It was the voice of Captain Raymond guiding us through the canal and welcoming us to Steinhatchee.
Steinhatchee…
What can be said of Steinhatchee: Quiet, peaceful, simple, friendly, and besides the overpopulation of gnats, it was quite The perfect place for us to rest from a very long winter journey, And finish the projects we did not have time to before leaving Rhode Island. One of the major projects we had to tackle was finishing Setting up Aleph Tav to become a catch, instead of a sloop rig. Simply put, we had to change the rigging on the boat from a one mast vessel to a two masted vessel, As it was originally designed. This would require the assistance of a pretty elaborate metal machine shop. But where would I find such thing in Steinhatchee…
As I walked up the ramp from the dock we were anchored to, there was an old man leaning against the rail. He had a well worn captains hat, his eyes were somewhat droopy, and his belt buckle was pulled well above his waistline.
“Hey, do you know the difference between a screw and a paperclip?” he asked under his bushy mustache.
“Excuse me?…” I responded having been taken somewhat by surprise.
“I don’t know either, I have never been paper clipped before… Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha…” He laughed as if he had heard the joke for the first time.
“Ha… I get it, that’s funny…” I acknowledged with a smile then Continued walking.
“Don’t you want to know how I am feeling?…” He asked as I Walked past him.
“Well, how are you feeling?” I asked as I turned around.
“I am feeling about as good as a centipede with athletes feet… ha ha Ha ha ha… By the way, would you like to see the projects I’m working on?”
I smiled and excused myself. “If you don’t mind, I need to use the restroom.”
I took my time in the restroom hoping the old man would find somewhere else to go, but to my surprise, half an hour later he was still there waiting for me.
“Hey, there’s someone living in that boat right now, they may still be sleeping… Are you a friend or a relative of them?” The old man asked as I made my way down the ramp.
“No… I’m the person living on the boat!” I responded somewhat confused.
“Oh… Well… Do you know the difference between a screw and a paperclip?…”
I stared at him for a bit then answered: “I’ve never been paper clipped before?…”
“Ha ha ha ha ha ha…” His eyes wrinkled as he laughed.
Enjoying the privacy of our tinted windows, I looked outside to see what the man would do next; he just would not leave.
He hung around the boat tugging on our dock lines and tapping our bumpers with his cane.
It was clear to me I was not going to be able to tackle some of the outside metalwork projects, So I entertained myself with a few things that needed to be done on the inside. Eventually, the man did leave but I’m not exactly sure when.
After having gotten a wonderful nights rest, we woke up to the humming motor of a fishing boat heading out the Steinhatchee river. I jumped off the boat onto the dock excited about all the projects I would get to do this day.
“Hey… What’s the difference between a screw and a paperclip?”
“Oh no…” I thought, there he was again. “What is the difference between a screw and a paperclip?” I asked as if this had not happened before…
“I don’t know, I have never been paper clipped before… Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha… Hey, would you like to come see the project I’m working on?”
Once again, I excused my self and headed to the restroom for yet another prolonged stay, for no apparent reason as the old man was patiently waiting for me…
This went on for weeks and I was very frustrated as I was unable to tackle the important metal projects I needed to complete.
One day I was so tired, I sat at a dilapidated picnic table near the dock. A small tree barely shaded the area, but it was the only tree near by so I sat under it’s speckled shade, enduring the old man’s repeated corny jokes.
“Hey, would you like to come see the project I’m working on?” Asked the old man.
To hot and to tired to care, I said “…sure”
The man grunted as he leaned on his cane to get up. We walked slowly across the street where he lived in a little square brick house with a tin roof. Inside, next to some rain jackets there was an old board with various keys hanging on rusty nails. He grabbed one of the keys and lead me on a small path behind his house. In front of us was a very large square building. The man put the key in the lock, turned the knob, and lead me inside…
To be continued