My Blog

Picture this: the horizon bristles with the tattered sails of a rebuilt shipwreck. At its fore drifts a massive, square-rig. This ship is oak-planked, creaking in the swell, and laden with treasure. These were carracks — the giants of the sea in the 15th and early 16th centuries. Whether you’re imagining the haunting silhouette of the Pirate Queens’  Big Bertha, or the obsidian hull of a Portuguese India Armadas vessel, carracks deserve their place in maritime legend.

A few months ago, I planted an old sweet potato. I’d bought a couple with the intention of roasting them all, but I didn’t need that many. So I saved one. And then I kept saving it. And eventually, that little tuber sprouted—thin shoots, tender leaves—until it was undeniably alive. At that point, I couldn’t throw it away. I also couldn’t eat it. There was only one reasonable option left: stick it in a pot and see what happens. I had nothing to lose. It was either that or a sl

Pirates had their own unique ways of celebrating certain holidays, but keep in mind: no holiday compares to the adrenaline spike of plunder and the risk of death. That rush—the wild dopamine surge of surviving something no human reasonably should—was probably the real glue that bonded pirate crews together. Camaraderie, strength, survival…nothing may have built it faster. The Plunder High: A Holiday of Its Own When pirates successfully plundered ships, towns, or villages, the

My great uncle Rawlan ‘Tank’ Nelson, was a six foot four, 240 pound longshoreman. No surprise they called him Tank. What would you expect a giant dockworker who’d worked in the port since 1951 to do in his ‘spare’ time? Brawl in bars? Play football with his buddies or break people’s legs who didn’t pay their loansharks back? Our family might’ve expected shenanigans like that from his father, my great great grandpa Ludwig, but not Tank. When Tank wasn’t longshoring, he was rev

When the pirate voyage starts, things start out great: Fresh meat, breads and cheeses. In the beginning, it’s yum yum time, but as the voyage continues, things change. Remember, pirates didn’t have refrigerators back in the day, and so they had to be creative…and that’s where the fun begins…for us anyway…because we don’t have to eat these things (unless we want to). As the voyage dragged out at sea, the food stores progressed to dried meats, pickled vegetables, and yes fowl.

My maternal grandfather was a ship’s captain, eventually becoming a port pilot for the Los Angeles and Long Beach harbors. A port pilot is a very specialized job that requires them to take control of commercial vessels entering the harbors, and bring them safely into their assigned berths. These pilots not only have to be familiar with the specific dangers and conditions of the harbors they work in, they need to know how to operate all the different commercial vessels they ta

When I was in sixth grade my mom took me to see Disney’s The Little Mermaid in the movie theatre. Problematic issues aside, as a kid at that time, I loved it. I memorized the whole movie and yes, I was one of those kids where that movie influenced my wanting to become a marine biologist. During the next six years, from seventh grade through high-school, I spent my summers volunteering at my local aquarium. I learned all about Southern California marine life, but I also learne

I’d be a fool to say no. When the movie Jaws came out in the 1970’s, people started killing great white sharks because they were so scared of them. Never-mind the fact that all sharks are a natural part of the food web, and we need them for the health of our oceans. So let’s talk a few shark attack facts: white sharks are human ‘biters’ not ‘eaters.’ They probably don’t like the way we taste, but they do love to eat seals and sea lions. Let’s imagine we’re a surfer waiting fo