The Tiger goes to work

Dolores welcomes us

'My home is your home'

Ever since we left Ensenada I've been looking forward to trying out the new 'D'Tail' products from Eddie and Dolores.

The stash of products they'd given joined us - the people - and all the furniture ... just sitting around and collecting dust. Finally yesterday the pitching (that's the forward/aft motion like a rocking horse) stopped for a while. I felt I'd live after days of semi-sea-sickness. Only the rolling motion persisted. This is still anathema for doing dishes, vacuuming or reading music at the piano but other pleasant activities become possible. Including cleaning.

After getting hatted, life-jacketed and sun-screened I was anxious to get started and wanted to bound to the bow of the boat. I had to settle for being tied to the boat and crawling along the deck bearing a bucket half full of water, a spray bottle of D'Tails rust remover, rags and cotton pads. In an hour, I managed to get most of the spray onto the boat (and not just myself) after completing about 1/40 of the task. I made my cumbersome way back.

Eddie at his place of business

We've been very fortunate - Mother Nature ordered her immense waves to clean the outside of the boat. Only the steel rails were left out - the major portion of the Captain's outside work having been done. The steel remains out there as my job.

Back inside, I looked around at the woodwork (also my job).

I know for sure there are exactly 453 little cherry-wood slats (I counted)to be cleaned in the 25 cupboard doors. These slats make up a louver for the door, allowing air to circulate into storage spaces. Having missed Spring Cleaning more than once and having been in an elevated position up above a boatyard for four weeks, the accumulation of dust is outstanding. It takes work on each little slat with an ear-bud (Q-tip) and cotton pads to get at all the dust.

I decided to leave that aside and go to one of our outstanding books.

We've been really lucky in finding books ... I just counted 23 paperbacks (and more on Kindle) that we've read on this trip. That's not counting all those already read and given away ... they're off travelling the world on someone else's boat. Various friends in Victoria gave me books and Kevin and Beth (in Port Townsend) gave us some really great books.

I've set aside both "Practical" and "Applied Cryptography" for the moment. However, with R Restack 'Mozart's Brain and the Fighter Pilot' - given us by Peter Leffe - I feel that along with newly acquired skills at dancing and language and with my evident skill at counting I WILL do math. Restak advocates a well-exercised brain in all areas. Alas, in the past my math skills have proved resolute against improvement and my brain remains under-exercised in that area.

Larry advised me to read "Does God Play Dice" by Ian Stewart as a start. When I got to page 38 and read the words 'differential equations' I had that remembered panicky feeling from school and had to be reassured by the Captain and given a strong drink so I could keep going. I'm finding it easier reading now - I highly recommend it - besides, it's much better than dusting.



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At 6/18/2014 21:33 (utc) our position was 26°06.16'N 133°14.63'W