Boatbuilding Update January 24, 2008

The deck of the boat is now fiberglassed, the engine mount is built and fiberglassed, and I have begun applying white pigmented epoxy to the deck. I have been installing the deck support beams for the raised portion at the bow and I got both of the 15 hp Yamaha outboards running really well, although I will only use one at a time on the boat. Soon I will slide the boat off the trailer, flip it up on its side, and begin fiberglassing the bottom. I am very excited for it to become a watertight boat!

-Cory

Music Post

I'm still trying to get Noëlle to update the blog, but she is out in California right now visiting family for the holidays so she is pretty busy. In boatbuilding news, I have begun fiberglassing the hull of the powercat and it is a much more difficult and tedious process than I realized (just like everything on this boat has been!). Anyway, this post is about music. I wanted to share some of the truly excellent musical selections that I have found on the internet. I hope you enjoy them!

Nickelback - Photograph

Johnny Cash - Hurt
His last video before his death

Yusuf Islam (Cat Stevens) - The Wind

Twisted Sister - We're Not Gonna Take It

Creed - Higher

Jimmy Buffett - Far Side of the World

Peter Schilling - Major Tom
A cover of David Bowie's classic, edited excellently with one of my favorite movies

John Denver - Calypso
For anyone who liked "The Life Aquatic", if you sit past the first couple of minutes it is well worth it.

Jimmy Buffett - Come Monday
Jimmy Buffett's first hit with an amazing video capturing the times

Styx - Come Sail Away
Was there something about a starship in there?

Billy Joel - We Didn't Start the Fire

Bad Religion - Sorrow

Creed - With Arms Wide Open

Ok, that's a good start for now. If it turns out that people like these songs, I have many more that I can add to this blog over time. I hope that every one has been enjoying the holidays!

-Cory

Boats and Fish

I'm going to have to bug Noëlle to write some new posts for this blog, or else all that we're going to hear about is boats and boat building. Anyway, I've got some more pictures of the boat in progress. The big news this time is that I have built bunks on the trailer and have managed to get the boat up onto the trailer (since it's a catamaran it wouldn't fit onto the rollers and bunks that came with the trailer; it required extensive custom changes). I still have a bit of work to do before it's road worthy, but it's close. As far as the boat itself goes, I finally have the fiberglass cloth I need and a gallon of epoxy should be arriving tomorrow, so it is nearly time to coat the hull! On a different subject, we have added a new addition to our fish tank. She is a bright blue lobster! Okay, I know it's really a crayfish, but can I at least call it a mini-lobster? It sure looks like one. So far we are just calling her "Little Miss", since we don't officially name any of our fish until they have survived a week in the tank. Finally, as a special bonus with this post I am adding a couple of pictures of "Ia Ora", the eight foot rowing/sailing boat I have owned since I was sixteen and living on "Te Natura" with Mom and Dad. We had the boat custom ordered from the factory in St. Augustine, Fl, while we were living in Daytona Beach. It's amazing that I still have that boat after everything I've been through in the last 12 or 13 years. Anyway, I hope everyone is enjoying the holidays as much as we are! Take care.
-Cory

The Boatbuilding Adventure

Here's the back story: In early 2004 I came up with an idea for a boat design while living on St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands. I started building my design on the porch of my apartment. In 2005 when I moved to California to be with Noëlle I had the boat shipped out there. I continued to work on it while it was in Noëlle's Dad's yard. Then, in 2007 when Noëlle and I moved to Durham, NC, I had the boat shipped out here. Now, after four years of work, the boat is nearly complete! Here are some pictures showing it's current status.

Sailing Videos

Now, for something a little bit different, I thought I would post some links to cool and exciting sailing videos.

This first one was taken by my Dad and my friend Dylan sailing on a borrowed International 14 off the South Coast of Grenada.
International 14 Sailing

This next video is of my Dad and some of his friends from Bequia messing around with wakeboards and water toys.
Bequia Wakeboarding

These next few videos show a side of sailing that most people never see. Remember when sailing was defined as "the fine art of getting wet and becoming ill while slowly going nowhere at great expense"? No longer... Take a deep breath and hold on tight!
Yacht Racing
This is Yacht Racing
More Yacht Racing
Extreme Sailing - make sure to watch past the first minute
ABN AMRO
Extreme 40
Sailing in the Surf
Pirates of the Caribbean - not the movie!

Now I'd like to share some of the more humorous moments captured on film on the water:
Water Fun
Funny Boat Crashes

That's all for now. I have hundreds more that I may post over time. I hope everyone enjoys these!

-Cory

Settling In

Noëlle and I have been rapidly and comfortably settling in here in Durham, NC. Noëlle has been attending classes for a couple weeks and I have taken a position as the 3rd keyholder (shift manager) at Overton's, which is a store that specializes in selling boating gear and watersports equipment, so those of you that know me know that this is right up my alley. The job is great and the work is not too hard. I like the people that I am working with so I really have no complaints. We have been settling in, trying to establish the routines that make life run smoothly, and we have been having a lot of fun in the process, although we seem to be continuously tired.

Noëlle's Mom and Sister came out and visited for a few days last week and we all had a blast. We went out to eat and we all talked and laughed quite a bit. In a couple of weeks my Mom will be visiting for a few days, and we are really looking forward to that. We'll keep updating as new adventures happen!

-Cory

Starting up in North Carolina

Well, I never thought I would end up in North Carolina, but here I am. Cory and I moved here so that I could start start my PhD in coastal & ocean policy at Duke University. We've really been having fun exploring Durham, which is where the main Duke campus is and where I'll spend my first year. It is so green here! We just had a fantastic thunder & lightning storm this morning, which we never got back in California! Also- rent is super cheap here, which is very exciting! I could do without the mosquitos, though. They've been eating me alive.
Right now we're in the lull before the storm, with school starting in just over a week and Cory interviewing for jobs out here. I was a little worried about moving to the south (bible belt and all, eeek!) but luckily this town is pretty liberal (you actually see more anti-war bumper stickers here than pro-war ones). So that's been a relief! I've attached a few photos below of our move and new place.
-N
Above is the little house we're renting here, which actually costs just a little over half of what we were paying for a STUDIO in Los Angeles! I can actually plant vegetables here! yay! :)

We stopped in Colorado on our way across country, and this Columbine flower was growing up at about 11.000 feet elevation in the rockies.

Here I am getting settled on our new (used) super-comfy couch!