First Night Afloat

Well, we've finally done it. Today we have moved our lives' possessions- well, a great deal of them- onto the strangely empty Lucky Duck. It was strange to arrive and find it empty; before it was full of John's pictures, books, ornaments, large collection of ducks (will, I wonder, ours end up greater?) and the bits and pieces of his life. It felt a lot like intruding before; this was clearly his home. To come in and see the saloon denuded of his possessions was strange and really brought home to us the reality that this is our boat now, that we need to make into our own home.




And we've made a start; all we brought with us has been squared away, from my absurdly large number of tee shirts (doubtlessly a lot will go to the charity shop!) to the heavy toolbox. At the moment it's late and we're tired, so I'm going to end the post soon so we can go to bed in our first night afloat. The last time we stayed on the boat we were under the apprehensive shadow of the survey and the crucial valuation; the worry in the back of our minds that we couldn't afford to get too attached to this boat because it could still go wrong. Now, it's ours; our duvet and pillows on the bed, our clothes in the wardrobe, our collection of bits and pieces on the table awaiting a home.

This is what we've been wanting and waiting for for so long. This is, in short, our dream come true and we're both feeling a heady mix of apprehension, nervousness and, above all, excitement at what is to come.