Operation Rehome the Gnome
- sondrawinter
- 19 minutes ago
- 4 min read
In December Jimmy and I accidentally picked up a new crew member. We shared this experience on the Facebook page of our yacht club (Apalachee Bay Yacht Club) and through posts on Baxter’s Instagram page. Now we will share the story of the Shell Point Beach Gnome in this week’s blog post.
The Match Up
Utopia has been sitting in a marina slip in Daytona Beach for several weeks while we have boat work done and attend to some doctors’ appointments. As we tried to logically schedule our car rentals for multiple trips to Tallahassee, we decided to take a road trip in between doctors’ appointments that were ten days apart from each other. This would give us a great opportunity to visit some family and friends before the holiday season.
The road trip schedule allowed us the time to attend a holiday party at Apalachee Bay Yacht Club (ABYC) in Shell Point Beach, the community where we had lived for seven years before downsizing in preparation for our full-time cruising. The holiday party included the option to participate in a White Elephant gift exchange. It was during this gift exchange that we ended up with an extra crew member on our sailboat.
Someone had stolen the first gift we opened, a little Bluetooth speaker, so Jimmy selected a new wrapped gift. The first object to be unveiled was a beautiful hand painted Christmas ornament. The second object elicited a lot of laughter from the room, especially those with cruising experience… It was Mr. Shell Point Beach Gnome. He was a jolly, bearded fellow wearing flip flops and carrying a boom box as well as a cocktail. Jimmy and I looked at each other and mentally said “What the heck? Oh well, let’s give him a try”. Since we were at the beginning of our road trip, the gnome would have to travel along with us, and our cat, Baxter.
That night the four of us spent the night at our friend Susie’s house in Shell Point Beach. We allowed Mr. Shell Point Beach (SPB) Gnome some time to soak in his town before we hit the road.
The Road Trip
Once we completed our time in Shell Point Beach, we headed up to Montgomery, AL.
Mr. SPB Gnome spent a fair amount of time in a hotel room enjoying some Bourbon given to us by our friend Pat in Shell Point Beach. When he was not drinking, we took him by a few sights in Montgomery. On the way out of town, we stopped by the Conecuh Sausage Gift Shop for a tasty treat. All of us thought it was strange to see a pig grilling pork outside of the gift shop.
Our goal at this point of the road trip was time to head to Mississippi to visit Uncle Eddy, a very good friend of Baxter.
While there, Mr. SPB Gnome saw bayous and bulldogs.
Baxter absolutely loves Uncle Eddy's house, but the gnome kept asking when he can see the boat. So, we hopped back into the car and headed east. As we approached Tallahassee, Mr. SPB Gnome requested a quick stop to view the city, a place close to his origins, but had not yet visited.
After posing at the TLH sculpture, he enjoyed the fountain at FSU and loved the dolphins at the state Capitol. Was his excitement for the dolphins a sign that he would love living on Utopia?
False Homecoming
Upon arrival at the marina in Daytona, Mr. SPB Gnome appeared to be very happy and excited about moving onto the sailboat. Baxter took the time to show the gnome around.
He loved that the boat had his name on the transom. He also enjoyed cocktails on the deck with Baxter, and took a nap after several cocktails.
After getting acquainted with the boat, Mr. SPB Gnome went sightseeing around the area.
We saw a race track and a really liked a very pretty hiking trail out towards Deland. Another day, the three of us walked across a bridge over the Intracoastal Waterway and visited the Atlantic Ocean. Mr. SPB Gnome seemed to like watching the surfers.
Once the fun of viewing the local area was over Mr. SPB Gnome attempted to do some chores onboard.
Filling the water tanks was a breeze, however throughout the chores there was some complaining, some crying and a lot of sleeping on the job (we had to tell him that the dishpan is not a bathtub!).
Then one day it became very evident that Mr. SPB Gnome may not be so happy onboard Utopia. Although he tried to help out, he is just too tippy, falling down all of the time (we suspect it may have to do with his never ending cocktail drinking). Plus, he is very small and gets queasy at the slightest motion of the boat.
Even just getting on board was a challenge without building a gangplank. The gnome freaked out when Baxter showed him where the life-raft was stowed. Visibility while helming was nearly impossible.
Making matters worse, although he tried to help out with the lines, we had to retrieve him after falling overboard. Topping it all off, he gets very seasick. It looks like he may not be suited for the cruising world.
We all began to worry about what the future might look like.
True Homecoming
One afternoon a little birdy saw the gnome crying on the deck of Utopia. It told him about the Holly Hill Gnomes and off we went.
Mr. SPB Gnome instantly cheered up as the others greeted and welcomed him to stay. He now lives adjacent to the Intracoastal Waterway under two beautiful oak trees. Occationally dolphin swim up to the gnomes to wish them a good day, making Mr. Shell Point Beach Gnome grin from ear to ear before taking another sip of his cocktail. Feel free to stop by and visit him sometime.
Post 26-03
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