Location: Rodney Bay, St Lucia
This is one of our new favorite words here on Ocean Star. Coined by International Yacht Training Association but really by Katie Pope, it’s supposed to be an abbreviation to remember how to place a Mayday call. However, none of us really remember what the letters stand for and instead just use it as a general call for help. Katie swears she knows what it means, but judging by the fact that we are the two most challenged students in NavMaster, I would not believe her. It fits a variety of situations, such as last night when Keaton got a little heavy-handed with the razor on Max’s haircut. Noah stepped up for damage control, and Max is now looking spiffy with his “high and tight,” but many MIPDANIO’s were exchanged in the process.
Unfortunately for me, it was also a MIPDANIO that I had to wake up earlier than usual to be skipper. By earlier than usual, I mean 6:25, but it was crucial that I wake up the crew so we could get to our rainforest hike on time. We were all looking forward to a longer van ride, some for the views of St. Lucia and some for the opportunity for sleep. There is nothing like sleeping in a van, we have decided. Anyway, the group split up into two smaller groups and hiked through a dense and luscious rain forest. Dense with trees but also dense with mosquitoes, so it’s good that Sam brought some Deet wipes. The other group did not take “one single picture,” I have been told, so you’ll have to draw your own conclusions about how their hike went, but we all met up at the Hummingbird Cafe after for complimentary juices. The lady also enticed us with the offer of hot dogs, wings, and fries, so we left the hike probably pounds heavier than when we arrived. MIPDANIO. But after another nap on the van ride back and a surprisingly dry dinghy ride from Brahm, we were back on good ol’ Ocean Star.
Ash has started to become quite generous with “siestas,” or hour breaks before our Rescue Diver Class, so many took this as an opportunity to sleep or hang out downstairs. Henry and I have become avid readers on this boat, so we sat on the deck and made some headway on our books. Addisen free dove in search of the octopus she saw yesterday, but unfortunately, he did not make an appearance. After running through some medical scenarios with Ash, we had more free time to talk and tan on deck. It feels like every afternoon we go through a can of pringles, and today was no different, but we only have one canister of barbecue left, so wish us luck on our next grocery store run. Keaton is quick to call over Julian when a pringle drops on the ground, but Julian says he will only eat something off the ground if it’s chicken. This is a hot take and led to a discussion of what deserves to be eaten off the ground. It’s becoming a pattern that most of our conversations on this boat circle back to food, and look at this. We’re even talking about it now in the blog, so I’ll try to segway into the end of the day.
After a dinner of chili, I asked the squeeze question, “what is your order from your favorite fast-food restaurant?” There is a lot of Chik-fil-a fans on this boat, and Tophs once again talked about the Culver’s cheese curds, but Keaton would like you all to know that being from Wisconsin, she knows what a good cheese curd is like, and Culver’s is simply sub-par. I am loyal to the Cook Out corndog and Cheerwine float, but apparently, this is very specific to North Carolina. And here we are again talking about food. MIPDANIO. Hoping to preserve my title as reigning champion in Speed tonight, and maybe my 10-11 watch will be rain-free. Here’s to hoping! Love you all at home:)
1) Max is overwhelmed by this whole haircut business
2) He made it! Haircut complete!
3) Good morning Addisen
4) Van ride
5) Celia in a monkey goblet tree
6) Addisen once again
7) A tertiary Addisen
8) Keaton’s fishbowl view of the hike
9) Mini pineapple, how cute
10) Noah admiring his hot dog
11) Rain in a rainforest, how artsy
12) Naptime
13) What a handsome dinghy
14) Henry broke his arm. How sad.
15) I love Johnny’s Tennessee pants more than anything
16) Henry reading Jurassic Park, how studious
17) The most uncomfortable nap of my life
18) Group of pringles fanatics
19) ‘Tophs and his TeaTimes
20) I have never read this much ever
21) Sam in another tree
22) Liam’s grandmother, this one is for you!
23) Keaton and Meg:)
Sorry, these are very disjointed pictures, but that’s just how it goes sometimes. Hello to Noah, Henry, and Johnny’s grandmothers! And to you, Grandmama, Billy, Grandma, and Grandpa! And others <3 Signing off!