Conference unifix::sailing

    Peter,
         You could perhaps try a keg of dark rum. Until recently it was
    regularly passed into the sea via the lower deck filtration system of
    all Royal Navy Ships on a daily basis........
    
    cheers........Pete 

    Ahhh, this is always a dilema.  What is the proper refreshment to offer
    the sea gods in various parts of the world.  Off the the coast of
    France, a nice bordeaux should do, properly aged and definitely not
    chilled.  In the Med, Ouzo should work or maybe a bottle of
    Valpolicella.  For special crossings or passings like the equator or
    one of the major capes, Champagne is a perennial favorite.  Upon
    departing from the Canaries, a bottle of Madeira will work.  Once in
    the Caribbean though, Rum is the offering of choice but sparingly and
    never preowned as in -.1.  Lastly, once you hit the U.S. coast,
    Budweiser or Miller Lite.  We aren't too discerning over here ;-).  And
    probably the most important point to remember.  Neptune does not like
    to drink alone.  Join him in the celebration but remember what the
    Greeks used to say.  "Everything in moderation".  
    
    Enjoy the trip!
    
    Brian 

>    never preowned as in -.1.  Lastly, once you hit the U.S. coast,
>    Budweiser or Miller Lite.  We aren't too discerning over here ;-).  And
 
Only on the East coast.  On the left coast, we're more discerning about
adding suds to suds.  Try Red Hook ESB for starters.

;-)

Mark

    Sailing most of the time out of french coasts I have always shared my
    bottle of red wine with reasonable successes. Once, out of the
    portugueses costs, I was involved in the middle of an argument between 
    Neptume and Eole! Neptune seemed to be pretty upset and I managed to quiet 
    Him down a bit by offering Him some Oil.. it did work!! For Eole I just
    removed most of my sails in sign of submission and whistled..(every one
    know, at least in the french Navy, that whistling cause the wind to
    drop).
    Whistling and scratching the mast (the last have the reverse effect of
    whistling!!) are not the only thing which have effect on the Gods..
    you must be very carefull NEVER to pronounce the name of the animal with 
    long ears which likes carrots and which is the emblem of Play Boy 
    because.. THEN you will get problems !! whatever you give overboard.
    nice sailing
    jacques 

re .4

>    you must be very carefull NEVER to pronounce the name of the animal with 
>    long ears which likes carrots and which is the emblem of Play Boy 
>    because.. THEN you will get problems !! whatever you give overboard.

	So, the beer brewed in Lapland, named  "Lapin Kulta" would be real
	bad :-)

	- kaj

    This may explain the weather conditions over there: 
     " One day we came to a place were the Gods had changed the sea in
    solid rocks! Our boats almost got crashed by the "water rocks", some
    other days the sea and the air looked the same (heavy fog! ..TT)....."
    This is a free translation of the travel report made by PYTHEAS the
    first greek navigator who is recorded to have sailed in these northern
    regions (about 500/600 BC), I presume giving this beer is so bad that
    it does not only affect the faulty boat but the whole area! May be if
    you can have this offend stopped ...olive trees will grow over there.;-)
    Jacques
    PS: Pytheas left from Marseille when he went for his northern sailing
    trip, (probably looking for antimony) when he came back his "trip report" 
    was judged as a collection of lies, this is were come the idea that
    "marseillais" (people from Marseille) are liars. 

    As one who learned late in life that bottled spirits don't go bad if
    the cap is replaced, I stay away from alcohol while making passages. So
    I don't know much about pacification of the Deities that way.  Not to
    say that I haven't seen Them upset.   What we did (only once) was to leave
    port on a Friday.  This transgression, corroborated by many unfortunate
    mariners in ports and backwaters across the South Pacific and southeast
    Asia, is a sure recipe for disaster.  We left Hawaii bound for Pago
    Pago on a Friday.  Along the way, we lost our cat, steering cables
    (twice), and were unable to lay Pago Pago due to a 55kt breeze that
    popped up the day we expected to make landfall.  We also suffered from
    such bad personal relationships along the way, that two people jumped
    ship as soon as we made port (turned out to be Va'va'au in Tonga).
    Others had similar tales of woe- many far worse than ours.
    
    And while on the subject of how to anger the Gods: another thing that
    seems to get Them angry is leaving port when the barometer has just
    dropped 11 ml.  We spent 5 days in a storm in the middle of the Tasman
    Sea one June, having left Lord Howe Island with the glass on the way
    down.  But the forecast was for fine weather...
    
    Dave who_is_not_very_superstitious

    Sorry, I have been out of the Notes file for a while and could have
    shortened this note earlier.
    
    I am the Authorized Neptune Rep for Digital and all Digital families
    and as such am able to organize safe passages etc.  Pete Gough's
    suggestion of a keg of Rum is appropriate ..... send it to the St.
    John's, NFLD Office and leave your trust in me.
    
    An added feature offered under this service is that if you send me
    Stainless Steel bits and pieces, I will guarantee no frozen sea-cocks
    for 2 years. I have a special this month send me gourmet food I'll let
    you have  ...... 20% above average sunshine on all cruises.