September 15-27, 1992: A Trip to North Carolina and Florida
	July 11-13, 1992: A Long Weekend in Santa Fe, New Mexico
	Return to the Index for 1992

Early this summer, my friend in Fort Lauderdale, Ty, had located a new small boat to replace the one that I had bought in the last year Grant was alive; that boat had been purchased on the spur of the moment, and really wasn't the most suitable craft for someone who wasn't in town frequently, and so didn't use it all that often. I had a week in late July where the work I was doing could be done anywhere (including the computer I kept in the condo in Fort Lauderdale), so I flew down there on Tuesday the 21st, intending to return on Sunday. (Fred would be at his mom's in DeLeon that weekend, so I wouldn't have seen much of him anyway.)

A day or two after I arrived, I went with Ty and Scott to a private home up the New River where the boat was for sale, and while I stayed on the dock he took it out into the river to run it around for a bit and make sure everything was operating properly. I took the picture at left from the dock.

He reported a few minutes later that everything seemed to be shipshape, and so I concluded the deal with the owner and plunked down a check to buy the boat.

Ty had, a few weeks earlier, found a buyer for the boat I currently had. Although I lost a little money on the transaction, this new boat was a bit more powerful and a lot easier to handle, and so would be a lot better for me (and for Ty who I would of course let use the boat when I wasn't down here, it not being good to leave boats sitting in the water for extended periods of time without being used).

We got the boat back to the condo and in its space pretty quickly, and so that same afternoon, Ty and Scott and I went out in it just to go up and down the river for a bit. On the way back from the Intracoastal Waterway, we passed the house of Blockbuster founder Wayne Huizenga.

On another afternoon, when Ty and Scott had some free time, We took the boat out again so that I could get familiar with it, and at right you can see a typical picture of me at the controls.

Here's another picture from that trip- Ty and myself on the Intracoastal Waterway. Scott took the picture, of course, and Ty was trying to ham it up by pretending to be aghast at my handling of the boat.

I keep the boat docked right at the condo, even though I could have kept it at Riverfront Marina, as I did the old one. It is much more convenient to have it there, and when we get the bottom painted next week, there will be little maintenance afterwards.

Other than do my work and go out a few times with Ty and Scott, and on my own occasionally, I really didn't do much down here this time, and didn't take any pictures around the condo. There have already been quite a few of them in this album.

You may already be familiar with where the Fort Lauderdale condo is, but in case you haven't, at left there's a map of the area of Fort Lauderdale where it is located. It is pretty much right downtown, and right on the New River. This tidal estuary leads inland about ten miles and of course also leads east to the Intracoastal Waterway and from there to the ocean.

That's the main reason why we bought in this particular location- easy access for boats. And that's one of the things that makes coming down here so enjoyable- watching the parade of boats that are usually going up and down the river. On the map, I've marked the approximate area of the river and the Intracoastal where we took the boat this time.

We took the boat out a number of more times this week- for an evening on Friday and during the day on Saturday. And I went and took it out myself a few times during the day just to practice my docking technique.

Myself, Mark Hansen and Ty Out on the Boat I met Mark a couple of years ago when I was down here with Grant, and I happened to run into him again this week. He spent a few hours with the three of us out on the new boat.

Sunset Over Fort Lauderdale Coming back from an evening trip out on the boat, I took this picture of the sunset. But I was steering the boat with one hand and holding the camera with the other, which is why the photo isn't all that great.

When Grant and I originally met Mark, he'd been in a relationship, but now he was unattached, hence the invitation to come out with us on the boat. He's a really nice guy, and very attractive, and we struck up a friendship after our first meeting. Although I hadn't seen him since Grant died, I still had his number, so I called him this week. Nice as he is, I didn't see long-term prospects earlier and I certainly don't now, since I have found someone as great as Fred is. Even though Mark is in his early thirties, he still doesn't know what he wants to do; and aside from that, we really didn't have any common interests. Fred, on the other hand, besides being closer to my own age, is established and has a career and knows where he is going. At my age, I value that highly.

You can use the links below to continue to another photo album page.

	September 15-27, 1992: A Trip to North Carolina and Florida
	July 11-13, 1992: A Long Weekend in Santa Fe, New Mexico
	Return to the Index for 1992