One night, my dad and I were at anchor somewhere along the ICW. While I was down below making nachos, my pops was in the cockpit enjoying the view and, undoubtedly, either taking pictures or reading “The Fort,” a Michigan football discussion board, on his phone.
Dad, asleep
I opened a can of black beans and passed them up the companionway, asking my dad to drain them over the side (our sink drain clogs easily…we try to put only water down it). He said, “no problem,” took the can, and, in a second or two, handed it back to me empty, to which I replied incredulously, “Dad, I asked you to drain the can, not empty it.” Completely unsurprised by this turn of events, he simply stated, “I thought you wanted me to empty it.”
Now more aware than ever of the competence of my crew, I opened another can. Handing it up to him, I made sure he was clear about what needed to be done. Fortunately, that was the last can we had to open that night, and the nachos were soon done.
Just remember, you get what you pay for when it comes to competent crew.
I thought you would say, “Just remember, acorns don’t fall far from the tree.”
Well, that was going to be my next comment.