Solo Ventures

1 May2024: Just picked up four metres of 50mm x 10mm aluminium. This will be cut into used for; shrouds, lowers and backstay chainplates and backing plates. I had the worry over suitable dimensions & costs removed by the supplier. They do not stock 35 or 40mm bar in lesser thicknesses, & as far as I am concerned its pretty cheap relative to their usefulness to the ship.   Any leftovers will be used as cleats for a (Jordan Series) Drogue on each quarter.  WORKING ALUMINIUM A trap for Newbies is that being sof  Aluminium will clog files & other cutting implements.  But Tradesman Google turns up some advice on how to get ahead. Apply chalk, soap, metho or wd40 to the cutting edge, this allows  better  shedding of shavings or swarf.   

Yesterday I found four questions that will help set a goal as well as develop mental strategies for reaching that goal.  I revisited this today &/found clearer ideas.  My Fearless Goal = sail blue. 2025 Goal = Cockle Creek,Tas  Stop  = Worry, Fear & Delay Advice  = maximum effort to get it done. I fortunately rediscovered   Alastair Humhpries' ( RTW cyclist & transatlantic rower)  this morning. In this podcast he cycles Yorkshire talking to "adventurous people" about their thoughts & greatest achievements. This is great fodder to get one ruminating on ending procrastination, ignoring the noise of judgement by others as well as myself. And developing positively energised action. A few takeaways that I needed are:- * Goals are not "mountains". * Step towards Goal daily.  * Trust in my vocation.   * Erase negative programming. Have a smashing day. 

28 May 2024: My daughter's bag & dog, Sam. The little brown dog, Cudi, his brother.  Mia was re-admitted by recommendation of her thoracic surgeon for "further testing". The two aforentioned dogs are mad keen on eating offal they sniff out in the bush around here. Our fear is that they've injested hydatid cysts and passed worm eggs onto Mia. We share our days with our dogs and commonly manage their stink with a playful shove. As it happens this is not likely the cause of Mia's "infection", the major reason for her second admission concerned a lack of surgical knowledge. They've since learned that allowing "cyst juice" to escape inside the body can cause anaphylactic shock & spread infestation.  My bike at the hospital. @ 1 May 2024: Here are the key findings from Mia's experience:-  * The cyst attached to her lungs was due to Hydatid Worms.  * The Hydatid Tapeworm is hosted in isolation by herbivores with

The following questions in caps lock are from an online "guru". My responses, for today, follow.  . ASK THESE QUESTIONS;- 1.WHAT WOULD I DO IF I WAS FEARLESS & KNEW I COULD NOT FAIL? Its a toss up whether this will be to sail to Lord Howe Island or Tasmania. The common feature is, to complete an sea passage of several hundred miles.  2. WHAT WOULD I BE MOST PROUD OF ONE YEAR FROM NOW ? Having prepared my boat properly and completed sea trials and be sailing confidently. 3. WHAT ARE THE THREE THINGS I NEED TO STOP ? i. Awefulizing. ii.Doubting myself and what I can achieve. iii.  Wasting energy on offgoal tasks. 4. WHAT ADVICE WOULD I GIVE TO SOMEONE IN THE EXACT SAME SITUATION? To relax, but work consistently, taking intermediate steps towards your goal. Don't tell anyone your dream. Build a level of competence that will make you proud. Enjoy the journey.  

1. Offshore Pittwater x 5nm  2. Sail under Sydney Bridge 3. Port Stephens 4. Deep water harbour north coast  5. South Coast / Tasmania, Cape Barren Island. 6. Lord Howe Island, Balls Pyramid.  ?? 

After recovering from surgery to remove a cyst on her lung, Mia has learned that it was a Hydatid Cyst. She already knew it was the size of a "small melon" and had been hopingcit was not this variety of cyst.  To know that somehow a worm egg entered your body after having been through a dog, do go or fox that had eaten the infected remains of a kangaroo, cow or goat, is gross. But there you have it.   Tomorrow she will return to hospital for "further testing" and antibiotics. The government provide poor public transport access to the hospital, so this will come at significant financial burden. But the good news is, the cause of the cyst is a known entity. 

An invigorating chill ruffles flesh.  A clear sky marks the expiration of strong winds.  

While flaking the main a tear on the leech vouched for a sail beyond its best. A new main and headsail selection are required. Speaking to the  Circumnavigator that bought my old Folkboat, he stressed then importance of sails and rig. He hinted at the long hours they we're under stress of shifting all your worldly possessions over the sea, and how weaknesses will be inflated.  The Sail Exchange offer up used sails but apparently also as new as well. may be useful in a press. I have found an unfinished Folkboat mainsail, 7 oz. and $500. The catch is that it needs trimming; edges, eyelets and reef points.   By coincidence I've been  re-reading " The Eight Sailing/Mountain - Exploration Book" by H. W. (Bill) Tilman. On the voyage to Patagonia " the seams of the mainsail ...  constantly opened at some fresh point... and meeded restitching. We struck a bargain with an old coloured sailor. Sitting on the back verandah of the [Uruguayan Sailing] Club he sti

"the id is the primitive and instinctual part of the mind that contains sexual and aggressive drives and hidden memories, the super-ego operates as a moral conscience, and the ego is the realistic part that mediates between the desires of the id and the super-ego "     Ref: simplypsychology.org Freud & Jung, the fathers of psychoanalysis, are will me this morning as I try and decipher yesterday's events. How on Hell's name did I find myself below decks of a stinking great hulk of a sailboat, bewildered by 9mm plywood deck beams?    I'm guessing my Id saw "36 feet blue water & $10k" in one ad & my mind ran with it. But once I was assaulted by the horrors below decks & made a quick exit, my Superego beat me up. As we motored among dozens of severely neglected boats on moorings, it hammered me as though every defect was my responsibility. By the time I reached the mooring, I was mentally & emotionally beaten up. Why, after all these y

This morning, after reflecting for some time about citizens as pawns, I am considering developments on the Newcastle city foreshore in recent decades.  In the 1960s and for decades prior, Newcastle was a hub of shipping activities. Locally made steel products, mined coal, grain and wool were shipped off while the supploes mecessary to supply those industries and its workers, were brought in. Most ships for general cargo carrying were beautiful; curved sheerlines, chimneys chuffing steam and smoke, gantry cranes swaying above the heads of wharfies and truck drivers, tanned and ripped. It was a bustling hub for workers and people alike.  Then it fell into decline, except the coal exports. Those colliers grew in scale to just fit through the Panama Canal and the harbour entrance had to deepened by blasting and dredging over many years as the remainder of the foreshore fell into a derelict state.  This is a guarded photo from 1985. Its really the city, to the right and behind t

Last week ony way to   jack spratt on Pittwater I was immediately compelled to visit an old church that I spied across the wat. . Unfortunately traffic, lack of parking and ithe sheers danger of even stopping, held me back. I wondered whether i may visit  on the return leg.  I never did, I wasnt really sure where it was and it was getting dark. Now I'm really annoyed at myself, but I'm also curious as to my motives for visiting am unknown church in such a fashion   On a previous trip to the area I did visit the Baha'i Temple. Its hard to miss its massive dome peaking above the tree tops, beckoning thr curious  from miles around. The well tended lawns showcased the pleasant easy form of the temple. Its dome giving way to a basically round space for the congregation, gave the feeling of  the parishioners as open hearted, non-violent folk. I playfully joggled around the loop eyeing its symmetrical forms when a caretaker exited and advised me the temple was now closed. I was