Saving is better than Spending
When we were both working, spending small sums of money here and there hardly warranted consideration. Now that we’re out cruising though, without a steady income, each dollar saved is another day that we get to stay out here (well, it would take more than a dollar, but you get my point).
Shortly after checking in to customs here, Rebecca and I went out for a walk to do a bit of shopping. One item on our shopping list was a courtesy flag for Antigua. I think I may have mentioned this before but courtesy flags, the small flags that boats raise after clearing in to a new country, are largely a non-issue down here. We, and many others, had stressed about their necessity, especially given that each flag purchased new is in the $20.00 US range. We ultimately said screw it and purchased only a couple for countries that we knew we’d be spending time in.
Now, because we do plan on hanging out here in Antigua for a while, coughing up a bit of money for a flag wouldn’t be unreasonable, right? We thought so anyway. Isn’t it cool then, that while out for that walk, potentially to buy one of those flags, that we found exactly what we needed on the side of the road? Yes, lying in the ditch, partially covered by mud, was an Antiguan flag, one of the nylon ones on a plastic stick that people fly from their car windows. Score! We stuck it in our bag and when back to the boat, cleaned it up, attached a couple of grommets to it (we keep a bag of these on board) and voila, we had a perfect courtesy flag, for free!
That same day, given that my recently-shortened hair was starting to look not-quite-so-short again, Rebecca mustered up the courage (or perhaps it was me who mustered up the courage) to attempt cutting my hair. During her trip to California last month, she purchased some inexpensive hair clippers so she was all set with the proper tools, but being as this was the first time that she had done this, neither of us were entirely too sure of what the outcome would be. But how bad could it really end up, right? In spite of the fact that she did the job on the transom of our boat, at anchor, with the odd little speed boat zipping by and throwing wake at us, I think she did an awesome job, given the subject she had to work with of course. Do you think she’d let me cut hers now?
The time invested in those two events was minimal but the money saved would definitely keep us sailing for a few days. We’ll be keeping our eyes open for more such opportunities.
Wow, what great luck finding that flag! I’d say that’s a good sign that Antigua is gonna treat you well!
I think so too!
“Do you think she’d let me cut hers now?” I HOPE NOT!
I agree.
Good looking Barber you got there. Don’t forget at least 8/15 SPF on the noggin for a few days until the tan catches up. The head is one of the most common places for skin cancer.
Thanks for the advice.
It’s amazing what you can find that other people lose or throw away. We had a friend on our boat recently who joked that he was looking for the briefcase full of money while in the Keys. He wound up finding $120 total in three different places. How lucky was that? Not exactly a briefcase, but fun all the same.
WOW!
On the same subject, check this out:
http://boatbits.blogspot.com/2012/01/dumpster-diving-heaven.html
We bought some clippers to do the same thing, only Vicky has started in on me practicing here on solid land. She can only get better….right? Her being a first time cutter with a power tool, the laughing and hilarity of that first cut paid for the shears.
About 22 years ago while walking up to Shirley Heights one Sunday evening, I was peering over a short wall on the side of the road where some crap had been tossed. Being a “picker” most all of my life, I hopped down to take a look and right away I found this very, very nice hair brush. I know that sounds creepy a little but after boiling this wooden brush I found it very useful as I had a pony tail in those days. I still have it, and I’ve been using it every day since then, it’s a part of my kit. Every time I tell this story to a professional and show them the brush they agree 100%, a very, very good find!
Nice. So you still have the pony tail? 🙂
No, long gone, just before we stopped cruising. The wife said PLEASE, either the long hair cleaned shaven, or the beard with reasonable hair length. Easy choice for me, the brush feels great on a full beard.
🙂
First time my wife cut my hair, I heard “Whoops.”
“What do you mean whoops???”
“Um…nothing. Um…just make sure you look a little to your left when you talk to people ok?”
She forgot she took off the #3 guard and went after some stray hairs….I ended up with what looked like a small golf divot on the side of my head. It grew out….eventually.
LOL. Reminds me of the movie Jackass.
Same thing happened to me when I asked my girlfriend to trim my hair after I applied a number 3 to my noggin. She thought the clipper sans guard would still leave some hair – unfortunately for my head, they don’t. LOL
That was years ago and I haven’t ask her to trim since. I finally asked her for a trim again before this past New Year’s and she still didn’t know that the bare clipper would do me almost bald. She’s said when she gets on the boat that she wants to go bald at some point – I’m looking forward to that… 😀
Payback!
Never worry about it. The difference between a bad haircut and a good one is about 4 weeks!
Mike
My thoughts exactly, when you have short hair that is.
She could never make you look as bad as your long blond stuff was. When I saw you had finally cut your hair I said Hallaleuah. You are a very attractive man and your shorter hair makes you look , well super hot.
LOL. Well, I guess that’s that then. 🙂
Hey! I liked the long, blond, scraggly look!!!
My shampoo bill is now a tiny fraction of what it was. 🙂
My favorite food is pizza! I follow a few blogs as “research” for a possible cruise someday and your’s is one of my favorites
Pizza and blogging go together well. 🙂
Thanks for posting!
Nice left ear. Soon you’ll post a picture of the other side an we’ll all breath a sigh of relief.
hehe
Just to let you know Mike I colour Sallys hair .She went to her hair dresser before we left and got a 1 year supply.Not hard at all
I’ve done that too. Cutting is another matter though I think.
I’m glad Antigua is working out for you! The photos are reminding me of how beautiful the island was.
It sure is beautiful. We’re going out to do a bit of snorkeling in a few minutes.
There’s a beautiful beach for snorkelling on Green Island (NE coast of Antigua) if you can make it. Lots of reefs, sand, etc.
There is (or at least was for a couple of years) the hull of a small monohull perched atop the reefs, where it couldn’t quite get into the bay looking for shelter. Not a happy story but it’s an interesting sight, a mast-less hull that appears to be still floating above the water.
Green Bay is not too far from where we are right now. It’s also close to where this weekend’s hash is going to be so we may move around there for that. Unfortunately the snorkeling conditions these days are not good. With the ground swell that has been running, there is a lot of silt/sand in the water making visibility next to nothing. We actually went out today and you could only see about a foot in front of you.