Dark’n’Stormy

is a traditional boat drink we learned about from our friends Phil and Jen.

Here is an excerpt from an article in Sail Magazine about it:

As many hundreds of Newport-Bermuda Race is its signature cocktail, the Dark’n’Stormy. Is there another mixed drink that can claim as strong an association to sailing as this potent blend of rum and ginger beer? After all rum has been the favored tipple of mariners for centuries; as for ginger, its anti-seasickness properties are legendary.
You can’t use just any rum in a Dark’n’Stormy, though. Bermuda’s own rum distillery, Gosling’s produces a dark-as-pitch rum called Black Seal. It’s aged in charred oak barrels, and this gives it a distinctive sweet and smoky character that blends only too well with the spicy bite of the ginger beer (never, ever, use ginger ale).
You can try lighter rums, but its not the same. The smoke-and-molasses kick is what makes it special. indeed, Gosling’s is so convinced of this that it has trademarked the Dark’n’Stormy name.

According to Gosling’s, there is only one way to make a Dark’n’Stormy. Fill a tall glass with ice, pour in half a can or more of ginger beer, then gently add about an ounce and a half of Black Seal. This will sit at the top of the glass in a rather ominous fashion, evoking an approaching storm cloud—and if you have more you’ll almost certainly be under the weather.

5d | Bibble Pro | Coronado Island CA
Rainy by *eric-taylor

How to setup your Iridium 9505A satellite phone to connect to the internet on Ubuntu Linux.

To connect your Iridium 9505A satellite phone to the internet you will need the following:

1. Data Connector
2. Serial Cable
3. Laptop with Ubuntu a serial port and root access

There are 2 ways to do this the first is via a GUI program called ppp-gnome the other is with wvdial. I prefer to do things in the command line so I will show you how to do it there but it works basically the same way with ppp-gnome.

Note that ppp-gnome doesn’t come installed on Ubuntu so you will need to download via this command:

 sudo apt-get install ppp-gnome

So to start turn on your sat phone and plug in the data connector and serial cable to the computer.

Then you will need to set up the configuration files for the modem, you will need to run wvdialconf to do that.

 sudo wvdialconf /etc/wvdial.conf

It will output something like this

 Editing `/etc/wvdial.conf'.

 Scanning your serial ports for a modem.

 ttyS0<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 --
 ttyS0<*1>: failed with 2400 baud, next try: 9600 baud
 ttyS0<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 -- ERROR
 ttyS0<*1>: failed with 9600 baud, next try: 115200 baud
 ttyS0<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 -- OK
 ttyS0<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 Z -- OK
 ttyS0<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 S0=0 -- OK
 ttyS0<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 S0=0 &C1 -- OK
 ttyS0<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 S0=0 &C1 &D2 -- OK
 ttyS0<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 S0=0 &C1 &D2 +FCLASS=0 -- ERROR
 ttyS0<*1>: Modem Identifier: ATI -- 2400
 ttyS0<*1>: Max speed is 115200; that should be safe.
 ttyS0<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 S0=0 &C1 &D2 -- OK
 ttyS1<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 -- failed with 2400 baud, next try: 9600 baud
 ttyS1<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 -- failed with 9600 baud, next try: 115200 baud
 ttyS1<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 -- and failed too at 115200, giving up.
 ttyS2<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 -- failed with 2400 baud, next try: 9600 baud
 ttyS2<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 -- failed with 9600 baud, next try: 115200 baud
 ttyS2<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 -- and failed too at 115200, giving up.
 ttyS3<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 -- UTVU[15]˷ӣt7UQUVV%ѥYY])UTR[14]
 [12]t;%YUUeTԶVVVTTTVT[15][12]tnf6YUTSU%]UzVv
 ttyS3<*1>: failed with 2400 baud, next try: 9600 baud
 ttyS3<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 -- `x`
 ttyS3<*1>: failed with 9600 baud, next try: 115200 baud
 ttyS3<*1>: ATQ0 V1 E1 --
 ttyS3<*1>: and failed too at 115200, giving up.
 Modem Port Scan<*1>: S4   S5   S6   S7   S8   S9   S10  S11
 Modem Port Scan<*1>: S12  S13  S14  S15  S16  S17  S18  S19
 Modem Port Scan<*1>: S20  S21  S22  S23  S24  S25  S26  S27
 Modem Port Scan<*1>: S28  S29  S30  S31

 >Found a modem on /dev/ttyS0.
 Modem configuration written to /etc/wvdial.conf.
 ttyS0: Speed 115200; init "ATQ0 V1 E1 S0=0 &C1 &D2"

If it ends with:

 Sorry, no modem was detected!  Is it in use by another program?
 Did you configure it properly with setserial?

You will need to re configure your serial port or go in to your BIOS and enable your COM ports. If that is the case I found this article very helpful http://tldp.org/HOWTO/Modem-HOWTO-18.html#ss18.1

Now that you have auto filled out the config file you will need to manually set up the rest of the config file.

In the terminal type this command:

 sudo vim /etc/wvdial.conf

Replacing vim with your editor of choice. nano or gedit both work great too.

You will need to edit the file too look like this:

 [Dialer Defaults]
 Modem Type = Analog Modem
 Phone = 008816000025
 Dial Command = ATDT
 FlowControl = CRTSCTS
 Username = directinternet
 Init1 = ATZ
 Init2 = ATS0=1V1X4E1Q0&c1
 Init3 = AT+cbst=71,0,1
 Init4 = AT+cr=1
 SetVolume = 2
 Password = directinternet
 Modem = /dev/ttyS0
 Baud = 14400
 Stupid Mode = 1

Leave the Modem value as it was filled out by the auto-config mine was on port ttyS0. Once you have edited the wvdial.conf config file save it by typing :wq

Now to connect to the internet with the satellite phone just type this command:

 sudo wvdial

It will ask you for your password and then start sending the attention codes to the phone.

Here is what it looks like after a successful connection:

   eric@divine-conspiracy:~$ sudo wvdial
 --> WvDial: Internet dialer version 1.61
 --> Initializing modem.
 --> Sending: ATZ
 ATZ
 OK
 --> Sending: ATS0=1V1X4E1Q0&c1
 ATS0=1V1X4E1Q0&c1
 OK
 --> Sending: AT+cbst=71,0,1
 AT+cbst=71,0,1
 OK
 --> Sending: AT+cr=1
 AT+cr=1
 OK
 --> Modem initialized.
 --> Sending: ATDT008816000025
 --> Waiting for carrier.
 ATDT008816000025
 +CR: REL ASYNC
 CONNECT 9600
 --> Carrier detected.  Starting PPP immediately.
 --> Starting pppd at Thu May 17 16:12:35 2012
 --> Pid of pppd: 4726
 --> pppd: xU
 --> Using interface ppp0
 --> pppd: xU
 --> pppd: xU
 --> pppd: xU
 --> pppd: xU
 --> local  IP address 192.168.13.165
 --> pppd: xU
 --> remote IP address 192.168.13.254
 --> pppd: xU
 --> primary   DNS address 12.127.17.72
 --> pppd: xU
 --> secondary DNS address 204.97.212.10
 --> pppd: xU
 --> pppd: xU

Now to confirm that you are really on-line type this command in another terminal window:

 ping -c 5 google.com

 eric@divine-conspiracy:~$ ping -c 5 google.com
 PING google.com (74.125.227.2) 56(84) bytes of data.
 64 bytes from dfw06s03-in-f2.1e100.net (74.125.227.2): icmp_req=5 ttl=54 time=1402 ms
 64 bytes from dfw06s03-in-f2.1e100.net (74.125.227.2): icmp_req=5 ttl=54 time=1402 ms
 64 bytes from dfw06s03-in-f2.1e100.net (74.125.227.2): icmp_req=5 ttl=54 time=1402 ms
 64 bytes from dfw06s03-in-f2.1e100.net (74.125.227.2): icmp_req=5 ttl=54 time=1402 ms
 64 bytes from dfw06s03-in-f2.1e100.net (74.125.227.2): icmp_req=5 ttl=54 time=1402 ms

 --- google.com ping statistics ---
 5 packets transmitted, 5 received, 0% packet loss, time 11348ms
 rtt min/avg/max/mdev = 1393.922/1802.503/2531.800/416.140 ms, pipe 3

0% packet loss means your connected and everything is working fine!

If you are getting this message

 eric@divine-conspiracy:~$ sudo wvdial
 --> WvDial: Internet dialer version 1.61
 --> Initializing modem.
 --> Sending: ATZ
 --> Sending: ATQ0
 --> Re-Sending: ATZ
 --> Modem not responding.

It’s possible that your baud rate is incorrect or that the modem isn’t set up on the right port if thats the case you will need to re-edit the wvdial.conf with the correct values.

Some other useful programs for troubleshooting are minicom and setserial

You will need to install these via this command:

   sudo apt-get install minicom setserial

setserial will allow you to set up your tty ports manually if it wasn’t automatically and minicom is very useful for manually sending AT pres to the phone. Set minicom to communicate to the correct port, in my case /dev/ttyS0 then type ATS the phone should respond with OK if it just responds with garbled text then you are probably on the wrong baud rate you will need to change that in the config and try again, keep changing the baud rate until you find one that works. In my case it was 14400.

Now that you are all connected you will want to check your e-mail or do something on the internet make sure you keep that terminal window open while you are using the connection. The connection will be really REALLY slow (I am talking slower than dial-up slow) so I recommend not even bothering to use your standard internet tools to check e-mail or browse the web. Instead check out elinks which is a text only browser that runs in terminal and alpine for sending and receiving e-mail. Its best to have these tools already set up before your in a far off place trying to get connected with your sat-phone. I also would recommend having all your e-mail typed up and ready to send so all you have to do is just connect and then send as those minutes are extremely expensive and get eaten up fast.

When your all done just hit ctrl+c to disconnect from the internet in the terminal running wvdial

See the following pages for additional info: http://tldp.org/HOWTO/Modem-HOWTO-18.html#ss18.1 http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/~mcba/iridiumLinux.html

Somthing we have been needing to do for a while now is install some curtians on Coconutz. I finally got them hung up tonight.

Here are some photos.

Diagram from 100 Fast and Easy Boat Improvements by Don Casey

Jaime first sewed the curtains from some material she had left over from another project. Then we inserted looped length of shock cord. into the pocket she sewed in.

Looped shock cord (bungee) to be inserted in to the curtain.

Bungee Loops made fast with some bits of copper wire.

close up of the wire closure

To hang the curtains on the wall we used some door knobs we found at the hardware store. I epoxied a brass screw in to each knob so we could screw them in to the wall. Then I stained them to match the oiled teak interior.

Staining before and after.

After drilling 2 pilot holes on each side of the window I screwed in each knob and hung the curtain. Now we have some curtains that can be easily removed, and can be used regardless if the windows are open or closed.

Project complete

Today I will be giving my ‘two weeks notices’ at my work. I have been working at a small 95 bed skilled nursing facility/rehab for a year and nine months now, Windsor Garden of S.D. It is located within walking distance from us, just a mile away from our marina. I often would walk or longboard to work. It was my first job as a registered nurse. While I was in school I said I would never-ever work a skilled nursing facility. I thought it would be sad, morbid, smelly etc, etc. But„ I was very glad to be wrong about this.

Don’t get me wrong„, it wasn’t easy, and I commend those who have made it their long term career. Think of having to go through 4 DONs in less than 2 years (aka: your boss, director of nursing, all different, all of which difficult to work with), passing medications to 42+ patient’s in a two hour time block because another nurse decided to call-in, patients then refusing those meds, dealing with angry family members and doctors, mounds of paperwork (ALL done by hand), new admissions (a two or more hour process, at 10pm an hour before you are getting off), and more responsibility on your shouldered than you could ever imagine! Most months I would say to myself, “this is it„ I am done. I can’t handle it any more.”But, even through all the tough times and craziness God gave me a bright light.

I call them a bright light because that is exactly what they are! Mark, Kris, Myrna, Camilla, Mario, Michelle, and Kelly. Those nurses, that in the mist of a crazy night at work would bring a smile to my face, a joke, feed me (thanks Myrna an Kris!), help me finish paperwork, and just make an other wise terrible situation into a wonderfully fun time. I would not have stayed at this facility as long as I did if it hadn’t been for these lovely people! After working with them for so long it is hard to imagine working anywhere else without them. I know they are all very happy for me and excited for my opportunity to move on„ but it’s still going to be hard to leave them.

I really want people to know that although a nursing home may seem a very sad place to work„, it is full of beautiful fun resident’s that will brighten your day sometimes in the most obscure and funny ways! The older population have so much knowledge and wisdom that will become lost/extinct if people don’t care to ask questions and find it. If you don’t ask you would never know that they have traveled to more places in the world than you can shake a stick at, or that they had 14 children and have out lived half of them, or that they fought battles in WWII and Vietnam. I want to compare it with the beginning of the movies “Water for Elephants,” “Titanic,” and “The Note Book.” All of which have scenes where there is an older character reminiscing about their beautiful past. It is a bit like that,but you’re not watching it on a screen.

The good news is I will still be working with the elderly populations mainly living in nursing homes on the South Bay of San Diego. I was formally offered a position with San Diego Hospice. I am so excited about this! There are some of you that have already voiced some concerns about working with Hospice. Yes, it is still not an easy field, but no job as a nurse will be “easy”. I will be working Mon- Fri. 8-5pm and have weekends free. I start a month of training on Feb. 13th! I am so excited knowing this could be a very good fit for me and my personality. I also can’t wait to hand over my letter of resignation„ it’s going to be bitter-sweet„ but a little more sweet than bitter! So my last day of work at Windsor will be Feb.10th, 2012.

We buy lots of fresh fruits and vegetables

We also store up on dried goods and items that don’t need refrigeration

We have been using more beans, rice and (Textured vegetable protein)

It’s been about 6 months or so since we decided to get rid of our small, very problematic refrigerator. We thought and talked about it, and came to the conclusion we would go without refrigeration on Coconutz„, for as long as we could stand. A good portion of the world’s population goes without„ why can’t we.

I am happy to report it is not as bad as one might think. We are still learning how to get by without the frig, but the process has been fun and surprisingly educational, lol! It’s made living and eating on Coconutz much more simple„, not to mention opened up more storage space!

We go to the store (Henry’s, Trader Joe’s, Seafood City, or Food 4 Less) about once week. We normally buy a lot of fruits and veggies, breads, dried goods (pasta, beans, lentils etc.) as well as canned food products. We try to get our eggs only from Farmers markets. The eggs need to be non-refrigerated, because they will last much longer. We have read that if you cover the outside of an egg with Vaseline it will stay good for over 2 months! We have also learned (from Lin and Larry Pardey) that it is possible to cover cheese with olive oil in a jar without needing to refrigerate it. Haven’t tried these ideas yet, but excited about the possibility!

Instead of iceberg lettuce we buy a head of cabbage. Cabbage can be used for so many different things (stir-fry, soup, salad, sandwiches) and doesn’t need to be kept cold. It can last up to two weeks laying out on a counter top. We substitute olive oil for butter, and rice milk or powdered milk for regular cows milk.

We haven’t perfected living without refrigeration yet„ but are having a great time learning that is not necessarily necessary for living. It’s also bringing us one step closer to being self-sufficient!

These have been made and installed for a while now„ but I still wanted to post about them. When we first moved onto Coconutz we used the closet for hanging coats and jackets but knew the space could be utilized much more efficiently. We saw these shelves in the book: 100 Fast & Easy Boat Improvements by Don Casey. I used Sunbrella for the boarder and a heavy duty mesh for the mid-section to allow air flow. Then installed grommets 3 to a side. Eric finished up installing them and lashed them in using tarred marlin. We are now able to fit all our clothes minus our coats and foul weather gear„, but thats pretty good for a little 22′ Falmouth Cutter!

Happy Monday! Have a great week!

Prep work for the grommets

Eric working on the installation

Finished product!

Aloha from sunny San Diego!

Merry Christmas to all those we love and cherish so much! We hope this greeting finds you all well this holiday season and pray that God continues to bless you all with his unending love.

We wanted to write and give everyone a little update on the crazy and exciting events that have taken place in our lives this year!

As most of you know either from facebook pictures or word of mouth we were fortunate to buy a new boat at the beginning of the year, Coconutz! She is a 1991 Falmouth Cutter designed by the late Lyle Hess, a brilliant craftsman and world renowned boat designer. We had walked past her daily stopping to admiring her beautiful seaworthy lines and adventurous attributes. We fell in love and on April 17th she became a permanent part of our life and our new home at 22 feet on deck!

As you can imagine she was not ready to sail right away, but with new head sails, repair to the bowsprit, new bottom paint and running rigging hand spliced by Eric she was ready to go! October we embarked on our first ‘shake down’ cruise to Santa Catalina Island. We were excited to finally be out in the open water after months of preparation. It was surreal sailing away from land into total darkness the night we left, but we were soon greeted by a pod of energetic dolphins playing in the biol-luminescent algae on the bow of Coconutz! We loved everything about Catalina and the other cruising folks we me there! We had a blast hiking, snorkeling and exploring the island!

We can’t wait to plan our next trip and adventure. We are hoping to leave long term in the next two years if it’s in God’s will. Eric can’t wait to use photography to capture thought provoking images from abroad and use them to stir other heart’s to action for a cause greater than themselves. I am hoping to use the skills I have been learning as a RN to bring first aid and health education to impoverished people in need. At this time our plans are to first travel south to Mexico and continue on from there where we feel the need is most great. We would love to one day see fleets of sailboats bringing aid and assistance to coastal cities devastated by disasters.

As for right now we are having a great time living hear in San Diego, and learning more and more about sailing, cruising and living simply! We love visitors so anytime come out and see us and we’ll go beaching it and sailing! We love you all so very much and so happy God has blessed us with the family and friends we have! Thank you all for being so supportive and for the showing of prayers I know we receive daily!

Grace and Peace,

Eric, Jaime, JazzMan, and Coconutz

Tallship Keisei

Had a blast this last weekend with friends from Arizona and Germany, surfing, beaching, eating and sailing! Thanks guys for being the most people we ever had out sailing on Coconutz at once! It was a great time!

A few weeks ago we were fortunate to spend a few days with Kyle, Steph, Cati and the kids! It was a blast playing in the waves and the sand with these adventures spirits! It was Kyle and Steph’s first time visiting us here in San Diego„ also there first time being back since their honeymoon 11 years ago at Hotel Del! It was awesome spending time with the kids and seeing the unique personalities God is give to each one of them. Had such a fun time hanging at the Captain’s Quarters here at the marina and flying Kyle’s trainer kit for surfing! Thank you guys for an awesome time!

I recently replaced the lifelines on Coconutz with 3 Strand Dacron (polyester)

The old PVC coated wire was suffering from corrosion in some spots and I was afraid of them snapping at the worst possible time.
The new life lines are a much simpler setup and I can inspect them for chafe and wear more easily. Also the whole setup is much cheaper and I was able to easily splice the line my self.

the reason I seized the end with the pelican hook was because I was afraid the line would stretch beyond what I could take up with the turnbuckle, so once the line is a little more seasoned I will take out the slack and reset the turnbuckle and then put in a shackle splice.

Its amazing how much line it takes to keep a sailboat running, and this isn’t even half of it!

Point Loma Through a Portlight

So„ I have been looking into getting one of these little gizmos to have on the boat while we are cruising. I have been doing some sewing by hand and thought maybe this was the answer to the time issue„, Sewing buy hand is just plain time consuming. After reading some reviews of many different makes and models„ it has been confirmed: Sewing by hand is way more reliable„LOL. I guess there will never be a space for it on Coconutz! I got a crack out of some of the reviews! Here are a few:

“I guess it would be safe to call it the devil”

“Save your money to protect your sanity. Aaaarrrgggg!!!”

“Don’t waste your money or space in the landfill! It’s flimsy and doesn’t work. I tried to use it to sew and it got stuck right away, ruined the fabric. I wish I could give it no stars, but it won’t let me.”

“This thing does not sew. It will not sew forward. It will not sew backward. The thread will fly out and snap. It hates silk and other thin fabrics. It refuses to move on thick fabrics, such as thin velvet. It makes a poor paperweight too.”

“It didn’t work as well as I had hoped. Once it becomes time to thread again diaster happend so it sits in a box till I have more patience.”

“Unfortunatly I bought 2 of these, and it only sews the on the top. The stitching underneath isn’t complete. Wish there was a warranty…”

” I would HIGHLY recommend just sewing something by hand instead of spending the money on this handheld sewing machine. It’s not worth the money or the hassle in trying to get it to work. It’s really loud too, and takes 4 AA batteries, which makes it pretty klunky to hold.”

Living on a boat with limited space one of the things we are learning to have to do with out is paper. Here is how we are using technology to eliminate paper from our lives.

Banking:

We pay all our bills online and that eliminates the need for paper checks, envelopes and stamps. We have also requested our bills be e-mailed to us rather than mailed this eliminates more superfluous paper mess as well. Many companies will do this for you they usually call it paperless billing or green billing. It saves them money and saves you time.

Another way we eliminate paper with our money is that we do all of our budgeting online with mint.com this eliminates the need to save receipts and all that non-sense.

Books:

When ever we can we try to buy the e-book version of a book or barrow a book instead of buying it. Still this is an area we struggle with because we love books and there are some that just deserve a spot on the shelf. For my birthday my wife bought me a Kindle and this seems like it will be the answer to our book issue because we both have reading to do and don’t like reading off the laptop. So far the kindle has worked out great all tho there are a few caveats. The first is we have to buy books that we already own to get them in the kindle format. The Second is that the selection of kindle formated books is still limited.

Mail:

We try to un subscribe from all non a lot mail but despite that we sill get loads junk mail. So we sort all the mail at the mailbox and everything that’s not a must have gets read right there and then put in the recycling bin. This eliminates a huge amount of paper that comes in.

Calendars:

I think this goes with out saying but paper calendars are archaic, we have been using iCal that is syncs to MobileMe and its been working great for us No scheduling conflicts, no mess, no fuss.

Notes and lists:

For a long time I have kept my trusty journal right at my side for note taking, list making and writing however ever since I bought an iPhone I have been trying to use that instead. It has taken a while to get used to and I have tried many apps to help the process but here is what I found works the best. I use Simple-Note for day-to-day stuff bust once a note is no longed need I move it o my archive in Yojimbo. I will also scan papers in to Yojimbo and store assorted clippings from around the web right into Yojimbo instead of printing them out. The mac has a print to PDF function that is vital to the paperless lifestyle. Jaime uses Evernote and that works great for her but I am a bit too much of a power user and would feel too limited with the space restrictions of the free account and I just can’t justify paying monthly for a service that just sits there holding my data, when I can use my own hard drive to do it for free.

I use Simple-Note to capture all my writing and for jotting down quick notes it’s really light-weight and starts up fast and that’s extremely important. The other great ting about Simple-Note is that it syncs to the web and then back to my mac that means I have 3 copies of my notes that I can get access to any where and all keep in sync.

For to-do lists I have tries just about everything I started with Ominfocus and found that too bloated then I started using TheHitList which worked well for a while but it’s got a lit of bugs that need to be worked out and the developer has seemed to have halted all development on the project plus there was no iPhone app. And that leads me to what I now use; TaskPaper it’s about as simple as you can get just a simple txt file for storing to-dos with some simple syntax for formatting like a colon for projects a dash for list. Items and the at sign for tags, is simple fast and it syncs to the iPhone.

For journaling I use Momento for the iPhone it’s a neat little app that grabs your social network updates and puts them in with your journal entries.

Essential documents:

Despite as hard as we try there will always be some paper documents we just can’t live without. Among those are birth certificates, titles, pass ports, tax documents, health record, diplomas, etc. For those we keep a small filing folder that is neatly organized, with only the necessary otherwise it’s likely to get filled up withe junk that we don’t need to store or we can store digitally.