I made it home OK Sunday. I was too tired to do anything but pass out. Monday morning I spent all day in Houston, mostly waiting around, to complete my UKOG physical so I could go to work. That was supposed to happen tonight.
It didn’t. 🙁
I made it home yesterday, didn’t get much done. I was sooooo tired! I passed out about 3 PM and slept until 11. I woke up in the middle of the night and fiddled around with the huge stack of mail til I got a little sleepy again. I had to try and go back to bed since I had a long day planned.
First thing I had to do was to get my cell phone working again. I don’t know why, but every time I turn it off for a while it only lets me make emergency calls when I come home and turn it back on. It’s very frustrating.
I had to return the rental car I had to drive home yesterday, then headed back up to Houston for the UKOG (UK Oil & Gas) physical. I tried to get that done while I was in Mexico, but apparently there is not a single doctor in all of Mexico qualified to do that physical. WTF??!!
Why not?
What the hell is so hard about a general physical that no doctor in Mexico is qualified to perform it? I’ve been to a few doctors down there and I’ve been pretty impressed. I don’t think they’re any worse than doctors I’ve been to in the US (or Thailand, or Korea, or Singapore).
It’s really aggravating that I have to have a US Coast Guard physical every year. It is STCW approved and according to international law (treaty) is SUPPOSED to be accepted for every mariner everywhere worldwide. Now, I have to take them for every temp job I go to? Why? Why does the UK not accept the US Coast Guard physical?
So, I spent all afternoon up there, mostly sitting around waiting. It was worse than usual since they told me I needed to get a piss test, so I was holding it. When I got there, I asked if they could go ahead and take my urine sample if the wait was going to be a while. Nope. Grrrrrr!
So I sat there for about 3 hours before they called my name, trying not to pee myself. It was no fun!
I did pass the physical, it was actually less intensive than the USCG physical.
Seems to me the officials who force all these BS laws (treaties) on us sailors in order to have us all be considered equal, had better get on the companies to stop forcing us to keep wasting OUR time and money on these extra BS ‘requirements’. Why don’t these officials who are SUPPOSED to be there to protect the seaman ever protect the seamen instead of their employers?
If we’re all equal enough so that a company can hire an Indian or Ukrainian sailor for pennies on the dollar, only to benefit the company (so they can save on crew costs)- then we SHOULD all be equal enough when it actually helps US instead of the companies!
That went quick! My month long TEFL course finished up on Friday and now I’m heading home.
I’m sure I could have had a job lined up teaching English if I hadn’t been so wishy-washy. I hope to have at least a short term job starting later this week, so I couldn’t really justify passing that up for any teaching position.
I’ll be home later this afternoon. That should give me time to sort through the mail before I go get my UK physical on Monday. I don’t know why the US physical isn’t good enough for them (and it kindof pisses me off that it isn’t= the whole point of it is that it is supposed to be accepted worldwide).
If all goes well on Monday and they’re OK with the paperwork, then I should be heading off to work sometime Thursday. Hooray!!!!
It’s only for 10 days, but even 10 days at this point will be a huge help. I’m just keeping my fingers crossed.
Sunday the whole group of us from our school went out sailing Bay of Banderas on a friends boat (thanks again Memo!). We had a great time.
We left around 1030 and came back in around 1930. We cruised from the Puerto Vallarta marina down to Los Arcos. We set out a couple of fishing rods and trolled along as we made our way. We passed schools of fish and a few dolphins along the way. It was so nice.
We stopped for a swim at Los Arcos, a big bunch of rocks just offshore. The water was a clear blue-green. There were hundreds of fish swimming around. There were a few other boats there before us and people were busy feeding the fish, swimming, kayaking, and just generally having a good time.
It was so nice to dive in and luxuriate in the cool, clean, clear water. I swam around and took pictures of the fish. I wasn’t brave enough to try swimming through the arches and caves, but some people did.
We headed back out to sail some more after our nice swim, we were on our way to Las Animas Beach. Raul kept watch on the boat as the water taxi ferried us in to the beach. We had lunch over a couple of big margaritas at Los Conos.
The beach was actually pretty busy. Los Conos is right up on the beach. The view of the boats swaying on the bay and the kids making sandcastles on the beach was so relaxing. The few peddlers who wandered by were mostly entertaining, especially this one guy with his pet iguana. He was hilarious. 🙂
The restaurant was busy and the staff was a little overwhelmed, but they brought us our drinks quickly and the food was good. I had cheese quesadillas. I’m not big on seafood and that’s more their specialty. Everyone’s fish and shrimp looked very well prepared and no one complained about the food. 🙂
The water ferry took us back out to the boat and we clambered back aboard the Bella Maria. As we were getting underway, friends pulled up to say hi. They were in a little speedboat (the Calypso) and just out having a good time on the water.
We challenged each other with beer and raicilla, whistling and dancing to loud Mexican music. We rode together for about an hour before they got tired of poking around so slow with us and took off for home, leaving us in their wake. Who cared? We still had plenty of beer. They did make off with the last of the raicilla tho. 🙁
We sailed back towards the marina as the sun set to port and the full moon rose to starboard. It was a magical time. Everyone was in good spirits and happy to have spent the day together.
Class will finish up this week, so things will be busy around here for a couple of days. Actually, I’ve been fairly busy all along. I haven’t been posting much (and probably won’t be) because the internet has been really bad the last couple of days and I can’t stand sitting here trying to work (and not able to get anything done) while I should be out enjoying Puerto Vallarta.
Saturday I spent the morning taking it easy. I had breakfast at the little cantina downstairs, picked up my laundry, picked up a few things at the store. I took the bus down to the marina after it started cooling off a little bit.
I was a little disappointed that it wasn’t bigger. Other than that, it was about what I expected. Lots of expensive shops and plenty of tourists. A few big yachts but most looked like they were actually used and not just show boats like a lot of them you see in Miami or Houston.
As expected, the gates to the docks were locked. I couldn’t get down to the boats to talk to any crew members. I figured there wasn’t much hope, but still worth a try. I wouldn’t mind working on a private vessel again. It might even be fun for a change.
I wandered around for a while, hoping to find a good sailors bar where I could hang out for a while and get the scoop over a few drinks. Sorry to say, I didn’t find any place that looked likely for real sailors to hang out.
I rode the elevator up to the top of the lighthouse (El Faro). I thought I might have a snack and watch the sunset. It was a gorgeous view. They only had chicken wings and I just wasn’t in the mood for those, so I took a few pictures and headed back down to wander some more.
I met a nice guy from Tennessee. He was a former USCG mariner so we had a pretty good conversation. It was nice talking to someone who ‘gets it’. I really miss being on the water. Most people just don’t understand. It gets in your blood.
I had a nice steak dinner at a place called the Rincon de Buenos Aires (Argentinian Steak House). They had a special offering of green salad, baked potato and skirt steak for 195 pesos. I paid about $15 for dinner and a drink.
The steak was great, cooked perfectly and plenty big. I could hardly finish it. The baked potato was big, but they didn’t put anything on it but butter. I asked for sour cream and they brought some, but it was not the same thing we get at home. The salad was big, but they only had Italian dressing and it wasn’t really very flavorful. They brought out a bread basket with chimichurra sauce, but I didn’t want to fill up on bread.
I did really enjoy my steak, but I wasn’t real impressed with the restaurant other than that. First of all, it was very hot. I was dripping. The hostess tried to help me by pulling my table (which was up against the wall in a dark corner) out so that it was under a ceiling fan. I appreciated the effort, but it didn’t help much.
The waiters were all polite and helpful, but it was very busy so they were slow to come by. A man at the next table flagged them down for me once after I had been waving at them for about 10 minutes.
It was definitely a very popular place. I would go back for the food, but only if I made sure beforehand it was a slow time.
Sunday morning we got to go out sailing with Erica and her friend Memo. He has a beautiful sailboat and kindly offered to take our whole class out sailing for the day. I’ll have more on that later.
Today was Monday. Back to school. I got my last 2 teaching assignments this morning, and so spent some time working on my lesson plans this afternoon. I’ve got early classes tomorrow and Wednesday, and we have another essay due Wednesday too, so I’ll be busy for the next couple of days with school work.
It’s already 2300. I need to get off here and get some sleep. I need to get up EARLY tomorrow! 🙁
Last night I went to watch the dancers again (will upload photos later). I got there 45 minutes early and STILL couldn’t get a seat where I could see to take good pictures. So I stood again for the whole show ( 2 hours +45 mins). My back was killing me by the time it was over, but I did at least manage to get some decent pictures this time.
I met my friends from the TEFL course there and we wandered down the Malecon afterwards. We stopped to have dinner and a couple of margaritas. I had plain and they had strawberry. Instead of salt on the rim, they had spicy pepper! I’m glad I stuck with the regular. They were strong! Dinner (for 1) and 6 margaritas for $15! Our waiter turned out to be from Houston.
Doesn’t it make you wonder about our supposed economic recovery (and “free country” status) when so many Mexicans are leaving the US and finding things much better in Mexico? I’ve certainly found things much better here than at home. I would love to live here permanently and I’m seriously considering it. That’s the whole reason I’m getting certified in TEFL. It will finally allow me a way to get out of the US.
I’ll just have to adjust to a serious pay cut (about 90%!) and so far I’m not really ready to accept that.
Today, I’m going to the marina. I’m hoping I can get in to wander around the docks and talk to people there. I’d like to find out about the possibilities of working on some of those yachts. If I can’t get down on the docks (which is more and more common today and a SERIOUS disadvantage to those of us who work aboard), then I’ll try to find a bar where the sailors hang out.
I’ll try to find out through word of mouth if anyone is looking for crew, or if there is someplace with a bulletin board, or if there are any other hang outs. That has worked for me before. When I finished high school on the sailing ships and was supposed to have a job working my way home on a ship from London and it fell through, luckily I found a job helping out on a Thames sailing barge for the summer. I had the best time that summer!
I wouldn’t mind doing something like that again. 🙂
I heard about Jennifer’s Color Your World challenge from Cee, her beautiful flower photos showed up in my reader and caught my eye. I had to click through to see the rest of her photos. 🙂
Today’s challenge color is: gray. Here’s my best shot. 🙂
I took it a couple of years ago. I was supposed to fly out to the rig for work, but they had canceled the helicopters due to the heavy fog. So, we rode the crewboat out instead. This supply boat was following us out the channel, they passed by pretty close to us as we exited the Fourchon jetties. This is one of my favorite shots. I’ve even put it on some of my business cards. It’s one of Aries Marine’s vessels: the Betty Pfankuch.
I doubt I’ll be able to participate in this challenge every day. I’m in Mexico and in school and I don’t want to spend all my time here on the computer. It does look like a fun challenge, so I’ll join in and play along when I can. Here’s the link with more info, and you can sign up if you want to. 🙂
Here’s another favorite quote of mine for the Daily Post’s prompt. This is also another post for the Just Jot it January challenge.
I LOVE to travel! I do every time I get the chance. I’ve been traveling ever since I was born (tho I had no choice about that!).
Until I was about 6 years old, we lived in a camper on the back of my dads truck. He would take contract jobs all over the country. When he finished one and found something interesting he liked, he would pack us all up and off we’d go. We lived in Boston, Syracuse, Minneapolis, Lake Tahoe, Phoenix, Anaheim, and others I don’t remember.
We settled down in Florida when I started school, but I still got to go places thanks to my grandmother. She lived in New York, so we (my brother and me) would fly up there for the summer. My grandmother would take us to Niagara Falls or Montauk, or we would go to day camp for the summer. I remember going skiing in Aspen, Colorado, tennis camp near Ashville, North Carolina, touring around the Western National Parks.
I was really lucky and got to go to high school on a square-rigger and sail around the world. I decided on that trip I wanted to be a ship captain and sail around the world (and get paid for it)!
I’ve been working toward that goal ever since.
I’ve never felt so engaged, so alive, so in the moment as when I’m traveling (and/or sailing). It can be totally absorbing. I love to explore, even in my home town. I used to ride my bike up and down every street in town, just to see where they went. I did the same thing when I first got a car here in Texas (before gas got too expensive for joyriding).
You never know what you’ll find, who you’ll meet, what can happen. 🙂
I hate the thought of working in an office all day, doing work I’m really not interested in, for just barely enough money to pay the bills. That’s why I decided to go take the TEFL course in Mexico. At least I’ll be learning something new and useful, in a different place. Who knows what it might turn into, right!? Here’s a bonus quote and another one of my favorites…
I think it’s a real shame how many people all over the world are basically doing just that. I don’t know how to fix it, but I’m sure there’s GOT to be a better way! None of us are meant to just work our whole lives just so we can pay the bills!
Here’s another one for my Songs of the Sea series (and another post for the Just Jot It January challenge). It’s short and sweet. 🙂
Do you want to go to the seaside? I do! I’ll be there tomorrow. 🙂
Like I said yesterday for the Daily Post’s prompt, I have more than 1 favorite quote. Quotes that inspire me. Quotes that I wish I could follow more closely. All of my favorite quotes have the same theme. They’re all related in some way or another to FREEDOM.
Yesterdays was about the freedom of a ship at sea. There’s nothing else like it. You’re out there in your own little world. You have to deal with your fellow shipmates, the ship itself, and the surrounding environment. It really is special.
Today, I’d like to share another favorite. I love this quote by Mark Twain (he used to be a riverboat pilot). It really speaks to me, more and more as I get older and more fearful. Also more aware of time passing by. I’ve been wanting to leave the US and travel the world ever since I went to school with the Oceanics when I was a teenager.
I’ve spent my entire life at sea, trying to have those same kinds of experiences again. But the world at sea has changed SO much since then. They’ve taken all the fun and enjoyment out of it. Now, it’s pretty much just another job.
I still love the time off it offers. It gave me plenty of opportunity to travel on my time off. I did, every chance I got. Whenever I had the money and I wasn’t spending my time off in ‘training’, I would take a trip somewhere.
I started investigating what it would take for me to move overseas and found out that I would not be able to do that until I was old enough to retire (or won the lottery).
I don’t have the resources it would take to start a business, which is actually a good option in a lot of places, but I could not find a single country that would allow me to move there and WORK to support myself for the time it would take to become a citizen. The only option left was to teach English.
So, I started looking into learning how to teach English. I was never really very serious about it. I was still able to work offshore and the pay differential is just HUGE. I was able to earn more in 1 day at sea than I would earn as a teacher in a month (or even 2 months)!
So, I continued working and traveling when I could on my time off. Too fearful to take the plunge and just GO. I would never have hesitated when I was younger. I knew then (and I know now) that I could find something to do that would allow me to travel and spend time in a place I liked. Back then, I would never have let worries about not having a work visa stop me from taking whatever opportunities offered.
I know there are people all over the world working under the table as bartenders, waiters, baby-sitters, time-share salesmen, etc. I know I could do a lot of those jobs too. But I’ve been letting my fears stop me from doing anything about my desire to get out of here!
I hate the idea of being forced to give up my chosen livelihood. I really still love working at sea, sailing for a living. I don’t want to give it up and never would have by choice.
So I guess it’s a good thing for me that the price of oil is so low that there is no hope of work for the foreseeable future. If there was, I would still be sitting here at home, spending most of my time applying for non-existent jobs and hoping for a phone call.
Since I finally admitted to myself that there IS no hope, I could finally force myself into signing up for the TEFL course and probably even spending some time afterwards in a foreign country.
I am still fearful, nervous and depressed, but I’m throwing off those lines anyway. 🙂
This is also a post for the Just Jot It January challenge. 🙂
I just got home. It’s late. After midnight already. I wanted to get my post done for the Just Jot It January challenge. Today’s prompt is: serendipity.
I’m just too tired to go into a big, long post right now. I’m not even sure if this counts as today or tomorrow. Technically, it’s after midnight. But I’m still up and been busy since this morning, so for me it’s still today. So, I’m going to count it as Thursdays post.
I wasn’t going to write about serendipity anyway. But, I will go look it up, just for the hell of it. 😉
noun 1.an aptitude for making desirable discoveries by accident.2.good fortune; luck:
A good word to know. I had the general idea, but good to look it up and make sure. I could use some of that serendipity!
I spent all day in Houston today. I went to the zoo. It was such a gorgeous day. Sunny and cool. A lot of the animals were out and about. Even the ones that are usually sleeping. I got some nice photos.
I went to the joint Kings Point/Navy Happy Hour at the Refinery (they had a good selection of beers and the food looked pretty good). I like to go to those meetups when I can. I usually see a few people I know, and get to meet some people I don’t. It’s a great way to keep up with what’s going on around Houston and in the shipping world too.
I got there a little late, but there were still a few from the group there. I had a beer and talked to some of the older guys about how nice it was to be retired right now (wish I was too!!). This downturn in the price of oil has started affecting everyone in Houston. No one at the meeting hasn’t already been affected in some way.
I left fairly early since it’s a long drive home and I don’t know my way around Houston very well. I stopped on the way home for dinner at TGI Fridays. I LOVE their Jack Daniel sauce! I wish I could figure out how to make that stuff, I would be eating a lot more steak! I had a nice rare steak with fresh broccoli and a brownie obsession for desert (with ice cream on top).
I’m going to Mexico for a month, so I figure I better get my cravings out of my system now. I’ve never been a big fan of Mexican food. I guess that’s another thing I’m gonna have to learn while I’m in school down there. 😉
The Daily Post came up with a prompt today, one I thought I could contribute something to the discussion with.
Do you have a favorite quote that you return to again and again? What is it, and why does it move you?
Actually, I have a few favorite quotes. It’s hard to choose just one. They all revolve around the same theme. FREEDOM to live life to the fullest. Here’s one…
I’m a sailor. I’ve spent my life on the water, so this one really does speak to me. It’s true too. Yep, that’s right. A ship is meant to be at sea. To sail away from all the tedious day to day bullshit on shore. To explore the unknown oceans. To do the job to the best of it’s ability. To see the world.
The crew works together as a team, with a common goal to focus on (the ship). They work hard and they play hard. Adventures at sea and in ports around the world. It’s about living life, taking each day at a time and being present in the moment. Aware of the ship, the sea and the sky, the weather and any changes. Alert to the birds, fish, whales, dolphins and all the other creatures of the sea. Doing your work every day that you know is only to help reach the goal.
Finish the voyage, prepare for the next. And off on another adventure. 🙂
And this is also an post for the Just Jot It January challenge.
Today’s prompt for the Just Jot It January challenge is: SoSC– Odd/Even.
I really can’t think of too much to post except the obvious (numbers). So, here goes…
2- even number of boats
3- odd number of boats
Seems pretty lame, but I’m running out of steam here lately.
I took these photos out of Port Fourchon, last time I was working up there. I really hate working out of that place, but I’d be real happy to be headed back there right now. Just happy to have some work anywhere right now.
Today’s post for Just Jot It January, I’m not following the prompt (felicity), but going off on a tangent of my own…
I keep hoping and hoping that someone will contact me for a ‘real’ job. Since I was laid off from Ocean Rig in September and started looking for work, I haven’t had even one call (normally, I would have had a couple dozen for Christmas fill-ins).
I was very lucky and found a job through a friend. I thought I’d better go ahead and take it since things were so slow. I took that job, but it didn’t work out. I finished my hitch, but decided it wasn’t somewhere I really wanted to be. I decided to take my chances. I didn’t go back.
It wouldn’t have been worth it even if I had returned. They lost their contract and laid everyone off after only 1 more hitch. 🙁
I saw in the news this morning that Ocean Rig lost the contract for the Olympia, so I’m sure they’ll be laying off even more people there. Schlumberger just announced they’re letting go another 10,000 people.
Ocean Rig Olympia (google photo)
I guess I need to face up to the facts and get serious about finding something else to do with myself. It looks like there’s not going to be any ‘real’ job for me for the foreseeable future. Probably at least 1 year, maybe 2.
I wouldn’t be so upset and worried about it if they hadn’t changed the rules as to what we need in order to work offshore. Before, I would have just found something else to do for a while, knowing I could always go back when things got better. That’s hardly an option anymore with the new regulations.
Now, we have to have our documents renewed every 5 years. To do that, we need to have at least 1 year (365 days) of sea time within the last 5 (on vessels of appropriate tonnage). We also need to have a few (very expensive) training classes renewed within that same time period.
I also need to have a USCG approved physical done every year and if they find anything wrong with me, they might decide I’m not allowed to work any more. To top it off, the Nautical Institute (which is where we get our DP certificates) has knuckled under and decided that we all have to renew our DP certs every 5 years too (with at least 150 days). That might not seem like much, unless you understand how almost impossibly hard it is to get ANY sea time on a DP vessel!
So! I have just about decided to give up completely on trying to find some sort of job where I can put my 30++ years of experience to use. What an incredible waste of effort. 🙁
I basically have to start over from scratch. I’ll be 55 this summer and I’m not exactly looking forward to that process. I know I have a major attitude adjustment to make.
I’ve never really done anything else but work at sea. Yeah, I’ve had a few jobs on the beach like tending bar, housekeeping, painting, dishwashing, etc, but never anything serious. I tutored all through school and I liked it (but that paid less than any other job).
Ever since we were working in Thailand, filming the tsunami, I’ve been tossing around the idea of teaching English overseas somewhere. Spending so much time outside the US convinced me that I had to find a way to spend more time outside. I started investigating what would it take to move.
It could be so simple, if only I was old enough, or rich enough, to retire.
But, I have a long way to go before I qualify for either of those things. I still need to work! I found out that the only way to get a work visa in most countries is by teaching English. So, I started looking into teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL).
I’ve been pretty half-assed about it, mostly because I had a hard time choosing to give up the pretty sweet salary and work schedule I had working offshore. Now, it looks like that choice has been taken away from me- there IS no more choice!
I’ve been in contact with a school in Mexico. I’m going to give it til Monday and if I don’t hear some good news by then I’m going to bite the bullet and sign up for school. The course is a month long. After that, I’ll have the option to start teaching right away or do something else for a while.
A month can’t be that bad, can it?
Maybe Mexico will be so wonderful and exciting that I’ll forget all about ever coming back! That would be perfect! 🙂
PS- the ‘featured image’ at the top is one I took in Nicaragua (not Mexico), but a lot of those Spanish speaking countries have more in common than the language. 🙂
I was going to go sailing again yesterday. For the 3rd of the Icicle races. But because of the weather forecast (and short on crew), we didn’t leave the dock.
We felt like we couldn’t do a good job with the small crew we had aboard, the weather was supposed to get really nasty during the time we would be out there, and none of us liked sailing in the cold rain. So, we crapped out.
I don’t have any idea yet how many boats were fanatic enough to start the race yesterday. We decided to visit another friends new boat and then went for a nice lunch (at T-Bone Toms). I had a cheeseburger (it was really good!). It was already raining, while we were there it started pouring!
I’m really glad we didn’t wind up out sailing in that! 🙂
It was coming down in buckets all the way home. I had a hard time driving for a while and had to slow down. Today my yard is flooded again but the sun was nice to see. 🙂
better weather for racing- it did NOT look like this yesterday!
Another post for Just Jot It January.
I’ve been reading Texas Music magazine the last couple of days and saw an article about Patricia Vonne. She sounded like someone I just had to learn more about so I looked her up on youtube and found the perfect video for my Songs of the Sea series. 🙂
This song about the sailor and the mermaid is very pretty. Patricia has a beautiful voice and I like the Spanish style music. The guitar and maracas are soothing, but I think this would also make a good song to dance to. I love Spanish/Latin music and dancing! Tango, flamenco, salsa, cumbia, conjunto, rumba, merengue, even mariachi!
I love it all! I only wish I could dance!! (I suck at dancing, I’m clumsy as hell.) 🙁
The song’s story is nice too (tho I don’t understand the Spanish well enough really- I had to look up the translation). The sailor is saved from the shark by the mermaid and they fall in love. Simple love story, but the artwork makes it different and more interesting.
El Marinero y La Sirena
(*Patricia Vonne / Michael Martin)
Fue forzado a caminar la tabla*
Se zambullo en el agua helada
Clavado debajo del galeon español
Sintio un golpe brutal
Descendiendo en la oscuridad
Sintio un abrazo fuerte
De dedos tenaces al girar
Con un beso de la vida
El marinero y la sirena
Pertenecen al mar tan negro
Oyen el llanto del destino
Un amor ardiente y herido
El esta destinado a navegar sobre el mar
Espumoso del amor
Y ella a nadar leguas abajo
Su corazon naufragado nunca podra saber
La allegria de nadar con su amor verdadero
Su amor es un tesoro
Que brilla mas puro que el oro
Cuando veas caer una estrella mi hechicera
Recuerdame mi sirena
Aunque perteneces al mar ven conmigo
Sere tu refugio con permiso
En mi dolor hay esperanza mi marinero
Que el amor no es fatal solo sincero
Oye el llanto del destino mi carino
Desde el fondo del mar donde vivo
The Mariner and the Mermaid (English translation)
He was forced to walk the plank
plunging into the icy waters
nailed beneath the Spanish galleon
He felt a crushing blow
descending into the darkness
he felt a warm embrace of tenacious fingers
spinning to the surface with a kiss of life
the sailor & the mermaid
belong to the sea
hear the cry of destiny
of an ardent wounded love
he is destined to sail
above love’s foamy sea
And she, to swim leagues below
his shipwrecked heart can never know
the joy of swimming w/ his true love
their love is a treasure that shines
brighter than gold
when you see a falling star, my enchantress
remember me, my little mermaid
even though you belong to the sea, come with me
I will be your refuge
in my sorrow there is hope, my sailor
that love is not fatal but sincere
Listen to the cry of destiny
at the bottom of the sea where I live
Today’s post for Just Jot It January. 🙂
I was at the Houston Zoo a couple of weeks ago. I always like to go there, watch the animals and take lots of pictures. It relaxes me and I’m a member, so it’s free. 🙂
Last time I was there, they were doing the “Zoo Lights” event and getting ready for this new exhibit: Washed Ashore.
I got a picture of one sculpture. I thought it was pretty neat. Very creative and a nice way to use up a lot of plastic junk and turn it into something beautiful instead of just leaving it as ugly old trash on the beach.
I try to help with the beach cleanups when I can, but there’s a LOT of plastic floating around out there in the ocean and we’ll never be able to clean it all up from the beaches, we need to stop it from getting in the water in the first place!
Yes, that whole thing was made with trash collected off the beach! Washed Ashore will be at the zoo from Jan 15-April 15.
Dunes Day at Surfside Beach will be Jan 23 (0900-1200). I can’t find the date for the next International Coastal Cleanup, but they should be getting it organized soon. It’s usually in spring (Apr) and fall (Sept). Here’s a link to the results from last year.
(and another post for Just Jot It January)
I haven’t been doing a whole lot lately. I’ve been out of work and so out of money and so not able to do much traveling. I’m trying to avoid spending money as much as possible while I’m trying to find a new job.
I’ve joined in the Just Jot It January, where the challenge is to ‘jot’ (post) something every day for the month of January. I’m finding it a little hard to find interesting things to post about that often, especially when I’m pretty much stuck at home. Things are really pretty boring around here right now.
I did a post a few days ago about what happened last year. Sabrina, (The Photographicalist), commented on it that she’d like to see some pictures of the arribada. That’s where the sea turtles struggle ashore on the beaches to lay their eggs. I did find one picture (almost all my photos from that trip were stolen).
I was lucky enough to see the arribada last year when I was in Nicaragua. So sorry, I wasn’t able to get any good photos since it was night, it was very dark, and tho they passed out little red lights, they warned us not to shine them at the turtles. It might upset them enough to make them stop laying their eggs. I don’t know why they don’t go see them in the daytime, I never got a straight answer to that question. I hope one day to see them in the daylight. 🙂
I did take a few photos anyway. It was such an amazing experience, I soon gave up messing with the camera. There were dozens of turtles (olive ridleys) coming and going up and down the beach. Like all sea turtles, the olive ridleys are endangered, it was thrilling to see so many of them at once. It was hard to see them, but you could hear them coming and you’d better get out of their way cause they weren’t moving out of your way!
We went as a group (I signed up for a tour at a hostel- Casa Oro– in San Juan del Sur), we all watched a movie before we left and our guide explained everything for us. She even scooped out the sand behind the turtle as it was laying, so we could all see the eggs being deposited.
I’d like to go back someday, it was a fantastic experience. If you ever get the chance to see it, you should!
The best posts on my blog last year (according to you, my readers) were:
I’m not sure I would have chosen those as my best posts, but at least it looks like we’re all on the same page. We all like things to do with the water and drinking! 😉
Actually, those two posts about the moonshine are not very useful anymore. The links to the recipes have disappeared into cyberspace. I don’t know how to get the originals back. I did try to make amends recently with these posts:
But it looks like ya’ll took those New Years resolutions seriously, no one has even read those posts or clicked on the links for the recipes. I haven’t been out much myself lately. It’s just too dangerous anymore to go out and have a drink with friends and I’m not really into drinking at home by myself. 😉
I’ve been having a hard time lately, mostly with the work situation in the oilfield. I don’t want to be too depressing on here. I notice I’ve been pretty down on here lately and my posts don’t seem too interesting to me (hopefully they still are to you). I don’t want to run off my readers. So, in hopes you can help me liven it up around here, what would YOU like to hear about here?
I’m still in the Just Jot It January challenge, to post every day for January.
I’ve joined in Linda’s blog challenge of Just Jot It January. I’ve been posting every day so far but today is the first time I’m using one of the prompts. Today’s prompt is: frozen.
I can’t help thinking about yesterdays Icicle Race out on Galveston Bay. One of the guys who was out on the boat with us was just about literally frozen the whole time! Unlike myself, he’s a skinny little guy and has no natural insulation. 😉
He’s usually the most enthusiastic sailor of all of us. He’s constantly checking the sails and tweaking the trim for every last bit of speed he can get out of the boat. But yesterday he stayed holed up down below through most of the race. Even the standard sailors cure (a shot of rum) didn’t do much to help. 😉
We joked about the ‘wind chill factor’ the rest of the afternoon, how it was so much colder on deck with the wind (since there really was not much wind). We finally gave up on the race when the wind died down to only 2-3 kts, and motored the rest of the way in to the dock. We got there in good time for the crew party at the clubhouse. The hot chili and a few more shots of rum finally did the trick. 🙂
Today was the first in the series of Icicle races here on Galveston Bay. I pried my eyes open early and ran up to Kemah to join Capt Vic and his crew. We got underway in time to get the crew warmed up and make a couple of practice runs at the starting line.
It was cold and damp, cloudy and drizzling rain, but we were in good spirits. We had some decent wind (N 10-15 kts), to start the race. We had a great start. Crossed the line right on time and were making about 7 kts all the way to the first mark.
From that point on, it was all down hill. The wind started shifting and dropping off. We had to tack a couple of times to make the next mark. That cost us a lot of time.
By the time we rounded the 2nd mark, the wind had died down to under 5 kts. Not enough to do much for a heavier boat like ours. We tried to sail wing and wing downwind, but it really wasn’t working well. We didn’t have a spinniker and weren’t classed for it anyway so couldn’t have used it if we did have one on board.
We tried for about a half hour, pretty much every other boat had already passed us so we decided to just throw in the towel and head for the dock. At least we would get there before the rum was gone (Cruzan Rum is one of the major sponsors of the Icicle Races). 🙂
There are 4 more races to go. I hope the weather is better for the next one. It’s not a lot of fun to sail when there’s no wind. Even so, I was happy to be out on the water today. 🙂
The pictures are from last years races, I haven’t had time to download the new ones yet.
PS- I’ve joined in the Just Jot it January challenge, you can see what it’s all about here.
https://youtu.be/E5H8DwJI0uA
One of my favorite songs by one of my favorite bands!
I’ve been listening to this CD a lot in my car lately. I’ve been driving a lot more than usual lately. Instead of working offshore, I’ve got some part time work in Houston, so I’ve got a couple of hours a day driving back and forth when they’ve got something for me to do up there. This song always gets me in a good mood while I sing along. 🙂
“Sons And Daughters”
When we arrive, sons and daughters
We’ll make our homes on the water
We’ll build our walls aluminum
We’ll fill our mouths with cinnamon now
These currents pull us ‘cross the border
Steady your boats, arms to shoulder
‘Til tides all pull our hull aground
Making this calm harbor now home
Take up your arms, sons and daughters
We will arise from the bunkers
By land, by sea, by dirigible
We’ll leave our tracks untraceable now
When we arrive, sons and daughters
We’ll make our homes on the water
We’ll build our walls aluminum
We’ll fill our mouths with cinnamon now
When we arrive, sons and daughters
We’ll make our homes on the water
We’ll build our walls aluminum
We’ll fill our mouths with cinnamon now
When we arrive, sons and daughters
We’ll make our homes on the water
We’ll build our walls aluminum
We’ll fill our mouths with cinnamon now
Hear all the bombs fade away
Hear all the bombs fade away
Hear all the bombs fade away
Hear all the bombs fade away
I haven’t been up to doing many of these challenges lately, but this week the Daily Post is doing a challenge on ‘gathering’. They seem to be looking for something more along the lines of a holiday gathering of family and friends. The typical Christmas kind of thing. Maybe I’ll find something like that later.
For now, I’m thinking more along the lines of gathering in the catch. Like this photo from the tuna boat. I took it a couple of years ago, when I was sailing as captain on the Pacific Breeze, hunting around the South Pacific.
I actually miss that job.
Have you ever felt like you were in limbo? I rarely have. But I am feeling like that right now. I hate it!
I’ve always been one to have a goal. To have something, at least in the back of my mind, to work towards.
Up until fairly recently, that goal was to become ‘a ships captain and sail around the world (and get paid for it)’. I FINALLY achieved that goal in December of 2011. I earned my Master AGT (any gross tons) from the US Coast Guard. I was so happy, so thrilled, so stunned, to have FINALLY earned what I had worked so long and so hard for.
But, since then, I have been a little bit lost. I had been trying so long and so hard to reach that goal, that I hadn’t really figured out ‘what next?’
I’m still in that phase. Trying to figure out ‘what now?’. I was OK with that until I got laid off. Having work always kept me occupied. I never had to think about what was next. Working, and then busy as hell when I was home. I was able to travel, take courses, work on projects, etc. All because I knew I only had a month or so at home to get everything done that I needed to do.
Now, I am out of work. There is NO work in my field. I doubt there will be any until the price of oil goes back up to at least $70-80 per barrel. Hundreds of thousands of people have been laid off already in the oilfield and there are still more layoffs in the news every day. 🙁
According to the people who think they know about this kind of thing, it could take another 2-3 years for the price to go back up to the point companies start hiring again. Some ‘experts’ think oil could go back up to $100 next year. Some people think it never will due to alternative energy increasing in efficiency and affordability (I think it will be decades before that happens).
So, I am in limbo. I am HOPING to get some work over the holidays. All of my usual sources have dried up. I have ONE recruiter still telling me he’s got something coming up, but nothing definite yet. Christmas is less than a week away. I’m losing hope, but still not ready to throw in the towel yet.
So….. what am I going to do?
I WISH I could just say the hell with it all and ‘retire’! I WISH. But, if I plan to live more than 10 years, then I just can’t see how I could possibly survive for any time past that. Those 10 years would have to be spent living somewhere with a MUCH lower cost of living then the USA. I’m not objecting to that at all, in fact I would LOVE to move NOW to one of those places. The problem with that is that they won’t let me until I’m retired and/or have a ton of money!
Since I don’t know how long I might live, and hopefully it’ll be more than 10 years, I need to figure out some OTHER way to earn a living. I have all kinds of ideas. I’ve already tried a few: vending machines, rental property, investing in the stock market, painting, writing, photography, blogging. Not one of them has made anywhere near enough money for me to consider concentrating on just that one. The rental property comes close, but I’m still at the point where I need to subsidize them with regular work. 🙁
I found a temporary job ashore through an old friend. It pays about 1/5 of what I normally make. It’s not every day. It won’t start up again til the end of January. It won’t pay the bills. But it pays 2-3 times more than any OTHER job I’m likely to find here. It helps.
I’m considering taking the TEFL (teaching English as a foreign language) course. No, it won’t be enough to pay the bills either, but at least it will allow me to move somewhere less expensive to live. I think I might actually enjoy teaching and it might turn into something really interesting. The biggest problem with that is my fear/expectation that I would have to dress/act in a ‘professional manner’. UGH! I hate the thought of that!
So, while I sit around the house, hoping to get a call for a ‘real’ job, I try to work on my other (hopefully someday money-earning) projects. My writing, photography, blogging. Problem with that is I’m getting so depressed with the situation around here that I don’t feel like doing ANYTHING.
All the things I’d normally be doing in my time off, like sailing, going out to see friends, going to the zoo, going to do things in Houston, traveling, are either too expensive or I put them off cause I just don’t feel like getting out of the house. I’m getting super lazy, doing less and less every day. I didn’t even take my daily walk yesterday (I did today).
I really hate being in this situation, this limbo. If I knew for sure I could get regular work, and when, I could make some kind of decision. Knowing I would be leaving soon would motivate me to get off my ass and get some of these projects around the house done.
If I knew for sure there was no work (not still hoping to get some), I might decide to take the enforced time off to take the TEFL course. Or just take the time to concentrate on fixing this blog (the total disaster of moving it still needs to be fixed). Or work on photography. Or writing. Or painting.
Or, I might look harder at some of those sailboats looking for crew. That would be a cool adventure! I only wish they paid something, but there are always so many people out there willing to go for just the experience, or even to pay themselves! I know I would make a good crew on any passage. Too bad I don’t have the money now to put in for costs, or pay for transportation. 🙁
So, limbo. I wish I knew something to do to motivate myself (other than having a job pop up).
This is such a beautiful song.
I love this band. Nickel Creek. I listen to them a lot, and not just because I forget to change out the CD player in the truck! The fiddle and mandolin are amazing. I could listen to them all day.
This is really a sad song. When I really pay attention to the lyrics, I could almost cry. The sea is beautiful, but sometimes it’s cruel. I never forget how dangerous it can be.
As they say in the safety meetings: ‘complacency kills’.
“The Lighthouse’s Tale”
I am a lighthouse, worn by the weather and the waves.
I keep my lamp lit, to warn the sailors on their way.
I’ll tell a story, paint you a picture from my past.
I was so happy, but joy in this life seldom lasts.
I had a keeper, he helped me warn the ships at sea.
We had grown closer, ’till his joy meant everything to me.
And he was to marry, a girl who shone with beauty and light.
And they loved each other, and with me watched the sunsets into night.
[Chorus:]
And the waves crashing around me, the sand slips out to sea.
And the winds that blow remind me, of what has been, and what can never be.
She’d had to leave us, my keeper he prayed for a safe return.
But when the night came, the weather to a raging storm had turned.
He watched her ship fight, but in vain against the wild and terrible wave.
In me so helpless, as dashed against the rock she met her end.
[Chorus]
Then on the next day, my keeper found her washed up on the shore.
He kissed her cold face, that they’d be together soon he’d swore.
I saw him crying, watched as he buried her in the sand.
And then he climbed my tower, and off of the edge of me he ran.
[Chorus]
I am a lighthouse, worn by the weather and the waves.
And though I am empty, I still warn the sailors on their way.
It’s been a (long) while since I’ve done one of these Wild Wednesday posts (and yeah, I’m late).
I was googling around with a little spare time and came across these ‘cute’ lil’ buggers. Sea Angels.
Yeah, they look sweet and innocent. Fluttering around the ocean. Their translucent bodies and ‘wings’ might make them seem like the angels they’re named after.
But they’re really just snails. Snails without shells. Hunting snails. Carnivorous snails. Sneaky snails. Sexy snails (they’re ‘simultaneous hermaphrodites’ which means they can reproduce any time- they don’t actually need a partner to do it tho). According to Joseph over on his very interesting blog Real Monstrosities, they’re really little devils. 😉
It’s a good thing they’re all pretty small, the largest of them only grow to a couple of inches long. I’ve never seen them (at least not that I know of). Have you?
I talked to a couple of old friends today. Both of them have made the move and encouraged me to ‘just do it’ too.
One friend I used to work with on the ships has made the move to Thailand. He’s still working for the same company we were at together, but he has been working in Korea for a few years now. He spends his time off in Thailand. He’s married a Thai lady and is VERY happy there.
My other friend went to high school with me on the sailing ships. He’s got the same adventurous spirit that I have, but he’s actually DONE something with his. Soon after high school, he spent 10 years living in Venezuela. He moved back to the states to raise his family, but now they’re grown and he’s looking for a change. He’s just finished his TEFL course and is now teaching in Mexico.
I’ve been trying to find something to do with myself for years now. Decades really. I’m so tied up in trying to find a way to get out of here, but I want to do it safely. I don’t really love the idea of trying to sell everything I own, cut all ties, and give up everything I’ve ever worked for in order to support myself overseas. Is that possible? I know I’ve been trying for a LONG time and still haven’t really come any closer to finding an answer.
I’ve been lucky to have had a good job (until a couple of months ago). One that paid me enough to pay the bills and put a little aside every month. In trying to find some way to support myself, so I could leave the US, I’ve started a vending machine business (total failure), bought rental properties (which I am going to have to sell since I can’t afford them if I’m not working), working on stock photography, blogging, writing.
None of those projects has yet brought me anywhere near the amount of income I need to start the process to emigrate somewhere else. Only the rental property will bring in enough money so that I can apply for residency (not citizenship) in a few places.
I’ve been hoping to get at least a couple of weeks of regular work over the holidays. That would help a LOT. At this point, that doesn’t look like it’s going to happen. So, now what?
I’m thinking my best alternative would be to take the TEFL course myself. At least that would give me the option to live someplace cheaper and get away from some major expenses here. Also, find a much less stressful lifestyle somewhere.
I’m still worried about so many things, pretty much all of them to do with finances. How will I pay my bills? How will I be able to keep up my ‘training’? How will I be able to keep my LICENSE? I need that license in order to work offshore and I can’t imagine giving it up after working so hard for 34+ years to earn it.
I need to renew it by December 2016. If I want to keep it after that, I HAVE TO find work at sea! So, I have about 9 months to find something else to do before I need to be back here to start the renewal process.
So, does anyone have any helpful ideas for me? Something other than “just DO it!” Some ‘it” to do?? I’m open to suggestions. Send ’em over here. 😉
Here’s a classic. The Beach Boys singing “Sail On Sailor”. Read the lyrics for a not so nice version of time spent at sea. Good or bad out there, I still love it! 🙂
“Sail On Sailor”
I wrest the waters, fight Neptune’s waters
Sail through the sorrows of life’s marauders
Unrepenting, often empty
Sail on, sail on sailor
Caught like a sewer rat alone but I sail
Bought like a crust of bread, but oh do I wail
Seldom stumble, never crumble
Try to tumble, life’s a rumble
Feel the stinging I’ve been given
Never ending, unrelenting
Heartbreak searing, always fearing
Never caring, persevering
Sail on, sail on, sailor
I work the seaways, the gale-swept seaways
Past shipwrecked daughters of wicked waters
Uninspired, drenched and tired
Wail on, wail on, sailor
Always needing, even bleeding
Never feeding all my feelings
Damn the thunder, must I blunder
There’s no wonder all I’m under
Stop the crying and the lying
And the sighing and my dying
Sail on, sail on sailor
Sail on, sail on sailor
Sail on, sail on sailor
Sail on, sail on sailor
Sail on, sail on sailor
Sail on, sail on sailor
Sail on, sail on sailor
I took a little break and went to the movies yesterday. I’ve been wanting to see the movie “In the Heart of the Sea” since I first saw the commercials for it a couple of months ago.
I’d read the book (by Nathaniel Philbrick) a couple of years ago. I LOVED it. It’s a fantastic sea story (which I always love).The movie tells the story of the Nantucket whale ship “Essex”. “In the Heart of the Sea” showcased adventure, suspense and even horror mixed in with the wonderful descriptions of the sailing ship and life on the sea 100 years ago. Then there was the whole Moby Dick thing. The whaling and the incredible idea that there might be a whale out for vengeance!
I admit, I don’t remember much about the book ‘Moby Dick‘. We all read it in high school. I had no idea it was based on a true story. I don’t remember being all that impressed with the book. I’m pretty sure the ending was not the same as in this movie, (if it had been I’m sure I would have remembered it better)! Like a lot of those ‘classics’ we had to read in high school, I remember thinking “what the hell’s so great about this book?”.
They did a good job with the film. It wasn’t as good as Philbricks’ book (movies almost never are). Still, it was good.
It started right off by following the Chief Mate, Owen Chase (played by Chris Hemsworth), leaving his pregnant wife behind and heading into town for his next assignment. He’d been promised a captains position on his next voyage and was pretty ticked off when he found out he got screwed out of it in a case of ‘office politics’. I hadn’t realized they were even doing that way back then. 😉
Captain Pollard (Benjamin Walker) gets the job instead, simply because he comes from an old time, respectable family.
This creates a situation on board between the Master and Mate where they are constantly butting heads and is NOT good for the ship (it never is)! The tension between the 2 characters is evident throughout the entire movie. They could have done more to show the interaction with the rest of the crew, but the focus was on these 2 men (and the whale).
The movie, directed by Ron Howard, uses the story device in which Herman Melville (working on his book Moby Dick) is interviewing Thomas Nickerson, who went to sea as a young boy on that disastrous voyage. Nickerson is ashamed by what he did to survive and has never spoken to anyone about it. His wife finally convinces him to speak to Melville in exchange for much needed funds.
It works as a way to tell the story. You can still see the effects the incident had on Nickerson, even all these years later. It was well done, not disturbing the story too much with the returns to the scenes of the late night story telling over drinks.
I really enjoyed the movie. I loved all the scenes of the everyday work aboard the ship. I yelled at the captain that he was an idiot to sail into the storm like he did. I was thrilled to see the whales and caught up in the chase when the boats were launched. I cried when the ship was lost. (I’m glad it was dark in the theater). 😉
I suppose todays environmentalists would be cheering for the whale the whole time, but I found myself wavering. Sometimes I felt like I imagined the whale felt. Angry at men for destroying so much innocent beauty. Coming to murder my family for money! Sometimes I felt like the men. Just out to make a living, to survive however they could. This was a survival story in the end. On both sides.
I’m glad we discovered petroleum oil, or we WOULD have wiped out all of the whales. OK, I have been working in the oilfield the last few years (so maybe I’m prejudiced), but I wonder what would have happened if we had NOT found an alternative to whale oil. Would we still have been able to progress? Or would we have gone back to the ‘dark ages’ when everything stopped when the sun went down? Yeah, even tho we have a few oil spills, I’m still glad we have petroleum. The whales are recovering now.
I was at the Workboat Show in New Orleans last week. I spent most of my time this year talking to recruiters, crewing agencies and training providers. One of the more interesting ones was the Son of a Sea Cook workboat cooking school. It’s a new program of the Sea School based in St. Petersburg, FL.
If things weren’t so totally dead offshore right now, I would heartily recommend it for anyone who wants an ‘in’ to get started working offshore. As things are, I would still say it’s a good idea. It helps if you like to cook, but most small boats require everyone to cook sometimes. It really doesn’t matter if you like it or not.
It’ll be dead offshore til the price of oil goes back up, but there were still plenty of inland companies hiring at the show. It’s still an advantage when you’re looking for work to have a skill like cooking to add to your application. Companies know that a good cook will help keep a happy crew and that’s always good for business.
Knowing how to cook is a good skill to have even for your OWN benefit. It’s sure nice to know how to cook up a good meal instead of living on TV dinners and baloney sandwiches. I know, when I got my 1st apartment, I lived on Campbells cream of tomato soup and baloney sandwiches.
I never learned how to cook til I HAD to, when they took our cooks away the last time the oil price took a dive back in the 80’s. We lived on TV dinners and sandwiches for months. Thank goodness my crew was willing to let me learn to cook! I made them a deal, I would (try) to cook, they could clean up. It took me a while, but I did eventually learn. Now I can cook pretty good, and I even enjoy it.
The Son of a Sea Cook school is a 28 day course, includes free room and board in Bayou La Batre, AL, and will get you set up to find a job as a boat cook. They’ll help you get your US Coast Guard documents if you need them. They have companies that look for graduates of their training programs to hire on. They even have tuition assistance and job placement help.
“Important elements of this training include soup stock, sauce, starch, sauces, roux, salads, menu planning, nutrition, basic food purchasing & production, costing, regional cuisine, cajun cooking, safe meat cutting & poultry handling, galley management, food-service sanitation, storeroom operations and introduction to baking.”
If I had to start all over again, I would seriously consider signing up myself. I’m SURE it would have been much easier for me to get on board as a cook then as any other position (as a female). Once you’re on board, it’s MUCH easier to work your way into another position if you decide you don’t like the galley.
If you’re looking for something fun and interesting to do, give them a call (1-800-237-8663) to find out prices, the website doesn’t list them. You can also check out their other courses if you’re interested in working on a boat (but not as a cook).