Dictated by Roz savage and transcribed by her mother Rita Savage, due to email failure.
Position: at 21.50 on the 9th May. -04.11930S, 158.68321E
My subconscious is throwing up the weirdest things these days and I seem to be having a field day with my dreams; myself, I don’t attribute too much significance to them. I think they just mean that I am not sleeping well.
Last night was especially restless. It was terribly hot in the cabin. I ran the fan for a while, then turned it off, partly because I did not want to completely drain my batteries and partly because the white noise of the fan completely drown out any other sounds that might signify danger, like the engine of a looming container ship. But then I would get too hot again so I would turn the fan back on then worry about flat batteries and container ships. Repeat ad nauseam.
So about 2am I decided to decamp to the deck but this didn’t work so well either. There was a cool breeze so I wrapped myself in a sarong to stay warm, but the sarong kept parting to expose bit of flesh to the breeze. I had a dream that I was on a train wearing something so tattered that I had a struggle to keep myself decently covered. Then an old friend from college that I had not even thought about for years was trying to kill me. Luckily I made it to the home of a friend in Seattle before Eric’s potshots found their target All very traumatic.
I am finding, even when I am awake, that memories of long-forgotten friends, colleagues and relatives bubble up without warning. I’ve heard at least one Polar explorer describe the same phenomenon. I can only assume that in the absence of the usual avalanche of sensory input, surrounded only by sea or snow, the subconscious has the opportunity to excavate long-buried memories.
I feel like I am having a one-woman reunion with ghosts of life-times past. It’s not unpleasant, actually it’s quite intriguing wondering who will pop up next, and what they might be doing now – and consider how they might have played some part, no matter how small in making me what I am.
Other Stuff: I am missing you. Today when I asked my mother what comments we had had recently on the blog, she told me that there had been lots of useful info on Papua New Guinea from Bill Savage, thank you Bill. But apart from that, very few recent comments. I was rather crestfallen. Even though Mum can’t email me your comments since the demise of my email, she is still passing them along, either by SMS or when we speak on the phone, so do please keep them coming, otherwise I feel I am just talking to myself here, and I do than enough of that already.
A couple of recent audiobook recommendations: Charles and Emma by Deborah Heiligman: a book about Mr and Mrs Darwin, a portrait of an amazing marriage as well as an insight into the moral dilemmas behind the evolution (so to speak) of the Origin of Species. Interesting parallels with yesterday’s ruminations on committing to making something work. Charles and Emma barely knew each other when they married yet came to know and respect each other – and produce 10 children along the way.
The City, Not Long After, by Pat Murphy. A relatively encouraging post-apocalyptic book for a change. After Cormack McCarthy’s The Road had me ready to slit my wrists earlier this year it was refreshing to read a version of the future where truth, beauty, art and peace are the guiding principles. As a bonus, the book is set in San Francisco, one of my favorite cities, and one of the few places on earth where I can realistically imagine those values holding sway.
Alf: no sightings for 2 days now. Seriously concerned!
Rita: Thanks too for some lovely comments on Facebook. Also a message from Glenn Raynor with personal experience of working in that part of the world, and a taste of their beer. Thanks to recent donors Doug Grandt, (carrot$), Ralf Gobel from Denmark and Sam Miller.
Please remember the request from Blue Frontier Campaign to vote for Roz and Margo: http://pep.si/9ZMuai
“Also vote for our coalition partner Project Kaisei to help remove tons of floating plastic debris in our Ocean! Vote here: http://pep.si/alxXp
Nova’s Fundraiser Newsletter:
About a month ago my Skype phone rang; it was Roz Savage and there she was, transported from her location in Canada. I had expected Roz to be a fierce tiger of a personality, so I was rather surprised by her modest cat like gracefulness; I liked her immediately. “Hello Nova, how are you?”, her melodic British accent and happy voice inquired. What? Who cares about how I am, its all about you Roz, right? We spent a good 5 minutes out of our 20 minute conversation on how I was and I began to see the attractive qualities that made Roz a leader.
What impressed me was her genuine concern for others and her sharp intellect as we discussed a multitude of fundraising ideas. I loved her cause to help others achieve big personal goals and we set out to organize a fundraiser to launch her Foundation. The long term goal is to raise funds for the dreams of others. We hope that this final Pacific voyage will be her most successful journey in regards to inspiring people to care for the environment, pursue their dreams, and to support Roz’s dream as well. You now have 7 days to guess the time and date of Roz’s landing. Contest closes on May 17th so enter now and be part of the adventure.
Thank-you!
Share your stories below on what you would like to tell or ask Roz if you were to win the personal Skype conversation with her featured in this contest.
To chip in, click on the Chip In button. To bet on Roz’s time of arrival, click on the Go Roz Go button top right corner.