Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
wanted to make them, just because. They lasted for over thirty years of hard sailing and
abuse and are still in commission as I write!
It was a fun time fitting out the boat with items found in junk stores or from friends who
had too much of something. I stumbled upon a solid plank of some silvery, old timber in
the chicken shed next door to where we were working on the boat. It was covered in ma-
nure, but I had developed an eye for hardwood and just instinctively knew that this was
a nice find. Sure enough, after cleaning off the manure and sanding an area of the grey, I
discovered to my joy that it was a solid piece of the loveliest grained, oily, Burmese teak! I
spent days sanding it even and varnished it after installing it as the navigation desk, and it
looked magnificent.
Our solid porcelain and bronze toilet was also a treasure to behold. Judi's father had given
us the toilet that had come out of his old 1950's Chris Craft, and I duly stripped it down to
the nuts and bolts, polished up the bronze, bought a replacement kit, and refitted it back to-
gether with new valves and seals. It was magnificent and worked perfectly for thirty years
apart from some minor maintenance issues.
My Uncle Duncan, who was a part owner of a metal foundry, made up some beautiful,
silica, bronze opening ports, oblong in shape. After I had cleaned them up from the sand
mold, I installed them along with five other round bronze ports we had purchased one
Christmas holiday when Judi and I were on the south coast at her parents' home. Now we
had opening ports around the boat, and the fresh air and light poured in from all sides. It
was a tragedy that my uncle died soon after of complications from a leg amputation. My
brother Gavin and I saw him just a few weeks before he died in South Africa. He was al-
ways so proud of us for building this boat, and he never tired of recalling the days when we
had gone to see him with this project.
A gas stove was set on gimbals in the space allotted in the galley and a propane tank and
hose were safely led to it. I loved making tea while we worked aboard. It was a dream in
progress. Judi was always a delight to work with, always laughing and joking, suggesting a
smoke break when the work load seemed too heavy, and even managing a wan smile when
I managed to let slip the electric drill and drilled a hole halfway through her little finger!
She would always say, “I never get mad, I get even.”
We had developed fun words between us that other people couldn't understand. For ex-
ample if she didn't agree with me, she would say, “Gnarrels” believe it or not! Or when she
was happy and I complemented her on a good job, she would say, “Arff!”
It is difficult to recapture accurately all the trials and tribulations associated with the build-
ing of Déjà vu. It was intertwined in our lives since that first day I laid out her strong-back
and nailed in her ten metal frames, or stations. After almost five years into the building,
