McQ:The demon waltzer...

Last night's night watch was awful, maybe the worst ever!!! no visibility, dark, raining, lightning, building wind on the nose and being headed too, current against us... and the sea was terrible, I could only think of it like going to the fair and going on the waltzers, except THAT is fun, getting spinny head and giggling!!! This was evil demon twin of the waltzers, Heath, you would have HATED it: the one that doesn't spin but is slightly wonky on its bearings and just lurches round in all dimensions, leaving your brain behind. And the lightning every so often strobe lighting the sky for not-quite-long-enough to scan the whole horizon for ice before being plunged back into darkness was just evil!!! Not fun at all, unless I guess you were a professor in Naval Architecture Dynamics in which case trying to analyse the forces on wee Berri from that bonkers sea would have kept you busy for a bit.!!!
Its pretty textbook stuff out here now- wind veering, SE, now S, rubbish visibility, drizzle. Expecting it to keep going and build 30+ from the west tomorrow and then we have a grib for sunday with spikes on it- yes spikes- after 4 and a half feathers on the arrows (indicating 45 knots) you get a spike for 50!!!! I'm just glad its from the west, and we are trying to stonk east as fast as we can. Wind wise, it'll get a bit breezy but its the sea state that always makes things worse!! And its pretty lumpy out here already!! Anyway, we are battening down the hatches: making water, filling the diesel tank with diesel, the stove with metho, looking out some 'contingency dinners' baked beans all round for the next few days, everyone?? - all those little things that you think nothing of doing in everyday life, until you have to do it in a washing machine on full spin cycle!! And I just cleared all the shelves of condiments in the galley so we won't end up with marmalade in our hair!!!
Right Mr Low Pressure System, we're ready for you!!!
Lots of love
McQ
xxx
Ps Simon, thank you so much, AMAZING to speak to you, I forgot to ask when the sun will come out, which is, of course, all I really wanted to know!!!!

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