Pepper Pots: the BEST STORY EVER

This is actually an email that was such an engaging story that I decided to share it with the world. But first, a little background for those who haven't always been a part of the adventure that is my life...

I love gardens, but when I was in school, I moved back and forth between MI and NC every three months, which didn't really allow for me to keep a garden (it was also a different house every time). So finally last summer, I purchased some baby peppers and nurtured them and took them to Carolina with me, upon whence I transplanted them into the infamous Pepper Pots. I plan on putting peppers in them once again someday soon, but for now the pots are empty aboard the boat.  Look at last summer's peppers...aren't they cute?

So, back to the story:

When Kyle and I first arrived back from our failed attempt and were trying to get the sailboat down the main canal, just as we entered it, I lost the pepper pots. Now, the pepper pots are decent sized pots, replaceable at no less than $8. Fairly cheap, but I am currently at zero income. Anyway, not something I wanted to replace.

These pepper pots have been with us through it all, sitting calmly on the stern. Gale force winds, waves crashing over the boat, snow, ice and rain, they sat through it all, unmoving. They weren't even tied down in any way, just sitting there!  I kept expecting to lose them but Kyle thought they'd be fine.  Finally, in the calm of the main canal, they fall off and float away (I might have bumped them a tiny bit). We, of course, were fighting the depths and widths of the canal to get home, and could not be bothered with inane details like the pepper pots, floating away as sadly as Wilson on Castaway. I will never be able to lose something from the boat without feeling immense sadness. You have to watch it float away, knowing you can't leave your boat, and that the likelihood of ever seeing it again is slim.  Very sad.

So this was a couple weeks ago, and since then, the winds have changed, the water levels have risen and fall, and it's rained. The pots could be anywhere. They could have floated out into the river, filled with rain and drowned. They could have blown a mile down the river and gotten snagged in the reeds. They could have even drowned of their own accord at the mouth of the canal!

But didn't I say it was the best story ever? Yes. Yes, I did. Because despite the fact that we haven't gone through the main canal since we've gotten here, I kept hoping. So yesterday, when we went out on the bay for the first time, Kyle scanned the port bank and I scanned the starboard bank of the canal, hoping against all odds that they had somehow come back into the canal. And there, at the very mouth of the main canal, on the bank, were two lowly, unattended pepper pots, just waiting to be loved. And do I ever love them...

So, next on my list for today: take the dinghy down the main canal and retrieve the pepper pots! I've been thinking about it every so often, "Maybe today if the weather is nice..." But that is such a long row, especially when I didn't know the pots were there at all. Today is a gorgeous day, and I know exactly where my pots lie.

Save the pepper pots, SAVE THE WORLD!!!!!!!!!!!


 In other news, I know we've said this before but we're really leaving this time.  The last time, the water was supposed to come up but never did (the winds never really changed).  But now, we're two months (good grief...has it been that long?) past our original leave date.  The winds of change are upon us - spring is here, and with it, the water.  So today we are preparing for the adventure to begin again!  We leave tomorrow.  We're going to have a big day, from Tull Bay through the Albemarle Sound, but neither of us wants to see that first anchorage again.  It is supposed to rain, an extra challenge, but we're both just relieved to be able to get out of the canals.  Even with the extra two months of no progress, we both feel fairly comfortable with the time we need to get to Guate, although we may spend a little less time exploring and a little more time traveling.  The biggest issue I now face is what to do for St. Patrick's Day...