A Club Cruise & I Have No Pacemaker

31st August my daughter’s partner Dominic lost his beautiful Varne 27 in Cornwall.  There by the grace of god!  It could happen to any of us!  A deeply deeply upsetting photograph of a grand little ship … I was not told for a month!

2^nd September AM

1st September The Ore to Bradwell Marina

1st September a lost exhausted little soul who had already visited ‘Time Flies’ and Simon Abley in The Wallet

Me n ‘Talisker 1’ are in Bradwell Marina with ‘Caveat’ Jill and David Robinson, ‘Cornelia’ Chris and Caroline Gill, ‘Sea Chanty’ Simon Kerr and Troy Batley, ‘Sanderling’ Migs, Jonnie Howard and James Robinson and ‘Tequila’ Guy and Wendy Marshall.

1st September a fully dressed up ‘Caveat’ flying all the Orford SC burgees

We sailed from Orford yesterday joining an Orford SC Cruise.  Our departure was delayed by a day of strong winds.  For most of yesterday there were north easterly 4s to 5s that veered easterly as we closed on the Blackwater.  Considerably less than the day before.

‘Talisker 1’ is so weeded and her prop so fouled she sailed rather like I feel.  The importance of a clean bottom is obvious but both a clean bottom and prop give great control manoevering in a tight space.

There were strong north easterlies when I went aboard on Saturday and our mooring is exposed and untenable to be aboard in those conditions.  We moved to anchor in Short Gull for the night.  The following day it was going to blow harder so we weighed anchor and collected the vulnerable dinghy from the mooring and then anchored a stones throw up river from Stoneyditch Point.

31st August moving about to find some peace at anchor

Matt Smy, Orford’s splendid Harbour Master, gave me permission to leave my dinghy on ‘Endeavor’s’ old mooring.  I shall collect the dinghy on my way back to our mooring tomorrow.

 We plan to leave Bradwell just before high water today.  Winds are from the south to south east today.

2nd September Bradwell Marina to The Orwell

Why is ‘Talisker 1’ so fouled and why are we going to possibly miss an Oostende cruise this year?

Apart from an all too brief afternoon out at sea with my two grandsons, Aiden and Kurt, on the 13^th July, ‘Talisker 1’ has not moved.  The tentacles of growth on her undersides and crustations on her prop have been allowed to prosper and multiply.  The water line, washed three weeks ago is again filthy.  With her large wet area below the waterline, an advantage when clean, she becomes a very cumbersome beast when fouled.

What’s been going on?

Well … I’m Commodore of the sailing club with one more year to go, my second pace maker has played up and my wonderful old Mum (92) has weakened considerably in the past three to four months necessitating decision making.

I’m worried this blog is turning in to a medical journal.  Forgive me.

About six months ago I sat round a supper table with very old friends.  Six of us in all.  Three are Doctors.  We remarked with some mirth that instead of just the lively conversations we used to have (we still do have those) we also now discuss our ailments.  A sign of age!!  Where once we might have drunk a tiny bit too much and stayed up late, we now drink with moderation (I don’t drink at all now and neither does Sally) and retire early.  We have become older lightweights.

2nd September and moody skies as we look back down The Blackwater

2nd September and making good speeds leaving The Blackwater

2nd September and having rounded The Naze we are heading in to the Port of Felixstowe

2030

Me n ‘Talisker 1’ are anchored off Colton Creek in the Orwell after a lovely sail today from the Blackwater.  We return to Orford and then home tomorrow.

2nd September me n ‘Talisker 1’ are anchored off Colton Creek

2nd September and later on into the early evening

It was terrific to see Sarah and Andrew leave Suffolk YH aboard ‘Inca’ having had electrical problems.  They will join the fleet in Shotley tomorrow.

Back to what’s been going on.  It’s the Sailing Club’s Centenary so we have been busy.

My dear old Mum is in a Nursing Home for the first time.  She was losing her ability to walk and with us not being home ALL the time we (Sally and I) felt we had no choice.  It was a terrible decision to take.  Our house feels empty!  Hopefully she will regain her strength and come home.  Sally continues to visit her Mum a minimum of five times a week.

My pacemaker has been removed!  Papworth felt it was causing me problems and the plan, as I understood it, was to have it buried deeper.

Imagine how startled I was on the 2^nd August, all dressed for theatre at 0730 to be visited by my Consultant and Arrythmia Nurse.

“We don’t think you need it (the pacemaker) anymore and I’m certain it’s infected again.  If it is infected it has to come out anyway.”

“Err … have you got time?” I mumbled … “Won’t it take a long time?”

“Oh yes!  But that’s what we’ve all discussed, agreed and planned!  If you want to have another pace maker you will have to come back and have another one fitted.  But we don’t think you need one!  What do you think?”

“Well you’re the experts …”

And that was that!

A two and half hour general anesthetic (they have to remove the wires) and then up to the ward.  “They can monitor you better up there!”

2nd August following the removal of the second pacemaker

Sally drove me home that night.  I was not allowed to drive for a week.  My chest has railway tracks all over it.  But … they did implant a tiny chip (not so I can be found when I get lost) and gave me a gizmo to stand next to my bed.  I also wear a device on a string round my neck.  If I have a funny moment, I press a button on the device, it lights up, and when I return to the bedroom, what was recorded gets automatically sent to Papworth.  When I’m in bed it monitors all the time.  James Robinson has the same thing.  Clever stuff.

So back to my discharge notes and a letter from the Consultant.  Pacemakers are rarely removed except for infection and a change of batteries.  So I am a bit of a white elephant!  In all probability, although they can’t be 100% certain, the cause of my trouble was the Pfizer Booster.  I knew that already!  I’m one of 8 in a million.  Can I have the same odds on the lottery please?

3^rd September

3rd September The Orwell to The Ore

After a very early start we returned to Orford under main only in a gentle southerly breeze.  There was a spot of rain about and horror of horrors, with her dirty bottom, we needed the engine to make the progress necessary to cross the river bar well before HW.