Some thoughts about
you / maintenance / Patrick’s latest exploits
We have a very interesting reader base for this drivel. Time
to be seriously worried about yourselves and ask a few searching questions as
there have been over 1000 reads so far. Either there are 1,000 bored Nigerian
scammers looking for hooks to use or June’s parents are very busy with their
i-pad.
As to the intellect and desire to learn and develop your
minds within the readership – again worrying. Patrick the Penguin is a top
favourite. Even more concerning is that so many reads happen during working
hours
Summary: beware
employers everywhere, we are damaging your productivity. Of course, some would correctly
argue that we did that when we were working too.
Where do you live? Well, you are globally distributed. The
worrying bit is the number of hits from Russia and of course the lack of reads
from China. The Chinese government’s firewalling against mind sapping and
productivity damaging rubbish is clearly still working…
The last couple of days have been spent trying out the new
gel saddles on the folding bikes (crew much happier). Even more amazing was
that she managed to pedal up some hills! Historically her half Dutch make-up
(no hills, just windmills and small cheese mounds) meant she had a mental block about hills in either
direction. What retirement can do… This was followed by a mad day of cleaning
and polishing to finish off the hull. Party! Well, red wine and port actually,
purely medicinal for the sore shoulders and neck.
Patrick’s behaviour is becoming more erratic. Luckily we got
to him before he managed to remove the lid:
He received a kind offer from Amanda in Australia:
I have serious
concerns over Patrick and your parenting skills however and do feel that I
should nominate myself as a Godparent, to protect him from the perils of living
with some liveaboards and the possibility of being wheeled around in a
incontinent's trolley shopper to select more beverage to amuse himself whilst
his parents abandon him! I do hope you left him with the mandatory packet of
crisps.........I feel he may benefit from a little holiday in sunnier climates
and the comfort and safety of our pool, where he could amuse himself by
tormenting Mollie the Collie to his hearts content!!
However, this got withdrawn rapidly after she read:
We gained a neighbour last night – a Dutch owned Oyster
yacht (for the non-sailors : they are nice serious cruising yachts and very
expensive!)
Chatting to the family, we learned that they were on a 9
month cruise, having been to the Canaries, across the Atlantic, to Puerto Rico,
back to the UK (by transport ship this time) and now up to Scotland then Norway
via the Caledonian Canal. The 3 kids get on board schooling and the family try
to do this kind of trip every few years. Yes…. The “do it whilst you are still
fit enough” approach. A message for us
all.
As the weather is deteriorating (rain showers right now after 12 days of wall to wall sunshine) and gales are forecast, we
have no plans to rush off anywhere at present. Some course work tonight to put
in all the waypoints for the Scottish West Coast anchorages etc then we can decide where next.
