In response to the "Where's Ric" topic that John unnecessarily removed....RicM wrote:
Well, a couple of fertile imaginations here, and neither very complimentary. I'm either trapped in a pile of shit or in rehab? Please, gentlemen, let those without sin cast the first stone.
OK, Ok, I'm still alive, still drinking (although considerably less), and still devoted to my many Albineer friends and tormentors. I simply assume that you get sick of me after one of the extended travelogues or diatribes. Because you are so concerned, in your own twisted way, I will bring you up to date on the minutia of my life and nautical adventures.
As for the rumor that I was in the Betty Ford, I have actually slowed down my liquid social life as I have had the distinctly unpleasant experience of watching 2 men my age, very successful materially, literally go down the crapper in the last year with a bottle in each hand. One is a dear friend (and I still have hope for him), the other is a business associate whos' business, family, and health have all collapsed, like, to the point he needs a liver transplant and they won't give it to him until he stops drinking and he can't. The Great Recession has played a role in both these stories, as they both sold very expensive luxury items that nobody REALLY needs, and saw their businesses contract by several orders of magnitude in '07. It's interesting how the shit storm has uncovered a lot of rot in the system, I'm thinking Maddoff and a lot of the mega financial stuff that collapsed as well as the effect on individual's lives. I know plenty of folks that have had their lives disrupted by the whole thing, but have dusted themselves off and carried on. Then there's the others who seemed to fly so high in the boom years that cannot deal with the new reality and are basically trying to stay drunk until happy days are here again. The problem is that that's not a high percentage gamble when you are approaching 60, happy days could still be few years away, if they ever return to '05 levels of madness, and you've got about 18 months left in your liver.
For me however, things are good. I refuse to believe that the world in general and the US specifically is going down the toilet (an attempt to tie into the second theme of "Where's Ric"). Without provoking a political discussion here (I will discuss philosophy, but not politics, and there is a difference), everything "bad" seems to have a corresponding "good" component as well. Price of diesel for instance. $5 diesel hurts at the pump, but it is keeping the price of Albins up (Cousin Ron just tried to buy a 31TE and got outbid), whereas big twin engine sportfisherman are going for very short money. I'm still looking for a FL liveaboard.
Went fishing on Sat and caught nothing so all's right in the eco-system, climate change has not effected my catch ratio, so I guess there's no complaining about that. I bought me a dingy over the winter so no RI clam will be safe from Miss K and her rake. Next weekend is supposed to be warm & sunny. Fear not.
No stones coming from this way.