Equatorial Crossing and my 57th Birthday (3/15)

Sorry to any and all readers of the blog, but too much fun is being had to do a proper job on it.

But I did have one thing that I really wanted to relay, and that was the equatorial crossing.

For sailors throughout the ages, crossing the equator for the 1st time is a big deal, typically involving ceremonies that were eventful and (not fondly) remembered by the initiants.

We had some other ideas, and had 2 good bottles of Spanish Cava (method de champagnois) chilled.

As we got closer, it dawned on me that the event might even occur on March 15th, which is a birthday that Lewis (my brother) and I share).

It turned out, we did cross at around 5am on the 15th.

As we approached, I decided to play my favorite tune on the stereo, but then realized that I had never established what that was...a good time to put some thought into it.

The artist came 1st, no doubt, Louis Armstrong, the tune was harder, but I came up with it. A search on my MP3 player failed to turn it up, but Armando came through with it on his Ipod and we played "What a Wonderful Life" as we approached 0 degrees Lat.

After that, I played John Lennon's Imagine, then put on a John Lee Hooker album, let the swim ladder down and dragged myself (now 57 years old) across the equator.

Popped the corks on the Cava, drank toasts and smiled like 5 year olds without a care in the world!

What a Wonderful Life!