GETTING IN TOUCH WITH MY INNER FETUS

Clutching the lurching podium, Professor Robert Fessler, our Global Studies (aka Core) instructor, urged us to get in touch with our inner fetus. The rampant scourge of seasickness ravaging the shipboard community, he explained, was caused not just by the nasty weather outside but also by our body’s confusion at trying to function on an unsteady earth. Its violent nausea was an “Emergency! Emergency!” message from us to us. What was needed was some time for our body to remember its long ago suspension in our mother’s womb when it knew how to navigate in an unstable environment. When we were able to get in touch with our inner fetus, he assured us, all would be well. I must report that my lines of communication with that erstwhile self are improving but still somewhat staticky.

We’ve had a rough start. The seas have been huge, the weather stormy and the time of our resting in Busan, Korea still a daunting 10 days away. Last night was the worst – we all slept very badly, being constantly awakened by the extreme rolling and pitching jolting our bodies (I woke up at least two of the many times grabbing for handfuls of mattress and bedding as my body was headed for the floor – now I know why sailors traditionally sleep in hammocks!), crashes to the floor of what we thought were well stowed possessions (including a bolted down TV onto someone’s laptop), the banging of drawer and cabinet doors, and assorted LOUD noises. My cabin is directly under the Union. I discovered this morning that the enormous crash I heard in the night was probably the new Yamaha grand piano careening across the floor, losing one leg and ending up upside down surrounded by shards of wood and ivory. I saw a very talented boy all by himself in the Union yesterday expertly playing scales to begin a relationship with this instrument he expected to enjoy throughout the voyage – such a shame. The bookstore and campus store, newly opened yesterday, are closed again as all their merchandise is on the floor, broken racks everywhere. It was a bad night. Still, there were all these bright faces this morning at breakfast, students soldiering on and taking it all in stride, albeit a drunken sailor’s stride. One member of the dining room crew admitted he had never been in worse seas. The captain has taken a southerly detour today for the second time and the sun has just now peeked through the clouds with the seas decidedly calmer. We’ll have to make it up later but luckily this is a “go fast ship” the captain says and we’ll hope for a break in the storm fronts later on so we can run back north.

Everyone’s high hopes for this voyage have taken something of a beating but remain intact, most of the time anyway. I’ve decided that seasickness medications do, in fact, make me sleepy in spite of my previous experience; I took 3 naps the first day. But worse, they make me grumpy. I have been very disappointed in the situation with taking courses. This new ship has very much smaller classrooms and they are strictly enforcing how many people can be in the rooms; in fact, most of them just cannot have one more chair crammed in. The result of this is that 6 of the 8 courses I was excited about are closed. I approached 3 of the professors to see if I could talk my way in with no luck at all. I then decided I would wait until the class had met a few times and then try to slip into the seat of a student too hung-over or disinterested to come. Unfortunately the assistant dean overheard my plan and told me they would be having the profs report absentees and those students would be called by the dean – for the first absence! I get the feeling they’re really cracking down, in more ways than the alcohol policy. I actually think my absentee’s seat strategy will work – I don’t think they can really make kids come to class that consistently. Too many of them get no credit for these courses or have already essentially graduated and are doing this for the experience alone. We’ll see.

My others whinings shall go unreported here. But you all know how excited I have been and so can imagine that it would take a lot to dampen my spirits this much. However, overall I remain very excited about this voyage and am truly happy to be back. Whenever I get discouraged by the prospect of this long, rough crossing or some other concern, I remember why it really is I love this experience. I need to make myself one of those signs like James Carville had in the War Room in 1992, only mine will say “It’s the people, Stupid!” The extraordinary, wondrous asset of any SAS voyage is truly its people. Fascinating, curious, eager, earnest, smart, caring and energetic people fill every cabin on this ship and I meet dozens of them every day. I just had lunch with the mental health counselor who helped me figure out how to find a place to learn more about meditation when I’m in Japan. One of the other senior passengers is the woman who started microlending in Haiti and now has a program in Tanzania. My cute friend Bo, the student from Texas whom I met on the bus going river rafting in Vail this summer, always has a smile or a hug. I ate dinner with a young woman from the Oswald Foundation, a family foundation I had heard of at Council on Foundation meetings that has really gotten its young people involved, and she told me many stories of doing site visits in Africa – we have lots to share. And on and on. What a rich, complex and inspiring group of people I’ll be learning from and traveling with around this amazing world of ours!

Seattle Stories

Dave, Katie and I have had a fun time in Vancouver despite the snow, freezing rain and frog-strangling downpours. It’s not been like the start of your typical tropical vacation cruise. But then this is neither a cruise nor a vacation. Although from what Dave tells me after his reconnaissance reception onboard this evening, the ship is nice enough for one.

We sail tomorrow and I wanted to do a quick catch-up before I get onboard. From what I understand, it may take several days for the internet to get up and running with our Wi-Fi cards, passwords, etc .so don’t expect more news soon.

Although the bed and breakfast in Seattle didn’t have a dungeon, it was comfortable, the other guests and innkeeper really nice and the breakfasts yummy – three courses with dishes like home-smoked (and caught!) salmon, banana pancakes, Mexican eggs, and watermelon slices in the ice water – gourmet all the way. You may know I’m somewhat B&B averse (chatting in the morning with chipper strangers is not my idea of what to do before I’ve even had my coffee) but this experience may convert me.

Dave and Katie live in the wonderful neighborhood of Fremont. I learned that Seattle has very strong neighborhood identities and Fremont’s is true to form. It has no less then 4 notable structures within a few blocks of their house: a huge metal rocket against the corner of a building, statues of a group of people waiting for a train that the residents deck out in clothes appropriate to the season, a huge troll under the main bridge (which bears the sign “Entering Fremont, Center of the Universe”), and a life-sized statue of Lenin purloined from some Soviet site. So fun and edgy but also dear and homey – I love where they live. In driving around Seattle for 2 days, I saw exactly 2 chain anything – an Outback Steakhouse and a small Blockbuster – aside from all the Starbuck’s that is. Everywhere else is a locally owned restaurant, shop, pharmacy, market – amazing. We ate lunch at Pho Cyclo, their favorite Vietnamese restaurant across from Starbuck’s. The murals on the walls took my breath away because they were so true to what Vietnam really looks like. Katie’s office was also surprising to me. I don’t frequent corporate headquarters and admit to being naïve about such but I was blown away by the color, the energy, the creative use of metal and stone and murals in the interior and the layouts and types of space all designed to keep creativity and energy flowing. I’m so impressed with her choice of company and the work she is doing there.

I’d hope to get caught up to date with the Vancouver stories but it’s late and I’ve got a ship to board in the morning! I’m sure as we sail through 12 days at sea heading for Korea there’ll be time for that. So check back again soon. After I get settled in, we’ll chat again.

I’m taking all your love and good wishes and holding them close in my heart as I head out across a big ocean into a wondrous world. I will miss you all lots and lots. And, BTW, all you mommies and daddies of my special grandchildren, I’d appreciate it if you could put books on their heads and cut back on their rations so they don’t grow too much while I’m gone. Take care of each other.

Marjorie

The B&B that makes beds superfluous

Maybe it's the spirit of the generation that spawned this weblog business but I feel compelled to offer a post with some entertainment value as a sort of tease to keep you coming back. So I'll share a story about my upcoming visit to Seattle.

Dave and Katie noticed a Victorian house about three blocks away from them that had a B&B sign. Great, they say. 800 square feet of newly rented house is working out fine. But a visit from Mom/mother-in-law-to-be laden with various backpacks, totes and two huge rolling duffel bags suitable for transporting the results of a wise guy's latest hit would not be happily accommodated. So Dave goes online to check it out and OMIGOD! As he very delicately put it "It's not for you, Mom." Somehow he thought the dungeon in the basement was not exactly what I was looking for. Check it out yourself at www.gypsyarms.com.

I'm sure my bed at the Chelsea Station B&B, only a few extra blocks away, will be fine, boring maybe, but fine.

Getting Started

Nowhere else to start but to thank you, my dear friends and family, for finding your way here, for being interested in my glorious adventure, and for all you have done to make it possible. You have listened to hours of dreaming about, encouraged, supported, enabled and celebrated this my second voyage around the world. I hope to reward you here with tales worthy of the telling, vicarious adventures to excite your imagination, some darn near instant photos, and maybe a thoughtful insight or two.

My familiarity with this medium is minutes old as I write. I'm sure I'll get better at it but it's way fun so far. In the beginning I'll send an email when I update so you'll know when to check back here. A neat feature of this is that you can read as much or as little as you have time and interest for with no downloading, saving or searching for my last missive.

I'd appreciate it if you'd forward the link on to anyone who may be interested whom I might have left off the original list. I made it short to avoid presuming interest but please welcome here anyone you'd like. I did not give Blogger permission to publish this blog publicly so it's sort of by invitation only.

With the help of my good friend Elizabeth, I've plotted out and timed a To Do list that gets everything done by Thursday when I leave for Seattle. I'll get a DaveandKatie's eye view of their exciting new city then we all leave for Vancouver for a weekend explore. Dave will hang around until Tuesday when the ship sails. It will be so exciting to have him actually see the ship and my cabin, meet the new friends I've already made on the message board, and bestow on me one of his world class hugs as we say goodbye on the dock. It's hard to explain what that will mean to me and I'm so grateful. He's cutting more than one Washington bar review class, a significant sacrifice I appreciate a lot. But then we all know Dave - not too worried are we?

So check back often and don't forget to leave your comments. This is going to be way fun!!