Fred and JoeJoe arrived at the dock full of energy, smartly groomed with summer cuts, ready for their first sailing adventure. For safety, we put the boys in doggy life jackets before we left the dock a bit after 3pm for another practice sail. The sky was an azure clear blue, the temperature a mild 75 degrees and the winds a light 10-15 knots. Just enough to fill the sails, but not enough to put you on guard for a "tip you over" gust. Fred has turned out to be the super water dog -- able to take one look at what is happening and then lie down to enjoy the ride. In the mean time his hyper active brother paced the cockpit to find the perfect spot for "nose into the wind". It was better than any car with an open back window could provide. He split his time with that and hanging his head out the stern to watch water bubble out from under the boat as we sliced through the water. All the sail went out today. John took the helm. I relaxed and all is well with the world.
On our return we gave j-bird her first wash down. It made us both proud to see her in Bristol condition at our own hands. Tomorrow we begin waxing the deck--a labor of love -- at least for this first time.
We were too tired to inflate the dinghy as planned so it goes on tomorrow's list of things to do. Fred and JoeJoe need to get used to getting in and out of the dinghy. Enjoying the "putt-putt" ride in the little craft will be a breeze for them.
It's late, almost 11pm. It's a cool and windy night. The boys are asleep on the settees in the salon while John and I diddle at our computers. Living in fresh air before the heat of the summer is heavenly. It's a lifesyle that just calms me down.
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