This First Mate is Trying to Distract Herself

I've enjoyed the last month.  I've had time to get myself together. I joined bookins.com.  I do like the site, but I have yet to receive a book.  I have expensive taste I guess.

I bought the crazy sexy purple Dyson vacuum cleaner.  Wondering how long vacuuming will distract me.

Went gluten-free.  Love it.  Will have to teach Truman to read labels again.

Met Jesus.  I can keep coming back to this one. 

But, at the end of the day, I'm just waiting for my captain to come home.

Spinning in the Storm

Hi,
The last couple of days have been rough, one storm after the other. Last night was the worse. It really kicked our butts. We got stuck with the main up full when the wind shifted and we needed to run down wind. But don't know how (or are too chicken) to let the main out far enough to run down wind. We were spinning at first then settled into a North direction. Not the way we wanted to go but it was too dangerous to get up on deck and bring the sail down. 15 foot seas and 30+ wind. So we just waited it out until dawn, about 5 hours.

Glad to hear fall's nice weather has come. Have fun with the girls (Melissa and Jane, significant others of Steve and Lynn) on Friday, tell everyone I said hi.

Luv, T


Day 12, aboard Go For Broke.  Satellite email delivered by OCENS.com

Knowing When to Turn Back

I am so proud of my husband, my Captain.  He is single handing a 61' sailboat at night in the middle of the Pacific ocean!  Two hours on, two hours off, all night long . . . until sunrise.  The sheer exhaustion of it!  Think about it!

I think, probably more than anything, I am impressed that three grown men can make the tough decision to turn back.  The point at which a person makes the choice to give up a goal, change course, cut their losses, throw in the towel, that is the point where they face their pride, their own ambition and glory-lust, the possibility of failure, and the cost of each.  I am proud of all three of them!

The bad news is that we have been in a storm that is going the same direction we are for that last 2 days causing heavy seas. The good news we have been cruising along at almost 7 knots and did about 170 miles yesterday.  Right now we are still 360 miles to Oahu and that should take 4-5 days. But we are getting closer. Can't wait for to get home and get dry. With the storms everything is damp, even the clothes I haven't worn yet. Except the ones in the zip lock you sent with me. Tough to type still, got to go. Luv, T

Day 11, aboard Go For Broke.  Delivered by satellite phone via OCENS.mail software.

The Glass is Half Full

I sat in the spa alone with a glass of Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand.  The high tide waves were audible crashing in the background.  The first winter squash of the season was in the oven and the smell in the house was nothing short of divine!  Today was a good day.  I went to church.  I tithed.  I had a solid afternoon nap.  I spoke to my father on the phone and my mother-in-law today.  I went for a leisurely evening run with a new Morro Bay friend.  I can’t see any down side here!

One might be tempted to argue that the second turning back of Go For Broke is a failure of human endeavor. It would be more accurate to say that we humans might have been forcing a thing that was never meant to be.  As for my part, again, I cannot see much of a downside here. I don’t know how else to say it, but I have a tremendous peace about the whole thing. Of course, I am not on the boat, but for whatever it is worth, I think that the glass is half full.

Truman’s goal was to go for a long sail and learn a lot. Has that not happened? I think that there is always more to be learned in complicated times than in easy-breezy ones. This has been my experience anyways. I cannot see how he could come home and not have learned an amazing amount about sailing, crewing, boat maintenance, and navigation. It cost us very little for him to learn all this. In comparison, I hope that Steve makes out good on the cost of the boat. I cannot see how he can come out of this situation anything but the wiser. And that is priceless!

My Happy Husband

Hey babe, guess what! I think I am getting dreads. Don't think salt water does too well for my hair. We have had almost no wind for 2 days and have been just drifting around with no engine. But last night a front came through with 20 knots of wind and we are moving along at 5 knots. Too bad it isn't straight to the islands, we are having to tack back and forth making the mileage to target go down slow.

You shouldn't have to buy a flight, I can still use the return trip ticket from my original flight. Glad I spent the extra 50 on the round trip. I still may not be home for a week but it is better than 3 weeks.
luv,
T

Day 9, aboard Go For Broke.
This e-mail was delivered via satellite phone using OCENS.Mail software.

Getting Back to Land May Not Be as Easy as It Sounds

Truman's latest email . . . drumroll and . . . Friends, more prayer, please!

"Well, we are turning back for sure. Even if we fix the stuff that is broke we will still head back. Don't have any faith in the boat anymore. Got to get back to work. Luv, T"

At this point the crew is looking on the bright side.  Morale is up.  And the First Mates on land, Jane, Melissa, and I are holding steady.  We have the utmost trust in our men, their better judgement, and the strength of their bodies.  It has been a strong team effort all the way around.  Now I am just looking forward to having my man back by any means possible, by hook or crook as they say!

Go For Broke Turning Back

Hi,
Well the electrical problems keep coming back and after the good day of mileage using the engine and some sails to push the speed a little, the engine gave out. Now we have spotty electrical and no engine. Without the use of the engine it will take us about 40 more days to get back. So now it is 400 miles back in light winds. It could take 5 days or 10. Not sure but I will keep you updated. I will try to call later today, not sure if it will work yet but we can try.

Luv, T

Day 8, aboard Go For Broke.
This e-mail was delivered via satellite phone using OCENS.Mail software.

Clips from Truman's Email Today

Jury is still out if we are going to have to turn back. We solved the electical problems for now who knows what is next. Been pretty busy on board but have some time to read at night it is a little tough with the movement. Just listening to the ipod has been the most enjoyable time so far. The soduko has been a mess for some reason, it may be the constant distractions or sleep deprevation but I can't seem to finish a puzzle without messing it up.

I have tried to take some pictures of the full moon lite nights we have been having but none seem to be coming out. It is pretty scenery out here.

We had some electical problems yesterday and last night but we stoped this morning and Lynn got most everything back up. Going the rest of the curise with no email or frig would have sucked. I think I have a way to call you over the Shortband Radio. There is a relay station in SF that can patch me through to a phone as a collect call. We will just have to keep it short and set a time in the next couple of days.

Talk to you soon, T

Day 6, Trans-Pacific passage aboard Go For Broke. 
This e-mail was delivered via satellite phone using OCENS.Mail software.

Ok, Now I Really Miss My Captain . . .

I took this picture when we were cruising back from the Zongo Cup in Avila Beach.  I knew I could find a good reason to post it!  Thank you everyone for all your prayers!  Truman and the Go For Broke Guys are all doing well.  They will probably be at sea for another 10-15 days.

26th Annual Writer's Conference at Cuesta College

I attended the 26th Annual Writer's Conference at Cuesta College this weekend!  As you know, Truman and I were signed up for the conference together, but he is currently preoccupied!  I was so excited about this conference!  This was my first ever Writer's Conference.  It was very conveniently located in the Central Coast, only 15 miles from my home.  Now, I am committed to return every year!  It was an amazing experience.  There were 300 attendees and 25 faculty members.  Judy, the Conference coordinator, was absolutely amazing and she is also a member of the yacht club!

Conference Organizer Extraordinairre Judy Salamacha (in red)!



Registration desks are buzzing!



The main auditorium is filling up for the Keynote speaker.



The Faculty!  Wonderful writers, agents, editors, publishers! What a treat!

The three most memorable faculty members for me were Melissa Pritchard, Paula Huston, and Jon James Miller.  I was most fascinated with Paula Huston, a spiritual writer, also an oblate with a contemplative monastic community in Big Sur. 

Reading Eat, Pray, Love about Gilbert's time at an ashram and hearing from Paula Huston tell how she goes on two-day retreats every 6 weeks at the hermitage made me want to feel a little of that peacefulness.  I may have to go on retreat!  Having the house to myself is a kind of like a retreat.  More likely than not, I have a hidden little nun inside of me just waiting to get out!

Update: s/v Go For Broke Enroute

This e-mail was delivered via satellite phone using OCENS.Mail software.  Please pray for a couple of days of calm seas!


Truman writes:
Yesterday afternoon finally calmed down for a good day of sailing. We have making about 5 knots and I think that is what we will average. Steve has been very sea sick so it has been a two man crew so far. I am a little sore and tired but I think I will get use to it.

Having fun so far learning some new sailing bits. Managing the sails isn't a constant task but they do need to be checked every 5 min or so. I miss stearing though, the auto pilot is on all the time so we have been steering by button pushing.

I will send more a day or so if weather permits.

Love,
T

Lovin' the Land Just as Much as the Ocean

I am so excited to show you my new "dynamic composter"!!!  We love keeping green things green just as much as keeping the oceans blue!  I had to stalk the Home Depot Garden Dept Guy for 10 days straight to get this.  I think he was stoned most of the time, so when he couldn't tell me when their next shipment was due I just decided to call him back everyday and ask if the composter arrived. 

By the end of the two weeks, he was starting to figure out that there is some crazy lady out there who wants a composter really bad!  I wanted this composter so bad that I actually convinced myself that it would make a good wedding present for my friend.  I bought a second one and the bride loved it!

Boat to Land Communication

Truman has had cell-phone reception while he has been in the Hawaiian islands.  We've never been much for talking on the phone.  If he was here I'd tell him that Obama has written a children's book and the first Klingon opera is playing in the Netherlands!  The Danish are trekies.  Who knew?  Maybe he is keeping up on the news, but I don't know if he heard that Reggie Bush had to give up the Heisman.  Or if some female reporter was accosted in the NFL lockerroom while trying to interview Mark Sanchez.

I guess he will have to catch up on all the news when he anchors in Morro Bay in roughly 20 days! 

After today, we will only be able to communicate via email to the vessel's common email address.  They will post updates every few days on their blog.  Anyone who reads this blog is welcome to email s/v Go For Broke at goforbroke@ocens.net.

Update: S/V Go For Broke, Honolulu to Kauai

Our beloved Go For Broke Captain and Crew are enroute from Honolulu to Kauai.  This shake down cruise will reveal any weak spots on the boat.  They can make repairs in Kauai before setting out across the Pacific. 

Each morning they will log on to the "roll call" on the SSB radio.  This is where cruising sailors out to sea call in to give weather conditions and news updates.  For loved ones at home, we can see that they've called in each day and at least, at the time of the roll call, that they were safe.  Truman says that they are in the North Pactific region and radioed into Longbeach.  They heard other people as far as Fiji and Alaska.

Feel free to check out the roll call daily to follow their progress!

~First Mate

Setting Sail for Kauai

After a warm introduction to "island time" we are finally setting sail for Kauai on a shake down cruise. The food is stocked and repairs are done. The iCom 710 SSB radio is installed and we logged into our first roll call on the Pacific Seafarers net. Getting the news about the San Bruno gas pipe explosion over the radio was kind of surreal. I will have more posts ready on the way back.

You can follow our progress here.
http://www.sailblogs.com/member/goforbroke49/

The Captain

The Mate will play while the Captain is away . . .

Labor Day weekend was really relaxing!  I did everything I wanted to do: went running twice, had dinner and bbq with friends, worked on Lil' Wheels with my marinerette-mate, juiced and cooked vegan, and slept when I felt like it, and read a ton of books! 

The best book I read which warrants mention is:
The Promise of Sleep by William Dement, MD, PhD (not pictured because I already lent it out!)

I cannot say enough about this book!  I think everyone has to read it!  Dr. Dement makes the argument that we are mostly sleep-deprived, or sleep-negligent, individuals who cannot perform optimally due to our sleep debt.  If we treat our real sleep needs like calories then we'd take better care of ourselves.  Through reading this book I have been empowered to give my brain and body the rest that it needs.

I've had three people tell me that I should buy a kindle or nook in the last week.  Do you have one?  Do you like it?

Lil' Wheels is NOT a Sabot; She's an EL TORO!

Last time we went to the Yacht Club, a wise old sailor told us that we owned an El Toro, not a Sabot.  We gave her a description of our dinghy and she said that for sure it was not a Sabot.  When we came home we looked up google images of Sabots and Toros and she is right.  Lil' Wheels is an El Toro. 

Today, we got out Lil' Wheels and put her together!  She is going to be a fun little daysailor.  We have a little work to do on the mast and boom.  I put a patch on the sail courtesy of Slo Sails.  My friend and I hope to have her on that water by the time that Captain comes back.  We will have lots more sanding to do.  I have to buy some cleats at the hardware store.  Then we will apply 4-5 coats of marine gloss, sanding in between coats.

Stay tuned.

Hoppe's Sunset

I have to give credit for this one to Hoppe's Bistro!

The Sunset Cocktail

Sparkling wine

OJ

Splash of Grenadine

Crushed Ice

Roll and serve

2 Voices, 2 Blogs

Some readers have asked me if I write this blog on my own.  Well, the Captain and I have both been writing! Sometimes we work together on one post, sometimes he writes it, sometimes I do. 

For the next 25 days or so, I'll be writing this blog all by my little matey self while my Captain is crewing a boat from Hawaii to Morro Bay!  You can follow his sail adventure with professional Captain, Lynn, and boat owner on the blog S/V Go For Broke (on our blogroll).  He left for Hawaii this morning!

Meanwhile, I will be exploring provincial life, cooking homemade tortillas, fixing up Lil' Wheels, increasing the quality and restfulness of my sleep, and juicing for vibrant health!  Stay tuned!  I think this time apart will be a spiritual experience for both the Captain and I!

~The First Mate