Eating Their Own

I just finished reading another book by Nathaniel Philbrick, "In the Heart of the Sea" - the tragedy of the Whaleship Essex. I enjoyed this as much as "Mayflower".
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Philbrick is a talented writer, and his historical narrative is an entertaining read. The Essex shipped out of Nantucket and was rammed and sunk by an eighty foot sperm whale, 3000 miles from the South American coast in the South Pacific.
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The survivors resorted to cannibalism, as they traversed the Pacific in open 25' whaleboats for the next ninety days. Herman Melville loosely used the incident for his depiction of "Moby Dick", although the focus of this story is what happened after the ship sank. The Essex was scuttled in ten minutes.
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Although I've seen companies resort to eating their own in the past few years, the tribulations on that Whaleship were the real thing.

Manhandling by McMahon

Apparently, Tom McMahon, POTY, is making a career out of tackling the hapless nitwits who jump onto Fenway Park during a game.
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Tom, the guy is just trying to have a little fun. It's not like he's Al Queda or even Taliban.
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Why can't you just live and let live???
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Smart Lady

I begin to think, that a calm is not desirable in any situation in life....Man was made for action and for bustle too, I believe.

Abigail Adams, letter to her sister, Mary Smith Cranch, 1784
US wife of John Adams 1764 (1744 - 1818)

Abigail would have had an awesome blog.

Waiting for WhaleEye

So I go over to Ryan Marine to check on the WhaleEye. Sure enough, the propeller shaft is bent with the propeller badly dinged. The parts have been ordered. What was worse was that Chris and Peter Crawford were over there getting their boat launched before mine.
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I had just left Ryan's Tuna Armory, where he has amassed enough fishing supplies to declare war on any hapless fish that dares to be in the same vicinity of the WhaleEye. He has some great lures, squid sets and a killer harpoon system. If I were a tuna, I'd be waving the white flag and seeking terms of armistice.
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It will be an interesting fishing season. We sure as hell don't have any excuses. All we need is the damn boat.

Tender Homestretch

So Close.

I'm not going to start varnishing until the masts are done though.

Then we'll see if this floats

Lobster Rolls

Joanne went to Marblehead Lobster yesterday and bought seven live 1 1/2 pounders for the dinner we had with all of the kids.
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I didn't have one, because I wanted to make sure everyone had a chance, but the next day, I took a leftover one from the refridgerator, shucked it, and made two of the best lobster rolls ever consumed on a Memorial Day.
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After removing all of the meat from the shells, I cut the lobster into bite size pieces and mixed it with Real Hellman's Mayonaise. adding a little salt and pepper.
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The Lobster was over-stuffed into two Nissen Hot Dog rolls, then wolfed down by me. I broke out some Jameson's Irish Whiskey on the rocks for the occasion. A most memorable meal.
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It's three hours later and I'm still satisfied.

Violation of Quiet Enjoyment

"Jump Down, Turn Around, Pick a Bale of Cotton.
Jump Down, Turn Around Pick a Bale of Hay.
Jump Down Turn Around, Pick a Bale of Cotton.
Jump Down, Turn Around Pick a Bale of Hay.
Oh Lord, Pick a Bale of Cotton.
Oh Lord, Pick a Bale of Hay.
Oh Lord, Pick a Bale of Cotton.
Oh Lord, Pick a Bale of Hay."
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Tommy O' Shea, Linda, Joanne and I apparently pissed off some neighbors by our late night adaptation of this song as performed by Steve Martin and Cast in one of my favorite films, "The Jerk".
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I thought we were pretty good.

Memorial Day Reading

I remember that Memorial Day mean't going to Union Street in Lynn to watch the parade. The highlight was always when the Scottish Bagpipers marched by.
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Haven't done that for awhile.
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I'm reading a book called "Mayflower" by Nathaniel Philbrick. The Pilgrims were a pretty brutal lot. There is something about that primeval time that is very attractive. It's interesting how the mix of philosophy, economics and techology converged in a mix of races and cultures. It almost seems like people are exactly the same as now, but the environment and technology dictated the cadence of life.
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Once again, it is the Native American Indian culture that holds the greatest fascination for me. Although, Philbrick doesn't mention the great sachem, Nanepashemet. He is more concerned with Massasoit and his son, Metacomet, or "King Philip" as he is widely known.

Herreshoff Columbia Launch Punchlist.

Today, he interior was sanded and a final epoxy coating was applied. Even though the boat looks finished and ready to launch, there is still a ton of work to do....
1 Day

• Oar Blocks attached and fitted
• Centerboard attached to case
• Rudder hardware attached to the transom
• Rudder attached to the Tiller

1 Day

• Mast constructed and shaped
• Mast fitted into first seat

4 Days

• 1st coat of marine varnish sprayed
• Seating attached to hull
• 2nd coat of marine varnish sprayed
• 3rd coat of marine varnish sprayed
• Hull turned over and sanded with 220 grit
• Exterior coat of Marine varnish sprayed
• Final coat of marine varnish sprayed interior and exterior

2 Days

• Sail Stitched together
• Rigging applied to mast and sail

That's eight work days before the Herreshoff Columbia Yacht Tender touches the salt in Marblehead Harbor. It won't be easy to squeeze these work days in before the 4th of July, but that is the goal.

Sanding Resolve

OK, I'm ready.
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It's 9:30 AM. I'll fire up the sander and do nothing but sand the interior of the tender until 2:00 PM. Then I'll shower and have a Sam Adams Summer Ale.

WhaleEye Delay

The WhaleEye is delayed. Mark Ryan says we have a bent propeller shaft. I saw where one of the propeller blades was dinged last year. Apparently we hit something and the shaft has to be replaced.
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That kills the weekend for Mikey. We'll be ready when he comes home for the 4th of July, though.
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Actually, I don't mind that much, because I'd like to spend some time organizing the interior and fixing the hatch hinges. Still waiting for the Leaning Post that is on backorder from Boater's World. This will replace the helm chairs which have never been that comfortable and are actually not functional when the boat is underway.
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So more work on the Tender is in store until the family gets together at 4:00 this afternoon.

Tender Details

I'm really stalling on the dog work sanding. I know that going in, so don't start in on me.
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Made the cap on the centerboard with the pulley installed, drilled the hole for the drain through the keel and brass trim and epoxied the rudder. It doesn't sound like much, but it took a lot of standing around and aimless staring.
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I also installed the trailer plate on the trailer.