Aye, There's the Rub

Bly's tacos - with everything but the kitchen sink.

Today Smith's mom and dad drove through on their way home from a trip to Alabama. Momma Smith has spent many summers cooking on tall ships, so she knows the gig. She brought bread flour from a Mennonite community near their home and King Arthur flour, which I don't buy because of the cost-savings I get from buying the store brand. In the gift box there were also spices and a jar of maple butter(!), dried veggie chips and Michael Ruhlman's book, Ratio. Mamma Smith also brought a fantastic treat: flats of strawberries. Pappa Smith gave us a bottle of his home-made wine.

It was like Christmas. And it didn't stop. About a week ago my salad bowl cracked up the side. Smith took her folks to the local Goodwill and texted me a photo of the salad bowl selection, and I now have an awesome new wooden bowl.

No news is good news?
I told our hosts last night about the blog and today was paid a visit by a blogger for the local news. She asked if she could mention the blog...

It was a bittersweet moment.

As much as I would get a kick out of any new readers, it would pull off the cloak of anonymity and reveal the identities of the crew and the boat. I really struggled with it for a bit - the typical writer's need for a public that understands or hears and the oh-so-human desire for fame and noteriety.

But there are of course real people here with me that didn't sign up for this. Even though they have consented to a kind of complicitness in the story, they agreed believing, because I told them so, that their real identities were disguised.

And it's this underground aspect of it that gives me freedom to take poetic license - to make the people and the boat a bit larger than life by accentuating certain character traits, or by revealing some events bit by bit, as foreshadowing. Like, say, by noting that we may soon be getting another crew member. Or by hinting that something really hilarious is about to happen before we leave on our five to ten day transit to Long Island. See, I couldn't write that if I were writing an official, public blog for our owners. They'd already be calling to find out what I'm talking about.

Dinner table.

Wednesday's Menu

Breakfast
Leftover hash with eggs and blueberry muffins
Lunch
taco buffet with strawberry salsa, guacamole, chorizo with onions, fried rice, refried beans, and Monterrey jack cheese (oh, and leftover pizza!)
Dinner
Oven-roasted chicken, brined for twelve hours the day before
Sweet potato wedges with maple mayonnaise
Grilled carrots and turnips
Salad with toppings, including strawberries in olive oil and balsamic vinegar with saltand pepper
Dessert
Oops, I did it again... Completely forgot about dessert!