It's not that we're hopeful about leaving. We're leaving. We're hopeful about the weather.

Meanwhile, we're cleaning and cleaning. Books, in particular, need frequent airing out to prevent mildew damage. Here's a typical example.

Our friends at 4ShadowsBooks were horrified that we would let good books degrade like this. But they're antiquarian booksellers, and these aren't collectable first editions, signed by the author, with original undamaged dust jackets.

They caution us that prevention was our best choice. That ship — so to speak — has sailed. There's nothing meaningful we can do to reverse water damage. More assiduous cleaning might slow or stop the mildew. CA is going to increase the tempo and intensity of cleaning.

We also have to watch out for the clothes that we don't wear very often. They're largely doomed if they're not worn and washed frequently.

See cargo pants and a t-shirt for more of The Commodore's thoughts on this subject.

Floating Leaf Tiny Quilts

Interspersed with cleaning, CA has another TinyQuilt in the hopper. That means fabric selection.

A fair number of choices.

Once upon a time, she would have had a massive "stash" of fabrics. But. She took a class from an artist who suggested that the stash acts as a constraint on one's vision. Instead of seeing a work, you see a work within the context of the available collection of fabrics such as they are. Why impose limits?

Weather Watch

Today, we're just waiting for the last few gusts of the frontal system. Then we're out of here early tomorrow.

Today's Synopsis for Zone AMZ555 (Sebastian Inlet to Jupiter Inlet) sounds like this [emphasis added]:

A COLD FRONT WILL MOVE SOUTH OF THE WATERS THIS AFTERNOON. GALE FORCE GUSTS WILL OCCUR WELL OFFSHORE NORTH OF CAPE CANAVERAL INTO THIS AFTERNOON...WHILE OTHER AREAS WILL SEE A FRESH TO STRONG WESTERLY BREEZE. HIGH PRESSURE WILL BUILD IN BEHIND THE FRONT TONIGHT WITH THE RIDGE AXIS BECOMING ESTABLISHED ACROSS THE PENINSULA AND INTO THE ATLANTIC EARLY NEXT WEEK. THIS WILL BRING FAVORABLE BOATING CONDITIONS.

Gale Force Gusts (!) north of here. Ouch. It may be well offshore, but still: lookout St. Augustine.

Sunday looks like this in AMZ555:

North winds 5 to 10 knots. Seas 3 to 4 feet with a dominant period 9 seconds. A light chop on the intracoastal waters.

Sunday Night in AMZ650:

Northeast winds 7 to 12 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Dominant period 6 seconds. Intracoastal waters a light chop.

And Monday Morning in AM651:

East northeast winds 8 to 13 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Intracoastal waters a moderate cho

So, it looks like a really good sail down the coast. Let's not get over-optimistic. But. We can be hopeful.