Bucky Lugger

Ahoy,
do you ever wake up and think to yourself how lucky can I be? When the Ol' Girl and me first arrived, a little dejected as we were under tow, one of the first people I met was the Commandant de Port, Philippe Le Jannou, of course at the time this was a surprise to all of us. The Ol' Girl and Me because we did not expect to be towed into a commercial port surrounded by very large boats and ships as well as a gigantic ferry and the Commandant looking down at the Ol' Girl, who looked very small and ill fitting, rafted to a large steel scientific boat of some sort. Since then I have enjoyed coffee and maybe the odd beer in the smaller port with Philippe and to be frank the pleasure of not only meeting with, dining with, and getting along with his family too. What it is to be an outsider and possibly one could say a slightly bizarre outsider, to be made to feel so welcome, whilst being in a very pretty house by a real fire with good food and company, when away from ones own family certainly raises the spirit. Last night was one of these occasions, we met in Le Winch Pub for an aperitif of beer and some smoked sardine's and then retired to theirs with a couple of friends for dinner, beautifully cooked by Philippe's charming wife Viviane. If such an evening doesn't make someone feel lucky enough as it is, an act of quite extraordinary generosity left me speechless, not an easy thing when my vocal cords are wet, the gift of this years Reeds Nautical Almanac. Absolutely incredible, almost spooky as I had only that morning been complaining to a chum in England that I did not have this years copy of Reeds and that I doubted I could lay my hands on one before having a bash at the Chenal de Four and would probably have to rely on a French Almanac, which I would not enjoy as my understanding of French is atrocious. So this is why on waking and looking over at the opposite bunk and spying my brand new Reeds almanac I asked myself how lucky can you be. This is one of those things that puts a spring in your step and a smile on your face, of course with me the spring has a slight wobble but it's a spring all the same.