Quotes From the Wheelhouse

As night begins to fall, out over the water, the darkness pushes itself up against the windows and flows into the wheelhouse, covering Cappy, leaving only a scattering of lights hither and yon for him to see by, as he sits there alone in the dark . He can't turn on any lights in the wheelhouse, because it would be like when we try to drive a car at night with a lot of bright interior lights. He needs to be able to look out into the darkness to see who may be headed his way, and of course to see clearly where he is going. The oil barge, which he is pushing, is as large as a football field, and only has a couple of colored lights on the front of it, to let him know where in the dark he is, and to let other navigators know also. It's usually a quieter atmosphere in the wheelhouse at night. For the most part, activity out on the water also slows to a more calm pace. Even tho that's not always the case, there in the darkness, as he's traveling along, while much of the animal kingdom is sound asleep, Cappy has more time to reflect on life and the meaning of life. Things that matter. A lot of the time I'm 'there' with him, via our cell phones. We can talk...or not. Just kinda 'being together'. He'll wax philosophical sometimes, talking fluently with wonderful insight on many topics, which never ceases to amaze me. His interests range anywhere in the scientific field, such as archeology or the Nasa projects. He likes reading science-fiction as well. He says, "A lot of today's science-fiction is tomorrow's reality". Among his many interests, he considers himself a naturalist. He believes in appreciating nature and being responsible for the environment around us, but also believes in hunting responsibly. Many people can't seem to grasp how these two beliefs could go hand-in-hand, but "Moderation in all things", is one of the things Cappy always admonishes. It's what he tries to live. He says, "I'm a creature of habit, sometimes". The other night we were both, from different vantage points, looking at an HUGE orange-colored full moon, freshly risen out of the horizon. His wheelhouse, of course, was completely dark. We were both in hushed silence, amazed that, through the science of technology, we were there heart-to-heart, sharing this quiet time of exploring the large surface of the moon together. I was anticipating his usual murmurings as he mused about the greatness of the universe and how such a sight puts one in awe such as we were at that moment. So very relaxing it was. Finally he broke the silence..."OWW! A horsefly just bit me! Any self-respecting horsefly shouldn't be up biting me at this time of night. Probably the same arrogant fool that bit my leg earlier tonight!" He then turned on the lights and began to hunt him down.