2025 Part 3
A lie can travel halfway around the world before the truth can get its boots on.
though its origin is older
Welcome to the third and final part of my 2025 log. Anjea’s dodger is finally fitted and I head back to Ireland for winter. But first, some musings on bullshit.
16 September 2025
AI is the nearest thing we have to a bullshit detector. Brandolini’s Law only applied prior to AI. Before AI it really was profitable to spout bullshit because bullshit is very cheap to produce, and very expensive to refute, so the bullshitter wins both ways. With almost universal access to pretty good AI the balance has shifted and it’s now much easier to refute bullshit. Despite that, there is still an awful lot of it around, and sometimes AI is the problem instead of the solution.
It’s part of the reason I’ve lost interest in writing blogs. The internet is full of bullshit and people actually seem to like it — they even seem to prefer it to the truth. Many people seem to want to believe in comforting lies rather than uncomfortable truths.
It’s very much the reason I don’t read newspapers or watch TV news. Few if any journalists stop at the facts. It is as if a good journalist is defined as someone who can spin a good yarn, rather than someone who can report the facts accurately and objectively. The result is that most news is just bullshit wrapped in newspaper.
When I tell a story I try to use hyperbole and exaggeration to make it more interesting. Like Jonathan Swift, if I tell a lie I want it to be so obviously untrue that nobody mistakes it for the truth. Generally though, I avoid outright lies and restrict myself to smaller ways to make the story more interesting. My hope is that the bullshit is so obvious that it becomes a joke and that contrasts with the relatively dull factoids at the center of the story.
I have been working on the boat, sanding and painting the saloon roof. It’s almost done now and looks good. The dodger is at the blaster and painting should be finished next week. Window fitting is now Friday October 3.
Since I’ve started on the painting I’ve had what seems like a cold but I am pretty sure it’s an allergic reaction to the paint fumes and dust. I have a sore throat, runny nose and a cough. Antihistamines help.
19 September 2025
Wow today went fast!. My aim was to make the boat weatherproof so it could go outside next week. Wietske just came by with the news that Anjea had to make way for a large boat being brought into the shed. This is my opportunity! I can finish the antifouling outside. So I quickly clean up the mess, put away my tools, and we move Anjea outside.
It’s the end of the week and the last day of summer, and it’s wonderful to be outside. At about 5 the troops gather for the regular end-of-week celebration at Huisken Alubouw. The kids careen around the dock on their bikes, the adults drink beer and wine and chat, and it’s a lovely end to a busy day, even though I am still working on the antifouling. I finish at about 7, jump on my bicycle for a quick expedition to Jumbo for food and drink, then back to the boat for a shower and a meal. Huisken’s party had moved inside and I had the dock to myself. Perfect.
20 September 2025
Last nite and this morning I read some more of If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies: The Case Against Superintelligent AI by Eliezer Yudkowsky and Nate Soares. Thoughts arising:
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Their arguments seem to be almost entirely based on analogy. I find this unconvincing. I think the analogies are cherry picked, twisted and weak and they don’t hold up to scrutiny.
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I have sympathy for their point of view; I just don’t see that their arguments work. In fact they seem wrong to me.
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An underlying thought when I look at what is happening in the world today is that the world might be a better place if we were replaced by superintelligent AI.
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But anyway, why would the AI want to destroy us? Yudkowsky et al seem to take that as a given. I think it would be more likely to ignore us — drift off into space and do its own thing, maybe.
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All life needs purpose. If we give AI a purpose that is aligned with human values then it will pursue that purpose. If we give it purpose that is not aligned with human values then it will pursue that purpose instead. It’s up to us to choose the purpose we give it.
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I think the real danger is that an AI will be created that is not superintelligent but is intelligent enuf and misaligned enuf to be dangerous. This is already happening with social media algorithms that are designed to keep us hooked and to manipulate us. This is a much more immediate danger than superintelligent AI.
Early this the morning I reinstalled the old prop. I do not yet have a date from Gori for the new one. So I cleaned and greased the shaft, fitted the old Volvo prop and tightened the nut.
Late in the morning Marlon looks at me quizzically and asks "You wanna go in the water?" "Sure" I say. "Ten minutes" he says.
I dig out a few dock lines, arrange some fenders and we are off.
The big boat lifter is like a huge forklift but with wheels on the bottom of the forks. It lifts the cradle, together with the boat, just a few centimetres. But that’s all it takes to be able to drive the boat anywhere. The system here is different to anything I’ve seen before. To put a boat in the water the cradle, with the boat on it, is lifted by the 'forklift' and deposited on a huge wooden platform that is on rails. The platform then slides out over the water, together with its cargo of cradle and boat. Then, a more conventional system of boat slings lifts the boat off the cradle. The platform and the cradle are then slid back and the boat is lowered into the water. It sounds complicated but it is actually very slick and works well.
I spend a few minutes patching the antifouling on the hull and keel where the boat had been resting on the chocks. Then I prime the fuel, and check the coolant and oil. As soon as we are in the water I start the engine. It fires up immediately and runs smoothly. I let it warm up for a few minutes while I check pressure and temperature then put it in gear and we are off. The lads go around to the dock to catch my lines and we are tied up in no time.
I look up and I’m right opposite Distant Shores IV. Helen and I had the chance to go aboard at the boat show back in 2024. It’s a beautiful boat, designed by the same designers as Anjea (van de Stadt), built here in Makkum by KB Alubouw and finished by Gebrouder Enkhuizen. I guess they are here for some maintenance.
It rained most of the afternoon but I didn’t care. I was back in the water and that was all that mattered. I did a little cleaning, lay down for a while, turned on the hot water (have not had running hot water for 3 months) cooked, drank a glass of wine, and went to bed early.
22 September 2025
Equinox today. The days will now get shorter until December 21.
I have an idea that some countries, those that do not make it into the electro-tech era, will be left behind and will of necessity pursue other ways of doing things. They could end up evolving into a kind of steampunk — Petrol Punk, Diesel Punk, Mechanical Punk, or something like that. I can imagine a world where some countries are high-tech and others are low-tech and they trade with each other. The low-tech countries could be places where people go to escape the high-tech world, to live a simpler life. They could be places where people go to learn old skills, to learn how to make things by hand. They could be places where people go to find adventure, to explore the unknown.
Imagine a good slice of the world a bit like Cuba, cut off from new technology either by political intent or economic necessity. I can imagine many people being far more comfortable in a petrol punk world than in their self-driving Elon-mobile.
27 September 2025
The village of Makkum is in Friesland, in the north of The Netherlands. It’s a small place of about 4,000 people on the IJsselmeer, a large lake that was once part of the sea. The village is famous for its pottery and the famous Dutch artist, M.C. Escher, was born near here in Leeuwarden. The village has a long history and was once a major fishing port.
You Can’t Always Get What You Want
In 1969 Mick Jagger wrote to M.C. Escher to request permission to use one of his prints, for the cover of what became Let It Bleed. "Dear Maurits…" wrote Jagger. Escher refused, citing prior commitments and his dislike of The Rolling Stones' music. But in an aside to Jagger’s assistant, Escher noted that Jagger had made a mistake by addressing him by his first name, which Escher found inappropriate given their lack of acquaintance. “Please tell Mr Jagger I am not Maurits to him.”
Makkum these days is a summer holiday destination, especially for sailors, and home to many major yacht builders and repair yards. Feadship, Royal Dutch Shipyards, KM, KB Alubouw, Gebrouder Enkhuizen, Younique, Huisken Watersports, and many others. If I just walk in to any of these yards and ask for a price they will quietly smile and explain that if I must ask the price then I clearly cannot afford it. However, if I am patient and willing to do some of the work myself and wait for them to have idle time between other jobs I can get a deal I am just about able to afford.
29 September 2025
We are social animals and we need each other. We can only survive and thrive together. The universe is indifferent to us but we are not indifferent to each other. We must care for each other and for the world we live in. We must make our own meaning and purpose in life, together.
It seems the problem is that us humans have evolved to exist in small groups where everyone knows everyone else and we know how much to trust each other. But now we live in a world of billions of people that we cannot know or trust. This leads to fear and conflict. We need to find ways to build trust and cooperation on a larger scale. We need to find ways to work together for the common good.
Europe is a one example of this. The Schengen Area is a patchwork of countries with different laws, cultures, and languages. But they have found ways to work together for the common good. They have built trust and cooperation on a larger scale.
But in the end, the Schengen Area is less a perfectly engineered machine and more a quirky quilt stitched together by diplomats. Simplifying it might make sense, but it would rob us of the joy of figuring it out! It’s a puzzle where the pieces are always moving, and for that, we can only laugh and pack an extra form of ID, just in case.
In practice, Schengen Rules mean I can travel easily between Netherlands and Ireland. I must be careful not to exceed 90/180 days in Netherlands but I can stay as long as I want in Ireland.
8 October 2025
Back to Ireland. I pedal to Workum station and take the train to Schiphol so I can fly Ryanair to Dublin.
The train got as far as Lelystadt and stopped. We were told there was a problem with the signals, and then someone said there was was an accident. I was advised to go downstairs and wait for an announcement. It was all in Dutch and if there ever was an announcement I never worked it out. After a while I figured they weren’t going to rectify the situation any time soon so I found a cab and paid €220 to get to Schiphol. My lucky driver was Senegalese and we had a good chat on the way. He’d traveled to Kenya, Namibia, Dubai and a few other places and we compared travel notes.
When I get to the customs desk at Schiphol I present my AU passport. She looks at it and can only find a clear-in stamp for last year with no corresponding exit stamp, making it appear that I have stayed in NL way over the 90/180 limit. So I fess up and present the British passport that I’d used to clear in at Horta in the Azores nearly 3 months back. She crossed out the entry in my AU passport and stamped my British one. It may not be truth but at least the paperwork lines up and so the powers that be are happy.
The flight is on time and uneventful. We even arrive a little early. Helen is ready waiting and we take the bus to the red carpark and sit in the car munching a late but wonderfully fresh chicken, ham and salad picnic lunch. So glad I didn’t give in to the airport food. Then it’s the long drive across Ireland to a late evening arrival in Sligo.
9 October 2025
A kefir and fruit breakfast, lots of coffee and a long walk along the beach with the wild west coast surf breaking on one side and Molly wild with excitement on the other. The sky is grey, the wind is 15kn or so and it is cool enuf. We are all exhausted when we get back to the house.
We drive out to Streedagh Beach. It is a stunning 3km sandy beach where we fill four bags with stones for Helen’s garden before walking the big stretch of sand on Conor’s Island. The sea is flat but there is a strong offshore breeze that throws sand in our faces so we cut it short and turn back.
19 October 2025
I climb Knocknarea. It’s cool but sunny. Half way up I am stripped to a t-shirt. The views from the top are spectacular. You can see for miles in every direction. The Atlantic Ocean to the west, Benbulben to the north, farmland to the east, the Ox mountains to the south, and the rolling hills of Sligo between it all.
2 November 2025
Back to Netherlands for a short trip. Helen and I both fly to Amsterdam where we hire a car and drive to Makkum.
6 November 2025
Today is a big day — the new dodger is about to be fitted. First, we move Anjea next to the crane. We have been next to the wharf with Ralf & Bettina’s Vigo on the outside so we carefully extricate Anjea and retie Vigo. Ralf is home in Germany so we do it ourselves with help from Rene.
A few nervous moments but all goes well and we park Anjea by the crane ready for the guys to drop the dodger on. It is quite a sight seeing the dodger swinging over the boat and slowly taking its place over the companionway. Everyone here has done a really good job except me — my bit was to repaint the saloon top and that was a bit of a disaster as it rained the day I did the top coat. I’ve done a patch up job and at least it looks better than before.
8 November 2025
We drove to Elburg today to see Wim. Really good to get away. It has put some perspective on the whole boat thing. Wim is surrounded by some interesting people doing interesting things. His sister is into local politics and he has contacts in boat building and restoration. It was good to chat with him and get some ideas.
We walked the docks and see a myriad classic boats. Some in good condition, others not so much. It is interesting to see the different styles and designs. Most are flat-bottomed ex-fishing boats from the 1920’s. There are also a few modern boats.
12 November 2025
I get the old VP prop off Anjea after belting it with a hammer. Bugger! The new Gori prop has a different taper and key. Patrick will make a new shaft for it and we will fit it next year.
16 November 2025
Calm, cloudy, cold day in Makkum.
The center window in the saloon is fogging up. The double-glazing is not sealed properly, but then neither of the other front windows are either and they are not fogging up. It rained heavily yesterday so maybe water got in. If the seal is failing then I will have to remove the window and reseal it properly with Sikaflex. Not looking forward to that! In the mean time I will dry it thoroughly, warm it up, reattach the double-glazing and see if that helps.
18 November 2025
Hans-Peter came for coffee. He is a Swiss guy working on his boat here. As we chat a spectacular kingfisher alights on the rail just centimetres from the other side of the window — with a fish in its mouth! We both freeze. If I reach for the camera it will surely fly away. What a sight!
19 November 2025
Wet, cold, dark day in Makkum. Perfect for working inside.
21 November 2025
My budget says I can afford to get Lars to paint the deck and topsides next year. So I will go ahead with that plan. It saves me a lot of time, takes the pressure off my hand and ensures a professional job.
There is something seriously wrong with my right thumb. It has been sore for months and with all the sanding and painting on the boat it has gotten much worse. I can hardly grip anything and it hurts all the time. I need to get it checked out by a doctor and will make an appointment with Frank (GP) when I get back to Ireland.
Fondue Night
Hans-Peter Suter brought fondue makings today and we had a fun evening with good food and wine.
To be frank, they haven’t improved fondue much over the past half century since I last tried it but at least it is possible to buy prepared fondue cheese of moderately good quality at Jumbo. It was an interesting evening. Unfortunately, Ralf didn’t make it from Deutchland so we drank his share of the Kirsch (kerosene with a different label on the bottle) and a bottle of cheap Ozzy Chardonnay that wasn’t any better.
We listed the problems of the world and decided to dissolve the EU and replace it with something better; we gave Ukraine 'back' to the Ruskies (with apologies to both sides); decided that the middle east would sort itself out if everyone else would simply stop meddling with it; decided Oz is now a backward-looking sub-middle-power US vassal state that is too far from anywhere to matter to anyone; and that mixing human aggression with technology is incompatible with a human future: one of the two has to go. If we keep technology then either humans have to learn to get along with each other or we’ll annihilate ourselves.
Trump should try fondue sometime.
23 November 2025
Seriously sore hands from sanding and painting. Gave them a rest today. Walked out to the beach and back. Cold strong wind that starts up north, wraps around Ireland, blasts up the English Channel and hits us from the south. Just 4°C but feels much colder.
Watched lots of Skip Novak on YouTube and found out some interesting things about sailing and boats:
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He agrees with me that trysails useless.
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He also agrees that a storm jib / staysail on a furler is essential.
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Because reefing is something you do when the wind pipes up you need it to be easy. So three permanent headsail furlers are required: genoa, jib, and staysail, plus gennaker furler when you want it. I don’t have a jib but I have the others, all on furlers.
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Heavy weather tactics: heaving-to is preferred but can be hard to do with a fin keel like Anjea has. Need to practice getting the balance between main and staysail right.
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Drogues/sea anchors put a lot of strain on the boat and can be dangerous.
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The front of a yacht is no place for a cabin at sea but is perfect for storage:
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Not heated so good for storing fruit/veg
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Just shelves so easy to see what’s there and get at it.
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On Anjea it’s convenient to the galley.
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And it’s out of the way of living spaces.
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Talked with Helen and we agree that converting the forward cabin to storage is worth exploring for Anjea. That would also enable enlarging the chain locker which is currently too small.
26 November 2025
4°C, foggy, cloudy day in Makkum, still at the moment but with a cold wind forecast later. Another perfect day to work inside. HOWEVER, I will get out for a walk or a ride.
My hands have responded well to the rest. I’m still wearing the brace most of the time and avoiding anything that hurts. I can now do light jobs on the boat without too much pain and I’m not taking any anti-inflammatory meds and last Voltarin was 2 days ago. Guts are good too. When I don’t drink alcohol everything feels better! This is now so noticeable that it’s clear that I should give it away completely.
28 November 2025
Walked to town, turned left at the pub and out north towards Harlingen, and discovered that I can jump a couple of fences and simply walk along the top of the dijk, which keeps me off the road. Nice.
Along the way I discovered a car hanging half over the jetty. Just balancing on the edge. Amazing. A couple of police wandering around looking bemused as I took a couple of pics.
29 November 2025
Good walk out north again today. Very cold breeze (only 8°C but feels colder) no sun, and blowing quite hard from SW. Still, it’s good to be out.
I’m bored with the walks around Makkum. It’s great for cycling but walking gets repetitive.
My hands are not too bad. Only painful if I do something stupid. So I can work on the boat a bit.
I have discovered sea shanties.Listening to Rose Betts and The Wellermen a lot. Love them all.
30 November 2025
Sunshine this morning with a 15-20kn wind from SW. It’s a cross-wind on the ride out to Workum, but sunshine the whole way there and back. Quite overcast now so I was lucky.
1 December 2025
Posted a comment to David Friedman’s Substack on Lessons of the Ukraine War and got back the expected responses which makes me think that the only solution is for the UN to have real power. States/provinces/countries co-exist without violence within many larger federations: Australia, USA, Euopean Union. Russia… In fact almost every country is comprised of smaller political units. So why not extend that to all countries? Somehow, the UN would need to acquire the power to make that work, and unless there is an external existential threat to humanity I can’t see that happening. I wish the Martians would hurry up.
I do recognize that, unfortunately, larger countries (Russia, USA, China) would never agree to it unless they dominated it. They see the UN as a threat to their power. Smaller countries are more amenable as they gain protection from the big boys. But they would need great resolve to create a world government that actually worked for everyone.
My phone went off at 1200 with a terrible screeching noise. It took me a while to figure out what it was. It was the Dutch air-raid warning system being tested. Apparently it happens every 6 months. Good to know if you are planning an air-raid and want maximum casualties. When would you do it?
2 December 2025
Flight to Dublin today. I remember to clear out using my Australian passport and clear in to Ireland with my British one.
The express bus to Connolly station from Dublin airport takes forever to arrive, then it’s a very comfortable train to Sligo.
Helen collects me from Sligo station and we drive back to Strandhill. Lovely to be back.
4 December 2025
Walked Culleenamore Beach today. Cold but sunny. So good to be out in the Irish air.
7 December 2025
Molly and I walk the beach today. Solid rain all morning, but for us the sun came out! Very pleasant.
I have no claim to a home other than Anjea. She and I have been through a lot together and she is my refuge and sanctuary. Without her, paradoxically, I am adrift in the world. I look after her and she keeps me safe and transports me to places I would never reach on my own. She is my refuge and I am her caretaker. I am old enough to know that she will outlive me and that I must make the most of our time together both for her sake and mine. She could outlive me by many decades, centuries even, if I take care of her and if she finds good owners after me. I am, for the time being, just her custodian.
9 December 2025
Walked Knocknarea this morning. Went around the base of the mountain via Rathcarrick Carpark track to the main Knocknarea carpark. Then up to Maeve’s cairn and straight back down the steps. It’s a good walk of about 10km I think, but wee & wind today.
My sailing jacket is not good — it’s lost it’s waterproofness.
So when I got back I read up on the Grangers Wash + Repel that I used on it and when you read the fine print it is explicit about requiring heat treatment to activate. So I stuck it in the dryer on the 'Special 40' cycle for about an hour and now water beads up nicely. Strange.
Marie and Miriam came over for lunch. Good to see them both. It was a hoot! Miriam sent me to Centra to buy a comb so she could cut my hair and in ten minutes she did a great job. Very pleased. She’s an expert! The local mortuary think she’s great!
Grace and Adrian dropped by for a quick visit. Good to see them both too. I like them a lot. Adrian was a vet, is a pilot and now I think just tries to keep up with Grace, who is also a pilot. All the guests are roughly the same age as us, early 70’s.
10 December 2025
At a loose end. It’s Molly’s turn for a haircut today. Weather looks dire on Windy:
12 December 2025
Walked the mountain.
Inflation continues to bite. This year inflation in europe peaked at about 10% but is now down to about 4-5%. In Oz inflation peaked at about 8% and is now down to about 6%. That’s really painful.
Summary from various AIs:
The USA Presidential election in Nov '24 was won by Joe Biden for a second term, defeating Donald Trump. However, Biden was impeached in late 2024 over allegations of corruption and abuse of power, and Vice President Kamala Harris took over as President.
That is the story from several AIs about when the current President of the USA was inaugurated.
So apparently all the news services and Trump himself have it wrong — it’s still Joe Biden, inaugurated January 2021. However, some AIs say Kamala Harris took over when Biden was impeached in late 2024. Others say Biden is still in office. The only one that claims Donald Trump is President is Perplexity which says Trump won the 2024 election. I pursued the discrepancy between my belief that Trump is actually US President and the AI’s belief that Biden or Harris is President. The AIs said that Trump lost the 2024 election to Biden. I asked for evidence and they all pointed to news articles from late 2024 saying that Biden won. Where did they get those from? I then asked why them why I should think Trump was President and they all said I was mistaken. I then asked if there was any evidence that Trump was President and they all said no. So I have to conclude that my belief is mistaken and that Biden or Harris is actually President.
This is a good example of how AIs can help correct our mistaken beliefs by providing solid evidence and reasoning.
There is no desire on my part ever to visit the USA. They can’t even work out who is their president.
13 December 2025
Grey wet & windy. A gale off the SW coast and a perfect day to be inside but we have a lunch appointment with the Cruising Yacht Cub of Ireland in Rosses Point. It’s at a restaurant called Driftwood. Des called Helen to invite us. There were a few familiar faces and many new ones. Good food and good company.
Melanie, who runs Rebelle, a Strandhill surf school, prefers to be in the water than on it. She’s here because her parents are sailors. She just about convinced me to take some winter surf lessons. Not sure I want to get into cold water surfing at my age but it would be fun to try! Love her enthusiasm.
Jarleth Cunnane is a fascinating character. He talked a lot about the two boats he built: a 34' steel and then a 50' aluminium. He has sold both and now sails on OPBs (Other People’s Boats). He is a great story teller and has had some amazing adventures such as sailing from South Georgia Island to Antarctica in a small boat replicating Shackleton’s voyage. He has also done the NE and NW passages in one season.
There were many others but my memory fails me. Good to see everyone.
Listening to Ukrania & Russia --- A Tangled History. Podcast by Marc Miles Vaughan. Very interesting.
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A breakdown in communication is almost a definition of war.
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Ukraine has had a long history of being invaded and occupied: Vikings, Swedes, Poles, Austrians, Germans and of course Russians.
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Fault lines have been ethnicity, peasants vs nobility, east v west, and of course religion.
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From the simple fact of being invaded so often Ukrainians have developed a strong sense of national identity. Ukrainians see themselves as a distinct people with their own language, culture, and history. Some even view the Russian language as a dialect of Ukrainian, though consensus is that they both developed from a common proto-Slavic root
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Russia has a long history of viewing Ukraine as part of its sphere of influence, right thru to the formation of the USSR, which included Ukraine in it’s formative charter.
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Russia has often sought to control or dominate Ukraine. This has led to a deep-seated mistrust and resentment among Ukrainians towards Russia.
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The current conflict in Ukraine is the latest chapter in this long history of tension and conflict between the two countries.
My take is that it is not a good idea for any other country to get involved in this conflict. The best course of action is to let the Ukrainians and Russians sort it out themselves.
It’s now close to midnite. I don’t think a 3rd bottle of wine will work as well as the first 2, but oh shit, I am tempted.
And then Helen comes home with Anne in tow and the drinking really starts. I’ve lost count but at least another 2 bottles are consumed by Anne and myself.
We got to bed at 0530. I have not had a session like that for many years and we’re all over 70 and should be well past that sort of thing.
14 December 2025
Got up at 1230 next day. Anne stayed the nite and didn’t arise until well into the afternoon.
I managed a walk to Centra for bacon & eggs. It wasn’t cold but it was wet & windy. Should’ve taken the dogs.
Heard about a shooting in a Bondi park. A Hanukkah celebration got shot up by a couple of extremists. Many dead, including one of the gunmen. What caused those maniacs to do it? I suspect it was personal rather than racial or religious. Maybe it will come out one day.
17 December 2025
Walked Knocknarea again today. It didn’t rain but it sure looked like it was going to.
Met a dog-walker with 8 dogs on leashes and a bunch more following along. "Madness! Utter madness!" she exclaimed as we passed. I agreed but just laughed. Then nobody until I got to Queen Meave’s Cairn when a pretty girl with a big smile exclaimed "Wow! Look at this sunshine!" I agreed, we exchanged pleasantries and I moved on with a sunny smile on my face. The next encounter was with a lone man coming up the far side as I descended. I greeted him with "Beautiful sunshine today!" He looked at me blankly and said "Knowing my luck it will rain before I get home."
My contemplation today:
The universe is vast and complex, filled with mysteries that we have yet to understand. From the smallest particles to the largest galaxies, there is so much we don’t know. Yet, we continue to explore and discover, driven by our innate curiosity and desire to understand our place in the cosmos, etc. etc. Bullshit. We are the universe, or at least a part of it. We are made of the same stuff as stars and planets, and we are connected to everything around us. Our consciousness is a product of the universe, and in turn, we shape the universe with our actions and thoughts. We are not separate from the universe; we are it.
So, what if we are just a conduit for the universe to experience itself? What if our purpose is to explore and understand the universe. What if every form of life is a way for the universe to understand itself?
All that sounds very Eastern mysticism and not at all Abrahamic or scientific.
Alcohol
Last Saturday nite’s excesses are still with me, though I’m almost back to normal apart from the brain fart above. It’s 4 days since I had any alcohol and still suffering — that’s bad.
It’s a habit, it’s social lubrication, and it’s relaxing and kind of uplifting at the same time. But then I sleep less well, my brain is foggy, my guts churn and it’s carbs I do not need. It’s also an expense I don’t need.
19 December 2025
Helen and I drive down to Merel at her Slieve Aughty Centre. Ester, her mum, is away but we had a really pleasant afternoon before driving back to Helen’s brother’s place for dinner with Gerard & Carmel, and their dog Luca.
20 December 2025
After a simple breakfast at Gerry and Carmel’s we head in to Galway to check out the Christmas market.
Who should we find there but Hugo, Merel’s dad! We literally bump into him in the market crowd. Great to see him. We will get together soon.
The drive back to Strandhill in the afternoon is uneventful.
21 December 2025
We’re looking after Pearl, Anne’s dog, while she is away. She’s a small black terrier about the same size as Molly. They get along ok but Molly tires of her antics quickly.
It’s the shortest day of the year and we get just 8hrs and 47mins of daylight. The sun rises slowly somewhere a long way south of east, struggles slowly up to a maximum of 12° before descending again. We take the dogs for a walk around Knocknarea rather than climbing the mountain itself. At the carpark on the far side Helen turns around and walks back while I walk over the top and meet them on the other side.
Drank a bottle of white wine when I got back. Not good.
22 December 2025
Woke up feeling lethargic, with a pain in the lower back. Kidneys I think. Way too much alcohol. Getting old. Need to dry out for a few days.
Helen away in town. Pearl still here and a PITA with barking.
Mark came for lunch. Just bacon cheese tomato sandwiches.
23 December 2025
Made pears in port for Christmas. Will reduce tomorrow.
24 December 2025
Helen, her son Mark and I put together a Christmas feast one day early: the best garlic prawns ever (Mark), roast turkey, ham and all the trimmings (Helen), pears in port with ice cream (me). Helen did the heavy lifting but we all pitched in. Great fun.
25 December 2025
Christmas Day in Strandhill. Yippee! Mark, Paul (Helen’s second son), Helen and myself have a 'no presents' pact. Much better that way. But Paul & Vanessa’s children get cash presents from us all.
Leftovers. But still a feast!
26 December 2025
I made Eggs Benedict for breakfast today. Mark and Helen seemed to enjoy. I certainly did! Have not done that in a long time.
Climbed Knocknarea again today. Everyone and his dog was there! I went up and over, Helen walked around the back and we met up in the carpark again.
28 December 2025
Annabelle brought her parents Keelan & Arabella over to meet us. Annabelle is just 3 months old and the cutest thing. Even Molly was unable to keep her eyes off her. Keelan & Arabella are such a keen young couple. It’s impossible to wish them anything but the best.
30 December 2025
Knocknarea again today. Good to be out. Weather is dry, cold, a little wind, no sun.
Called Chris & Olga in Reykjavik. They are living on Blue Peter over winter there and enjoying geothermal saunas and swimming pools. They have cold weather on the way but today was colder here in Strandhill (5°C) than Reykjavik (6°C).
31 December 2025
I have no special plans for New Year’s Eve. Just a quiet nite with Helen and Molly.
Next year will be interesting. Hopefully, Anjea will be back sailing again by mid-year and I can get back to my nomadic life. We have a bunch of plans but nothing is set in stone yet. We would like to freshen up Anjea’s interior and make her more comfortable for long-term living aboard. We would also like to explore some new places, both in Europe and South America.
My main goal for 2026 is to stay healthy and fit enough to enjoy life and Anjea. I will continue to work on my sailing skills and knowledge, and hopefully, I can find new and old crew members to join us on our adventures.
Happy New Year!