Bye Bye California

We have been staying with family in SoCal while we endure a bunch of doctors appointments (11 in the first week!!!). On my end, my “routine” glaucoma checkup turned into an OMG, your eye pressure is higher than it’s ever been, which led to urgent surgeries to add additional pressure-release valves in each eye. Never fun but the first recovery was surprisingly easy. I go in for the other eye in two days so hopefully it will be the same. We’ve killed time between doctors with a two-day concert, visiting friends, birthdays and anniversaries, and casino night at our old yacht club.

Tess has a re-do breast surgery in two weeks to fix some issues that have developed. It will be a major surgery but she’s eager to get things fixed. This will be her third revision in the 11 years since her original cancer surgery. She also had an epidural last week for back pain and John had a similar procedure for his tennis elbow. To top it off, we both got carved up by the dermatologist a month ago but that’s all healed now. Can’t wait to see the dentist…

So, during a short lull in our “getting old sucks” routine we went to Florida to formally set up residency. We have cancelled our California existence and are proud Floridians! I even have the same driver’s license number that I was first issued way back in 1983. Of course, it was wasn’t easy as we found we didn’t have a particular document from the purchase of our boat. A long day of dozens of phone calls and internet research but we finally tracked it down from our out of state broker who no longer even sells Bavaria yachts. Despite having changed their accounting software they were eventually able to find the relevant document and we registered the boat in Florida.

So why the change? Well, politics, taxes, homeless filth, stupid and endless regulations, dirty air, unaffordable insurance, earthquakes, outrageous prices for everything ($7 gas!), the inability to have a different opinion than the majority, good Christian folk and Southern hospitality…take your pick or all of the above. California is easily the most beautiful state in the country and has the best weather but it has been run into the ground and we won’t miss it. If you disagree and want to comment about how I’m wrong, please do — you will be proving my point.

Of course, I can’t do a post without some cool history so we went to St Augustine and checked out everything from the oldest parish church in America (1565) to the amazing Flagler College (former Ponce de Leon Hotel) and the Spanish fortress of Castillo de San Marcos. After Sir Francis Drake burned St Augustine and the original wooden fort to the ground, the present fortress was rebuilt in stone in 1672 and withstood a month-long siege by the British twice more but was never captured. The British took over for a few years as the result of a treaty, then back to Spain, then the USA, the Confederate Army and finally back to the USA. Each entity held prisoners here who left fascinating graffiti on the walls, dating back hundreds of years.

So, with any luck, we will be fixed up soon and back to Panama to spend some quality time in Bocas del Toro and the San Blas Islands. To say we are eager to get home to the boat is an understatement.