Giving Thanks, a holiday break

... written for Panbo by Ben Ellison and posted on Nov 25, 2009
Roy Delgado Thanksgiving Cartoon.jpg

There's a fair bit of hokum wrapped around the Thanksgiving holiday we're about to celebrate here in the states, which I'm particularly aware of as I just finished Nathanial Philbrick's excellent Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War.  But it's always good to get together with friends and family.  And to give thanks.  I have much to be grateful for, like all of you who read Panbo, and especially the ones who take the time to participate in the comments sections and forums.  It may get contentious sometimes, but it's good.  And a specific thanks to Roy Delgado, who made me laugh twice; first with the cartoon above, and then again when explaining how he'd hoped it might the one that finally got accepted by the New Yorker magazine...after nearly 20,000 submissions!  I'll be back on Monday, and iPhone users should come by early, as I'll have 50 treats to hand out.

Posted by Ben E on November 25, 2009 2:33 PM

Comments

I have become a regular here, very informative and clearly written. Regarding Nathanial Philbrick, I enjoyed it as well, It was a eye-opener to see this period of U.S. history from a different point of view. I thought he was a little tough on the pilgrims but SCM has a good article - Thanksgiving Day: Pilgrims were a surprisingly worldly, tolerant lot at
http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/1125/p06s22-woam.html

Posted by: Kennebec Captain at November 25, 2009 11:59 PM | Reply

My wife and I are aboard our new trawler and about to have Thanksgiving dinner onboard with our son, daughter and grand daughter. I know it has been a tough year for the recreational boating industry. I am doing my part to buy "toys" for my new boat.

Thanks Ben for keeping me informed and educated. You do a great service to the marine electronics industry and for consumers like me.

I do have a wish for Christmas if I may share it with the you and the industry. Could you retire the RS-232 interface. It is a royal pain.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.

Pat Harman

Posted by: Pat Harman at November 26, 2009 9:30 AM | Reply

Thanks, Kennebec Captain; I enjoy your blog, too, and got a special kick out of the ribbing your lobstering son gave you recently:

http://kennebeccaptain.blogspot.com/2009/11/lobstering-with-will-on-maines-casco.html

Also, on the wild chance you missed it, check out Colin Woodward's Maine coast history, which dovetails with Mayflower, and is at least as well written, I think:

The Lobster Coast: Rebels, Rusticators, and the Struggle for a Forgotten Frontier

Posted by: Ben E at November 28, 2009 10:06 AM | Reply

Hi Pat,

What did you choose for a trawler, and where did you get spend Thanksgiving aboard? Jealous minds want to know ;-)

Posted by: Ben E at November 28, 2009 10:12 AM | Reply

Hi Ben,

You asked what trawler I purchased and where did I spend Thanksgiving.

I now own a North Pacific 43:

www.northpacificyachts.com

We had a traditional Thanksgiving dinner on board with my son & daughter and their spouses. The guest of honor was my new and first granddaughter, Maddie. We are home ported in Oak Harbor WA, and had dinner in Everett WA.

I have most of the electronic toys from Raymarine with a few additions. A Furuno weatherfax, and a Wilson cell phone amplifier. However, my most notable addition is that I converted the second stateroom into a shop.

Unresolved issues are:

Keep the freshwater toilet and get a watermaker or get a saltwater toilet.

Halogen lights use a lot of electrons; more batteries or LED's.

Still looking for a boxed wine that doesn't give me heartburn, alternative is something with a cork.

Pat


Posted by: Pat Harman at November 29, 2009 11:00 PM | Reply

Hi Ben. It is Monday although a mite early for Good Morning. Am working on some chart updates. Is the boat out of the Penobscot by now?
Doug


"I'll be back on Monday, and iPhone users should come by early, as I'll have 50 treats to hand out."

Posted by: MaineFog at November 30, 2009 12:22 AM | Reply

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