What is... National Liquidators?

We were told about an auction house in Fort Lauderdale, where we are staying temporarily, called National Liquidators -- it's massive. They sell both boats, sail and power, and airplanes. We're going to go see it on Friday. We are still looking at boats and getting advice from a trusted advisor. It's a pain to live out of rented apartments, even when they're not expensive, and I promise that we're getting closer to making a bid...

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Still not our boat:

Why not? It's a little crowded -- terrible for storage of dry goods, food, etc. 

 

So, don't cry for us, but it is truly not easy finding a boat that fits. There are lots of boats, but many don't work out for various reasons -- real versus perceived problems, cost of repairs, performance, etc. We'll keep you informed. I'll ask Zaneta to author the next post, and invite Leeson to write as well. 

Downed Light Plane Spotted *On* Fla Hiway

Driving on I-75 north of Sarasota, we noticed a traffic tie up -- then we saw a helicopter hovering in the distance, then fire trucks: 1, 2, 3, 4, and a CRANE? The crane was hoisting a low-wing Cessna-type single-engine plane off the grass between northbound and southbound lanes!

We don't see that every day. Two local TV trucks covered the incident. We hope no one was hurt!

LOOKING AT BOATS

[By Lee]

Ah... the infinite variety of boats... Hard to believe how many variations they embody! Made in Europe, South Africa, Asia, and the Americas of course: New England, Florida, California, etc. Many hull sizes and body types, now with equipment unimaginable to the "old salts" of olden days: Watermakers! Self-steering! Solar cells! Wind generators! We're looking at them in Florida, in Georgia too, as well as Maryland. We might go see some in Virginia as well. Wish us luck to get a good one! 

Below: NOT our boat

For more info on this boat, Google "Larry Ellison yacht"

More later!

In Memory of Grandpa Kenneth Junior (On Left in Photos) -- He Will Be Missed!

Last photo shows Kenny in World War II uniform -- circa age 16-18.

In Memoriam -- by Leeson

-Leeson-

My grandpa died today.

Reverend Kenneth M. died at 6:55 pm Eastern Time, August 8, 2012.

You Will Not Believe This Twist... by Lee

Ermahgerd! Sunday, we found a boat to check out as a possible, and talked to the boat broker's agent to look at it. So... Monday morn, we drove TWO hours one way to meet him, and he drove 45 min. one way to meet us at the boat. 

Then by chance, we learned on the spot that the boat was SOLD and the agent was never informed. Grrrrrr. No way to treat a boat agent, is it? 

We were all justifiably ticked off. Hours wasted, hopes dashed. Par for the course? We'll see. Tomorrow is another day.

Finally Homeless! by Zee

We sold our home. We weeded through years of STUFF! I never want to own so much STUFF again. What a great feeling to get rid of it. Now we have one car to sell and various paperwork to take care of. We now intensify our boat search.

We have a limited budget since we would like to stay out cruising as long as possible. Our goal is to find a boat which will be safe for our family and won't need tons of money to fix up.

We have looked a lot on the internet and now we actually go visit some yachts we are interested in, and to narrow down the field and put in our bid on the one we want.

I think more people don't do this because it is so much work! Unless you can afford the above.

Let the fun begin!