We spent a long weekend at the boat recently and realized that the air conditioning was not working properly. Scott proceeded to check out the wiring and found out the the water pump that pumps in sea water to cool the unit was not working. Luckily the previous owner had bought one and never installed it. So, after much sweat and a few tense moments wondering if the seacocks were really closed or not it was time to test the unit. It works beautifully now and this past weekend we spent at the boat we stayed inside through the hottest part of the day and it was wonderful.

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Laugh-A-Lot arrived today in her new home in Alabama. Captain Bill and Captain Vicki sailed her up from her port in New Port Richey, Florida to a port here in Alabama where she will be much closer to us. We went down to meet with the Captains and give them a lift to the airport where they could pick up their car rental for their return trip.

We were a little nervous about having her delivered and I was more than a little jealous about not being able to bring her up here ourselves. She was in capable hands though and now she is here and all ours. Now the fun/work begins…

There is a lot in a name. We found this boat about three weeks ago and it was exactly the make, model and condition we were looking for. The only problem was we had to wait two weeks to get free to go down to Florida to see her. Luckily, we put a contract on her right away, subject to inspection, so we would be the first in line to buy her, if we liked her. I am so glad we acted when we did. There were at least three other VERY serious buyers that we were able to beat to the deal. One of those buyers showed up at the boat last Saturday night to try and get a look at her and we had to inform him that she had been sold *TO US*! I couldn’t believe how sad he looked.

Anyway, Laughalot is ours now and we have already started the process of bringing her into the 21st century. There is so much to do to her. She is in great condition to sail right now, but we want to update the electronics, work on the engine, electrical systems, rigging, and plumbing. Updates on her restoration progress will be posted here.

She did come with loads of extras that we weren’t even expecting. She has a gimbaled stove/oven, hot water heater, refrigerator, brand new stereo system, wind generator, water maker, dinghy, life raft, epirb, bimini with dodger, and even an air conditioning/heating unit that works perfectly. Unbelievable!!! We were truly “laughing a lot” at our good fortune when we made the deal and she was all ours. Enjoy the photos.

The marina where she is located is at the end of a long channel that leads out to the Gulf of Mexico. There used to be a restaurant in the big building you see in the photos, but it burned on the inside and never reopened. As you can see from the photos we are in the last slip on the dock and it is so private and peaceful there. When you are looking at the building from the channel Laughalot is to the right, tucked back in the corner.

Our first weekend we spent on Laughalot was last weekend and we were surprised and excited to see all kinds of birds. We saw white herons, gray storks (or herons, not sure about that one), pelicans, seagulls, and one bird of prey who apparently is a local.

The power of water propelled at high velocity is truly amazing. This past weekend we purchased a power washer so that we would be able to continue our clean up of the boat here at home where we left off at the car wash. The results were astonishing. The boat is so much prettier than it was before. Once the inside is washed photos will be posted. In the meantime, look how nice the main sail turned out. Scott laid it on our patio and power washed it. You can see where he had washed compared to where he had not.

Yesterday we had a wonderful break in the weather and a simply gorgeous afternoon. So, we decided to take the mast and boom off the boat and remove all the remaining “stuff” from the inside. Scott gave the boat a much needed vacuuming and then we looked at the things that needed to be done to get her back in the water again. She will need some serious cleaning inside and out. The teak needs to be oiled or replaced. Scott will replace the wench that brings the keel up and down. We knew the keel would not raise or lower and this was the only thing that was mechanically wrong with the boat, but we didn’t know what the problem was until we got in there yesterday and started taking things apart. Luckily we found that the cable was broken and the wench needed to be replaced. That is the best we could have hoped for. As for me, I am going to set about replacing the hatch boards (which are made of 3/8″ plywood right now) and then I will go on to reupholstering the cushions. 1970′s yellow is not my color.