Foreign Pests of All Sizes

After a weekend of full surf immersion, I greeted the final items on the list last Monday with a sunburnt smile”¦ Okay, here we go”¦ Pull up the re-cut headsail. Go to the top to see where it lays. Search my hardware extras and find the PERFECT piece to lash to the masthead to make a better angle for the halyard to attach to the sail. Go back up, lash it on, and fill all open holes on the mast with Rule Sealant on my way back down. Measure the new halyard for where the cable lies on the winch. Cut the halyard and clamp the new nicopress fitting with every last bit of my strength using a bolt-tightening clamping device while being harassed by angry wasps because I taped over their entry holes into my spinnaker pole. Lash the sail to the furler and pull it up for the final time! YeaY!”¦Oops, no, I put too many wraps on the furler. Sail comes back down, unlash, unwrap, relash, back up…Okay kitty, I know, it’s time to eat”¦

Up before the sun comes over the hill to catch a ride to town. Gotta buy 14 meters of 10 awg wire, get my visa extension, and find a 50 amp fuse for the wind generator”¦ First two, yes, the last–impossible, not on this island”¦ have to use a 30 amp fuse for now”¦ Mount the wind generator in the newly soddered stainless sleeve, and run the wires through the pole. I’ve got a new neighbor today in the marina”¦ okay Mr. ol’ supertan French single hander dude, can you stop staring? I KNOW Swell is beautiful, but I am trying to work over here, do you mind? No don’t offer to help, just keep smoking your cigarette and sunning your upper thighs while watching me struggle”¦ I would rather be crushed by this tower than take your help anyway! “¦ hee hee…

“Oh, salut Sylvain! Est-ce que tu peux m’aider pour une moment?”