Hola desde "Carolina Del Norte".

For all of you who are green with envy at our life in paradise, hold the drool now, like spouses and pets, boats do not like to be left alone and make sure to find their own special ways to let you know just how much you have let them down. Our boat/spouse (Felicia 777) is very dramatic and she went so far as to get hit by lightning in our absence which resulted in losses of several electronic instruments.
She also greeted us with some new leaks and "aromas" - my favorite.We are getting her squared away step by step and she finally looks, feels and smells like home again. I am currently mourning the loss of Trader Joe's and Berkeley Bowl's cornucopia of produce and now have to shop like a grown up with a list and a plan. In a week or two we will be able to head out to the San Blas Islands which are gorgeous. There, the Kuna Indians paddle up to your boat to sell the days catch of lobster, conch and crab. Thinking of this gives me some perspective.

Now it's my turn (Gregory that is).

I still am smarting from the dental surgery I had the day we arrived to Panama City, and then driving rental car to Puerto Lindo. The first experience is mitigated by massive doses of pain killers and antibiotics. That leaves impact of driving experience unthreated since it only can be managed by alcohol consumption which is not recommended with antibiotics. Driving rules in Panama are somewhat different:-speed up when approach "Stop" sign;-cross double yellow solid lane only when passing at least two cars;-honk, when running red light, etc.I treasure it as a "cultural" experience. Hopefully all this will be in the past soon, stitches should be removed in a week, and we will be free to weigh our anchor and sail to San Blas. Meanwhile a few projects have to be completed such as replacement and tuning "fried" electronics, oil/filters changes, etc. We have problems with our old digital camera which does not want to be recognised by our new, shining computer, so no new pictures are available.