After getting rid of the boxes on the floor (one of my pet peeves – too easy to forget what’s in them), we realized that a new coat of paint was in order.

Getting better and better down there. I think I’ll touch up the sides of the hull with some white. It still won’t be as pretty as the engine room, but it’s not bad for a lazarette.

Funny part is that after we organized the tool box and got rid of some more stuff, we barely needed the second shelf. It looks really nice to have clean, horizontal space not jammed with clutter. Ahhhh, time to take the rest of the day off!

Everybody has one. Usually when people move out of their houses every 5-7 years, they clean it out and probably throw most of it away. However, on a boat, frequently things get passed from owner to owner. I imagine the tool box in the lazarette has been there for quite a few KJ owners. It was certainly full when I acquired her. There are literally drawers that all look like this. Piles and piles of stuff.

I’m pretty sure no one has thrown much away for the last 58 years, using the “well, we might need it someday” mentality. Which is all well and good up to a point. You may be out in the Pacific someday when your Name-That-Part breaks and all you have to work with is what is in the tool box.

But I’ve been on board for nearly 4 years now. And I’ve learned a few things during that time. Namely, A) we’ll NEVER need that many screws. Never. and B) if you can’t find it, it’s not much use.

Keeping this in mind, I forced poor, over-worked Brock to add a second shelf on top of the first. I just know we’ll need it as we bring things back down from the hot tub project (yes, we’re still cleaning up from that).

And with boundless energy, we began the attack.

Sorting took hours, but now we will be able to find the things we need when we need them.

And almost everything has a home.

We’re still not done, but it’s time for a rest now.

KJ has ironbark on her bow for added protection against log strikes, etc. Recently, one plank popped loose. That was a bit alarming at first, as Brock was worried about bad wood underneath (that constant lurking fear of any wooden boat owner). Luckily, it was just old original fasteners (square nails). I suppose they have the right to rust out after 58 years. We removed the ones that we could get to, got the stubborn ones back in their places, and added some nice new silicon bronze screws to do the job right for another 50 years.

Brock made the project easier by heeling the boat over to port with the help of the dinghy so that we could get the planking just a little higher above water level.

Raft up! The little concrete float here is pretty handy, although it’s a constant battle to keep it away from the finished surfaces of not only our boat, but the neighbor as well. Which is where my job comes in. Brock does the labor, as usual, and I keep the float where it’s supposed to be. As he’s pushing against KJ to pry and lever things, I attempt (more or less successfully) to apply the same amount of pressure by pulling on that rope attached to KJ so we don’t go bouncing from boat to boat.

Next haulout, we will go through and refasten all of the ironbark. Add it to that neverending list!