Hi All:  Have been working hard on poor old Daruma to make ready for the Bahamas in a few days. (Jan. 2).  Weather allowing, we are heading on Wednesday at high tide, about 7 am, out the canal and into the Gulf of Mexico to see what the world has in store for us this year. 
Above you'll see the Admirals kitchen, we're supposed to call it a galley, after Traci painted and ripped up the old flooring.  Below are pictures after we went at it for a few days.

I'm expecting a few quality meals now ;)  I still have to pull some drawers out and reset the frame and roller rail thingies so they fit better but pretty much everything else has been touched and fondled in some way, new propane line and valves so we don't have to run outside and shut it off every meal.  The oven is next, gonna pull and have a look at everything but I think I'll do that while lolly gagging in the Bahamas.

Above, the little engine that could with a shiny new exhaust mixing elbow with stainless steel bolts and washers and a shiny new fuel filter and primer bulb inline to help with the task of bleeding the fuel system.  It also got new exhaust hose, the fuel injector pump and injectors were sent to Orlando and rebuilt and set up and reinstalled and the injector timing set and today both engines are getting an oil change. 
The guest bedroom got a new toilet, (head), sorry Brandy, you still have to pump it, new starboard bilge pump, the water maker is now hooked to port and starboard water tanks, the fuel tank has been emptied and about a cupfull of water removed, the windows have been resealed, a new radio with the ability to show other vessel names, direction of travel and speed (called AIS) and transmit this info onto the chart plotter has been installed, a broken wire was found and repaired on the fluxgate compass, a speaker for the new VHF radio was installed outside so it can be heard, some leaky old plumbing has been removed, the bilges have been washed and vacuumed out and I'm in the process of experimenting with a $30.00 gyro and voltage regulator from Radio Shack which should work and be able to be added to our course computer.  I'll keep ya posted on that one.
Wednesday is the day so I'll make a real effort to document highs and lows of this years trip.  We have a new camera for underwater so there should be some tropical pictures on the way.

The guy on the no fishing sign above was sitting there when Traci and I went for a walk to throw the garbage in the bin and stayed there while we went and got the camera.  He wasn't afraid at all unlike myself, I've had previous experience with owls........
Regards!
Dave and Traci