Sunny Spells, Rainy Periods…

The English weather forecast always contains these two possibilities, echoing the Yin and Yang of life, good times and bad times, sunny spells and rainy periods…

When I bought Sunny Spells she was named “Kindamindi” – Aboriginal for “to laugh”. On the forward bulkhead in the v-berth is a brass ornament confidently stating that “smiling makes you beautiful”!

Her name didn’t do much for me, but neither did the original name “Krafty One”, still visible on the locker covers. But what to re-christen her? It had to be something personal without being too clichéd. Also, it had to be something you could use on the VHF without cringing or spelling it out every time.

While in the UK for Hugo’s christening last year I again teased Gilli about the weather, and non-committal forecasts. It was only a couple of months later that she had the brilliant idea: “Sunny Spells” could be the sunny spells amongst the inevitable rainy periods!

She was recently re-christened before my passage up the Australian East Coast (brave or foolish, I don’t know, but she’s been re-named once before…). We have yet to appease Neptune with the requisite celebration, but we might wait for a “sunny spell”…