Beez Neez now Chy Whella

Concerning

Big Bear and Pepe Millard

Sat 18 Oct 2014 22:57

Daylight, Always Very Concerning

The current view through the stern drive fitting plate.

Since we have back on Beez I have been so cabbage patched I could set up my own market garden. Bear made his first job insulating his potting shed by sticking a lining layer of sponge to the ceiling. He had a piece left over and I suggested he did our hanging cupboard. The potting shed was bad enough with the smell of the glue but when he came out of the cupboard he was as high as a kite – that was with the windows open and the fan steered his way. My eyes questioned whether this had been a good idea. We did a full tin audit as this was a sit down job and not being scheduled felt rather good. Then the moving of everything from the two back cabins ready for the engine service.

Each morning Bear gets up early, makes a cup of tea and disappears. Barry arrives and sets to ‘in’ the engine. I withdraw to make the bed become a temporary office. When I got back to Beez I had about sixty four blogs to catch up with, now down to about forty five, spreadsheet updates and shifting stuff about on hard drives makes the day pass pretty quickly. At lunchtime Bear hands me two pairs of rice cakes with a Laughing Cow cheese clapped between each and disappears again. At five thirty I emerge wearing blinkers to prepare supper, have a very tentative look around Beez and bimble out to shower. Whilst his supper is cooking I try to claw back at his lead in backgammon. Disastrous time, down on money and seven behind at the worst count. Good. Now then. All of the above is to keep mind and soul from exploding. I’m not going to put the usual ‘Beez in Chaos’ pictures on, but imagine how much stuff is in the en suite, the downstairs toilet - as I now call the sea toilet, the hired store and every surface Beez possesses. Bravery and nerve is much in need.

From the outside Beez looks par normal among her friends, ready for anti-fouling before she goes back to her watery environment, but as launch date is the 4th of December, there’s clearly much still to be done before we set off to Australia in a couple of weeks. Bear chunters each night over his ‘to do list’ now trendily held on his IPad. Then he goes out cold as he ‘watches’ a film. The snoring is legendary. I gave myself wet eyes when I managed to put the ends of three fingers in his mouth and play a tune by waggling said digits. He grunted, turned over and I was left to continue giggling. Each day follows a similar pattern. Where does he disappear to ??? The anchor locker. Oh. I’ve got scaffolding coming for the weekend. Oh.

Rod and Mary have kindly left Mrs Puki with us as they have gone off for a week to anchor in some beautiful bay or other. Jealous, no I manage through very gritted teeth. I’ll take you out of your cave for a couple of hours. Oh. We went off to Paihia in the glorious sun, me wearing dark glasses against the the brightness I have become unaccustomed to, only to find that Countdown – equivalent of Tesco has closed – something to do with a rent issue, so on we went to Kerikeri. The afternoon treat was a walk around our favourite, The Warehouse – a smaller version of Trago Mills, B&Q, Homebase with - less tools and boys stuff, rolled into one. A stop at the edge of the car park to look at the summer flowers peeking out, I know how to treat a girl......... Then a bimble around New World – Sainsbury’s equivalent. Armed with two new hard drives, what a lucky girl am I, it was back to my cave.

Down at the back end Bear has a furtle and a clean up. Is that a bit of a builders bottom..........

Cute from the other side.

The front end and scene of the daily disappearances. Bear took the anchor windlass to pieces and for an afternoon I saw feet in the cockpit every time I leaned out of my cave. The various smells of paints and primers had me sneezing. The cave has taken on new meaning. After breakfast the photocopier sits on the skippers half of the bed, oh do I get that much in reality. Moving on, that’s what happens to me most nights, Sssshhh, we I’d at least like it in writing. Have you ever seen anyone wield a bag of photocopier inks in such a menacing fashion.

Bear has

Disappear Bear, Disappear.