Hi Joe, Lovely story about the otter. ...and you're absolutely right that's what MAIB is all about. Moments like that!
When we lived in Germany and had the Tripp-Lentsch trucked to the Adriatic so that we could sail the Yugoslavian Island chain, we had a MAIB experience. German sailors believe in the "Klabautermann" - Neptune - if you will, and before a voyage, you ceremoniously pour a shot of schnapps into the waters for the Klabautermann, so that he knows you are there, and that he should look out for you, - in any eventuality. With that as background.............. We were about three miles out in the Adriatic near Porec, on the Istrian Peninsula There wasn't a cloud in the sky: there wasn't a breath of wind; it was an absolute dead flat calm; and there wasn't another boat within a mile of us. We sat out there and slowly fried. Jumped overboard and went swimming to cool off. Climbed back out and lay in the sun drying off. That's when the old sailor's thought struck: A beer! Yes, a cool one would be nice. Not having any ice in the ice box on the boat, the solution was to put 6 bottles of Pivo (Yugoslavian for beer - an important word to remember if you are in that area) in a net; tie the top of the net closed and then lower it about 100 feet to get to cooler water. More swimming and splashing: more drying out. Ah, now was the time for the cool beer. So I hauled up the line with my net and the beer bottles. When I opened the net, there were only 5 bottles! But I had put in 6 bottles! They were 100 feet down in the Adriatic. There wasn't another boat within a mile of ours. There were no scuba divers in the area - nothing............. Who took that one bottle of beer out of a firmly closed and tied off net? The Klabautermann! That's the only explanation. Then I thought, gee, I hadn't given the Klabautermann his official "drink" when we had sailed. Maybe he is now just claiming what is rightfully his. Connie _______________________________________________ http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/montgomery_boats
