right clothes presents a whole other set of challenges! When we start out, going through Florida and the Carolinas in mid-August, the temperatures are usually in the 90s with high humidity levels, and oftentimes no breeze. T-shirts, shorts, flip flops are standard attire. When we get into Long Island Sound two weeks later, the air is drying out and the temperatures are dropping, sometimes requiring a sweatshirt at night. By the time we get to Newport for the first show in mid-September, fall is in the air! Ahhhhh. Then things start to change. Time to bring out the pants, fleece, and socks (all kept in the huge storage cavity under the master bed.) Sometimes there's rain, and lots of it. We have rain jackets (lined and unlined), rain pants, and rain shoes. Two years ago at the Annapolis boat show (mid-October) it was rainy, cold, and just plain “raw”. People were coming to the show from surrounding states, telling us they drove through snow! I only had a light-weight quilted vest and an unlined rain jacket. I was freezing! Now I am always sure to pack, not only fleece tops and vests, but my fleeced-lined rain jacket! (Talk about a challenge: packing for cold, rainy weather when it's 90 degrees out! But all I need to do is think back to that 2010 weekend in Annapolis for my inspiration!)