Surprise, Surprise

September 18, 2021

A month ago now, we made a very rough passage from Yorktown to Deltaville, with waves slapping and bow pitching. Steve finessed the angle of bow to wave, while I wedged myself into my seat on three sides. A couple of times I asked, “Could that break something?” Destination: Zimmerman Marine, a well-respected boat yard in Deltaville, VA. On the never-ending list of repairs, we had prioritized the to-do list for August, while we returned to our non-boating life. We thought it prudent to escape the infamous August heat on the Chesapeake and had made plans to spend a week with our family, such gatherings having been suspended during the height of COVID-19. 

And so, having spent a lovely week with our kids around the Finger Lakes of New York State, enjoying time in Goshen, and helping out for a week with our grandson in Maryland, we returned to Deltaville. Due to the constant of work delays, we actually drove home from Maryland for a few days before returning to Virginia, timing our arrival per the shipping of the davit motors from Tampa. But wouldn’t you know—as we neared Deltaville in our rental car, we learned that the motors had not been rebuilt with the care we had expected. They didn’t work! What meets the eye and what has been explained by the head mechanic at Zimmerman do not correlate at all with the work that the owner of the davit company and rebuilder claims he did on the crazy things. The ensuing conversation regarding the fix included terms that make my eyes glaze over, like “bearings,” “drive shaft,” and “uninsulated wiring,” while other terms like “jury rig”  and “new motors” and “overnight shipping” I understand all too well. 

Steve and I agreed to the new motors and then considered plans of action C, D, E and F. Plan C was crossed out due to high winds and chop on the Bay. We talked again about the pleasure-to-aggravation ratio, the community we are missing, how this dream has morphed to encompass a bigger chunk of life than we planned—and how more life than we could have known has been folded into this dream! It feels unwise to make any decision while in the middle of the “aggravation” side of the equation.

And so on a gorgeous fall Saturday morning, we are cruising to Urbanna, a little town up the Rappahannock River, which we had no intention of visiting two days ago. We had a lovely dinner in Irvington at Office Bistro last evening via the Deltaville courtesy car. We have seen the new davit motors and will return to Deltaville for their creative installation on Monday. Not aggravated today.

Stay tuned.