Position: 20 degrees, 50 minutes south; 175 degrees, 30 minutes east. 24 hour run: 138 miles.

Our angle on life has changed again. We are no longer at a dock surrounded by very large mega yachts and the tourist chaos that is Denarau. Nor are back in the pristine, seldom visited outer islands of Fiji. We are back on the high seas!

The cabin fills up with foul weather gear and other stuff while underway.

And life on the high seas has a definite angle that requires readjustment. This angle is the 45 degree angle that Charisma is heeled over to in order to make our way to New Zealand. It is difficult to adequately explain life at 45 degrees but I will try.

The most obvious adjustment to be made is in how you maneuver around the boat at this angle. No single step inside the cabin, in the cockpit or on the cabin top can be done quickly. Each step requires us to have a good grip on a support. Like the overhead handrails that line the ceiling in the cabin or the handrails found coming out of the companionway hatch. This spot is where most sailing accidents happen. It is tough to step up and out in a boat that is heeled over and rocking in the waves. One misstep in any maneuver and you have a new “boat bite” to mark the misstep.

And boat bites hurt and then turn into lovely bruises prime for another boat bite. I find that getting into and out of the bathroom, let alone using the toilet and pumping it out, provide the best opportunity for boat bites. And of course those bites are usually on the hips and derriere and are the ones that get bitten again and again. Ouch!

I like the starboard port tack we are on because this means that while working in the galley everything that gets loose simply rolls to the wall. On port starboard tack I end up wishing I was an octopus with the extra arms to help contain the runaways that want to fly off the counter. You have to be extra careful in the galley when we are heeled over this way. One sloppy roll from a strange wave patting Charisma and you can get launched into the stove. No bueno.

Sitting in the cockpit (notice I did not say “relaxing” in the cockpit) at this angle means you need to choose a side. Sitting on the starboard/leeward side means that you are plopped down in the corner with no need to support yourself. (I am sitting here writing this, wedged into the corner.) But getting out of this seat requires timing. You wait until Charisma pulls up out of a roll, grab the binnacle and pull yourself up. Choosing the port side of the cockpit means that you have your legs bracing yourself at all times. I generally put one up against the binnacle and the other on the companionway frame. Not too lady-like but very effective. But exiting this seat is a breeze, you let Charisma roll you up and out! You are always tensed and bracing yourself.

The only time that you can truly relax is when you are in bed. At that is because we use the cushion back from the settee and line the wall with it. This way when the waves cause a roll you don’t end up in a face-plant in the wall.

Meals are served in bowl and as few dishes as possible are used in their preparation. Dishes don’t get left to dry on the drain; everything is dried and stowed immediately. Everything you take out to use gets returned immediately to its storage spot so stuff doesn’t fly everywhere in the big waves. Kind of keeps the boat clean.

This morning I was checking out the beautiful blue sky while sitting on the top step of the companionway when Bob asked if he could get through. You bet! But he waited for a full minute for me to make the safe maneuvers to turn and step down. No boat bites from that maneuver!

Life is slow and deliberate at 45 degrees.