Cats and the Sea, Unsinkable Sam and others...

Cats and the Sea? What the heck does that mean? Well, I'll tell you, but first, let me ramble...

I had two cats growing up, Cleo and Cally. They were great but once a I moved away from home I started to be influenced by the "Dogs are so much better than cats" movement. Did I really feel this way? I mean, I doubt I really even thought about it, but nonetheless, I acquiesced.

This all changed a bit when my girlfriend moved in with me and brought her personal hair ball machine, Spiffy.

Now, the first time I ever met Spiffy was when I stayed at Kelly's house and I woke up at 2 in the morning to her sitting on my chest staring at me. As I refrained from making any sudden movements and she glared me down in the darkness of the night I realized that my interview process had begun. (Meanwhile Kelly's other cat Felix spent the next 5 visits pooping on my socks. His interview methods were slightly unorthodox.) Now, a few years later, I think I can safely say I was accepted. 

Dogs are very loyal and very open about it, but thats not to say that cats aren't either. And if you don't believe me, let me tell you about a cat named "Unsinkable Sam"...

Unsinkable Sam (originally Oscar) was a cat on board the German vessel Bismarck. When the Bismarck was sunk, Sam was picked up by the HMS Cossack. When the Cossack was sunk, he was picked up by HMS Ark Royal. When The HMS Ark Royal was sunk he lived with the Governor of Gibraltar and then eventually made his way back to England and lived in a sailor house. This cat survived 3 ship attacks and multiple battles. And he isn't the only one, there are tons of others!

Cats were treated like crew members on board. They were given rank, their own kit, entered in the Ship's Log, and even given their own hammocks to sleep in. Don't believe me? Check em out:

Unknown of the HMAS Nizam

Saipan of the USS New Mexico

Unknown of the HMS Eagle

Sarah of the HMS Shropshire

Convoy of the HMS Hermione

Unknown of the HMAS Kanimbla

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what we call overwhelming evidence. Adorable evidence at that. All of these pictures come from the Imperial War Museum and I got them from a cool website called Purr n' Fur. Check them out for a very complete history of cats during wartime.

Sailors aboard war vessels always traditionally had cats on board. In fact, it used to be a requirement for French vessels to carry two cats at all times. Cats were used for rodent control in the stores and also for companionship. Cats and seafarers have always had a strong connection and they continue to do so. Pick up a few books about people sailing through the Caribbean or Pacific, I can almost guarantee they have a feline pilot aboard. 

Do you have any cool stories? Email me or post something in the comments below.

Water is Life.

Brett

Oars, row hard, row fast! How to make 'em!

A beautiful week here on Galveston Island and the 175th anniversary of Texas Independence and we are well into Texas History Month! If I get some time later I'll post up some Texas history.

So, I have been rowing the channel lately, but on borrowed oars. My friend Seth of JPL Marine Labs made them. They were stout and beautiful. He used an epoxy lamination process and came up with something nice. He was commissioned to build them for a fellow boatbuilder and now his boat is launched and he needs them. Long story short--I lost my loaner oars :(

But with every hatch closed another one down the p-way flies open (and needs securing) so I set about building my own.

In these plans they leave them square near the handle

That picture right above is the plans/template I'm using. I got it off A.B.B. or Amateur Boat Building website (click to follow). The plans are a pretty inventive and cheap way to make your own. Just grab a 1"x6"x7' (I enlarged mine to 8') plank of oar-worthy wood (southern pine, ash, etc.) draw and cut out the pattern. Then take the excess scrap and glue it back onto the main part. Make sure you don't skimp on the glue, plenty of clamps, and let it cure for at least a day (I have found that when using Titebond III if you let it weather a few days, it is indestructible).

Untapped beauty

You will end up with something like the picture above. A gnarly, ugly, hunk of wood that you would never in a sober mind imagine would turn out that resembles anything close to a caveman's club, let alone an oar. But alas, your patience shall be rewarded, grasshoppy!

You take this blank and put a centerline on all four sides. From there you make another mark between the outside edge and the centerline. There will be two marks, one on each of the centerline. Do this on both the top most and bottom most portion of the oar, connect the lines, and repeat this on all four sides.

This is my back porch workshop!

Now the fun. Grab your planer and shape it down to an octagon... eight-sided polygon... a stop sign... get it? Then repeat the same process with all the new faces, or do what I did and eyeball it and make the eight sider a sixteen sider. By that I mean plane all eight edges down to create a shape with sixteen. At this point you can sand it and plane it down until a perfect circular oar.

before and after of the handle

On the face of the oar, plane down the outside edges to about a quarter of an inch.

Before shaping and after initial
cut. Once you sand them, they
get purty real fast!

Now sand everything down (inclunding the handle) and you're done. Lot of work, but a very good product. I will put some finished pictures of mine once I finish shaping, sanding and varnishing them. If you are interested in purchasing any, shoot me an email at NeptuneNation@Gmail.com, and I'll quote you a very reasonable price. I'm not trying to make money here, I just love to do this stuff!

Questions, comments, concerns? Write me, Brett

Water is Life!

Brett

Who is Tom Toby? Thank you Blogs of Note!

Thank you all for visiting, and thank you Blogs of Note for naming me, eh, Blog of Note!

Tank yoo Blogs uf Note!

With all this new visiting, I have had a few people ask me the story behind the name "Tom Toby." Well, what a story it is, sit back my friends...

The Tom Toby was named after one of two privateers in the Texas Navy of the Revolutionary time (1836-1837). The Texas Navy at this time consisted of 4 schooners bought by the government, the Invincible, Independence, Brutus, and Liberty. This force was augmented by privateers Terrible and Thomas Toby.

So who was the Thomas Toby?


Well long before she was named Thomas Toby, her planking bore the name Swift. What a befitting name it was, she was a Baltimore Clipper notorious for her harassment of Spanish shipping in the Gulf. In 1836, she was purchased by New Orleans businessmen and fitted with brass cannon. The cannon were taken off of a Spanish vessel, their names were El Canal and El Fuerre. She was outfitted with more gear and Captain Nathaniel Hoyt (formerly of the Brutus) was placed in command. Her name Thomas Toby was to honor Tom and Samuel Toby, Texas purchasing agents based in New Orleans.

Thomas Toby roared around the Gulf for about a year, wreaking havoc on Mexican shipping. She proved to be an extremely valuable asset but was lost in a strong storm that hit Galveston. This was the same storm which also sunk the Brutus. There was scuttlebutt about her being purchased by the Republic of Texas but if anyone is familiar with Texas history, they know that Sam Houston was not necessarily a man of his word when it came the the Navy.

The writing is a little wobbly, but perfectly straight when drunk

So there it is, make sure and check out the Texas Navy and Texas Handbook online, that is where I got most of my facts.

Once again, thank you for all my new views and followers, keep checking back, many exciting things are about to happen!

Water is Life.

Brett Lindell

Email me comments!

Finally a post (and video) about the boat!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Here is the first video in a series of videos about to be published. Let me know how you like them, leave comments or email me~ Brett

Lone Star Bike Rally (and the ER), San Jacinto, Sailing!

I'm a little bit late in reporting some of the latest things, and for good reason, I got my bell rung! More on that at 5 o'clock on Channel 9! Just kidding, I'll tell you now, but let's get dinner and a movie first before you start getting the good stuff ;P.

Lone Star bike rally was awesome! It was filled with some awesome bikes, awesome food, and some really cool people. Saturday at 5 was the veteran's parade which was short but so cool. The Navy band was there playin' some jazzy rifts--It sounded just like second line music from NOLA!

But the voyage would ultimately be a tragic one...

I don't remember a swedish massage calling for a neck brace...

All good things must come to end, sometimes violently. This was the most G-rated picture I could show you, the rest were pretty graphic. What happened? Well, to make a short story shorter, a guy tried to jump me, and when things started going south for him, his friend decided to jump in and help him, and he brought along his friend called 'brass knuckles,' the rest is history. A swollen eye, fractured nose, and some gashes later, here I am. I have definitely been hurting a bit, missed a week of school, yada yada, but every cloud has a silver lining...

First off, I got to wear an eye patch for a week, that is just pretty awesome. Then, I got waited on hand and foot by my girlfriend, even better. I got to miss a week of school (cool now until I have to make everything up). My left nostril used to barely work due to a previous nose-break, and now it works even better! Sweet bruises and scars decorate my face. And the dudes who did it? Well they got put in the klink pretty quick like, and I found out they have to pay my medical bills (I've been ordering Morphine cocktails ever since.)

There is a bit of good in everything :)

Yesterday was a blast! I went to San Jacinto--the place where Texas won her independence! It was so cool, what a great place. Every Texan needs to make a pilgrimage to this mecca once in their lives. 900 Texians vs 1600 Mexicans, 9 Texas dead, 650 Mexican dead. That's what you call a "Decisive Victory." 

Yea!

This is Kelly directly after the Texas Independence movie she slept through

The monument is pretty sweet, it is super tall, way taller than the Washington monument. Go figure. Down below is me with the Texas Navy Exhibit, and the Hawkins Flag, the first Texas Navy Flag.

Don't let my bruis-ed eyes detract the glory of the flag

And what a better way to the end the weekend than with a flounder fishing turned sailing trip in a beautiful, blustery, Galveston day! Kelly and I spent the the day with Seth, Cameron, and Sharon. Seth and his wife, Jen, have a biological research company that specializes in the Gulf Coast, check it out! JPL Marine Labs

Salty Cap'n Seth of JPL Marine Labs

Cap'n Cameron and Sharon

Me n my swabby!

Check back in soon, more with the boat build now that my ears aren't ringin' and a lil bit of Texas history comin' soon!!

Thanks for all the views and support, this blog is nothing without you, the readers! Please help spread the word by telling friends and posting links. Thanks!

Brett!    email if you have any questions about anything or boat building times!

Texas Rangers on the Warpath!

Ok, I know this isn't boat related, but this is just a tribute to the Texas Rangers and their march towards the World Series. Also, I had to pay tribute to Nolan Ryan, former player now owner, of the Rangers. I remember this back in the day-guys with mullets don't mess around.

Go Rangers!!!