Prologue -- Part II

In late February, 2017, husband Rick, son Alex, and I drove to a small town near Annapolis, MD to check out two boats that Rick and our broker found on the internet (YachtWorld.com).  We looked at this boat, the Zingara, as it was in a storage shed (held upright by huge metal stands), with about 30 other boats.  This enabled us (well, Rick) to inspect the hull, propellers, rudders, etc.  After climbing up a ladder, just to get to the swim platform, we had a wonderful in-depth tour of the boat, engines, bridges, and dingy. All of it was up to, and often exceeded, Rick's (and Alex's and my) standards.

On the drive back to Michigan, we placed an offer on her and it was accepted!

As the boatyard has to move the other surrounding boats -- first in/last out -- the boat didn't go into the water till early April. So,we returned to Oxford, once again, our car filled with boat necessities, to run trials on the boat and close on the purchase. 

It's been a pretty wild ride, checking out boats, thinking of how I'm going to live on one for 3 months, being able to afford a boat ... that I could live on for 3 months ...  and now, finally finding one, and holding our breath to see if they would accept the offer, and that it would pass trials without too many/costly repairs. 

Adding to the excitement, we listed, and sold our large home in Clarkston, and will have to return there for college Graduations -- Patrick graduates on April 28th, Alex on the 29th -- then, power pack up our home, as we have to be out of the house by May 12th.    After that, Rick and I will be homeless, living on the boat until we find a condo in Michigan..

The plan is to stay in the Chesapeake Bay for about a week, learning the nuances, idiosyncrasies for the boat and of different docks/marinas.
Then, we start heading north.  eventually, up the Hudson River, to the Erie Canal, then into Lake Erie, and the Detroit River.   By the end of June, we hope to be able to dock the boat at a marina (maybe Jefferson Beach Marina), just northeast of downtown Detroit, for the summer. 

and so starts my Life on Zingara!

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