St. Patrick's Day

We really hadn't planned on doing much for St. Patrick's Day with it being a work day, but friend and neighbor, Dave Johnson let us know he'd be playing at Castaway's and he would greatly appreciate the support. So it was off to Castaway's as soon as Jeff got off work. Several friends joined us and it ended up being a really, nice time. One of the highlights of the evening was when Dave asked Jeff and I to join him on the mike while he performed "Wagon Wheel" [Old Crow Medicine Show via Bob Dylan]









We hope everyone had a happy and safe St. Patrick's Day!

In the pics: Stephanie [S/V Legend], Karen [M/V Magna-C], Jameson [S/V Baby Blue], and Dave Johnson [S/V Choucoune]

We always enjoy watching Dave live whether it be on our boat, at the tiki hut, or at a local establishment...and here's a small clip for you to enjoy as well.


And thanks to Donnie & Janet for Jeff's extra fancy, St. Patrick's Day work shirt. Check out the authentic City logo.
Cool, huh?

Good Food & Good Company

~Company Arrives
Our latest wave of company fled a cold, gray, Kentucky morning and arrived to sunny skies Wednesday, March 11th. Meet Donnie and Janet Chambers. Donnie and Jeff used to be beat partners in their early days on the police department. In fact, they still say they've spent more nights together than they have with either Janet or I. Oh well. Good for them.
Since Jeff was working Wednesday, I made the trek to Ft. Lauderdale to pick them up at the airport and greeted them with cold, fruity beverages for the ride back...that's how the Misty Shuttle rolls. They had been traveling since the wee hours of the morning and I had a sneaking suspicion that they might require a stop for sustenance, plus, I remembered from previous visits that Janet requires food every 2 hours. I even had snacks in the car...just in case. We made it to Alabama Jack's without anyone passing out from hunger and ordered fish dip, smoked fish, fried grouper, and shrimp and soon had a table full of delicious food. Once everyone's bellies were content, we headed back to the main road with stops in Key Largo for the African Queen...Yes, they had seen the movie! ...and to re-up our supplies. We arrived at the marina with Jeff waiting patiently under the tree, loaded the dinghy, and headed for the boat. Janus was very happy to see his "Uncle" Donnie whom he loves to take for long walks in the park. He was also happy to see Janet as she had brought him a squeaky baby which he then promptly shredded.
For dinner we were off to Dockside by dinghy and had a pleasant surprise when we got a good listen of the evening's entertainment, Rob Sweet. He played quite a few excellent covers [John Prine, John Hiatt, Todd Snyder] but we were most impressed by his original music. We bought his CD along with a couple of "Sweet" bumper stickers and the CD sounds just as good on the boat as he did in person...a somewhat rare occurrence. We wish him well and hope he returns to Marathon soon.
The next morning, Donnie & Jeff were up at the crack of dawn and headed in for a boys breakfast at the Pig before Jeff had to go to work. Donnie brought us girls back something to nibble on and then while a slightly hung-over Janet and I went to yoga, he and Janus hit the park.
After yoga, we were off to the Keys Fishery for a bit of lunch...cracked conch, fried grouper, and snapper tacos. A little bit of grocery shopping was in order and then we headed back to the S/V Exposure for some suntan time on the deck. We had dinner on board...rotisseried, dry-rubbed ribs; corn on the cob; cheesy broccoli; and garlic bread...and called it an early evening.
We had big plans for Friday.
Jeff took the day off and we all headed to Key West. The plan was to ride the trolley and see the sites so our first stop was Mac's Sea Garden to purchase tickets. We had a bit of a wait for the first trolley and we were a little thirsty so we started walking. We stopped briefly at the Schooner Wharf Bar and then on to Captain Tony's. One of our very favorite people, Brian Paul, was playing so we settled in with a couple of pirate punches. We were having such a good time listening to Brian [Janet was jazzed because he knew some Pearl Jam] that we were reluctant to leave and catch a trolley, but we had already purchased the tickets, so we said our goodbyes and headed to trolley stop #1, Mallory Square.
The great thing about riding the trolley is that you can get on and off at any of their stops. We stayed on until stop #10 which put us at the Southern-most point. So here we are, the Southern-most people having a really good time. Then we walked around the Southern-most block, stopped at the Southern-most grocery shop, used the Southern-most bathroom, and ordered a couple Southern-most sandwiches. Then we were off to the [Southern-most?] Butterfly Conservatory after which, we were back on the trolley. We finished up our tour and then decided to head back to the car. Everyone was talking about the big storm that was supposed to roll in around 6 o'clock and we wanted to get out of town first. We made a stop at Bobalu's for pizza, chicken livers, and fried green tomatoes, and it did pour pretty good while we were eating but with none of the high winds they were expecting. Then it was back to Marathon, back to the boat, and back to a very happy-to-see-us dog.
~The Marathon Original Seafood Festival
Last year, I saw an ad in the paper asking for volunteers for the Seafood Festival. It involved a 2 hour shift, a free t-shirt, and free addmission, so I got my t-shirt, did my shift, and had a really good time. This year when the call came for volunteers, it came directly to my email. I signed Karen and I up right away and as soon as I realized that Donnie and Janet's visit would coincide with the fest, I signed her up too. I even arranged for our t-shirts to be picked up for us, delivered to the marina, and to be altered with a cute v-neck & shorter sleeves.
Saturday morning, we got up and had some breakfast at the Wooden Spoon and planned out our day. The Seafood Festival was a must, but it'd be nice to work in some relaxing and suntanning time as well. We ended up at the fest in our custom T's in the early afternoon, just in time to feed our company. The food was fabulous.
The whole lobster dinners were cooked to perfection and served with melted butter, baked beans, hush-puppies, and a roll. We also tried the smoked fish spread, the conch ceviche, and the fried fish...all excellent.
Afterwards, we perused the many booths of art, clothing, jewelry, hats, purses, spices, and boat stuff and even made a purchase or 2.


The only thing we were looking more forward to than the food was Howard Livingston, and he was up on stage at 5 o'clock. Howard is the consummate showman with his variety of island tunes and crowd-pleasing presence. In the middle of the show, he brings out a blender powered by a Johnson outboard motor and makes margaritas for the audience. But, it's not all about having fun. The civically-minded Howard auctioned off the first pitcher of margarita's for his favorite cause, KOA Care Camp - a special program to send kids with cancer to summer camp. In another effort to raise money and awareness for Care Camp, Howard has started "Hat's Off For Charity" in which his trademark, turquoise blue, Mile Marker 24 hats -which you could only get before when he flung the one he happen to be wearing into the crowd at the end of a special event- are now available for a donation. As you can see in the picture, Jeff made a generous donation and we all got hats signed by Howard long with multiple picture taking opportunities.
Check out Howard's site when you get a chance...The Seafood Festival still isn't up yet in his gallery of events but I am sure it will be soon.

Now how do you top off an evening like that? Well, it was Saturday night, so we went to the tiki hut at the marina. We were all pretty jazzed and feeling no pain...Janet had already switched Donnie to water, but he snuck in a couple of sips of the good stuff whenever she wasn't looking.
Jeff played a few songs along with our musical marina regulars and it ended up a late night for us. But what a good time!

Sunday morning dawned way too early because of the time change but Janet was up, so that means the rest of us got up. We walked across to the Stuffed Pig for breakfast and afterwards, us girls had to report to duty at the front gate. Due to a slight glitch in scheduling, our 2 hour shift was shortened to 1 hour when the volunteer organizer realized she had 8 people scheduled for an hour that the gate wasn't even open. We did our time handing out tickets, stamping hands, and directing people to the raffle booth "for a chance to win a chest of seafood." Then at noon, we were off for the beer tent and to peruse what wares we might have missed on the previous day.
In the meantime, the boys were in the garage fixing our diesel generator. It had a screw broke off in the housing for the water pump and had to be pulled out of the lazarette to be worked on. Well, the thing weighs a ton, and Jeff swore if he had to take the beast out, he wouldn't be putting it back in...hence the reason it is now in the garage.

So, we are now the proud owners of a Honda 2000 portable generator and Jeff seems much happier. The other generator has since sold for a good price thanks to the boys' efforts to fix it, clean it up, and add a little paint to it, and Jeff seems pretty happy about that as well.

After wrapping up at the seafood fest and in the garage, boys and girls met up and we headed back to the boat for some more lounging around in the sun on the deck. We had the most beautiful weather for the weekend. Chamber of Commerce weather - clear skies, sunny with a breeze...warm in the day, cool in the evening. Perfect.
When the time came, we headed to shore in the dinghy and across the street to Annette's for dinner. Good food...great salad bar...and then good night!
~Last Day...
Now, it's Monday, the last day of the trip, and Jeff has to go to work. Donnie, now an old pro at running the outboard, ran him ashore and then to Leigh Ann's for cappuccinos and everything bagels. Today was beach day and since they had been to Sombrero Beach on a previous trip, Janet suggested that we go to Bahia Honda State Park, which they had recently seen mention of on a television show.
But first, I had to do the Cruiser's Net [VHF channel 68 @ 9am] since Monday is my day as Net Controller/Local Celebrity. Donnie and Janet seemed to enjoy listening to the friendly banter amongst the boaters.
Then we were off to stick our toes in the water and our butts in the sand. We set up camp on the edge of the water and then did a little beach combing. Lot's of sponges had washed up on shore as well as many other interesting sea treasures. Donnie and I took turns walking Janet while the other got to relax and read a book in the peace and sunshine. Before we left, we made a trip up the path to the observation platform...an old section of the 7-mile bridge that has been restored and provides an awe-inspiring, panoramic view of the surrounding area.
We were lucky enough to spy a pretty good sized iguana having an afternoon snack along the path on the way back down...and speaking of snacks, by now we were all starving, so, we loaded back into the car and after a quick detour to the bay side of the park, we headed to Porky's for a fabulous lunch of Sebastian Inlet clams for Janet and I and mojo pork for Donnie.
Jeff got off work at 4 and we met up with him for a late afternoon cocktail on the S/V Exposure. We told him all about our day and showed him the pictures. Then we were off to the Sunset Grille for some dinner and a beautiful view of what else? The sunset. Located right at the base of the 7-mile bridge and facing west, the Sunset Grille, formally Chappy's, offers a great selection of tasty seafood, served poolside or in their expansive tiki hut, with the best scenery in Marathon. Donnie and I both enjoyed a raw/steamed combo of shrimp, clams, crab legs, and raw oysters. Jeff had yummy panko breaded hogfish while Janet spooned down some savory conch chowder. We even got Janet to try a couple of oysters...a first. The cooked Rockerfeller variety she'll probably have again but a definite pass on ever having them raw again.
~Departing...
It's always sad to see people we enjoy leave. Donnie and Janet packed up their things Tuesday morning and I drove them to Ft. Lauderdale to catch a plane back north. We made a stop at my favorite Cuban breakfast place, the Blue Marlin, in Key Largo. Donnie and I enjoyed our huevos rancheros and Janet figured out that while she may not like Cuban food...she does like Cuban coffee as she snatched up Donnie's cafe con leche. We made it to the airport on time and without incident & I had to say good-bye. But, on my return back to the boat, I realized that Donnie & Janet were still with us...if not in spirit, then in black sharpie marker! Janet had stayed up late the night before their departure and left us good-bye and thank you notes EVERYWHERE...the propane tank, the water jugs, the liquor bottles, the water bottles, the bottom of a cup, the powder, the aloe vera, Jeff's vitamins, my vitamins, the aleve, the cigarettes, the lighter, the ashtray, the calendar, the butter [?], the parmesan cheese, the old bay, the dog shampoo, the tog toy, the dog pills, the car keys, my apple sticker [ungh!]...all became surfaces for well wishes. Jeff and I both found personal notes in our wallets, bags, notebooks, and hidden on the nav station. All we can say is, "You're welcome!" and "We love you, too!"...and maybe next time we'll hide the markers.

All Blogged Up

Life has been a little busy here on the S/V Exposure...
We've had company, then the seafood festival, then St. Patrick's Day, and then more company, and in the midst of all that Jeff has been working on restoring another boat.
But never fear! The blogs are coming!

Here's a couple of pictures to tide you over.

Pig Races

Just as I promised, here's a blog about racing pigs...

Everyone who comes to visit knows about the Stuffed Pig...it's a favorite breakfast spot, with a huge tiki hut and garden behind a hole-in-the-wall-esc diner right across the street from the marina and there's just no place better to celebrate National Pig Day. This year, pig day fell on a Monday so all the festivities were held on the weekend prior. The restaurant, which normally closes at 3 in the afternoon, boasted a special dinner menu for Friday and Saturday nights and all you can eat BBQ with all the fixings on Sunday. But the main attraction wasn't the pig on the plate, but the ones on the track. The races ran every 2 hours with 3 heats each segment and parimutuel betting with odds and everything. Another betting option won you prizes for picking the winning pigs...the more pigs you picked the bigger the prize. The proceeds for the event went to Grace Jones Community Center a local non-profit organization that provides affordable child-care to the surrounding area.

I won $4 dollar off a $2 bet...I had apparently picked the favorite, Christina Hogulara. But the rest of my wagers went to charity.

With names like Shakin' Bacon, Pork Chop Pam, Oscar Mayer, Dustin Hogman, and Brittany Spear-Ribs, you can't help but giggle at the announcements as these pigs race around the track. Most of the pigs are quite fast and the race is over before you know it and the pigs are eating cookies at the finish line. That's how they motivate them to run around the track in the first place. The pigs' diet consists of a somewhat salty tasting feed and they only get sweet treats on race day upon crossing the finish line.

[Pic right: Jeff giving Gia a better view]

Click play arrow to start video.

Our favorite pigs to watch are the huge, Asian potbelly pigs. No amount of cookies could make these behemoths hurry anywhere and their "race" can last 10 - 15 minutes.

This year, a new addition to the races was the "Pig Hop" which took place in the center of the track in between racing segments and required human participants to straddle air-filled pigs and by placing all dignity aside "hop" to a win across the finish line. The following video is hopefully the most embarrassing thing you'll ever see me do...but in my defense, I had a strategy. I was going to pick up my pig and use my long legs to run down the track to victory. Makes perfect sense - in theory. But my pig took a dive and I guess you'll just have to see the rest for yourself. I'm the one in the middle, and to my right is Matt McJunkin and to my left Kendra McJunkin, our good friends who just recently relocated to Marathon.

And don't worry, no air-filled pigs were harmed or injured in the making of this video.

Sick & Tired

So, call it the flu, a cold, or a virus, but whatever bug was creeping around the marina, I managed to catch it. It started with a sore throat and a restless night and developed into pure blown feeling bad. The first day was spent mostly in bed, cold chills one minute than hot the next. Jeff brought home chinese food [yummy...egg foo young!] for dinner and some of that nighttime, sniffling, sneezing, coughing, aching, stuffy head, fever so I could rest medicine. The next day I didn't even bother getting off of the boat and Jeff procurred us some Dion's Quik Chic Chicken [you'd know what I was talking about if you listened to Keys radio...it's all the rage!] with a side of plantains & macaroni & cheese...you tell me where else can you buy fried plantains in a gas station? The third day, I actually drug myself to shore for a shower and some groceries and made myself do a couple of chores around the boat...exhausting. How can my head feel so hot when my feet feel so cold? Day 4 had me doing laundry at 6:30 am [no line!] with a quick jaunt for fuel and to the library and back in bed by 10:15...it may have been mid-morning for the rest of y'all, but I had already put in a full day. Today, the 5th day of my convalescence, has me feeling better...ish. The few coughing jags that I've underwent this morning have had me eyeing the NyQuil, but so far I've restrained. It makes me feel funny and then I can't tell if I feel bad because of the bug or the remedy. I am mostly just sick and tired of being sick and tired. I am reading a good book though...my third one for this week, and the Pig Races are this weekend so I am looking forward to those festivities.

So wish me well and stay tuned for racing pigs.

The Dad Visit

My Dad, Tracy, just recently paid us a visit and brought with him the lovely woman he cleverly conned into marrying him 26 years ago, Barbara. They arrived a day earlier than expected when they made the best of their weather window and left before an impending snowstorm dropped several inches of the white stuff in Kentucky and Southern Indiana. The weather was sunny and warm ...although not quite as warm as one would hope for... when they arrived on Thursday, and they did a little sight-seeing before coming out to the boat for sunset and dinner. We had BBQ chicken on the grill accompanied by steamed shrimp, basmati rice, and fresh veggies. Jeff broke out his guitar afterwards and gave our visitors a song or two. We called it an early night since they were beat from their long haul to get here and I delivered them back to the docks so they could retire to the Blackfin Resort for a good night's sleep.

Friday morning we ventured across the street to the Stuffed Pig for "Gravy Pigs" under the tiki hut and then explored the area a bit with stops at Keys Fisheries, Daffy Doug's, Burdine's [for dinghy fuel], Ore Seafood, and Castaway's to check out the evening's specials. The afternoon was actually nice enough to take a dinghy tour around the harbor and up Sister's Creek and to soak up a little sunshine. Later on, we met at Castaway's for raw oysters and a bit of dinner. We had planned to stay for the entertainment, but the weather took a serious turn for the worse with big winds, big rain, and a big drop in temperature. We scrambled to our respective vehicles and called it another early night.

We had a big day planned for Saturday with an all-day, outdoor concert at Lazy Lakes RV Resort featuring Howard Livingston, Chris Cook, Cowboy Troy, Mac McAnally, and Jerry Jeff Walker just to name some of the day's venue. The proceeds from the show went to Habitat For Humanity and we had purchased our tickets in advance.

The weather was not ideal.

It was a little too cold and a little too windy with not enough sun.

We managed to have a good time anyway and enjoyed a lot of good music, free hotdogs, and people [and dog!] watching.

Click here to visit this album - click "slideshow" for a bigger show.

Sunday was spent recuperating and we met for dinner at Lencho's mexican restaurant.

Monday, we made a trip to Key West to see the Tropical Forest and Botanical Gardens and the Butterfly Conservatory, where Barbara and I were both lucky enough to have butterflies perch on us, and then we grabbed some dinner at Keys Fisheries.

Tuesday, we had planned on doing a little fishing, but the weather just didn't cooperate. We let some of the drizzle and clouds burn off and then we headed to Crane Point to have a look around. By the time we were done walking the grounds, we were all starved and we headed to Herbie's for some lunch. The rest of the afternoon was spent in preparation of an early morning departure the next day. The Hurricane, conveniently located on the Blackfin property, always has "Taco Tuesday" so for dinner we walked over and had us a few $1 tacos.

They were off the next morning before sunrise for the 2 day trek back to Ferdinand, Indiana.

The visit didn't go exactly how I had it planned.

The weather just wasn't nice enough to do much fishing or sunning on the beach.

So, even though there are lot's of things to see and do in Marathon, most of them are weather pending.

But that's life on a sailboat...it's all weather pending.

I enjoyed the time I got to spend with my dad, and Barbara and hope they come back when they can enjoy all the things they missed this time around.

Guests and Fish

We recently had company here on the S/V Exposure. Meet Steve and Lisa Lindell. They hail from Louisville, Ky and had big plans to bring their RV down to the sunshine state for a long, relaxed vacation...until it came down to a part for the RV that just wasn't available quickly enough. So moving on to plan B, Lisa and Steve made a quick phone call to confirm availability of the guest bed, packed the car, and fled the snow & ice. They arrived Tuesday, the 2nd of February, just in time for sunset and dinner at Dockside, and spent 8 nights and 7 fun-filled days on the boat.

You know what they say about guests and fish, right?

Both stink after 3 days...

But that just wasn't true with these guests. I only mention the fish because we actually caught some!
On Wednesday, after a filling breakfast at the Stuffed Pig, Steve went up to the bait shop to procure a fishing license and then went out and caught us some dinner. Several mangrove snappers, a couple of grunts, and a jack fell to Steve's fishing prowess. He was tickled enough with his catch that he teasingly stated that he would now only be addressed as "Captain Kingfisher." His rein was short lived though when he and I went fishing on Friday and I started raking them in. He was a good sport to admit in front of others that not only did I catch more fish, but that I also caught the biggest of the lot and that I was hereby to be referred to as "Madame Queenfisher." When he asked how he could serve his queen, I merely requested that he clean my fish...and he did. The fish were great cooked on the charcoal grill, served with basmati rice and a concoction of black beans with sweet potatoes.

But their whole visit was not spent fishing, there were other fun things to do. Wednesday's Meet & Greet here at the marina was a special treat when we pulled the sailboat up to the seawall to take on some fresh water. We iced down the fish and ordered pizza to be delivered. In the meantime, everyone stopped to say hello or to ask to see the boat and Jeff did several question and answer sessions when asked about the Rutland wind generator quietly turning. People really are friendly around here and that may have been one of things that Steve and Lisa enjoyed most about Marathon.

And speaking of friendly, thanks go to Deb for the invite to lunch at the Hurricane...we all really enjoyed our time there Thursday afternoon.

Saturday was a beautiful day in the harbor and we went on a dinghy adventure up Sister's Creek to rescue a run-away dinghy belonging to an absent resident. Then we were off to the tiki hut to grill some burgers and chorizo and play some music. Did I mention that Steve is a great guitar player? He and Lisa perform together...professionally...she sings real nice...and we were all treated to a great jam session.

Sunday, I volunteered to work the Pigeon Key Art Show, so as I went to put in my time, our guests went a' wandering - first to the local's art show in the K-mart parking lot, then to the official show in the park, and then eventually all the way to Key West. They made it back in time for the Super Bowl festivities @ the marina. A big screen TV was brought in just for the occasion and the building was open until the game was over. Since it was a little cool out, I whipped up a pot of vegetable soup and had it waiting to warm them up on their return back to boat.

Monday, after a yummy breakfast at the cuban restaurant, we decided to make the 2 mile trek out to Pigeon Key. We didn't see much wild life on the way out, but we did spot 2 sea turtles out for a swim. Once on the island, we somehow managed to get booted out of the museum for not following the tour schedule...I must say, I've never gotten kicked out of a museum before now. It certainly gave us something interesting to comment on on the 2 mile walk back. Once back at the boat, Lisa opted for a nap while Steve and I went out to hunt and gather some dinner. First stop was a local fishery for a pound and a half of Key West pink shrimp to be steamed later then to the grocery for a slab of ribs and a green vegetable. The steamed shrimp made a great appetizer served with a bit of garlic butter followed by rotisseried ribs and cheesy broccoli. As my guests, it is a requirement that you eat well!

Tuesday found us on the road to Big Pine bright and early to find the elusive key deer that Lisa claims to have never seen in all their years of vacationing in the Keys. Well, we spied deer right away upon entering the protected habitat...so now she believes they really exist. Then, with a right at the light, we were set to find more wildlife...and boy, did we! We all happen to look down the same side road just in time to see a large cat slinking across the street...and I don't mean one of the domestic variety. It looked something like this but the tail was bushy and more pronounced. Everyone who has heard our account has had an opinion on what kind of cat we might have seen ranging from a Florida panther [a type of puma] to a black bobcat and although the Florida panther's numbers are on the rise, black ones do not seem to exist. Most likely it was a bobcat...but without a better look, we'll probably never know. Our next destination was the Blue Hole where we got to see an alligator swimming in the freshwater lens and converse with a local teenager who seemed to know quite a bit about gators and the surrounding wilds of Big Pine. By now, my company was sufficiently starving so I whisked them off to one of my favorite breakfast spots, the Cracked Egg. We made it back to the marina for yoga, showers, and a load of laundry, and although we swore we'd never eat again after such a huge breakfast we rallied and grabbed a late lunch at the Keys Fisheries of fried grouper and conch sandwiches followed by ice cream for Steve and a trip to the dollar store. Back at the S/V Exposure we relaxed and enjoyed a splendid sunset, complete with conch blowing and cocktails. And once again, even though we swore we'd never eat again after such a fabulous lunch at the Fishery, Steve insisted on taking us all out to dinner for their last night in town. We ventured off to the newest eating establishment in Marathon, El Siboney, for tasty Cuban cuisine: roasted pork, grilled skirt steak, and stuffed shrimp accompanied by mounds of yellow rice, bowls of savory black beans, and baskets of flaky cuban bread and we washed it all down with a pitcher of sangria. What a great note to end on.

Sadly, this morning Steve and Lisa packed their bags and started their trip back to the frigid north. We'll miss them and hope they come back again soon.