So I'm off on my next adventure. This time to Italy for my next ride.

The flights were fine. I watched “Fantastic Four- Rise of the Silver Surfer” and then “Oceans Thirteen hundred”. I was just trying to get some shuteye when the lights came on for the pre-landing coffee and tea service. I had about a two and half hour layover in Milan, but I didn’t dare fall asleep lest the muted Italian boarding announcement fail to catch my attention. So I tried to listen in on other peoples “converzasiones” to little avail so I moved on to the local giornale (newspaper) and had better luck. At least I could get the point of many of the articles.

So I waited at the gate which really isn’t a gate at all, at least not your typical airport gate. It was actually just the place where you get on a bus that would take us to our twin prop A’itilia plane. So it was a quick 200 meter bus ride and then a short plane ride of about an hour and a half until I arrived in Ancona about half way down the east coast of Italia. Of course they made me sweat a little by making mine the last bag to arrive. Having your bags lost is always a nightmare. Having your bags lost and not knowing the native tongue, priceless! At least, most would pay almost anything to avoid that. But it showed up and I nonchalantly started to walk past the customs officer. I didn’t really know if I should say I was a “turista” or tell the truth about coming to work. Actually I really wasn’t trying to avoid customs I just didn’t realize he was a customs officer! It’s a small airport and there isn’t a customs booth or line or area. Just a senori standing by the exit! Anyway, I lied. Si, turista. Gratzie, Ciao. It turns out that I don’t need a working visa, at least as far as Italia is concerned because I’m working on a British flagged vessel.

So I was greeted for the first time at the airport by someone holding a sign with my name on it. No chauffeur in a suit and cap though. Just an Aussie bloke by the name of Brad. The boyfriend of the Laura who is the daughter of one of the owners’ friends. (For all you Soap Opera lovers). So we chatted about music and travels for the hour ride to Fano, Italy. To be exact, Port di Fano not to be confused with Port di Fino, a gorgeous Mediterranean spot I’m sure they don’t mind being confused with. I don’t know enough of Italy to say with any confidence, but I’ll go out on a limb and say it’s a typical coastal town. The original “Old Towne” is surrounded by tall and thick medieval brick walls with shops and a town square inside where folks meander in packs. The marina is a launching point for new Pershings, Wallys and Benneti yachts and has high sea walls that the locals enjoy taking strolls along.

Thus I arrived at my new home and workplace, a brand new 30 meter Benetti Tradition christened “Jazz of Monaco”. It was to be simply “Jazz”, but it was already taken so “of Monaco” was added. A quick hello with Pierre and then an introduction to one of the boats owners, Neil and his right hand gal, Rachael. Rachael is an English lass and Neil is Australian although he climbed up from down under quite some time ago.

First impressions: Pierre, well you can’t really have a first impression with someone you’ve known for almost two years, so moving on: the boat is pretty with all the latest gadgets to play with and learn, it’s going to be nice to have Brad giving me a hand (actually two hands), Laura is sweet and no doubt will competently handle the interior work for the time we have her onboard, Rachael is a whiz on the office end and as a laison, and Neil is a work-a-holic with an intense attention to detail. I mean that in a good way though. He’s a hoot and a great guy. He's is determined to do this right and I’m instantly at home with him, love his attitude and his way of thinking. I have the upmost confidence that he will manage this whole affair the highest degree of excellence. All in all I think it is going to be a very happy boat. Although, it will be sometime before the final crew is all together. As far permanent crew it’s once again just Pierre and I. Neil, Rachael, Laura and Brad are all on loan so to speak. Of course Neil I suspect will be on board quite regularly, but we probably won’t be fully crewed until summer approaches. Sometime in January we will hopefully take on a full time engineer and then as the boat starts to see some real use we will get a fulltime chef and stew onboard.

And so it begins......

Summer in LBI

I’m Back!! I picked up a second job for the summer working with LBI Parasail and Watersports. The owner Mark needed someone to run his other boat. He takes people parasailing while I whip people around on a 10 person raft off of Barnegat Light. I was skeptical that people would pay to be towed around on a raft for fifteen minutes, but they really have a great time. Many say they’ll skip the parasailing the next time and just do the “Banana Raft”. Shows ya what I know.

Earlier in the summer the guys got together for a “Boys night out”. We got a limo and headed down to Atlantic City. We didn’t go to gamble. We went to see the ballet. No tu-tus. Lot’s of long legs though.

The beginning of August saw another get together thanks to our buddy Mark. It was actually more like a small high school reunion. He works for Virgin Mobile and was able to get us all together down in Baltimore for the Virgin Festival. I finally got to see The Police Live and they played a really good show and a 4 song encore. Also there was: Incubus, Ben Harper, Wu Tang Clan, Velvet Revolver, The Beastie Boys, Smashing Pumpkins, Bad Brains, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and more. It was a fun show. We even got to check out Velvet Revolver and the Pumpkins from the side of the stage and made it to the VIP after party.

The rest of the summer has been pretty chill, surfing a little now and then and waiting for some fun fall swells to hit. In the meantime I’ve begun doing some deliveries for HMY/Viking. I met Capt. Tom while preparing Capt. Dennis’s boat for delivery. It turns out that we flew down to FL to early as the boat still needed some work finished up. However, not long after getting back to NJ Tom called on me to do a delivery with him from Atlantic City down to Riviera Beach, FL. It was a 64’ Viking just like Dennis’ “Bac in Five” only it didn’t have a top or enclosure yet. Just a piece of scratched up plexiglass jury rigged in place to give us some protection from the wind and spray generated at 35 knots! The seas weren’t the greatest for the trip so we were glad for some protection, but we still got wet. And if it rains forget about it!

Well we knocked out that delivery in nearly record time, 2 & 2/3 days and docked next to “Bac in Five” which Dennis and Mate Nick were going to bring up the coast to NJ starting the next morning. So we all went to dinner and the next morning I was retracing my tracks heading back up north again in another 64’ Viking, only this time it was enclosed and a much more pleasant cruising condition. We ran for a bit after dark on the third day and tried out the night vision, but unless there is a temperature gradient for it to lock on to it looks about the same as with your own two eyes. It got late so we put in to Cape May and the next morning Dennis and Nick dropped me off at Trump Marina so I could hop on a 54’ Viking and do the trip one more, this time heading south again.

So I kept busy and did 3000 nautical miles in 12 days and got to stop in the various ports: Rudee Intet, VA, Beaufort, NC, Southport, SC, St. Simon, GA and St. Augustine, FL. This week I’ll be getting on a 74’ Viking in AC and bringing it up to Barnegat Light so Dennis’ Boss can check it out. He’s only had his Brand New 64’ two weeks and he’s already looking to move up!! After we show it we’ll bring it down to Florida and from there we may bring another 74’ around Florida and up to Lousianna.

Sometime soon Little Sis will be popping out a baby and having a Bris so between work and snipping the weebeastie I should be kept busy for the rest of Fall before heading down for the Lauderdale Boat Show. Till then just keeping our fingers crossed that the Barnegat house will sell soon……

Sailin’ On, Sailin’ On

Summer in NJ '07

Hello Everyone. I'm back in NJ for the summer. For the first couple of weeks the weather was cool and pleasant. Now it's getting downright hot. We had a three day heatwave this week. Unfortunately, this heat is doing nothing to warm up the ocean water. We may actually need to put our booties back on if the south winds don't abate and let the warm gulf stream waters creep into shore.

Nothing terribly exciting to report. Surfed a few times, rode some bike trails (pics of the ocean acres land trust posted) and had a family BBQ with the new babies (pics also posted).

The Barnegat house is sold, but can't close because they discovered oil on the property. No, not a geyser, a trickle which leaked out of the old underground tank. Waiting for the clean up to be scheduled and the state to sign off on it. Parents are keeping their fingers crossed to make it up to New Hampshire before Randye has the baby.

Working with LBI Boating Instruction. The boat maintenance schedule is very relaxed so mainly we are just concentrating on instructing the NJ Recreational Boating Safety course in people's homes and at the occasional Fire House or Marina venue.

Well, like I said, nothing really exciting. The Bennies and Shoobies are here in force and summer is in full swing here at the Jersey Shore.

Aye Aye Captain

Securite Securite Securite. All ships. Be advised to keep a good lookout for new navigational hazard in the vicinity of Ft. Lauderdale. Out.

Well it's over. There is a new captain born to this world. Actually there are three, as Yan and Artur also passed. Like there aren't enough captains in the world!? But maybe with Global Warming and melting icecaps, soon everyone will be ferrying around via boat!?

What now? Who knows? But with these new qualifications I had better make up the tuition costs with a higher salary! In any case I am more marketable now.

Well that's it. Back to work. (Actually a relief)

Captain DJ

Yachtmaster Offshore School

So I've keeping pretty busy. Nothing really exciting. We started off this month with a 4 day charter to Miami. After we got back I did some last cramming before starting school for the Yachtmaster Offshore class. Pierre warned me that it would be pretty intense, even loaning me his course materials. I'm thankful he did and that I got a pretty good handle on everything prior to the class start. Our instructor, Bruce, also warned us at the beginning that the course is very challenging, almost to the point where we felt we should all walk out of the class. Nobody walked, but the warnings were right on. The British Royal Yachting Association accredits this course and over there they teach it over a 13 week period. Here that 13 weeks gets fit into 10 days! With 13 weeks to work you can learn the material along the way. With only 5 days of classroom time (the last 5 days are spent in the boat completing the practical part of the course) you need to know what you are doing going into it. No time to figure it out, it's more of a quick prep for the exam.

The challenge level was also evident by the fact that sitting the class were Paco (Spain) and Sam (Texas) who failed the first time around, but would pass on this second round. In addition, along for the ride were; Artur (Russia), David (Mexico), Yan (Britain/Oz) and from Finland, Tatu. That's his nickname, none of us could pronounce his real name. So we slam through course during the day and work on homework into the night. It's evident that some of the class is woefully unprepared.

On Saturday we went in for the exam. Out of the five of us taking the test for the initial time, two passed. Yan and myself. Since then Artur has retaken and passed the exam. David failed on his second attempt and Tatu still has to give another try.

So this week we have been on the M/Y Durabo working through the practical part of the course. Day and night cruises where we work on navigation and piloting. Practicing our dockings in various winds and tides, picking up mooring balls, getting fixes,chartwork, plotting and steering courses as well as Man Overboard Procedures.

Oh I have to mention that we did tear up the boat a little on the first day. While pulling away from the dock one of the lines got caught on the dock, jumped out of the fairlead and when it tensioned up bent up a stanchion. Nothing major, but not a very promising start and a little uncomfortable.

So I've got one more day of practical and then we take our final practical exam which will hopefully be early this week. It's a fair amount of weight hanging on my back which I don't mind saying will be a significant relief when it's removed.

Yan gave me a heads up that a big beautiful yacht is looking for crew to do a crossing over to the Med. in three weeks. I'd really like to give that a go, but it just doesn't fit in the schedule now. So now I'm just going to finish up with school, work a few more weeks here and if the plan doesn't change head up to Jersey at the beginning of June. That's all for now.....

Happy Birthday to Me/ Happy conception to my Sis

Happy Birthday to Me/ Happy conception to my Sis

Well we just finished another succesful Bahamas charter with the Johnson Family from Connecticut?? We started and ended in Nassau and did our usual cruise up and down the Exumas. The pictures are posted. Familar places, different faces.

No sooner had we waved goodbye to the Johnsons' when MJP's friend and Ex NFL player Mo Williams came aboard with a few friends who were still lingering around from a bachelor party. It's spring break so it's a busy time here. No shortage of intoxicated young ones roaming around.

The weather was decent, but a little on the windy side. In fact we should be back in Lauderdale already, but when we tried to leave on Tuesday we got hit with 10+ ft. swells and had to turn around.

It's now Friday and it looks like I'll be working on my b-day since MJP took the opportunity to invite a couple of friends to fly over on Sunday and use the boat for a few days since we are here. Actually they're coming to golf and we are providing sleeping accomadations. Not so happy about that. Particularly since 25 knot Northeast winds aren't going to be very conducive to golfing and if they come they may well cause us to miss a window of opportunity to get back before the next windy system comes through. Then again things don't seem to be letting up so there may not be any window anytime soon. Very unusual for this time of the year.

In any case, here we are, at least Pierre and I. Chef Fran flew home. Stew Todd flew to the carribean today to work with Captain John (ex-Gloria's Sun Captain & current manager). Speaking with Captain John last night on the phone he asked me how things were going and I responded that we were a little burnt around the edges. Then he asked when was the last time I got a raise and he said he would talk to MJP about bumping me up. I had just enough time to thank him before the satellite phone cut out. Unfortunately I didn't have time to finish telling him not to bother because I won't be on this boat long enough for it to matter. Yes, my time on Gloria's Sun is winding down. Pierre's also. We both really like MJP, but we just can't take his "miserliness" any longer. So Pierre is going to be leaving in June to head to the Med. to look for another Captain's position with the thought of giving me first dibs on the Mate position.

I'm going to be jumping ship before that. In April I plan on taking a US Coast Guard or MCA Yachtmaster (international) Captain's licensing course, depending on scheduling and availability.It's not likely to lead right away to a Captain's position, at least not on a mega yacht, but it will definately enhance my ability to get a really good Mate position. It will also facillitate my summer plans which require a Captain's license.

What are these plans? Glad you asked. My old friend Captain Dennis Feeley has asked me to join forces with him to help grow his business which besides Captaining, teaching boat handling and boat maintenence, includes teaching the mandatory NJ Recreational Boating Safety Course. Yep, it looks like I'll be home for the summer!

So that's where I'm at. Waiting to get back to Lauderdale and waiting to figure out exactly when I'm heading north. It should be sometime in May.

Be sure to raise one in honor of my 27th birthday. It's not everyday one turns 27. Especially for the second time ;>

Special congrats to my sis for getting knocked up!!!! Raise one up for her too, especially since she won't be able to for 9 months.

Way to go Rifca!!!! Now I'm finally off the hook.... :)

So long from the windy city (of Nassau)

Naarleen, Bonds, and Michael's Cruise

So we just had another trip to the Bahamas. We got the boat back in the water just in time. We took it out to do the bottom paint, but once you get a boat out of the water you find all kinds of things that need attention. For us this meant replacing the shafts because they were pitted and straightening a prop. We complicated this by deciding to upgrade from 3.25" to 3.5" shafts which meant that we had to replace the stuffing boxes also. It also meant a trip up to Jacksonville to bore out the props to the bigger size. This trip took us right through the storm in which several tornado's destroyed a couple of towns. Luckily all we saw were torrential down pours, but the sky sure looked angry. So literally the day before we need to leave we got the boat floating again and prayed everything was in good working order. It's not the optimum situation to do a crossing right after major work, but I consoled myself with the thought that is was better than risking it with worn out shafts which could have become a major headache at any time, even if we were previously unaware of the possible failure.

We fueled up and then did a quick sea trial and all seemed in order. The next morning we were exiting the port when, following behind in the tender, I get the sense that something isn't right. Pierre isn't stopping in our normal spot to hook up the tow rope to the tender. Maybe it's because of the cruise ship maneuvering, perhaps the pilot boat told him to keep moving? Then he pulls over to the side of the inlet channel and stops. Expecting to hear him on the radio telling me to come and tie up I wait. Nothing. I call him. I get a hurried reply "Can't talk, have a problem!" I reply " OK, but you are drifting out of the channel and starting to turn up mud". Well the problem was an inexplicable fuel leak out of the fuel vents. He was trying to figure out what was causing it and more to the point how to stop it and lost track of how he was creeping into shallow water. By the hair of his chinny chin chin he managed to coax the boat from what was very nearly high and dry into deeper waters, but not without dinging the prop which we had just had straightened. He won't forgive himself for that, but it happens. While in deeper water I manage to get the tender tow rope set and climb aboard still not knowing what the situation is.

Our chef tells me we have a fuel leak. Well that is nothing new. We have lots of fuel leaks. Another day, another leak, but they are small and in the engine room. I wasn't prepared to see gallons of fuel pouring out of the vents on deck! Like a fire brigade to catch the fuel we start passing buckets, then garbage cans and start praying that it doesn't come down thermoses and mugs. With three tanks it took a little trial and error to figure out which valve combination would allieve the situation, but we got it to stop. Why it happened is still a mystery. There are no pumps, everything is gravity fed and I heard the vents breathing while we fueled up. The boat has been filled to the brim many times before and nothing happened during the sea trial. The best we can figure is that somehow an air pocket formed in the system even though it doesn't make any sense.

Well that was about all of the excitement on this trip which was for the owner. Michael can live it up, but this trip was for his family (father, sister's + significant others) so I can sum it up with one word: uneventful. Which is fine by me. It was a little ironic though. Usually after a tough charter when you really need a rest, it isn't available. But after an easy one like we just had we were able to rest in standby for two days while we waited for the Gulf Stream to settle down before crossing back to Lauderdale.

We will be heading back to the Bahamas this Wednesday for another charter followed by a couple of days with one of Michael's friends who will be around for a bachelor party. And that about takes care of the month in review, at least work-wise.

Well it's March 1st and that means Black History Month is over, but as Jon Stewart points out, " Black history still continues, almost everyday". In the news this week we learned that the late Senator Strom Thurmond's family held Rev. Al Sharpton's Great Grandfather as a slave. So the nation's news watchers were getting a renewed lesson on just how ugly our very recent past was (glass half empty), how far we've come in 40 years (glass half full) and how far we've yet to go (careful, don't knock the glass over). Afterall, it wasn't too long ago that segregationist Strom ran for President and just recently Reverend Al made his own run. But alas, a person of color has yet to be elected. Coincidentally, even though I wasn't watching the news at the time I received the exact same lesson from a personal tutor. The tutor's name is Gary Bonds. Never heard of him, you say? Maybe if I include his middle name: Uncle Sam. Still not clicking? How about: Gary U.S. Bonds? Rings a bell now, huh? Now for those old enough to know who Gary U.S. Bonds is, you may say, "I didn't know Gary's retired from music and now a teacher?" Well he isn't. He is still a singer, but what you may not know, in fact most people who have never seen him live wouldn't know is that Gary is black. Actually Gary is more of a light mocha, but that's not the point. You wouldn't know Gary was black because they hid him from the public eye all the while he was selling records to white people at a time when our nation's civil rights was just starting to crawl.To get his point of view on the whole thing really brought to the forefront with rare clarity, thoughts of where this country has been, where it is, and where it may be headed.

You read about it in school, talk about it, see it in the movies, but I think it's the first time I ever met anyone who has actually been through the experience and shared it with me, even if it was atypical. I say atypical because his wasn't a typical experience. In fact as Gary put it, " I kind of liked it. I couldn't be seen in public so I would hide out it the hotel suite and all the white acts and managers would bring everything to me!" Of course out in public I'm sure things didn't start off so pleasant, but as you talk to the guy and realize how damn likable he is you know how he would win over the hearts of even the most staunch racist if given a chance.

So to back track for a minute. The reason this meeting came about is that Michael and Gary are great friends from way back. Michael booked Gary before he topped the charts. Michael went to his agent for another act and the manager kept pushing Gary. Over and Over. Michael says "I don't know him, I don't want him, I want so and so". Then Gary came in the office, sat down, they talked and five minutes later Michael says " I'll take him!"

A little later Michael was trying to lure Gary down to Florida to live and gig full time so he bought a house for Gary. He doesn't hear from Gary. Where's Gary? Finally Gary calls and says "You asshole, why haven't you called to congratulate me?" "For what, I've been waiting down here for you in the house I bought ya" "I've got the number one record in the country!" "Bullshit!!" Or so the story goes and the rest is history.

So Gary was in town to do Bowzer's (Sha Na Na) Rock and Roll Party along with Little Peggy March, Leslie Cole and Lou Christie. Incidentally, did you know that Bowzer is a Julliard classically trained pianist? Michael took me to the show and afterward we had some drinks with Gary and his guitarist Mark who is another Jersey Boy from Marlborough! I also had a backstage pass which was exciting for about a minute, until my fantasy of picking up some groupies was smashed when I realized the average age of the fans.

So lately I'm thinking about music because I met one of Mike's managers who used to play keyboards for Rick James, and he has a studio and his son is entertainment director for the Hard Rock Casino and he says his son can put me to work, etc, etc. And now I'm talking with some weathered pros and it gets me thinking some more. But then Mark says something which reminds me of why I'm not pursuing the music anymore. " I've got to fly home tonight to work my day job tomorrow". That money thing. Admittedly, Gary U.S. Bonds isn't selling out any arenas and Mark has a family and an ex, but if someone with his experience needs a day job then the outlook for me isn't so great. I might still buy a small kit for the boat. Hell, if only to give little D'shaun (Mike's soon to be adopted son) drum lessons. He's learning guitar now, but I think he should be on drums. I showed him a couple of things and he's picked them up very quickly. Probably faster than I did, although I can't be sure as my memory is failing me in my old age :)

So to carry on a little bit with Black History Month, I did manage to get down to New Orleans for a 3 day weekend. Interesting, but I can mark it off the list now. Probably a great place to go when raging hormones drive one crazy at the site of bare titties and you enjoy getting shit faced. For me it was more like, " I came here why??" I did get to see some good Jazz and Blues, but most of the music scene is now rock covers. Something I've gotten a few lifetimes worth of by now. However, my first mistake was not packing properly. You'd think after a year of backpacking this trip would be a no brainer. Well a Mensa IQ doesn't preclude one from making stupid mistakes. I figured Narleeens wasn't much farther north than Lauderdale so the weather will be relatively similar. Wrong!! Cold and Wet! Lulled into security by the perpetually warm temps in Lauderdale, I didn't bring a stitch of warm clothing. To be fair, at this point I don't really own any warm clothing. So after checking into the hotel I layered three t-shirts, thanked god I brought a pair of jeans and sneakers, chuckled at my useless baggies and flip flops, and went about finding something warm to wear.

After I bought a sweatshirt I was able to relax and take in Bourbon Street. One of the highlights of the trip was the fact that The Saints were playing in the NFL Conference Championship. They had a piss poor previous season and have never been to the Superbowl so there was much excitement in the air. Though not a Saints fan, I was that day. I was hoping for them to win, not because I care about the team, I was just hoping for an out of control party atmosphere and I figured the town really could use a little lift. But the Chicago Bears had a different idea and the depression that loomed after the game melted perfectly into the stagnant depression of air which has been hanging over New Orleans since the hurricane. The T-shirts for sale are a testament to that: FEMA=Find Every Mexican Available or FEMA Evacuation Plan= Run Bitch Run. The town is still a wreck, but hey the Saints are poised for a great season and there is always next year...

And there is always next month and that may be the next time I update the blog. We will be in the Bahamas until, well hopefully we will be back before my birthday. And then there is my birthday, then a recovery period, then I have to piece together what happened (just kidding) and then I'll write again.

Ciao Bellas,
DJ

PS. Having problems uploading the pics. I will post them ASAP

OK, I'm Back.

So to pick up where I left off;

Allowing the Gough family to unwind I poured some very nice champagne for Mom, Dad and the two eldest daughters (16 Logan & 19 Morgan), while the son (14-Connor) and youngest daughter (10 Kendal) sipped sodas as we made our way through Nassau and back to Atlantis Resort and Marina. If they're chartering the boat they are obviously wealthy, but it was apparent that it was "new money" as opposed to "old Money". They were down to earth and a pleasure to work for. Michael just loves boats, so he was happy. Nancy was happy since we had things to keep the kids occupied. The kids were pretty shy for the first half of the week, but by the end had really opened up and wanted us to all come up to Long Island and hang with their friends.

We did all the usual stuff and it's been so long ago now that I really don't have the enthusiasm to go into detail. Roughly, we started in Nassau and headed down through the Exumas and toured Waderick Wells, Samson Cay, Staniel Cay, and Highborn Cay. We toured the Atlantis Aquarium, fed the pigs and the iguanas. Took the boys fishing. Played on the waverunner and snorkeled. During the first snorkel trip I learned that their oldest, Morgan, can walk on water!! Well, more like skip on water, like a skipping rock. We were jumping in for a drift snorkel and no sooner was she wet then she was climbing back into the boat. In fact I don't know if she was even in the water long enough to get wet! A few days later though she did much better when we got them into ThunderBall Cave for another snorkel and fish feed.

With the exception of the aggravation caused by a constant battery battle in the tender it was a very succesful trip. We were a little concerned in the beginning that the quiet areas we were to visit wouldn't keep the kids entertained, but in the end they really all had a great time. Even for New Year's when we were on Highborn Cay whose total population amounts to little more than the guests in the marina, we all enjoyed a pot luck party hosted by the marina complete with DJ and Junkinoo band(a musical local custom akin to Mardi gras street music). We contributed a couple of things to the spread, but the highlight was Chef Fran's chocolate fondu fountain. And before turning in I enjoyed a nice quiet early morning new year's swim without a soul stirring. All in all, according to the guests it was their best family vacation yet. And the tears shed as they departed confirmed their sincerety.

No rest for the weary. Actually we weren't that weary because the family was pretty easy to take care of. The evenings ended fairly early and it's always nice when you don't have to pull all nighters. But minutes after tucking them back into the limo we were pulling away from the dock to return home. Our Stew, Elizabeth stayed behind for another gig so on the way back the watches fell almost entirely on Pierre and I. But we made it home safe and sound even though I did get a little too close for comfort to the Northwest Channel marker. Lessoned learned. Don't count too heavily on the GPS. It's a great tool, but can't replace good old sight navigation.

So we got back and were looking forward to a little time off, but it wasn't to be. One day off and then we thru a Birthday party for Michael's girl, T.C.. Halfway thru the party we got a confirmation for a day charter down in Miami the next day. So around 3 am we said goodbye to the last pary guest and headed south via the Intercoastal. Luckily the two stews we had could stay on for the charter and one of them was a chef also so everything was in place. We arrived down at Sunset Harbour just as the dock master was arriving for the day, tied up and went down for a couple hours of rest. A bit later we were up to clean up the boat and get the provisioning done in time for their noon arrival. It was a large group of Kazikstanis, no relation to Borat;)

They had kids and it was a little bit like chasing tornadoes all day, but they were nice and it wasn't so bad, notwithstanding our exhaustion. So we finished that up and headed back to Lauderdale. Saturday I was enjoying some time off, but wasn't too stoked about the inquiry for another Miami day charter on Monday. As it turns out I didn't have to worry about the charter on Monday because at 10 pm Saturday night I got a call from Pierre saying they wanted to do the charter tomorrow. Oh, sh#t!! I quickly got into gear preparing the boat for imminent departure and awaited Pierre and the stew before casting off the lines and once again heading south, this time to Star Island.

We didn't have time to get a chef so the broker ponied up his girlfriend for the job. We were still putting away the provisions and washing the salt off of the boat when the guests arrived. Another group of Russians, but much smaller group this time, only six guests. No kids and two gorgeous Russian Babes complete with their endearing cute accents. Sorry I don't have any pics of the g-strings:( A nice group, but really not much to comment on except again, the girls. Did someone say Russian Bride?

So rather than risk falling asleep at the wheel, we docked again at Sunset Harbour and headed back north the following day. Pierre flew off to L.A. to meet another Internet honey. I held the fort down while he was away and decided to hold onto the accrued paid days off. Possibly to head with Captain Dennis on a weekend Bahama trip or two. I would love to experience what it's like to cruise at 30 knots and do the trip in 5 hours instead of 16 hours. But alas it wasn't to be. After Pierre got back and we looked at our upcoming schedule it was decided that if I was gonna get my days off it would have to be now. Use it or loose it. So I scrambled to lastminute.com to see what I could find. It came down to San Diego or New Orleans. I figured I might rent a car in S.D. and cross down into Baja Mexico for a short surf safari. In the end though New Orleans was just a lot simpler and that's where I headed.

So I'll fill you all in on that next time......

More Pigs, Iguanas and Holiday Cheer

We were provisioned and ready to go so we undocked and headed out to Port Everglades to make our way to Nassau. But a stiff wind and high seas forced us back. So we got a slip at Bahia Mar to wait for the conditions to improve. The next day as the winds abated and the seas subsided we set Gloria's Sun free and I went to the tender to follow behind.

Dohh! The heavy rains which worked the tender's bilges overtime drained the batteries and it wouldn't start. Something doesn't want us to get this trip started. But a quick jump start and I was underway to rendevous with the boat and secure the tow line amidst the cruise ships manuevaring in port.

Just outside of the inlet a Coast Guard boat circled around to tell us to turn on a navigation light on the tender as dusk was falling. Not technically a legal obligation, but you really can't say no even if it meant that it would certainly kill the batteries which theoretically could lead to sinking the tender if it took on water during the journey since the bilges wouldn't have the needed juice to run.

So with our fingers crossed and the ever dimming navigation light we made our way to Bimini and after about 8 hours dropped anchor to get a little rest. In the morning we pushed on, after jump starting the dead batteries in the tender and during my watch Fran and I had the privelage of being greeted by the biggest fish I've ever seen in person. A whale! I don't know what kind it was, but it was big, white, had a harpoon sticking out of it and had the intials M.D. tatooted on one fin and "Ahab Sucks" on the other;) It was definately saying hello though as it surfaced crossing our bow about 50 yards fore and playfully waved its fin and swam closely by our port side.

So we got into Nassau and docked at Yacht Haven where I washed the salt off the boat and looked forward to having xmas day off. Well I wound up working about 7 hours on xmas day and didn't even get a glimpse of Santa. No more days off for me, Thank you. And no more days of would I get. Yesterday was the 20 day of work in a row! OK, I did make some coin, but enough is enough!!

The crew did at least get to go out and have a nice xmas dinner at Atlantis which is the Bahamian oasis of ritz and glamour. And after dinner we strolled through the aquarium and spied on all the creatures: sharks, jelly fish, morray eels, sting rays, tuna and even a giant manta ray.

The following day I was riding in the Cadillac Escallade stretch limo to the airport to meet our guests, the Gough family from Longggg Island. I was right on time which turned out to be about 2 hours early due to the weather delays. Understandably, they weren't in the most cheerful mood, but as I uncorked the expensive champagne things instantly relaxed.

To be continued....
I wrote this a week ago and never got to finish. We got busy. And now this evening (1/17/07) I was told that I can (actually: use it or loose it) take my accrued days off, starting tomorrow!!!! So much for planning. I now it's been a while since I checked in so I'll just publish this much while I figure out where the hell I'm going to go to get out of Dodge for a few days. I'll try to pick up shortly where I left off from San Diego, Cancun, Puerto Rico, New Orleans or wherever I end up........ Pics to come.
Ciao

Holiday Season 2006

Happy Holidays Everyone!!!!
I'm writing today's blog in the dark. Well, sort of. Tonight we had a bit of a wind storm which knocked out power to about 1200 residences, ours being one of them. But one of the perks of living on the boat is having two generators at your disposal. It makes all the maintenance worthwhile. For instance I'm really glad that yesterday we replaced the bad battery which starts up the generator. I can now appreciate the exertion put out to haul that 120 lb crate of sulfuric acid up and down the steps.

Anyhoo, we had the Holiday Boat Parade party this weekend. It turned out to be a 23 hour day, but all went well and everyone had a nice time. I took a few pics, but I'm not going to post them. I don't want everyone racing out for new eye glass prescriptions. My camera doesn't do so well with night pics and they are all super dark or blurry. Maybe my new keychain camera will do better at night?

Now we are preparing to cruise over to the Bahamas on Friday. Hopefully we'll get X-mas Monday off and on Tuesday the guests arrive. So a few last minute preparations and we are off with a new chef and stewardess. I'll check in with the details, but probably not until next year.

So I did get my X-mas package even though I got an email from UPS saying they lost all the shipping information. Funny, they lost my address, but not my email address??
I actually thought it might be a Phishing solicitation, especially when the link didn't go through. But it arrived, Thank You! And I'm also thankful that those Pringles cans aren't any larger. I let Pierre have two cookies and then ate the rest in one sitting. So, Mom, you can put off your anorexia concerns for a bit. I'm sure that binge added a pound or two.

Enjoy the holidays, and if you see Santa tell him not to forget to stop offshore....

Anniversary Cruise 2006

HI MOM!
Not much to report. Just checking in. I had a pretty busy work week while Pierre ran off to Singapore. He met a girl online and fell in love. Well that was the fantasy he had going in to it. The reality wasn't as sweet. She was everything she said she was, but the fireworks or whatever fantastic notions "romantic love" conjure up just weren't there. But they had a nice time and he really was impressed with Singapore.

Meanwhile I was slaving away. Not on the boat though. I was working on Michael's property. Cleaning the house awnings, cleaning/sealing the patio, ripping up/jacking up/leveling the dock, adding rubber piling bumpers, etc. Now we are gearing up for the Holiday Boat Parade on the Intercoastal Way. We've got a front row slip reserved for the parade of decorated and lit up boats. Should be quite a spectacle! It's also a opportunity for Michael to throw a holiday party where we are expecting about 200 guests. After that we will start preparing for our next charter in the Bahamas which begins just after Christmas and goes through the new year.

Last week I got to hang out with Dennis Feilly. He had just done a Key West trip and was in town for the evening so we got together for some sushi and a few brews. Other than that I've just been running, getting in an occasional bike ride, busting a few moves downtown and working.

Oh while we were on the cruise, Gloria's Sun did a charter down in to Key West with Wally as first mate. Wally is Michael's friend who was planned to become co-captain with me when Pierre moves on. Well, it turns out that Wally isn't really cut out for the job so it's down to me. Good news for me I guess. I definately wasn't comfortable with a co-captain situation. Much the same as too many cooks spoil the pot, I believe there can only be one captain. Afterall, the "Buck stops here.", not "the buck stops here and there".

So that is it. I added a few pics from the Mexico cruise. I hope all is well. The new car looks sweet! Enjoy. Mom, let Dad drive it once in a while, OK? ;>

Most Wanted

So after being picked up at the airport it was straight back to work! Michael had guests onboard and they were just coming back to the dock as we arrived so we took their lines and tied up the tender.

Before I get into the guests' story a little background information may be helpful. Michael (Gloria's Sun's owner) is a businessman. His business happens to be clubs. Mainly "Gentlemen's Clubs". For this he did five years in prison. It seems that the conservative powers that be weren't very keen on the idea of having, god forbid, hot naked woman making a great living in the state that resembles a flacid penis, Hhmmm, coincedence?? So they trumped up some charges and put him away.

As I understand it, while he was in the bighouse the Russian Mofia took over the biz and by the time five years was up they were all too happy to have Michael back. Since then he has been further vindicated by the Florida Supreme Court which handed down a decision absolving him of all wrongdoing and basically said that the charges were erroneous, unjust and just plain illegal. Great, "Can I have my five years back please?!?"

Anyway, while in jail Michael met a guy named Eddie Maldanado. Eddie had the dubious honor of being showcased on the television show "America's Most Wanted"! Whether or not the show had anything to do with it is debatable, but he was eventually caught and convicted of weapons smuggling. A man can change alot in 15 1/2 years (his time spent), but he's seems like a good guy now and I suspect that he wasn't such a bad guy then. Just a guy trying to make a buck notwithstanding the ethical and Karmic dilema. So while in jail Eddie started a program to revitalize old donated bicycles and pass them on to needy children.

To make a long story short, Michael and Eddie became friends and recently Eddie became a free man. Now the pair are taking the idea and adding fuel in the hopes that it will blow up (in a good way). The program is called "Bicycles Most Wanted" and it is gaining momentum in a suprisingly short period of time. They're pretty busy getting the programs going and with some coporate backing (notables: WalMart and Coke) it seems that all systems are a go. The program gets schools, police and at risk kids together (and off the street) in an after school situation. The kids learn the skill of turning old donated clunkers into working bikes and share in the merit and pride of getting them into the hands of children not unlike themselves who otherwise would never know the joy of riding a bicycle.

So for the week we had an "America's Most Wanted" rehabilatated criminal on board along with his two brothers, Albert and Willie. Albert also provided some interesting insight into the world of today as he is a Infantry Marine awarded the Purple Heart. He was one of the first guys into Iraq and for a guy that has been through Hell and back (bullet, shrapnell, buddies lost, etc) he seems to have come through it remarkably intack. How I don't know? What he has gone through is inexcusable. He's served his country to the nth degree, but has his country served him? I don't think so! But I don't have the will to go off on a rant here so I'll leave it at that. But, Don't Forget, elections are just around the corner. You hired them, don't hesitate to fire them!

So the guys spent some nights stuffing dollars into G-strings, and we took them down to South Beach with the boat and everyone had a good time. Well, except for the last day when Michael took a dive off of the waverunner at full speed and took away a couple of cracked ribs and a shoulder tear. We refer to the waverunner as a "toy", but watch out! The seas were rough on the day of our departure so we took a new alternate route via the Intercoastal Waterway. Slower and requiring much more awareness (no autopilot for that trip), but something new and different.

This week we spent the time preparing for a weekend party cruise, but a 5pm on Friday we got word that it wasn't going to happen. Oh well, I lose the tip, but gain my weekend off. I'm not compaining. Till next time.

Who'd a Thunk

Well it's been almost a month since I last updated the blog. HI MOM! It's been a rather bland month, that is until this last week.

Another one bites the dust!! I don't mean that in a pessimistic way, but there is one less single comrade after this week. Mark and Julie are now Mr. and Mrs. Tesi!! Big Congrats! It was a great 10 days back in the old stompin' grounds. Family, great friends, strippers, dinners, surfing, and a Brazilian drum troop all capped off by a spectacular wedding event.

Pretty much everyone that is reading this was there to witness it for themselves so there isn't any need to go into detail. I'll just say that I was thrilled to be able to participate.

With 90 people at the rehearsal and 250 at the ceremony I didn't get a chance to give a toast, but if I had it would have went something like this:
"Giving speeches in front of large crowds is never easy, but the hardest part about giving this one is not letting it go to long or get to mushy. I haven't known Mark all that long, only 27 years!! We grew up together, played soccer with Roger coaching, raced BMX, skateboarded and started our life long pursuit of surf. We even worked and lived together. I remember when Mark, TQ and I went and bought our first surfboards together. Mark happened to pick out a hollow (Hansen) surfboard. Tommy and I never missed a chance to tease Mark about that, but he was always stoic. As it turns out, Mark gets the last laugh because today, whats the newest hottest technology in surfboards? Yep, Hollow Surfboards! So big appologies to Mark for all the ribbing and Kudos on the foresight.

After Highschool I wandered around the country a bit, but we never lost contact. He'd visit me in San Diego, I'd visit him in Santa Barbara, He'd visit me in Atlanta and we'd always pick up were left off like it was only yesterday. When we were in West L.A., living together in about a 100 sq. ft. apartment with Brian Strahle, another friend and more often than not a few visitors, we were literally living and sleeping on top of each other. Throughout that whole time and for that matter throughout our whole relationship I don't think we were ever mad at each other for more than 10 seconds!! I think that is a great testament to a great friendship and I'm lucky to count Mark as a best friend!!!!

Actually, come to think about it, I think I'm going to have one of those 10 seconds episodes and be mad. Because Mark is holding out on me. I don't know where you find a beautiful, sweet, artistic, caring surfer chick these days, but you really should let me in on your secret!! O.K., I'm over it, 10 seconds is up! And I am extremely happy that Julie is the one marrying Mark.

All I really want to say is that it's an honor to be here and I'm thrilled. I know that you two will continue to be a great couple and I wish you both nothing but perfect and complete Happiness. To the Bride and Groom!!!!! "

It was a great week. We had a blast at the Bachelor Party and Mark escaped without being guilty of any offenses. We had surf sessions together. I was able to introduce a new friend to all my life long friends and the wedding/reception were events that won't be fogotten.

If only I didn't have to go back to work!

Mark and Julie are off to Mexico and hopefully they left the computer at home and won't read this right away. May you two get all the waves you can handle. But save some energy for bedtime......... :)

Pics are located in the "Mark and Julie Wedding" file. Enjoy

Me Llamo Ernesto

Monday August 28th, 2006

Me llamo Ernesto,

How is an Alabama divorce and a tornado similar? Somehow, Someway, someone is losing a mobile home:)

I've always said if you're thinking of buying a home in "Tornado Alley", Don't! If you're thinking of buying that cheap property in a flood plain, it's a bad idea. If you just've got to have that multi-million dollar house on a cliff prone to mud slides, you're asking for trouble. Sam Kinison joked about the Ethiopian's living in a desert and dealing with starvation offering his answer "MOVE! You live in a F**king Desert!!!" A bit harsh considering the circumstances. More closer to home though: If you've bought a multi-million dollar piece of property on a coastline which is inevitably going to be reclaimed "buy" the sea, sucks to be you! A fool and his money will soon be parted. So today, on the anniversary of Category 5 Hurricaine Katrina, I find myself contemplating my hypocrisy as Tropical Depression Ernesto threatens to gather strength after passing over Cuba and is projected to do anything but miss the limp phaleus on the U.S. map and my current place of residence that we like to call Florida.

Growing up as a surfer in NJ, my breatheren and I would begin salivating when we got word of an impending laison with one of Mother Natures awesome displays of power. After all, we really had nothing to lose. No ownership in property to worry about, no actual threat to our lives or limbs. We just looked forward to the aftermath; an eery quiet stillness and fantastically groomed mountainous swells to ride until we could paddle no more, assuming we didn't drown in the effort. But then, living on the edge is really living. At least that's one way to look at it.

Here in Florida notwithstanding the pauper surf community, the outlook is not the same. As the "U.S. welcome mat" for incoming storms, most people here are not quite as enthusiastic as we were in our carefree adolescent days. Personally, I still feel I'm on the safe side of hypocrisy because realistically I still have nothing much to lose. Sure the boat could sink, but we are in about 7 ft of water and have a 6 ft. draft so at worst my clothes would get wet. I'm pretty sure I can find high enough ground to save my Mp3 player which isn't really of any significant monetary value, relatively speaking it's completely negligible to what others stand to lose, but the weeks worth of time it took me to load up my music collection would cause a sting if lost. And that's about all I have to lose. Granted a tree could get blown down and crush my car and I don't want to belittle a much appreciated gift, but it was a gift and in the end "easy come, easy go" as they say. But then I'm not typical of most Floridians. Nearly everyone here has, at least to their way of thinking, everything to lose. So I won't make light of their situation. I'll just be thankful for mine and hope the best for everyone else. However, it does beg a moment of pause to contemplate our actions with regard to aquisitions and what we hold dear.

So Ernesto is slated to hit Florida Wednesday morning. Everyone at the Weather Channel is ecstatic and everone in Florida is tense while scrambling to the grocery stores and waiting hours in line to fill up their tanks with gas. Where they are all planning to go I don't know as in all likelyhood it will do more damage on it's track up the coast. My car's gas light is glowing with a "Low Fuel" orange amber, but that just means if it does get crushed by a tree I won't have lost as much. After all, I'm not going anywhere and I'd feel terrible if that presumptuous tree where to puncture the gas tank and send gallons of the harmful "America's addiction of choice" juices into our watershed even if that's the direction they originally came from.

So what does it all mean in the end. Well, not much to me really. We had one day charter scheduled for Wednesday, but barring a miracle that is going to be cancelled. It will be rescheduled and I'll get to gander at all sexy waitresses and dancers that were coming for the party at a another time. Looking at the predicitons of our infamous "weatherologists" (God save us from ourselves for relying on the only group of professionals who can be wrong more often than not and still keep their jobs) things look as though they'll be pretty mild. It may not even brew up to hurricaine strength by the time it hits Lauderdale although it may strengthen for it's rendevous with all you in the Mid Atlantic. We will undoubably get our fair share of wind and rain which will rock the boat, but it is unlikely to get up past a Category 1/2 which we can handle we we are now. BTW: don't come a-knockin while the boat is a-rocking cause we will be full. The owner will come on board with an entourage when the power inevitably goes out and we will start digging into our stock pile of water and any food we can procure, that is if all the food isn't gone by the time we get to the market. But all in all we are in a pretty good place. We have plenty of fuel on board. Enough to get us to the Bahamas if we had to make a run for it. But seeing that it's just as likely to affect the Bahamas as Florida our plan is to stay put and use up the fuel by running the generator to keep the AC running and the ice pumping for the drinks. And the watermaker (turns sea water into drinking water) isn't taken for granted in times like these.

So although I don't really believe that this is going to much of anything, you never know. No worries here, but just in case I hope everyone out there is comfortably prepared and fares well. And in the worst case scenerio, we will always have FEMA to save us! I hope Jeb didn't piss off George the last time they spoke......

So for anyone concerned, don't be. Unless it gets to Cat 3 or higher, in which case I'll probably have a very interesting story to tell. In any case I'll survive. No pics with this blog and hopefully there won't be any forthecoming, but if there is some interesting destruction I'll belatedly post some evidence of the aftermath. To all those worried about losing something; keep in mind what really counts. To all the surfering grommets and elders with nothing to lose, I hope this brings us all a few freight train barrels where all you hear is the hollow vacuum of suction as that enveloping wall of liquid bliss enfolds you in a solitary room of awesome yet oddly peaceful power before a birthing baptism spits you back into our time-space reality leaving you renewed and refueled after siphoning off a bit of its pure-natural energy.

I'm planning on being in NJ Sept. 15 or 16th for M.T's wedding. Can't wait........

From the Weather Channel this is psuedo-meteorologist Doug Wolinsky awaiting Ernesto from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, back to you Jeanette.

Summer in Florida 2006

It's Hot and Sticky so it's no wonder that my hard drive had made like an egg and fried itself. So I had to decide between buying a new laptop or fixing this one. If it ain't broke don't fix it, but if it is broke and you can fix it then why not. So I picked up a new internal hard drive and despite the installation instructions which read, "NO installation instructions are provided with this device. We strongly recommend installation by a certified professional.", I managed to get the thing up and running again without too much agony. And I only have 2 screws left over :) Of course, in light of the apparent success I fully expect the thing to burst out in flames at any moment!! But I must say there is something refreshing about starting out with a crisp clean and empty hard drive especially now that I have 3 times the amount of space.

Well things have slowed down for the moment regarding work. We just did a mini-charter down to Miami and as far south as Key Largo. It was a "Manager of the Year" reward for one of Michael's employees and he took the opportunity to get married on the boat. Who knows if the marriage will be as much of a sham as the myth that captains have any authority what so ever to perform marriages. Maybe their was some truth too it 200 years ago when sailors where on board and away for years at a time, but today a taxi driver or a mermaid has as much authority to perform the service. In fact in the U.S. and British Navy a captain could wind up in the brig for marrying people! And on many boats they have signs which say "Any marriage performed on this vessel is only valid On This Vessel!" BTW: 200 years ago how many woman where aboard as sailors to marry? (I can't imagine marrying ones spoils of war) Or was it the present day equivalent to "Civil (gay) Unions"? Anyway, I digress.

OK. I hate when you fulfill a self-fulfilling prophesy! NO Lie! My mouse pointer just froze and forced me to reboot. Not quite bursting into flames, but not a good sign. I should mention that I "upgraded??" to Windows XP Home. It is Win 2000 based so it should be relatively stable and it has some nice qualities, but it's still Windows to Hell !!!

Can anyone tell me why when you try to update all hell breaks loose! (and God knows how many patches Winblows requires. It has so many holes they should call it "Sieves" not "Windows") (Or "Screens", which come to think about it may very well have been in the running until someone (most likely outside the company) pointed out the connection) (Has anyone contacted the Swiss government about a class action suit for Swiss cheese copyright infringement?) I can't install the updates that I downloaded because the install process takes over my Wi-Fi port and hangs up the connection which of course is required to install. If our government is going to let the monopoly continue at least make sure the shit works. Back in the day Ma Bell wouldn't have lasted nearly as long if every time you tried to make a call the operator asked you to press the non existent "Moon" button to connect. Now it's nice that Gates has become the philanthropist, but maybe he should be paying back each and every Windows user a couple of grand for all our mental and emotional anguish and time lost due to his product! Don't get me started!!

So there you have it. For better or worse I back in the computing game and work is slow. Pierre is back in France getting a second opinion regarding his heart condition so I'm holding down the fort again and hoping we don't get a hurricane this week. Regarding the American medical machine: The doctors here were immediately ready to burn out his Thyroid with a radioactive pill and put him on medication for the rest of his life. He's 35yrs old! Radiation, Burned out thyroid, lifetime of medication!?!? $$$$$Cha-Ching$$$. That's all I have to say! F**king Quacks!!! Corporate Drug Dealers!!! Hey kid, first ones free!!

So in France they diagnosed him with Graves Disease and with 6-12 months on meds they are confident that he'll should be stabilized and fine. Never trust someone who spends their entire life not working, but having a "practice". How much practice do you need? Maybe you should rethink your approach if you aren't getting it right in a reasonable amount of time. How is it that such a huge group of people full of compassion and sense of duty go into medicine and wind up selling their souls?

Well, it turned out to be more of a bitch session than an update, but it's a slow news day and that's the way the cookie crumbles.....

I was going to load up some pics of the wedding, but you'll just have to use your imagination. I didn't take any pics with my camera so all the photos I have from other cameras are too big to post. They need compression which I don't have right now with a new hard drive and all. I tried resizing them, but that made them fuzzy like a TV show blurring out nudity. And it wasn't that kind of wedding. But it is your imagination so if you're so inclined....... ;)

Enjoy the remaining days of summer.....


DJ
www.whereisdjtoday.com
Carpe diem

Bahama Charters Summer 2006

July 29th, 2006
O.K. I'm back in Ft. Lauderdale and it's time to catch up with the blogging. The problem is motivation! Right now it's pretty much all a blur and sooo "yesterday". Keeping a journal during the trip would help out in times like these, but when you're so tired you can't see straight their is little chance in writing down the days events. And even if you did it probably wouldn't be intelligible. So I'll just paint the picture in broad strokes, upload the pics and slip silently out the side door before anyone asks for their money back.

The first charter was a group of eight, two adult couples and their four children. They self-proclaimed themselves as "low maintenance" which of course they weren't even if they were refreshingly casual. The price for that refreshing-ness was too take the "Nestea Plunge" off the moral and legal tightrope of service into the murky liquid of customer satisfaction. See, the parents for whom we had trouble keeping liquor stocked, ice available and glasses full, let the two oldest kids (16 & 17) drink too. And when it came time for the adults to have a break from the kids and the kids to have a break from the parents it fell upon the stewardess or I to play babysitter. Only we weren't supposed to actually babysit so much as play the "cool uncle" who lets them get away with things to that fine edge right before everything goes horribly wrong. In other words let them do their thing, just don't let anything bad happen. Not the most comfortable situation in the world. To make a long story short we pulled it off, but not without some tense moments and ruffled feathers.

The charter took place mostly in The Abacos and to sum up the rest of the charter: I was worn out. Heading into the charter they boasted how they had so friends in the Abacos and continually had people on the boat to party. But in the end they seemed to dislike most of them! And so did I. Adding to the fatigue factor is the fact that I get an extra $500/wk to sleep on an air mattress in the pilot house which is not seperate in anyway from the rest of the boat and therefore not seperated from guest or crew traffic. And I was "late" person which meant staying up until 2 or 3am most nights and since I slept in the pilot house I was essentially first to rise also. Well, second to rise. As soon as the morning person was awake and about, so was I. Well, at least the "awake" part. This in conjunction with wearing so many hats really took its toll. I was Mate, Stew, Bartender, Gopher and Chaperon averaging at least 16 hours a day. Hey, but at least we got a good tip.

We had one day between the first charter and the second charter so there was no rest for the weary. Having been through the ringer the Captain decided to hire another stew to help us out. We really could have used an extra stew for the first charter. As it turns out, we really didn't need her at all for the next two. But we were stuck with her which was unfortunate because she was a real BITCH!! who thought the two implanted masses in her chest caused the Sun to revolve around her! Hey, but at least her shit didn't stink. That's always a nice thing when you're sharing a bathroom. Honestly, I was worried that if I had to listen to one more of her ignorant comments I was going to choke her out and throw her overboard. And I don't even kill mosquittos! But then a mosquito is less of a bloodsucker than she! Buddha help me!

So the second charter was only 5/day 4/nt. Pretty mellow. One of the woman was ill for 2 days. The kids were well behaved but really didn't take advantage of the toys. For that matter neither did the parents. Really kind of a dud. To make matters worse we had a serious mechanical failure. We are sailing along when I look over to the monitor showing the engine room and noticed it's filled with smoke. Great! Good thing I took that fire safety course. So I decide to call 911 and give directions to the fire department. Oh no, that won't work on a boat. So then I decide to put on the fire gear. Oh wait, we don't have any. OK. Feel the door for heat and charge in with my trusty and mighty fire extinguisher. Choking on the thick vapors, Eyes burning from black smoke, Intense heat searing the hairs off my body. Just kidding. No fire, just some smoke from a large rubber coupler which transfers power from the engine to the transmission. Didn't smell very nice though. And of course it meant we were down to one engine.

This slowed us down considerably so when we finally arrived at our intended marina I was very much looking forward to finishing the journey and docking up. Preferably, with one engine, you dock up bow first. It's just easier. So we intended to do this, but the marina informed us that since our power was in the rear we wouldn't be able to reach their power outlets if we went bow first. So we decided to dock stern-in, which led to a minor catastrophe which could and should have been completely avoided because what the marina told us regarding the power was complete bullshit and we could have came in bow first. So what's this minor catastrophe I speak of? Well as Pierre is backing the boat in with one engine and dealing with some current (not the easiest thing to do) he gets off course a bit. My job is to be his eyes and seeing eye dog so to speak so I get on the radio and tell him to abort and retry. He does and is more on course this time. But not perfectly. "Pierre your close to the piling. Stern to port.... Stern to PORT!... STERN TO PORT!!! Your not going to make it!!" And so he hits the piling which bends but fortunately doesn't break. As it turns out he was planning to use the piling as a bumper, if maybe not quite with as much force. The problem was with the rope which was resting on that piling and since it wasn't glued down promptly found it's way in to the water. Before I had time to scream into the radio "NEUTRAL" it was too late. Like iron to a magnet the rope was attracted to the prop and the two quickly became intimate. So now we are down to Zero engines. Luckily we were deep enough into the slip to catch a few lines, secure the boat and then pull it in by hand. The trick for me was managing my new found crew which instantly materialized to give us a hand. Nice sentiment, but as The saying goes, "too many chefs, spoil the pot". Something similar can be said for too many captains on one dock!
Well it took Pierre and I about 10 free-dives each to swim under the boat and cut the rope from the prop. I have a piece of it draped around the ships bell as a souvenir. Back up to one engine! Back in the game. Anyway, we got a bad tip from that one and were glad to move on. The question was whether or not we could get the boat fixed before the next charter. Luckily we had 6 days in between, but we are in the Bahamas not Ft. Lauderdale. Pierre had a mechanic come and check it out. "No problem Mon! Fix tit ina day" OK, we realize he's probably crazy, but it seemed to give Pierre some hope while I'm not at all convinced. The next day we get a second opinion which confirms our suspicion that the first mechanic had been smoking conch or something! "Big Job, Big Big Job. Nothing I can handle." Yup, gotta lift the 1100 HP engine and the tranny which probably weighs as much as the engine.

So we limp it to Nassau. There we contact a mechanic who actually rebuilt the very same engine a few years ago. He's good and knows his stuff. Only two hiccups. They don't have the part and it's the weekend of the 10th of July which is equal to our 4th of July. The Bahamas are 30 years young and they take the holiday as seriously as we do. If everything goes right and we get the part for them they say they can get the job done in time for the next charter.

Well, I'm not going to hide the fact that I was a little bitter about having to fly back to Lauderdale to track down a coupler and bolts while half the crew flew home to chill out and the other half stayed behind to chill out. However, I got it done and I guess I can chill out when I'm dead. So I brought back the part and bless their hearts the guys got the job done. We got the boat set and headed to Atlantis (arisen again) to pick up the third charter.

Atlantis is in Nassau and is themed after the lost continent of "Atlantis". It's new, cost a lot to build, has lots of stores and is very pretty. The kind of place I hate! Now of course their is no shortage of money (except on my boat) in the yachting world and you can find yourself in some very ritzy places: Miami, Monaco, Nice, Majorca, etc. In places like those you'd pay $2-3/ft for a dock space. In Atlantis it's $7/ft!!! It's completely insane! When you add in power (note the circuit breakers were mislabled) and water for a relatively small boat such as ours (95ft.) it's a $1000 per night to sit in their marina! I'm pretty sure I'll have the last laugh though when the next big hurricane comes and buries their precious little development right alongside the original Atlantis.

So the third and last charter. In a word excellent. And it was excellent because the guests were excellent. A Brit and Aussie family with sailing experience and just a real sound outlook on life. Their was Rachael (2yrs old), but no teenagers to worry about. The sons (in-laws) and daughter (in-law) were all 20 to 30 something and enjoyable to be around even if one son's girlfriend insisted on asking me fully loaded questions which no one in their right mind would answer like; "Who's your favorite guest?" or "Who's your favorite on the crew?" or "Who of the crew have you hooked up with?" Answers: "Yes, no and maybe!"

We had seen Nassau, The Abacos, The Eleuthras and so it was nice to get to see The Exumas on this trip. They are farther southeast and much less developed, in fact one of the islands is a protected national park complete with a pirates lair which we visited. So far I must say this area is the most enjoyable simply because it isn't developed as much. Nassau and the Abacos have more (well at least a bit more) life and entertainment, but if that's what you're looking for then why leave Ft. Lauderdale? The family jetskied, waterskied, tubed, fished, went on hikes with us and snorkeled almost everyday. They drank, as Brits and Aussies do, but they didn't show it. They were sincere and appreciative and it was an honor and a pleasure to have worked for them. If only they could all be like that.

Well, I'm running out of steam and I'm going to wrap it up. It was work, but it was a good experience. I don't have pics of everything so for the record I did get to drive the big and little boat, sniff out/deal with the aftermath of 3 burnouts, party, jetski, feed large formerly vegetarian/now carnivorous lizards, feed wild island pigs, snorkel with a pair of dolphins, a pair of reef sharks (5ft), on two plane wrecks and with countless fish and crustaceons of various size and color. Oh and I got a couple hours of sleep.

I hope you enjoy the pics.......DJ
www.whereisdjtoday.com
Carpe diem

Da Bahamas

July 12, 2006

I know it’s been a long long time since I’ve updated this blog, but I’ve got a good excuse. I’ve been working. Working long hours. In fact, at points I was finding it difficult to find the time to wipe my butt properly let alone sit down and write.

But we’ve finished our second charter here in the Bahamas and now have a few days standby time, so here we go. On June 19^th we left Ft. Lauderdale for the Bahamas prior to which we worked hard preparing for the six week trip. Loading up the boat with the groceries and supplies was no small feat. I had to put my foot down when we ran out of storage space and I found some canned goods stored in my pillow case. I comprised and switched the cans for rolls of toilet paper and everything eventually found a home. Now the only problem is remembering where we stowed everything!

It was a slow cruise and the crew (Captain Pierre, Chef Chris, Stewardess Carolyn and I) paired off for watches for the better of the 19 hour journey. We anchored outside the Cay of Spanish Wells. Spanish Wells residents are very proud of their island which as the name implies was founded by the Spanish and not much has changed culturally since. It’s primarily caucasion and more or less survives on the fishing business.

Once the tide came up we were set to yank the anchor and meet our pilot who would guide us through a narrow and shallow channel into the Spanish Wells Marina. I went off ahead in the tender to meet the pilot “A-1”, a colorful character with a heavy Bahamian accent who grew up fishing the Bahamas and now makes a very good living driving his 15 foot dingy and guiding yachts through the maze of reefs and extremely shallow depths. He’s is also a great guy to know if you want fresh conch, stone crab, grouper, etc. delivered straight to your door. And we now know he really likes Oreos and can recite the capitals for all 50 United States. And he will, like it or not.

The next day was nice as we had a day to relax. We enjoyed it which was good because it would be awhile before we’d get another. We took the tender and went for a snorkel on a ship wreck and then found a great beach and stopped to check out the natural cave just inland from the beach. It’s quite large and must have made a relatively comfortable home for Jacob Sayle who was shipwrecked and took shelter there over 100 years ago.

The next day the “Whitaker” charter began.

Oopss! I stepped away. And now I’m having a hard time continuing so I’ll just pause here. Just a taste of the Bahamas. More to come…..

All Aboard the "Gloria's Sun"

Happy Memorial Day!

So after flying back to NJ for the weekend I picked up my new used car (which will easily be the sexiest car in Ft. Lauderdale) and drove 22 hours (with a two hour nap in SC) back down to Lauderdale. The drive down was uneventful except for getting pulled over by a SC Sheriff K-9 unit. How much circumstancial bullshit does it take to make a case? Well let’s start with being pulled over for “weaving” (apparently my slot car pin jumped out of the track). Then I was under suspicion because I had an air freshener in the car! And the final thing that clinched my guilt was that I was “acting nervous”. Question: who wouldn’t be a little nervous being pulled over in the deep south by some hick with a gun, mace, handcuffs and a big scary German Shepherd for no reason other than being a young (looking) male driving alone?!! Anyway it wasn’t any use in arguing with his airtight case. But I could exercise my constitutional right against illegal search, so I politely did. Of course, he said that he was going to use the dog and wouldn’t you know it, the dog “showed interest”! But I wouldn’t be surprised if they train the dogs to “show interest” every time to bypass our semblance of protection. Really, it’s quite possible. So right about now I’m wondering if the old man that had the car before me was a Glaucoma patient. I knew I didn’t have anything in the car, but I was praying the old guy didn’t have a secret stash tucked away somewhere. But the cops search turned up nothing and I drove away.
So I moved on to the Motor Yacht, “Gloria’s Sun”, named after the owner’s late mother. The crew quarters are pretty small and I do share them with Captain Pierre, but he spends most nights with his girlfriend so it’s not bad. So I’m settling in to the grind. We did an overnight charter for Michael’s (owner) Girlfriend’s son, Deshaun who turned 10. In the morning we cruised up the New River where I got to get a feel for driving the boat and docked. Then about 15 kids and 15 adults came aboard and the festivities began. As you can imagine they kept us busy. If I had put out a tip jar on the bar I would have had my best bartending night to date. Even with all the running around, in the end there were only 3 injuries, all minor.

Eventually they all left except for 4 of Deshaun’s friends who stayed for a sleep over. In the morning the Captain was sweating because he neglected to make reservations for brunch. He didn’t realize how big a deal “Mother’s Day” is in America (He’s French). But luckily we managed to get a table right before they stopped seating and had a really nice meal. Of course they charged twice the usual price because of the holiday, but Michael was buying so it was gratis for us. We spent the afternoon there and when high tide came in the evening we ventured back home.

So we spent the next week doing what we do, maintaining the boat. Not much of interest to share there. I’ve gotten back into working out: either biking, running or using the elliptical machine on board. I’m keeping an eye on the wave forecast because I sure would like to get some surfing in soon, but South Florida might as well be on a lake. I’m considering buying a kite surfing rig!

Right now Pierre is on vacation in France so I’ve already made it to “Captain”, well “Acting Captain”. Not bad only one week into the gig. I thought it was going to be a really quiet time, but I’ve only be alone on the boat a total of one day so far. This thing is as popular with Michael’s friends as a Holiday Inn. No sooner does someone leave when someone else shows up. But it’s all good.

Just before Pierre left he took me to one of Michael’s clubs, Pure Platinum, “a Gentleman’s Club”. A really nice one. We got the VIP treatment and didn’t pay for a thing (lap dances included) which is good cause you could easily blow your retirement savings there in a night.

So right now I’m working through my list of jobs at a relaxed pace and enjoying some leisure before things start heating up. In ten days we are doing a 4 day charter to Miami for Mo Williams, a Minnesota Vikings Football player. Then right after that we are doing a ten day charter to the Bahamas. The car is registered and tagged in Florida and interestingly you don’t need an inspection or smog check here. Maybe it’s because the plethora of Lamborghinis and Ferraris would have a hard time passing the emissions test!

So it’s Memorial Sunday and the beaches were packed, the water is warm and right this instant I’m drinking a beer in honor of all the men and woman, past and present serving our country, especially those unnecessarily in harms way this very day. Here’s to them and you……Cheers! (And I don’t have to say it’s not Busch Beer, although wouldn’t it be nice if we could piss out Bush and flush it down the toilet!)

Jumping Ship, or rather, Tossed Overboard

Jumping Ship, or rather, Tossed Overboard

Life is a series of continuous change and this applies to employment also. Friday morning I was blindsided and got the boot. Hans was happy with my work and couldn’t offer any constructive criticism for me to work on. In the end the only reason they gave for letting me go is because I didn’t have the right experience to take the owners/children/grandchildren fishing on the 31 ft. Jupiter and 18 ft. Flats boat.

OK. I can’t really argue, sport fishing is not my forte. But they knew this going into the job. Thus I can only assume that I was used to fill a spot which they needed filled right away for the Bahamas trip and it wasn’t going to be a permanent position at all. Pretty lame! Or maybe it was because I’m a vegetarian and the owners are the biggest hog and turkey farmers on the east coast?! It doesn’t really matter now. It would have been better if they been upfront about it. Then I could have had my resume floating about and working on a contingency plan for the end of the trip. But now the window of opportunity is all but closed for getting on a boat headed for the Mediterranean as most have already left on the crossing.

C’est La Vie! It was a good experience and now it’s time to look forward and move on.

So now I’m back down in Ft. Lauderdale, back at Neptune House. There is a ton of daywork available which is good. But that isn’t exactly what I’m looking for. There are still some permanent positions available from what I hear so all is not lost. I just have to get out there and drum up some business. Time to update the resume and get out there to rub elbows…….

Well the kids and the grandkids arrived. I should mention that they arrived by their private jet. The first bunch is Jon and Janet and their children: Katelin (13), Ben (10), Bill (10) and Vanna (8). This would be the group staying on the boat. Later on in the day the next group arrived. Scott and Joy and their three young ones: Max (10), Billy (7) and Stephanie (5). They would stay in a $300/night hotel room a few hundred yards away from the boat.

Due to the weather last week, poor Zach only got to do one day of Bone fishing which is his favorite, but since his family left the weather has improved a lot. Incidentally, the Bahamas is supposed to have the best Bone fishing in the world. I can’t comment. I had never seen a Bone-fish and still haven’t. But apparently they are 5-10lbs and give one hell of a sporting fight when hooked. It’s a catch and release fish though, not very good for eating. Another day the guys went for Yellow Tail and did rather well, reeling in 33 fish. They are eating fish and made for a tasty dinner!

So anyway, since the weather had gotten nice it seemed like things would be a little easier for us crew. Not in reality though. There is a beach and a pool here. The problem is that it’s not a short walk to the pool or the beach. Now little kids drink a lot and so do moms and dads on vacation, not to mention lunches. And guess who gets to carry the coolers out to them. You guessed it, yours truly. I guess it’s better than blowing my money on a gym membership! And I should have never told them I worked behind a bar. Luckily we had “Bahama Mama” mix on board!

So between all the standard boat work and the drinks, lunches and fishing we were kept pretty busy, but that’s o.k. The Bahamas are nice, the water is beautiful, but if you don’t have a boat to yourself for things like fishing, snorkeling and island hopping it can be a pretty (well let’s not say boring) relaxing place. The night life, in spite of the live music (usually a one man band) is extremely tame. In the future there is one bright spot though. There actually is some decent surf here. The most consistent spot is a place called “Garbonzo” on Elbow Cay. “Charlie don’t surf!”, but Captain Hans longboards so next time I’m bringing a board and it’s on! And one way or another I’m making time for some diving although it’s so shallow here that you can probably put away the tanks and take a deep breath for a free dive. Or you can just snorkel. And it is quality snorkeling.

It’s also a great place if you’re into big game fishing. While we were there they started the Bahamas Billfish Championship fishing tournament. It’s a week long contest with a million in prizes available for those catching the best selection of 500-600+ lb White and Blue Marlins and Spearfish. I put out my line and as it was being yanked out of my hand thought I had the winner, but that jellyfish got the better of me ;)

As I mentioned it’s a great place to island hop if you’ve got the transportation (boat, no bridges here). One place I got to was Hope Town, which was quaint with beachy blue, sea green and white washed buildings and picturesque beaches that could be straight out of a Corona advertisement. But I wouldn’t suggest importing a car here. There is a 50% duty on the blue book value. Ouch! I guess that’s why you see a ton of golf carts.

So on April 19th we prepared the boat for leaving and ~3pm left the marina for a 1 hour trip to anchor up outside of Man ‘O War Cay for the evening. There we had a nice jumbo shrimp dinner and then a peaceful evening until around 2am when I was awoken by Hans. The wind had switched 180 degrees so we had to pull the anchor, move the boats and reset. After that, all was quiet and on the 20th , after sunrise we pulled anchor again to set sail for Florida through the blue-purple waters and rolling ground swell with the owners aboard and the 31 ft. Jupiter in tow. Next stop West Palm Beach.

The conditions were pretty good for the trip. Part of the time there were 4-5 ft. swells but the boat soaked them up well and after a 16 hour sail we were once again tied up at Old Port Cove.

We called our information in to customs and then went to bed. The next morning we had to go to customs for the mandatory check-in. But this gave us plenty of time to offload the 30 Bahamian illegal aliens, 6 crates of Cuban cigars and 80 kg of cocaine. WHAT A JOKE!! There is a $50,000 fine for not checking in with Customs, but the fact is they didn’t even know we were gone and it doesn’t exert one ounce of security doing things this way. But the beaurocrats know what they are doing, right? Yeah, wasting their employee’s time, our time and our tax dollars!! It’s great to see the government in action; playing up the fear factor so they can erode our personal rights and then doing absolutely nothing to actually sure up our borders and protect us! Don’t get me started!

Anyway, we are back safe and sound. The next trip is slated for sometime in June. There is talk of Mexico, but Mrs. P. isn’t really into that so we’ll have to wait and see……