Location: En route to Grenada
My day started with a jerk at 2:40 am, when Luke gently tapped me on the shoulder, and I basically had a heart attack. I was on bow watch for the first hour with Sophie. We were lucky enough to see some stars and a small pod of dolphins before the wind picked up, and we started to get pummeled by seawater. If I didn’t understand the importance of being clipped onto the jack lines, I do now. The wind reached around 30 knots, and the boat was heeling for the rest of watch. After I spilled milk all over Will from trying to eat cereal on deck, I tried to climb back into bed. It was really just so much harder than it needed to be — I looked like a little spider monkey trying not to step on Julia and Zoe while I pulled myself onto my bunk with arm strength alone.
I slept for a beautiful six hours, only broken by a very groggy “Happy Birthday” to Julia (who is 21 today!!!!!!). I met Watch Team 2 up on deck and got to be a part of Will’s innovative knot experiments; he has created the “Naughty Knot” for tying up sailors at sea who fail to do their jobs correctly. I’m sure he will go far in the knot design business, so look for his tutorials on Youtube in the coming months. Jodie and the sous chefs made some excellent nachos for lunch, then it was back to watch. As usual, I spent the better part of the day with Steve, my fearless watch leader, and made him play 20 questions with me (Papa, if you’re reading this, you’ll recognize that was a mistake). Jodie and Co. were back in the galley for dinner — serving us some amazing jerk chicken and vegetables. Since it was a special occasion tonight, the chefs brought out a gluten-free, dairy-free cake for the beautiful birthday girl and a giant purple cake filled with all the usual delicious crap for the rest of us.
I’ve got a solid hour until I’m back on watch, and the possibilities are boundless.
Goodnight from somewhere south of Martinique,
Margeaux
Photo 1 – Julia at the helm
Photo 2 – The knot master himself
Photo 3 – Watch Team 2
Photo 4 – Watch Team 3 feat. Sophie at the helm
Photo 5 – Some cuties
Photo 6 – Passing Dominica
Photo 7 – Some more cuties
Photo 8 – Engine room check
Photo 9 – Birthday Cake!