Weekend Update (Minus Seth Meyers)

Last weekend saw the end of a road journey, a trip to Heron, some boat fixing, an attempt at sailing, a rescue of the rescue boat, and a seized AC compressor.

Friday
I returned from Tempe Friday afternoon/evening/night/Saturday morning. I left Tempe, got an hour out of town, when my radiator clogged and ceased to function in the 98º heat. It cost less to install a brand new Performance Radiator than to do a flush, so the Gila Monster now has a brand new radiator, installed by a mechanic in the village of Rye, Arizona. The delay cost me some time; I drove through the night, taking a nap on the shoulder of Highway 60 somewhere near Datil.

Saturday

I arrived in Albuquerque around seven, where I unpacked from my move. I threw together a lake bundle, then took off to get John, Wolf and a Frontier green chile cheeseburger for breakfast and a trip to Heron. We took the back way (photos to be coming soonish), and did some touristy things in the area. After visiting the New Mexico Sailing Club marina, the bearings in the compressor seized up, keeping the vehicle from running. When my folks got into the area, we transfered stuff from the Jeep to my Dad's truck and went to the cabin for dinner. John choose seasonings and Wolf helped cook an awesome meal of Pan-Seared Petite Sirloin, Tarragon-Dill Mashed Potatoes, Bacon Gravy and a salad with a Balsamic Vinaigrette.

Sunday
After sleeping in, we cooked a breakfast of Pain Perdu (rhymes with French Toast) accompanied by Biscuits and Bacon Gravy. Then, we launched Syzygy (rhymes with alignment of three or more heavenly bodies). After fighting the wind for ten or fifteen minutes, we got to the marina. There was a lot of wind, so we played poker on the boat (remind me to get the chips (and cards) back up to the lake this weekend). My Dad called an auto repair/towing/salvage company, and I went with the Gila Monster into Chama while Wolf and John stayed at the marina. It turns out they had much more excitement than I did. The dockmaster had noticed a little water in the NM State Parks' Ranger boat, but it was dismissed as just rain water. A while later, there were five more inches over the floor in the cockpit of the boat. It was sinking. John and Wolf got to it with a pump and buckets, while Dockmaster Steve got to work trying to find the leak and stop it. It turns out that the State Parks person responsible for the boat forgot to put the drain plug in. The boating enforcement officer might want to review the safe boating class. After a while, it was found that a wine bottle cork was just right to make a good plug. So much for the no-glass policy; it looks like the Marinas's got an unofficial agreement again. The boat was rescued, just in time for the ranger to get it out  of the lake.

Later
We drove back to ABQ Sunday evening, excepting Pat, who stayed behind for the week to do his dockmaster duty.  As of now the Jeep's at the mechanic, but the repair should be straightforward and done soon (rhymes with my hopes and expectations). Tomorrow (rhymes with Thursday) evening we'll be heading back up, so this is a shout out to anyone who wants to come on up. Pack a few nights of clothes (we can do laundry) and send me a ring, text, email, im, etc. There will be sailing, food, a cabin with a fireplace, fun times, friendly people, hiking, being lazy, beer, food, and most of all fun.

Edit: Added photos.