Author: Pete
Location: 21°35.573S’ 175°13.900E’
Date: 10.31.15
Day 3 at sea.
Happy Halloween! We’re celebrating All Hallow’s Eve aboard with a big bag of candy corn smuggled to us by Miranda’s buddy Teri. Surprisingly, we haven’t had many Trick-or-Treaters out tonight. Miranda doesn’t have much of a sweet tooth, so I have a feeling that I’m going to be eating the whole bag myself. Jacked up blood sugar is a really great way to break up the monotony of cruising. TIME TO GO RIDE BIKES! TIME TO SWAB THE DECKS! WHO WANTS TO GO UP THE MAST?! Haven’t figured out a good costume yet. Possibly a sailor? A pirate? Or maybe a mermaid? Not much else in the costume department ’round these parts. I wanted to go as a ghost this year but Miranda said we need the sails intact. She doesn’t feel the need for a costume, saying, “I pretty much resemble a hobo right about now.” We’ll have to find her a stick and a handkerchief.
You’d think the open ocean would be a spooky place on Halloween, what with the web-footed sea monsters, shipwrecked souls lost to the deep, and devious merfolk all floating about. In actuality, it’s another beautiful moonlit night. The only scary thing out here is our hygiene and diet. We’re pushing canned meat since it will be confiscated in New Zealand. BLTs have been on the lunch menu with crispy Spam instead of bacon! We still have ghoul-green lettuce and blood-red tomatoes to go on the sandwiches. They’re horrifyingly good! No pumpkins floating about, and we’re out of coconuts, so we made a dozen zombie eggs for fun! It’s tough to draw on a round object on a bucking boat.
Time to go howl at the moon.
Hey Goblins, it has been more than a year of eagerly, enthusiastically and earnestly staying tuned to your voyage adventures from Charlevoix and occasionally elsewhere. Thanks so much for sharing all the way along.
Delightful, entertaining and informative are your photos WITH COMMENTS; your interactions with always-friendly inhabitants on the small islands; all news related to food; your continuous problem-solving episodes; assurances that friends and collaboration is present along the way for safer passages; and continuous demonstrations of your sweet/quirky humor and creativity for story-telling from one helluva vantage point. Good for you and for us. Wish list: a bit of an overview/update on plans for the rest of your voyage would be the main one.
Safe travels and keep the good stuff coming. Love, peace and hugs to you both.
Did you know that the U.S. Navy is working to accommodate its expectations that sea levels with be rising? Many of the places you have visited may not exist in the not-too-distant future as you have found them this year. Is that discussed at all among the inhabitants you engage with?
Simon Winchester has just come out with his book “Pacific”. Sounds illuminating. “Atlantic” was published some time ago by him.
Hi Mickey!
Glad to hear from you! I love that we’re goblins! Perhaps inhabiting the netherworld below the equator qualifies us as such. Thank you so much for keeping up with us! I’m glad our photos and stories are enjoyed by more than just my mom!
Miranda updated our route and plans. Click on the map on the side bar.
Many of the inhabitants on the islands that we run into lead subsistence lifestyles. Sadly, they’re worried about their family having enough to eat tonight and aren’t in tune with problems due to long-term climatic shifts. It’s difficult, especially translating to an island language, to try to talk about environmental issues like overfishing, hazardous waste disposal (batteries), or agricultural practices. We try to lead by example and give suggestions where applicable.
Amazing trip! Any chance we can set up a face time session with my class of third graders? Or can you do a post about how you use math on the boat?
You two are rock stars!
Natalie! Wow! Great to hear from you! Congratulations on being named Teacher of the Year! That’s fantastic! We would love to talk to your class and use math on the boat ALL the time! I’ll send you an email and we’ll catch up!