Such is Life

Trying to find somebody to work on my outboard. There is the crook, who swaps out good parts for shit he has laying around.  No charge for this undocumented service. There is the incompetent who can't diagnose anything. The guy who had me do all the work while he watched. The asshole who wanted to charge me $400 with no warranty for his work for patching a hole in my boat. A guy swamped with work who won't return my calls. A guy who is great but has decided he would rather play his guitar. Shit.

Off to take someone on a tour of the archipelago. some guy Chris knows from the Canaries.

Colon, Carenero, Solarte, Clyde's, Bastimentos, Crawl Cay, Popa, Loma Partida, Cristobal. That's everything but the Zappatillas and Shepard Island (Isla Pastures).

At Loma Partida I attempted to collect a long overdue debt from a former friend to whom I had loaned money. She continually claimed poverty but acquired more land, built more cabins and a restaurant while failing to repay.  Three volunteers sat on the deck.

Two of them commenced to beating a three legged dog, one with a stick and one with a small baseball bat. "Stop. What are you doing?"

"This dog is mean. Don't use a stick, use a machete."

"He is not doing anything. Leave the poor thing alone."

I walked over to the dog and was welcomed with a big wet kiss.

"We were told to keep him away from the other dogs."

"For the love of God, just put a leash on it and walk it past the gate and close the gate."

We walked to the boat and the dog hobbled behind us and gave me another lick as we left. Fuck all of you and your boss.