Different subjects...

I'm not sailing currently, just been recovering over the past few days from a New Year's eve party and enjoying some time writing and thinking or hopefully thinking first and then writing, plus a little sketching. 🤔

Some of my likes...

1. Nelson Mandela. Without any question, he is my all-time hero. What a change he made to one of the most racially oppressed nations on our planet, through his personal sacrifice, courage and humility. Nothing brings a tear to my eyes quicker than watching him lift the Rugby World Cup in 1995, wearing a rugby jersey identical to his captain's. Around that tournament, the SA team did great work in some different ghettos, totally inspired by my hero. The entire nation, almost without except, just loved the man and what he'd done for their country.

But sadly many of his legacies have already been eroded by greed. His wife's behaviour just left me gobsmacked, he deserved so much better. He spent almost 30 years behind bars and eventually came out with no malice or hatred towards those who'd incarcerated him, having lost the best years of his life. The ANC's subsequent behaviour was equally disappointing. Wasn't anything learnt from this wonderful, wonderful human being??? His behaviour has certainly left a bearing my moral compass.

2. Music. I showed you previously my little freebee Bluetooth speaker that I take with me now after my disappointment aboard that Discovery 55 last year. That boat had an amazing sound system but the owner/skipper would not allow us to use it. I've always loved listening to music of all genres and ages, from the 1940s to the 1990s, a bit like my love of women really. I heard a great quote the other day from Lilian (the pirate skipper) who said 'music will save our world'. I would add to that, 'the younger generations will save our world together with music.' I've been into soft reggae since I took my sons to Tobago for Christmas back in 2014. If you're interested, have a look on YouTube or Spotify for any of these artists - Jah Cure, Chris Martin, Duane Stevenson or Romain Virgo to name just a few. I'd love to know what you think of their music. Mind you, it's more appropriate listening to it out here, from where it originates.

3. People who keep an open mind. You've probably already gathered that I'm quite opinionated. Hopefully I'm still able to learn and keep my mind wide open. Too many people can't or won't do this, they just follow the views and opinions of their parents or peers. People who are willing to actually listen to the other side of an argument, take on board some of the opposing points and are willing to change their outlook on life, will certainly get on much better with me. People of my father's generation grew up with Enid Blyton's racially unpleasant outlook and writing, if read today. Back then, the views on people's colour, origin and sexuality were very different from those of today. My father struggled at times to open his mind to these changes and he was put in his place on several occasions by my sons, who have no tolerance of such views. But in fairness, they too needed to understand why he made some inappropriate comments in front of them. They sometimes struggle to understand and keep their minds open, but they're learning. I find it so refreshing to meet people who have balanced views and have taken the time and trouble to look at things from all angles.

two of my favourite tv presenters...

4. History. At home, if I watch telly, it's usually a documentary on either natural history or just history. Oh yes, plus a bit of sport too lol. Some of my favourite presenters are Dr Alice Roberts, Kate Humble and Chris Packham. I love David Attenborough's wonderful contributions too although he did make me cringe when we watched him on the Graham Norton show, with Cameron Diaz's flirting. Sorry Sir David, just too creepy for me and my partner back then. The BBC and others are starting to tell some of the hidden history of Great Britain's imperial days too. We're now learning that we invented drug trafficking, concentration camps plus so many other horrors and blunders during that era. 

Boris has written a biography on Sir Winston Churchill. It's just a shame that his attempts to emulate him only go as far as mimicking his walk and hunched stance. Unlike Sir Winston who became a miraculous leader saving Britain and Europe from the Nazis ( with just a little help from Roosevelt and his brave fellow countrymen ), Boris is just a puppet who shepherds and misleads his flock IMHO. 

Some of my favourite historical topics are on Saladin and the crusades plus the incredible Stevensons, a family of inventors with their lighthouses and steam engines, not forgetting the young author, cast out as a waster by his grandfather.

5. Le Mans 24 hour race. I've been a petrolhead since my early 20s. I had the use of company cars during my 20s and 30s and didn't own my first car until I was almost 30. I drove down to le Mans in June 1988 and on several subsequent occasions, usually in 'nice' cars along with various friends in theirs. There is no sporting event anywhere that is watched by more fans (live). And probably more than 30% (~100,000) drive over from Britain every June. The party over there lasts about six days and the action and fun is non stop. So many gorgeous cars to ogle at, many lovely lasses too with all night parties across the many campsites. Beer, fireworks and crazy antics go hand in hand, we have a real blast that includes meeting some of the race drivers, other friends and hooning around the la Sarthe circuit when the roads are reopened. It's truly a fabulous week provided you're happy to both chill and then party full on....

I took my son Loz to  le Mans in 2003, in my 'Blackpool rocket' - he loved it too!

Some of my particular dislikes...

You already know some of my pet dislikes so I won't mention these again...

1. Scammers. I've come close to being scammed on several occasions but fortunately they didn't quite succeed. I went onto Tinder after a friend of my son was showing Loz some of his matches over dinner with us last October. When I arrived here in Martinique, I noticed that Tinder had sprung back into life with several new matches for me. I had my radius setting at about 40 miles so I was very disappointed when all the ladies were on St Lucia which is only about 20 miles away, closer in fact than Fort-de-France, this island's capital. Then I had a match with a beautiful woman known as Aphrodite. She liked me back and a few messages were exchanged. She told that she was a Greek Cypriot and was returning to Cyprus after a working holiday. But they blew their cover when they wanted to discuss some amazing money deals that I could benefit from... When older folk get conned by scammers, it just makes my blood boil and these lazy good for nothing animals just keep getting away with it.

pretty close, but oh well, another lesson learnt.....

2. Lewis Hamilton. I used to like him but I'm disappointed with how his association with the Black Lives Matter campaign has blinded him from reality. The brutal deaths in the US of blacks at the hands of their police have rightly grabbed the world's attention. It is without doubt racially motivated with a mixture of sadism and pure evil thrown in for bad measure. If you look behind the gloss of this movement though, it is clear that the underlying motive is not quite as pure as it first appears. I'm pleased that drivers like Max Verstappen, have refused to take the pre-race 'knee'. He has said that he's there to race and not to get involved in social or political movements. Lewis doesn't seem to realise that all campaigns against all discrimination is the only way forward. Whether it's police brutality (which is just as widespread in the UK), disabilities, age, gender or sexual orientation, it's just plain wrong. Making a special case for blacks will only make the racists more entrenched and extreme. I have no doubt that Lewis' intentions are well placed, maybe he's just a little naive? Why don't they try 'taking both knees' instead, to symbolise the ending of all and every form of discrimination - period. 

two of the best F1 drivers to grace the sport, sadly both have departed from us

Lewis remains a great race driver, but he's got it too easy, with a teammate who isn't in his class and the other cars on the grid simply aren't competitive. F1 today is just about money. Give me James Hunt and Niki Lauda any day, their battles and antics were legendary!

3. Poor Salespeople. If selling stuff is how you make a living, there really is no excuse for bad sales technique or methods. But I see this nearly every day of my life and it frustrates me. Whether I'm looking to buy a house, which I am, or buying a new phone or even just renewing my car insurance, poor salesmanship is everywhere. In the early 80s, my first job as a salesman was with Perkin Elmer Ltd based in Beaconsfield. Within about 3 years they became the UK's market leader in analytical instrumentation, taking over from Pye Unicam. Yes we did have better products but Unicam had a much bigger established customer base. Our products were typically more expensive and the reason we became number one was simply better salesmanship. This happened by design not by serendipity. We were trained how to listen properly and generate empathy with our potential customers. There's so much more and this isn't the time or place to elaborate. But whether it's hawkers knocking on my front door or people selling me a new phone, if they use a 'standard' patter, I usually walk away.

4. The Boatniks. This is the title of an American comedy film that was made in 1970 and starred among others, Phil Silvers. OK it's pretty corny now but like other Disney films from that era, it's quite watchable. Boatniks is a term today for some of the folk who live or hangout on boats all year around. Most of the ones that I've met are cool, laid back and can see the real picture behind the world's chaos today. However there is an element to some of them that I don't like at all. These individuals are scroungers, lazy, unwashed, impolite and arrogant. And yes, I've met some here. If I spend much time out here with or without my friend Zag, I will try very hard to ensure I don't become one of these unlikeable individuals...

Ingo, Kevin and Uli - some recent acquaintances from ze vaterland

My favourite hangout at the old marina in le Marin

the most popular bar in the new marina, food ain't bad but service is typically slow...

New Year Eves Party

My new buddy Zag has been here for work several times and knows quite a few of the locals including Jimmy, who has a business here in le Marin. We were both invited to his beautiful home to join him and about 60 of his friends to party. I was surprised that the majority were over here from France and Belgium for a few weeks and most spoke english very well. Upon our arrival at about 9.30pm, I announced to everyone in French, my name and a brief explanation of myself and apologised for my poor French. Apart from Jimmy and Zag, they weren't sailors, they were just pleased to be away from Europe. How nice that people seemed pleased to talk to me about my Atlantic crossing, they seemed very impressed and it made me feel a bit special, which I'm definitely not. I explained to some of them that it is a tradition in Britain, that if you've sailed across the Atlantic, you're entitled to wear red trousers in any yacht club.

It just so happens that I occasionally wear red trousers when I'm golfing, much to the disgust of John, Iain and Neil plus my late great friend Mike Dobbs. They already have much to skit me about whenever I swing a golf club but my red trousers just add more fuel to the fire...And please don't worry Andy, I wouldn't be seen dead in any snooty english yacht club, let alone wearing red trousers.😂

Anyway I digress. The party was lovely and I didn't drink too much, I just enjoyed chatting into the wee small hours and fell asleep at about 4am and apparently missed the dancing. I found that Zag had already departed when I awoke at about 9am but after a quick coffee made by the gorgeous Sonia, I went home in a taxi and just slept.

A question for you to ponder...

My son got an App on his phone recently that he can hold up to the night sky and it will identify the planets and stars.  I found that interesting and now when I'm at sea, I can usually find Jupiter and Saturn then Mars. In the early morning just before daybreak, Venus can also be seen shifting rapidly across the sky from east to west.

On a clear night when you can observe a full moon, have you ever thought why the lightside of the moon is all we ever see? Why doesn't the darkside of the moon ever come into view? The lightside rotates through 360 degrees but it never reveals the darkside to earth. Why is that??? Don't use Google to look up an answer, try to work it out for yourself as I did please...

Kerry and Nick in particular, I expect an answer from you both please... 🧐 😬 🤓 🤔

Answers please only posted as a comment on this blog posting!!! Do you read me over?

You'll be pleased that my moonlight sketch is progressing now; I'm using a program called Paint because I can't find pencils and paper here. Hopefully I'll include it my next post folks. Thank you all for reading this one, take care please and God bless you!