Hatuey gets ready for action

Thinks are getting hectic now here in Seattle.
The  boat needs to be documented.
There is still some outfitting to be done.
I haven't got crew yet.
There are endless loose ends to take care of to close my business.
The USCG is known to harass boaters in US territorial waters and US flagged vessels anywhere in the world.
I want to avoid any run in with US Imperialism as much as possible and registration in a foreign country is one way to do it.
So I cough up $ 1800.00 and change to get a documentation # and papers allowing me to fly the Dutch flag and have Curacao (Netherlands' Antilles} as my home port.
The Dutch Consul has to inspect the proper applicatiojn of the numbers aboard  the boat. The process takes weeks of faxing, phoning  and writing, but we complete the registration well in time.
Finding the right crew for a long cruise is the most difficult part of the preparations.
Professional crew is unaffordable, at least for me, and even if you could afford it how would I know that the guy will work out?
Volunteers who have some experience, the time and the willingness are hard to find.
So you rely on word of mouth amongst friends and along the waterfront.
From 1982 on I had worked with Josi Reichlin on a project called: "Pacific Peacemaker"
She was constantly looking for crew to man the projects' ketch which was on an extended cruise in the South Pacific and needed replacement crew on an ongoing basis.
About three month before Hatuey set sail, she introduces a guy who she feels is just right for me.His name is Stephan Zaborowsky. He has a lot of  blue water sailing experience, he speaks Spanish and he is ultra left wing politically. He is anxious to go and he will crew for the cheer adventure, room and board and an allowance when in port. Perfect!!! Right??
Yeah, but how come I have an instant dislike tor the fellow? Is it his smugness, his superior air of disdain. or is it his Australian accent that seems out of place?
I hate myself for my feelings and prejudices Yet they are real and with me, first impressions always were the right ones. But with all these qualifications shouldn't I be a little more tolerant? After all where would I ever find another crew like him?
We decide to meet again. This time we'll go see the boat we will be sharing for the next months, perhaps years.
I decide to accentuate the positive and tell him OK when he offers to live on the boat and start completing the outfitting. On his next stop by the house he brings flowers for my wife. She is thrilled.... Hey, maybe he isn't all that bad after all. For once my first impressions had failed me.  I tell myself things will be just fine once we get to sea. ............
Half a year later I'll fight for my life, the price I'll pay for ignoring my first impressions
But that is another part of the voyage of S/V HATUEY.
to be continued