[pin 4320] We find ourselves sometimes doing stupid things and decided to poke fun at ourselves by including some in the blog. So far, they haven?t resulted in anything too bad and are only slightly funny when looking back. Near-Darwin Act #1?The other day after we departed from La Paz, I noticed the knot log was reading 0. The knot log is a mechanical paddle device located on the outside of the hull below the water line. It spins as the boat moves and gets converted to a digital signal that?s displayed on a Simrad gauge. Earlier on the trip when the log was reading 0, I dove under the boat and cleaned some barnacles off the paddle to fix it. After talking with another cruiser, I learned it can be done from inside the boat by removing the device, which is located in the bilge. So while we were underway, I decided to remove and clean it. After I removed a pin, I unscrewed a cap ring that I shouldn?t have, and pulled out the paddle device. A joker valve (one-way valve) protects water from coming in when the paddle is removed, but since I unscrewed the cap ring, the joker valve popped out. At that point I could see bright light and a 2-foot geyser of water was coming into the boat (Jacintha thought it to be quite funny). No problem I thought, I can cover the 2-inch diameter hole with my palm and put things back together. Unfortunately, the joker valve got washed away somewhere inside the bilge. I at least stopped the water from coming in, but couldn?t move around to look for the part, so I called Karen who was at the helm. After we found the part, inserting it back into the hole with a heavy stream of water shooting up was a challenge. The bilge pumps did their thing and we finally got everything put back together. Once the joker valve was back in place with the screw cap holding it, I was able to clean the paddle and when all was put back together, the knot log worked again. In hindsight, I should have practiced this last summer when the boat was hauled out, then I would have seen how all the parts work and would not have unscrewed the cap ring. But then I wouldn?t get Near-Darwin Award #1. Near-Darwin Act #2?We were at a boat store in La Paz looking for a gas can spout to replace the one that came with the can. The spout has a special spring-loaded mechanism that is activated when pouring the gas by pushing the spout against a tank or whatever it?s being poured into. So at the boat store I was trying to figure out how the mechanism worked by blowing air into it without pushing the spring-loaded mechanism, then by pushing it. Unfortunately for my lips, I let go of the mechanism while blowing into it and my lips were now caught in a trap-like device. Five days later and I?m still reminded of this near-Darwin act every time I drink a Margarita with a salted rim!