31:47.948 S
166:34.973 W
25/5/09
15:00
Just had a really promising e-mail via the Australian
Nespresso Club....yes I’m a member.
Hi Sir,
I’m Christophe TREBOUTA, sales Manager on Tahiti and we send and repare NESPRESSO machines.
If you come in
Tahiti for a few days you can call me on my phone: (689)
734101
Thanks
So it won’t be Nescafe
all the way after all.
18:30
When I bought the new
computer I also purchased on-line a compact wireless keyboard with a laptop
type mouse pad which is clearly
designed for little Chinese fingers.
If you so much as hover over a bit of text it instantly selects it and
also frequently moves the insertion point while you’re typing which for a hunt
and peck merchant like me is a disaster. It tries to anticipate your click. This
bit of kit along with the insanely complicated oddities of Word can drive a
grown man to distraction. All I
want to do is some simple typing with no frills and automatic inanities. I nearly threw it overboard this
afternoon, until I remembered I had given the spare keyboard away whilst I was
busy tossing everything I had been collecting over the last 4 ½ years. It mysteriously locked the Numerical
Caps function so you couldn’t type a number and try as I may I couldn’t rid the
thing from this feature. I took the
batteries out of it for half an
hour and when I replaced them it started to behave as normally as it ever
does. A new keyboard will be second
on my Papeete Shopping List.
The water pump impellor of
the DC generator died today. Steve
replaced it. It had only done 140
hours but probably sitting idle in New
Zealand the last few months didn’t do it any
good.
It’s been a cloudy damp
day. The wind has been pretty much ENE all day and
we’ve done a couple of big tacks which haven’t got us all that much closer to
our destination. Squalls are appearing on the radar, the low pressure system
must be getting closer although the barometer is steady..
19:00 The rain
has begun in earnest.
26/5/09 01:00
It’s been a wet
evening. The wind has continued ENE
Force 6. Sometimes it goes NE. We are sailing at 3-4 knots almost due
North. We are deeply reefed,
sailing to windward slowly so as not to get too far North. There is very little motion on the boat
and it’s good for sleeping. The wind is expected to go North and even NW. Then we’ll tack and speed things up, and
actually head for the Australs. We have just crossed the original rhumb
line.
Just received the following
from Anthony:
“The wind sat picture
shows an area of considerable convective activity between 29S and 31S and 164W
and 167W. The maximum wind speed is 50 knots and I expect there will also be a
lot of lightning. It is moving southeast. Now is the time to be heading north.
In your area I can see maximum winds ENE F7 but mostly ENE F5 - 6. This will put
you into N winds (and soon after NW winds) within 12
hours.”
Hmmmmm... I think we’ll carry on North.
03:00
The wind has started to back. Our wind course was taking us away from
our target and toward the low, so we have just tacked. We’re already further
North than Anthony thinks. I just
got a new GRIB and we should be
fine.
08:15
Well the wind didn’t carry on backing and in fact
returned to NE/ENE, consequently our course on the new tack kept us on the same axis as the oncoming low so we decide to
motorsail NNE for a few hours which should
place us in a better position when it does arrive. Also it appears that the stronger, more
favourable wind will be to the North of our current position after it passes.
It’s actually turning into a very pleasant morning after
the rains of last night. I have put
away my thermals hopefully for good.
13:00
It’s become into a really balmy day. The wind has finally backed NNW F4 and
we are sailing again. On course.
It’s shorts and
T-shirt time in the cockpit as this wind is warm and it’s 24 Degrees C.
What with one thing
and the other yesterday’s run was a measly 140 miles not a lot of it in
the right direction. Engine hours 4 ¾. Still we’re doing better now.
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