Log Sept 15

Sept 15, Pocomoke City, MD

Guardian Angel

We returned to Pocomoke City from seeing our son, Jake, off on his life's first solo adventure. The drive back was an overnighter as we waited with Jake at the airport in London until he checked in for his 7:30p.m. deptarture. It was only then that we left London to resume our life interrupted.

8 a.m. the next morning saw us in Pocomoke City and still vaguely conscious. We hit the berth and slept until 6. Awakened by hunger we dressed and walked to the Cafe Milano for a New York style Neapolitan pizza made by the local Mexicans. You gotta love this place.

On the return waddle to Meredith we were approached at a run by one of the local liveaboards on the Pocomoke City dock who, breathless, informed us that he watched Meredith for us while we were gone and decided she was tied too loosely for his liking so he snugged up the lines for us and he hoped everything was ok. Everything was fine we assured him and we very much appreciated his help in protecting our boat. Would he join us for a drink? The man actually blushed.

Meredith's guardian angel hemmed and hawed and stared at the ground mumbling to himself. Finally he decided that no he was pretty busy tonight working on his boat so he would have to refuse.

His boat was an unsightly and decrepit old Morgan with peeling paint, chewed up brightwork and sails that had not been covered for at least a decade. On the poop deck however the man had begun a garden growing herbs and vegetables and it was this he must work on he informed us.

We spent some time discussing the problems of growing vegetables in a salt water environment and the proper means of controlling aphids and blight. Then this gentle soul, so eager to help us in our absence, took his leave and climbed quickly and silently into the maw of his Morgan.

We begin to suspect John Steinbeck travelled the Chesapeake collecting personalities for his novels.