Monday 15 September 2014

Left yesterday 0900 for good sailing in 10 to 13 kt. wind, 130 off port bow and seas just smooth enough to keep sails quiet most of the time. This continued through today. Noon to noon distance was 156 NM with, surprisingly however, a few tenths of negative current vector. With better wind forecast ahead, hoping for arrival Niue Wednesday evening. This is probably like expecting Rabbit one morning to get up and make tea, but hey, anything's possible.

So, with pleasant sailing and a bit of spare time, thought to share a fascinating subject which will no doubt engage you in many delightful hours of contemplation. Nearly everyone has an allowable time during which a dropped bit of food may remain on the floor and still be retrieved and eaten. Thus the typical '4 second rule'. Cruisers tend to be somewhat less fastidious, having guidelines that can run into minutes and even longer. This prolongation at least partly results from a general frugality required by limited storage for resources such as fuel, water and, of course, food. An arbitrary rule, however, is inadequate to create an efficient balance between economy and ickiness (or health), so a more baroque system may be appropriate. For example, despite being the same basic substance, one would not treat equally a peanut, which can potentially enjoy a considerable acceptable recumbence among dust bunnies, and a spoonful of peanut butter. Also, the relative desirability of the fumbled ort has a bearing. One is willing to be considerably more flexible with an Oreo or even a sticky Tim Tam than with, say, a brussels sprout. Obviously this is a vast subject, the surface of which can hardly be scratched in this limited tract (what about washing, for example, or eating just the part that didn't make contact?) so give it some thought and form your own rule. Anyhow I spy a couple of M&Ms under the dinette that look like they can't have been there more than a couple of weeks so gotta go.

Jack