Yesterday, I told you I’m traveling across the Atlantic and into the Caribbean aboard “Sisu” – my red-hulled 50-foot Privilege 510 Signature Catamaran…
(Sisu is a Finnish word that loosely translates to “grit.” To have “sisu” is to have an inner fire that pushes you forward despite overwhelming obstacles.)
And today, we finally had Sisu’s faulty washing machine replaced.
It hasn’t been an easy process. However, this is “boat life.” And I’m coming to learn that nothing is easy with boat life…
After first going on the fritz in the boatyard in France, we were assured the washing machine had been repaired and would be fine.
But by the time we got the boat to the Canary Islands – some 1,500 miles from the yard – the machine had given up the ghost.
So we pulled the old machine from the boat and began what became a battle of wills to get the yard to agree to change it for a brand new one.
Eventually, the yard relented and agreed to replace the machine… but it didn’t end there.
They said a new washing machine could potentially be delivered in a week… And from my experience, if anyone in the marine industry uses the word “potentially,” you can assume it’s not happening.
Back when I bought Sisu, I was told she would potentially be ready by May 2022…
But it was late October 2022 before she left the boatyard. So yeah, when it comes to deadlines… it pays to be skeptical.
So what to do?
The Canary Island Tour Nobody Wants
As luck would have it, my enterprising captain (Captain Alex) found the exact machine we needed in Las Palmas, another of the Canary Islands…
The only catch is he would have to rent a bigger vehicle to get it from the warehouse to the Sisu.
That meant he had to drive to the airport car rental an hour away…
Catch a ferry from Lanzarote (where we’ve moored Sisu in the Canary Islands) to Las Palmas at 11 a.m. and arrive at 5 p.m…
Arrange for someone to bring the washing machine from the warehouse to the ferry dock and load up the car…
Then wait until midnight to take the return ferry to Lanzarote and arrive at about 5 a.m. or so.
But of course, this is “boat life,” so even that didn’t go as planned.
When Captain Alex gets to Las Palmas and loads the washing machine on his truck, no spots are available on the ferry to get him back.
So, now he has to take a separate ferry to another island called Fuerteventura, where upon arrival, he has to drive 45 minutes across that island, racing the clock to connect to yet another Lanzarote ferry…
(Oh, and by the way… While Alex was away, I almost burnt down the boat. But that’s a story for another day.)
Fortunately, Alex eventually made it back to the marina and connected with the installation crew.
After about an hour of work (including dismantling parts of Sisu to get the washer down a narrow passageway and an even narrower set of stairs), the machine was in place and working like a charm!
But… This is “boat life.”
And by now, you know nothing in boat life is easy.
When we installed the original washing machine, the boatyard had to use customized screw-in feet so it would fit in its pre-measured cubby.
Plot twist: When they removed the old machine, the dock workers didn’t keep the feet, and now the new machine sticks out, making it impossible to close the door.
Big deal, right? Who cares if the door doesn’t close nice and snug?
In a house, that’s not a big deal… But out at sea, any door you can’t securely fasten will flog itself to death from the relentless pounding the boat takes from the waves.
So, as I write this, it’s Friday evening, and the contact here in Lanzarote believes we can potentially have the parts by Monday.
The boatyard in France will have one of its contacts in Lanzarote go back to the warehouse… try to find the faulty machine to retrieve the custom feet… and reinstall them on the new machine on Sisu.
Now, hope is not a strategy… But I really hope he comes through.
The situation has already delayed us by nearly a week… And while marina life is fun, I didn’t buy Sisu to sit at the dock.
I’m ready to get sailing… But that, my friends, is currently out of my control.
And so, another set of boat ownership lessons is being impressed upon me: Patience, acceptance, and maintaining good humor.
Because at the end of the day, I’m living the dream.
Whether it’s one week or three before we leave the dock and head out across the Atlantic – it doesn’t matter.
I’m incredibly grateful to be able to be annoyed by something so trivial in a world full of so many truly serious and sad situations.
Any hiccups I experience are the epitome of luxury problems… the “boat life” in all its glory.
I welcome them gladly compared to the host of genuine ills I’ve dealt with throughout my life.
This is all gravy. Pure icing on the cake. And I am so thankful I understand that.
Let the Game Come To You.
Big T
P.S. As this goes to publish, it’s been a few days, and it turns out that late Monday afternoon, we had a workman show up at the boat with the feet.
I was genuinely shocked.
Everything got squared away, and we are ready to depart.
But before we set sail, I made some inquiries, found the name of the person responsible for securing this little miracle, and learned he’s a rum drinker…
So, I’m picking him up a nice bottle of aged rum as a thank-you before I leave.