From sloopscoop@jewellgems.com Wed Aug 1 19:00:48 2007 From: sloopscoop@jewellgems.com (Sloop John B) Date: Wed, 01 Aug 2007 12:00:48 -0600 Subject: [Sloop Scoop 2007] #5, August 1 - 15 Message-ID: <6.1.0.6.2.20070801110852.02638a58@pop.jewellgems.com> Crew and Cruisers-- ***SAILING ALERT: Theres space for tonight (Wednesday) 1830 hours. Let me know ASAP by PHONE (773-343-0153) if you want to come. I won't be back on e-mail after about 1130 hours today.*** We've had some glorious sailing in a mix of conditions over the past few weeks. We did have to cancel a couple of sails due to potential (one of which did become actual) thunderstorms, but we've made up for it in the past week-and-a-half and hope for more! I figure you're all hot and looking for some relief in the next few days, so check the schedule and let me know when to include you. REQUIEM FOR A TREO/SAILTHERAPY Our July 11th call started off badly. My phone got stolen from the yacht club. It turns out people did try to use it but the police said they weren't going to investigate. It was most likely a kid because they used the phone before I cut if off, then they kept trying 10 times to use the phone the night and morning after I cut it off--even though they were routed to customer service each time and were told they wouldn't turn the phone back on for them. Adults would know better. So painfully, despite not working, I had to replace it and am now rewired. The silver lining, though, was that I was re-reminded of the healing power of sailing. One of the sailors at the club, who had loaned me his phone to call T-mobile, told me to go out and enjoy myself and I said "I'm depressed; I don't want to go." He told me "No--you're going--don't let them take that away from you, too." Chas, his brother and friend, and Marie had been patiently waiting and I agreed to go--and it was a great night. The winds were fluky, moderate to strong, with some waves. We saw a beautiful sunset complete with red-washed clouds and the Vangpire's "Jesus rays." Chas took a couple of pictures of me that showed me actually happy and relaxed. I'll get some up on the site. When I got back I left a message thanking that sailor (I think his name was Reggie) for making be go. SHAHARAZAD SHINES Now calibrated with a few nautical miles under her belt, Shaharazad (Zadie) has been on duty now for two weeks. I still keep pressing the wrong buttons now and then, and during one main dropping I had to remember, as I blissfully concentrated on flaking the sail with Zadie on the helm, that an autopilot is blind and someone needs to watch for traffic! There was none, that day, but still . . . She holds a wind angle course, a GPS waypoint course, and a compass course well. She can't make big changes, so I have to take over on occasion. G rigged up a nice little resting spot for her to be put away and, as my friend Deb commented after one sail, the autopilot is TOTALLY worth every $$$$$$. FINE TUNING The break from work coupled with Gordon's retirement has meant that a lot of things on the Sloop have received attention that has been lacking for a couple of years. I did a tune-up on the engine, tearing up my fingers as usual trying to get the wires off the plugs and having a tad of an issue setting the gaps on the points because we couldn't figure out how to hand crank the engine w/o the necessary tools. We ended up bumping it enough trying to start it to get plugs in the right position, but in the meantime had to jump ship to Isle Marie to sail because I didn't get the engine tuned in time. Mary, Labeeba and I got to help Gordon fly his spinnaker and that's always a nice treat. Now I want to fly mine! Today we'll put in the carpet and the cushions and it will start feeling like home again. We hope to do a short cruise between August 8/9 and the 13/14 --I'm still sorting it out, and I want the boat comfy and clean for that A GROWING CREW The Sloop is thrilled with her new crew folks, with Chas and Jenny Rotten logging in a lot of hours and Labeeba, Derrick, and Andrea learning what they can. These bright young folks are quick to learn, retain information well (well at least if it's not a knot) and are proactive. Chas and Marie have logged in some helm time, with Chas getting the baptism by fire of having to steer by wind angle with no point on the horizon the help! Along with Shaharazad they have made sailing much less stressful for me. Anyone who's been out knows how much work it is and the less I have to keep track of, the better. I hope to have a few more aggressive training sails to keep things interesting, and if you want to learn, please come out. With Zadie and crew I have much more freedom to teach. It's also been great to get out the Sloops earlier crew folks--Thomas and Mary and Deb and Leo and hopefully soon we'll get Laura and Nana and Kim out. The Sloop misses all her old friends, so please try to join us soon. . . . AND FINALLY, SAILING! Tonight, this weekend, next week, and a lake crossing cruise at the end of next week and weekend. I will be gone from the 17 - 20 August, so no AIR and WATER show this year--sorry! Sail early, sail often . . . Skipper Schuy/Lisa Land: 773-752-6266, Cell: 773-343-0153 http://www.jewellgems.com/sloopscoop/index.htm (what to do and bring, directions to the harbor, old pictures, and soon a current captain's log and new pictures) ---------------------- SCHEDULE (the usual weather/crew caveats apply . . .) ___Wednesday 8/1 Evening cruise. Meet at the harbor at 1830 hours. There is food to buy at the harbor, so you may want to come earlier (any time after 1700 hours) to get something to eat. We should be back no later than 2130 hours. ___Saturday 8/4 Late afternoon cruise. Meet at the harbor at 1500 hours. We'll probably get in around 1800 hours, maybe later. ___Sunday 8/5 Late morning cruise. Meet at the harbor at 1100 hours. Bring something to grill and something to share and a swimsuit. We'll probably get in around 1500 hours, maybe sooner. ___Tuesday 8/7 Private Morning cruise for Thomas' coworkers. ___Wednesday 8/8 Tentative Evening cruise (if we haven't crossed the lake yet) Meet at the harbor at 1830 hours. Bring food for dinner or buy it at the harbor (any time after 1700 hours). We should be back no later than 2130 hours. ___Wednesday 8/8 or Thursday 8/9 through Sunday/Monday/Tuesday--still up in the air! Lake crossing cruise. Let me know if you want to come. We may need to do a crew swap over in Michigan. The Perseid meteor shower will be during this time so you'll have sail over with us to catch it! ___Wednesday 8/15 Evening cruise. Meet at the harbor at 1830 hours. Food is available at the harbor starting at 1700 hours, or bring your own. We should be back no later than 2130 hours. ---------------------------------------------------------------- ON THE HORIZON Wednesday and Saturday fireworks cruises A race or two if anyone wants to crew From sloopscoop@jewellgems.com Wed Aug 8 21:32:31 2007 From: sloopscoop@jewellgems.com (Sloop John B) Date: Wed, 08 Aug 2007 14:32:31 -0600 Subject: [Sloop Scoop 2007] #6, August 8 - 24 Message-ID: <6.1.0.6.2.20070808131820.0265ae00@pop.jewellgems.com> Ahoy again-- ***SAILING ALERTS*** There's space for tonight (Wednesday) 1830 hours if the storms pass or avoid us before/around then. Let me know if you want to go (773-343-0153) and check back in around 5:00 to see if I can make any better weather predictions. We also will be here until at least Saturday morning, and I plan to do a meteor shower cruise on Friday (clear skies permitting) and/or Saturday (if we don't cross the lake)*** **************************** A MIRACULOUS RUN We've gone almost two weeks without any cancelled sails--and a few of them surprised even me. We've had light air and have sailed with full sails almost every trip--and we even got to fly our shiny newish sail for the first times in two years--(people complained we were going too slow when we were at least moving! Try sitting out at the start of a race in the heat, being attacked by flies and moving *backwards*!) We've had wind and waves and the rail in the water, which, according to Deb, "feels like you're really sailing." Gloriously, everyone enjoyed the spray and leaping over the waves. I don't think we scarred anyone for life. We've been bodysurfing behind the boat, and swimming to keep up with the boat--I couldn't lap the boat with sails down and it going less than a knot so I know I'm not in shape!. The other day we went out to escape the heat and did some well-needed scrubbing, and then decided--what the heck, let's sail. It was still a bit breezy, but worth the effort of putting up the sails. I still love the autopilot which allows me to go below and get my own water, show people how to tie a cleat, help drop a sail and sit down on occasion. Zadie's a bit fluky in really light air or really gusty air so I'll be playing with some settings, but overall, she's more than worth it. (Eventually I will stop gushing about Zadie, I promise.) LIFE GOES ON, BUT KEEPS IN TOUCH This year I've had several of my former students on board, and I recently heard from another who hopes to join us on the water after being on the Sloop Scoop list (and reading the Sloop Scoop) for the past five years! It's never to late to become part of the Sloop John B. story, and, as any teacher knows, I'll never get tired of hearing about my students--especially the ones who still want to see me! So if you are a former student on this list--don't be shy. You're not the only one, there are other people your age, and us old folks are okay, really (and we have cars). CAPTAIN'S LOG FINALLY UPDATED I hated that the last entry was a long sob story ode to trying to get in the water a couple of years ago. We now have happy stories instead! If you want more detailed descriptions of the sails you were on--or the one's you've missed--I finally have updated the Captain's long on the Sloop Scoop site http://www.sloopscoop.com Just follow the link for captain's log, and you'll find out about the winds and waves and the courses we sailed, and the interesting moments for both crew and Sloop. We've been sailing so much I'm already a couple sails behind but I'll catch up. I'm hoping to get up some slide shows soon for those folks who aren't on facebook (those on facebook have seen quite a few photos already!). Since I'm keeping up with the log I'll do less play-by-play documentary in this newsletter, but I will keep you posted on highlights and my life. IT FEELS LIKE HOME The carpet's in, the cushion's are in, the curtains are up. The cabin has been cleaned, the silverware, grilling tools, coffee maker and blender are on the boat where they belong. (We've already learned that 12 volt blenders don't crush ice well, so we need to pre-crush ice for the more interesting drinks.) The new stereo is installed and we can listen to CDs or hook up mp3 players. I'm ready to move in, and the Sloop's anxious for her old and new friends to visit often, and bring good music. COMMUNICATION OR CONFUSICATION On Sunday, my friend Carmen was on board, and I would start describing where something was or what to do, and she could figure out what I needed before I finished the sentence. It was amazing. Then yesterday, I told two of Thomas' coworkers to "let go" of the line after they released it for a tack, and I ended up having to peel their fingers off the rope as they held on tight after repeated requests to let go. It was hilarious. Kinda metaphorical, not being able to let go . . . Skippering entails a lot of direction-giving and it's amazing how someone can be touching something and be told--"yes that--you're left hand is right on it" and still not be able to hand it to you, and other people can figure out exactly which blue-on-white vs. white-on-blue line you want them to loosen. For teaching, I had to learn how to explain things in different ways, and yet, on a boat, you don't often have time for multiple explanations. It's nice to work with people who think like me, but it's more interesting, and often humorous, to work with people who are different. Sailing, our little microcosm of paradise, is ever also a microcosm of life. LET'S GO SAILING Hope to see you soon! Let me know if you want to sail at a time that isn't listed--I can add sails. Skipper Schuy/Lisa Land: 773-752-6266, Cell: 773-343-0153 http://www.jewellgems.com/sloopscoop/index.htm (UPDATED AGAIN!!!!) ---------------------- SCHEDULE (the usual weather/crew caveats apply . . .) ___Wednesday 8/8 Evening cruise . Meet at the harbor at 1830 hours. Bring food for dinner or buy it at the harbor (any time after 1700 hours). We should be back no later than 2130 hours. ___Friday 8/10 Meteor shower cruise--clear skies permitting. Meet at the harbor at 2000 hours. It will be a late night since the best part of the meteor shower doesn't start until 2300 hours. We'll be in between midnight and 0100 hours, and people can stay on the boat overnight if it's too late to head home. If you drive, contact me because it will matter where you park since the park closes at 11:00 pm ___Saturday - Sunday 8/11 - 12 Michigan City crossing. Over on Saturday, back on Sunday. Meet at the harbor at 0900 hours. We'll try to leave by 1000 hours, since they're calling for light winds in may be a long day. If you want to go one way, there is a train. Contact me for more information. ___Wednesday 8/15 Evening and fireworkds cruise. Meet at the harbor at 1900 hours. Food is available at the harbor starting at 1700 hours, or bring your own. Fireworks start at 2130 hours and we should be back after 2200 hours (so contact me if you're driving for parking instructions). ___Wednesday 8/22 Evening cruise. Meet at the harbor at 1830 hours. Food is available at the harbor starting at 1700 hours, or bring your own. We should be back no later than 2130 hours. ___Friday 8/24 Morning cruise. Meet at the harbor at 0930 hours. ---------------------------------------------------------------- ON THE HORIZON Wednesday and Saturday fireworks cruises A race or two if anyone wants to crew