March 21st, 2006, Puerto Montt, Chile
Waking un on Northern Light became a ritual quickly. Almost every morning Deborah (sometimes Rolf) would partially remove the foam oval that filled the oval doorway into the pantry that leads to the aft cabin. "Time to get up" she would say in her soft, high voice, and almost invariably I would already be awake, laying there with my thoughts, reflecting, relaxing, and considering the still sleeping form of Jojo next to me. Deborah's calling voice would wake Jojo up or I would give her a little help, and we would lay in bed for a few minutes cuddling, because there was nothing pressing or imminent. Not rush of time or schedule, just relaxation and awakening to breakfast.
Jojo and I would dress to the sounds of Deborah and Rolf on the other side of the foam door as they went about their morning ritual, a slight deviation from the normal with us on board, of checking the weather, the boat, the anchor, disassembling their bed and reassembling it into the dining area, and cooking pooridge for breakfast. Deborah almost always did the breadfast cooking and we ate poridge with them almost every morning. It was oatmeal really, with rasins cooked in so they softened and were warm in your mouth and sweet. Dried milk and soymilk for Jojo and I, with other dry cereals to go on top. I am not the kind of person who eats the same thing every day, but doing so on board was easy. And enjoyable.
After breakfast that first day and a half Deborah and Rolf did all the dishes too (lunch and dinner in fact!) and told us that while we were getting settled they would take care of us. This first mornign on board I had very little poridge and no mild and no additives because I was feeling kinda funky. I felt better that morning, and so did Jojo, so we all got ready and took the bus to Jumbo which is true to it's name and is a gigantic super market much like Fred Meyer's in Portland, or Super K-Mart the world over. As soon as we got there I became quite sick again and spent the time between sitting on stools at various counters in the store and running to the bano. It took quite some time to purchase and pay for all of our supplies, and three hours later we all piled into two taxis and returned to the marina where we wheelbarrowed our goods down to Northern LIght.
At this point Deborah and Rolf decided that it would be best to treat whatever bug/problem Jojo and I had with a remedy I had never heard of but will now swear by - Activated Charcoal in a liquid form. It comes in a squeeze bottle like liquid soap, and you take it by the mouth in spoonfulls. It actually has a kind of pleasant taste, is totally black and makes your mouth look like a black hole. I took three table spoons and Jojo two. This was the beginning of our 60/40 split that would mark the provisioning and doling of resources on the boat. Deborah and Rolf practice this and I will be forever grateful for my "boy's sized" pieces of cake.
The charcoal seemed to work and I began to hold liquids again, and my dehydration ended. Disaster was averted, and our departure was assured. I really don't remember much more of this day becuase I think I was simply so relieved to be feeling better, I am not sure if we ever ate dinner! But I do remember taking a long hot shower, and that first shower, at the end of an illenss is always a transformative experience. We fell asleep that night with the excitement of adventure and the unknown. A crecendo of dreams and wonder silently ringing in my head, what would we see? Where would we sail? What would happen to Jojo and me when faced with that isolation only undisturbed nature can provide? What wonders would occure and how would we be different in the end? All these questions peppered my dreams and in the middle of the night I awoke to the rocking of the boat, and the chirping of the rigging against the masts of all the boats in the harbor. I was a free man, free of the land, and free of myself. Ready to reinvent to whatever situation would arise, or whatever need I could devise. The excitement, I realized, reminded me of one thing; the first day of college. Embarking on a new adventure, a first for my life.
click here to be taken to the next day
Jojo and I would dress to the sounds of Deborah and Rolf on the other side of the foam door as they went about their morning ritual, a slight deviation from the normal with us on board, of checking the weather, the boat, the anchor, disassembling their bed and reassembling it into the dining area, and cooking pooridge for breakfast. Deborah almost always did the breadfast cooking and we ate poridge with them almost every morning. It was oatmeal really, with rasins cooked in so they softened and were warm in your mouth and sweet. Dried milk and soymilk for Jojo and I, with other dry cereals to go on top. I am not the kind of person who eats the same thing every day, but doing so on board was easy. And enjoyable.
After breakfast that first day and a half Deborah and Rolf did all the dishes too (lunch and dinner in fact!) and told us that while we were getting settled they would take care of us. This first mornign on board I had very little poridge and no mild and no additives because I was feeling kinda funky. I felt better that morning, and so did Jojo, so we all got ready and took the bus to Jumbo which is true to it's name and is a gigantic super market much like Fred Meyer's in Portland, or Super K-Mart the world over. As soon as we got there I became quite sick again and spent the time between sitting on stools at various counters in the store and running to the bano. It took quite some time to purchase and pay for all of our supplies, and three hours later we all piled into two taxis and returned to the marina where we wheelbarrowed our goods down to Northern LIght.
At this point Deborah and Rolf decided that it would be best to treat whatever bug/problem Jojo and I had with a remedy I had never heard of but will now swear by - Activated Charcoal in a liquid form. It comes in a squeeze bottle like liquid soap, and you take it by the mouth in spoonfulls. It actually has a kind of pleasant taste, is totally black and makes your mouth look like a black hole. I took three table spoons and Jojo two. This was the beginning of our 60/40 split that would mark the provisioning and doling of resources on the boat. Deborah and Rolf practice this and I will be forever grateful for my "boy's sized" pieces of cake.
The charcoal seemed to work and I began to hold liquids again, and my dehydration ended. Disaster was averted, and our departure was assured. I really don't remember much more of this day becuase I think I was simply so relieved to be feeling better, I am not sure if we ever ate dinner! But I do remember taking a long hot shower, and that first shower, at the end of an illenss is always a transformative experience. We fell asleep that night with the excitement of adventure and the unknown. A crecendo of dreams and wonder silently ringing in my head, what would we see? Where would we sail? What would happen to Jojo and me when faced with that isolation only undisturbed nature can provide? What wonders would occure and how would we be different in the end? All these questions peppered my dreams and in the middle of the night I awoke to the rocking of the boat, and the chirping of the rigging against the masts of all the boats in the harbor. I was a free man, free of the land, and free of myself. Ready to reinvent to whatever situation would arise, or whatever need I could devise. The excitement, I realized, reminded me of one thing; the first day of college. Embarking on a new adventure, a first for my life.
click here to be taken to the next day
posted by Greenstigator at 10:14 AM
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