A Sail of Two Idiots (8 page)

As I was chewing over that one, wondering what we were going to do, we got a notice from the State of Florida telling us we had about two weeks to get the boat out of Florida before we'd have to pay sales tax on it (about $18,000). We had been told upon closing that we had 90 days to move the boat out of the state (I think you may get 180 days now), but those days had passed in a blur. What now?

We obviously weren't ready to move the boat. Ten pages of things to fix or buy was eating up a lot of cash (with lots more to be spent). Our to-do list included our own desires, what had been on the survey, and the added things that Michael had found wrong since he'd moved aboard. We tapped our savings, and I did some creative financing, transferring money back and forth between two credit cards to keep us afloat (so to speak) and avoid hefty finance charges (ooooh, the frequent flyer miles we earned).

Here's a portion of the B.O.A.T. list so you can get a feel for the fun we had from the get-go.

Replace two of the severely crazed side windows ($2,000). We couldn't see out of them, and you already know how I feel about that (if we wanted to be blind, we would have bought a monohull).

Fix the wind sensors on top of the mast ($350, seller paid)—very important instrument that reports wind direction and wind speed.

Replace the cushions with some incredibly badly sewn ones made with festive fabrics ($2,000). Seafoam cushioning is necessary, but it's expensive and not very comfortable.

Install new carpeting in some areas ($100).

Replace all lights with LEDs for less amp usage ($100).

Replace the swollen house batteries. We upgraded to absorbed glass mat batteries (AGMs), which were maintenance-free and longer lasting (and more expensive) than the more traditional wet-cell batteries ($1,500).

Clean, clean, clean ($1,000).

Pay for tools, repairs, food, et cetera ($$$$$$$).

Michael may not be the handiest person, and he knew absolutely nothing about engines, but he was good at reading manuals and figuring things out and was able to muddle through quite a few projects. He had also moved aboard and had relocated the boat (with help) from the Fort Lauderdale docks to our broker's slip in a pleasant Miami marina. (The broker and his wife were now our friends and were up north with their yacht.)

With just two weeks left before we had to get the boat out of Florida, I decided to quit my job. I had to believe that our house would sell soon. And I needed to get on board and familiarize myself with the boat and its systems. I also needed to find a captain, since we were obviously not going to be able to learn enough (well, learn
anything
, truth be told) before we had to move the vessel out of state.