Some new paint and a new home

 Freedom made it through the stay on the hard well and went back into the water with some over due maintenance completed as well as the new coat of bottom paint. None of the maintenance we had performed was all that serious but it needed doing and adds a certain amount of comfort to our stay aboard.
 While Freedom took a break, we were staying at a hotel in Fort Myers Beach that offered us a great view of the Gulf of Mexico, and a pool but little else. So that gave us the incentive to look at all the property we could since we had decided the area we were in was where we wanted to settle in the foreseeable future. After all, Fort Myers Beach is really quite a pleasant stop but doesn't offer that much as far as good dining goes. It's somewhere between the Bahamas and the Jersey shore. Perhaps that offers too much leeway to consider but it's the best I can offer at this time.
 Eventually we settled on a condo in North Fort Myers. The area is on the outskirts of Fort Myers, and in a decent neighborhood. Yes, there are better areas nearby like Naples but the expense in that area is extreme so we avoided it. Cape Coral offered some really affordable housing, and we probably could have gotten one with a dock for Freedom. But Cape Coral has been beaten up by storms and all in all, it was a bit too residential for us. As far as Naples goes one realtor expressed it by saying "she'd rather be a pauper in Naples than live anywhere else". Having experienced the outlying areas of Naples that were affordable it was obvious we'd rather be a mulatto in Fort Myers in a nice place than a pauper in Naples. One thing we did learn about Florida was that for the most part no matter where you go within the areas we found interesting, you will have some sort of association fee regardless of owning a home or a condo. In our minds, the fees for some of the condos, were more in line with our expectations than many of the houses. Eventually we located a facility that had a very good blend of services at a reasonable price that was very competitive with a house. In fact it offered more for the money. 
 Once that decision was made, all sorts of other activity was initiated. The POD had to be shipped South and to the association. Arrangements had to be made to pick up the rest of our furnishings that had been scattered about various locations with relatives.

 When we finished packing the POD back last October, it was fully packed and everything was either in a box on a shelf that was strapped in with wide nylon tie downs, or it was wedged in with cushions and covers to prevent it from shifting. We actually planned the layout using a scale model of the POD and scale sized puzzle pieces. It was fun to have company experiment with the puzzle. All of that payed off well and virtually nothing was marred or otherwise damaged during the shipping and storage of the POD. I think perhaps one piece had a mar that looks like it will "buff out" but we haven't gotten to that yet. I will say that the 1/2 inch foam pipe insulation offered in Hope Depot can be folded up to make very effective cushions. Just put some tape around it to hold it in a flat configuration. Other helpful padding included cheap throw pillows from SAMs Club.
    So the POD eventually made it here and having Freedom to live on at the foot of the condo is a blessing. We could unload and unpack the POD and still have a very convenient place to crash after a hard days work in the heat. I easily lost almost 10 pounds moving everything around. When the POD was emptied and all of the contents had found their new place in the condo, we looked around and thought, we need more and there is more in NYS we have to get. So we made reservations for a flight, a car for errands up North and a truck to bring it all South.
 While we were up North we visited and as a matter of course, that 10 pounds I shucked while unloading the POD all mysteriously reappeared. In fact that brought along a couple of friends. The ride South didn't help any either since we subjected ourselves to quick meals at junk food havens over four days of driving.  All totaled it was 1435 miles from Kingston to the condo. Thank goodness the Ipod connected to the stereo in the truck, and more fortunately we were able to find a cable to recharge it at one of the truck stops we bought gas in. At 10 miles per gallon, do the math. The POD was actually a very good deal. Just make sure to pack it tightly, lash it down, and pad everything if you chose to go that route.
 On the way South we chose the (perhaps) less traveled route South via I81, I77 and then to I95 once back in South Carolina. When we arrived in Florida we crossed over to I75 via 301 through the likes of Lawley and Waldo. Once on 301 in Florida we were reminded of how lucky we are. Not only that, we are reminded of how easy it is to get nailed for speeding. We managed to escape any penalties and perhaps that was because of the warnings. Several miles outside of these towns there are full sized bill boards announcing "Lawley Speed Trap 2.5 miles ahead". When you get there, at the main intersection are a mess of police sitting around at the flashing school zone sign. By the way, there is no warning of reduced speed limits.
 But it's all good and we have arrived safely and in time to prepare Freedom for the impending arrival of Isaac. Whether or not this storm tracks right over us or not is still up for grabs and hopefully Freedom gets through it all. The condo has furniture and is now livable and it is certainly better than a beach front hotel room with a very noisy air conditioner, or another next to a rail road depot.