Norwegian Wood - The Beatles

Another forced day at home but with the artex completed in most satisfactory style (Carl Harmsworth 07971918749 for excellent plastering and artexing) and the photo scanning continuing apace, we again rely on the latter for this post. Out of sight and probably out of mind, work onboard the thousands of oilrigs around the world continues without interruption day and night. I was fortunate to spend the final 20 years of my sea-going career on various semi-submersible installation where I was responsible for positioning, ballasting, anchoring, logistics and communications, to name but a few. One of our most challenging jobs was to re-commission the Dolphin Drilling semi-sub

BORGLAND DOLPHIN after a lengthy refit in Dusavik, Norway. Here are a few close-ups of part of that operation.

Tug secured with a stern tow,

all ship shape and Bristol fashion in the Control Room

with at least one person working

while the audience look on!

Pulling off the snow covered jetty.

In mid-harbour and about to face the North Sea.

Once positioned by 3 ocean-going Tugs, 10 of these 22 ton 'Dolphin (no relation) Flipper' anchors are deployed secured to about 2 miles of the hefty chain cable shown here. The whole evolution took about 4 days.

and A LITTLE TASTE of a RIG CHRISTMAS

The aproned Camp Boss looking after his Catering Team

and look what they produced.

 

Yum, Yum and not an alcopop in sight.

High jinx always followed a good Christmas meal, (Dave Penney a 'birding' mate as well)

these being contenders for our own slant of

THE WEAKEST LINK

while being serenaded by the Catering Crew.

The Final Celebration but not on the rig!

El Paso - Marty Robbins

Continuing our journey across the USA, Lisa and I had left New Orleans, Louisiana far behind and were now in the heart of Bayou Country

 

amid mile after mile of CRAWFISH and SHRIMP BOATS. Heading initially for Baton Rouge the State Capital we then turned west through Lafayette and Port Arthur later visiting

Galveston (oh Galveston), with its flotilla of CASINO RIVERBOATS, Pasadena and and Houston, Texas.

There was only one target as we arrived at SAN ANTONIO and that was The ALAMO which indeed surprised us both. Instead of it being isolated in arid lands, as we had both thought, the city has grown up around it with the fort being just another outskirt.

However, this was the most poignant stop so far as our guide started by saying the only sound she wanted to hear was our breathing. Total reverence is demanded and followed as she told us much of the war torn history of success and failure of both Mexican and US armies to hold on to this strategic settlement.

I was most surprised to find how many different nationalities were represented under the banner of what were to become US Forces. Next 'port of call' was

 Out in the West Texas town of EL PASO
I fell in love with a Mexican girl.
Night-time would find me in Rosa's cantina;
Music would play and Felina would whirl.

 which was springboard for a detour into Mexico.

Crossing the RIO GRAND, which due to the current drought was not so 'grand', we journeyed firstly  to

Ciudad Juarez, to take in their slant on the ubiquitous VW BEETLE. As our 'open' Greyhound ticket allowed for travel in the northern part of Mexico, we decided to venture a little further south and ended up

enjoying a few MARGARITAS in Chihuahua. Little more than a couple of days and it was back to New Mexico then Tucson and Phoenix, Arizona.

At FLAGSTAFF (the 'sharp-eyed' will be able to see the Flag in this shot) we not only joined 'Route 66' but also found the best starting point for our next intended visit. Before the end of our trip we would also touch on the last 4 towns mention in the lyric of that song.

Well it winds from Chicago to L.A.
More than 2000 miles all the way
Get your kicks on Route 66

Well goes from St. Louie down to Missouri
Oklahoma City looks oh so pretty
You'll see Amarillo and Gallup, New Mexico
Flagstaff, Arizona don't forget Winona
Kingman, Barstow, San Bernadino

THE GRAND CANYON

with views of the COLORADO RIVER and a few

CALIFORNIA CONDORs

If I ever want to fly
Muholland Drive
Up in the sky

Hollywood is under me
I'm Martin Sheen, I'm Steve McQueen, I'm Jimmy Dean
You are the star tonight
Shine electric outta sight
Your light eclipsed the moon tonight
Electrolite
You're outta sight

20th Century go to sleep

ELECTROLITE - REM from the album New Adventures in Hi-Fi

The HOLLYWOOD WALK OF FAME in Los Angeles consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo (epoxy resin) and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street. The stars are permanent public monuments to achievement in the entertainment industry, bearing the names of a mix of actors, musicians, directors, producers, musical and theatrical groups, fictional characters, and others. The Walk of Fame is administered by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce and maintained by the self-financing Hollywood Historic Trust. It is a popular tourist destination, with a reported 10 million visitors in 2003.

The GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE was the 'end of the line' for me, while Lisa had plans to continue onwards to Seattle and parts of Canada, but what a finale! We walked the bridge from end to end, crossing the 'Golden Gate' which is the opening of San Francisco Bay into the Pacific Ocean with the city of San Francisco and Alcatraz Prison as a backdrop.

Finally, we have received a comparison photograph from Paul Harris who was in the Big Apple a couple of years ago. This early 90's shot of Lower Manhattan, published on the Wednesday post, shows the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre,

while Paul's was taken post 9/11. Both were taken from the top of the Empire State Building.

Dixieland Rock - Elvis Presley

At last I have managed to find a reliable Artexer to refurbish my kitchen and dining room ceilings, so find myself once again 'confined to barracks'. Good luck then that while uploading yesterday's photos I also sorted a few from the next leg of the same trip across the USA with my youngest daughter Lisa.

With fond memories of Memphis whirling around our heads we took the Greyhound south through Mississippi, into Louisiana and to the legendary city of

Well down in New Orleans at the Golden Goose
I grabbed a green-eyed dolly that was on the loose
Well I dig that music, that she said me too
I said pretty baby come on and let's do
The Dixieland rock
Well the Dixieland rock
Let your hair down Sugar, shake it free
And do the Dixieland rock with me

With much to do here we took a trip to their own version of the Everglades where ALLIGATORS, from large to small, were the main attraction. However, most of our time was spent in the French Quarter and almost exclusively on Bourbon Street.

 With the blue light shining on her swinging hips
She got the drummer so nervous that he lost his sticks
The cornet player hit a note that's flat
The tromboner hit him while the poor cat sat

 The Dixieland rock
Well the Dixieland rock
Let your hair down Sugar, shake it free
And do the Dixieland rock with me

 I was all pooped out and when the clock struck four
But she said no daddy can't leave the floor
She wore a clinging dress that fit so tight
She couldn't sit down so we danced all night
The Dixieland rock
Well the Dixieland rock
Let your hair down Sugar, shake it free
And do the Dixieland rock with me
Let your hair dance Sugar, shake it free
And do the Dixieland rock with me

The only city in the whole of the US where it is 'legal' to drink alcohol openly in the street (hence hobos everywhere else with 'brown paper bags') we indulged in the 2 most famous and sort after tipples 'Hurricane' and ' Hand Grenade', with the sign saying "no one has ever drunk 8 and lived to tell the tale". The advice was not to stray into the back-streets, but the sense of well-being here was fantastic along with much revelry and jazz and blues issuing from every doorway - FANTASTIC!

 

Without doubt the most interesting character we met there was THE CHICKEN MAN who Wiki will describe much more eloquently than I.

Fred Staten, who was born in the mid-thirties, reinvented himself as "Prince Keeyama," a genuine Voodoo Man who later claimed to be the last voodoo nightclub entertainer in the world. Known to everyone as "Chicken Man," Keeyama called his act a religious ritual, an act he had performed since childhood.

Not many people took Chicken Man seriously as a voodooist, he was more generally thought of as a "showman" and "geek." When interviewed, Keeyama claimed to be a native of Port-au-Prince, Haiti and that his brother was the Haitian Prime Minister, and that they were both raised by Papa Doc Duvalier, although Keeyama had no accent at all. He also boasted of his natural-born power to paralyse a body just by touch. But of all his accomplishments, Chicken Man was the most proud of the audience reaction to his shows during which it was not uncommon for a lady to shriek and faint as he bit the heads off of chickens. As years went on, Prince Keeyama was often found wandering the French Quarter in his voodoo attire selling (in our case 'giving') voodoo dolls and gris-gris bags to passers-by. He once had a shop called "Chicken Man's House of Voodoo" located on Bourbon Street. Fred Staten died in December of 1998.

Our own experience of this fascinating guy was to discover 'very quickly' he was no bum and had no desire to relieve us of our money, telling us about his life and powers being his only want. Having been brought up on the Blues from a very early age, I was determined to find out more about the magic power and good-luck charm known as John the Conqueror Root which features in many Blues and most famously in the McKinley Morganfield (Muddy Waters) composition

Hoochie Coochie Man

 I got the black cat bone and I got a mojo tooth
I got the John the Conqueror Root, gonna mess with you
I'm gonna make you girls lead me by my hand
And then the world gonna know I'm a Hoochie Coochie Man

 Kneel In Reverence Before Clicking This Link

The 'Prince' advised us that the harvest had been very poor that year but would do his best to obtain some for us and that we should meet back at that spot later in the day. Before that however, he asked each of us if we had a 'silver coin' (suggesting a 1/2$) and took from his big leather bag 2 Voodoo Dolls. Blessing each coin, he tucked them into the bodice of the dolls and handed one to each of us. "These will protect you, bring good luck and help to make your dreams come true" he said before disappearing into the crowd. Two photos from later in the trip certainly seemed to substantiate his claims as

LISA had always wished to be the proverbial 'Kid in a Sweet Shop', and me, enough just to spend one day as

 

ALICE COOPER!

The ceilings are not completed so looks like another day alongside the jetty, so will at least get the final part of the USA trip done - Google Willing????

Memphis Tennessee - Chuck Berry

Well, if you thought yesterday was quiet then maybe we should have stayed at home today. Looking south across the back-water and towards the sea-front clouds were already gathering,

while passing Ferry Bridge it looked even gloomier over Portland where what looked every bit like Funnel Cumulus Cloud was hanging low over New Ground.

A walk along Barleycrates Lane out to the West Cliff produced just a single Common Whitethroat and c4 WHEATEAR

while Reap Lane could add no more than c6 YELLOW WAGTAILs. Good job then that Secret was on hand to offer up a cup of coffee and a few 'tales of the sea'! A few may not quite be the correct description, as a full 3 hours later and a couple of heavy down-pours I caught the bus home. The short day did have its benefits as if you are going to drop out of society there is much to do before taking the final plunge. For weeks now I have been committing many hundreds of Compact (Music) Discs to the i-Pod, and likewise scanning 'thousands' of photographs which are slowly taking up residence on the external hard-drive! We all have them, but it brings a realisation as to just how often we flick through these dust gathering albums, not very often me thinks?

It is a God-send for any man to have a daughter, but a dream come true if that girl decides to go travelling with her dad which was just my luck back in the late 90's. As I flicked open yet another book early evening, I found myself back in TORONTO, Canada where my youngest offspring Lisa and I had arrived after 2 days in Montreal at the start of what was to be a trans-USA tour. 

 From there we progressed to the giant Amusement Arcade that is the town of NIAGARA FALLS

and onward to NIAGARA and HORSESHOE FALLS themselves. Buffalo was only an overnight break before a visit to

the Big Apple plus LIBERTY and Ellis Islands.

The view south to LOWER MANHATTAN, before the Twin Towers were destroyed, followed by stops at Washington DC, North and South Carolina then back up to Knoxville and Nashville Tennessee. A very early morning departure from the latter had us in conversation with a man and wife along with their two sons Jason (16) and Justin (14) while waiting for the Greyhound. The 2 boys took the short journey with us to Memphis, enjoying some great conversation on the way. On arrival we bade them farewell, only to be told that their dad had given them money to show us around the city, what came next was totally unexpected! Taken to their home by taxi we were given breakfast before Jason disappear round the back and soon returned driving

Long distance in formation, give me Memphis Tennessee
Help me find the party trying to get in touch with me
She could not leave her number, but I know who placed the call
'Cause my uncle took the message and he wrote it on the wall

this FORD MUSTANG and started the tour by driving us over the MISSISSIPPI BRIDGE (in the background just a half a mile away) into Arkansas, a State we had no intention of visiting.

Help me, information, get in touch with my Marie
She's the only one who'd phone me here from Memphis Tennessee
Her home is on the south side, high up on a ridge
Just a half a mile from the Mississippi Bridge

Back to Beale Street and Sun Studios where we were treated to some original recordings by Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison and The King himself before popping into Elvis's favoured diner for a slice of his much loved Banana Pie.

 On to the RUM BOOGIE CAFE for some midday Blues, including legendary blues harmonica player Charlie Musselwhite,

Help me, information, more than that I cannot add
Only that I miss her and all the fun we had
But we were pulled apart because her mom did not agree
And tore apart our happy home in Memphis Tennessee

before arrival at GRACELANDS and Elvis Presley Airport including his collection of aircraft. Leaving our signatures on the wall along with 1,000,000 others we quickly headed back to town to witness one of the most famous daily ceremonies Memphis has to offer. At the world famous Peabody Hotel, there are a flock of Mallard which have the freedom of the place until 18:00 precisely when the Bell Hop summons the elevator from above. Without coaxing the Ducks enter the lift and are transported to the roof and the Duck Palace which is there roost, and the humans return to street level. Perhaps needless to say much of our conversation was about music, and during our farewells at the Greyhound Station I was handed a scroll of paper from the lads saying "knowing your love of Jimi this will be better in your home than in ours", then quickly departed. 

Opening it on the coach we discovered that it was a charcoal rubbing of Jimi Hendrix's original grave, which I lovingly frame on our return to England - again there were tears before bedtime!

Last time I saw Marie she's waving me good-bye
With hurry home drops on her cheek that trickled from her eye
Marie is only six years old, information please
Try to put me through to her in Memphis Tennessee