I'm Popeye the Sailor Man...

...I'm strong to the finich. Cause I eats Me spinach.... It always seems that right before I go back to work I invent a HUGE project. Sometimes (case in point) I thought up the project months ago but dilly dallied around until I'm due back to the vessel in mere hours.

Meet my latest project.

I decided to blend up a bunch of spinach and freeze it in ice cube and muffin trays so that I could still have green smoothies.

I went out yesterday and purchased six huge tubs of baby spinach.

The process is easy. I simply blend one large handful of spinach with 1/4 cup of water.

Originally I was using my mini food processor - then I switched to the blender - and finally I ended up using a bullet style blender. It was easier to work in small batches and I could shake it around.

Next I simply poured it into the muffin tins and ice cube trays. I normally put one large handful of spinach into my smoothie - this worked out to be two muffins or four ice cubes. (Please note: the muffin tin idea would have worked FAR better with silicone!)

I definitely needed assistance getting the spinach out of the tins - I let them sit out a bit and then used a butter knife. Also, the spinach separated a bit during the freezing process but, I don't think this matters one iota.

There you have it Nautie Friends! Hopefully this spinach really WILL keep me strong to the Finich!

There were sparklers.

Nautie Friends, if July suddenly tanks its okay. Because Sparklers. Morning Glory's to be exact.

Want to know what I learned about Houston yesterday? They're not into fireworks in Harris County.

Burn bans. Firework bans. Crazy rednecks...

Lucky for me, I know people...who knew some people...who hooked me up with a sparkler.

Just to set the record straight I lit my sparkler after it stopped raining. Burn ban - schmurn ban.

My go back to work date is fairly approaching. This means that for the next few days I'm going to be focusing on waking up at a decent hour (this is sleep training for adults), getting some laundry done and, reading as many trashy romance novels as I can.

Enjoy your weekend friends!

July will be...Amazing

 

JULY will be even more amazing if I:

1. finish two craft projects before going to work
2. walk after watch as much as I can
3. put some lemon in my hair and let the sun do its magic
4. organize one card game with the crew
5. write (and mail) three thank you notes
6. sit on deck after it gets dark and pick out a few constellations
7. sip good coffee on watch
8. get in the crane and move the pontoons like a pro
9. take one selfie a day
10. don’t leave anything in the freezer when I leave for work
11. journal at least seven times
12. speak in a calm voice when I’m too cranky for words
13. keep my desk organized while in port
14. cut a tee shirt into a tank
15. enjoy the fourth with some sparklers
16. complete one more 30x30 item
17. perfect my ship binder organizational system
18. share one food post before heading to work
19. take care of some business
20. have a cup of tea when I want a cup of coffee
21. kick start my morning with some sun salutations
22. do one thing to boost crew morale
23. plant some lettuce
24. eat ship dinners slowly
25. wear sunscreen
26. read two manuals
27. wake up early and hit the gym before watch
28. memorize a poem
29. be more engaged in the morning meeting
30. start organizing some of my photos
31. remember to say thank you

Lets Get Physical!

My least favorite part of the 'go back to work hustle' are the physicals.

I swear that Mariners get their pee collected more than any other profession. (The only exception I can think of would be airline Pilots.)

Here's the thing. Sailors are notoriously unhealthy. Shipping companies (and the USCG) now have stringent medical criteria and require extensive medical testing.

As I lay there in my little hospital gown getting an EKG with sticky pads all over my chest, arms and legs (ahem, Sailor Gentlemen you should be happy you don't have boobies) I thought, 'maybe the maritime community is going about this all wrong'.

Since turning 18 I've had more EKGs than I can count. I mean, in twelve years I've had at least eight. I've also had copious amounts of other tests done. Blood drawn, shots given (I've received a small pox vaccination which is rare for someone my age...I've also had four rounds of Anthrax), and peed in more cups than I can count.

What's weird is that when I was able to bend over and touch my toes today the nurse seemed genuinely surprised. I mean, are mariners THAT out of shape?! Is being able to touch your toes no longer the norm?

Recently, I had a mariner who was so morbidly obese that his legs were bowed.

The increased physical standards are certainly warranted. Can you imagine having to provide emergency medical care at sea? Can you imagine being medevaced with West Africa being your nearest medical facility?

Where exactly do you think we're going wrong then, you ask? I think we need to remember how logical, how simple, and how cost effective preventative medicine truly is.

How much did my EKG cost today? I couldn't tell you. But what if I was allowed to take the money spent on my EKG and supplement my food budget or what if it went to a training program to help provide Stewards and Cooks with food science courses to promote more healthful menu options.

What if during this rotation I ate quinoa and fresh vegetables? What if for breakfast I was offered a Vegan green smoothie? What if carrots and hummus were available for a snack?

Nautie Friends, I do apologize for the rant but can I please tell you how stupid it feels to lay there getting an EKG when you know the likely hood your first shipboard meal will either be Chili Dogs or Mac & Cheese is incredibly high?!

Nautie Books :: Lean In = My Favorite

 

Lean In was a great book for me to read - and it was a great book for me right now - at this specific stage in my life - I firmly believe that it would be a great book for anyone at any stage in life!

To be clear:  I'm not done reading this book.  I read each page carefully.  I highlight things and make notes.  I journal about said highlights and notes.  What I'm about to share is just the beginning.

Favorites.

"She is very ambitious" is not a compliment in our culture.

Fear is at the root of so many of the barriers that women face.  Fear of not being liked.  Fear of making the wrong choice.  Fear of drawing negative attention.  Fear of overreaching.  Fear of being judged.  Fear of failure.  And the holy trinity of fear:  the fear of being a bad mother / wife / daughter.

And every time I didn't embarrass myself - or even excelled - I believed that I had fooled everyone yet again.  One day soon, the jig would be up.

I have attributed my success to luck, hard work, and help from others.

I learned over time that while it was hard to shake feelings of self-doubt, I could understand that there was a distortion.

When I don't feel confident, one tactic I've learned is that it sometimes helps to fake it.

It's a cliche, but opportunities are rarely offered; they're seized.

"You have to take opportunities and make an opportunity fit for you, rather than the other way around.  The ability to learn is the most important quality a leader can have." -Padmasree Warrior, Cisco's chief technology officer

But I also know that in order to continue to grow and challenge myself, I have to believe in my own abilities.  I still face situations that I fear are beyond my capabilities.  I still have days when I feel like a fraud.  And I still sometimes find myself spoken over and discounted while men sitting next to me are not.  But now I know how to take a deep breath and keep my hand up.  I have learned to sit at the table.

If a woman is competent, she does not seem nice enough.  If a woman seems really nice, she is considered more nice than competent.

Arianna Huffington, founder of The Huffington Post, believes that learning to withstand criticism is a necessity for women.  Early in her career, Arianna realized that the cost of speaking her mind was that she would inevitably offend someone.

Her (Arianna's) advice is that we should let ourselves react emotionally and feel whatever anger or sadness being criticized evokes for us.  And then we should quickly move on.

He said that when you want to change things, you can't please everyone.  If you do please everyone, you aren't making enough progress.  Mark was right.

The jungle gym model benefits everyone, but especially women who might be starting careers, switching careers, getting blocked by external barriers, or reentering the workforce after taking time off.

The cost of stability is often diminished opportunities for growth.

Women need to shift from thinking "I'm not ready to do that" to thinking "I want to do that - and I'll learn by doing it."

We cannot assume that interactions between men and women have a sexual component.  And everyone involved has to make sure to behave professionally so women - and men - feel safe in all settings.

Image Via

I can't tell you all how often I wanted to shout 'YES!' while reading this book.  I often stopped to call a girfriend just to bounce ideas around.  I hope you enjoyed this book - or are considering enjoying it - male and female alike!

30x30 :: Go Hot Air Ballooning

I WENT HOT AIR BALLOONING!!!

Going hot air ballooning was a big deal. When I called my Girl Cousin and asked her if she wanted to do this trip with me (cause you know...birthday buddies...) I said, 'I'm not going on a budget. I'm staying in a nice hotel...and I'm going on a balloon ride...you still in?'. She was in - so we booked our balloon ride with Napa Valley Balloons. Nautie Friends, they get an A+, yo. A big 'ole fat perfect score.

Our ballooning adventure is what you might call: giving up is for losers.

Originally, our platypus tour and balloon adventure were in conjunction with eachother - we'd be whisked away from our post balloon ride champagne breakfast to go on a wine tasting tour - or at least that's what I imagined...

We woke up briiight and early on our first day in Napa and were picked up at our hotel (it was still dark out kind of early). We got to the balloon check in point and to say that the staff of NVB (Napa Valley Balloons) was friendly is an absolute understatement.

Any which way, we take off for our balloon launch site. The balloons are there - they're getting filled up - the sun is making them look magical - we get assigned a balloon - we literally run for our balloon - and then it got windy.

I was literally laying in the basket (which is on its side) to help provide a little weight. The balloon is filling up - as in the burner is going and so are the fans. Take off was imminent - I mean, other balloons were drifting past our location (flown by other ballooning companies).

....and then the day was cancelled due to wind speeds. Wop Wop. It was surreal. We looked at each other and said, 'did that really just happen?'.

Perk? We got to watch them roll the balloons back up and there was a cute little dog who clearly knew the drill!

Thank goodness we had some wine tasting in our future because it did detract a bit from our horrible let down.

I'd also like to mention that I appreciate when things are cancelled due to safety concerns. You cancel anytime you like NVB! Don't you worry about those other balloons in the air! I'm happy to trust the judgement of an experienced pilot...must be the sailor in me...

But listen friends, is that anyway to WIN?! One day of high wind and you let it lie? Glad you're with me because NO...no it's NOT!

We rescheduled and woke up again at the butt crack of dawn! Day two. Hungover as all get out (thanks Platypus!) - we climbed back into the van for a ballooning adventure.

This is the only photo I have our day two adventure because the decision was made to ground the balloons as we pulled into the parking lot. I must admit we were a tad under the weather so going back to bed wasn't sounding too awful.

As we were driving through the Valley I turned to Girl Cousin and said, 'you know we could try one more time....I know you fly out in the morning but we could literally drive ourselves to the parking lot and head straight to the airport after we land....I mean we could...'. She said, 'let's do it!' so, I called NVB and asked to be put on the schedule one more time....in our favorite pilot Bob's balloon of course.

Hence, day three in Napa commenced. With an early morning jaunt to Domaine Chandon with our fingers crossed!

Guess what? We actually went on a balloon ride! It was so different than I thought. Do you know that you really can't steer a balloon? You can go up and down - and the rest is up to the wind. Jeez, how symbolic is a balloon ride? Maybe a little like life, no?

Wanna know how sassy all that ballooning made me? I'm going again. Wanna know why? It was a tad cloudy on Day 3. Listen, I had some epic photos planned - don't get me wrong I got some good ones (over 350 in fact) but, I want to see a gilded Napa Valley - and I will!

Alright, I know what you're thinking. If you can't steer it how do you land? Well, I believe the answer is that you hope to have a decent pilot. We literally landed on a strip of gravel next to the highway. For realsies. We kind of skidded a long and then stopped. Then the 'chase crew' tries to get all the air out of the balloon as fast as they can. (I also forgot to mention that part - while we're in the air there is a team in a truck that shadows us - like storm chasers - might be a fun job!)

By opening the flap at the top they're able to quickly dump the hot air from the balloon. Then they kind of stretch it out. If you stand in front of it you can feel the heat coming out in waves (it makes for good pictures, too).

There you have it friends. A balloon ride. An 'effin BALLOON RIDE!

What? Oh, you'd like to see more photos? No problem! There are hundreds!

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In case you'd like more Napa Love you can read about Day One and Two but clearly, I've been saving the best for last! A mini disclaimer: as I rang in The Flirty Thirty I was feeling a little uncertain about what to do with my 30x30 List. Then I thought, 'it's not over till it's over'. I've got a whole year of being thirty ahead of me folks. It's not over. Be looking for more 30x30 posts! I think the balloon ride adventures let me know that 'settling' isn't always the best option. Do more! See more! Be more!