This blog is on hold for a week

I will be sailing in downeast Maine for a week with friends.
See you later

Sailing back to South Freeport

We went for breakfast at a restaurant across the bridge in Booth Bay. It didn't have air-conditioning but all the windows were open and the breeze kept it relatively cool. My friend seemed to have survived his bar hopping till 2:00am coupled with being stopped for drunk dingy operation on the way back to the boat. We had a pleasant motor back from Boothbay to South Freeport. There was very little wind and we beat the storm. I made it home by 7:30

The dissapointment of NASA and sailing to Boothbay

Mark at the wheel on the way to BoothBay ME 

We got a good start at 8:00 and made Booth Bay by 2:30. The leg of the trip from Eagle Island to Cap Small provided a good wind and nice sail. The leg from Cape Small to Booth Bay had reduced wind so we motored most of the way. I keep the mainsail up which gives some push even when the wind direction is unfavorable for the genoa. Mark had broken a fitting on the head at the water inlet. I was able to get the proper tubing and connector at the local hardware store to fix the problem. We had stakes grilled on board that were covered in garlic and pepper. Mark went out till 2:00 am and was stopped by the police for running a dingy under the influence. He was able to talk his way out of it by reciting the alphabet backwards.

Looking forward as a child I expected a number of things to happen in my lifetime. The biggest disappointment has been the space program. I expected to be able to travel to outer space more or less at will. This has not happened. The mistake was an inability to appreciate that size really matters. We have not had the balls to make orbiters as large as they need to be. Our current program is analogous to trying to have commerce across the Atlantic by using a couple of high tech canoes. They are just too small. When the age of steam began the small ships could not hold enough fuel to make it across the Atlantic. The fellow who designed and built the Titanic figured out that if the ships were large enough there would be enough fuel to make a crossing. It turns out that the need for additional fuel did not go up as fast as did the volume of the ship. Therefore larger ships could hold enough cargo and fuel to be profitable. We are still have orbiters that are too small and I have not heard of any plans to make larger ones. I believe that an orbiter should have the carrying capacity of a 747 freighter. This thing would be large but profitable. One should also consider a push on the ground via a catapult perhaps to near supersonic speed and a carrier ship such as that employed in Rutan's space ship one. Also, the best place to launch such a ship would be at the equator and high in the mountains. Thus altiplano in Peru would be an excellent choice. Why being the ship all the way back to sea level and its dense atmosphere. Land at a high altitude to save the fuel required to get the ship back to that altitude.

The goal of our space program should be a permanent base on the moon. The reason for this is that the moon is made of stuff. Most of the major heavy things required for living in space are on the moon and once a base is established would not have to be transported form earth as is required by the space station. It is interesting that at our current stage of development all we need is dirt and solar energy. We can make everything else using these too components. However, the moon seems to be deficient in hydrogen. Of all the things we would have to take to the moon it is fortunate that the material required is the lightest element.

However, the advances in genetics and computers have been greater than I expected.

Will men survive

I worked on the dingy by putting a board on the transom to keep the motor out of the water when it is raised at the dock and replaced the gas because it contained water. Mark called and wanted to sail for the weekend. I was going home as there was consulting work to do but decided to stay. Mark made it to SF by 10:00. Our plan was to get an early start. His wife was coming but hurt her back so stayed home.

I have been pondering the fate of men. There is new research were oogonia have been transformed into spermatogonia, the progenitors of sperm. If extended this will mean that women will not need men to have children the "natural way". This capability will mean that women will eventually dispense with men as an un-needed accessory. We will go the way of all unnecessary appendages in the progress of biological evolution. Women will be able to have mates that will talk to them, a real novelty.

Dingy repair and a sail to the Goslings

After a brief stop at Johnson's and a talk with our state rep. Hargraves I took off for Maine. At Brewers John the owner said that they had repaired my throttle on the boat. I got a few supplies and took the dingy out to see if the throttle really worked. It did. The motor on the dingy drags the prop of the motor at the dock and when underway. A visit to the local hardware resulted in a one dollar wooden fence post. I put this under the motor clamp at the stern and it canted the motor so that it no longer drags its prop with the motor is raised. The fence post needs to be shortened and perhaps screwed to the transom of the dingy or replaced with some teak. I also secured the motor to the dingy with a metal fitting so that it will not come flying off at the first big wave. When the mechanic repaired the throttle he must have pulled the kill knob too hard. This loosened the instrument panel and stripped a couple of the screw holes in the fiberglass. I was able to get some epoxy putty at the hardware to fill in the holes. I am letting it set overnight and will drill new screw holes in the morning. The day was warm and the skies were filled with white fluffy clouds. However, the wind was around 20 knots so since I was single-handing I just motored over to the goslings several miles from the marina for the night. There were a number of moorings available and a few boats there for the night. My supper was tofu simulated chicken nuggets sautéed with strips of bell pepper and a salad. The meal was very healthy and didn't taste too bad. I had tossed out the olive oil on board so had no oil. I did have some Colby cheese so I threw some in the pan and the fat in the cheese substituted for the oil and added some good flavor. In the evening I watched a dumb movie about a couple of guys smoking pot and trying to find a White Castle restaurant. Otherwise I listened to NPR.

During the afternoon I had a nice talk with one of my nieces who is doing very well at school. She was recently inducted into alpha society which is the next thing to Phi Beta Kappa. I was Phi Kappa Phi as my school didn't have Phi Beta Kappa. The entry requirements are the same.

Developing a new Small Business Innovation Research proposal SBIR

I was going to Maine but decided not to as the weather was bad. Also, I didn't make Rotary. A fair amount of the day was spent on preping for an SBIR on which I am consulting. The afternoon was beautiful and Gidget and I had a good run through the woods and rail trail.

36th anniversary

Anniversary balloons 

Today is our 36th anniversary. It has been a great 36 years and I am very lucky. She likes balloons and I have gotten her ones on a number of occasions. Several at various stages of inflation were in the basement. I took them over the I Party and had them reinflated. It worked rather well. Tonight we are going to Mile Away restaurant in Milford NH for dinner. It is a converted barn with great German Swiss food. Each meal comes with several courses so one is to starve oneself before going. I am partial to the pate and wienerschnitzel.

A boat needs more than one speed

After a nice breakfast at a local restaurant I had the waste holding tank sucked dry and fuel added to the diesel tank. Then I pulled away from the dock enjoying the pleasant but cool air and fluffy white clouds. We rounded "Pound of Tea" rock and headed down Casco bay. The autopilot was working well. This allows me to do things around the boat while not having to be constantly at the wheel. One has to be careful and not take one's eye off the sea for too long. It is amazing how fast an obstacle can come at you. Near Bustin's Island my throttle stopped working. That is, it would move but the speed of the motor would not change. Something was wrong. I stopped the motor and put out the anchor. I looked at the motor but as it is in such a confined space and I had no one to move the throttle at the wheel; I could see nothing wrong. So I started the motor and headed back to the dock at flank speed as that was the only speed I had. Approaching pound of Tea I called the dock crew and suggested that they grab me as I flew by. It was suggested that such a capture was not in their best interest nor in the best interest of other boats at the dock. They suggested sending out a work boat to get me once I was in the harbor area. This worked well and the Windchaser is now back at the dock waiting for the engine crew to fix this latest problem. A fellow boater moved the throttle back and forth allowing me to see that the cable was working well and that a nut had come loose from the fitting where the cable attaches to the actual throttle on the engine. This position is almost impossible to get at because of the cramped quarters in the engine compartment. I believe that it is best to let the mechanics look at the situation as I might attach the end of the throttle cable to the wrong thing on the motor and cause more problems.

Boating and working in Maine

Windcahser at Brewer's in Maine 

My wife went on a trail ride and I went to Maine to work on my boat although the day was rainy. The yard had completed the exhaust work so the boat was at the dock. In the afternoon I worked on one of my consulting jobs planning for the development of new diagnostic tests for women's health. The area has WiFi so I can surf the web and send Email from my boat. Technology is great. I stayed there all night and watched a DVD.

party with friends and planning the July sail

I worked on some consulting stuff and took our standard poodle on a long walk in the town forest. It was cool enough that she could make it without getting too hot. In the evening we had Pam, Buz, Mark and Harris over to dinner to pay them back partially for the many times that they have hosted us. Wendy made some very tasty scallops with parmesan cheese followed by chocolate pecan pie. I used my computer, Garman Blue Charts and video projector to plan out our week of sailing in early July. The six foot screen makes it easy for everyone to see the plan on the chart of Casco Bay and environs. Blue Charts lists almost every rock and there are certainly a lot of them in Casco Bay. We hope to make Boothbay for the fireworks on the 4th while also visiting the Basin, Monhegan island and Matinicus rock.

Visitors from Colorado and oil policy

Today we had a visit from Brint and Carolyn. They are skiing and sailing friends from Colorado but previously from San Fancisco. We met Brint and Carolyn in Aspen as Brint is an old school chum of our cousin Dick. Both were chemical engineers with Dick working for DuPont and Brint for oil compaines including Aramco with a couple of stints in Saudi Arabia. He was a consultant for the current oil minister. Brint and Carolyn just got back from a cruse up the Erie canal going through to Quebec city in Canada. Now they are visiting their son and family in Maine. In September Brint is returning for a week on sailing down east. We talked about the current oil situation with Brint saying that the Saudi's can put the price any where they want it. They have been careful in the past to keep the price low enough so as not to reduce demand or encourage alternate forms of energy. Perhaps they can't keep this up forever. Hopefully we will move to better forms of energy before it is too late.

Rotary, wigs.Iris and shoes

Iris from our garden

In the morning I stopped at Johnson's and then continued to Skip's for the Rotary meeting. Deb was there in a blond wig and was Hum, without a wig. There was no program. Afterwards I drove to Worcester and the Medical School Library. They didn't have the journal I wanted and the only place that has that tome if Harvard. I didn't want to drive that far so I went home where Mitzi was getting shod. The shoer parks her rig in the driveway so I had to park my car on the grass and be quiet about it so that I did not give Mitzi a reason to act up.'

Work is good as is getting paid

It was a slow day but I did background work on for a consulting account. Hopefully, they will pay me for my back invoices.

endorphins don't last forever

I had a good workout after breakfast at Johnson's. It could have been a little too good. I was working for the “runners high”. However in the aftermath when the endorphin levels return to normal the pain also returns.

Rotary fishing derby and bikers buns

In the morning I went a fishing derby for handicapped children sponsored by Rotary. It was held at a well stocked pond operated by the Tewksbury Rod and Gun club. The day was hot and muggy but filled with enthusiasm. The grandson of a friend caught 6 rainbow trout. Fortunately people from the club would clean the fish. My job was to untangle line either from a child's fishing pole of from two or three that had cast to the same spot and gotten tangled. A free lunch was served and a gift bag given to each child.
In the afternoon my wife returned from the Cross State Weekend trail ride. This is an annual event that this year was held at Bradley Palmer park near the shore. A 200+ person bike ride was also taking place on the same weekend. For the most part the two groups were kept apart as many horses have a thing about a herd of bicycles. One morning the bike racers went through the area where the horse riders were camped. Some of the women gave the buns of the men a 1 - 10 rating as they cycled by in their skin tight outfits.

The runners "high" and dinner with friends

BIg Lobsters 

My wife is on a riding camping trip this weekend so I have horse and dog duty. I took Gidget for a run but because of the heat and humidity I cut it short. Then I went to my health club to run in air-conditioned bliss. The goal is to up my endorphin levels and experience the "runners high". Unfortunately I usually get the "runners low" but it is supposed to be healthy. In the evening friends had me over to dinner with consisted of gigantic lobsters. I could not eat the claws as there was not implement available with the ability to open them. Pam, our hostess was going to make a lobster something with the leftovers. She is an excellent cook.

South Freeport and Cross State Weekend

Brewer's Marina South Freeport ME 

I returned from the boat in good time to help Wendy get packed and the horse loaded for the Cross State Weekend trail ride. Yesterday evening I watched Meet the Fokers and National Treasure on the boat using my laptop. It’s a nice life. The only problem is that I need to remember to put the disks back in their boxes and return them to the rental place. One time I had mistakenly left my copy of Microsoft Office in the box where I had put it when watching a movie. Fortunately the rental place kept the CD for me until I brought their movie DVD back to the store.

Boating and pregnancy

There was the usual stop at Johnson's. Steve was there and had been riding in the morning earlier in the week. I continued on up to Maine and found the boat in good shape. A wireless internet link is just bairly available from another marina. It went in and out but I was able to do a lot of consulting work on pregnancy related disorders. I was asked to attend a meeting on gene database searching but can't make it as my friend Brint is coming from Colorado. The weather was clear and warm, for Maine.

Mali presentation to Rotary and SBIR work

I met Judy at 6:30 and she followed me to Johnson's for the Rotary meeting. The group was small and Judy gave a travel log of her trips to Mali with a demonstration of a big drum and some African dance. She was well received. My video projector and laptop worked rather well but the laptop hung up at the end of her Mali DVD but little was lost. Then I headed to Cambridge for a meeting on SBIR applications. They want me to do more but are late with my pay. Hopefully it will come in soon. I had a late lunch in Newburyport at Michaels restaurant overlooking the river and many sailboats. It was a delightful afternoon. My wife was still riding with Pat till after 6:00pm so we finessed dinner.

Friends of the Trees

I was late to Johnson's but had a good talk with Pedro and horse racing. He is concerned that the tracks in MA will close. If they do he will move to Louisiana. Gidgit and I had a good jog in the town forest. In the evening we hosted the "friends of trees" potluck. The group was small but the conversation was excellent. Much talk about dogs and our relationship (subservient) to them. Also some discussion about the nature of consciousness and the mind brain interaction. I pushed Candice Pert's book on "The Molecules of Emotion"

African Dance and a school in Mali

Mali Africa 

Today included another breakfast at Johnson's. Steve hasn't been in for a while. In the afternoon I went jogging with the poodle. The night before it got out around 7:00 pm and didn't come back until 2:00 am. We were worried but it is almost impossible to find at night because of its black color and the amount of woods around our place. I worked on Judy's presentation on African dance and the school she wants to support in Mali. I have used several different video editing programs as none of them do all the things that I want. Windows movie maker is good but it will not make DVDs so a DVD program is required.

6-5-05 high school graduation and aging

In the afternoon we went to a friends house to celebrate the graduation of their daughter from high School. They have a lovely house with extensive gardens and rock walls. I believe that there were more parents there than kids but graduation was on Saturday and there were other parties. They may have been worn out. aging

I was impressed by how much better the graduates looked than us old people. Perhaps some day we will know how to rejuvenate ourselves. Diseases like progeria where children age very rapidly suggest that this must be possible. Even in children there is a continual regeneration process in action otherwise high school graduates would look old as in the sad case of progeria. The progeria gene has been found and interestingly it is for a protein in the nucleus of the cell called lamin A. It seems to be a structural protein and it is unknown how it biochemically causes accelerated aging. I believe that the normal regeneration processes are compromised. It is well know that the bones of children are continually being repaired by the action of osteoblasts and osteoclasts. Bone is continually being eaten away and replaced eliminating the micro fractures that occur from normal activities. Osteoporosis results from the bone making osteoblasts not keeping up with the bone dissolving osteoclasts. Hence weaker bones.

6-4 boat cleaning and great food

I stayed on the boat last night. It was relatively warm. In the morning I made some green tea and oatmeal. The activity at the harbor is delayed this year because of the bad weather. There wasn't much noise or rocking of the boat by passing vessels in the morning so I slept in. Then I worked on cleaning shelves and cubby holes. This is not a pleasant task in general but the beautiful weather made it easier to take. On the way home my wife called to say that we had to leave for dinner with friends by 5 pm. As usual the dinner at Pam and Buzz's was delicious. Buzz was showing off pictures from his new 16 megapixel Cannon SLR. It is some camera. The 3 foot enlargements printed by an inkjet were without defect.

6-3 homosexuality determined by genes

Fruit flies mating - behavior determined by genes - not learned in school 

There was a report in the news on homosexuality in fruit flies. A gene was altered that caused females to perform the male mating ritual. This work if it can be extrapolated to humans, suggests that homosexuality and lesbianism are due to basic biology and is not due to nurture. Therefore nature wins over nurture. I have held this view for a long time. It seems that the genes for secondary sex characteristics or at least the genes that turn them on segregate separately during meiosis from those that determine sexual preference or behavior. Thus the behavior and the body do not always go together. This situation should help make people realize that more of our behavior is predestined than many want to accept. It should lead to greater understanding of the natural differences in the human condition. However, if some of the local talk shows are an example, the work with fruit flies will be a point of ridicule rather than a way to better understand ourselves. Others see this work as confirming that homosexuality is deviant. That is the wrong way to evaluate the work. I believe that it just shows a rearrangement of "normal" factors. Therefore both heterosexuality and homosexuality are normal. See Shang-Ding Zhang and Ward F. Odenwald, "Misexpression of the White (w) Gene Triggers Male-male Courtship in Drosophila," Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, Vol. 92 (June 6, 1995), pp. 5525-5529.

In the afternoon I went up to my boat in Maine, did some work and watched the movie Aviator about Howard Hughes. I enjoyed it. It also turns out that I can get a wi-fi signal from another marina and can surf the web using broadband from my boat. It should be a great place to work.

6-2 Neice visit and putting the Dingy in the water

My first neice and her family are visiting my mother and brother. She is a physician's assistant and he a philosophy professor with two beautiful young girls. They have done very well. Mom is very appreciative of their visit.

Yesterday I cleaned the dingy and put it in Wendy's truck. It hangs out so I put a red flag on the stern. I hope that this is legal. David R is going with me to Maine to launch the dingy and work on the book. It was a great day and clear and sunny most of the day. Dave helped me undo a stanchion and re-seat it in the hull. This takes two people as one must be inside and the other outside. We went for a motor and touched the bottom in the fog that rolled in. I put up the genoa and it pulled us back into the channel. There are some problems with the lights as the bow and spreader lights both come on with the same switch. Wendy went to a hunt meeting in the evening. Many flowers are out and the gardens are very colorful.

6-1 Rotary Speaker from Mongolia

Mongolia from Google Earth  

Ulzii MD - (Ambassadorial and Fulbright Scholar) from Mongolia spoke at the Rotary club meeting today. She gave an impressive overview of the current situation in Mongolia. About one third of the population lives in the capital city. Her emphasis is development of the country in addition to medicine. She also is an expert in traditional medicine which is widely used in Mongolia. They are progressing in the change from Communism to capitalism which happened in a short period of time, about a month. The communists just left with the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Today I got my dingy out of its winter home in the pasture and am cleaning it up. Tomorrow I will take it up to Maine with a friend.