BIG DAY!

Today is a big day for the Jones family. We will close on the sale of our house. One big giant step towards our dream of going cruising. We are both really excited and really nervous at the same time. I'm sure we are going against any prudent financial advice by taking this path. At the same time, we have a dream and it has never felt so close or so tangible!

When we found out that Troy had cancer we felt that our future was so uncertain that we could not continue with our plans for cruising. We spent a year concentrating on defeating the cancer and at least another six months getting Troy healthy again. We decided that the doctors try to kill the cancer AND you with the chemo, radiation and surgery. Thankfully they only managed to kill the cancer. Then, of course, the cancer is trying to kill you too. Once again - God had other plans for Troy.

The lesson was really driven home to us that we only have a limited time on this earth. You know the saying, you only regret the things you didn't do. We are determined that we will follow our dream and see where it takes us. We feel so blessed that we have been given another chance to live life to the fullest. And so, today, we celebrate being one giant step closer to following that dream!

Troy worked really hard on this house. He made it our dream home. We will miss it (until it's time to mow the grass again!)...

Fear not that life shall come to an end, but rather fear that it shall never have a beginning. ~John Henry Cardinal Newman

If you wait, all that happens is that you get older. ~Larry McMurtry, Some Can Whistle

When your life flashes before your eyes, make sure you've got plenty to watch. ~Author unknown, from a television commercial

We Went Sailing!

Finally, at long last. It was the first time we have had a chance to get Storyville out of her slip this year. We've had a really cold winter and between Troy working on the house and working his real job, there hasn't been much time for any fun.

This weekend was a little different. I don't recall any work, just lots of fun, and it was high time for some sailing and some fun. We led a TMCA cruise to our favorite cruising destination, Double Bayou. There were 12 boats on our cruise and because of the strong north wind, there wasn't much water in the bay. Double Bayou can be a little tricky getting into with a sailboat, especially when there are really low tides.

If you sail you know the saying - if you ain't been aground then you ain't been around. Trust me, this weekend, we got AROUND. Us and the other four sailboats that were with us! Nothing serious, just had to feel our way up the Double Bayou channel.

We had a decent motor sail over on Saturday, got all the boats situated, put our dinghy in the water and opened our first beer of the weekend. Ahhh, sunny weather, a cold beer, a dinghy and a bayou. Life doesn't get much better than that. We had a wonderful time that night with our TMCA friends and our friends at Channel Marker. It was Ernestine's birthday and there was a DJ at the bar and lots of dancing and having fun.

TMCA Cruisers and Cruise Leaders!

Sunday dawned bright and clear and we shared a great breakfast aboard s/v Waltzing Matilda. About the time we headed out for home a nice east to southeast breeze was blowing. After feeling our way out of the channel again, we set sail and headed back to Kemah. It was a beautiful day and the wind cooperated to create a perfect sail all the way home and into the Kemah channel and past the boardwalk, all under sail. Just wonderful!!!

Troy had great news from his doctor last week. The PET Scan was all good and he received the coveted NED (No Evidence of Disease). His doctors seem to feel like the three year mark is a milestone for him and we are very glad to hear that. He will be back for another PET Scan in June.

It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade. ~Charles Dickens