Fear is the killer

The only thing that can keep us from surviving is fear. Fear of failure, fear of starving, fear of the anchor giving way, fear of the next shoe dropping. It is the hardest thing to combat. We can't afford it. We can't sit frozen like a rabbit watching the rattle snake writhing towards us. We grab onto every good thing that happens. Mike's friend Dillon took him hunting for food this week. Mike came back with a few clams, a bunch of oysters, conch, and fresh picked bay leaves. We didn't have an oyster shucking knife so I boiled them. About 1/2 of the oysters opened when I put them on to boil with the last of our new potatoes and we feasted. It was a good evening. I finalized my last project with the school district and started new projects with my company in California. It isn't constant work but it may make enough to keep us from starving. I just spent most of our money on insurance for the boat. It was a tough decision, but we have seen what a poorly anchored boat can do. In the past month, we have learned how to better anchor our boat and we have seen two other boats that haven't been so lucky. Mike is still working on the engine. It was running but now it won't crank. He has tried a number of fixes and we have a friend coming over, as soon as the weather is compliant, to help us in the diagnoses. If it is the fuel pump, we are in serious trouble. The fuel pump costs more than we have. We need to get more experience with sailing the boat. We have heard rumors of people who do not rely on the engines to sail in and anchor their boats. On February 29th, we will be celebrating 20 years of marriage. It will be our 5th anniversary. Grabbing onto the good things will keep us together. Fighting the fear and pushing through is our only option. Love to all of our friends and family. Thank you for your support as we weather the storms and trials of our strange odyssey.