3rd of August, 2009

where on earth do they still produce cans and tins without this easy-open lid? It’s outrageous, because my can opener is rusty, and the other one (which I got from Jadzieńka in Cape Town) is SOMEWHERE. Using a knife to open a can is not particularly safe... When, after a lot of work, I finally managed to get to the content of the can, and I was pouring it to a pan, an orange fell into the pan and the sauce splashed everywhere.

In the meantime, the wind got stronger, so I had to adjust the autohelm. When I got back, it turned out that my food was stuck to the pan.
I put what was left onto a tortilla (after all, it was a can of SPANISH beans), but the tortilla got torn. Well. I put it on a plate. The plate slid to the sink. As the sink was full of dirty dishes, the plate got stuck on a mug. My friends know that I’m as patient as an angel, so you know that I wasn’t particularly worried and ate what I managed to dig out from the sink. It’s a pity, though, that I didn’t make sure if I had added spice to the beans at all... And I’d spent so much time thinking what to choose – beans or sardines, beans or sardine...?
There was a plane above my head again today. Probably they think I should’ve already reached the Galapagos Islands, and I’m still sailing... Last night wasn’t nice at all. Many squalls and, which is worse, a very strong wind, huge waves... Yeah, it was a really difficult night. I wanted the wind to let me rest, to change its direction, to let me sail without making Tanasza bump all around... When the moon showed up from behind the clouds, I even asked him for help.
At dusk, I passed 2 fishermen. Whoever they were, it was difficult for me to assess the distance, and although sometimes it felt like we were getting closer to each other, at some point I wasn’t able to spot them. Strange, I kept looking out for the for a long time. 

This night, squalls are also bringing amuch stronger wind. Clouds pass quickly in front of the moon. Again, there are birds around me, waves splash on the deck, sometimes we almost lie on one side. Luckily, I managed to furl this part of the genoa that I had unfurled earlier just before the huge squall. As a result, my hands ache, and we are going even slower now, but it feels much calmer. I just couldn’t stand that swing. I’ll wait until another squall passes, and maybe I will unfurl my ‘wing’ again. But now, I have to wait.