Boatman's Blog

Everything seems to have simmered down for this murky, muggy August. No problems, no action, just money-making, eating, sleeping and making Flamenco fresher.

I was walking home along Brentford high-street late last night, after having watched the new Batman film and a young lady approached me, asking if I've, "Got a spare cigarette, darlin'". She was clutching something to her face- at first it looked like a phone.

Have been unable to write due to commitments of bringing home pay-cheques and, unfortunately, work on Flamenco's been stunted by the same beast. But, for what it's worth, she's beginning to look fresh.

The popular TV series Lost is the story of the survivors of a plane crash, struggling to find their footing after being stranded on a Pacific island. In the first series, a mysterious creature is introduced that makes strange noises at night and confuses the survivors, making them scared. Well there's been some weird sounds in the middle of the night on Lot's Ait recently (and, for what it's worth, it's around the full moon!).

Carlos is clearly in good fortune. A kayak washed up against Flamenco- sleek and blue, fully intact and ready to use. The tender may have gone, but this is some compensation. I was at work when it appeared. Carlos said he was sitting on the steps to the island a few afternoons back and this apparition of a kayak floated from upstream and straight toward the steps. He didn't even need to get wet to retrieve it.

We were having a tea break after spending a few hours sanding and Danish-oiling the floor, sitting on the ramparts of the island, at the top of the concrete stairs, when Dan hollers over to us.

"Oi, Mike! You seen my yacht?"

Ah, finally! We've been able to work again now that Carlos has finished a lengthy college project and I had some time off work. The walls have had cellotex insulation on them for a couple of months now, but they're still holey and drafty where the roof popped up after the sinking 18 months ago. Fortunately it's been mild weather but the sooner we can work and finish Flamenco, the better for our ability to get on with other projects in life. Saying that, she'll never be finished. In the same way that one can never do enough work to look after a woman, looking after a boat is never done. As soon as she's left unattended for some time, problems appear and cracks start ruining your relationship.

But we managed part of one wall today. We had to create a supporting skeleton of wood that held more insulation between it (this time polystyrene instead of cellotex). The skeleton was also the support that we could drill the ply walls onto. To make the joining look professional by fitting the screws snugly into the wood, instead of sticking out, we used a counter-sink (a drill bit that creates a tapered hole that the screw fits into). So, after the ply was jig-sawed to size, we were able to attach the sheet neatly onto the skeleton, creating what should be an air-tight wall. No problems so far.

So how come we're allowed to live for free on this island- Lot's Ait- in the Thames, when other boat folk have to fork out sometimes hundreds a week to be able to enjoy their chosen lifestyle? There are moorings all around London, on the river and canals, and all of them require constant money. Boats are allowed to moor for free on parts of the canal system for up to two weeks before having to move on. But why is Brentford a haven for free living?

Here are some recent pictures of Flamenco, inside and out, taken by Irene Hurtado

Sunday morning, just as the sky was lightening, Carlos' voice woke me. He hadn't been to Flamenco on Saturday and now he was coming home. I was dazed from sleep and heard only confusion. His shouting was getting louder and there were other voices shouting back.