On Dropping a Jam Sandwich - loop reading on the upper deck
In Arnhem we go on land to search in the public library for more material. In an encyclopedia on tales of the sea we find the text for our second reading performance.
real audio recording
coming soon!
images Frank Horlitz
At sea it also lands aspect
DOWN,|but also at sea an inverted bottom and
legs indicate that the top end of that person is hanging down through
the open floor cover|over the engine|trying to stop the shaft turning.|A lurch from the boat divorces the slice of bread from
the adhesive sticking it to the floor:|the bread slides past the engineer.|As it goes past his right ear|he tries to grab it,|misses,|swears,|and drops the spanner in the sump|and swears harder.|
The cussing from the engine alarms the cook out of the galley;|she steps on,|and slides with|the remaining butter and jam.|On deck the crew are handing the spinnaker which they
hurl down the hatch on top of the jam,|the engineer,|the cook|and the pot full of greasy stew
she had been holding prior to the incident.|A keen young foredeck hand rushes down to the saloon
to get out a new headsail.|As he clambers over the heap of red nylon|he does not notice|that it conceals|two muttering fellow crew members,|or for that matter|the open engine cover.|He falls|and helps push the mess into the engine
space|where the exhaust pipe,|still hot from a battery charge,|burns a hole in the spinnaker.|The coaming edge claims a slice
of his shin.|Someone on deck shouts|"Now the workers have got the kite off, how about some
grub?"|
It takes some time to sort out the shambles in the saloon,|and in the process|the bread that slid into the bilge|is forgotten.|Four hours later,|the new watch pump the bilge,|and the offending slice is turned into bread paste|and jams the outlet valve on the pump.|The engine hatch is again lifted to attend to the pump|when someone coming off watch|carves himself a thick wad of
bread,|butters it,|and spreads half a pot of strawberry jam
over the top,|then...