Captain’s log
Dateline: 05.09.2022

Gas spill

Was about to take a nap around 4pm, when a sudden smell of gasoline entered my boat. The first thing I always assume is that it’s my tank or one of the canisters leaking, but that has never been the case so far.

I got out, the smell outside was even worse. Then I saw a small power boat on a lift in front of me, running its bilge pump and leaking either a ton of gas or mix of water and gas from its bilge. The owner was next to it, an older guy, in his 70s or 80s. I yelled and said he seems to be leaking something into the water. Explained that I’m not going to tell anyone, but he may get into a very serious trouble for it. He tried to bullshit me saying that there might be some oil in his bilge. The smell of gas was almost unbearable at that point. I said he might want to do this on land if there’s oil or gas in his bilge, then he turned off his bilge pump. At that point the film on the water was larger than the size of my boat, it was flowing towards my catamaran. One spark and my boat could be sitting in a pool of flame because of that idiot.

A guy named Sam who stays here at Golden Palms, said something very wise to me regarding what happened, that many old people just don’t give a fuck after a certain point. It makes a lot of sense, especially if they have no kids and especially if they were told they have less than 4 years left to live by their overpaid doctor.

Captain’s log
Dateline: 06.09.2022

Mosquitoes

Today I had a ton of mosquitos in my boat, never seen that many before. Had to hunt them down with my zapper.

It appears that those gasoline vapors from yesterday’s spill woke them up and forced them into my boat. I had to leave Curious Cat open for a few hours to let all those vapors air out. Gosh I hate boomers.

Been told by neighbor who’s renting month-to-month here at Golden Palms that The Bug Juice is the stuff I need in case I encounter bugs here in Florida or while going through the Panama Canal. No unedible ingredients in it, seems to be non-carcinogenic. I hope it works against black flies as well if I do go around Alaska.

Captain’s log
Dateline: 07.09.2022

FCC license

Got a sweet email from FCC today, said that my electronic license is ready.

Took them only a few days, very nice!

FCC Call Sign Station Identity/MMSI Expiration Date
WDN3903 368276130 09-07-2032

Looks like that one-time fee is really more like once-in-a-decade fee. But I’m honestly not too sure FCC is still going to be around in ten years from now, so maybe won’t have to pay it again.

Now I need to install my AIS hardware and input that MMSI in it. Also, update the beacon department (or whatever their name is) and give them my FCC call sign and MMSI — didn’t have those yet when I filled out and mailed them the form. Oh, how I wish it was PURR or MEOW, but WDN3903 is also very catchy. Not.

Solar rechargeable batteries

I forgot to take my AAA batteries and charger from Hawaii. Not that I really need AAA here, but my multimeter and one or two other devices use those. Buying new batteries is not always an option when you’re out at sea, so need something rechargeable. Having a pack of Duracell or Energizer batteries takes space and adds weight, and also in theory recharging them is better for the planet.

Of course there are solar chargers for standard rechargeable batteries, I know, but that would require extra work of taking the batteries out every time they discharge. I rather 3D print transparent covers for my devices that eat 10–20% of light than take batteries out every time. Or simply taking the cover off before charging is still better than taking them out. There are rechargeable batteries with USB ports in them, but sticking cables is a hassle, while the sun is always there, just flipping and laying my devices next to one of my cabin windows is way less time-consuming. And yes, going that route it may be worth putting a Li-Ion inside and building custom covers with exposed PV cells, but that’s way too much work.

I almost started building a DIY prototype of my AAA batteries with PV cells, even found triple junction CPV solar cells on eBay. Combining that with 1/3 AAA or 2/3 AAA Ni-Mh or some meaty ultracapacitor could do it.

Before starting to work on something as enthusiastic as that, decided to look if it already exists. Amazon didn’t have such innovative and breakthrough technologies in stock, but Google search landed me on Solar Rechargeable Battery. Now, these are out of stock everywhere else and used to be under $10 for a pack of two AAA batteries, and I’m not 100% sure how well these work, but that’s exactly what I need.

The manufacturer seems to be Headwind consumer products. Means they’re likely made in the US, which is good. Reached out to them, hope they shed some light on how they work and if they really do charge from exposure to sunlight, and tell me if they know who could sell those to me not at 3x the price.