Darusha Wehm - Sea Change

T he island slowly shrank as we sailed away. I couldnt see anything happening when I looked right at it, but when I went down below for a while, then came back, it was shocking to see how far wed come. It was unnerving to watch something disappear incrementally.

Id only spent a few days at Isla Isabela, but I couldnt shake the feeling that I was leaving home. Id come to know my way around the place; I knew the best route to get from the lagoon to town on foot, I knew which grocery store carried the good cheese, I had a favourite restaurant. And I already missed the bakery that made raisin bread in old coffee cans so it came out as a ridged cylinder.

I was nostalgic for a place Id only visited, but it was just a way of covering up my nervousness. The longest ocean passage Id ever been on was four days and that had seemed monumental at the time. Now I knew the Byte Bucket would be at sea for weeks, possibly close to to a month, of total isolation. I wasnt afraid, exactly I trusted the captain and the rest of the crew completely, and theyd demonstrated that they knew what they were doing but it was daunting nonetheless. So I focussed on the island and tried to see it recede into the distance of space and time.

Jim Call Me Jimmy Houghton, ships cook and resident old salt popped his head out of the companionway. Anyone mind if I load up the tunes?

Heads shook and the captain said, Go for it. Jimmy disappeared and a few seconds later the opening notes of Rock the Casbah boomed out of speakers cleverly built into the sides of the bench seats in the cockpit. Mat, the captain, grinned at me. We dont stand on ceremony much on this boat, but the first day at sea is usually a dance party night.

I frowned. We didnt do this on our last passage.

Mat tossed her head, dreadlocks swaying. We didnt want to spook you. Besides, that was only a couple of days. This is the real thing. We ought to celebrate. Come on, Devi, lets dance! With that, she grabbed my hand and began to dance around the cockpit. The other crew members joined us, filling the spacious area. Tulia and Martin, the two junior sailors, danced nearby but not together in that tried and true method of high-schoolers who like each other. They were pretending that there was nothing between them, but we all knew better. I grinned at Martin and watched him blush and avoid my eyes. Tulia had been jealous of my friendship with him at first, but after she found out about my ex-girlfriend, shed warmed up to me. And here Id been worried that shed be nervous about sharing a bunk room with a queer girl.

Mat and I shared an incredulous look as Jimmy appeared out of nowhere and tried to get a mosh going with Christine, the mechanic, and the mate, Isaac. They were probably half his age, but at times youd never know it.

It was a better ride than Id been expecting. The wind wasnt very strong and we were on what Id learned was called a beam reach where the wind is blowing over the side of the boat. Isaac, the ships mate, had told me that it was the fastest point of sail, though it could often be uncomfortable because the ocean waves hit the boat broadside. However, today we were lucky the swell was astern even though the wind was abeam; a perfect sail.

Fair winds and following seas, I said, echoing the phrase Id heard sailors say when they wished each other well.

Enjoy it while it lasts, Mat said, twirling around with her arms in the air. The one truth about the weather is that it will change.

T he dance party didnt last long; only a couple more songs, then Jimmy went down to work on dinner and the crew settled into their routine. I tried to decide what to do with myself since my place on the boat when we were under way was still a bit ambiguous. Byte Bucket wasnt just a sailboat, it was also the home of one of the nodes for the bizarre cloud data storage firm Really Remote Desktop, and that was why I was there. This hundred-foot sloop was my co-op job placement as part of my Computer Science degree. The server room built into the bilge was my domain, but when we were sailing my job was to stay out of the way and make sure I didnt fall overboard.

I made my way out of the cockpit and into the main salon that was built up in front of the working end of the boat. It was a large open space with a lovely hardwood floor that was much better suited to a dance party than the cockpit, but there was something about hanging out in the cockpit at sea that just felt right. Open air, the sound of the waves it was where you wanted to be when you were getting underway.

Inside, there was a TV and a bar, plus seating along the sides, so we spent more time here in bad weather or when we were trying to just relax out of everyone elses way. No one was there now as I made my way to the interior of the boat by hanging on to the evenly spaced handholds along the wall. It was almost second nature now, but I still had the odd bruise from my first few days on board.

I carefully stepped down the companionway stairs facing backwards. They were steep and while most of the crew walked down them facing forward, I wasnt keen on ending up on my butt. Down below was taken up with the galley on one side with its kitchen area and large table where we shared meals. There was a short hallway with toilets and showers along the sides, which led to the shared bunk room. That was where I ran into Martin.

No regrets?

He made a face. What would be the point? I cant exactly change my mind now. Id been sure he was going home when we were in the Galpagos. I didnt know the details of his contract, but I knew hed only signed on in a desperate bid to earn enough money to get back home after getting stranded in Mexico. I could understand the tension between wanting to get home and the call of adventure. Especially if adventure wasnt exactly what you were looking for.

I nodded. There wasnt any reason to belabour it if he wished hed made a different choice, it was too late now. You going to check on the servers?

Might as well, I said. I should get into the habit of monitoring them daily. Im kind of hoping I can figure out some way to get a little speed boost out of them. I know that the transfer rates Im seeing are consistent with this application, but its just so hard to accept when youre used to proper broadband Martin looked like I felt when the others got deep into the boat talk. Sorry. I guess Im just rubber ducking.

You what?

I laughed. Its programmer-speak for thinking out loud. Its not about conversation you could be talking to a rubber duck.

Well, Id like to think Im more useful than bath toy, but it wouldnt be true in this conversation.

Ill try to keep my more boring conversations to myself.

Nah, I dont mind being your rubber duck, Martin said, so long as you dont expect anything more complex than quack in response.

We were both laughing when Tulia came around the bulkhead. What are you two up to? That sounded kinda dirty, she said, grinning.

Its not, I said, still laughing. I was going on about work and then I said I was

Never mind, Martin interrupted. Its too hard to explain.

Tulia rolled her eyes at us but she was smiling. Im on night watch tonight, so Im going to try to get a nap in. I hope this