Friday, June 26: Day 23: Provisioning in Powell River

Unfortunately I don't have any photos of Lil' Ollie sitting at the dock in Powell River. This was a painting in the Thai Restaurant that caught my eye although it looked better in person.

Rain, Laundry Logistics, and the Paparazzi Curse of Powell River

Sleeping last night wasn’t too bad, though I did wake up around 4:00 AM and couldn’t get back to sleep. It was raining off and on—mostly on. As I lay there in the dark, I could hear all kinds of drips and found myself wondering, where on earth is the boat leaking now? I just hoped it wouldn't turn into a major issue. I finally got back to sleep.

We awoke early because by 6:30 AM, the waves were rolling straight into the marina, and our slip was lined up perfectly to take the hit. The boat was rocking back and forth from stern to bow, with a loud, aggressive slap on the stern every time a wave struck. It instantly reminded me of the time we were moored at the Municipal Dock in Maple Bay, where the waves came straight in like that. It made me so glad we eventually moved to a safer location back then!

In that early morning fog, while we were still entirely half-asleep, the day kicked off with some unexpected drama. Greg was making his way from the V-berth toward the galley when Artemus suddenly stood right in front of him. Before we knew what was happening, Artemus just started peeing right on the floor in front of his litter box!

Greg turned to me and said, in a remarkably calm, un-hasty voice, "Quick, get me some paper towel."

Because my brain was still foggy and slow, I didn't understand what the emergency was. I looked over to see why he was asking, and my jaw dropped—I couldn't believe my eyes. Greg repeated it, a bit more urgently this time: "Quick, get me some paper towel!"

Seeing the disaster unfolding, I finally snapped out of it, grabbed the roll, and reached it over to Greg just in time. He dove in to clean up the puddle while I handed over some disinfectant to finish the job. In my slow-motion state, it was a minor miracle we caught it before the pee could roll down a hole in the floorboards! I shudder to think of that happening!

After the cleanup, I lightly scolded Artemus and told him he was a bad boy. He immediately scrambled past me and bolted up the companionway stairs—only to be trapped because the washboards were still in place, so he just sat there on the step looking like nothing had happened. Once the chaos settled, Greg and I had a fantastic laugh reliving how the whole incident unfolded like it was in slow motion.

Realizing sleep was now a lost cause, I got up. Today was definitely going to be a busy chore day...We decided to head down to the laundry room early, hoping to beat the rush, and we got incredibly lucky. The staff hadn’t even unlocked the doors yet, even though it was supposed to open at 7:30 AM. I guess nobody else wanted to venture out into the rain with their laundry at that hour, so I was thrilled to claim two of the stacked washers and dryers right off the bat.

We loaded the first two, but I still had one more load to go. We headed back to the boat to make coffee, grab my phone and iPad, and fetch the scone we had bought the day before. I made sure to pour my coffee into my Yeti mug—a recent splurge that is absolutely perfect for chores because it keeps drinks hot so much longer than a ceramic mug.

When I returned to the laundry room, someone had already beat me to the machines and had taken one of my finished loads out so they could start theirs. I had been hoping to get back before anyone else arrived, but it was no big deal. I just moved my unloaded pile into the dryer. I noticed the digital screen actually tells you exactly how long the cycle takes, though the fellow who took my machine was now going to have to wait an hour for my clothes to dry before he could use it.

I sat down and tried to get some work done on Thursday's blog post, but a lovely couple walked in. We started talking and realized we had so much in common. While sitting there, I discovered I could actually pay for our showers and laundry using an app called "Laundry Cat," so I downloaded it and used it to pay for my last load. The gentleman trying to do his laundry had an Android phone and the app wouldn’t work for him. I offered to pay for his load using my app, and they gratefully reimbursed me with cash. Before they left, they invited us back to their boat around 5:00 PM for "appy hour," and we happily accepted.

Once the laundry was finished, Greg came down to help me carry the heavy bags back to the boat. Because it was still raining, I had brought a big black garbage bag to protect the dry clothes. Back at the boat, I put away what I could and left the rest for later, because it was time to head to the Town Centre Mall for groceries.

Getting there turned out to be quite an ordeal. The last time we were here, we used a fantastic app for a local transit non-profit that shuttled people around town. Unfortunately, that service is no longer in use, and BC Transit has taken over. After a mountain of rigmarole trying to figure out the new system, we finally made it to the mall. Over $200 later, we faced an even worse ordeal trying to arrange transportation back with all our heavy bags. It’s tiring just thinking about it, but we finally caught a shuttle bus that let us off near the BC Ferry terminal. At $2.25 per person each way, the whole transit adventure cost us $9.00. An Uber might have been cheaper, but it didn't seem to be an option when we had checked.

We lugged the heavy groceries back to the boat, and I went straight to work unpacking—stuffing the fridge, filling the hanging fruit net, and leaving the rest on the floor for Greg to organize into the bins.

By then, it was time to head over to our new friends' boat for appy hour. I was so exhausted, and all I could think about was how much I needed to work on my blog. Just then, I looked at my phone and saw a text they had sent at 4:59 PM. They were still stuck at the hospital waiting for blood tests and had to cancel. While I would have loved to swap stories and learn about their plans for the Broughtons, I felt a massive wave of relief. I could just stay put in my comfy clothes and write. I think we are both leaving for our next destination tomorrow, so unless we cross paths again somewhere else, they will become another memory.

While I was glued to the screen working on the blog, Greg took Artemus up to a nearby grassy area for a walk. Unfortunately, they crossed paths with a man who noticed the cat on a leash and immediately walked over. Even though Greg explicitly warned him that Artemus was a bit traumatized and highly insecure around strangers right now, the man insisted on crowding him to take a photo. The sudden intrusion pushed poor Artemus over the edge—his anxiety spiked so badly that he actually peed right on his own leash! Greg had to scoop him up, bring him straight back to the boat, and wash the leash.

I kept working on the blog for the rest of the evening. By the time I finally crawled into bed, my watch read 11:48 PM. Greg was already in bed trying to sleep but I doubt that he got any, knowing I was still awake working on the post. When I was getting ready for bed, I went to reach for some supplies in the hanging locker and noticed that it had a few drops of water on it. Oh oh, I thought - I guess we have another leak - I'll save that bit of info for tomorrow. What a day!

[Photo: Looking confused and tired at the screen]

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