What comes next

After much agonizing and discussion and a few tears, we have decided to conclude our cruise here in Key West. The girls -- Marjie especially -- are done, with the captain nearly as reluctant as they are to continue. That leaves yours truly as the only one hoping for a little more tropical time. My "I'm sure it will be better now" reassurances carry no weight whatsoever anymore; I've offered them too many times now when they turned out not to be true.

I know there will be some among you who can't believe we're bagging it NOW, when hurricane season is finally over (or should be) and we've got the whole Keys island chain stretched out before us. We understand how backwards it is; Chloe says it's like agreeing to do the dishes in exchange for $5, then declining the $5 after the dishes are done. But we all agree that continuing because we "should" is not what this cruise was supposed to be about, and the simple fact is that all the running and recovering from hurricanes has significantly depleted our cruising budget.

So. We're taking care of practicalities now, and trying to enjoy a little island time, Key West style, in the meantime. We met with a broker yesterday and felt pretty good about what she told us about the market here and the price we should be able to get for the ZP. The downside is that moorage space is at a premium, both in terms of price and availability. We're chasing down a lead on a dry spot at a boat yard. If we get in there quickly, we'll be cruising west (over land) by next week.

KQR