cutting the dock lines

I enjoyed a wonderful bon voyage party last night with my San Diego and LA friends. I still need to do some provisioning and scrape the mucus off my brain, so I'll be setting sail tomorrow. I expect the passage to Hiva Oa to take about a month. I will be incommunicado until I arrive and find an internet cafe. From what I've read and been told, the stretch of ocean between here and there is a relatively benign one (I'll probably regret writing that at some point). If anyone wants to snail mail me (poste restante), I will check the post office in Papeete (Tahiti) when I get there. I think letters should be addressed something like this:

Poste Restante
Lars H. Thoresen
Agence OPT de Papeete Centre des Messageries Postales
98715 Papeete
Tahiti
French Polynesia (Polynesie Francaise)

Apparently they will only hold items for 15 days, so you should probably wait a while before mailing anything. I anticipate being in Tahiti by mid June.

Haul-out and bottom paint

was on the top of my to-do list. I paid the boat yard to do the sanding and painting, never having done it (on a boat) myself. Seeing it done removed any mystique and I will not hesitate to do it myself in the future. While Twister was on the hard I took the opportunity to replace the sacrificial zinc anodes and propeller shaft stuffing. Here are some pics. A few other things I have recently crossed off the list include connecting a second solar panel, finishing installation of the marine SSB radio, replumbing the fresh-water line in the sink, and registering the boat with the US Coast Guard. 
Still to be done are fixing the electric and manual bilge pumps (important), wiring the new tiller pilot, replacing the running lights with LEDs, and, of course, provisioning. Tentative departure date (for the marquesas)--April 17.