Boy, oh boy, do we need it! Every day lately I have had to water the garden, even the grape vines which normally don't need a lot except when first planted were gasping for a drink. Well, today they got one in bucket loads along with thunder and lightning. Poor old Peri has pulled a muscle again in his back and is a bit slow getting around but in the midst of the thunder he seems to forget any pain or discomfort and scrambles to find us for protection. Funny wee hound! They way he barks and carries on at a knock at the door you'd think that he was a Rottweiler but at the first sound of a siren or thunder he is hiding under the bed.

We are finishing up the wiring at the Town Dock and by close of business today we will have two 50A plugs there for visitors. Of course that means that I will be making up some 50-30A converters and perhaps even some 50-15A ones for boats with smaller requirements. I am really happy with the various engineering projects that we are able to do for the Town,, this being just one of them. I write a weekly article for the town paper telling folks what we are doing and why and I am amazed at the number of folk that have come up to me or sent e-mails to say thank you and that they are happy to be finally kept in the loop. When I questioned this I was told that their past experience was that they would hear nothing and would be presented with a fait acomplit when something with no input from the town and regardless of if it was something that they wanted done.

Barb has booked our tickets on the ferry to Saint John for next Friday and I have booked off holidays for when the kids are here in August and over the September Labour Day Weekend and following week in early September. Part of me would like to simply take Nelleke out and poke around into the various bays and inlets near by on the South Shore. Just relax and put up our feet. Maybe explore an isolated island or two. There are loads of places where we could have a great time and even one or two where people that we know locally could come out to join us.

I also have an idea for a project in the harbour. Shelburne Harbour is known as the third best natural harbour in the world. I don't know exactly what the basis is for that claim but I will say that the harbour is long sheltered and deep all own Dock which is conveniently located in the centre of town. From there on in there are some shoals but I am given to understand that if you know the way there is a fairly wide channel into an inner anchorage which is directly opposite to the Provincial Park. The channel is unmarked and I was thinking that it would be handy to have some privately maintained markers set up in there. That's my project. I will make the buoys and get someone with a power boat to help me confirm depths and put them in place. According to the chart we would have 9-10' quite a ways in with 4 feet even further in. There is even a boat ramp back in there where you could get out with your dingy. No security, but it is next to a hardware store and a short walk to a convenience store. It would be a nice even more sheltered place to anchor for visitors.

PS

For those of you who have been asking Barb Posted some photos of little ol' me in my period sailor suit plus the aftermath of me setting fire to a pirate ship.