Robin is a lady in seeerious need of some loving. Wrapped in her tattered brown plastic tarps on a grim noon in late winter, she cries out for tenderness. Today, I removed her dodger frame and delivered it to Skip, the canvass man.

At the same time, I fetched some charts to study for the summer trip to Maine. I took two musty and damp cushions from the V-berth. And I removed a quart of red bottom paint for the Mariner's centerboard.

By the way, we think the Mariner's name will be Bluebird, to carry on the theme of local bird names. She has a blue cabin trunk, which is our excuse for the name.

In the slip behind Robin and looking much more perky is Fran and John Morrison's boat, Chautauqua, a 32-foot Allied Seawind II which they have sailed twice to the Bahamas.

Robin would like to go along next time!!!