Paul won't like that

The painting above is of Tretower. I finished it a couple of weeks ago but have occasionally given it a sideways glance. I eventually succumbed and made a few alterations. There was a lack of overall harmony, which I think has been much improved by the changes.


Today we had the plumbers in from 7.30am. They have been going flat out on the central heating, which was going downhill quite rapidly. Three floors doesn’t help a tired pump and sludge for water. They have just left and are coming back later, all looking good but I haven’t had the bill yet.

Then the dog got ill and had to go to the vet. Then we both had the dentist.

Yesterday I was talking about our mooring in Angle. When you are allocated a mooring it is just a point on a chart. There may or may not be mooring chains buoys etc present. In our case there was nothing except some ground chain in the deep mud.

To lay a mooring involves waiting for a low tide and trudging carefully for a quarter of a mile in mud dragging chains, warp (rope), and a buoy. Then finding the ground chain that belongs to your allocated position. None of this is easy.

Anyway we put down our mooring and sailed from Swansea down the Bristol Channel into Milford Haven Waterway and into Angle Bay. No sooner had we attached our yacht to the mooring than we heard a voice.

“Paul won’t like that!”

Looking around we found a boat next to us with a head sticking out of the hatch.

“I’m sorry what did you say?”

“Paul won’t like that.”

“What do you mean?”

“That’s Paul’s mooring.”

“I think your mistaken this is our mooring we have been allocated it and there was no tackle on it. We bought this tackle and laid it ourselves.”

“Paul won’t like that”

No amount of reasoning would stop the four-word response.

“Paul won’t like that.”

Or even the glare that was now accompanying it as we settled down to sandwiches in the cockpit determined to hold our ground.

Over the weeks we learned to ignore him despite him being next to us. Do you know he never spoke to us for a whole season but continued with the dark looks. I was waiting to find a Black Spot nailed to the mast. We did find out who Paul was and of course his mooring was nowhere near and a decent chap he was as well.

Anyway our friend moved on at the end of the summer. You meet awkward or odd people in all walks of life and in all activities. He was definitely one of them. There again we have met many very odd artists and critics.