Supplemental Side Bar - The Lollygagger.

So, last night, right after I finished writing the "Weather, or Not" blog, I heard some foreign engine noises.
As a boat captain - you know normal and abnormal engine noises - and these were most defiantly not normal. Too shifting, too sudden, and too powerful.
So, I jumped up and stuck my head out of the cabin to see this ENORMOUS boat trying to pull into the slip next to me - but was inches away from T-Boning my bow.

What was most troubling was that the "mate" was holding a boat hook and trying to use that to push off of my deck to keep their boat off of mine.

I can't adequately describe the enormity of the boat and the resultant stupidity of such a plan, but I can show you. Here is a picture of the Lollygagger (Not a joke - actual vessel name):

The Captain, was about 112 years old and was named Mr. Magoo. His mate, was about 5 years his junior and was named Gilligan. Their combined IQ was less than my shoe size.
Seriously, if the Captain had another brain, it would have died from loneliness.

As Elmer and Fud were about to back up into my boat a second time - I pointed out that there were multiple empty slips further down wind - which is where they were eventually going to wind up regardless.

Unfortunately, by the time that "dawn finally broke over Marblehead", and Cap't Clueless cottoned onto what I was saying, he had already smacked my neighbor's boat (Nellie and John - mentioned in previous blog).

Miraculously, he finally made within the same zip code of an open slip, and I ran over and yelled at the mate (a.k.a. Hellen Keller) to throw me a line - any line.
Which I cleated (hard), and told the Cap't Crunch to "just put it in forward". (Knowing that it would pull the bow into the dock.)
Well, he pulled into the dock all right, and damn near took it out - along with the cleat.
And, we finally got him tied up - with the engines shut off - so that he couldn't do any more damage.

My boat was fine - thanks to Mighty Mate holding off the 50,000 lb. boat with is trusty boat hook.
But, I wasn't so sure of my neighbor's boat.

As luck would have it, I knew that he was having dinner with friends at the restaurant that we ate at the previous evening. So, I went down to fetch him. While he was very thankful, I can't exactly repeat what he said, when I responded affirmatively to his question: "what's the big deal - did someone like hit my boat or something?"

Fortunately, the damage was all done to the Lollygagger, and not John's boat.
Upon discussing the events of what transpired, John and I learned from the esteemed Cap't that he had just purchased the boat (shocker) in Florida and they were headed North to take it around the "Great Loop".

For those who are unaware of what that entails, it means going all the way up to Canada, down the St Lawrence, into the Great Lakes, down the Mississippi, and back to Florida. The Great Loop.

Well, after what I saw, if Cap't Fruit Loops and his side kick Twinkie, make it thru the Belt Loop, it will be a friggin miracle.

I wish them luck, but was soooo glad that they were headed North, and that we were leaving the dock before they untied a single line.

p.s. - the last guy I saw with the owner of the Lollygagger was the fiberglass repair guy at the marina. I see the makings of a great friendship there.

A little sidebar - I just had to share.