July 15-23                      Southwest Harbor, Maine

The weather in Southwest Harbor was sunny and hot with temperatures in the 90’s during the four days David was in Texas.  He reported Fort Worth had rain and cool, delightful weather.   I had remained on the boat to avoid the horrible heat of Texas and it was cooler there than in Maine!   Sloth was quickly assumed after David’s departure and I spent several lovely days doing as little as possible and reading for hours.  The cleaning, washing, etc. were finally completed hours before David’s return.

For three days, David methodically dismantled the closet doors that hid the non-functioning washer/dryer, removed the chrome handrails, sawed and disassembled the steps leading from the galley to the hall, and moved all obstructions.  Efforts to pull the unit from its secured position were futile.  The only solution was to separate the washer from the dryer and then disassemble each of them.  We were fortunate to have the unexpected help of Miller, our dockhand from last year who had returned for a brief visit.  He is strong, smart, and willing to tackle almost any job.  With his help, the unit was taken apart and removed in pieces from the boat.

The day of the scheduled delivery was the foggiest day we had seen but the guys arrived with the new appliance as scheduled.  They immediately informed us they could not get it on the boat and if they did, they could not install it.  We refused to take no for an answer and told them we would take full responsibility for any damage.  We kept admonishing them, “it’s not a problem, it’s a challenge.”

Using the davit on the bridge, the hoist was lowered and attached to the canvas straps (formerly used to hold the dinghy in place on the bridge) around the unit on the dolly.  With ease and precision, David maneuvered the unit off the dock, into the air where it was turned sideways, pulled across the water, and onto the aft deck.  I was greatly relieved the straps  held and my new washer/dryer had not gone into the water!  With considerable effort and an offer of an additional $100 each to increase motivation, the unit was finally in place.  Without David’s guidance, perseverance, and monetary reward, the installers never would have attempted the job and we would have lacked the considerable convenience of having onboard laundry facilities.  It WAS a challenge!