A Word to the Wise Sailor

Several days ago I relayed one of the "101 Things I Think I Learned While Sailing With Marlene on Different Drummer." If you will remember, the list was compiled by the skipper of the Different Drummer, a 39' catamaran he and his wife were cruising on last summer. His #5 item concerns Blackbeard.

I recently had an opportunity to visit the Blackbeard exhibit at the Maritime Museum in Beaufort, NC. By the way, the exhibits there are just wonderful. Consider stopping there on your next trip through eastern North Carolina. You won't be disappointed!

And if you are sailing in our waters, please take heed to items #5:

"DO NOT, REPEAT, DO NOT, sail over the wreck of Capt. Edward Teach's flagship Queen Anne's Revenge, sunken in Beaufort, North Carolina, inlet. A.K.A. "Blackbeard the Pirate," sailing over Capt. Teach's sunken ship is said to be bad juju and results in bad karma. We did it early on, shortly before our first engine blew up. 'You're done for!' said 86 year-old sailor Richard, drinking straight, very expensive rum at Bob Laverty's pool party in Oriental. 'But I didn't know!' I cried. 'You're still done for,' he said."

Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is the story of the "Joe Bell" flower. You can read it here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news012112.htm.