Winter in Charleston

Feb 4 thru Feb 7

—Blogpost written by Bob

Monday, February 4

What a terrible Super Bowl last night!  13-3?  C'mon, man.  

Today is a beautiful sunny day.  Maggie was doing laundry early in the morning while I was doing some errands online.  We had to go to the post office to mail a package (some RayMarine cables being returned) and then we went out for lunch at the Brown Dog Deli on Broad Street, one of our favorite lunch spots.

I envy these guys working to remodel a
storefront on Broad Street--I really DO
(except for having a boss).

An egret searching for lunch
in a shallow tidal pond
near the marina.

Tuesday, February 5

Today was another beautiful day, sunny and warm temperatures (highs in the mid to high-60's)--it was even warmer than yesterday!

Our experiment of sleeping in the quarter berth is over--it was just too cramped for me.  The quarter berth has more length for me to stretch out my legs but not enough width at the top.  So, we (meaning Maggie) moved all our bedding back to the v-berth and moved all the junk (its not really junk but things that have to be stored) back into the quarter berth.

Our last night sleeping in the quarter berth
was February 4.  It was just a bit too
cramped. It is only 42 inches
across at its widest point, 
which is just 3 inches 
wider than a twin.

Our big goal for the day was to send one pair of my Maui Jim sunglasses back to the factory for repairs, go out for lunch at New York City Pizza, and stop by the downtown Harris Teeter for a few needed groceries, and doing this all on our bikes.  (Of course, this was beside moving around our sleeping quarters.)

We had lunch at New York City Pizza on East Bay Street.  We have pronounced their pizza the best in Charleston.  They use just the right kind and the perfect amount of tomato sauce and a perfect blend of Italian cheeses!  Of course, we are still open to new pizza restaurants in case there is one that is even better.

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One of the small projects I've undertaken recently was re-organizing my hand tools.  I've been using a small plastic toolbox for the tools that I keep onboard but it is overflowing and I can't get the lid closed.  So, I ordered a (WorkPro brand) soft tool bag on Amazon--it arrives tomorrow.

The 16-inch long WorkPro tool bag
that I recently ordered.

Wednesday, February 6

This morning at 9 AM it was already 65 degrees outside!  What a beautiful day!

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The latest book I've read is on the subject of oysters.  (I realize that the subject matter for books I read is all over the map!)  The title is The Essential Oyster: A Salty Appreciation of Taste and Temptation and it was written by Rowan Jacobsen.  My love of oysters goes way back to my upbringing in southeastern Pennsylvania with the delicious oyster stew that my mom used to make.  I've improved on her recipe quite a lot during my life.  When I moved to Annapolis I really got into raw oysters by having oyster shooters at Middleton's Tavern.  It wasn't until we moved our boat to Baltimore that I really started to appreciate oysters on the half shell.  Here in Charleston, there must be a half dozen oyster bars where you can sample oysters from all over the east coast.  (I had some recently in 167 RAW that were from Prince Edward Island in Canada. I didn't know it at the time but these cold water oysters take a year longer to mature than most others.)

Most oysters we eat now come from oyster farms.  The oysters grow from seedlings to maturity (usually in one year) in shallow wire cages that are suspended in the sea water.  Oyster farmers have branded their products, each farming method being a little different from the others.  The oyster farms are typically located in bodies of water that one would recognize.  (This book, available on Amazon, contains some great photography, much more than in the typical Kindle book--it takes a little longer to download because of this.)

One of the local oyster bars that I am looking forward to visiting is Pearlz in downtown Charleston, now that I have a whole new appreciation for this delicacy.

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Maggie drove to Sarasota this morning--it's a 7 to 8-hour trip and it was a last-minute decision which usually doesn't work out well. 

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After Maggie left I decided to have lunch at Pearlz Oyster Bar today.  After all, life is short.  It was a 1.7-mile bike ride to Pearlz.  Anxious to use my new knowledge about oysters, I ordered a combination plate of half shells with (4) house (James River) oysters, (4) Half Moon oysters (highly recommended by my server) from Massachusetts, and (4) Beau Soleil from Nova Scotia. 

The daily menu of oysters 
on the half shell.

The Half Moons were my favorite of the three types and the James River (the only non-farmed oysters of the combination) were my least favorite.  The James River oysters were very similar to what we typically get in Annapolis and Baltimore, even though they are typically from the Choptank River on the Eastern Shore.

I think these four were the Blue
Soleil from Nova Scotia.

It was so warm when I got back to the boat (78 degrees) that I ran the air conditioner for a while.  I think this was the first time I ever ran the air conditioner in early February!  The high temperatures over the next couple days should be similar.

A sailboat race on the Ashley River
during the late afternoon.

Thursday, February 7

Another beautiful day is in store!  My new tool bag arrived yesterday and I reorganized my tools this morning.  I ordered a couple smaller tool bags to fit inside the big one to keep my (1) electronic tools and my (2) wrenches separate from my other tools.  The new system should work out fine.

Before lunch I rode my bike to the UPS Store on Market Street in town and dropped off a return to Amazon (I ordered the wrong size) and while I was out I had lunch at New York City Pizza on East Bay Street (2 slices of cheese pizza and a Cooper River Ale).  (Cooper River is one of the two rivers that join together at Charleston Harbor--the other one is the Ashley River where Charleston City Marina is located.)

Today's lunch was comprised of two slices of
cheese pizza and a Cooper River Ale.

Riding my bike 3+ miles per day has really provided great exercise for me.  Over the past couple years I've had problems with my right knee but it has mostly disappeared lately.  I think this improvement is due to the regular biking exercise I've been getting.

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One of my goals today is to continue refinishing the interior companionway teak.  I started this little project before leaving Baltimore.  Now that the weather is nice, it is a great time to get it done!  I got the area taped off this afternoon but I will wait until tomorrow morning to start the sanding and varnishing.  More on this in our next blogpost...

While you are in the mood for reading blogs, you might also like to check out a couple other sailing blogs that I follow: Lat43North or Life is a Cream Puff

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