From Clipper to Dipper – A New Direction
In a move that to some is ill-conceived and inconsiderate, we have decided to put Penelope up on the block. Not the headsman’s block, or even the auction block, but the “For Sale” block. It’s not that we don’t love her, but that we have a sort of self-imposed monogamist ideal for vehicles of the recreational sort, and we have decided that in order to truly enjoy Homer, we are going to need something that will carry us across bodies of water, which Penelope is just not very good at.
As I said in the Craigslist ad: ”We need the money to buy a boat.” But it’s not just any boat – this is a boat we would not have trouble lavishing our attentions on, unlike your typical, run-of-the-mill fiberglass or aluminum vessels, which are certainly much more affordable! We didn’t mean to find a “special” boat so soon, as we are not yet financially recovered from the move, and we keep doing projects here that use up more money more quicker than we anticipated.
This boat is a Devlin “Dipper”, Devlin being Sam Devlin, the boat designer/builder in Olympia who actually built this very one, “Dipper” being the model, and her name is Chakewha, which is Nepali for little bird. I’ve spoken to Sam, as well as the prior owner, who sailed her out of Resurrection Bay (Seward) for about seven years, and I enjoyed to talking to both gentlemen, as well as the very amicable current owner, who had to move from Homer due to work reasons. Sam Devlin’s boat designs are exquisite, and if you have any love for watercraft, I recommend you visit his site, http://www.devlinboat.com .
But that is all really another story, for another time, and there is much yet to tell about Penelope. Since we arrived here in Homer, we have been busy, but also have found time to take some time out, and get to know the area, which, as it turns out, is simply fantabulous!
On two of these occasions, Penelope played a leading role … I mean, how could she not? She’s very pretty, shiny, and 34 feet long…..she kinda steals the show!
You’ll forgive me if this post is very long, and somewhat rambling. Life has been such that even when we’ve slowed down enough to do what amounts to nothing, it is hard to turn away from facing this brisk breeze of the present long enough to write the experiences out and post them, except for the occasional email to an inquisitive friend who asks how things are going in a specific enough way that their queries can be answered in less than a week of typing.
So I’ll talk a bit about the two outings we had with Penelope, then figure out a way to post her current condition for those prospective buyers who have enough curiosity to read through all this blather to figure out just what it is that they are looking to buy! We are hoping to find a buyer for Penelope before the snow flies, as not only would that mean she is likely ours for the rest of the long winter, but that the seller of Chakewha would have by then sold her to another, or paid to have her shipped to her new home.
Later tonight, and over the weekend, I will be posting more data, so make sure to check back for new posts!
Gene
