Sleeps Well At Night
Day 15
Stats - 9/14/2023
Time: 2300
Trip Miles: 1,828 at 1200
Weather: Dark clouds, raining
Wind: 20 - 34 Knots blowing from the SW
Sea State: Four to eight foot rolling swells at 7 second intervals
Propulsion: Sailing 7 to 8 knots NNW
Sea Temperature: 57 - lots of cold air now
Meals: Breakfast -Scrambled eggs and hashbrowns. Dinner - Taco Salad
How Northerly Are We?: Past Vancouver Island, well into British Columbia (just past Latitude 58)
Rabbi Sydney Mintz of Temple Emaenu-El in San Francisco tells the story of a man in her mythical village in the old country whose name was Sleep Well At Night. The villagers knew by the wind and the clouds that a big storm was coming within one week. But there were dinners and parties that the villagers had planned and wanted to attend. So they went about their regular jobs during the day and had fun all night.
But Sleep Well At Night began his preparations immediately. He woke up early and tended his garden and then his livestock. By lunch he was repairing his roof and storing hay in his barn. After supper he patched the holes in his wooden home and then he fixed his loose windows and their shutters. This went on for several days and Sleep Well At Night was exhausted, while all the villagers were out having their fun.
On the fifth night, the rain started to fall. The villagers were startled and surprised and began scurrying to prepare themselves and their families for the oncoming storm. By morning the storm had hit and the villagers were in total panic as they began in vein to prepare - they were up all night working. Sleep Well At Night brought his livestock into the barn, took out a bail of hay and closed the barn door. He went to his home, closed the doors and shutters and went to bed and slept well all night.
This story came to mind today as Randall confirmed this morning that a strong weather system would be upon us Saturday. Coming from the Southwest, the winds could be well into the 40’s (otherwise known as a strong gale). I wanted to call it a “storm”, but Randall prefers the more technical “Force 8” on the Beaufort Wind Scale https://www.spc.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/beaufort.html
Randall keeps MŌLI in tip top condition, but there is always more to do in preparation. So today we cleaned the inside, updated the chart-plotter, covered the dorade exterior vent boxes to prevent storm waves from flooding the interior, sealed two hatches that allowed minor leaking, updated and repacked the “ditch bag” for use in emergency if we have to retreat into the life raft, and after dinner we trimmed the sails for tonights 30+ knot blow. Oh yes, and earlier today, Randall assumed the job of a cobbler and fixed my new Crock shoes that should not have broken, but they did. As a fitting end to this story - As I complete this blog, Randall is fast asleep as MŌLI and crew blast north to Alaska.
To prevent the cold air and storm surge from entering the dorade box vents, we unscrew the vent, stick in a metal disc and re-attach. Last night for the first time it got cold inside the boat. In the afternoon I was able to sleep in light clothes with my sleeping bag draped over me. By late evening, I was fully dressed with Patagonia uppers and downers fully zipped in my bag.
Here is one vent that would not un-screw. Randall disappears below and comes right up with the perfect tool…the Strap Wrench!
Put this into the category of things you hope you never need - the ditch bag. Everything you would need in case of an emergency life-raft evacuation. We organized and updated everything in the bag including food, water, first-aid kit, flares, fishing gear, water purifier, journal, VHF radio, chocolate and much, much more. As a nod to our protein intake, we included two cartons of Muscle Milk.
We almost need another life-raft to hold all of our emergency supplies. I would never want to have to jump into a life-raft, but if I did, this is the ditch bag that would keep me (and Randall) alive for an indefinite period.
So I purchased a new pair of Crocks just for this trip. Within a matter of days the heal support grommet pulled out of the rubber material, almost rendering the shoe useless. I fixed it once, but it just came out again, making the hole bigger. Randall offered to fix it and I thought he was kidding.
New nut, bolt and screw. All in a days work.