Day 129 Gulf of Mexico

Friday, 2/20/2009, sunny and clear. Last night: Actual departure from New Orleans was 8 pm. Transit time down the Mississippi River was 7 hours. Since it took 10 hours to go up the river, that means the river current must be about 1-1/2 mph. The stars were bright. After the ship cleared the river, many lights from oil platforms were visible. Today, many more oil platforms were visible. There were white caps earlier. That is a contrast to the many days with no white caps on our Pacific crossing. Early this morning, I did my final load of laundry, until I get home. I made my last trip to the focsl this afternoon. The starboard main deck was full of dunnage, so I walked on the hatch covers for half the distance. It was not a tee shirt day.

I finished the first cut of my photos, selecting 320 out of 1900. Some are duplicates, but I have some more work to do, to get down to the 100 best for a presentation, and the 50 best for prints. Tonight is my last night on the ship. My instant coffee and Ritz crackers ran out today, so I will disembark tomorrow, Day 130. I paid the Captain my Slop Chest charge of $16 for the last month and a half. I thanked him for his kindness. This has been an extraordinary trip. I am reading 'Invisible Prey', by John Sanford. I have reserved 15 minutes before bed time to pack. This is my planned schedule, subject to weather or other events: Arrive Houston City Docks, 0300 Saturday. Disembark 1130. Saturday night - Austin, TX Sunday - San Antonio, TX Monday night - Wichita, KS Tuesday night - home in Minnesota.