I just want to say how happy I am with my Sea Breathe hookah system. Talk about a piece of gear that pays for itself. I’ve been using my sea breath for 5 years and have really grown to rely on it.
I’m out of bottom paint so I’m cleaning the hull every month and the Sea Breathe really makes a difficult chore much easier.
I’m trying to acquire all the supplies I’ll need for a haul out. I have all new Forespar Marelon through-hulls and ball valves coming, and I just bought a 5 gallon can of bottom paint (Jotun SeaForce 60).
After careful 
consideration I’ve decided not to go with Coppercoat as a bottom paint this time. I have friends with solid copper sheet on their hull and they have a reef growing on it. I’m not saying that Coppercoat is a good or bad product as I just don’t know. I do have a test strip coming and will run a test next to my own copper/epoxy mix, as well as my bottom paint.
I am going to strip all of the old bottom paint off as I have some blisters. I’m going to fix all the blisters and re-barrier coat. As far as a barrier coat I’m going to either use coletar epoxy or make my own copper/epoxy barrier coat. With 5 gallons (thick application) of bottom paint I’m hoping to get another 5 years before my next haul-out. If my test strip of coppercoat is out-preforming everything else I’ll apply it on my next haul-out.
Most of my through-hulls are 1973 Chinese, flush-mount bronze. I’m going to fill (fiberglass) all the through holes as they are for flush mount and re-drill them for mushroom mount. It’s a bit more work but I’ll feel better about the fit and can move them to better locations.
My friend Gary was here for a week and we had a really good time. We took some time for fishing and hanging-out. Gary is a fine fisherman and a good friend. We were on an island and came across a few baby sea turtles in a bucket that 
some Kuna kids found. I gave them $4 each for them and Gary, Carla, and I went out to a remote section of reef and set them free. They are such beautiful and gentile creatures, unfortunately they are also quite tasty. Turtuga is often an option when ordering a meal as opposed to chicken, beef, fish, shell fish, or pork.
The larger of the two little guys took off as soon as I let him go. He dove down to 
the reef and started playing with the fish. I was a little worried about the smaller one as he was a bit lethargic but I guess it’s better for him to die on the reef than in a hot bucket. I really love living so close to nature. I just spent a few days in the city which really took a lot out of me. All the selling, buying, cars, noise, pollution, and traffic really brings me down. As soon as I came home, Carla had lobster dinner ready for me and we bought a 20lb black fin tuna for sushi for the week. I’ve said it a thousand times and I’ll say it again, “I’m such a lucky man”!
Carla bought a Kuna flag and now we fly 
it along with our Argentina flag. And no, it’s not a swastika if you’re interested to learn about this symbol, click here.
That’s it for today guys.
Peace, Love, more love, and Coconuts.
– Alex
thanks for a great time. Hang on to Carla, she is a keeper…….hope I anchor too close soon…..made it to David…maybe on to Costa Rica tomorrow or Lunes……..mi espanol es mui rusty
I know that is not a swastika & you know it, but,, still makes me cringe. Just the thought of someone that doesn`t know thinking the wrong thing would be enough to make me take that down, all the good Karma you got by helping the turtles just went to the bottom where that flag should be.. I have this thing with turtles, many years ago I was on my motorcycle & saw a aligator snaper in the road. I went back & tried to help him off the road by putting my foot down & kinda shove him along to the side, well he bit the end of my shoe & I rasied my foot so he could not get another grip & have my toe cause he was right up against it. Now picture it, I am riding slow along the side of the road with a snaper on my foot looking for something to get him off. I find a stick & try to pick it up without putting the turtle down ,, well I fall down trying to pick up the stick & now I prop my foot on the handlebars cause he is getting heavy & I am thinking man if I put him down he is gona get my toe for real,, so here I am laying on the side of the road with my foot in the air & a snapper on it wraped up in the bike & people are driving by LOOKING but nobody is helping!!! That dude did NOT want to let go!!! I get him off 20min later,, Wow what an ordeal,, ya just gotta picture it.. Still laugh about that!! Funny thing is I have another turtle story that is almost as funny but I will save it for another time.. Am I the only one that doesn`t like that flag??
Butch,
The symbol is reversed from the swastika and it is the flag of the nation I live in. The Kuna, as many other cultures used it long before the negative connotation of Hitler. I fly it out of respect to the Kuna culture.
Funny story about the Snapper, my turtles never snapped and don’t have an aggressive bone in their body.
Peace
I understand, but will everyone? Kind of like driving thru gangland with the wrong color or something. It is there flag though so,when in Rome right? True story about the snapper!!! Check this out, I was on the way home from court after getting divorced & was so happy to get done with that, I was a real bonehead, well anyway I had a buddy on the back as my witness & was doing about 70 turning just a bit to the right & there was a turtle on my left & I hung my left foot down to kinda give him a boot ( don`t ask me why) expecting my foot to kinda come up & wack my buddy,,, Yeah I know, anyway that didn`t happen,what happened was my foot got the turtle & my leg came back as expected but cause I was turning to the right my leg was right up against the frame & hit the footpeg & stoped, my leg flexed & shot that turtle into the curb & turned me around & as I only had a split second to see ( remember I am going 70 on a curve now facing the wrong way) ,, last I seen that turtle he was 40 ft & rising!!! I pulled over, yep didn`t knock me off,, & I could not feel anything below where my leg hit the footpeg & layed down & laughed for a while! I just could not beleave I was so stupid.. Like I said, got this thing with the critters. Now before everybody comes down on me to hard,I live on a lake & I save the little guys quite often when they get stuck in the fence, trying to get my karma right.. All true!!! Sometimes even smart people do stupid stuff! I keep telling myslef… I could go on, I have ridden bikes a long time..
Almost forgot,broke my big toe & should have broken my leg but I was young & dumb & just bent it & I mean fired the poor guy, really.. My leg looked like a baseball bat hit me halfway between my knee & foot. but it didn`t break,, We all do stupid things I guess, I really have no idea why I did that, Instant Karma,that little guy kicked my but!! Hope I made people smile anyway, all true turtle storys….
The Swastika has a long and curious history that dates back 3000 years to the bronze age. Its origins probably lie in the Sanskrit cultures and Eastern societies considered it a good luck charm before it became a symbol of the holocaust.
The difficulty with the common variations of this symbol, (such as the Kuna’s inverted version,) is that in many parts of the world it has become an absolute taboo. Irrational and an almost mystical level of fear surround the Swastika today, to the point where an open and honest discussion of its existence is not possible in polite society. Like other absolute taboos, even the subject matter itself is thought to be distasteful and to be avoided.
Due to this, cultures who have used this symbol (or variations thereof) long before the fateful events of the early 20th century find themselves in a quandary. On the one hand, their heritage and history gives them the right to use it in whatever way they see fit. On the other, people react in an almost visceral way to the mere display of the symbol, evoking precisely the opposite reaction intended.
Personally, my own family has been a victim of the Holocaust and have many sad tales I remember from my childhood. Yet I wish people were tolerant enough to respect other nations’ traditions – allowing the Kuna their right to their heritage just as much as my family has their right to their pain…
Yoda mouse,
I lost family in the holocaust as well, I’m Ukrainian. My grandfather (Morhers Fater) was sent to Siberia and shot for not sharing geographical information, he was a forester. The Kuna are always so happy to see up flying their flag with pride, so few boats do and prefer to fly the Panamian courtesy instead.
How’s the boat?
Peace
BTW
My buddy just started a website dedicated to the love of island living, if you have a second check out islandjay.com/
He also sells marine battery chargers if anyone is looking for on. I bought a 60amp ProMaraner Pronautic 1260 C3 from him.
Appreciate the plug Alex!
Please check out http://www.islandjay.com. I provide your Daily Dose of the Island & Beach Life.
I also sell discounted marine battery chargers at http://www.chargerguy.com
Thanks!
Jason