It hadn’t been the easiest of days. It had been a backs-to-the-wall kind of day.

But, as the saying goes, either you run the day, or the day runs you. So I put it all out of my mind, lit the fire, made a cup of tea, and did what the meditation gurus tell you to do. I distracted myself.

The way I do this best is to tune in to Below Deck.

Ever heard of it?

If not, be my guest.

But first off, hands up. I’m not a fan of any reality TV of any kind. But for some reason, Captain Lee Rosbach of the Below Deck U.S TV series is my big exception.

He’s my go-to guy, even on the worst of the worst of the bad days, despite the fact that he generally stays at arm’s length from the action, and never courts the cameras.

Yet despite the remoteness he nurtures, and the distance he keeps from most of the drama (most of the actual high jinks of the series lie in the many stormy interactions between lower-ranked, younger, more emotional or volatile crew members on the mega-yacht, The Valor) Captain Lee will occasionally treat us to a dash of dry, salty humour. And despite his affable demeanour, once riled, he doesn’t hold back with the sailor mouth.

Truly, his outbursts are worth waiting for.

I like his refusal to suffer fools gladly. I like the quiet, deep-seated kindness he occasionally shows. I enjoy the sense of weary resignation he expresses now and again as a result of having to deal with self-obsessed 20- and 30-something know-it-alls. There are the smart uniforms, of course. Oh, and let’s not forget those........

© Evening Echo