Posting a public post on this topics…
I finally closed on a boat, a 2023 Fountaine Pajot ISLA 40. The whole thing has been insanely stressful and I’ve questioned my decision multiple times already. But I’m strong and it’s going to be a story to tell in a few years. No matter how it goes.
The whole sales process was way more stressful than I expected. There’s a lot more to buying a boat then buying a house. IE picking a home port, getting insurance, finding a marina to dock it at. I also found that people in the industry suck at replying back to you. You really have to hound them, which I’m not good at. I am someone who calls once then waits for you to call back (probably one reason why my dating life always sucked). So you’d call and wait and wait and wait, then not get an answer.
Once we closed, I hired some guys that were highly recommended to install solar on the boat. They had massive attitudes and really pissed me off. I’m not happy with the quality of the work they did.
THEN, we took the boat over to get the bottom cleaned and the fucking propellers fell off, so there was a $7k unexpected expense right out of the door.
THEN!!! A fucking hurricane started forming and heading right for where the boat was stored. I needed to move the boat out of Florida anyway because I didn’t pay FL taxes we only had so long to keep it there. So I hired these (again, highly recommended) captains to help me move the boat. They arrived and basically got on board and were like “let’s go”. So we left, I was insanely stressed. I felt like nothing was ready, I wanted to have another day to get the boat cleaned up and buy some spares, etc. But we left at 10pm. The trip itself went well, they didn’t sail which was annoying but they just wanted to get to our destination as fast as possible. We hung out, they fished. I tried to learn as much as I could about the boat. Again, VERY stressful, just so many things to learn and understand.
On day two, they said something about where we were going, and I was like: “wait, what, that’s NOT where we are going.” SO THEN, I had to stress and find a new place to store the boat. THANK GOD I had starlink and was able to find something in Charleston, SC.
We arrived in Charleston Saturday night and they tied the boat up and just spilt. Overall, the guys did their job, they got the boat from point A to B. But I wasn’t very happy with them. My broker called and chatted and he asked me more about the boat, the trip, etc then my own parents did. Which was a bit frustrating.
Monday, a fucking hurricane hits Charleston. Again, I was stresssssed. I’ve owned the boat for a week. I just moved it out of a hurricane and now that hurricane we had been avoiding is hitting right where we were. WTF why is Mother Nature putting me through this stress so early. Most people get to enjoy the boat, do some fun stuff and then eventually get themselves into these situations. But not me, FIRST WEEK get the hardest shit.
I got a hotel and Tuesday morning I went to check the boat, one of the lines had snapped. I ran into a guy on the docks and he was able to drive to the marina store and get more lines then come back and help me tie up. Thank god or him.
I have realized that people in this industry, even though they SUCK at replying to you or follow through. They are amazing at helping out, giving advise, etc. IT’s been so nice how helpful for the most part people are.
But, I was def having a melt down. I have been nearly in tears a few times already with this whole situation. I’ve been questioning myself, is this the right thing to do, what about astra, is she going to be happy. Am _I_ going to be happy. Thankfully, my friends have been amazing support. Charles has been more supportive and encouraging than I’d have ever expected.
I have just over one month left in my apartment. Really, only 20ish days because we leave for Greece. I have so much to do between now and then. So much more to learn and so many lessons to come.
I’ll admit. I’m scared, but excited to try this adventure.