Read a bit, got my stuff together for the Tall Ships Tour tomorrow in Halifax. I am praying for warmer weather as I did not anticipate being aboard a saling ship in Halifax Harbor and only brought a light jacket. Layering wil be the name of the game, so I am getting clothes ready.
When I went down to Connections to post, I got to meet Mervyn Wheatley, the rescued yachtsman. He is charming and I am eager to hear his story.
Met Sheila, Tim and Chris when I walked through Carinthia on my way to a cup of tea, stayed and chatted until we decided to head downstairs to secure seats for the Captain and the rescuee's Q&A session, which is sure to be mobbed.
Good thing I got there 30 minutes early as I was able to grab seats in the back of the theater which already nearing capacity. By the time the program started, the staff had relocated folks to the other theater and arranged simulcasting of the event.
Illuminating Q&A. I had no real grip on the difficulties of rescuing someone while at sea. Wheatley's initial offer came from that massive container ship whose captain radioed they were ready to help they just needed to suggest how he board the ship! When the behemoth came within 30 meters of him, he began to worry. Wheatley told us as he was trying to decide what to do, the Canadian Hercules pilot radioed that Queen Mary 2 was about 10 hours away, so he decided to stay aboard Tamarind until we arrived. His explanation: he was in no shape to make a plan, he wanted someone else to just tell him what to do. After he told the pilot and the container ship his decision, he strapped himself in to the bunk and slept until he was awakened when Tamarind turtled and he found himself in a cabin full of sea water. The ship righted herself but all the electronics were kaput. He used a hand pump to drain most of the water from the cabin, got the EPURB signal working and waited for us to arrive, which we did in less than 9 hours.
The rescue boat was lowered, gathering Wheatley, who pulled the sea cocks scuttling Tamarind, which he compared to mercy-killing a member of his family as he's been sailing her for more than 20 years.When guests were invited to ask questions, two stood out for me. One, when asked what was in the bag he threw onto QM2, Wheatley responded, "These clothes, passport, phone and the EPURB as the company loaning them to the racers had required a safety deposit of #1,000 in case on non-return." Our captain quipped, "And a credit card, I hope." The audience and Wheatley roared! The second question was how headquarters had responded when they heard of our rescue attempt. Captain Wells answered, "If you mean did I have to ask permission to take QM2 off course, the answer is no. I am the authority on board and it is my decision taking into account the safety of my ship crew and passengers. Headquarters are informed after I make my decision."
Never got to knitting as Jeff Tall gave his final lecture on the first half-century of the Royal Navy submarine service. I have no need to research when I get home about WWI subs!!!
Spent a delight tea with Mary and \tom from Augusta, GA learning all about the new communications center being built near Fort Ord which seems likely to become the nerve center for all things military communications, according to Mary.
Sat with Joel at cocktail party tonight, learning about his Jack Russell terriers and his HR job in Dallas We decided to share cab to LaGuardia..
Dinner was great. All three men were entertaining. Sheila was her usual witty, sophisticated self. We all wondered where Irene was and if she was okay.
I have no idea where they day went, but suddenly it's time for bed!
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