A to Z Challenge - "V"

V - as in "Valiant"

I cannot let the "V" pass me by without an ode to the Valiant, a Bob Perry designed double-ended, ketch-rigged sailboat. The fact that I spent six glorious consecutive months on a Valiant-40, "has nothing to do with it." Nor does the fact that the skipper was tall and handsome, alas elegantly gray round the edges (Can I tell you another one?)

We sailed from San Diego past Magdalena Bay (famous for cavorting and courting whales), past Cedros Island, to Cabo San Lucas. From there, 300 miles due south to a Mexican Navy Base on Socorro, part of the Revillagigedo Islands. Great fishing, fabulous diving though rocks close below the surface even in the anchorage. So were plenty of sharks - blissfully, I was only told that later on.

During our only storm at sea, we night-sailed east to a then still deserted Tenecatita. 

On to impressive Manzanillo, its hillside hotel a former little summer home a tin-baron built for himself and his friends! 

North to Nuevo Vallarta, the large-scale modern yacht basin north of Puerto Vallarta.

Across to La Paz on the inside of Baja and north to Puerto Escondido where I spent three weeks anchored, alone on the boat (there were other boats to dinghy to at cocktail time).

Back around the tip of Baja to Cabo san Lucas, from where I was told to fly home like a lady. Glad I did. The "uphill bash into the wind" to San Diego took the boat three weeks.

Just like the faithful, doomed Senta, I waited on the dock when she (the boat) and he (my "Flying Dutchman) sailed in under a following breeze and a triumphant colorful spinnaker.

End of Story?
(If  you paid attention to "B" you'll remember how it turned out)

A to Z Challenge - "U"

U - as in "Uhuru"

Oh, now I've got your attention. 

"Uhuru" means Freedom, in Swahili. But why I remember the word is because of a fabulous trawler we met in La Paz, Baja California. It swung on the hook next to us in a very squirrely La Paz Bay and one always got a bit nervous if the boats would collide.

One morning, during the regular radio broadcast between the boats, Uhuru asked if anyone had a replacement high-pressure hose. You could almost hear the snickering over the airwaves. Why would any of these rather modest sailboats have a high pressure hose lying around? We never found it what happened as we soon thereafter left, sailing north into the Gulf.

Anyway, that's my story - and I am sticking to it.

A to Z Challenge - "T"

T - as in "Transom"

Do you know what a transom is, nautically speaking?
No? Well, let me enlighten you:

In naval architecture, a transom is the surface that forms the stern of a vessel. Transoms may be flat or curved and they may be vertical, raked forward, also known as a retroussé or reverse transom, angling forward (toward the bow) from the waterline to the deck, or raked aft, often simply called "raked", angling in the other direction.

The bottom tip of the transom can be approximately on the waterline, in which case the stern of the vessel is referred to as a "transom stern", or the hull can continue so that the centerline is well above the waterline before terminating in a transom, in which case it is referred to as a "counter stern" or "cutaway stern."

On smaller vessels where an outboard motor is the source of propulsion, the motor is usually mounted on the transom, and held in place either by clamps or metal bolts that go through the transom. In this arrangement, all the power of the motor is transmitted via the transom to the rest of the vessel's structure, making it a critical part of the vessel's construction.

Aren't you glad you asked?

A to Z Challenge - "S"

S = as in "SIROCCO"

Can't go sailing without wind.

Well, sometimes, it can be a little too much of a good thing... 

as it is in

SIROCCO, Storm over Land and Sea

This archaeological thriller is Book 2 of the "Legends of the Winged Scarab" series.
However, it also stands alone as a present-day novel that takes place from Boston to Cairo and Luxor, in the Red Sea (yes, sailing through a storm), to Cyprus and Crete; it is all impacted by the Arab Spring and Egypt's upcoming presidential elections (May 2012).

Prologue

Trexa! Sorokos!”

Barely, the fishermen pull their boats onto shore when the storm arrives all in a rush, malevolent and laden with Libyan Desert sand.

“Run! Sirocco!” Again, the men cry the warning against the feared wind that had spawned over the Sahara. After giving birth to its unbridled son Khamsin, the Devil Wind of the Nile, it froths the waters of the Mediterranean and mercilessly claws at the islands in its path, scything the coastal shrub into stubble.

The old women of Crete call it The Big Tongue. Innocent-looking at first, a lazy yellow haze comes drifting north. It grows larger, turning the air into choking ochre mist. Its hot breath churns the sea and drives salt spray deep into the island’s interior. As if on cue, tempers turn sour and people suddenly find fault with friend and neighbor. Fights erupt over nothing. Secretly harbored thoughts of suicide and murder attack the mind as voraciously as wild goats strip young plane trees bare. All things bad can now be blamed on the Sirocco.

It is only when the cool steady meltemia breezes blow again out of the northwest that the island breathes a sigh of relief, and much is forgiven.

* * *
Have you seen this painting?
Did you know that this Rembrandt painting I used on my cover
was stolen fin an audacious art heist?
(Another of my "premonitions"?)

The FBI is Looking for it (so is the Boston Isabella Stuart Gardner Museum)

A to Z Challenge - "R"

R - is for "Ramose"

I don't know why I had such a hard time thinking of "R" when RAMOSE, the High Priest of Ptah, was practically the driving force in my historical novel. Oh, boats....I'll come to that.

Ramose was an ancient Egyptian name, meaning "Born of Ra." A variant of the name is Ramesses; Egyptologists usually use the Ramesses variant for pharaohs and Ramose for non-royals. Many notable bearers of the name followed my Ramose who lived (in my imagination) at the beginning of the First Dynasty, 3080 BC.

The office of the High Priest of Ptah was located in Memphis (the very early Ineb-hedj - City of White Walls - in my story). It was also common for the high priest to hold the title of sem priest of Ptah. The sem priest was recognized by dressing in a panther skin.

(I just read all this in Wikipedia - whew, am I glad I somehow got that right in the book.)

Now, as to boats. With the Nile the most important artery along the Two Lands, and the priesthood successfully keeping itself separate from the royal palace, it asserted its own powerful laws with the aid of legends, threats, and mysticism (sounds familiar?). Their temple boats and supply barges spread the priestly influence up and down the Nile, while collecting generous offerings to the gods. The priests ate well.

When Ramose went through the Field of Rushes, temple sistrum dancers wailed and undulated, mainly to keep mourners alert during the lengthy burial services (something boring politicians might think about).

A to Z Challenge - "Q"

Q - As in "Quarterdeck"

The quarterdeck is a raised deck behind the main mast of a sailing ship. Traditionally it was where the captain commanded his vessel and where the ship's colors were kept. This led to it being used as the main ceremonial and reception area on board, and the word is still used to refer to such an area on a ship or even in naval establishments on land. Many such facilities have areas decorated like shipboard quarterdecks.

Ceremonial use

There are ancient traditions of offering special deference to the quarterdeck. Greek, Roman, and Carthaginian warships all carried shrines which were given special respect. This continued into Christian times, and in medieval British warships, the religious shrine was set up on the quarterdeck. All hands were required to salute it by taking off their hats or caps. This led to the habit of saluting whenever one entered the quarterdeck.

Today, quarterdeck refers not to a specific deck, but to a ceremonial area designated as such by the captain. As in the days of sail, it is a place where the captain has special control and prerogatives.

(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

Luckily, I did not use this theme for yesterday's "P" - as in Poop=Deck!

Who knows what image I might have heaved upon you.

A to Z Challenge - "P"

P - as in "PASHA"

No, Pasha is not a boat, nor a harbor. You could say, he's my anchor.

I give you a hint (okay, a big furry hint):

"What's a pasha," I am often asked, and I reply that, just like his name-sake from One-Thousand-and-One-Nights, he sits on silk cushions and surveys his harem which - of course - includes me.

He even has his own blog to which we welcome authors and their animals.
http://ingehborg.blogspot.com/
(I wasn't smart enough then to name it after him).

And, yes, he jumped from his cage in our little animal shelter straight into my home and my heart.

A to Z Challenge - "O"

O as in "Offshore Sailing"

(Excerpted from Moments of the Heart,
A Book of Poems and Short Prose)

Offshore Sailing

White Wings on an Ocean

            defying the moon's pull.

The sailor laughs himself

            off the harsh brown land.

His hold crammed for survival,

            he tempts death.

White Wings on an Ocean,

            straining, a billowing team.

The sailor braces against his contrary wheel

            raping the rudder as lines wail taut.

The storm flogs with malice.

                       

White Wings on an Ocean

            screamed into shreds

that bandage the mast. 

            A halyard flails.

Lifelines gone;

            the dinghy torn off.

The sailor weeps for soft green meadows.

A to Z Challenge - "N"

N as in "Not on my Watch!"

Despite our electronic gadgets, including radar, it is always practicing good seamanship to have a man on watch, especially at night. Often, it's a woman--especially when a couple is goes cruising. Then, it becomes paramount - and often the relationship (and sometimes the boat) suffers severely through sleep deprivation.

Here is a brief excerpt from AFTER THE CATACLYSM:

   The last thing Jonathan ever expected to happen to him was to drown on a sailboat anchored in a river. He looked at Sam and Maria, snuggled together, their lips moving. It took him a while to figure out that they were praying. He almost envied them their blind Catholic faith.
   “Not on my watch,” he defied Neptune over the rattling, and the creaking, and the howling. His fist hit the table so hard that it startled the others from their terror-gripped stupor.
   “Nobody’s going to die tonight. Not on my watch.”

   He slid from behind the table and handled himself forward on the well-spaced overhead hand-holds. The wheelhouse, he felt, was the only place for him to prevent them from running afoul of danger. This was where he placed his faith. He checked that everything was secured and tight. Glancing back out into the cockpit, he barely made out the shadow of the mizzen mast. It was still upright.
   Breathing a small sigh of relief, he wondered how bad the inevitable storm surge was going to be. Unable to do anything about it at this point, even Jonathan now retreated back into his half-hidden fear caused by sleep deprivation, mixed with an almost unreasonable hope that they would live to see another day. 

* * *

A to Z challenge - "M"

M for "Mayday,Mayday."

Researching the purported sightings of the real ghost ship I am fictionalizing in my novel “After the Cataclysm,” I came across an official website that warns mariners of hazards at sea. The dangers that lurk on an apparently empty ocean are as diverse as they seem to be numerous.

Hence, whether you are a sailor or an aviator—or even a radio amateur monitoring those frequencies--these distress signals must instill fear and empathy in your heart especially if the indication is that there is danger of loss of life. You immediately realize that someone, somewhere is in peril. Unless, of course, you are the one sending an SOS out into the ether. Then your fear becomes eclipsed by pure terror.

Most dispatches are banal, devoid of urgency and only those familiar with the way of the sea know what is behind them. Somebody out there is in trouble, and an “assist if possible” and a “sharp lookout” – they always add - may not be sufficient to save someone's life.

These daily messages read something like this:

WESTERN NORTH ATLANTIC.BAHAMAS.
DISTRESS SIGNAL RECEIVED FROM 83 FOOT VESSEL SOUND
IN 25-34.73N 078-28.33W.

VESSELS IN VICINITY REQUESTED TO KEEP A SHARP LOOKOUT, ASSIST
IF POSSIBLE. REPORTS TO U.S. COAST GUARD MIAMI

My heart goes out to those in peril. The sea can be a merciless mistress to those who love her. I may have turned into an armchair sailor, but I still hear the ocean’s siren song. I must follow it; but these days, I do it through my writing.