Cruising with Walter Cronkite

Do you see that blob with her arm out under the rear stripey sail? That’s me at the helm of ‘Nightwind.’ The photographer was Walter Cronkite.

It was the late 70’s and I was crewing on the charter yacht ‘Nightwind.’ Walter came down from New York with his wife, son and friend to spend some down time cut off from the world as this was before the days of mobile phones.

We were ghosting along under a light wind and Walter and the skipper hopped into the dingy to take some rather splendid souvenir photographs of ‘Nightwind’ under sail, some of which he posted to us later after they’d been developed (remember doing that?). Sadly, this one is now faded, scratched and blotched.

An enduring memory of THE Mr. Walter Cronkite was that he would ascertain our destination for the next day and read aloud about it from the cruising guide after dinner. Washing up, tinkering and tidying would halt and the other five of us on board would gather round to listen. I knew the guide off by heart and the islands were completely familiar to me but his sonorous voice, relaxed by his vacation, was mesmerizing. It was his news voice tuned down to a lullaby. What a treat.

I lived Afloat on this boat for two years cruising with charter passengers between Martinique and Grenada. And am still drifting.

If you are interested, or my terminology offends you, the rear stripey sail is the mizzen staysail.

I could have just re-posted Put That Back, a photo of Floating Islands desserts for this challenge, but that seemed a bit lazy.

A Little Ray of Sunshine

I’ve been nominated for a Sunshine Award! I’ve never thought of myself as someone’s little ray of sunshine. Himself thinks it’s hilarious. Don’t think him unkind. You don’t have to live with me.

My nominator, Joanne took the trouble to research the award so rather than reinvent the wheel I will pass on her words to you.  “It is an award given by bloggers to other bloggers who “positively and creatively inspire others in the blogoshere.”  (Questionable punctuation is mine.)

Gosh. Thanks Joanne for the nomination. You are my little ray of sunshine with your wonderful blog http://mylifelivedfull.wordpress.com/

I am to nominate up to 10 blogs – hard to keep it down to 10 – and think of 10 vaguely interesting things to say about myself – horribly difficult.

I’ve read these types of lists on other blogs and admired the author’s imagination, ability for introspection, self-knowledge and sense of humor. I panicked and blanked at the very thought of it but here goes:

1. I was The Alien in England for 30 years but I feel like an alien in my own country now. I’m told things move on. Get over it.
2. I am the only person I know who likes cottage cheese. Isn’t that riveting?
3. I love words but fear my vocabulary is shrinking.
4. I’m sure I lived in France in a previous life.
5. I miss family and friends in my adopted country of England. And my garden. But the garden thing obviously isn’t on a par with family and friends.
6. I never take myself seriously.
7. I cooked on a charter yacht in the West Indies for two years. Walter Cronkite chartered that yacht. I can still hear his voice as he read to us each night.
8. I am easily moved to tears. Too easily. It’s annoying.
9. I can’t think of a single favorite food. I love everything I eat. I deserve to be fat(ter). As it is I always have that elusive 10 pounds to lose.
10. I am fascinated by the lives of my blogging friends around the world, most of whom I’ve never met.

My blog nomination choices are a combination of travel, RV travel, photography, history, poetry and humor. I am following dozens of blogs and would like to list them all and have agonized over choosing just 10.

Please visit these blogs and prepare to be amazed:

http://egghillphotos.com/

http://andieduncan.wordpress.com/

http://livelaughrv.wordpress.com/

http://pookypoetry.wordpress.com/

http://lowestravels.com/

http://judylindophotography.wordpress.com/

http://visitstothepark.wordpress.com/

http://gallivance.net/

http://myyearofsweat.wordpress.com/

http://unclespikes.wordpress.com/

I wanted to nominate http://multifariousmeanderings.wordpress.com/  for the Sunshine Award but she had the unmitigated gall to accept the self-same award from someone else first!

To accept this award please:

1. Display the Award on your Blog (nightmare scenario for me. Finally figured it out!)
2. Announce your win with a post and thank the Blogger who awarded you.
3. Present up to 10 Bloggers with the Award.
4. Link your awardees in the post and let them know of they are being awarded with a comment.
5. List 10 interesting (printable!)  facts about yourself.

And speaking of sunshine, here is a favorite sunshine photo:

Sunset at Porth Beach, Cornwall, England