The Captain’s Birthday. Calms and Squalls

The Captain’s Birthday. Calms and Squalls It is so strange that Novosibirsk time is only six hours behind ours, yet over there it is already today while here it is still yesterday. Take the captain, for instance: he was born on 31 October. And at 6 a.m. ship’s time on 30 October, his birthday has already begun back in his historic homeland. His mother already needs to be congratulated on a day we ourselves will not celebrate until tomorrow. And at 7 p.m. on the 30th, it is already 1 p.m. on the 31st in Novosibirsk—the exact time of day when Andrey was born. This temporal paradox did not particularly surprise us when we arrived in Tahiti from the east three years ago: an hour was gradually subtracted from the current time, and we logically assumed that we were simply 18 hours behind Novosibirsk. But when we crossed the International Date Line and lived through the same Thursday twice in two days, our perspective changed. Calm and Never-Ending Work Despite the heat, the sky is full of rain, and electricity is in short supply: one of the four solar panels has given up the ghost. A few days ago, the corrosion it sustained in the first severe storm after Tasmania finally caught up with it. Although the captain rinsed and sealed the contacts back then, apparently something went wrong. We started the engine and discovered that the alternator had suddenly decided to play dead as well. The batteries are not charging from the engine. We bravely drifted in the calm and repaired the boom yet again, because the rivets installed on Suwarrow had failed to live up to expectations and were replaced with bolts. After the work, we went swimming, scattering the sharks, and crafted presents for the captain. The Open-Ocean Sewing Manufactory worked until late at night, with a break for dinner and evening conversation. Our young sailor calculated that, all in all, she had spent 20 hours sewing Dad a funny stuffed toy with a deeper meaning. I helped Lada and sewed my own present. Somehow, the girls also managed to bake a cake and make desserts. Everyone was so busy that the skipper rehearsed his birthday all by himself. He was feeling gloomy, and the price of the dead watermaker was not exactly encouraging dreams of other presents. The night entertained us with a strengthening headwind, downpours and squalls; Andrey spent three hours leaping around the deck, and in the morning we began celebrating. There were balloons, a birthday banner, a strawberry-and-chocolate cake with candles, kartoshka cakes, and presents in beautiful wrapping on the chart table. A Celebration on Day 58 of Isolation. And Times Past Even the heat was not so brutal in honour of the occasion—only +31°C in the shade. This evening we will forgo our traditional film screening in favour of songs accompanied by the guitar. We drank champagne at lunchtime beneath the awning on deck, with apples and a chocolate bar. For dinner: brown rice, pasta with sauce, AND strawberry cake! Exactly one year ago, at Fremantle Sailing Club in Western Australia, we celebrated a double occasion in grand style: the birthday and Halloween. It was a long day, rich in guests, events and presents. The most creative present kept us amused for a long time afterwards: Sasha and Sonya gave him a fender wrapped to look like a huge sweet. The sweet’s true nature was revealed during the unwrapping: the fender was covered in Australian dollars. After the party and its quest game came trick-or-treating by children dressed as bogeymen, and a concert at Prichal Club. Thank you to all the Australians who helped make that celebration happen! Today’s birthday is being spent surrounded by family and the Ocean. Happiness lies in contrasts. Hooray! Happy birthday to the bravest and most level-headed captain in the world. In courage, the responsibility you shoulder for your family, funny jokes, and the number of things you can repair without putting into port, you surpass everyone we know. Sometimes we even think you are omnipotent. As Ladusya once put it: “Dad, it’s hard to call you a normal father—you dragged your children all the way to Cape Horn.” Thank you for being such a perfect match for us! Our lives apart might perhaps have been easier, but definitely not more interesting. You are our strong shoulder and our rock. Thank you for choosing us. Keep making dreams come true! And we will be with you. Thank you, everyone, for your messages and birthday wishes in the heart of the ocean! Stay healthy! Transmitted by satellite from 9°36′ south latitude and 158°16′ west longitude. Presents for the captain can be sent via YooMoney and PayPal . A huge thank-you to everyone supporting the expedition’s morale! May your dreams come true. Where are we now? Visit our website, travely-family.com, and open the Route tab. Lady Mary’s track from the RockSTAR Iridium 360 tracker provided by MVS Telecom is displayed there.