We Just Love Her!

Last summer when we were anchored in Bon Accord Harbor in Kawau Island another sailboat cruised past us and said, "We haven't seen a Raven 26 in a while. Great Kiwi classic. How are you finding her?" To which I loudly replied, "We just love her!" I turned around to find Scott staring at me looking utterly dumfounded. "We just love her?", he said, "Since when did you fall in love with our boat?"

I can see why he was so perplexed. While I love certain things and people, I usually do so in a quiet way. Occasionally, I might whisper to people and cute animals that I love them, but I'm not the type to shout it from rooftops. Certainly not the type to declare my love by shouting it across a crowded anchorage. And certainly not the type to fall in love with a sailboat and decide to tell the whole world. When we bought Rainbow's End she was as a "for now" boat so I could learn how to sail and we could putter about in the Hauraki Gulf. She certainly wasn't intended to be our "forever boat" and certainly not one you would expect me to fall in love with.

There are two possible explanations that I can think of for my odd behavior:

1. Kawau is a beautiful place and the weather was great that day; or
2. Scott is drugging me.

Kawau is an absolutely beautiful place. It is a large island located in the Hauraki Gulf about 45 kms north of Auckland. The people are friendly, you can take a nice walk in the Department of Conservation land at Mansion House and you can have a cold beer at the Kawau Island Yacht Club and watch the boats go by. We sailed out to Kawau three times last summer and I'm sure we'll make our way there a number of times again this coming summer. So maybe being anchored in Kawau on a lovely summer day was what caused me to be so lovey-dovey towards our boat.

Or is it because Scott is secretly drugging me? I'm convinced that he puts valium in my drinking water to keep me sedated especially during gale force winds and when the boat is heeled over quite a bit. I am now wondering if he also puts some sort of "happy" drug in my drinking water. He has been passionate about sailing for years and has had an elaborate brainwashing scheme going on to convince me that I also want to live on a sailboat and cruise full-time. These drugs may be working as I seem to have fallen in love with our boat and this whole sailing thing. Or maybe it was love just on that particular calm and beautiful summer day when all was right in the world. Either way, Scott is still claiming it as a victory in his campaign.

Rainbow's End - We just love her!