World-class or, at least, American-class.
Oh and please excuse my absence. I was on a sailing endeavor, exploring an outer Channel Island and what was supposed to be a fine, but standard, adventure turned into the most harrowing, most apocalyptic tale modern children’s literature has seen in the last twenty, if not fifty, years. The crew, my four great friends and our ten combined children, set off as the sun dipped Tuesday eve, a light gust blowing from the north but otherwise clear and inviting. Time slots for the helm were allotted to the fathers, as we would be sailing through the night, and the savages were tucked into bed, the youngest apparently suffering from a bout of seasickness and vomiting uncontrollably.
The next morning after a fine breakfast, we caught an even finer wind and sailed around the island at a ridiculous heel before anchoring in a cove and finding a hike billed as four miles, round trip. In reality it was five-plus miles each way, up and down steep canyons, but the savages are tough and handled their business, except for the eldest who began vomiting uncontrollably, assumedly due over-exertion.
It began to rain as we all rounded that final bend back to the beach and our dingy, the eldest riding my back for the last four miles. A bitter cold rain, almost sleet. We hurried to the boat to make a warm dinner and tuck them all into bed again but, directly after a quick pasta first course, three more savages gripped at their bellies.
Uncontrollable vomiting ensued.
Two hours later, nine of ten savages had gone down and gone down hard. These were no simple heaves but a dredging of the bottom of the guts. A terrible expulsion. An explosion oft times all over each other. It was impossible to put them outside, as that bitter cold rain had picked up its intensity, so in the salon they writhed, drenched in bile, crying for it all to end.
The witching hours saw two of the fathers go down and it had become a Triangle of Sadness.
Three of us stood at the end, my two very best friends and I, and felt the big sick clawing but also knew we had to sail the twelve-plus hours home, care for the dying, clean up vicious messes, etc.
We did, arrived in port deprived of any sleep for 48 hours and on top of the world.
Victorious.
Very unlike the thirty-nine year-old Elizabeth Holmes feels right now, I’d imagine, though San Diego area surfers are certainly taking her choice to spend her final hours as a free woman sampling the region’s many waves as proof of greatness.
Holmes, as you certainly know, is the former genius who invented a life-altering blood testing technology that held so much promise, so much glory, that investors lined up around the block to throw hundreds of millions at the the future and all was wonderful.
Except.
Holmes, who modeled herself after Steve Jobs and had the nickname “Eagle One,” got busted for lying about both the technology, what it could do, what it was doing etc. and was eventually convicted, after a 2022 trial, and ordered to serve eleven-plus years in prison for fraud.
Well, as her legal team continues to file appeals, she has been allowed to stay free, and, per reports, just moved to a beachfront home in Del Mar, a few clicks south of my Cardiff-by-the-Sea. A privilege that would certainly not be afforded to you or I but we were not, at one-time, the world’s youngest self made billionaire. She could choose to spend these last few moments surfing any wave the world has to offer, or maybe just any American wave the world has to offer due her legal situation, but still. That includes any corner of the Hawaiian islands, Santa Cruz, Huntington Beach, San Clemente, Sebastian Inlet and many more.
The fact that she is in Del Mar, easy striking distance to Swamis, Blacks, Windansea, means those are, likely, the United States’ finest.
Huzzah.
Wonder if a shark bites her and with just one drop of her blood, can identify she’s a kook.
Not sure when she goes to jail but I hope I don’t see her when I’m padlding out next week
Reminds me of time i had a generous serving of spaghetti bolognaise as we headed out through the beauty of a padang harbour sunset, an hour after retiring to my bunk below deck with my 10 fellow sailors an irresistible urge to not just vommit but power vomit the spag bog. I did my best fumbling through the unfamiliar pitch black cabin but unfortunately I couldn’t not hold back the spag bog. Needless to say the deck stank for quite a few days and i was banished to the top deck to sleep.
a bit of lick and stick to make it slick.
Chas have you seen the sandbars in DM currently? I’d rather be up at Corcoran State Prison. At least up there they have arts & crafts, bunk beds, outdoor workout facilities, shower rape, rec league hoops, and gangs.
“it looked good on paper…”
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outs are mo betta~
“You get so alone sometimes it just seems to make sense”
by my measurements…London to Ventura Harbor is 3,201 nautical miles…Padres are losing to the Dodger’ at Pepco Park. Join us at Moonlight Beach for an after-game weenie roast, Derek!
Chas, bring the clicks_
Padres won!
“I love you Chas!”
https://brobible.com/wp-con…
ed: correction; moonstone beach…or step-ladders…staircases. windansea. snapper’s…
ed: go to tijuana and cover the tijuana (Salton Sea geothermal) sloughs. “A Dirty Job” kinda thing…
ed: need co-producers?
MANY years ago I did airport agent stuff at JFK…check in, boarding, etc.
Such a fun job…I got to me a lot of famous people and have a few good stories.
No surprises there.
What exactly you want to know Sam? Come on be a big boy and spit it out.
Thank goodness for real journalists like James O’Keefe who expose truth.
https://twitter.com/JamesOK…
Just googled him there! I must look him up! The Voyage of the Cormorant by Christian Beamish is a good one too, as is the Heart of the Sea by Philbrick
What’s your favorite nautical book? Mine is Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage to the Antarctic by Alfred Lansing
Henri de Monfreid Smuggling Under Sail in the Red Sea!
I’ll have to look that up!
Love the Shackleton one too but I think you’ll eat up Monfreid!
keep it…mystery science theater like
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great pick! How the fuck did they navigate that shit
Sailing the seas of cheese (audio book)
https://youtu.be/Mx-OBj1Spvo
Survive the Savage Sea, Dougal Robertson
Bethany Hamilton could give her some Woman tips, she was born with Female anatomy!
SD surfer – “that chick who stole billions of dollars just totally burned me on that left!”
Elizabeth Holmes surf? She’ll fake it till she makes it.
You can only chuckle at the savages vomiting uncontrollably Charles. Hell, you vomit bile all over the pages of the Salon de Beach Grit on the regular.
Otto we all await a pic from Chas of Lizzie surfing in her black turtleneck and nothing else
It became so utterly absurd that chuckles flowed pretty freely. Like BG!
Between this adventure and the tale of the Baja sailing misadventure, I’d say you got quite the makings for a Chas Smith penned Children’s Misadventure Book.
rees mentioned green eggs * ham. but Not The Lorax~
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About 12+ years ago, I’d had family members cite her as an example of why I should be able to get my life/career together at a relatively young age. And I still haven’t done that, but at least I’m not going to prison.
Your family was giving you career advice when you were 50?
yeah prison is so over rated!
many ways to escape alcatraz…wetsuits, ironing boards, SUPs/
Chas, instead of 1000 words of vomit on kids vomiting, how about the breaking story that Kolohe is going to transition to Kolohshe and join the woman’s tour in hopes of finally winning a pro contest. More questions than answers.
Cuz that’s not as interesting as kids vomiting!
memories were made – good trip!
Like Stand by Me, your bucolic Oregon origin story
His father stormed the beaches of Normandy!
I reckon neither will ever aspire to any best seller lists.
Kolothey*
Kolohe will be busy winning Snapper next week.
Men’s division
Will be a good test to see where he’s really at.