Fwd: Grandchildren and related matters

----- Original Message -----
To: "2XS - Peter & Marguerite" <margueriteharmsen@yahoo.com>
Subject: Grandchildren and related matters
Date: 04 Apr 2015 05:33:30 -0000
From: zmq5985

Hi to all,
Well, by now Jean has been in Miami, Florida for about a week and already Peapod # 2 has been born - about 2 weeks earlier than expected. Another grandson by the name of Nash Perry Lanaway - Perry being the name of Jean's son. Of course great excitement and it's just as well Granny Jean is there in time to organise the household and look after young Carter James!! Jean is now a double granny! And having had the cataracts in both eyes removed in Penang just recently, she'll be able to see too!!
Jim is still on the boat at Rebak just off Langkawi and is leaving tomorrow to stay (05/04)in a guest house near the airport as there is an early morning flight to Singapore. Then it's cooling of the heels until 1945 when the flight direct to Christchurch leaves. Still, there'll be time to have lunch and a shower and Changi Airport isn't a bad place to be. It will be great to see Charlotte and her family (Jon, Lucia and Elsie), not to mention Amanda and Rozanne and Rozanne's family in Auckland.
Meantime Jim has been honing his skills in the washerwoman department! Something he has never been accustomed to but sometimes needs must. All being done by hand because like a lot of things in this place, the washing machines are temperamental and unreliable and it's a half kilometre walk to get there. And the heat has to be experienced to be believed. Our little portable 9000 BTU airconditioner only just keeps the temperature inside the boat under 30C. So far he's washed all his clothes several times and the bed sheet plus several towels. Not bad for a novice. Lots to do when leaving a boat for any length of time - closing seacocks, putting fresh water and vinegar through the head (toilet), and lifting the squabs on the bed to try to ensure that they don't get mildewed. We have Rachel who is a Kiwi and runs Seaspray Marine with her Scottish husband Robert looking after the old girl in our absence.
We're still getting the noise ahead and astern from the transmission somewhere but we are fairly sure now that is caused by a build up of minute marine growth on the shaft bushes where they pass through the cutlass bearings. We'll sort out just what to do about that when we have returned. Hopefully it can be fixed in the water. The marine growth in this marina is something to behold and is probably caused by the discharge of at least some of the raw sewerage from the resort directly into the marina. This is so typical of the total disregard for the environment seen so often in Asia. We well remember the grey/black sea breaking on the shore at Pondicherry in India. It's depressing but you get inured to it after a time.
Well, that's it for now. Still things to do to secure the old girl's wellbeing before abandoning her tomorrow afternoon.
Next blog from Kiwiland!!
Lotsaluv from us...... Jim and Jean
s.v. Tiare Taporo III
www.tiaretaporo3.blogspot.com
----- End of Original Message -----

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