Location: Underway to Borneo
This morning, I had Deja Vu. All over again. There is something distinctly Groundhog Day about crossing the Indian Ocean. One could absolutely argue its lazy blue swell, the pitching, and swaying of Argo, or the ever-present clanging of metal forks on metal plates. But I am here to offer a different explanation. I think it is because every day, I wake up and chase leaping dolphins around Argo. Is there something wrong with that? Physically? Metaphorically? Metaphysically? I really don’t understand. I mean, if there is something wrong with that, I’d really like to know so that I can stop all this and move on to February 17th (I also can’t figure out how to bring up the calendar setting on my watch, which as of now I have not yet ruled out as the cause of my groundhog day phenomenon). But I digress.
Today (whichever day we are saying this is) was definitely a day of firsts on Argo (Does that mean I’ll wake up tomorrow on the 17th of February, hopefully?). We caught our first fish worthy of Argo’s oven: a gorgeous Mahi Mahi. If you have ever read The Old Man and The Sea, then you know exactly how this fish fight didn’t go down. From what I hear (which isn’t much in my current situation), the fish was boated (and put out of its misery) about as quickly as you might expect a Toblerone to vanish during 3rd-grade recess. And if that isn’t painting the mental picture for you, it was clocked somewhere in the vicinity of 43 seconds (Give or take a couple of minutes). Also, a first on Argo (and maybe galactically- who would have thought that galactically is not a word? That’s kind of weak), the shipmates took a stab at the answer to life, the universe, and everything. No, wait, sorry, not the answer, the question. I mean, we already know that undeniably, unquestionably, and unequivocally, the answer to life, the universe, and everything is 42, but to what question is that the answer? Today such possibilities were offered as: How many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie pop? How many pieces of chocolate can one eat before taking a three-minute break? & How many fish will get away from Jack before we get to Borneo (by my best estimate, that count is now at 11)? So, all in all, think we’ve got it nailed down almost perfectly. And, after closing the day with a piece of delicious freshly-baked brownie cheesecake (created by scratch by Carolyn to celebrate Annie’s Birthday), I’m pretty sure that I’ll wake up tomorrow on a brand new day (mostly because I plan on putting a significant amount of time towards fixing my watch tonight). Although, I did happen to chase a few dolphins around after dinner (yes, that might be a confession). This is Skipper of the Day, Hunter Stanley, signing off from 04 degrees South of the Octopus’s Garden and 17.014 Minutes East of Margaritaville.