Well we had a nice summer storm for a couple of days and I managed to get my toilet built including sorting out the all-important sea-cocks and taps which you can see on the right with red handles. Apparently toilet plumbing failure is a big cause of sinking boats so I have made sure that mine is completely sound and that the ‘through-hull skin fittings’ , which are the brass tubes which stick through the hull, are solid and reliable. To me, who is used to either relieving myself in the wilds of nature or just doing it in a bucket and chucking it in the sea, such a contrivance seems a bit over the top, but as I will need crew to help navigate this vessel, I have gone for the social option and tried to make this an aesthetic experience at the same time. Which brings to mind some thoughts on public conveniences: someone once remarked that one should judge a civilisation by the way it treats its animals. A point which I heartily endorse, but when last year, the local council decided to close 16 of its public toilets, and then contracted the maintenance to a private company who decided to install cctv cameras outside and inside the toilets [!!!] – plus a device to lock them automatically between 7 and 7 at night, the idea came to me that this is really what ‘austerity’ has come to mean. Originally it was a phrase to describe the rationing after WW2 , but now one could say that it defines our modern world to the extent that one should judge a civilisation by its public toilets. The idea that capitalism has finally expressed its ultimate anal hoarding seems too apt to ignore.
If you look closely you can make out the curved steps going up the mast – which I manged to attach over a couple of days and which represents a major advance in my bid for launching a sea-worthy boat. Although I have only got half way up so far this is a good start as I have been able to assess the state of the part called the ‘cross-trees’ which is the darker bit going across the mast at the top of the photo. In my case it is actually made of oak , and fortunately won’t need replacing due to the durable quality of oak. This obviously originated from a time when boats were all made of wood and as you can see from the masts in the background they are now all made of aluminium. This is in fact what the steps are made of – a very useful and weather-proof material and I have reinforced each step with epoxy paste. They are, at the end of the day, a cheap fix as they would not stand rough treatment , but as they are only there to get me up the mast in the event of the occasional maintenance job or emergency repair, they will do, as long as I treat them gently. Otherwise I am relying on various other bits of kit such as a ‘bosun’s chair’ – which speaks for itself – a device resembling a garden swing; and various bits of climbing equipment such as a full harness and rope ‘ascenders’ which clip on to the Halyards – of which there are 2 for added safety. I am keenly looking forward to getting to the top of the mast when I get back from another trip away.
bobsboatlog 