Here is the next email message we received from the boatyard:
I’m attaching some photos of the welding work, and of the fairing along the waterline… …they have started welding on the transom. If you have any questions, as ever, don’t hesitate to contact us.
Oh happy, happy day! There are fewer holes than there were! Our boat could actually be considered seaworthy if she were to be gently placed into the water and there was minimal wave action. This is Important and Eventful!
(We celebrated at The Commune with a bottle of champagne.)
They had to do fairing along the waterline because all the paint and fairing compound and the rest of the things that keep the outside of the hull looking smooth had been sandblasted off in our quest for holes. There was a sort of lip above the waterline where the stuff had not been blasted off. Initially I did not want to do the fairing. It was expensive and I figured that it wouldn’t matter because the boat would be in the water so no one would see it anyway. My Better Half made the eloquent argument that it would look stupid when were in anything except flat calm water. Oh. Also the argument was made that the lip could potentially cause drag as we were sailing and slow us down.
I just was eager to get done…
Sailing Devilfish 
