Traditions

After a false start and an unexpected delay I was finally able to honor the Cape Horn tradition and had my left ear pierced and a gold earring put in place.  It was the left ear because the Horn was to my left as I made the rounding.  The earring is of 14 carat gold and 14 gauge thickness.

I have Sandra to thank for taking me by the hand and leading me through the process, and we both learned a lot from the experience.  We found the tattoo parlors to be the place to go to (rather than the malls) because of their expertise, professionalism, and exceptional hygiene.   My work was done at "Lucky Boys Tattoo and Body Piercing" at Silverdale for about $100 all up.

To honor another tradition Sandra prepared a birthday turkey dinner with all of the trimmings for Arnold and myself, finished off nicely with a pecan pie sent by Jean.  After our meal Sandra and Arnold presented me with the very useful and practical gift of an Amazon Kindle e-book reader.  It was the perfect gift for a lone sailor in a big ocean, and I expect to get many hours of enjoyment out of it.