16 Janvier 2016, 16:00 CST, south of Houston 

Today has been another wonderful day at sea. We are about to run into a rain storm, with high winds. That makes me a bit nervous, as the thunder begins to roll across the top of the boat, but I’m sure this boat has been through worse. Nothing too concerning. 

I’ve been on the ocean before when it has been storming. A pretty rough storm we traversed one night somewhere off the coast of Florida was probably the worst we saw, but we survived. Like I always say, if you are scared of the difficulties of the adventure, you won’t enjoy it, and that’s what an adventure is really all about – enjoyment and learning. Go off the beaten path. You’ll like it. 

While we are coming to a close on yet another grand adventure, we have already put down a deposit for another one. It’s not booked yet, but I want to go to Vemice and cruise from there. I believe that will be most fun. I know very little Italian, but I’m sure I can get by just fine. This fall would be a most excellent time to do that. Perhaps we can go to the beach in between now and then, just to get in some uninterrupted sand and surf time. I like Navarre. It’s easy to get to, and the beach is relatively uncrowded. I hate Destin, and Fort Walton, as they are just overrun with kids and partners. Not my style as I head into truly middle age. This is the summer that I will turn 45. It seems like there is no way possible, but it will be. I wish I could pick the brains of some of the older people on this ship. How does it feel to be 70, truly? Do they feel like they have accomplished what they set out to do? Is there more waiting for them to achieve? Do I need to save up some of my adventures for when I am older wot what I don’t get bored, or do I need to take them now, while I’m younger and can appreciate them more? How does one ever retire, and is that something that one should truly be worried about? How will the economy change in the next 20-25 years? Will I even live to be that old, or will a war or disease take me out before then? 

I often think back to Valerie, Adam, Laura, and even Ken. All gone far too soon. One in her early 30s, worried about cataracts that she will never experience. I always think about her when I’m out to sea, for she worked on a cruise ship for a short time before she and Jim were married. Sometimes I feel like my life has been in the shadow of hers, but sometimes, like now, I feel like my adventures are hers. My life, what I have and what I make of it, is somehow in her honor. Carrying her spirit with me on these journeys makes me smile and remember. 

For Adam, who was taken by GBM at 42, he had adventures as well. Laura, the same, but by a different monster. And Ken, well I’ve written enough about him for most to know how much he meant to me. I talk to them all when I’m out to sea, as it’s the one place that I feel closer to the spirits than anywhere else. Just me, the dark sea, and my memories. 

I was hoping for a glorious sunset this evening, but I do not believe it will be so.  It is quite overcast, much like my thoughts every time we have to disembark. That has to be my let favorite word in all of English. It even sounds bad. Embarkation is much much better. 

I do not know if we will be delayed coming in tomorrow or not. They may close the port due to high seas, so we will have to wait and see. If we do get out on time or shortly thereafter, we will be able to pick up the fur child from “camp”, and I’m sure she will be very happy to see us. I miss her, but little else, about home, as usual. I will at some point over the next few hours, cry my usually leaving-the-boat cry, just because it makes me sad. The real world awaits. Back to life in the fast lane. 

People joke about island time, but there is something to be said about it. It is like a slower version of your reality, a slower and eve more deliberate use of time somehow. For me, it’s not only island time, but vacation time in general. It is something I look forward to and something that I can hardly wait to venture on again soon. 

A the light raindrops begin to fall, the thunder picks up along with the winds, and the surf becomes a bit rougher with white capping seen in the distance, I remember and never forget that a rainy day on the ocean is far better than a sunny day on land.