October 7-12                          North Beach, Maryland

We arrived at National Airport at noon, acquired the rental car, and headed for the marina.  We had several stops along the way for needed hardware supplies, food, and a delicious seafood lunch in a small Maryland village.  We were pleased that the weather was warm and pleasant.  Fall foliage was barely visible and numerous flowers were still blooming.

David had called to have the boat cleaned on the day of our arrival.  The cleaning crew met us with the bad news that the aft freezer was unplugged and everything within it had spoiled.  They had just finished cleaning it when we arrived.  We were disappointed that our beautiful and expensive prime steaks had ruined but we were very grateful that the mess was gone before we arrived.

We tried to complete our unfinished projects but the October 15 tax deadline interfered.  David was constantly on the phone or the computer.  We were also trying to stock the boat for “Stephanie’s Birthday Bash” while we had the use of the rental car.  This necessitated numerous trips to grocery stores and wine shops.

On Sunday, October 9, we returned the car to Annapolis and spent some time at the Sailboat Show.  David was intent on learning about radar electronics for our boat and talked to every representative that he could find. It was amazing to see Ego Alley covered with floating docks and numerous vendor booths.

Since the downtown area was packed with people, we took advantage of our reciprocal membership to the Annapolis Yacht Club, a beautiful facility that bordered the city harbor.  The staff was gracious and accommodating.  We had a lovely lunch on the deck and watched the passing parade of boats through the draw bridge over Spa Creek.  We returned to the marina by taxi and liked the driver so well that we made arrangements to call him the following week for Stephanie and her friends.