Living in a disaster zone...

Bad news for Puerto Rico, interesting, and in the "Well, at least we're not allowed to vote for pathetic losers President in the USVI" department...

So, down here in America's paradise, life goes on.  Of course, the phones still don't work, getting on the internet to download your email can take all day, and listening to the constant drone of generators is a 24/7 affair while the the Gov says that electricity by Christmas is still a possibility.

I'm not actually complaining... Virgin Islanders are pretty damn good at the whole recovery gig and while the process is no walk in the park it is doable, we're a lot better off than Puerto Rico, and, as a bonus, I've just had a near month long vacation from the ongoing parade of the tRump shit show.

Hopefully more soon come.

Listening to Mott the Hoople

So it goes...

In the "I've got those Cat 5 blues again" department...

So, yeah, Maria came to visit...

"So It Goes" took some scrapes, the outboard was torn in half by a Bendytoy which, apparently, wanted to sodomize our transom, and I've come to realize that I'd really rather avoid ever having to mess with ground tackle again on the foredeck in winds exceeding 150 MPH. All in all, an interesting night.

We're now in the third week of "THE RECOVERY" and we still have not had the phone work, the Governor's daily news briefing says there may be electricity by Christmas, and most of the roofs on the island are no longer keeping the rain out.

Being that internet access is sporadic at best (we've only managed to connect a couple of times for a few minutes) so I don't expect that Boat Bits will be a daily thing for a while...

That said, I really want to thank everyone who wrote with good wishes, concern for our safety, and positive reinforcement in the guise of how folks miss Boat Bits when it's not there... To say it means a lot is a Category 5 understatement. Thank you.

More ASAP.
So it goes...

Oh yeah, Maria...

The mantra for the next 24 hours is from the Grateful Dead song "A Touch of Gray".

We will get by...

We will get by...

We will get by...

We will survive...

Nuff said. The rest is just waiting.

Listening to the Grateful Dead

So it goes...

Got to buy a gallon of DEET...

A little piece wonderfulness, a needful reminder, and Harry Dean Stanton is no longer with us...

X marks the spot,

Looks like it's time to head back to the mangroves.

Listening to Toranoko Rammy

So it goes...

just three words...

A shameful piece of legislative trash, some good advice, and a fair obituary...

Foiling.

Mini.

Scow.

Les images incroyables du mini Arkema en... by voile-magazine

Listening to Prom Queen

So it goes...

Jose...

A must read post on Irma, something in the "simply shameless" department, tRumps anchor babies, and some reality numbers on a dangerous job...

Jose a non-event, it's a beautiful day in the USVI, and time to get back to work.

Still swatting mosquitoes...

Listening to Steely Dan

So it goes...

Waiting on Jose...

So, big storm has come and gone...

Here in St Croix nestled in the mangroves it was something of a non-event. We got some wind, a boat anchored near us bumped us as it dragged by, but otherwise nothing bad happened. Sadly we can't say the same for our old stomping grounds of St Martin, St Thomas, and the BVI which is almost too gruesome to think about.

Having a charter company ourselves we've been working through the lists of boats that made it through safely, sustained damage, and were outright destroyed which I can only describe as a heartbreaking task. I keep seeing the word "decimated" used to describe the current state of the Caribbean charter industry but it does not come close to the reality. Truth is, there are simply no words that can sum it all up. Well, maybe one...

Despair.

That said, boat folk in general and boat folk who earn their living on the water are a tenacious lot and we will get through this. Hopefully, the resulting charter industry will be improved with a more benign, sustainable and less ecological damaging model. Well, one can always hope...


Anyway, I'd like to thank all those folks who wrote with concern for our safety and good wishes which were greatly appreciated... It's always nice to know someone cares out there.

Hopefully, after Jose gets past us, we get out of this mosquito convention center mangrove hole, and back to a wifi connection that actually has enough bandwidth to do a regular post, we'll get back to the same old same...

So it goes...

Today in the "big storm come soon" department...

Walter Becker is no longer with us, truer words, and in the "we are so truly fucked" department...

So, yeah, the handy how close can it get calculator is telling me 90.3 miles which, I suspect, just may be the continuing trend.

Bummer.

Which means it is just about time to get the mangrove and mosquitoes show on the road. So much for this weeks project list...

Listening to Steely Dan

So it goes...

in the "big storm come soon" department...

An interesting somewhat enlightening point of view, some needful reading, and some bad news on the Zika front...

So here's a cool tool in the decision making process of either hunkering down where I am or running to a place that is "safer".

So, the current thinking is that Hurricane Irma will slide by us at a distance of around 114 miles from where I'm currently anchored. Forecasts have the hurricane winds extending to around 25-miles outward and storm force winds to nearly 80-miles. Which, on paper at least, sorta/kinda qualifies as "safe" and made somewhat safer as the bulk of the winds will be coming from the south which is pretty much a zero fetch situation where I am.

Still 114-frelling-miles  is way the frell too close for comfort of a storm projected to be a category 4 hurricane as it whizzes through the neighborhood and all it would take is for the current projected path to dip a kiss and seriously ruin my day.

Running to the mangroves would be safer but "safe" is a somewhat elusive/illusory concept when you think about it and there are a whole catalog of factors that could make the move to a safer place anything but... Trust me, nothing ruins your day like being in a safe place and storm ready only to find a couple of dozen unattended boats anchoring on top of you at the very last minute.

The current plan is to prepare as usual, monitor the ever-evolving forecast, make the decision Tuesday morning where we'll weather the storm, and get to doing.

Listening to Suzanne Santo

So it goes...

Jim Brown talking about Meade Gougeon...

Way too interesting times, not exactly surprising (but oh so embarrassing), and in the "unprecedented challenges" department...

Jim Brown has a podcast about the recently departed Meade Gougeon that is well worth listening to.

Listening to Finlands

So it goes...