8/10/26: A Productive Day in Purgatory

The weather, as predicted, was not better today and we were again unable to leave the boat today. We were, however, a bit better at finding things to do as we filled our morning with productive tasks such as making some new sail ties to replace the random bits of scrap line we had been using, and tying a net from scratch in order to improve our boot storage, which had been in need of an upgrade for, we're told, the last 10 or so years. The skill of net tying was a satisfying one to learn and generated quite a lot of respect from Nathan and me for anyone tying something bigger than the two-foot by one-and-a-half-foot piece we had tied. The boot storage and sail ties both seemed a success, and the act of fixing them also ate a good few hours of the day, so Nathan and I were really quite pleased with ourselves. After our home improvements, Nathan and I turned the boat into our home gym for an hour while Helene went for a swim, which seemed shockingly cold, and then I took a "shower" with a big mug of hot water and a rag like a prized swine. Feeling refreshed, we all settled in to another evening of games and reading.