pore oil over troubled waters...

Parga Castle and old town

 Just thought I would start with an update on where we are with regards to earthquake activity.  Well, we are still having small tremors, we have had thirty five such seismic events since lunchtime yesterday.  The frequency and intensity of these is now much diminished but it's it well over nine days since the big shock last Tuesday.  That said we still get the occasional one which we feel, a couple yesterday registered over four on the Richter scale.  I think now the worst is now over for this particular round of Quakes, lets hope it's a long time before we get any more.

Nearly had some breakers.

Last Saturday was oil change time for the boat engine.  For anyone not familiar with yacht engines, you generally can't get anything under them to catch the oil so you draw the old oil out through the dip stick hole.  This is a little like drinking a bath full of water through a straw.  The engine in most small yachts is located under the stairs which descend into the saloon so it's a fairly cramped environment which the staircase raised above your head.   I borrowed Jez's oil extractor to do this, with which you pump the air out of the holding tank and then there is a thin hose going into the engine which in an attempt to get air back into the tank, draws up the oil.  Simple Idea and it works.  So half an hour later I have my two litres of waste oil safely in the extractor vessel.  I say to Sandra can you just get this off me and put it out on the pontoon but as I pass it too her I lose my grip (symptom of my post stroke problems) and drop the bloody thing thing on the saloon floor.  This is the equivalent of pouring five gallons of oil in your lounge, not a good thing.  Of course I just stand there and watch it run down through the floor and into the bilges and generally spread its way far and wide.  I was not a popular bunny so in an attempt to placate "her who should be obeyed" I start to clean it all up.  Of course I ruin my clothes and get it all over my legs, feet and arms, well I am a man after all.  Anyway two and a half hours later I have it cleaned to within an inch of it's life and can get showered.  Mucky oil don't come off your skin very well!!  Anyway the engine is now winterised.

Sun over the Island in Parga bay.

Earlier in the week we had a ride out to Parga just for the want of nothing better to do.  We love the place and had a nice couple of hours there chatting to people and drinking coffee in the sunshine.  We thought while we were off the island we may as well have a ride to Ikea and get some ham from the food hall there, it's much better, we think, then any of the local cooked ham and so a bit of a treat.  Also we called in Praktica and got a new engine battery to replace the one we "stewed" whilst Allen and Jean were out sailing with us.  So that meant I could knock another job off the winter "ToDo" list yesterday so I fitted the new battery and put the domestic battery which we had used for the emergency, back into the domestic bank.  Also flushed out the fresh water cooling and replenished the antifreeze, which is not to guard against frost but as a corrosion inhibitor.   Anyway, that's been our week of rumbles and oil and now of course the weather has broken and for the last couple of days has been chucking it down with rain.

Thanks to Linda and Ray for the night out last Saturday and Deb, Jez and Linda for the "bub" last night, finger lickin good!