Tuesday 31^st January

Snapshot: both of us are soaked through to the skin.  I have dried off with a towel and am sitting at the computer very elegantly clad in my mother’s green and white long-shirt nightie, donated to me many years ago.  Pete has dripped his way downstairs and will doubtless soon appear in dry clothes one way or the other.  Aaahhh no… he didn’t… He has reappeared in his Lounge Suit (pyjama bottoms, cutely named Lounge Suit on the label, a source of endless mirth to me – “Oh Pete, why don’t you wear your LOUNGE SUIT when we go out to dinner tonight?” etc etc…) and his new bright yellow t-shirt, wet as can be… He seems very surprised when I point out to him that he is still wet as can be…

This blogpost should be titled The Kindness of Distant Friends and Distant Relations….

Pete had such a dreadful headache when he woke this morning.  He had to swallow TWO lots of Aspro Clear, which, to him, is equivalent to most of us mainstreaming heroin.  I think, just possibly, he is a teensy bit stressed by the port-side gear problem.  We are now marooned in Coff’s Harbour, our new Home From Home.  Pete rang this and that person, this and that mechanic, and possibly it might all get fixed.  In a week or so.  At many thousands of dollars (yes Brother Chris – boat units not thousands of $$$s…)

So… We did have a lovely Coff’s Harbour day, thanks, as I have intimated, to The Kindness of Distant Friends and Distant Relations….

Duncan Wood was waiting to take us on a lovely drive-by tour of Coff’s in the later part of the morning.  Duncan is Pete’s brother-in-law Chris’s brother…one of the five Wonderful Wood Boys.  (If you have been following this blog, you will have read about Nick Wood, who was our crew member from Sydney to New Caledonia, and who delighted us not only with his boaty knowledge and expertise but also with his joie de vivre and GLOW STICKS.)

Duncan had a Welcome to Coff’s bottle of wine for us to put in the fridge, and he drove us around to various boat-y shops so Pete should buy bits and pieces to fix the problem with the anchor bridle.  (No more needs to be said; it is FIXED, thanks to Duncan, and to Pete’s MacGuyvering skills.)  Duncan also gave us an overview of Coff’s, from one beautiful beach to the other.  It is indeed a most gorgeous little town.  And it is reputed to have the best climate in Australia, if not in the whole world, with an ambient temperature of 24 degrees.  Lovely.  Yes it was hot, sunny, glorious.

We very kindly shouted Duncan lunch… in the RSL Club in Sawtelle… Not sure why Pete has such a fascination with these big clubs, he is so not a gambler.  Sawtelle was lined with dear little cafés, but somehow we were syphoned off into the RSL Club.  It was OK, because it was so nice to spend time with Duncan, but really, I don’t think RSL clubs are the best representation of these communities.

Duncan dropped us off at the slips where we had left the tender and we went back to 2XS to wrestle the new aluminum plate into place.  Success!

At 4.30 we hopped back into the tender and tied up at the slips again.  We had to scramble over a mound of rocks and rusty fence wire (round the rugged rocks the ragged rascal ran…) because the slipyard had locked the gates at 4.00.

We were meeting Craig Chisholm at 4.30 at the Yacht Club.  We had met Craig the year before last at the Bathurst races.  I had his details trapped in my iPhone and had sent him a text as we were coming down the coast – “Do you remember us? Would you like to catch up for a drink?”  He responded very promptly and happily – YES, drinks at the Yacht Club!  When I sent him a message back confirming our rendezvous I mentioned The Gear Problem.  So there he was, witting for us cheerily, and saying, “I have talked to Maggie.  OF COURSE you will stay with us while the boat is being fixed!” 

As we debated this kind offer and caught up on news since we had last seen each other, we looked out toward the beautiful beaches on either side of the Yacht Club.  And what could we see?  Not much…just LOTS of dark cloud and then… a downpour.  The downpour is still pouring down… We said goodbye to Craig and clambered back across the ragged rocks, rascals that we are.  We got VERY VERY wet.

So now here we are…back in WetWorld!  Who knows what tomorrow will bring.  But how lucky we are, to be surrounded by such kindness and hospitality and helpfulness.