https://www.sailworldcruising.com/news/215707/Building-the-42m-super-sailing-yacht-Vijonara
Monday, December 12, 2022
Saturday, December 3, 2022
Friday, November 25, 2022
Wednesday, November 23, 2022
Happy Thanksgiving 2022
From the galley of S/V Sashay...Happy Thanksgiving!
 |
| (image credit: amazon.com) |
Friday, November 11, 2022
LiveAboard Boat Heating Options - In Winter
When under sail, I've used my propane stove - and also, on a long voyage - during January - when hypothermia was a risk on a few particularly bone-chilling night passage - I've used a propane-power camping-style heater, sort of like a Mr. Heater (8K-15K BTUs):
 |
| [image source: Amazon.com] |
IMPORTANT NOTE: I would only use this briefly - after coming down below for a brief respite from the bitter cold - as I always kept watch on deck, at night - and only after making sure the forward hatch was open - and there was good airflow through the cabin and out the companionway hatch. The risk of Carbon Monoxide Poisoning is a real risk - if using such devices in an enclosed space.
When tied to the dock, I've used a couple of different heating devices:
- Small personal-sized ceramic heaters [insufficient!]
- Heating blanket - for the v-berth [excellent!]
- Coal / wood-burning stove [messy, worrisome, not efficient]
My preference is something like the Vornado VH202 Personal Space Heater
$37.65 [as of 2022-11-11]
Noteworthy:
- "Set your comfort with 2 quiet heat settings (Low/375W, High/750W) and a fan only setting"
- "Advanced safety features include a cool-touch exterior, tip-over protection, and automatic safety shut-off system"
 |
| [image source: Amazon.com] |
Monday, October 10, 2022
Inspiring: Pat Lawless
Pat Lawless: Golden Globe Race 2022 skipper
https://goldengloberace.com/skippers/pat-lawless/
His boat is a Saltram Saga 36 (designed by Alan Pape):
- http://www.yachtsnet.co.uk/archives/saltram-36/saltram-saga-36.htm
- https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/saga-36
- https://sailboat.guide/saga-36
See his race updates here:
https://goldengloberace.com/live-tracker/
https://afloat.ie/sail/offshore/solo-sailing/itemlist/tag/Pat%20Lawless
https://www.youtube.com/user/mrpatlaw123
https://www.facebook.com/PatGGR/
https://www.instagram.com/patlawless_ggr_sailor/
(his father's web site, he's also named Pat Lawless):
http://www.patlawlesssolocircumnavigator.com/
http://www.patlawlesssolocircumnavigator.com/about.html
Sunday, September 25, 2022
Inspiring: Tim Weston - DIY Boat Building: Building Tokyo Express - a 40ft Catamaran:
Thursday, September 15, 2022
Useful: USB Endoscope
Useful:
USB Endoscope for OTG Android Phone, Computer, 5.5 mm Borescope Inspection Snake Camera Waterproof with Micro USB, Type C, 16.4FT Semi-Rigid Cord with 6 LED Lights
https://www.amazon.com/Seesi-Endoscope-Waterproof-Inspection-Semi-Rigid/dp/B07PBF6DX5/
https://www.amazon.com/Seesi-Endoscope-Waterproof-Inspection-Semi-Rigid/dp/B07PBF6DX5/
 |
| image source: Amazon.com |
- 0.21-Inch Diameter Camera & Semi-rigid Cable Endoscope: The USB Endoscope camera probe is ultra-thin, only 0.21 inch/5.5mm, we can use this Endoscope in many hard-to-reach, narrow, and confined places at home or outdoors, such as HVAC, vent pipe, engines, air conditioners, sofa corners, bathtub pipes, toilets, etc. Unlike similar USB borescopes with soft cables, this one comes with a semi-rigid cable that can be forwarded to the narrower place more easily.
- 720P HD Camera: This updated one comes with 1280*720, 640*480 Resolution to choose from. The focal distance/Best observing distance: 3~10cm(1.2~3.93inches).
- Easy to use: with USB, Type C Connector, This endoscope can only be used with Android smartphones with OTG function, windows computer, and MacBook. For OTG Android phone, you just need to download an App as recommended by instruction or Amazon customer Q&A. For Mac, Please use Macbooks’ bundled software, Photo Booth. For win 10, you can directly search CAMERA in WINDOWS to find it and click on it. WIN 7/8, please see the user manual. Then plug into the USB port t use.
- IP67 Waterproof: The Snake Camera is also a helpful tool when you have to find your treasures or other small objects from the bathtubs or pipes with water in. Don’t stay too long in the water depth is more than three meters
- 6 dimmable LEDs: Inside the camera at the top of the line, there are built-in 6 adjustable LED lights, and the lights can also be turned off, which can ensure normal use in dark environments.
Sunday, August 14, 2022
John Vigor's Black Box Theory - The Fifth Essential
There is much good wisdom to be found - and applied - in the world of sailing, in technology, in business, and in everyday life - from reading John Vigor's "Black Box Theory" - aka "The Fifth Essential"
https://goodoldboat.com/vigors-black-box-theory/
Tuesday, August 2, 2022
United Kingdom Hydrographic office (UKHO) to withdraw official paper charts by 2026
- Tom Cunliffe: ‘Why I was left speechless over UKHO phasing out paper charts!’
- "Recently, the United Kingdom Hydrographic office (UKHO) announced that it was now policy to withdraw their official paper charts by 2026. It seems that NOAA in America and SHOM in France have made similar decisions. For the record, I am advised by Norcom (Meridian Chartware), that the Admiralty Raster Chart Service (ARCS) is also to be discontinued. "
- "The UKHO’s announcement states that their decision is based on diminishing orders for paper charts. I’d liked to hope that they were delivering a service, not operating as a business driven by profit and loss priorities"
- "Routeing options are varied and choices must be made. Try managing that on a screen the size of a tablet with a vector chart system."
- "Panning out either side for as far as we may possibly divert is unrealistic. It becomes more so as passages increase in length. The world of litigation is full of sailors who hit rocks ‘not on the chart’. The bricks were there all right, but the casualty didn’t zoom in tightly enough for the layering arrangements to reveal them. The classic incident of the Volvo boat on an Indian Ocean reef is a case in point. There are many others."
- "...my first call when passage planning is the paper chart. It’s big. I can see where I’m going and make sensible decisions regarding routeing."
- "...more probable is that the GPS signal is interrupted, switched off for military reasons, or otherwise corrupted."
- 2020-12-16 [YachtWorld] Pro navigator Mike Broughton explains why paper charts are still irreplaceable
- ...
Sunday, July 3, 2022
My Love Affair with The Sea
It was my family's tradition (1960s-1970s), during the summer months, to spend a week vacationing by the excellent camp sites by the lakes of the many Arkansas State Parks in the Ozarks. Usually near Greers Ferry Lake (Shiloh Park, Heber Springs, Tumbling Shoals) - and Mountain Home's lakes (Norfork, Bull Shoals).
It was upon those protected waters that I learned to read the weather, fish, swim, and handle a boat.
Before I ever saw an ocean...I spent many nights reading a book (bought at a library book sale for less then $0.25) of historically factual accounts...of the exploits, adventures...and mis-adventures...of real pirates...from the 1600s-1800s.
My first encounter with an ocean...was upon the beaches of Florida's East Coast...probably around Jacksonville - while still not yet a teen. It was the summer that my family did a long vacation...driving from Arkansas to Florida...and making a circuit down the Atlantic side...all the way down to Key West, then back up the Gulf of Mexico side. This was in the days before private folks had GPS in their car - and before mobile phones - and I recall how we used maps prepared by a AAA travel service (which was called a "TripTik" - a folio of maps and travel guide information - with color highlighted routes).
 |
| (image source: Etsy.com) |
I distinctly remember my first view of the Atlantic...walking over a dune...and beholding the site of its massive majesty.
Other
distinctive memories from that trip...our visit to Key West...as well
as stops in Naples and and Pensacola - as well as visiting the
battleship USS Alabama - and the submarine (USS Drum) in Mobile, Alabama - on our way back to Arkansas.
Some years later (when I was 17) - my family spent a vacation visiting the Hawaiian islands...and I had a chance to go diving for the first time in Hanauma Bay.
 |
| (image source: Wikipedia.org) |
 |
| (image source: Wikipedia.org) |
These were all formative experiences...that imprinted upon my soul the Song of the Ocean...
Being near (or upon) the water has become my Rx for when I need to clear my head, think, rejuvenate, restore my soul, or replenish my mojo.
Mediating by moving water (whether a beach, or a river/stream/brook) is how I find my center...
After I have been away from the ocean for some time...the first breath of the crisp salty tang of the air - begins a molecular change in my body, mind, and soul.
The sound of seagulls is music to my ears.
I can usually find something beautiful in most any boat (although, there are exceptions...)
When my hand grasps the tiller or wheel - and I am making way to depart a harbor...there is a kind of freedom that swells in my heart...which I have never experienced anywhere on dry land.
After three days at sea...I enter a state of grace with the ocean...and my cares and worries fall away...
Sunday, June 5, 2022
Kenichi Horie - oldest person to complete a solo nonstop voyage across the Pacific Ocean
https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/kenichi-horie-solo-pacific-sail-intl-hnk/index.html
"Japanese adventurer Kenichi Horie at 83 just became the oldest person in the world to complete a solo, nonstop voyage across the Pacific Ocean — and he says he is still “in the middle of my youth” and not done yet"
The 83-year-old solo sailor departed San Francisco on March 26 - arriving in Japan on June 4.
https://www.nps.gov/safr/learn/historyculture/kenichihoriepeoplepage.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenichi_Horie
- Born September 8, 1938 in Osaka
- In 1962 he became the first person to sail solo and non-stop across the Pacific Ocean
Friday, June 3, 2022
Toyota’s prototype Hydrogen 'cartridge'
Toyota’s prototype 'cartridge' is a way to make hydrogen portable
"The cartridges would be relatively small at 16 inches long, 7 inches in diameter and about 11 pounds in weight. Toyota calls them `portable, affordable, and convenient energy that makes it possible to bring hydrogen to where people live, work, and play without the use of pipes.. [and] swappable for easy replacement and quick charging.`"
Monday, May 30, 2022
Stainless Steel Cleaning Ideas
Over several years, I've neglected to keep my stainless steel bright and shiny. When I dive into cleaning the deck hardware...I've got a long hard slog to get back to ship-shape.
A friend suggested, "Bar Keepers Friend"
Thursday, May 19, 2022
news item: Solar-powered desalination device wins MIT $100K competition
2022-05-16
https://news.mit.edu/2022/100k-competition-nona-0516
"Nona Desalination is developing a compact water-desalination device that requires less electricity than a cell phone charger."
"The traditional approach for water desalination relies on a power-intensive process called reverse osmosis. In contrast, Nona uses a technology developed in MIT’s Research Laboratory of Electronics that removes salt and bacteria from seawater using an electrical current."
“Because we can do all this at super low pressure, we don’t need the high-pressure pump [used in reverse osmosis], so we don’t need a lot of electricity,” says Crawford, who co-founded the company with MIT Research Scientist Junghyo Yoon. “Our device runs on less power than a cell phone charger.”
"The company plans to sell its first units to sailors before moving into the emergency preparedness space in the U.S"
Monday, April 18, 2022
Boat Gear: Navatiee Collapsible Folding Wagon
 |
| [image source: Amazon.com] |
Navatiee Collapsible Folding Wagon, Heavy Duty Utility Beach Wagon Cart with Removable Wheels, Large Capacity
"The internal volume is increased by 40% than other wagons overall, the unfold size is 35.5" x 19.5" x 22". The load capacity is up to 220lbs (100kg),"
In preparation for more moving, traveling (and needing to move heavy items from/to the car), and some future boat projects - as well as future voyaging - I decided to splurge on a Collapsible Folding Wagon.
2023-01-02 update:
I have used this cart extensively - and highly recommend it.
Saturday, April 9, 2022
Roman Titov: Pitchpoled & dismasted 300 miles off Scotland
A fascinating story of a single-handed sailor's self-rescue, after being pitchpoled
"One by one I had solved all the seemingly fatal problems which I faced."
"Over the course of 17 days, I had been able to clear the boat of water, make a flame, dry wet clothing, erect a jury rig, sew small sails, repair and start the engine."
"With just a marine chart, sextant and compass I had brought the yacht into a Scottish port, a voyage under jury rig of 307 miles."
Friday, April 8, 2022
Marine Canvas Tutorial Resources
I need to replace my current main sail cover - and considering sewing it myself...this blog post is a placeholder for useful resources I may find:
YouTube Channels
Misc. YouTube Videos
Books
- Canvas for Cruisers: The Complete Guide
- The Big Book of Boat Canvas: A Complete Guide to Fabric Work on Boats
- The Complete Canvasworker's Guide: How to Outfit Your Boat With Cloth
- Canvaswork and Sail Repair
- The Sailmaker's Apprentice: A Guide for the Self-Reliant Sailor
- The Complete Rigger's Apprentice: Tools and Techniques for Modern and Traditional Rigging, Second Edition
- The Arts of the Sailor: Knotting, Splicing and Ropework (Dover Maritime)
Web Sites
- https://www.sailrite.com/
- https://www.sailrite.com/How-To-Projects-Guides/Tips-Tricks
- https://www.sailrite.com/How-To-Projects-Guides/Learning-to-Sew
- https://www.sailrite.com/How-To-Projects-Guides/Selection-Guides
- http://www.hoodcanvas.com/marineCanvasTraining.html
- http://www.hoodcanvas.com/links.html
Mobile 5G Internet Service Information and Resources
As I frequently travel for
business - and am planning to do more long-distance single-handed ocean
voyaging next year...this video was of particular interest to me.
Some interesting information for folks interested in the current state of 5G mobile capabilities of different options/providers
Internet Resource Center
INSEEGO
T-Mobile - Coverage Map
T-Mobile - 5G MiFi M2000 Mobile Hotspot
- https://inseego.com/products/mobile/mifi-m2000/
- https://inseego.com/download/Datasheet-MiFi-M2000-TMobile.pdf
- https://www.t-mobile.com/hotspot-iot-connected-devices/inseego-5g-mifi-m2000
T-Mobile - 5G Home Internet Gateway
2022-05-19 Update:
I've been using my new T-Mobile Mifi device for the last ~7 weeks - and am very pleased with it. $50/month - with unlimited data (first 100GB at 5G speeds)
2022-11-19 Update:
Fight for Fair Internet: Consumer Reports white paper on broadband pricing
https://advocacy.consumerreports.org/research/fight-for-fair-internet-consumer-reports-white-paper-on-broadband-pricing
Saturday, March 26, 2022
Solar 3.0 - research notes
Solar 3.0: This New Technology Could Change Everything
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQmFVcD-Mbo
Shockley–Queisser limit
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shockley%E2%80%93Queisser_limit
In physics, the Shockley–Queisser limit (also known as the detailed balance limit, Shockley Queisser Efficiency Limit or SQ Limit, or in physical terms the radiative efficiency limit) is the maximum theoretical efficiency of a solar cell using a single p-n junction to collect power from the cell where the only loss mechanism is radiative recombination in the solar cell. It was first calculated by William Shockley and Hans-Joachim Queisser at Shockley Semiconductor in 1961, giving a maximum efficiency of 30% at 1.1 eV.[1]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shockley%E2%80%93Queisser_limit#Exceeding_the_limit
Sunday, March 13, 2022
Promising New Electrolyte for Solid-State Lithium-Ion Batteries
"Researchers from the University of Waterloo, Canada, who are members of the Joint Center for Energy Storage Research (JCESR), headquartered at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory, have discovered a new solid electrolyte that offers several important advantages."
"This electrolyte, composed of lithium, scandium, indium, and chlorine, conducts lithium ions well but electrons poorly. This combination is essential to creating an all-solid-state battery that functions without significantly losing capacity for over a hundred cycles at high voltage (above 4 volts) and thousands of cycles at intermediate voltage. The chloride nature of the electrolyte is key to its stability at operating conditions above 4 volts — meaning it is suitable for typical cathode materials that form the mainstay of today’s lithium-ion cells."
“The main attraction of a solid-state electrolyte is that it can’t catch fire, and it allows for efficient placement in the battery cell; we were pleased to demonstrate stable high-voltage operation,” said Linda Nazar, a Distinguished Research Professor of Chemistry at UWaterloo and a long-time member of JCESR.
"A paper based on the research, “High areal capacity, long cycle life 4 V ceramic all-solid-state Li-ion batteries enabled by chloride solid electrolytes,” appeared in the January 3 online edition of Nature Energy."
Reference: “High areal capacity, long cycle life 4 V ceramic all-solid-state Li-ion batteries enabled by chloride solid electrolytes” by Laidong Zhou, Tong-Tong Zuo, Chun Yuen Kwok, Se Young Kim, Abdeljalil Assoud, Qiang Zhang, Jürgen Janek and Linda F. Nazar, 3 January 2022, Nature Energy.
DOI: 10.1038/s41560-021-00952-0
Sunday, March 6, 2022
Seattle Center for Wooden Boats, 2022 Rendezvous on the Docks & Online Auction - April 23rd 2022
If you will be in the
Seattle area on Saturday, April 23rd, and if you have a love for nautical traditions, old
wooden boats, boat building skills/traditions - join me in supporting a
worthy non-profit, at the The Center for Wooden Boats (CWB) - from 4pm-9pm:
"Proceeds from the 2022 Rendezvous on the Docks & Online Auction support CWB’s ability to provide equitable access to empowering maritime experiences. Last year, CWB engaged over 30,000 people with sailing and woodworking instruction, boat rentals, the Public Peapod Program, and free access to maritime exhibits. Your generosity helps us steward northwest maritime heritage through hands-on learning on the water and in our boat shops, and enables CWB to provide scholarships to our youth programs for families in need - ensuring access to boating opportunities for people from all walks life."
Thursday, February 24, 2022
The Road Goes Ever Onward
 |
| (image credit: Pexels on pixabay.com) |
“He [Bilbo] used often to say there was only one Road;
that it was like a great river:
its springs were at every doorstep,
and every path was its tributary.
'It’s a dangerous business, Frodo,
going out of your door,' he used to say.
'You step into the Road,
and if you don’t keep your feet,
there is no knowing where you might be swept off to.'”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
 |
| (image credit: Pexels on pixabay.com) |
In Water...the Echo of the Music of the Ainur
 |
| (image credit: Pexels on Pixabay) |
“It is said by the Eldar
that in water there lives yet
the echo of the Music of the Ainur
more than in any substance that is in this Earth;
and many of the Children of Ilúvatar
hearken still unsated to the voices of the Sea,
and yet know not for what they listen.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Silmarillion
Wednesday, February 23, 2022
The Door is Wide, and Open to Many
 |
| (image credit: Pexels on Pixabay.com) |
There is a price,
for those who would seek entry
to the great cathedral of god,
far out upon the ocean -
where the door is wide and open to many -
but only the few enter.
~ Kelvin D. Meeks
Monday, February 7, 2022
2DPA-1 - a two-dimensional polymer - light as plastic - stronger than steel
Revolutionary material stronger than steel yet as light as plastic developed by MIT scientists
https://www.studyfinds.org/material-stronger-than-steel-light-as-plastic-mit/
- "a two-dimensional polymer that self-assembles into sheets, unlike all other polymers, which form one-dimensional, spaghetti-like chains."
- " as light as plastic — but stronger than steel"
- "six times more difficult to break than bulletproof glass"
- "...a new polymerization process that allows them to generate a two-dimensional sheet called a polyaramide."
- "For the monomer building blocks, they use a compound called melamine, which contains a ring of carbon and nitrogen atoms. Under the right conditions, the monomers can grow in two dimensions, forming discs...these discs stack on top of each other, held together by hydrogen bonds between the layers, which make the structure very stable and strong."
- "Because the material self-assembles in solution...it can be made in large quantities by simply increasing the quantity of the starting materials."
- "...the new material’s elastic modulus – a measure of how much force it takes to deform a material – is between four and six times greater than that of bulletproof glass. They also claim that its yield strength – how much force it takes to break the material – is twice that of steel, even though the material has only about one-sixth the density of steel."
Wednesday, January 12, 2022
2022 Travel Goal - Christmas and New Year's Eve - Phuket Thailand
2023-01-02 Update:
[This goal, for 2022, was not realized - as an unexpected confluence of two forces emerged in 2022: a long-duration client engagement that started in mid-February, scheduled to last through January 2023; and my mother's rapidly accelerating decline required multiple family interventions.]
 |
| image credit: Thavorn Beach Village Resort & Spa Phuket |
Visualization is a useful tool.
To manifest things in my life...I imagine that future state, with as many details as possible...and then I allow the magic of my subconscious mind to work - in conjunction with my conscious actions - to bring about its fulfillment...
https://www.thavornbeachvillage.com/
 |
| image credit: Thavorn Beach Village Resort & Spa Phuket |
 |
| image credit: Thavorn Beach Village Resort & Spa Phuket |
 |
| image credit: Thavorn Beach Village Resort & Spa Phuket |
 |
| image credit: Thavorn Beach Village Resort & Spa Phuket |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)