Neptune’s Bellows

We left Cuverville Island last night after everyone got a chance to go ashore and have a quick zodiac cruise among the icebergs. My group (the giant petrels) was one of the last, the sun was starting to go down so it was getting cold and the light really sucked for getting photos (besides zipping around on the zodiacs too fast to get a decent shot).

Southern Giant Petrel

We made an early arrival at Deception Island to pierce the narrow entrance through Neptune’s Bellows. I watched from my room since I wasn’t dressed to go out yet.

It looked like another dreary day. Overcast and cold, but at least not too windy. As we made our way into the volcanic caldera enroute to our landing site at Telefon Bay, we passed an old whaling station on our starboard side. I would’ve loved to go exploring there, but all these landings in Antarctica are very strictly controlled.

I really hate being restricted like that, even tho I can certainly understand it in a place like Antarctica. It’s still relatively free of the effects of mankind and I can see why so many people would like to keep it in the (almost) pristine state it’s in today. I agree, I do think the world needs to keep at least some true wilderness. I guess I’m a hypocrite since I really would love to see all of those places myself someday too.

On arrival at Telefon Bay, we waited our turn for the zodiacs to come for our group. Landing on the beach was very smooth this time. The bottom was mostly gravel rather than the usual rock and ice. Sit on the side of the zodiac and hop off. Easy. 🙂

Some people were really getting into the spirit of things, and jumped in for a Polar Plunge. I have to admit, I was too chicken to do it myself. I think I’ve watched those hypothermia videos too many times at work to take a chance of giving myself a heart attack like that. I put my hands in the water, just to see, it was freezing! (Not literally, but cooooold!).

Not far from our landing site, our guides had cordoned off a section of beach. There was a seal sleeping on the beach! I still can’t tell the difference between a crab eater seal, weddel seal and leopard seal. I think this one was a crab eater. This one was the only seal I saw ‘close up’ in the entire trip (still had to stay about 20′ away, but got a few decent photos at least). There were a couple of gentoo penguins further down the beach too, but all in all, this place was pretty desolate.

Deception Island is volcanic. Once you pass through the narrow channel of Neptune’s Bellows (only about 750′ wide), you’re floating around inside the caldera- on top of the volcano.

It is still active, you can see some of the steam coming out of the ground around the island . The last ‘major eruption’ was only in 1970. From the beach, it was a steep hike up to roam around the edge of the caldera. I was glad for the use of the hiking poles to help keep my balance.

Landing at Telefon Bay

The scenery was beautiful in a very stark way. All black volcanic gravelly rock and white snow, with a few small ponds full of colorful algae or bacteria. I tried to walk over to one interesting depression, where the snow was melted, but our guides called me back to their marked pathway (too bad).

Supposedly there are lots of seals, penguins and other wildlife around this island but I didn’t see any. Just the one seal, all alone on the beach and the 2 penguins nearby.

As we were leaving, we passed the Argentine base and then outbound through Neptune’s Bellows again. The weather brightened up late afternoon and really made the scenery sparkle.

On departure, we were met by a whale mother and calf (I’m not sure what kind). And flocks of penguins porposing through the water nearby. This was the first time I got to see whales fairly close to the ship (tho they were still at least 100 yards off). I got a couple of photos and some video, but wasn’t able to get anything decent. They were all too far off and moving too fast for a good shot. Can anybody tell what kind they are from my photos?

According to our onboard expert, you can send in photos and then identify the whale from an online database.

All in all, another fantastic day on the MS Roald Amundsen. I was a little sad that today was our last landing in Antarctica, but had to get over it and go enjoy another delicious dinner. At least I had another few days of great food to look forward to- and we still had to see the Falklands. 🙂

Yum! I sure do miss their food. 😉

Rain

I am so sick of the rain! It’s pouring again!

It’s been raining every day since I’ve been at home.

I got off the ship on August 29. It had already been raining for a few days. My manager told me that 3 of my apartments were flooded from so much rain in such a short time. I’m surprised my tenants haven’t moved out yet. I guess they would if they could. Nothing we can do for them until the rain stops. 😦

I have flood insurance, but apparently ‘rain’ is not covered. 😦

I went to Austin for a week for another travel writing workshop with GEP. I got a break from the rain there. It’s a much drier climate up there, but it did rain on us a couple of days while I was there. Luckily, I spent most of my time there indoors at the workshop and missed the rain.

I do wish I had more time to explore. There’s a lot to do in Austin. It’s the “live music capital of the world” and I was hoping to find some cool, fairly quiet, new singer-songwriters to listen to. Our hotel was just off 6th Street, just packed with live music venues. I never did find any I could really enjoy. The music was good, but they were all just too loud for my taste.

I went straight from Austin to Orange. I was teaching Tankerman PIC again. I only had one student, so it went pretty good. They recently passed their USCG audit and they’re looking to get more courses approved.

I got home Sept 22 and it has rained every single day since! It’s getting depressing. I don’t want to go out anywhere. I don’t feel like doing anything. It’s only 15:30 and looks like it should at 20:30 instead. Dark and dreary (and very wet) outside. 😦

My yard is flooded. I’m starting to worry about it coming into my house. I’ve been really lucky so far with all the weather disasters we’ve had around here. I even made it through Harvey without much damage to my house (my apartments did flood and roofs leaked- same as happening again now).

We don’t have a hurricane nearby. I’m wondering how much longer can this go on?

SoCS: Ecocide

It’s the first Stream of Consciousness Saturday and continuing on with Just Jot it January.

Your prompt for #JusJoJan and Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “eco.” Find a word that starts with “eco” or has “eco” in it, and base your post on that word. Have fun!

I chose the word ‘ecocide’. It means the destruction of the natural environment (by human agency). With all the news about global warming- or climate change- lately, of course I’ve been thinking of it.

It’s always been in the back of my mind ever since I first became aware of it when I was just a little kid. Maybe 3rd-4th grade? Back then, the official scientific consensus was that we’d all be frozen into icebergs by now. They’ve changed their minds to the ‘global warming’ scenario now.

There has always been some debate between the optimists- who think human ingenuity will be able to solve all the problems brought upon ourselves by our insistence on breeding to the point of total destruction of the planet, and pessimists (like me) who think we will not.

It’s 40+ years later and I am still listening to the same basic arguments. The only difference is: now it’s global warming instead of global cooling. Or climate change to cover all the bases.

And, just to say it now… I am not a ‘climate change denier’. Of course the climate changes . It always has, it always will. I’m even willing to say that mankind most probably has had something to do with it. My problem with the ongoing debates at the moment has to do with the proposed solutions to the problems.

Of course, the ecocide has only progressed over those 40+ years. More pollution, more clear cutting, more soil erosion, more pollution in the air helping cause climate change, more ocean acidification, more habitat destruction for farms and houses, loss of biodiversity, and on and on and on.

Our leaders want to convince all of us to give up our high standard of living (which we get through the use of things like oil, chemicals, etc.), and bring about a ‘carbon neutral’ economy. Or even to reduce our use of energy so that we can ‘save the planet’.

I’m not totally sure what to say about that. I think there’s a much better solution than what ‘our leaders’ have come up with.

Of course I don’t want to see the destruction of planet Earth (even if I would love to see us out there exploring space and making ourselves a backup plan). I would love to see each and every person on this planet have the ability to live a good life!

Not one mired in poverty. Not one where they have to struggle every single day just to scrape up the bare necessities to exist, but a good life. One where they can work at what they enjoy, where they have plenty to eat and drink, one where they have time to enjoy the fruits of their labors.

I also want to see a planet where every other living thing has the ability to live without the threat of humanity’s greed destroying the habitat needed for survival. I want to see a planet with plenty of free space for nature. Room for all the plants, animals and humans to enjoy the natural world.

Not just for the fact that it’s healthy and good for people to be out in nature, not just for the possibility of all the things we’ve not yet discovered in the natural world that will help us live better, not just for the fact that the Earth is a cohesive, interconnected organism and we have no idea what we’re screwing up beyond repair with our human activities, but also because it’s morally, spiritually and even economically wrong to destroy so much of the world around us.

Why? Because we are so greedy.

I am NOT using that word in the way most people would. I see nothing wrong with people trying to live the best lives they possibly can. My issue is with the fact that so many people choose to have so many children (or don’t even consider not having them). Birth control? WTF? It’s like their only purpose in life is to breed. 😦

I’m scolded for being a ‘selfish American’. One who was lucky enough to be born in the USA and so afforded a higher standard of living than most people around the world. I’m very lucky I don’t have to work my ass off for $1-2/day like so many do. But, where you’re born is mostly a matter of luck. I know I personally had nothing to do with where I was born!

What I ask people who ‘dis’ me for my ‘selfishness’ is: “and how many children do you have?” (or plan to have)?

Consider. Even if you only have one child, that child may chose to have only one, or they may have dozens. And each of those children may chose to have one, or dozens more. You have absolutely NO control over anyone but yourself in this matter.

And so, by my choosing to never have any children, I have already done more than my share in ‘saving the world’. I will spend the rest of my life being ‘selfish’ and enjoying the things I’ve earned the right to enjoy.

Don’t tell me not to use my air conditioner, or my car, or anything else! No, you don’t have a right to say diddly-squat about it until YOU stop having kids!

My solution to the problem of ‘climate change’ (and all the other problems) is to simply stop having so many kids!

Not forcibly, like China, but voluntarily. Spend some of the resources going on about global warming on convincing women around the world on the benefits of only having 1-2 children. Start promoting THAT as a way to save the planet instead of trying to convince everyone to give up on their hopes to live a decent life!

The optimists insist we can put up everyone on Earth in Alaska! That may be true, I don’t know. I do know that I don’t want to live in a world where 7 billion + people are living in Alaska! I do know that I don’t want to live in a world where we continue to commit ecocide simply so that we can fill it up with more and more people.

I can’t even understand WHY so many people think that’s the way to go. It saddens me, that we have so much beauty in this world and we are throwing it away. Why? Because we need to fill up the world with another few billion people? Why?

Thursday Treat- Turtles!

I had a real treat yesterday! I got to go to NOAAs research facility in Galveston and learn all about what they’re doing with the sea turtles there.

I only found out about this whole thing last week. I happened to Google ‘things to do in Galveston” and one of the things listed was a sea turtle tour. I had known about the turtles in the back of my mind, since I’ve known about the turtle patrol and the efforts to protect the turtles along our beaches.

When I heard of this tour, I thought it would be interesting, so I called and signed up.

They only have the tours on Thursdays, and you have to make an appointment beforehand. It’s free. 🙂

Apparently I got there a little late (tho not by my watch). The room was full and they were already discussing all sorts of things about the program. Tip: Arrive early!

The tours are put on by volunteers. Thursday’s presentation was led by the team of John and Lynn Wright- “master naturalists”. They did a great job of explaining the situation with sea turtles today and what NOAA is doing with them in Galveston.

They started with a slide show explaining the facts that there are 7 total species of sea turtles and 5 of them can be found in the Gulf of Mexico. Those include (from smallest to largest): Kemp’s ridley, Hawksbill, Loggerhead, Green and Leatherback.

They showed us how to tell what kind of turtle we see (if they have 4 ‘scutes’ they’re either green or hawksbill, if they have 5 they’re either Kemp’s ridley or loggerhead- leatherback doesn’t have any).

They described turtle life cycles and what kind of food they liked to eat. They showed some amazing movies of the arribada from the late 1950’s. Thousands of female sea turtles arriving on the Texas beaches.

Then they showed a slide telling the sad story of their decline since we’ve become more ‘advanced’. Decimating all 7 of the turtle species, by eating their eggs, catching them in nets while fishing for other species, killing them with our pollution (especially plastic), destroying their habitat…

They also mentioned a few things we can do to help protect the turtles. Mainly- reduce your use of resources, especially plastic. Dispose of trash properly. Reuse and recycle. Help clean up the beaches and waterways. Take care with your fishing gear. If you see a sea turtle, its tracks or nest on the beach call 1-866-TURTLE-5 

I learned yesterday that the Kemp’s ridley has been designated the official state sea turtle of Texas. The Wrights informed us that in 1985 there were 400 nests after a large drop in numbers, in 2017 there were 353. They found 3 right here in Surfside (and 1 on Quintana)! They said there’s been some recovery. I hope so.

After the slide show, the Wrights led us over to the turtle barn where we could see all the little turtles. First, we got a chance to see how a TED (turtle excluder device) works. The kids were happy to run through the net and escape- acting as surrogate sea turtles. 😉

NOAA has kind of a conflict of interest here. They are supposed to help the fishermen, and they are supposed to help the sea turtles. They are doing a lot of studies to try and come up with answers to solve many issues surrounding our ocean resources.

One of those studies is to do with testing TEDs. The objective is to find a way to increase the survival rates of any sea turtles (and other by catch) that get caught up in a shrimp boats net. The turtles in the turtle barn are all about 1.5 years old. They’re raised in Galveston til they get to be about 2. Then they are sent over to Florida for the tests.

They’re placed in larger tanks and allowed a few weeks/months to acclimatize themselves. Then they’re taken out to sea and working with a team of shrimpers, divers, and scientists the turtles are run through the nets, out the TEDs and collected again afterwards. After the turtle finishes its run through the TED, it’s released to the wild. The scientists will use the data to refine the TEDs and other fishing gear.

The barn was full of turtles (hawksbills), at least a few dozen, all about 1-2 ft long. They swam around in small plastic containers set inside larger tanks of filtered seawater. We were warned not to touch the turtles or put our hands in the water (it’s a ‘federal offense’). If something fell in the water, they would have to drain the whole tank and replace the water due to concerns about contamination. 😦

I felt kind of sad for all those little turtles, swimming around in their tiny little tanks, but they told us that if they were all allowed to swim together they would fight and/or eat each other. They said the turtles didn’t notice or care that they were stuck in such small containers, they would circle around forever and never know the difference. I suppose, but I still felt bad for them. 😦

I also wondered why they weren’t raising more turtles- in a breeding program. Like they did with the whooping cranes down in Port Aransas. I’d hate to see the turtles go extinct. With only 353 nests (of Kemp’s ridleys) on the Texas beaches last year it wouldn’t take much to wipe them out. I asked John about it. He said in Texas the focus was on finding nests and moving them to Padre Island which was safer for them and where they’d be released to return later. There were other programs around the world that raised the turtles for a higher survival rate on release.

I recommend the turtle tour for anyone interested in marine science or sea turtles. The Wrights were very knowledgeable and great with answering any and all questions. Hopefully the research done there at NOAA will help more sea turtles survive (and also help the fishermen with better results and less bycatch). I’d love to see more turtles out at sea and maybe even find a nest on the beach one day. It would be fantastic to see an arribada like the one in the film they showed us. Let’s hope we can make that happen. 🙂

This looks like the video they showed, but there was no sound and they said the video was taken in Texas. This video is from Mexico it might be a different one. I found it on youtube.

PS- This is my Just Jot it January post for today. 😉 Today’s prompt is: memories. Well, they’re only a day or so old, but I think they count. 🙂

I Can’t Believe…

…It snowed here yesterday! WOW! I had the air conditioner on the other day, since the temperatures were up in the 80’s. Yesterday I woke up to snow.

It hardly ever snows here. I think the last time was in 2004. I got up fairly late this morning, around 1100 and was surprised to see snow all over my hedges outside my front windows. It was all over my windshield too. I had to brush it off when I left for Houston yesterday.

I did learn not to throw hot water on it the first time I had to deal with ice and snow here in Texas. I cracked the hell out of the windshield of my old el camino. What a waste of a beautiful car. I couldn’t afford to replace the windshield, so couldn’t get it to pass inspection, so eventually wound up buying this F-150 I have now.

That was in 1997. So, looks like we get snow here about every 10 years average (3 times in 30 years).

We’re not used to this kind of cold weather here. I know I’m not and I’m more cold- blooded than most people I know here. I will have to get used to it quick tho, I am supposed to ship out next week. Heading across the Atlantic Ocean to Northern Europe. I’m sure it’s going to be much colder for much longer than it will be here.

Aye-yi-yi! I’m looking for warm clothes now. 😉

 

Flower of the Day- Orange Ginger

I’m not really sure what kind of flower this is. All I know is I really like the photo. 😉

Cee has another floral photo challenge to join in on. This time she’s looking for orange ones. Here’s what she has to say…

I decided for the month of October I’m going to be posting flowers that have some sort of orange in them.  Remember you don’t have to have an orange flower to join in the fun.

So, let me know what you think of my flower. Be sure to comment if you know what kind it is. I’m guessing some kind of ginger. Why not join in and post some flowers of your own. Just click the link to Cee’s blog.

Maritime Monday for August 7th 2017: Chips Ahoy

Another weeks worth of maritime matters, courtesy of Monkey Fist and gCaptain. The story of the North Sea Sat divers was really interesting. I thought so, maybe because I work fairly often with those guys (sat divers). I just got off a job a couple of weeks ago with a bunch of them.

Interesting thoughts on snacking. I’m not a fan of oysters (too ‘slimy’ for me). I don’t think I would like the jellyfish chips either (tho I bet my Korean crews from the tuna boat would love them). 😉

I’d be more in favor of the bags of Doritos, beer and whiskey. That’s much more my style.

And I really wish I had known about this (Denizler Kitabevi Bookshop in Istanbul) bookstore when I would’ve been able to check it out! I probably walked right by it. 😦

Hope you enjoy this weeks collection…

Pioneer North Sea Divers: In the 1970s, deep sea divers were at the sharp end of the North Sea oil boom. Alex Last has been speaking to the former diver David Beckett, who wrote The Loonliness of a Deep Sea Diver, about his dangerous life working under the waves.  More on BBC World Service Brewing […]

Source: Maritime Monday for August 7th, 2017: Chips Ahoy – gCaptain

Maritime Monday for July 24th 2017: Slippery Sailors

Looks like another week of interesting maritime news courtesy of Monkey Fist and gCaptain. I haven’t been able to read it all due to lack of decent internet access out here on the boat this week. I can’t complain. I’m SO happy to have work- finally! Even if it’s only for a week or 2.

I hope you enjoy the news. Please comment with your favorites. Let me know what you liked and why. It should make for some good discussions later on. 🙂

Viking longboats on the Thames Oscar Adolf Wisting (6 June 1871 – 5 December 1936) was a Norwegian Naval officer and polar explorer. Together with Roald Amundsen he was the first person to reach both the North and South Poles. In later years Oscar Wisting was an active force behind the preparations and building of […]

Source: Maritime Monday for July 24th, 2017: Slippery Sailors – gCaptain

Maritime Monday for July 3rd 2017: Y is for Yachting

Time for another weeks maritime musings courtesy of Monkey Fist and gCaptain. I especially liked the articles about the Kursk, the German invasion and the Mariners Revenge song this week. Enjoy…

Lizzie Borden & The Old Fall River Line Everyone from presidents to swindlers sailed the Sound on “Mammoth Palace Steamers” in the heyday of the side wheelers and night boats. The Fall River Line was a combination steamboat and railroad connection between New York City and Boston that operated between 1847 and 1937. For many […]

Source: Maritime Monday for July 3rd, 2017: Y is for Yachting – gCaptain

Slow Day

I took the day off today. Didn’t do much but make a grocery run (for a good deal on steaks). I also got around to spraying my plants with ‘insectisoidal soap’. I’ve been trying to grow a garden since I’ve been home so much.

I stick to plants that don’t really need much care. I have a big lemon tree, lime tree, orange trees, pineapples, grape vines, pomegranate, raspberries, asparagus, and I’m even trying cucumbers and green beans this year. Last year something happened to kill off my pomegranate, raspberries, cucumbers and a couple of grape vines overnight.

I tried calling the county agricultural agent (which was pretty useless, they can’t tell much over the phone but insisted it was something in the soil and so nothing I could do about it). I tried researching online but can’t really find anything that really describes what’s happening to my plants. So, I just went to the store and bought stuff that’s supposed to help.

Yesterday I noticed some sort of infestation on my lemon tree. First time I’ve seen it. I sprayed it down pretty good and keeping my fingers crossed it will help. I also sprayed the pomegranates and cucumbers. I think the cucs are already beyond help, but maybe the pomegranate can be saved. IF this stuff works.

Any gardeners out there?

Maritime Monday for June 19th 2017: Defense for Country- Tobacco for Society

Here comes the weekly blast of maritime news from Ms Monkey Fist via gCaptain. As always, there is plenty of good stuff in there. I especially liked the stories about the “Unsinkable Molly Brown” and the movie about Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton (to be played by English actor Tom Hardy). This post is the first I’ve heard about this upcoming movie, now I can’t wait to go see it. Be sure to check out the popsicles too. 🙂

Just off River Street, behind the New Heritage Diner, it looms like something out of the Battle of Midway: the U.S.S. Ling, a World War II-era submarine, squatting in a shallow stretch in the upper reaches of the Hackensack River. This 312-foot hulk of gray steel has been berthed along the river’s shoreline since the […]

Source: Maritime Monday for June 19th, 2017: Defense for Country, Tobacco for Society – gCaptain

Weekly Photo Challenge: Order

I was at work last week (finally!) and while taking a break I was watching the fish swimming around the ship. It was a beautiful calm clear day, one of the few like that I saw in the month I was offshore. It was entrancing watching the fish swim around.

They mostly moved together, it looked like some sort of order. Was there a boss fish leading them all around? If there was, I sure couldn’t tell which one it was. They all just seemed to be meandering around, then all of a sudden they would change direction. All together. Weird. Spontaneous order.

I know some people don’t believe in such a thing (especially when it comes to human society). I see it all the time.

There have actually been studies done on how fish school together like that. On birds too. 

The science behind it is pretty interesting, but I think just watching is cool. Too bad we seem to have lost the ability to just sit and observe nature. That’s one of the things I love the most about working at sea. I haven’t even been home a week and I’m already missing it.

Check out more on “order” from the Daily Post here.

Maritime Monday for June 5th 2017- Singapore Invaded by Giant Sea Urchins!

Sorry I’ve been away from the computer for so long. I finally got a little bit of work. Not nearly enough, but even those short couple of weeks will keep me going for another couple of months! I wish they had decent internet aboard, but can’t be picky about work at this point!

I got in late Saturday night, it’s taken me this long to catch up a little bit and start to interact with the world again. I got my dose of Maritime Monday yesterday and felt like it’s worth passing on. There’s a cool story about Singapore and the latest cool project over there. Be sure to check out the interesting pottery by Florida sculptor Mitchell Grafton. I really like what I’ve seen of his work so far.

As if there weren’t enough to worry about, Singapore is being invaded by giant crocheted sea urchins.  >> via Trevor Corson, author of the books “The Secret Life of Lobsters” and “The Story of Sushi.”  –TrevorCorson.com National Ocean Service – Looking for a getaway for a few minutes during your work day? Check out our […]

Source: Maritime Monday for June 5th, 2017 – gCaptain

Wild Wednesday: Watch Two Cuttlefish Fiercely Fight For a Mate

I had meant to create a series of posts for “Wild Wednesday” since I first started my blog. I’m not sure why, but I never have managed to make very many posts. There are so many interesting sea creatures out there, and so much we don’t know about them. I’d like to make this a regular feature and share more about them. 🙂

Let me know how you like the idea.

This is the first time researchers caught the creatures locked in a vicious fight in the wild

Source: Watch Two Cuttlefish Fiercely Battle Over a Mate | Smart News | Smithsonian

The video is cool, the article is really pretty interesting and worth reading. 🙂

Maritime Monday for May 1st 2017: Sexy Women Holding Carp

Another always interesting collection of maritime tidbits from Miss Monkey Fist. Enjoy…

Miss Monkey’s Retail Anecdotes Some of Miss Monkey’s closer associates already know that She earns Her beer money working part-time at a Maine based, family-owned clothing retailer that’s been a Portland institution since 1919.  Whilst pulling her Saturday afternoon shift, an interesting tale unfolded. After passing this anecdote along to some of her friends later […]

Source: Maritime Monday for May 1st, 2017: Sexy Women Holding Carp – gCaptain

Z is for Zanzibar- #AtoZChallenge

“Z” is for Zanzibar. And the last post in this year’s A to Z Challenge! I can’t believe I managed to finish and post for every letter. Usually, in these long challenges, I get so far behind I just give up. I’m glad it’s over tho. It’s hard to find time to post every day.

I have to say I loved Zanzibar! I was there on vacation last November. I took a long trip for a photography safari with Great Escape Publishing. I really enjoyed the safari. We went all over the Northwest area of Tanzania. From Arusha to Lake Eyasi, the Ngorongoro Crater, the Serengeti…

It was fantastic! We got to see all kinds of animals from our jeeps. The drivers were great at finding the game. We would sit quietly and watch them do their thing while we furiously took thousands of photos. 🙂

It was a week of amazing experiences, but a week of early mornings and late nights. I was exhausted at the end of it. I was glad to have scheduled some extra time before flying all the way home to Texas.

I had thought about climbing Mt Kilimanjaro. It is on my bucket list. I just didn’t think I was up to it at that point. I wanted some rest and relaxation. I decided to head over to the nearby island of Zanzibar for a few days.

Wow! Such a gorgeous island. Stone Town is intriguing. It has an interesting history, it’s easy to imagine yourself back in the days of the Sultans as you wander the winding lanes of the old town. The people were friendly and eager to show you around town, or entice you to buy their specialty spices or colorful paintings.

   

The food was cooked with exotic local spices and served with a smile. The night market near the docks and the fort was a great place to hang out. I liked to grab a fruity drink and watch the sun go down before wandering around and choosing a cook for my dinner.

 

After a couple of days in the city, I headed up North to relax on the beautiful white sand beaches. I spent a few blissful days relaxing under the casuarina trees, wading in the ocean, sailing on sunset cruises and SCUBA diving around the area.

 

The diving was excellent! Best I’ve seen in quite a while. I saw lots of colorful coral and all kinds of sea life. I brought my camera, but only one dive was shallow enough for me to use it. 😦

  

It’s a long, long way from Texas, but if I ever get the chance to visit Zanzibar again, I will definitely take it!

Maritime Monday for April 17th 2017: Big White Cloud

In between trying to keep up with the #AtoZChallenge, I still managed to read the weekly post from Monkey Fist. There’s always such interesting stuff in there. My favorite articles this week (other than the stuff on John Cale- who has long been a favorite of mine) was the stuff about the weather. I also really liked the photographs. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did…

Since leaving the band in 1968, he has released approximately 30 albums. Of his solo work, Cale is perhaps best known for his album Paris 1919, and his cover version of Leonard Cohen‘s “Hallelujah“. Cale was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Velvet Underground in 1996, and […]

Source: Maritime Monday for April 17th, 2017: Big White Cloud – gCaptain

N is for New Orleans- #AtoZChallenge

“N” is for New Orleans, a city like no other. It’s one of my all time favorite places to visit. I first started going to New Orleans back in 1978-79.

I was in the Ocean Marine Technology Program at Brazosport College. It was a 2 year program where I would be able to earn my AB and QMED certificates from the Coast Guard. One of the things we had to do was to take fire-fighting training. We also had to take a ‘Spring Cruise”. We combined them and took a couple of boats up to Delgado Community College in New Orleans to take their fire-fighting course.

That’s me, 2nd from left, back row

I was 17 at the time and the youngest in class. We had a nice and easy trip up, the weather was fine and we all got to practice our celestial navigation skills. We all looked forward to seeing New Orleans and we were not disappointed. We all had a blast and will always remember getting underway bright and early after a late night out on Bourbon Street. 😉

I used to go home to Florida to visit family a couple of times a year and always stopped in New Orleans if I could. I liked to hang around the French Quarter and recharge my batteries for a day. Maybe longer if I met up with some ‘cool’ people. 😉

Years later, when I got older and had to slow down on the partying, I started to enjoy more of the city than Bourbon Street. I’ve gone for conferences, workshops and training, and layovers for traveling to and from work offshore. I always try to spend a little extra time just to relax and enjoy the city.

It’s so easy. New Orleans has it’s own special vibe. They say it’s got “soul”. Yeah, I agree. It feels sultry, hot and humid most of the time. It almost oozes history. You can see it in the architecture all over the French Quarter. It smells delicious. Chicory coffee, beignets, seafood gumbo, salty oysters, and boozy concoctions around Bourbon Street.

The food is amazing! Classic French, Creole, Cajun and all combinations thereof. Soul food, muffaletas, po-boys, fresh seafood, fine steaks, you can get all that and more. Some of the best cooks in the world call New Orleans home.

New Orleans is a city of music. Jazz, Cajun, Creole, Rock, Soul, Blues, it’s all there. All over the place. I love wandering around the French Quarter, finding musicians playing out in the streets. You can almost always find some around Jackson Square or Royal Street. Then there are the second line parades. It’s always fun to join in the party. Where else can you get that?

New Orleans has so many parades, parties and festivals. I love it! I wonder if I would ever get anything done if I actually lived there? 😉

H is for Hadzabe- #AtoZChallenge

“H” is for the ‘Hadzabe’, an African tribe of friendly people who have chosen to retain their traditional lifestyle. On a photography safari with Great Escape Publishing (GEP) last November, I was able to spend the day learning about how they managed to survive in today’s world.

A very early morning wakeup brought our group of photographers to spend the day with a couple of the traditional tribes of the area. First the Hadzabe, the hunters, next the Datogas, the blacksmiths. We had to meet the Hadzabe very early for a special treat, we would go on a hunt with their men!

We left the beautiful Lake Eyasi Safari Lodge at 0545 and drove about 45 minutes to the Hadzabe camp. They still live a nomadic life, so we met them at one of their temporary camps. They had built scattered domed huts out of thin, flexible branches tied together in addition to their ‘rooms’ in a rocky outcrop atop a high hill.

When we arrived, we met the chief and through our interpreter, Joseph, we got an explanation of the basics of their lifestyle. The men brought us up to a large overhang of the rock where they had a fire going. They explained the different types of arrows they used for hunting (some were poisonous).

A couple of them showed us how they started a fire (no, not with a Bic lighter), the old fashioned way of twisting a stick until it gets hot enough to light the tinder. The Hadzabe men used the spark to light their pipes for a good long toke. A few of our troop tried it too- (lighting the fire, not smoking the weed)- but only one succeeded (just barely). It looked a lot harder when our group tried to do it. The Hadzabe made it look so easy.

Similar to the Maasai, they were nomadic. But the Hadzabe were hunters, not herders. The chief also had more than 1 wife. The men spent their days hunting and preparing to hunt. They made their bows and arrows, sharpened their knives, kept the fire going, and smoked a lot of weed while they were at it. They offered some to us, but nobody was brave enough to accept.

After the demonstration, we left with the men on their daily hunt. I followed along for about 20 minutes, up and down the rocky hillsides, surrounded by thorny plants in the hot sun. The hunters were already so far ahead of me I couldn’t see what good it was doing to try to keep up with them. I was rushing- huffing and puffing- and not able to really pay attention to my surroundings and thought better about continuing on.

I turned around and went back to camp. Joseph escorted me and a couple of others who also wanted to return, just to make sure we made it back safely.

Joseph brought us back to camp, introduced us to the women and then returned to the hunt.

Like the Maasai women, the Hadzabe women stay in camp and tend to the household chores. They take care of the children, do whatever needs doing around the camp, and make items for trade. I watched as all the women and children sat together creating beautiful beadwork items (which they later showed our group- just in case anyone wanted to buy).

It took a couple of hours for the men to return to camp- along with our group who stuck it out with them. Sorry to say, they didn’t catch anything. They’ll have to try again later. In preparation for heading out again, they practiced with their bow and arrows and a target stump a couple hundred feet down the slope. We watched as all the men (even the young boys) took their shots at the stump. They even offered to teach us how to do it.

A couple of our group decided to take them up on it and took a couple of shots at the stump. No one managed to hit the target. I tried to pull the string of one of the small boys’ bow. No, I couldn’t pull it even halfway back. We all had fun, the Hadzabe had a good laugh at how awful we were.

Before we left, the tribe got together and gave us a farewell present. They put on a dance show for us and even invited us into the dance. It was a fun ending to our visit.

F is for Freedom- #AtoZChallenge

“F” is for FREEDOM! A particular passion of mine. I could go on and on about it (like this), but no one ever wants to listen. Here, on my blog, I can express myself. I can try to make a point and then remove myself from the ‘conversation’.

Maybe then, others will take a minute or two to think about what I am trying to communicate? Instead of talking to each other in person. Where each person almost always has a rebuttal in mind before the first person even gets finished speaking?

Maybe by just putting some of these thoughts out there, into the ether, someone might think ‘hey, that actually makes sense’, or ‘wow, what a thought’, or ‘maybe those nut job libertarian freaks really do have some good points’, or best of all they might start to think for themselves about why we are NOT allowed to live our lives with all the freedoms we OUGHT to have!

Here are a few of my favorite quotes (taken from google)…

I truly believe that with all my heart. I only wish others felt the same. 

And again, you can’t value freedom for yourself without granting the same to others.  

Why do so many people value ‘fitting in’, falsifying their own true selves to be ‘accepted’ by others? Be yourself! I decided a long time ago, I will not let others opinions affect the things I choose to do with my life! If people don’t like me the way I am, then the hell with them! There are over 7 BILLION people in this world, I’m sure to find at least a few who accept me and value me just the way I am. Those are the only ones for me to care about.

 

Sad, but true. For some reason, we have an overabundance of greedy, power-hungry bastards that ALWAYS manage to steal the power away from the people. We, the people managed to wrestle it away for a short time here in the US, but they’ve come back with a vengeance and stolen away almost ALL of our liberty again! Unless and until the populace starts caring again and demands their freedom, and takes it back- we will just keep on losing more and more each year until we’re basically just a slave state (again) and only ‘our leaders’ are free.

Believe it or not, but we’re pretty damn close to that state right now, today (and no, it’s not just because Trump got elected). The “deep state”, the powers behind the powers have been working behind the scenes for decades and they are sooooo close, so close they can taste it! Total control is within their grasp. We’re so far past Orwell’s 1984, it’s not even funny.

While we all just keep on ignoring the whole thing, telling ourselves we still live in the ‘land of the free and the home of the brave’. Repeat it enough and we’ll make ourselves really believe it’s true. Nope, that place is long gone!

Snowden tried his best to wake us up, even his revelations did nothing to wake up the majority of the people. They just don’t seem to care. Have they all been brainwashed? 12 years of government indoctrination has done the job the public schools were created to do? Dumb us down and turn us all into ‘cogs in the great machine‘, just indistinguishable tools to create the wealth so that others can siphon off most of it before we ever even see it?

 

EXACTLY! What’s the big deal? Why do so many people freak out when the idea of real freedom is brought up? They’ll bring up every imaginable excuse (no matter how ridiculous) to argue against it. Regardless of the fact that the most free societies in the history of mankind have been the most prosperous and gave the best possible lives to the most possible (considering the reality of the times they lived in).

This idea perfectly expresses the reason why the founders rebelled against Great Britain and formed the United States of America. The Declaration of Independence says it all:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.-Preamble to the Declaration of Independence

That basic principle is the foundation of our country. ALL people should be free to live their lives in whatever way they choose (as long as they don’t hurt anyone else). (No matter how hypocritical they were back then re: blacks, women, native americans). Why don’t even Americans hold to these principles anymore?

We are still living now on the proceeds of the freedom we used to have. I wonder how much longer can we last before our creeping statism (fascism, totalitarianism, globalism, corporatism, crony capitalism, socialism, etc) destroys whats left?

 

I agree (tho a clipper ship under full sail I’d count as a close second)! Take a quick look at some beautiful ships…

See what I mean? 🙂