You know nothing makes the days fly here like teamwork and stimulating conversation. 

A few days ago, Dan was preparing to put  the primer on the boat bottom, while I was on top of the boat, buffing the topsides.  The temperature was about 90 degrees, the humidity about 70% and we were tired and cranky from lack of sleep due to the killer mosquitoes.  Suddenly I hear a yell, followed by of course, cursing, which I, of course, choose to ignore.  This leads to more yelling and cursing.  Apparently, Dan had been pouring some primer into a smaller container when the container disintegrated and leaked yellow paint all over him and his new watch.  He was desperately calling to me, even though I was desperately trying not to hear him.  Finally I can fake it no more and have to see what he needs.

“What.”

“I need your help.  Hurry!  I have paint all over my watch and I need you to rinse it off before it dries!”

He was indeed covered in thick yellow paint but he was standing right next to the water hose.  I would have to go to the back of the boat, climb down the ladder and pick up the water hose that was at his feet.  This made  no sense to me.

“Why don’t you just rinse it off with the hose?  It’s right next to you.”

“I can’t!  I have paint all over my hands!!  Hurry!!  This dries in like five minutes!!”

Really??  That’s odd.  He’d been putting off painting for a few days as he was afraid it would rain and the paint would need to dry overnight.  Now suddenly it can dry in five minutes.  Curious.

I gazed calmly at his yellow smeared appendages.

“I thought you said the paint needed to dry overnight?”

“What??”  He shakes his head in disbelief.  “Are you going to help me?  My watch is getting ruined!” 

He is a yellow time bomb waiting to explode.  I decide I’d better help.  I meet him at the back of the boat and he hands the watch to me.  It really is in dire shape.  Luckily the face of the watch is fine but paint has seeped into every nook and cranny on the band.  I take the watch to the sink and begin scrubbing as best I can.  It’s coming off pretty easily, but it could take me awhile to get this done, and I have wax that’s drying on the topsides that needs to be buffed.  More than five minutes have passed.  I grab a plastic cup as Dan comes up behind me.

“How’s it going?  Is it coming off?”

“Yeah.  Pretty well. I’m going to leave it soak in water while I finish buffing.”

“What?   You can’t do that!  The paint will dry and it’ll ruin my watch!”

“Well, it’s been more than five minutes and the paint hasn’t dried like you said it would.  Besides, the water will keep it from drying.”

“No it won’t,” he’s talking loudly now.  “It’ll dry in water!”

I look at him incredulous.  “How can it dry in water?”

“It’s made to!”  He’s approaching hysteria now.  ” I can’t believe you’re not helping me!”

“Well I’m trying to but you’re not making sense.   First you say you can’t paint because it has to dry overnight, but mysteriously it will dry in five minutes on your watch.  You tell me you can’t paint if it rains and then you tell me the paint will dry in water.  So which is it?”

Folks, this is the kind of witty repartee you can only get after being married more than 20 years!

Dan is about to lose his mind.   “Are you going to help me or not?”

“I am trying to but you’re making it very confusing!”

I’ll spare you from the rest of the dialogue which deteriorated rapidly from there and ended with my resuming my buffing and Dan taking care of his own watch!  When will the fun end?