Judith is back on board Brown Eyed and comes over to say hello. I stand there in my dressing gown and Ugg slippers on the back steps. If only I had some curlers and maybe a fag hanging out of my mouth I could complete the attractive picture! Mind you, curlers in hair this short would be no mean feat. I keep pulling at it, willing it to grow. Ah well, should have stuck to cutting it myself.
All packed and ready to go, Johanne and I go for a walk to the beach and along the marina wall, happy not to be saying “goodbye” but just “see you next week” instead.
Photo: Harbour Beach, Mackay
Heidi arrives to take them to the airport to catch their flight to Cairns. There’s happy smiling faces as we say goodbye instead of the miserable ones we expected.
Once we have dropped them off, Heidi and I go in search of shops. She is sure she has seen another mall or shopping complex somewhere and we do eventually find one, but not with many shops so we end up going to Caneland Central Mall where she buys some warm ‘boat clothes’. I am able to take full advantage of her good nature and fill up a shopping trolley with heavy groceries that would be difficult for me to carry back under my own steam – frozen meat, flour, cereals, cans of sprite (yuk, for Mike not me). We then do the same at the liquor store where I buy loads of beer for Mike (he always tells me to just buy a few and then whinges when we run out) and a couple of wine boxes for me. Now then, wine boxes! Usually these are disgusting but they actually have NZ Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc in two litre boxes for $15 Auzzie (about £9). If it’s any good I’ll go back and buy a few more. Quite often I just fancy one glass and end up drinking half the bottle because it doesn’t last. Even the next day it has started to change, so this will be healthier for Mike’s wallet as well as healthier for me. What a good girl I am!
When I get back to the boat it’s 3.30 pm and Mike has disappeared leaving me a note and luckily, the boat open so that I can put all the stuff away. It’s just about all stowed when he returns. Typical. Then I get a text from Johanne saying can I get her something she forgot to buy next time I visit the mall. Knowing I will probably go over the next few days, that’ll be OK but just in case, when I see Heidi and Judith going back to the mall again, I hitch a lift.
We get back late. It’s well after 6.30 pm and we are due at Jutta’s for a drink. I see Mike is already on board Chessie, and rush to freshen up and change, before clambering on.
What Jutta hasn’t told anyone is that today is her birthday. Laid out in the corner of the boat are all the lovely presents that Jochem has been buying for her over the last few months. Jewellery, clothes, boots, beautiful hand painted sarongs and much more. What a lucky lady. She has also provided a wonderful spread for us. Cheese, pate, bread, olives, prawns, smoked salmon, salami and chorizo all lie out on the galley surface for us, along with wine, beer and her lethal rum punch which Mike and I steer well clear of. The memories of the crossing from Musket Cove are still with us!
Photo: Jutta gets a birthday kiss from Mike
Photo: Another Grateful Dead pose – Jochem and Jared
Photo: The birthday girl with Joe
Photo: Joe, Judith and me
Photo: Jutta and I with one of her paintings done in Tahiti
Mike leaves early to check up on flights to Sydney and I promise to follow him in a while. Although it’s a bit longer than ‘a while’ as Jared starts to play the guitar and the entertainment begins, I do manage to slip away earlier than most.
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