04:59:5S 121:20:5W

 

Tuesday 28th March 2015

 

Two Thousand Miles / Half Way

A double celebration will be marked by the baking of Cinnamon Chelsea Buns. This treat will be provided by the WD Bakery FOC for the entire crew. They are already licking their lips!

 

Ken’s Musings – The Good, The Beautiful and The True

As I sit here in the cockpit at 0200, viewing a bright and clear half moon, lightly puffing cumulus clouds around it, reflecting off a calm sea, I can’t help but experience a sense of overwhelming beauty. The the boat rock hard with beam waves in light winds and the sails slap hard as the rocking spills the wind from them, rendering them momentarily inert, followed by a quick fill and a loud pop. Not a pleasant feel, nor something good for the sails. Then I glance at the instruments to check true, as against apparent wind. True wind is the direction and speed of the wind you would experience it while standing still. Apparent wind is the direction and sped of the wind you would experience when you start moving toward, away, or at an angle to it. In simple terms, if the true wind was blowing directly at you at 5 mph and you walked forward at 3mph, apparent wind would be 8mph. At angles it gets more complicated, but you get the point.

 

In those few moments I’ve had a complete experience of a old conceptual triangle, – the Good, The Beautiful and the True. My experience of good is based on what I think of and believe in as good. Slapping sails, in my experience is not good. Actually, I think it is “bad” for the sails and rigging (also, it will meet almost instantly with the captain’s disapproval). My experience of beauty – the moon, reflections, clouds, seems to come from some innate place. The sunset this evening gave me that same sense, as dose the deep Pacific blue in the midst of the day. While what is experienced as beautiful varies from person to person, the experience of beauty seems t be similar. Then comes True, what we can measure, test objectively, surround and validate with fact. But what is True? Is it the “true wind” or “apparent wind”? Is the star we see a true star or simply the light still travelling toward us long after the star has died?

 

Being at sea for several days, now weeks, takes me from the conceptual to an intensely experienced world. The concept of the good, the beautiful and the true transforms into direct experience.... not just on a continuing basis. I have to admit that I do live in my head, in conceptual space a lot of the time, not a bad thing, but concept, philosophy, theory, art and science are best when directly experienced....Following these months on Wandering Dream, I’ll be doing more of just that.

 

 

Miles travelled in last 24hrs: 143miles