2007-06-13 (2nd)

Today we're moving along the rhumb line to Fiji at a steady if stately
3.8 knots. Not much wind, but what's there is a consistent port beam reach.
It was pretty busy til midnite with squally winds, but since then we've had
leisure to read a bit and try to learn how to use some of the things we got
last year and haven't had time to study. Karen's decided to learn to play
the ukelele we got in Aitutaki, since I'm not applying myself beyond the
guitar. She typically set her sights high.....first project, Eagles Hotel
California ( the acoustic version from the Hell Freezes Over tour!) So it's
been tune up new strings and figure out how to find, play, fast forward,
repeat etc on the Creative Zen MP3 player we got last year. The device is
complex, and the manual is poor, but once you figure it out it will do a LOT
of stuff. We have over 1400 tracks on it now, and can play it thru
headphones (night watch in the cockpit) small AA battery powered speakers
or, for best audio, thru the amp for the boat radio and speakers. By the
way, most of our electronic gadgets will run on AA or AAA batteries, so we
have a stock of the rechargable NiMh types and a couple of chargers, and we
cycle them around quite a bit. I couldn't stand to be throwing a few
hundred alkaline batteries away each year, but the rechargables are great.
I'm having to charge the ships batteries with the little gas generator on
the forward net, as the mainsail is shading the solar panels and there's not
enough wind for the Aerogen. I need good hot batteries in the morning as
Jim will be gone from Also Island again, and I'll be running the Rag of the
Air radio net for the cruisers. I have a great signal and good reception
out here....nothing to interfere for almost 600 miles! It 's quite nice to
think it's calm enough now that I can run a radio net while at sea. I
helped with relays etc for the last few days, but it was tough writing down
the list data. Now it's calmer than some days in Lucas Creek.
Took about 12 minutes last night to download all the sailmail. We've
been getting great little notes from a number of you out there, and it has a
positive psychological effect when things aren't that great on board.
Sailmail requests (STRONGLY) that users keep time on frequency to 15 minutes
or under per day, so we're doing OK on that, and really enjoying the luxury
of email at sea, despite having to continue to find out why certain glitches
occur. I guess if ya wanna play, ya gotta pay. But our bill has been a
bargain, with all the help and contributions from all of you. Tim; no
cracks yet around the wing repairs, and it would be hard to give it more of
a test! Don and Pete; we live in the harnesses 12 hours a day, they're
outstanding. Jen, Bernie and the crew of Alice Colleen; the Aerogen wind
generator kept us in lights and radio for the 2 days (was that really all
it was???) of gales, and you all contributed to making that work.
Andrew,and Jeff, different rope lines of critical importance came from the
two of you at different times, and we think of you every time they save our
lives again. I don't have the email time to list the specific things so
many of you have done for us, but every one of you has made this trip
possible with your moral support as much as your labor and gifts. I would
surely have had a nervous breakdown without you while we were on the
hardstand at Salthouse. A million thanks. Time for me to go over the
charts Karen has been working on. More report tomorrow. Ted