Last night I had a beautiful dream. I was in my rowboat, and it was being borne along by a multitude of whales. They were huge, gentle presences, all around me. I looked down into the water beside my boat, and could see the dark, slick skin of their backs skimming along just below the surface.
When I looked to the side, there were so many of them, it was as if the water was made up entirely of whales, forming the shapes of the waves with their bodies. I watched in wonder, enjoying their calm company.
So this morning when I woke up, I hopped up on deck hoping to see that my dream had come true. But, alas, no. Lots of rough water with whitecaps, but not a whale in sight. Not even a little one.
Looks like I’ll just have to row.
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When I say I “hopped” up on deck, I lie. In these kind of conditions that would be most imprudent. I poke my nose out like a mouse from its hole, whiskers twitching for signs of danger. When the coast seems clear, I launch myself out of the hatch and slam it closed behind me, before a wave can crash inside and soak everything. Apart from condensation, my cabin is still relatively dry, and I’d like to keep it that way.
Having said that, the Purple Palace is starting to feel distinctly dank. I would love a nice sunny, calm day soon so I can do some laundry. Some domestic cleaning would be very good for morale.
Thank you to the people who have been offering advice on my recently-deceased GPS chartplotter. But please don’t worry. I would be hung, drawn and quartered and forced to resign my fellowship of the Explorers Club if I set out to sea with only one GPS – or any other piece of essential equipment. I have at least 4 other GPS devices on board. They don’t have charts included, but I have paper charts as backup. And there really aren’t any features out here that would appear on charts anyway – just lots of water!