After a 7 month absence, Little Miss Perfect has returned to Tainui.
I had been anxious, and with good reason. Her eagle eye rapidly found the flaws in my strenuous preparation for her arrival – she found 2 tiny grounds of coffee in the sink; there was no ice maker; the larder had no chocolates; the fluffy new towels were too big and Tainui still doesn’t have an electric blender!
And to cap it all off she attacked my grammar. Of our destination (Iluka) I said “if we arrive too early for the tide we can always heave to”. Her response – “John, do you really want to end that sentence with a preposition?”

Ocean Cruising Club Awards 2016
Crikey! A bloke can’t win. I tried to attribute Maxine’s churlishness to jet lag, but I was left with no choice but to sulk and feel a failure. Some folk have no idea how much power they wield.
Off the Southport bar we hoisted sail and romped down the coast in a fresh beam breeze, with 2 knots of current, surrounded by breaching humpback whales. Suddenly, all was well. It is typically challenging but just wonderful having Maxine back aboard. We’re off to Sydney.

breeze off Gotham City