Thanksgiving Week Adventure Some wind & Big Blue skies !
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		Thanksgiving 2004 Adventures, Maureen arrived late Friday, but before David and the hoodlums.  All was quiet at the docks and aboard Tenacious.  Real quiet, too quiet, really too quiet – no shore power, no batteries good thing Maureen keeps her favorite service technician on a short leash.  David and the kiddos showed up soon, wow! no lights, no stereo, no running water, on this we could all agree.   Seemed like a good time to snuggle into our cold dark berths as a big wind rocked us gently to sleep Saturday the sun and a strong wind came up.  Diagnosed a dead charger/inverter so I quickly bypassed it.  We had shore power and a backup battery charger running, yippee yahoo!  Quick for me, those with hungry tummies and headaches from maybe an extra Margarita the night before thought I might be taking a little too long!  Off to coffee and breakfast, the rest of Saturday was a blur, but the highlights were Pagano’s Hardware in Alameda, old fashioned, crowded, everything you could ever want, a treasure trove of STUFF, then wandering about Alameda, beautiful Victorian and Stucco homes, big, little, a very attractive town.  And according to the kiddos the #1 highlight, Tuckers Ice Cream, an old fashioned, real ice cream parlor, been there since the 30’s, motto “Life is Short, Eat Desert First”. OK by now you are wondering, when is this going to end …. ?? I’ll pick up the pace (or at least try).  Sunday, we shipped out, great wind, one reef on the mainsail, and the furling jib at about 80%.   The gate keeps getting closer & closer, what the heck let’s head out.  The winds let up, we let out all sail, and then chased a pod of dolphins and flock of seagulls who were fishing before heading for Angel Island.  We moored fore & aft, not very pretty we hadn’t planned accurately enough – ahh learning experiences, next time will be easier.  We now know how to work the galley;  qualified on propane stove, oven, pressurized water, refrigerator, salt water rinse, gray water sump, and Mai Tais – life is good and we fixed our first dinner aboard.  In the morning we let go our mooring and motored into a slip on the Island.   We hiked to the alien internment center and enjoyed the sun.  We saw 2 guys dressed all in black, kind of hazmat suits – maybe the US government still processes aliens here?? The wind never came up strong, and after hiking & lunch we sailed for Treasure Island.  Setting the anchor for the 1st time was an adventure.  We motored back and forth, discussing depth, tides, currents, and finally chose a place to drop anchor – RATS the anchor windlass doesn’t work (another project for another day) we dropped the anchor by hand (with a trip line), set an anchor alarm on both GPS’s and the ever efficient Galley wenches served up our beverages! Early the following morning (okay closer to 11) we hauled anchor, OH DOUBLE RATS, we can’t get the anchor wash down to work – another project, oh goodie.   Stowed the anchor in the upper locker rather than put all that mud and slime below!   We sailed/motored back to Alameda, it’s late fall and the wind is a little iffy.   Wednesday night off to Kathleen’s and a very yummy Mexican restaurant in Oakdale. Turkey day with Kathleen, Andy, Michael, Lynn, Kevin, Lana, Michaela, Gus & Jake was great.  The Sullivan clan entertained all (especially my kids) with their never ending stories of adventure and woe.  As usual there was plenty of conversation regarding Kelly, who never actually showed up (actually months of conversation before & after, phone calls, stories while we drove etc… the kid’s think she is a just a bogey woman invented by Kathleen & Maureen’s vivid imaginations).  Everyone provided stuff, Maureen & David ran the kitchen, Justin worked 5 hours shoveling wood chips, manure and bringing in horses, Katherine read & read & read.  Turkey night we dropped the kiddos at Becky’s home.   Friday was Turkey day at Becky’s so the kids got their second thanksgiving meal with Becky, Mike, Mom, Nathan & Austin.  They had a blast, can’t wait to go back and hang with Becky and family next time we are in town.  Friday Tenacious sailed out at about 11 am with a Sullivan crew of 5 + me.  We close reached under the bay bridge, out past Alcatraz and towards the gate before the captain invoked the 1 knot rule and the engine was fired up.  We got a little more wind towards Sausalito, then once again near Treasure Island before we motored back up the Oakland Inner Harbor.   Another great day out on the bay, everything was put away nice and tidy & in case Kathleen or Andy read this far, Tenacious was washed down nicely while Maureen walked everyone out.  David went out to Antioch, visited with Becky, & Family, Mom and Cindy C. before dropping mom home and bringing kids back to Alameda. Up early, 3am, for 6 am departure Saturday, a fun week in Alameda, 5 days on the boat and more systems under control (well a few more broke too…) Adventures by Katherine, Maureen, Justin & David + all family who contributed, text by David.
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