June 20th, 2011

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Monday June 20. Last day of Spring

Monday, June 20th, 2011

After I did yesterday’s blog I went to the grocery store across the street from the Danubia Hotel. On leaving the store a gentleman was sitting under the canopy having a drink. He addressed me in American English. He introduced himself as Dino. He was visiting for the day from Swishtov. So, if the ferry to Swishtov had been on it’s schedule I would have never met Dino. His real name is Constantino (or Costas) Ayiotis a Greek Cypriot who has lived in San Francisco and New York. He told me that he tended the bar at the “Spar Tavern” in Tacoma for a couple of weeks in the seventies. Now that would make for another small world encounter similar to Mike the Vietnamese American I met in Saigon who opened the “Vien Dong” on 38th and Tacoma Ave. If any of you are stopping in there, Roger Rue has his office across the street from the Tavern, ask Kathy Manke if she has any recollection. Dino or Costas is in his mid sixties has done everything and been everywhere. He has a 28 year son with a Bulgarian lady in Swishtov and he enjoys spending time there. We have a couple of things in common, we both have been married three times he has twin daughters.

Drinking beer and Vox Maris brandy under the canopy and with the smell of the Linden blossoms at midday when the temperature got up to 38 degrees ( in the nineties..) was a heck of lot better then trying to put a coat of paint on a boat that feels like it is on fire. His Bulgarian companion, Michael, is another character in my next book. He spoke some German, good Russian, Polish, Romanian and even some Dutch. He was 68 and did not look any older than 55.

During the night a good thunder storm moved through and in a short period the clouds burst open. It was a lot cooler today. I finished the first coat of white on the house , cockpit and boot stripe. The bad diesel smoke I had last summer had turned the white of the cockpit into some nasty grayish color. I need to wear my shades now. One more coat of white. I have three to four coats of clear Awlgrip on the transom, companion way hatch and helm. Then comes the new hull color. …