This glowing green hawksbill turtle was discovered by a National Geographic ‘Emerging Explorer’ while filming coral off the Solomon Islands.
I worked out of Honiara on a tuna boat for a while. I always wanted to stay over for a while and do some SCUBA diving. It’s supposed to be fantastic. I did have some other adventures there, but never did get to go diving. 🙁
Honiaria, Solomon Islands
This turtle is the first (naturally occurring) biofluorescent reptile ever discovered. They have found plenty of bioluminescent creatures before. Mostly corals, fish, jellyfish. They’ve even found some biofluorescent ones before (mostly fish).
The scientists are excited to find a bioluminescent reptile and so am I! I always thought turtles were cool. 🙂
I’ve been having a hard time keeping up around here lately. Since I moved my blog, I’ve had nothing but problems. I’ve been spending a hell of a lot of time just trying to get things working around here again.
But I always like Cee’s photography challenges and I did have a few decent photos of orchids around on the computer. So, I figured I’d join in on this one.
Here are some orchids from the Singapore Botanic Gardens, they have a really great orchid garden along with a lot of other beautiful plants. It’s a very relaxing place to go when you get tired of the ‘city’ of Singapore. 🙂
Today was another busy day. I made it to Costa Rica yesterday in time to start the blogging workshop I’ve been so excited about. We had our first class session yesterday and had a chance to meet everyone.
This morning we all left our hotel at 0700 for a day at the Rincon de la Vieja National Park. It took a couple of hours to get there and another couple to get back to our hotel. We spent all day there so I didn’t get a chance to get any photos online yet.
I got all mixed up when we got there. I thought we were going to take a ‘short walk’ through the forest to a waterfall for photos and then a horseback ride. Well, I took a walk, but it was NOT a short one!
Somehow I got off ahead of everyone else, thinking they were all ahead of me! I kept on walking and walking, thinking ‘damn! how the HELL did they all get so far ahead of me??’.
It was a really beautiful walk. It was really breezy up there (up the slopes of the volcano) and so it was pretty cool. Lots of interesting plant life. Huge trees with buttress roots and all kinds of bugs (but no mosquitos- too windy). 🙂
I didn’t see many animals (maybe because I was making too much noise huffing and puffing up the slopes?). The others saw some monkeys.
I did see some gorgeous big metallic blue butterflies, blue dragonflies and lots of other butterflies. Also some pretty birds and some big lizards (I think collared lizards but they ran away before I could tell for sure).
I saw a couple of pretty waterfalls, a few fumaroles (hot, steamy, sulfer-smelling volcanic vents) and a bunch of bubbling mud pots. After seeing 3-4 of them, I quit turning off the trail to check them out. The photos I took didn’t seem to do them justice. Plus, I was starting to worry about the others I was with worrying about me. I was trying to hurry up and get back to the beginning of the trail.
Every time I saw someone on the trail I asked ‘how much further is it to the exit?’, they would say ‘not far’, something like 300 meters. So, I kept on going. The longest 300 meters I’ve ever walked!
I did finally make it to the end of the trail. Thank goodness it was a loop! Seems like I didn’t hold them up too long after all. Glad of that, since we still had lunch waiting and the promised horseback riding after that. 🙂
Cee always has such fun photo challenges on her blog. I always like to try to participate when I can. It’s hard to do when I’m out here. I don’t have a lot of free time and the internet is not always available when I do have a little time to get online.
This week, her Fun Foto Challenge subject is: ‘lime or bright green’. I found a few decent photos with nice, bright greens in them. These were all from a trip I took to Indonesia a couple of years ago.
Check out those green, green rice fields!
I spent some time in Bali and then went over to Sulawesi in search of a sailing ship. That didn’t quite work out, but it was a fantastic trip. I loved every minute of it. I’m not sure why, but the local people loved having their picture taken with me. 😉
The challenge from the Daily Post was Half and Half. I didn’t know what to post for that subject. I took a look at a few of the other entries and saw a lot of sunsets. That is usually one thing we get a lot of out here! Half sky- half water. 🙂
Sad to say, offshore Angola is sadly lacking in this area. I don’t know why, but it’s almost always grey, gloomy and overcast skies. It’s very rare to see a nice sunset here. It’s kindof depressing. Day after day seeing nothing but grey skies. I’ve been here almost 8 weeks now this hitch and so far, I’ve seen the sun only 2-3 times. 🙁
I get so discouraged working out here sometimes. I used to love coming to work offshore. I actually looked forward to it and was eager and excited to come back to work. I wanted to go places, to catch up with old friends and meet new ones.
I loved working outside on deck, where I could enjoy the weather. I loved the feeling of the wind in my hair and the sun on my skin (even tho I sunburn easily). I loved looking out and seeing nothing but the blue, blue water all the way to the horizon.
I loved to see the beautiful constantly changing seascape. I loved to watch the waves and clouds. I looked for signs of life around me. Birds: pelicans, sea gulls, terns, herons. Fish: mahi-mahi, ling cod, tuna, sharks, and dolphins (mammals, not fish). Even things like seaweed and jellyfish were of interest. I loved to watch the intense colors of the sky when the sun rose or set.
I loved the fact that my job depended only how well I did my job. It didn’t matter what I looked like, how I talked, my level of formal education, how much money I had in the bank, what kind of car I drove, how I dressed. I loved being able to work dressed in an old pair of shorts, t-shirt and a pair of flip-flops.
I loved slow days offshore when we would throw a line over and catch a few fish. We always caught something. Mahi-mahi, ling cod, rainbow runners, sharks, kingfish, snapper, grouper, catfish, etc. Sometimes we kept them to eat, sometimes we threw them back.
I loved standing lookout at night and seeing the stars so blazingly bright at sea when there was nothing around for hundreds of miles to blot out their light. I loved watching the dolphins play in the bow wake when we were underway and seeing them pass by at the rig. Continue reading →
I found a new challenge in my reader today. It’s Ed’s Sunday Stills. There are some really nice photos by people participating. Here’s my entry. 🙂 I actually posted this picture before, I took it when I was sailing as captain of a tuna boat out in the South Pacific.
I found a new challenge in my reader today. It’s Ed’s Sunday Stills. There are some really nice photos by people participating. Here’s my entry. 🙂
I took it in Korea when I was there for a weeklong class in travel writing and photography. I stayed over on my own for a couple of extra weeks and spent the time exploring from Incheon down to Geoji. It was a very interesting and friendly place. Sorry it was also a very sad time (ferry sank the day before I left home). I’d like to go back again when people are back to normal and not in mourning.
World Oceans Day is coming up on Monday (June 8). This years theme is ‘healthy oceans, healthy planet’. It really is just common sense. The oceans cover over 70% of the earth. We all ultimately rely on the ocean for our own health and well being. It’s important to take care of it, if only for our own good. Monday will be a day to remember all the reasons we should respect and care for the oceans, it’s a day to celebrate and get involved too.
The oceans are a major source of food for people (and animals): fish, shellfish, seaweed, plankton, krill, etc. They also help to regulate the climate and keep some of the Northern areas warm in the winter and Southern places cooler in the summer (N hemisphere). The oceans are also extremely important for connecting people around the world. In the USA, 90% of our trade is by sea.
A lot of people make their living directly from the sea like I do. I’ve worked on the water from the time I was a kid. Fishing, recreation (cruising), and transporting cargo from one place to another (a ship is much more efficient than any other form of transport). Now, I work in the offshore oil fields, exploring for and extracting resources from the sea bottom.
If you live near the ocean, like I do, you already know how important it is for your ‘soul’, your mental health, your attitude. I can sit by the sea, listen and watch the waves roll in and it immediately calms me. I like to swim, snorkel, sail, SCUBA dive, surf (not very well), fish, and any other activity that gets me out on the water. 😉
I hope you’ll take a few minutes to think about how you benefit from it and what life would be like without a healthy ocean. Check out a few of the links. Get involved in some of the events if you can. If you can’t get out to any of the events on Monday, remember it doesn’t have to stop on Monday!
There are plenty of things you can do every day to help make things better. Even simple things like talking to people about World Oceans Day, disposing of your trash properly, using as little plastic as possible, not letting balloons fly away loose, etc. It all helps. 🙂 PS- none of the pictures in this post are mine, I got them all of the internet.
I found this video the other day when I was fiddling around looking for something else by this band. I really love Donna the Buffalo. I have a couple of their albums at home. I just got a new ipod (since I lost my old one somewhere) and I don’t have any music or anything on it yet. I was trying to find some good stuff to play.
I love this song. The words, the music, the story, and the video too. I saw that video and it reminded me so much of home. Not where I live now, but where I grew up in Florida. It was filmed in Marathon, down in the keys. My dad took the Island Girl down that way for a few years and I stayed there one summer with him.
I had a blast! The video brought back a lot of good memories. Fishing, diving, hanging out at the Dockside bar, sailing, hanging out watching the sunset with so many interesting fun characters.
It’s a sad song too, and all too true. Florida is not much like it was when I grew up there. “Progress came”…
Seminole Winds by John Anderson Ever since the days of old men would search for wealth untold They dig for silver and for gold and leave the empty holes And way down south in the Everglades Where the black water rolls and the Saw grass waves The eagles fly and the otters play in the land of the Seminole
So blow blow Seminole wind blow like your never gonna blow again I’m calling to you like a long lost friend but I know who you are And blow blow from the Okeechobee all the way up to Micanopy Blow cross the home of the Seminole the alligators and the gar
Progress came and took its toll and in the name of flood control They make their plans and they drained the land Now the glades are going dry And the last time I walked in the swamp I sat upon a cypress stump I listened close and I heard the ghost of Osceola cry
Just got home from a day out on the bay. We lucked out and had a great day out sailing. The weather co-operated and we didn’t get rained on. Only a couple of small sprinkles. 🙂
I’ll write more later (and post photos). I’m beat!
I got to go out sailing again yesterday! I signed up for next Saturday too. 🙂
Some people think I must be nuts. They wonder how I can spend all my time at work on various vessels, at sea somewhere, and then come home and I can’t wait to get back out on another boat to go sailing?
All I can say is: those people just aren’t sailors!
Norm does a photo challenge on ‘doors’ every Thursday. I like to get into these things when I can.
Here’s my ‘door’ picture for this week. I took it outside the ‘Little Hollywood Land” Movie Set Museum in Kanab, Utah.
I had taken a trip to Las Vegas for the Freedom Fest a couple of years ago and when it was finished, I rented a car and drove up to do some sightseeing. I went to Grand Canyon (North Rim), Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks.
I had a great time wandering around, hiking through the gorgeous scenery and finding quirky little places like this to stop. 🙂
I made an earlier post about this mural. I just LOVE it and all of her work that I’ve seen. I thought it was another good one for the Daily Post’s Photo Challenge “Intricate”.
My photo doesn’t do it justice. This mural is just STUNNING. I took this a couple of years ago when I was at the Maritime Education and Training conference at Texas A&M University in Galveston (Texas). There is more to it than just the part I could get in this picture. It’s HUGE.
It’s actually a mosaic, made of millions of little ceramic tiles. The artist Dixie Friend Gay made it. I’m not sure how long it took. There’s a better picture of how it all looks in this link. And another one to more about her art.
I think her mosaics are just incredible. I wonder that her work isn’t more well known. I think it deserves to be. What do you think?
I took this one at a temple in Bali. The people make figures out of rice and other grains. They represent gods and demons.
I saw these offerings all over the island (most were smaller). The amount of time and effort they put into art on that island is amazing. It’s a beautiful place!
Here’s a sunrise for the Daily Posts Weekly Photography Challenge. This week, the challenge is to show a photo “taken in the early morning light”. Be an “early bird“.
I’m most definitely NOT an early bird! Last time I can remember really enjoying early morning was as a kid getting up for Saturday morning cartoons. 🙂
I was always a night owl. I used to stay up ’til 2-3 in the morning. I used to go out partying a lot. Or, I might stay at home reading a good book. Sometimes I just couldn’t put it down ’til I finished.
I’ve cut back a lot on keeping those kinds of hours now a days. Mostly because I have too much to do now. Things that have to be taken care of during normal business hours (9-5). Now I try to get to sleep by midnight (and it really isn’t too hard to do anymore). 😉
I only see the sunrise when I’m working the midnight to noon watch like I am now. I haven’t seen many good sunrises (or sunsets) this trip yet. Since we made arrival off Congo, it has been overcast. It clouded up a few days before we got here and hasn’t cleared up yet.
I took this photo while I was working on the tuna boat a couple of years ago. We were coming into the lagoon at Tarawa. The sunrise was just stunning. I had to run and get my camera.
This is one of my all time favorite ‘sun’ pictures. I keep one of my others as my header.
Here’s my entry for the Daily Posts Weekly Photo Challenge: Afloat. I have LOTs of good pictures for this one. I’ve spent most of my life at sea. I’ve already posted a few photos, here are some of my latest ‘home’ afloat.
These photos are from my latest ship, the Ocean Rig Apollo. I’m actually aboard right now. We’re delivering the ship from the shipyard in Korea to it’s first job offshore Congo. I joined the ship with the rest of the crew onboard right now in Mauritius about 3 weeks ago.
These are some pictures from our voyage. The first one is our departure from Port Louis, Mauritius, the ‘cliffs’ are the coastline of South Africa, after we passed Cape Town (I was asleep for that so missed getting any pictures from there).
Here’s my entry for the Daily Posts Weekly Photo Challenge: Afloat. I have LOTs of good pictures for this one. Here are a few sea creatures to start off with. 😉
I didn’t know this week was anything special. Good thing I looked at some of my emails this afternoon. 😉
I always loved looking at the stars on night watch. That’s one of the things I miss the most about working in the oil field. There are always too many lights on to be able to really see the stars at night.
They’re posting some absolutely gorgeous photos on this site. Check it out.
I saw this challenge from Sue over at her ‘A Word in Your Ear’ blog. The word of the week is: arid. I don’t have many photos that would fit this weeks word, since I spend most of my time at sea. But I did happen to have a couple on my computer.
I took these last summer, we hadn’t had any rain for a while and everything was drying up. I was on the way back home from Galveston. I always like to drive the beach road, especially when I’m not in a hurry. It’s a nice drive, right along the beach with some pretty scenery and some good places to stop and enjoy the day. 🙂
I’ve always loved this song. Maybe because I always loved the ocean and everything in it. I also love to SCUBA dive and thanks to Cousteau for that!! I’ve been lucky to always live near the ocean and even to work on the water. 🙂
John Denver wrote this song as a tribute to Jacques Cousteau and his expedition ship “Calypso”. I think he did a good job (I wish the youtube video was better!).
I remember watching Jacques Cousteau on TV when I was a kid. I loved seeing his voyages on the Calypso.
I thought about this song when I saw the post on the Old Salt Blog the other day about the sad situation the Calypso is in now.
I hope someone will come to her rescue.
In the meantime, here are the lyrics to the song (in case you want to sing along).
“Calypso”
To sail on a dream on a crystal clear ocean, to ride on the crest of the wild raging storm. To work in the service of life and the living, in search of the answers to questions unknown. To be part of the movement and part of the growing, part of beginning to understand. Aye, Calypso, the place’s you’ve been to, the things that you’ve shown us, the stories you tell. Aye, Calypso, I sing to your spirit, the men who have served you so long and so well.
Like the dolphin who guides you, you bring us beside you to light up the darkness and show us the way. For though we are strangers in your silent world, to live on the land we must learn from the sea. To be true as the tide and free as a wind swell, joyful and loving in letting it be. Aye, Calypso, the place’s you’ve been to, the things that you’ve shown us, the stories you tell. Aye, Calypso, I sing to your spirit, the men who have served you so long and so well. Aye, Calypso, the place’s you’ve been to, the things that you’ve shown us, the stories you tell. Aye, Calypso, I sing to your spirit, the men who have served you so long and so well.
Here’s an interesting link to Jessica’s blog where she gives a very good rundown on Jacques Cousteau and his Calypso (along with some diving to whet your whistle). And another one on Cousteau. Check ’em out! 🙂
Spring is coming! I’m looking forward to seeing the flowers in bloom while I’m at home this time. My garden is not the greatest, I don’t have many flowers (except on the weeds). I can’t really take care of it when I’m gone so much. But I do enjoy messing around out there in the yard, especially this time of year when the weather can be just gorgeous. 🙂
Here’re a few (googled) pictures of what Texas looks like in the Spring. People like to go leaf-peeping up north in the Fall. We like to go checking out the bluebonnets in the Spring down here. 🙂
I might be fired from my job because of the low price of oil, but at least the gas is cheap enough again now to go drive around looking for the best show in the fields. Maybe bring a couple of friends and have a picnic. It’s a great way to spend the day.
Here’s an entry for the Word A Week Challenge from Sue over on her A Word in Your Ear Blog . The word of the week is: intricate. I had these pictures on my blog already, I think they are a nice example of ‘intricate’. I had already done a post about these very intricate designs made from sea shells. They call them Sailors Valentines. 🙂
This is a classic song from the maritime industry. Gordon Lightfoot wrote and performed it and it was a big hit back in the 60’s. It’s about the sinking of the ‘Laker’ SS Edmund Fitzgerald in a winter storm almost 40 years ago (November 1975).
She was the pride of the Lakes fleet and it was such a tragedy when she went down. Lost with all hands aboard. It almost makes me cry sometimes when I pay attention to what he’s saying. We can never forget the power of the sea.
This is a sad song, but it’s also a good one. What do you think?
