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June 10, 1999
Hawaii to Tarawa Voyage, Update #39
Day 38. Thursday 10 June 1999 0314 GMT
Wind ENE 3-4. Heading 210M.
Latitude: 08deg 29.110N
Longitude: 175deg 00.788W
Around midday the wind started to slacken somewhat, allowing a little normality to creep back into the picture. The heavy seas of the past few days have really been grinding me down, pulling and pinching at my resolve to remain indifferent to them. But at times - like last night when I had just rinsed off the accumulated salt for day and was about to slip into the rathole when an enormous wave broke over boat, drenching everything including (somehow) my sleeping bag - it feels good to face the wind and the waves and tell nature in no uncertain terms, using the most colourful language that can be mustered, what you really think of it. It's like sneezing except through ones mouth. Feels wonderful for a second or two afterwards.
So this afternoon there's been a chance to dry some clothes out on deck and generally get a bit of order back to the boat. The water-maker, after trying it one more time before pulling it to pieces this morning, decided to work as if there was nothing ever wrong with it. I couldn't believe it. I'd spent hours on the thing yesterday trying everything to make it work and had eventually surrendered in disgust, resigned to spending today replacing all the internal seals. Machines behave very strangely out here I've noticed. It's as if the whole ordeal is too much sometimes and they go on strike for a while. I blame the seawater. It looks so innocent, but over time it behaves like sulfuric acid: eating, killing, corroding, rotting everything in and out of sight. If the oceans were made of fresh water it'd be a different, much more pleasant story.
I notice also my body physiology has changed somewhat. The muscles either side of the spine have atrophied from not standing upright, and my whole upper body in general is wasting away from lack of use. The only development is in the thighs, which are like a pair of Redwoods, but the calf muscles are disappearing, as is my bottom, which makes for painful pedaling. There just isn't any padding there any more.
(Dr. Kessler: if you are reading this, I only have 7 days of antibiotics left. Is it better to finish the course? But then I will be without for the remainder of the voyage.)
Jason Lewis,
The Moksha motor
Posted on June 10, 1999 4:27 AM