They say pictures speak a 1000 words… let’s see if that’s true!
Starting on the left, the open hatch tells you it’s warm outside - you can see the trees through it. The angle of this photo tells you I am probably taking it from a reclining position (yes I am still in bed!).
The back doors are shut because I’m moored in a built-up area and I don’t particularly want passers-by peering straight into the boat. Especially as I am in bed!
The charging cable is in the USB plug by the door… I use that to charge my phone while I am on the move… so the fact there’s a cable dangling there tells you I need it there.
The folded towel on the step shows I’ve needed to mop up some water recently and haven’t quite got around to putting it away. The water was of course the precious rain we had in the last couple of days. The rain came in the back door while we were on the move.
The generator lives beneath the step out of the way. I only use it very occasionally. Solar panels provide all I need at this time of year.
The welly boot (I have a lot about my person because of the windlass holders I make!) is another clue that I’m moored somewhere urban. Normally it would be outside, covering a mooring pin to help passers by see where I have put the pin to hold the boat. In fact you can see the pins all leaning between the stove and the back wall.
Above the pins are the mooring chains. I use these when I’m moored against piling - or “on tin.” They loop through the piling and back through themselves, making a much more secure way of holding the boat in place.
Above the chains are the engine controls. The speed wheel controls the engine revs; on the other side is the gear lever. I push it towards the engine to go forwards and pull it towards me to reverse.
I don’t keep much on the shelves along the back wall, but you can just about see a bottle of sunscreen and a pair of secateurs. The sunscreen is within reach for when I’m steering the boat; the secateurs are easy to find for when I moor in undergrowth.
A brolly is just visible behind the chimney - for sun or rain. Although pretty hopeless if wind is involved in either of those conditions!
The bottle of water on the stove has been left there because I’ll need it again soon, which tells you I’m on the move. Beside it is a half-drunk glass of flavoured water, also left in anticipation of being needed shortly.
The hat tells you much the same thing. I keep it where I can grab it easily. It is a silly hat… but I like it.
The top of the stove has a brass rail around it to stop things falling off while we’re moving. The engine makes everything vibrate, and unsecured objects have a habit of marching steadily across flat surfaces.
Under the stove is a bottle of baby bio… I am supposed to be feeding my hanging basket (Nick Wolfe made the basket and told me I must feed it) … the fact the bottle is on its side and more of a side note shows you I am probably not doing so well at feeding my flowers!
And, of course, the chimney is sitting on top of the stove in its unused position because I don’t need the fire at this time of year. This is the chimney that came back to me after 3 years of lying in the silt. (You can read a story about that on my website if you are minded - craftybird.uk)
There is a piece of Perspex leaning up against the table which would be in the door overnight if I was in the countryside somewhere.
Around the cabin are roses, castles and scumbling - the painted wood-grain effect traditionally used to give working-boat cabins warmth and personality while making ordinary timber look rather grander than it was.
This is a very faithful version of a traditional boatman’s cabin. The boatbuilder, Roger Fuller, was a stickler for detail. Mick and Julia, who originally commissioned the boat in 2006, paid a pretty penny for that detail. I know this because I met Roger recently!
So there you go. A an ordinary picture - but almost everything in it says something about where I am, where I’ve been and what I’ll need next. On a boat, very little is simply lying around. Even when it looks as though it is.
(Word count: 784)
PS: Let me know if I missed anything?! 😅