I'm experiencing the nautical equivalent of having a teenager out on a date with the family car.
Bluebird is back on her mooring on the Delaware River, with a storm with 45-knot winds bearing down on New Jersey.
I've sailed Bluebird once -- as reported earlier. Then the centerboard cable broke and it has taken this long for me to install a new cable and a new winch. Part of the problem was the leaking that commenced when the 160-pound steel board fell from the raised position, pivoting on the centerboard bolt and wrenching the bolt sufficienty to undo the caulking we had smeared around the ends.
I launched on Monday, and the new caulking swelled as water seeped under it and stretched it like a balloon. John Morrison, who had come to the river for a sail in Bluebird, was recruited to fix the leak. He removed the caulk and used another type, which seemed to stop the leaking around the bolt.
But more water entered the boat from unknown perforations.
Oddly, when the water reached a certain level, still well below the cockpit floorboards, it stopped flowing in. I kept Bluebird moored to the boat club dock for two days and it did not sink.
So this morning, I started the outboard and towed the old, aluminum dinghy, steering against the current and wind to tie up to the mooring, less than 100 feet from the shipping channel.
And that's where Bluebird is tonight. It began raining around noon, but the wind won't arrive until tomorrow, I think. There is a blue Sunbrella boom tent over the cockpit, so I don't expect her to sink as a result of rain.
But I do worry about the integrity of the mooring line and Bluebird's ability to withstand tomorrow's blast. And I am concerned by the repeated seeping of water, despite the fact that it stops before sinking her.
Meanwhile, I've paid no attention at all to Robin. I stayed aboard her one night last week in the hopes of getting a jump start on traffic in nearby Washington D.C. the next morning. I had an interview for the next book I hope to write. I arrived at 11 p.m. and left at 6 a.m. and didn't even attempt to adjust dock lines, I was in such a rush.
By the way, in two weeks, I'll do my first book signing for Eight Survived. So far, I've seen no reviews. But my old employer, the Philadelphia Inquirer, has scheduled a review. I'm crossing my fingers.
The first signing will be at the boat club -- the Red Dragon Canoe Club -- where some of my friends and fellow sailors have asked for copies. That should be fun. I like to tell the story and hope there are a lot of questions from the audience so I can appear smarter than I am.