Awesome Sailing Video

Glen Ellen, CA


Since I stopped sailing I've had  minimal consistent desire to start long-term sailing again. I do have stabs of compulsion occasionally to head to the tropical latitudes. As I watched the Bumfuzzle gang sail south to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico I did get out a chart and stretch some distances. That is usually how a sailing trip gathers steam. It is what it is. This morning I watch the below video on my beautiful 21.5" iMac.
What can I say, the beauty of the ocean is some awesome. I also recalled that while I was sailing the economy was fracturing, the presidential election was going on, and a general societal hyperventilation. That type of thing was far outside my immediate world. That aspect, the checking out of certain aspects of modern day life, and replacing it with weighty decisions of how much anchor chain to deploy and when to head to the beach is missed sometimes. Here is the video!




Capt Chris

A Slew of Photo's Over the Month

Glen Ellen California

Enjoy!

Capt Chris

Gimme Shelter Some Random History

San Rafael, CA

I would not characterize myself as a huge Rolling Stones fan, not in the vein of my good friend the former Kathleen Walsh, but I diggem. Even if one is not a Stones fan, anyone who enjoys history would enjoy a peruse of the Stones and their effect on American and British culture.  Someday soon I'll carve out the time to read Keith Richards Book 'Life'. The below picture is from the infamous concert, dubbed the 'Woodstock of the West' that went totally awry with the Hells Angels providing security. You can read about this event and its aftermath by clicking here.

Altamont Speedway near Livermore CA, December 1969

 Maybe my favorite Stones tune of all time is Gimme Shelter. The song was written mostly by Richards while he was sitting by the river Thames. For me the strum pattern and the female singer is what is so appealing. The other day the song came on and I decided to do a bit of research to find out the who's and the what's. Enter Merry Clayton.

She was born in New Orleans and the daughter of a Preacher and a renown Gospel singer in her own right. She has sang background vocals on numerous songs Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama" and Tori Amos "Cornflake Girl." This song reminds of my good friend Tara McDaid. 

What a set of pipes on this lady. So below is a quote about the song from Mick Jagger.

   "That song was written during the Vietnam War and so it's very much about the awareness that war is always present; it was very present in life at that point. Mary Clayton who did the backing vocals, was a background singer who was known to one of the producers. Suddenly, we wanted someone to sing in the middle of the night. And she was around. She came with her curlers in, straight from bed, and had to sing this really odd lyric. For her it was a little odd - for anyone, in the middle of the night, to sing this one verse I would have been odd. She was great."

What a crack that she showed up with curlers in her hair. That is old school! She sang so hard that night that she had a miscarriage. What a story.

History is chock full of these kinds of stories, and I just love them. 


Chris

My New Base of Operations

Glen Ellen, California


I've been busy outfitting my little house to make it homey. A critical component of my new living arrangement is my office.

The office is up and running. Looks pretty nice. Oh? What's that? That's right, that is a new 21 inch iMac sitting on my new Ikea desk with my Apple TV connected to my flatscreen. Hopefully I can be productive with all my gizmos so near at hand.


CC

A Hike Through Jack London State Park

Glen Ellen, California
At the Homestead

I spent a good portion of yesterday skulking through Jack London State Park. More accurately in the words of Thoreau I was merely "Sauntering."My friend Tina turned my onto Bill and Dave's Hikes. These fellows lead monthly hikes, mostly in the Valley of the Moon, but they do some hikes in other California parks. It was great fun. At the top of the list of what attracts me to California is its incredible geography. Lately I've been so busy with school and moving into the my house, I've spent almost zero time pursing any type of leisurely activity.

View of the Valley of the Moon or Sonoma Valley from the trail

California is a very troubled state. Jack London State Park is one of the parks that is on the closure list in California. The park with be off limits come September. You can click here to read an article in the LA Times regarding the sorry state of the park system. I leave you now with some photos from the hike. Enjoy!

BLAST FROM THE PAST

Rhett Walker and the Kid Washington State Cica 1990

Capt C

A Reason I've Moved Into A House

San Rafael, California

 This semester past I took a required course call Humanities Seminar that required a great deal of reading. It is best described as a class based upon the Great Books model of learning. The student reads a spattering of books that are judged to be great works that have shaped the foundations of western society. A reading is assigned for the week, then the class meets in a circular fashion, and the professor facilitates a discussion based upon students interpretation of the reading. I loved it! Here is a list of some of the authors I had to read. Thoreau, Marx, Martin Luther, The Bible, Freud, Whitman, Woolf, Darwin, and Plato. 

From Google Images

My charge for my last paper of the class was to pick a reading that "moved me" and write about ways that it made me think a little differently or some new insights. Also, to discuss the value of the humanities, and suggest further research I may pursue in the future.

From Google Images

I was pleasantly surprised to have enjoyed Virginia Woolf's "A Room of One's Own" so much, and choose to write about her piece. I thought for sure that I would choose to furiously attack Marx, as his writings did more than move me. In fact, one of the Marx writings called "Wage Labor and Capital" was the best economics 101 explanation I have ever read. He understood free markets. But his works "On the Jewish Question" was so revolting to me, I had trouble getting through it. If you want to know how World War 2 culminated in the Holocaust, just go back to 1843 and read what Marx wrote. Crazy. Anyway, below is the paper I wrote for the class.

Generally, I learned how important a sense of "place" is for a person to think creatively and thrive. "A Room of One's Own" is a metaphor for a great many things. Living aboard Christa since I started school has become difficult because of lack of space. I'm a spreader outer, and was unable to build an adequate room of my own. Thus, I've decided to give shore side living a long-term go. Interpret what you will! Enjoy!

Humanities Sem Reflective Essay Final

CC

Well It's Official, Christa is No Longer My Primary Home

Glen Ellen, CA
Weather=Not Good

 I've moved into my house in Glen Ellen, north of San Francisco in the wine country. Here is the deal. Like many, I had a pretty tough spring. With the exception of school, which continues to be a real blessing, I had some challenges in the real estate world creating a few stressful weeks. Simultaneously, I had an attorney default on a note that I hold for a piece of land I sold in 2005, and the renters in my house turned into a true nightmare. Needless to say, I was owed a truck load of money, and now have to spend to repossess the property. The lot is worth a fraction of what I was owed. The details of the renters is not something I should publish, but labeling them scumbags is accurate.

 Wood Stove Test Sat

I've grown weary of living aboard Christa. This is not a reflection of Christa or boats in general, but is an acknowledgement that I'm in my forties, I've been living aboard Christa for nearly 13 years, and I simply want to live more normally. I'm also running low on space aboard ship. Living the way I do these days surely would have precluded any sailing, as stowing for sea would be nearly impossible now. 


Some back story. I bought this little ugly 1000 square foot cottage in Glen Ellen in 2003 with the intention of knocking it down someday, and building nice little gem on the lot. Now the house is a bit of an ugly duckling, but it has a charm that is difficult to explain. It is a unique little place built sometime during the 1930's. It sits a few hundred feet behind a bigger refurbished home that used to be a Greyhound Bus Station in the 30's & 40's. My house was the caretakers home. 


I was stationed in California for a number of years, completing 3 tours back to back in California. I assumed I'd be able to finish out my Coast Guard career in California. I was wrong. The Coast Guard gave me orders to the east coast in July of 2005, and had a deep impact on many things, including my house situation. This is one of the rigors of military life. I turned the place over to a management company who didn't screen the tenants very well, culminating in the nightmare I just endured. 


So, here we are now in 2011. The housing market is totally in the tank, and not a prudent time to sell. I've not the stomach to be a landlord again, at least not for a long time, and coupled with the fact I don't want to live aboard anymore. It makes sense for me to move into my house. Seems like a no brainer ehhh???

A couple of downsides. I give up my high use status on Christa, and remove the option of moving back aboard. I simply can't afford to float a house mortgage and the high use fee.  Glen Ellen is 33 miles north of Dominican U of C, an expensive commute given today's gas prices. More importantly is, I've established a community of folks in San Rafael, and now that gets jiggered up a bit. 


The great news is that since I started staying in the house I've started to grow fond of the place again. It needs a ton of TLC. Sonoma county is really beautiful. Country living. It's nice. I now can begin to do some work aboard Christa as I have room to maneuver, and I will still be spending two night per week aboard Christa on the days I have class at Dominican. These are my rationalizations!


In my next post I'm going to write about California's Gestapo like tactics that give me serious pause about settling permanently here in the Golden State.

Blast From the Past 

Pennsylvania Circa 1990. Layover Transferring from Seattle to Point Judith Rhode Island

Capt Chris

Some Photographs From a Day In the Life

Glen Ellen, California
Weird weather in California

  I present a fellow rookie photographer. Meet April.

Shot with my Canon Powershot G11, Edited with Aperture, taken on Memorial Day

This Here is Ranger

This is my favorite image

Enjoy Capt Chris

Happy Memorial Day 2011

San Rafael, California
Breezy & Cool


 A year ago today I was cruising west in the Green Hornet (Honda Accord) making landfall in Pensacola Florida to camp. I had just left my parents house making tracks for my new home in California.

Vintage WW11 Aircraft, Sonoma County Shot with my Canon G11 Edited in Aperture 3

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all veterans for their service, especially those who served in combat. Also, to honor those who gave the ultimate to our country, and their families left in the aftermath. 

I've been blazing away with my Canon G11 at every opportunity. It's funny, once a budding photographer develops the habit of having a camera nearby, opportunities arise every other second. Here is a couple of shots for all hands enjoyment.

Mill Valley California, Canon G11, Edited in Apple Aperture 3

April Cheer

Light Fixture, Canon G11

Glen Ellen California, a half mile from my house

Budding Penot Grapes

 As you may have ascertained I've been spending time in Sonoma county. 


Capt Chris


PS: Don't hesitate to check in or to become a follower of this blog. I may be a bit sporatic in my posting, but I've stuck with it since September of 2007.

The Eagle Has Landed an Internship

Sonoma California
Sunny & breezy & kind of cool for wine country

Mill Valley California Public Library, Shot with my Canon G11

 The spring semester ended for me at Dominican University of California about two weeks ago. I'm happy to report to my two blog readers and the American tax payers that I've used the Post 911 GI Bill wisely. I manged a 4.0 GPA for the semester, and an overall 3.76 GPA. Of course I'm thrilled, but must temper my pride with the fact that my good grades can be traced with full throttle focus on educational pursuit while not balancing a job.

 However, the big news is my phat internship at the Mill Valley Public Library. I'm a Humanities & Cultural Studies student majoring in philosophy. This degree requires an internship, and this summer is perfect for such an endeavor. You'd think that the summer time for a retired guy like me would be a time of easy breezy saundering & sailing. No contrare. I'm as busy as ever! Hence my lack of blogging. 

 So why a library? I've always had a fetish for libraries. I've posted several pictures on this blog of me in front of libraries that I've come across in my travels. I discovered MV Library a number of years ago when I was stationed in San Francisco with the Coast Guard. When I returned to California last June, I reintroduced myself to the library, only to find that a bond had been floated, with a serious renovation. The library is more than a notch above. Mill Valley is very affluent with a location that sits in an old growth Red Wood forest. Bam! 

Pano of the Library, Shot with my Canon G11 and edited using Adobe Photoshop

One day while flopping around on my yoga mat at Red Dragon Yoga in Mill Valley I met the nice lady next to me. Turns out she is the director of the library. Of course I tell her how much I love the library. This is not news. Many people love that library. It is a busy place, a center of intellectual culture, but still maintains a serenity. I spend an amazing amount of time between the Mill Valley Library and the Dominican library. It makes perfect sense for me to intern at a library as I've really no clue how they operate. As I always say, when opportunity knocks open the damn door. People constantly ask me how is philosophy or interning at a library going to enhance my job seeking abilities. There is no simple answer other than to say educations biggest benefit is not for utilitarian purposes. Those who specialize to soon have limited ability to retool their life when their specialty evolves off the face of the planet. None other than John Dewey wrote extensively about this topic Democracy and Education, An Introduction to the Philosophy of Education. 

So onto a bit of sailing news. Pat & Ali & progeny sailed out the Golden Gate Bridge yesterday bound for Mexico on the monohull Bumfuzzle. Check in with the Bums, they are a hoot to follow and a real inspiration. Good Luck to all hands!

Capt Chris