Friday, November 22, 2013

Evanston: nuts; (almost) everything


        In my new role as a gourmet chef, I have more food advice.  I know that’s why you come here.
        I eat a lot of nuts.  A handful of trail mix on my uncooked oatmeal for breakfast.  Another handful in yoghurt, which is my preferred lunch when I can get it.  I often snack on trail mix or nuts in late afternoon.  They last almost indefinitely and fit in well with my non-refrigerated boat life.  It turns out that you should eat nuts, too.
        A study recently reported in THE NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE concludes that eating a handful of nuts a day cuts mortality rates from heart disease by an astounding 29% and cancer by 11%.
        It doesn’t matter what kind of nuts you eat, including peanuts, which are actually legumes.
        An ounce to an ounce and a half/28 to 43 grams every day is most effective, but smaller amounts help, too.
        How many nuts are in an ounce varies by nut, from a low of 14 for walnut halves to 40 to 45 for pistachios.  Peanuts 28.  Almonds 20-24.  
        Calories also vary from 160 to 190 an ounce.
        Protein from 4 to 7 grams.
        That you read this journal proves your superior intelligence and discerning taste.  I want you to live a long, healthy life.  

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        I’ve spent part of the past two days trying to compile a comprehensive list for Vince, and anyone else who might be interested, of what I’ve done to and bought for GANNET in my now almost two and a half years of ownership.
        My approach was three pronged.
        I checked my Amazon order history.
        I went over my accounts in Quicken in which I usually make a note of what each expenditure is for.  
        And I then checked photographs in the Aperture library to see if anything appeared that I hadn’t discovered at Amazon or in Quicken.  Still, undoubtedly, there are things I've missed.
        In summary, I painted every inch of the boat inside and out, deck to keel.  Two coats. 
        I fully renovated the interior.  New cushions and pipe berth covers, stowage bags. 
        I replaced the rig, from the Windex at the masthead to the chainplates, including all standing rigging, mast and boom, and all running rigging except the spinnaker halyard.
        I installed an electrical system from solar panels to batteries that makes GANNET power independent.
        I added jib furling gear, gennaker furling gear, a carbon fiber bow sprit, an electric outboard, an inflatable dinghy, three more tiller pilots, and 10’ oars.
        Following is a list of what happened by year, and then a list of items bought and done in the order in which I came across them.  To organize them logically would take more time than I want to spend.
        The list does not include most standard supplies, such as sealant, WD40, McLube, bolts, tape, etc.
        I made some mistakes and false starts, among them the tea kettle, too many Bluetooth speakers, Hydro Flask, the Sportaseat lumbar cushion, oars and shockingly expensive custom fabricated oarlock sockets, and the Weems and Plath barometer.
        Several of these were problems of sequence.  The JetBoil stove renders the tea kettle unnecessary.  The Bluetooth speakers came on the market at different times and have different qualities—superior sound; small size; waterproof.  I found the lumbar cushion uncomfortable.   The Hydro Flask awkward to use. The Air Sight Reduction Tables replaced by the iMariner app.  I bought the Weems and Plath when the Ambient Weather station broke, but temperature on the W&P is difficult to read and I now have barometers in two watches.
        The greatest false start was the self-steering vane.  Once I decided not to fit it and to continue using the Torqeedo, rowing GANNET became unnecessary.  It wasn’t very effective anyway.
        By far the worst job was removing the fresh water only VC17 antifouling paint.
        It should be remembered that when I bought GANNET she was not a project boat, but was in very good shape, except for her interior, and fully equipped for day racing.
        Some of what I have done to her is just personal preference.  Most was to transform her into an ocean voyager.
        The total expense would be a significant multiple of what I paid for the little sloop.  I don’t want to know.  It was money well spent without regret.

2011
interior:  paint, cushions, covers, oil wood, stowage bags
Torqeedo
dinghy
batteries, electrical panel, wiring
Furlex jib furling gear
Facnor gennaker furling gear

2012
remove VC17 antifouling
antifoul with Petit Vivid
Tides Marine mainsail track
new sails:  fully battened main, 110% furling jib; asymmetrical     
    spinnaker
install four Aurinco solar panels, Solar Boost 2000e regulator
install Harken 20.2 winches
replace main sheet and all halyards except spinnaker
under deck reinforcement of aft lower shrouds
bow sprit
paint topsides
move GANNET west

2013
paint deck with non-skid
Treadmaster in cockpit
Raymarine depthfinder
oars; oar lock sockets
new forward hatch
new mast, boom, standing rigging, chain plates
rearrange deck layout around mast
new tiller
install two more solar panels
by item

elago USB chargers
Sanyo eneloop rechargeable batteries
Bose SoundLink Bluetooth speaker
Stearns Solar Shower 
2 Tripp Lite PV 150w DC to AC Inverters
DeWalt DCD710S2 12-Volt Electric Drill
SeaTeak Wall Mount Paper Towel Holder
Marinco 12V Receptacles
Blue Sea 8373 Water Resistant 6 Position electrical panel
WMF Waiters knife and corkscrew
2 dishes, 2 plastic measuring cups to eat from, cutlery
2 Dartington Exmoor crystal glasses
Revere Whistling tea kettle
Sony ICF-SW7600GR AM/FM Shortwave radio
Soundmatters foxLv2 Bluetooth speaker
Phenolic G-10 Glass Grade Sheet, several small
    pieces of varying thickness for backing plates
Uniden QT-206W Digital Depth Finder
Mighty Bright Clip-On lights (Kindle version)
Icom IC-M88 Handheld VHF radio
Lasko 754200 Ceramic Heater
Jetboil stove
Jetboil 1.5 Liter cooking pot
Maglite 2-D Cell LED flashlight and bracket
2 small flashlights
2 headlamps
Ecoxgear Ecoxbt waterproof bluetooth speaker
3M 4910 VHB mounting tape
Ambient Weather WS-1171 weather station
Pelican HardBack waterproof iPad case
Irwin 8-inch Multi electrical wire stripper, crimper
Dremel Tool
life jackets, fog horn, flares
aLoksak Dry Bags
The Sextant Handbook
2012 Nautical Almanac
Celestial Navigation for Yachtsmen
Dual Electronics XGPS150 Bluetooth GPS receiver
Scosche Low-Profile USB car charger
Adidas Men’s CC Lace Watershoes
Panasonic ES8243! Men’s electric shaver
Camelbak Eddy Bottle
Hydro Flask 64 ounce stainless steel bottle
Torqeedo Travel 1003 electric outboard
DC charging cord for Torqeedo
hand tools and tool bag
electric sander
electric jig saw
2 Sportaseats
Sportaseat lumbar cushion
battery charger
binoculars
interior cushions and pipe berth
rigging knife
three sleeping bags:  two light weight, one heavier
tiller extension
sheet bags for cockpit and interior stowage
Furlex jib furling gear
sail repair needles, twine, waxed whipping twine
Facnor gennaker furling gear
3 tiller pilots
tiller pilot remote
paint:  interior, exterior hull, antifouling, deck non-skid
new main, jib, asymmetrical spinnaker
Blue Sky Solar Boost 2000e solar regulator 
6 Aurinco solar panels
2 bow cleats
2 Harken 20.2 sheet winches
Harken winch handle
pad eyes, line for aft lower  shrouds below deck
Lewmar rope clutches:  2 doubles; 1 single
Tides Marine Strong System mainsail track
4 five gallon jerry cans for water
Gannet name decals
several duffle bags, 2 waterproof
iNavX chartplotting app, charts
iMariner app
1 sheet of Treadmaster
Lewmar mid profile hatch
10’ oars and locks
custom oar lock socket
dock lines
splash covers for main hatch
Navisafe 360° light
masthead Windex
Shaka iPad wind instrument
waterproof cases iTouch, iPad
Garmin Quatix watch
Avon RedStart inflatable dinghy
Velocitek ProStart
Deks Olje
2 Group 24 Lifeline AGM batteries
Silva compass
teak mirror
MSR Pocket Rocket stove
old jib recut to be furling
15 pound Delta anchor and rode
sextant
Air Sight Reduction tables
iMariner app
Forte carbon fiber bow sprit
Trailer repair and tires
tow GANNET west
Ballenger mast and boom
riggers install mast and boom
Weems and Plath barometer
standing rigging
main sail, furling jib, asymmetrical  spinnaker
carbon fiber bow sprit
Furlex jib furling gear
running rigging except for spinnaker halyard
mainsail cover
Velocitek ProStart and mast mount
small bow roller
bow cleats to replace u-bolts
Lewmar mid-profile hatch
Lewmar rope clutches
six 25 watt Aurinco solar panels
Raymarine depthsounder
main traveler cleats
tiller and cover
two additional cockpit sheet bags
oar sockets
Torqeedo outboard
two coats deck non-skid paint
hull repainted
removed VC17 antifouling
antifouled with Petit Vivid
new name decals each side hull

Jordan drogue