Wednesday, March 25, 2015

Welcome to Paradise, Please Unclog our Toilet? (Auntie Chelsea is Here!)

Nothing says "welcome to boat life" quite like being asked to plunge out a clogged head...from the water

"Ask Chelsea to keep plunging and if she see's anything coming out" Scott yelled to me from our (very clogged) aft head. I was confused. She'd jumped into the water for a swim ten minutes earlier...but...plunging? I asked Scott what he was talking about.

"Well, she was going in the water anyway, I thought while she was in there she could try plunging from the thru hull while I pump to see if we could dislodge the clog." He shrugged.

"You what?!" I gasped. I looked over the rail and sure enough, there was my sister, under water, donning a mask, a snorkel and an oversized toilet plunger.

Welcome to paradise!

She popped her head up for air, chuckled as she removed the snorkel from her mouth and smiled, "This is really disgusting" she said matter of factly before replacing the snorkel mouthpiece and diving down to try again.

Long story short, it worked. There was corn. And quinoa. Among other things. It was revolting but necessary and she was up for the job (hashtag boatlife). While there have been jokes about staph infections and pink eye, Chelsea's come out of it unscathed. Maybe stronger. She didn't even complain.

We sure know how to initiate 'em.

***

Having my sister here is amazing. Obviously the above story is a testament to her sheer awesomeness as a boat guest and a person. Not only do I adore her to pieces, but she is a truly wonderful aunt to our girls. She gets down and dirty with them, truly plays with them and - because she is something of a big kid herself - genuinely enjoys getting to their level and just having fun. The squeals of delight from our girls indicate the feeling is mutual. 

Having her here is also a huge help. Having spent much of her early twenties as a nanny, she doesn't miss a beat with the girls. She scoops them up when they fall, changes diapers when they need them, and is quick to distract when tantrums are threatening. She is a salve to my soul and having her here makes life approximately 45% easier. If there was any way to convince her to move aboard and live with us full time I would do it, and while she would be keen ("I love your life!"), she has her own wonderful life to live (she's an incredibly talented illustrator, in case anyone is looking) and responsibilities back in Portland, OR.

Not only did she unclog our toilet, but she came down bearing loads of "gifts". Anyone traveling to a cruising boat will undoubtedly shepherd goodies from home for the crew, and this visit was no different. She brought clothes for our growing girls (okay, some for me too), more jammies and swimsuits for Isla (we are still in the jammie stage), and a new slew of products from one of our favorite supporters, SailorBags (giveaway to come soon!). Everything down here is ridiculously expensive so utilizing visitors to bring stuff from home is necessary and cost effective.

***

We're already half-way through her trip (sad face) and after spending a couple days enjoying Trellis Bay, are back in Virgin Gorda for a diving excursion (she's a bonafide mermaid and free-diver after living in the Bahamas for a year). She's soaking up family love, general island awesomeness and having a blast. We're enjoying the extra hands, the awesome company and, of course, a working toilet.

6 comments:

chelspup said...

I love you! Thank you for reminding me of the important things in life and always being my beacon of light. You're the best and I miss you so much. I'll be back again before you know it....the days just fly by on your boat!

Christina said...

Last night, my little daughter flushed her socks in toilet commode that chocked the pipe. Since, it was an unavoidable issue so we called the plumbers immediately. Don’t you think that it is a great achievement for emergency plumbers to work all day and night and satisfy their customers in conditions?

plumbers said...

Many plumbers contractors waste a lot of time each day when they have to unpack their vehicles from the day before and re-pack them with the tools and equipment that will be needed for work being done today, they make use of a conversion van, this time-wasting activity will soon be a thing of the past in that everything will have its permanent place in the vehicle – and all of it will be easy to find and access.

Anonymous said...

We had an experience in Santa Rosa. Here we have been trained to dive with diving suit. Thanks for the article that reminded us. We will be back

PEPlumber said...

It is the little things that we take for granted until this happens. Thanks for the mind
alerter. There is no greater gratitude i could ever show to the emergency plumbers
because they are always there when i need them.

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