Where Is The Fat?

December 2005

S/V Wild Card
Opua, Bay of Islands

Ahoy Family and Friends..!

Well, we're in New Zealand. It took us only nine days to get here from Tonga, but the last two were extremely stressful... attempting to beat into 40 knots of sou'westerly gale... right on the nose... horrible!

Man, does it blow down here! Gale after gale after gale. We were lucky: our friends Russ and Shirley on the Halberg Rassey 35 named Wandering Star left 12 hours after us. They tore their jib, lost their engine, wrecked their self-steering gear... their radar went out... she broke a couple of ribs... and giant waves smashed/stove in their portlights (as I was giving them a crash course, via SSB, on how to heave-to in a gale) and THEY ARE STILL OUT THERE... debating whether or not to be air-lifted off by helicopter... ten days after we arrived!!!

Yeah.

It is rough down here!

It is also cold. One morning, it was 49 degrees when we woke up! For a Caribbean sailor, this might as well be Antarctica!

However, we're loving it here. The Kiwi sailors are great: highly skilled, friendly and tough as nails.

It is weird to be back in the First World again. I thought we had our spending budget under control... but, hey, there was just nothing to spend money on in Tonga! I mean, here I'm being seduced by dis-and-dat gadget... Carolyn wants her own computer, Carolyn wants an anchor windlass, Carolyn wants a 12v watermaker... and what do I want? (I want Carolyn!)

Anyway, check out the cover of the latest Cruising World, the December 2005 issue. Is Western civilization is deep doo-doo, or what?

Seriously, this is big step forward for me... not vanity-wise, career-wise... because by CW putting us on the cover... they indicated that they think we sell magazines at the newsstands across America... and that will, eventually, translate into some more 'Fat Dollars' for our cruising kitty... so I won't have to keep giving Carolyn an abacus, gloves and a Brita water filter... rather than what she has requested!

...anyway, that's it from here.

We're fine. The sheep are cute. And...

...how are you?

Fatty, cold & shivering... but happy/happy/happy!

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