Cruiser Style

08 Feb. 12


I don’t know if it’s because the project is coming to an end or if it’s because it has carried on for to long now, but I am finding it harder and harder to motivate myself into doing the final few tasks. After struggling for about two minutes I decided to go into the boatyard and hire someone to come and prepare the see cocks for our visitor from SAMSA. Since the boatyard is a small place and we have somehow managed to make a few enemies along the way I found myself with few choices and landed up using the services of a guy with the nick name of plastic. He arrived promptly with his assistant and got stuck into the job. Within about two hours they had removed all the sea cocks. I now understood why the guy from SAMSA wanted us to remove them since they were all broken and had to be replaced.

Mike from SAMSA arrived with another guy, Jerry I think, they walked around the bottom of the boat and asked about some of the repairs we had made. Knocked here and there and felt around a little bit then complimented us on our rudder repairs. Inspected the old sea cocks and stated that they did actually need to be replaced. They then came upstairs into the boat and checked that I had in fact strengthened the keels from both the outside and the inside and wasn’t just making up stories. We then spoke a while about the safety inspection requirements and that concluded his and Jerry’s visit.

Yesterday we spent our first day as “real” cruisers by catching a taxi into town since we no longer have a car. We spent the day walking from place to place all around town buying cigarettes, motor spares and some groceries. Had lunch at a Fish Aways franchise with a memory of my son Keagan flashing into my head since the last time we were in that shop he had been with us. I also thought about him earlier in the day when we went into “The Hub” since this was the store he made up the story about mannequin man. I am still obviously struggling with my decision to go on this trip without him and my daughter.

Anyway we called a taxi outside the mall entrance one and it arrived promptly. Whilst loading our groceries into the boot Lola somehow slipped off the pavement and fell onto the road injuring her ankle.

We spent the evening back at the boat watching Trevor Noah and limping off to the bathroom on occasion.

09 Feb. 12

Our new 12 volt 130 litre fridge arrived the day before yesterday so we removed our old 220 volt big fridge, broke out the wood flooring and built a new fibreglass and foam cupboard yesterday. This morning we have to add a few layers of glass to the edges run a new electrical wire to the fridge and rewire the batteries correctly. We still haven’t finished repairing and installing our new second hand wind charger but we did start making the mould to replace the old broken cover. The guys we hired to replace our sea cocks are still not finished. They are typical coastal workers that arrive slowly at about ten-ish in the morning and leave again at about one-ish without really having achieved anything, besides be in my way, and borrowing my tools leaving them in random places all over the boat for me to play hide and seek whenever I need one of them. I can’t see us getting back in the water for quite some time still and feel as is we don’t really get anywhere. Like one of those exercise bicycles that you can pedal as hard and long as you like but will never get you out of your bedroom.

It’s about eleven at night and I am just sitting in the cockpit alone. Lola and the kids are in bed possibly asleep. I sent an sms to my two other kids and I am feeling still quite glum not having them here with me. I had such a lot to say before I sat down to type this but the words seem to be escaping me right now. All I can say is the moon is hidden by the clouds, the evening is still and peaceful outside with only the occasional sound of a car passing by somewhere in the distance. Oh and of course the typical African crickets chirping away. Occasionally I am reminded that we are in a harbour by the ship horns sounding in the channel as they pass each other in the dark. I can understand if Lola feels that I have been a bit withdrawn or distant. I haven’t been myself lately in fact from about the first day of this year I haven’t felt quite like myself. Every so often the old me returns but vanishes just like the morning mist without a trace. This new guy isn’t able to kick himself into gear and seems to just be idling along in neutral. As if he is waiting for life to happen around him instead of going out to find it and make it happen. I can’t begin to understand this new guy but he has started to get on my nerves.

10 Feb. 12

Well a boat named Pelagic came out of the water a week or so ago, parked next to us, had some repairs done and went back into the water today. Us, well still sitting just at the same place as yesterday and the day before and the day before that.

We painted our first coat of antifoul paint today even though it was spitting with rain periodically and I just didn’t feel like doing it yet still dragged myself through it. Decided to go for a t-bone steak at the club house this afternoon and then have a few drinks on the boat but now that we are back I just want to go to bed and sleep. Got two sms messages from my daughter reminding me that she misses me but also telling me that she is going through a difficult time. I wonder if its my fault.