All in a hot and copper sky,
The bloody Sun, at noon,
Right up above the mast did stand,
No bigger than the Moon.
Day after day, day after day,
We stuck, nor breath nor motion;
As idle as a painted ship
Upon a painted ocean.
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Afternoon in the Doldrums
We sailed through the Doldrums today and unlike the trip going down to Samoa this time it was calm. The ocean resembled a lake as you can see distant clouds over the horizon that could fool any sailor into believing they were mountains of an unknown isle. Or disguised as an atoll of white sand and coral similar to the isle we just left behind. The winds were slow as well as the roll of the swells. On the focsle you can hear the ship let out a roaring splash as she creates wakes with her bow piercing the level ocean. The sound as natural as you are shielded from the rumble of the diesel generators vibrating through the stacks. You could hear the splashing wakes just as good from the bridge wings next to the pilot house or the port and starboard weather decks. You do not hear the wakes very well during rough seas or windy days but in the Doldrums it brings back the romance like a lad dreaming of going to sea. The calm and the heat remind you that you’re in a different world from the one you left behind. When I was young I read about the horrors the "age of discovery sailors" experienced while sailing through these belts. I heard about it in geography class but never thought I would see it.
Rainsqualls in the Doldrums
The daydream is interrupted by calls for action to equipment that failed overnight. In this case those that collect data critical not only to science but that to the safety and navigation of the ship. Especially for tomorrow since we will have reached our destination of Palmyra Island. It made the day rather long and the thought of an eight hour day ended quickly when time it took to resolve the issues were not as quick as hope for. Some of the answers to the problems made sense while others were like abracadabra and it fixed itself. The laptop was resolved through forums on the Internet via suggestions or reverse engineering. This case was reverse engineering and when the system did not crash, we quickly made backups of files needed by the user. Just in case it decides to buy the farm for good.
Clouds over the Horizon
Twenty four days, counting down and awaiting eagerly to see the family in the northern hemisphere again. Next week is “I”s 18th birthday. News of the grandson always brings a smile across my weary face and I hope to see him again soon. My daughter sharing with me her joys of parenthood sounding familiar of someone not too long ago. And then of course the love of my life returning to school as I hear and watch her become more and more “Americanized” as time goes by. Hard to believe she is the same woman I met in Pago Pago nearly eight years ago.
The Liquid Desert
A hot shower and hit the rack is the agenda for me. I bid you goodnight from the Doldrums in Equatorial North Pacific. When I wake up in the morning, I will see Palmyra in the distance from the weatherdecks.
Dusk in the Doldrums
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