Good Friends

A few weeks ago our dinghy was lost, stolen or strayed from the Balmain Sailing Club. It was in the rack, locked up with a stainless wire and decent sized padlock. It was also looking the worse for wear with the fender having parted from the actual boat across the front so it looked like a flying nun. It also had some peeling paint leaving nasty sploges on the sides. But it floated and would take three people so it was very useful. Its disappearance is not only a mystery but very annoying. Specially since there were lots of better looking dinghies and some were not even locked up.

And it meant we had the problem of how to get to Cheshire Cat. Commodore Roger kindly offered to lend us his dinghy which was sitting in his Elizabeth Bay driveway. Then my good mate Malcolm offered to meet me at Roger's at 8am on Saturday - he is a very good mate! - with his roof racks on his 4WD car. Much as I love my car you can't fit a dinghy in a convertable Mecedes unless its an inflatable. The dinghy, not the Mercedes. So we loaded the dinghy, drove to Balmain, took it off the car walked it down some stairs to the lift and took it down to the club. Where I locked it up! Hopefully the burgler wont be back. And I bought Mal a coffee and a sultana snail at Balmain's "2006 best bakery" for his trouble.