Missing Post

Here is a post that never got published while I was underway.  It was from January 31, and now that I am back in regular internet, I see that the Januaary 30 post was published twice, and this one not at all.  When I am underway posting over the SSB radio, I can't see what has been published as I can't log on and look at it.  Anyway, I haven't figured out how to delete the extra 30th post, but here is the one that was missed.

We left Zihuatanejo on the 29th at about noon.  It is now the 31st at 9 am.  You do the math, I am too tired after my night watch.

 

It has been a real mixed bag, so far.  Nothing bad has happened, just those periods of no wind where it is all I can do to keep the boat moving forward in the right direction.  That usually begins at sunset and hits its most problematic apex on my watch.  Mike did warn me that this particular watch was a "dynamic watch."  So far it is.  The good part is that I am getting better at reading the instruments and determining how to use all this data I am provided with electronically.  And being directionally challenged does not help.  If I am using a road map and driving south, I turn the map upside down so my finger traces the line just as the car is driving.  I can't do that with the GPS display.  I sometimes get confused about which direction I need to turn (left or right)in order to head in the direction I want to go.  I suppose that makes no sense at all, and I really can't explain it.  No wonder Mike gets irritated with me!

 

Last night (I guess early this morning to be precise) Mike and I saw the most fabulous dolphin laser light show ever.  There were at least ten of them, and they were frolicking in the bioluminesence going all around and under the boat.  They were slapping their tales on the water, and making all kinds of racket.  It really seemed like they were playing with the biolum on purpose, not just swimming through it.  We watched them for at least 10 to 15 minutes. 

 

This morning, before it was really light out, I saw a lone booby flying all around the boat in circles.  He came so close to where I was sitting in the cockpit that when he came up behind me, the rustle of his wings was so loud it startled me.  He flew around and around the boat for about 15 minutes at least, and then finally came to rest perched on the bow pulpit.  We don't usually allow boobies to stay on the boat because they make a horrible mess in a short period of time.  But I let him stay awhile, in part because it looked like any mess would more likely go overboard than on deck.  I was surprised he actually landed where he did because boobies don't perch - they have duck feet, and they land on water or land or on a flat rock surface, not where they have to curl their feet around something narrow.  But this one did a good job.  He didn't fly away until I got in close taking pictures of him.

Well, that will have to do it for today.  I suspect we have several more days before we get there - wind and weather permitting!

"If you smile at me I will understand for that is something everybody everywhere does in the same language."  Stephen Stills (I think)