Neighbor "Wilson" and Dock Drama

We've grown kinda attached to our dockmates.  One man, we have named "Wilson" for blog purposes, has been particularly endearing.  He offers pearls of wisdom on a daily basis.  He owns a 27' sailboat in the slip next to us.  He is all the crusty mirth one would hope for in a neighbor!  Wilson loans us all kinds of stuff: lines, ladders, polish, twine, tools. 

He has even taken up our battle with the FINCHES!  Can you believe it!?!  The finches made a new nest in our sail!!!!!  This would be the 3rd nest!  Count them. Three.

We're afraid we've created a monster.  Are they like homing pigeons?  I think it is time to get the sparkly used car saleman lot flags!  What did you call them, Captain V?

Dock Gnome and other Dock Accoutrements

There has been lots of weather as you can tell from the Captain's posts.  Today was supposed to be calm.  The Captain got an invitation from Neighbor Wilson to go out on his 27' Catalina this morning and troll for salmon.  They went out for two hours, but nothing was biting.

The Captain inspected our sail and did not find a new nest.  I was a little sad to hear about that.  On the up side, I won't have to be cleaning baby birdie poop off of the sail.  At any rate, dock life is thriving.

I love the stuff that our dockmates put out for decoration!  I feel extra lucky to have a communal gnome!  I would have never thought to procure one of my own, but I am very happy to share in the collective luckiness!

Check out all the other gnome statues that I found!

Dock/Garden Gnome:

Function: noun
Etymology: French, from New Latin gnomus
Date: 1661
1 : an ageless and often deformed dwarf of folklore who lives in the earth and usually guards treasure
2 : an elemental being in the theory of Paracelsus that inhabits earth
— gnome•like \-ˌlīk\ adjective

— gnom•ish \ˈnō-mish\ adjective

I was thinking about getting a fake owl to stand guard over our boat when we are gone.  I think the plastic owl is supposed to discourage gulls and other birds from making homes on the boat.

I love the shiny triangle "used car lot" streamers!  I want some for our boat, but I don't know where to get them.  Seriously, if anyone knows where to get these, please let me know!!!

I am a sucker for shiny things....

Neighbor "Wilson", John Denver, and the Sailing Poets

Charles Doane of WaveTrain wrote, "One thing I learned early on in my bluewater sailing career is that there are, in fact, just two sorts of bluewater sailors: there are poets, who become engineers in spite of themselves, and there are engineers, who become poets in spite of themselves."

Yesterday, we noticed that one of our dock-mates had mounted a satellite panel so that he could watch television on his boat. I remarked that that was anathema! Being on a boat on a lovely sunny day breathing the great outdoors! How could he watch television!?!! Why not read a book or write fantastic poetry?!? This is a 25' boat that sits in the marina 99% of the time! I couldn't believe it!

But, another dock neighbor, we will call "Wilson", argued that not all of us can be poets! Truman laughed. And then, almost by divine appointment, some old dude backed his truck up to the dock, sat on his truck-bed, played his guitar, and belted out some of the finest live acoustic tunes I've ever heard for the next hour. We listened to Rocky Mountain High better then John Denver delivered it, followed by James Taylor, etc.

Another marina-mate remarked, "Now there he goes messing up our peaceful solitude!"

~Lauren