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So Saturday I woke up and got straight down to the boat. Ben and Sky had interviews and meetings up in St. Augustine and Michelle and Justin were up there as well, so we had a limited crew on board today working until the afternoon.  But in the morning I was able to get a lot of work done.  The backup freezer, engine room, A/C pumps, the galley lights, and the forward distribution center all got

The electrical team

 wired up.  I was pretty pleased.  Then around 3, our new media contact showed up.  Nicole is a journalist from SF who came out for a few days to write put together a story about us. She left this morning, and I have a feeling about how well she is going to do in writing this article.  She seems to genuinely care about telling our story and not putting any odd slant on it.  It is a good feeling.  My back is also better.  I messed it up pretty bad a week and a half ago, very much limiting the amount of work I was able to get done.  But I’m back, not quite at 100%, still a good amount of discomfort and pain, but at least I’m able to move around.  So once the rest of my supplies arrive, engine starter, float switches, shower sumps, macerator pumps ect. I should be able to have the electric done soon.  We also found a great deal on a welder who is going to do the rest of the jobs we need for quite a deal.  The hydraulics is getting started this week, and that is a 5 day job, so hopefully we should be out of here. Soon.  I am also still trying to bother the solar panel guys so they can come install everything ASAP.  I am getting so tired lately. Eventually I’m going to need a few days off.

O yea, I got the dumbest ticket today.  I was driving to airport to drop off the journalist this morning and here the speed limit is 70mph, but they allow a 10% over, so 77mph.  But they pulled me over for going 79.  Bummer!!! So that’s another $131 gone.  I’m going to try to take a part time gig this week to earn some extra money I can use to pay for it, so we will see how that goes. 

We got our new website up this weekend too.  Still has a few glitches, but Jamie is working on it, and man did make this website look

Our newest crew photo

 good. I am very impressed.  There is a little time limit on when it will be completed though.  Our CNN interviews are coming out this week, so we want our website at its best.  CNN.com is running their story starting tomorrow (Monday), CNN International is starting their story Tuesday, and CNN is running a looped story about us wed-fri, so hopefully we will get some added support from that.  I just hope it goes well.

I have found myself reading a lot more lately, so far this month I have made it through, The Last Lecture, Tuesday with Morrie, Sacred Origins of Profound Things, and the New Testament Background (a religious history book), and restarted the Fountainhead.  I still cannot believe that I never really liked reading.  There is so much to learn, and so many different perspectives to try and understand.  Being able to do this is what makes it possible to learn, interact, and make the world a better place on a grand scale.  I’m trying to put together more of a library for the boat before we leave. (if anyone actually reads this and has old books of any topic they think the crew may like, please feel free to send them to 146 Cochise court, palm coast, FL 32137 in the next few weeks)  I know we are going to be immensely busy on the boat, and I am already determined to spend this year learning as much of the book knowledge for the first two years of med school as possible, but a good book on any random topic is just so freeing.  I love being able to escape into a different world, learn something new, or just give myself a lesson in how to feel.

I have had a little problem in the past few years, really letting people in and understanding what it means.  But I’ve asked one of the members of the crew, Michelle, who is such a sweet heart, and her boyfriend, Justin, who is our photographer, to help me learn to be okay with accepting and expressing emotion.  So in the meantime I’m trying to also read some of the poetry I used to.  Everything from Pablo Neruda’s 100 Love Sonnets, and just general poetry, Whitman I am starting to like more.  Ben has told me several times that he has already seen a big change in who I am, just in the 6 months that we have been here. And in Florida we haven’t really done that much what I would call life changing work.  The next 12-18 will be amazing and I think that it will be such a changing experience for me.  I have been asked by so many people how I think this voyage will change me.  The truth is I have no idea. But I do have some hopes as to the lessons I learn. (but for now those are my secrets)

I also want to try to get back into shape. So tomorrow I need to start working out again, maybe a morning swim and workout session.  So that means it’s time for bed. Sleep well out there, and take care.

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