ALL ABOUT MY GALLEY

Shirley, in Finland, asked, "How easy is it to make and store your food? How often do you declutter onboard or do you need to?" Two questions, and I'll answer them separately ...

My galley (that's boat-talk for kitchen) measures about 6' x 6', but it includes a full-size fridge, an almost full-size stove:

(You'll note the 3-burner arrangement. My stove is the original 'Princess' range that was installed in these Chris Craft's when they were built -- which makes it 45 years old, and still going strong! The oven 'box' is about 13" wide and 15" deep, front to back).We also have a two-burner propane stove up on the bridge which I use in the summer, a LOT.

I only have one sink, and not a lot of counter space -- much like a small apartment kitchen, I guess.

However, I do have some 'expandable' space -- just to the left of the sink is my front door, but there's a hinged 'counter' that comes out across it when I need it, AND I can take my calendar/charts off the table just beyond that (which is part of my office when I need it to be) so that I have lots of space:

 Under that hinged counter is the step leading out of the boat -- and it has a hinged 'lid' so there's lots of food storage under there. Other than that, I have only one upper cupboard in the galley. (There is some space, under the v-berth bunks in the bow, next to the hull, for cold storage of root vegetables that works great)! That table with the calendar, above, also pulls out from the wall and folds out so I can seat six for dinner.

So ... making and storing my food works well, except it's hard for two people to be in the galley at the same time. Good thing there's only two of us on board, and good thing Michael's not the least bit interested in cooking! Back when we were chartering, I regularly made lunches for up to 12 guests, so the space definitely works.

The second question ... "How often do you declutter onboard or do you need to?" The short answer is 'daily' and 'YES.' First of all, this boat *is* cluttered in the sense that we seem to have a lot of 'stuff' -- but it's also fairly organized simply because it has to be. (Our daughter Hailey is a professional organizer and she's probably having a good laugh at that last statement, because it's not how she would have it, but it works for us!) Yes, everything has it's place, that's for sure, and there's not a lot of room for things to get out of hand here.

Some liveaboards have a rule that if you bring anything new onto the boat, you have to give up something old ... we don't follow that religiously, but it's true that we really have to think twice about any acquisitions. When we were first moving aboard and I had to make decisions about what to keep, luckily some things that I was sentimental about were also utilitarian -- the spice rack Jason made for me in grade seven fit perfectly above the stove, and the pottery container Hailey made in high school became the pen holder on my desk, for example.

Shirley didn't ask, but lots of people do: as a knitter, where do I keep my stash? You'd be amazed at how many baskets can fit into 'nooks and crannies' on this boat! I have at least a year's supply of sock yarn alone in just one basket (and if you scroll back up to the picture of the table with the calendar on it, you can just see the top skeins in that basket!) and lots of other yarn on board.

I also have a 12' x 12' storage room, but that's another story! :)