(no subject)

Hi again,
Some previously embargoed news: Jean is going to be a Grandmother for the first time!! Still got a way to go to catch up with Jim. She is beside herself with excitement and it's just as well we have a major re-provisioning exercise to go through which is keeping her somewhat "grounded"!! Not to mention the antifouling coming up. Don't worry, Tracie; no pressure, Jean is in a world of her own - what's new?!!! Still, your news has given her much joy. As an aside, she does realise that Perry has had something to do with it! By the way, the whole marina here knows; she had to tell someone otherwise she'd have exploded very messily!
The happy event is scheduled for somewhere around the end of September/early October and there was a scan earlier this week which indicated that there were no problems.
At that time we should be at Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) so the crew will really be chafing at the bit then! Might have to lock her in the brig until we put to sea again for Johore Bahru, south Peninsula Malaysia - just north of Singapore. We should arrive there later in October so it will be possible to fly back to NZ, although we still have to decide whether we stay there for a month or two or carry on up to Langkawi Is. on the NW coast of Malaysia before flying home. No doubt there will be much spirited discussion on the subject as we progress north.
At the moment the boat looks like a grocery store that's been through an earthquake!! And we've only started. Provisioning for 2 months is quite an exercise, particularly as much of it has to be non refrigerated. But it's just a matter of working through things methodically. Also getting one or two paper charts which we are missing and another cruising guide to the Northern Territory. Very tricky area up there as there are very big tides with tidal streams in some places up to 8 knots. There is a narrow channel through the middle of the Wessel Islands on the western side of the Gulf of Carpentaria called "The Hole in the Wall" where the tidal streams are even more fierce. We won't be going through there. Also around Cape York one needs to be very conscious of the tidal currents which seem to be exacerbated by the fact that that is where the Arafura and Coral Seas meet. Before going anywhere up there it is necessary to organise things so that one goes with the flow! It all takes quite a bit of advance passage planning which necessarily takes more time - still all this keeps us out of the pub and off the streets.
Anyway, that's it for now. No doubt more baby news as time goes on.
Lotsaluv from us
Jean and Jim

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