The tea cosy and tea towels are soaking in soapy water after the teapot fell over and the cold tea went everywhere. I have read through the note book filled out by domestic goddess Annie that details every single food item fridge by freezer by cupboard, with appropriate recipe suggestions. Oliver and I could comfortably eat our way back to Blighty and in style. Last night we had lentils with spicy sausage, squash and sweet potato (2 mins in the pressure cooker after initial browning). Other suppers have included Green Thai curry with prawns, the previously written about tartiflette, fresh tuna of course, ratatouille and so forth.  Thai curry with coconut milk, squash and chickpeas tonight (plus brandy pudding). The dried chickpeas are soaking as I write. Olly preparing the food in the cockpit with me cooking and washing up in the galley is actually a good working arrangement. It keeps the galley clearer, reduces individual workload and avoids any possibility of argument over whose turn it is to do what.  I may have waxed lyrical about our pressure cooker in previous posts but it’s still worth a mention in dispatches.

We are both up at around 0430. Olly does the 2000 to 2300 watch then I do 2300 to 0200. We either change then for three hours if Oliver is awake or I am happy to stay on watch until 0430 or thereabouts or when Olly wakes, if before then. The music goes on early and sets the tone for the day. This morning it was a Chill House playlist which means laid back electronic music (think cool DJ mixes you clubbers). Perfect for drinking coffee, eating biscuits, reading books and food lists, sending and receiving messages, chatting. Olly was enjoying Jamaica Inn and sleeping while I was watching all the Portuguese Men of War floating by. Their little sails are translucent and reflect pale glints of colour just like cellophane present wrap. They are so pretty and it looks like a sea of silver Chinese lanterns. Except they are deadly and a worry is that their tentacles might get caught in the weed on the Duogen. And there does seem to be rather a lot of them.

Reefs have now been let out and the boom preventer attached as the wind drops. We were hoping it would last for another 100 miles or so and may do so but we are now within the influence of a low pressure system with no certainty how the wind will behave. We will download another weather map this evening and then await input from Annie and of course Des in the morning.