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CHAPTER 1
Houston, Texas
CHAPTER 2
Kemah, Texas
CHAPTER 3
Kemah, Texas
CHAPTER 4
Galveston, Texas
CHAPTER 5
Seabrook, Texas
CHAPTER 6
Seabrook, Texas
CHAPTER 7
At Sea - Gulf of Mexico
CHAPTER 8
At Sea - Gulf of Mexico
CHAPTER 9
At Sea - Gulf of Mexico
CHAPTER 10
At Sea - Gulf of Mexico
CHAPTER 11
Port Fourchon, Louisiana
CHAPTER 12
Cut Off, Louisiana
CHAPTER 13
Cut Off, Louisiana
CHAPTER 14
Cut Off, Louisiana
CHAPTER 15
Houma, Louisiana
CHAPTER 16
Houma, Louisiana
CHAPTER 17
Houma, Louisiana
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Answers to your questions. You asked for it!
So many of you have asked questions in your emails, most of which we have tried to answer individually. Because we find ourselves answering many of the same questions repeatedly, we thought it might be a good idea to include this page in our website.
"How do you do it, living with four teens?"
We really get along well, the five of us. We are best friends. Once, when the kids were small, we spent some time visiting western Europe in a Volkswagen van! The kids were little guys, Heaven was only six, David 7, and the twins 9. We look back at those times as the happiest ever. Life was basic, simple. But we were close. It isn't much different now, just that the kids are all a lot bigger, and Dad older.
"Isn't that boat too small?"
Not when we compare it to that Volkswagen! We DO have to have a place for everything, and everything in its place though, otherwise we would all go crazy! We would very much love to have a bigger boat someday though. That would probably be our greatest personal wish.
"Who does the cooking?"We all take turns in the Galley, as we also do while on watch. We have no rigid schedule, but rather all kind of flow with any given situation, and as is each person's strength try to be considerate and pitch in. Sometimes, because Dad is maybe more often tired, the kids tend to do a little more food prep. and cooking.
"How are you financing your trip?"
We have a little residual income from past clients (you know who you are, thanks!) and we hope to make the rest that we will need somehow along the way taking advantage of any number of individual and combined talents we have.
"How do you get online?"
The only way we can get online is when and where we can find someplace, or someone who will let us. Satellite phones, with their internet capability was just a little out of range of our budget. Public libraries are a good place in the States. Elsewhere, we will see.
"Do you have a washing machine on board?"
No. The boat is too small for that. Also, one would use up all our fresh water. Laundry is one of our biggest problems. We do it in washaterias, or when some kind soul offers to let us do it in their house. We quite probably will have to do it by hand in some foreign countries.
"What are you going to do if one of the kids meets someone along the way and decides he wants to stay there?"Well, I guess we will just have to cross that bridge when we get to it.
"Are you religious?"
That depends. We love the Lord. But we prefer to keep it simple: "Love God, and try to love your neighbor. Do unto others." Why complicate it with more!
"What chuch do you go to?"
None regularly. Why do people always have to ask you that! We believe in Christianity, not "churchianity." We have always had trouble trying to fit into others' molds of what THEY think you should be. We will "all have to give account of ourselves before GOD" someday. We love Him and try to please Him. Thats it!
"How long is this trip going to take you?"
A circumnavigation usually cannot be done in less that two years. This is due to the weather in both hemispheres. Of course racers in their racing sailboats do it quicker, but they really live on the edge, and generally have the money to confront every need and outcome. We think we will be taking somewhere between 3 and 4 years for our trip.
"Do you ever get sea sick?"To date, only Heaven and David have ever gotten sick, and this, oddly enough was in relatively light sea conditions. In the thick of it, no one felt sick. Didn't have the time to! Ha!
"What do you do with your free time while at sea?"
You read, eat, or sleep, mostly. That is, when you are not at the helm, on watch, or doing any number of other small jobs. You can also listen to music or get on a computer. There really isn't too much more you can do when you're out there. Being at sea does have a certain "sameness" to it all.
"Do the kids (or you and the kids) ever argue?"
Of course! We all have many of the same problems that others have. Its just that we have been blessed with many common interests and a large degree of harmony. That enables us to work through our problems. We really DO enjoy each other's company.
"Are you afraid of ever losing your boat (to bad weather)?"
We would be lying if we said "no". Every man who ever went down to the sea has been afraid of it. But, we do trust the Lord, know that He is in control, and that He can protect us. We do also know that we have our part, and that, we have tried to do by working so hard on our boat to make her as seaworthy as possible.
"What about pirates?"
Pirates do exist even today. There are areas one is wise to avoid. The worst of these is the Malacca Straits off Indonesia. Other typically dangerous places are off the coast of Colombia, and off the west coast of Morocco.
"Are you political?"
No.
"Who stays on watch?"
We all take turns being on watch. We usually decide this based upon who is the most rested up at any given moment, and also trying to foresee our needs over the next 24 hour period.
"How can you sleep at sea with all the movement?"
You get used to it.
"Aren't you afraid to go out there after 911?"
Yes, it is kind of scary. The world has changed so much and so quickly since 911, you can be sure we will stay as far away as possible from any hot spots.
"I thought you were ready when you left Houston. Why are you always 'getting the boat ready'?"
A boat is never really ever "ready". Unlike a house, or a car, or even an airplane, a boat is in constant and continual need of maintenance. The marine environment is absolutely the most severe imaginable. And oftentimes just when you think you have done everything, something else pops up in need of attention, reenforcement or repair. You just learn to live with it. Thus, passage making is often influenced by 'what needs to be done' on the boat. This is something that landlubbers can't understand or relate to simply because it isn't the same for them in anything they habitually do. But if you ask anyone who has a boat (or has HAD one) of any size, he will tell you that this is so. This is also why a boat is referred to as "she", because it is in constant need of attention. (No joke!)
"No man will be a sailor who has contrivance enough to get himself into a jail; for being in a ship is being in a jail, with the chance of being drowned. A man in a jail has more room, better food, and commonly better company."
Samuel Johnson
(1709-1784)
(1709-1784)