A wonderful day!
Since I didn't have to go into the lab today I decided to play the tourist, something I didn't really do during my internship, mainly because there's really little to do on Cape Cod in the winter. I had an urge to be near the ocean today and thought a great thing to do would be to go whale watching, because 1) I did want to study cetaceans before I became cephalopod crazy and 2) because I can't always be about the cephalopods and 3) because whales are just too damn awesome and really should be witnessed where they belong, in the ocean and not in an aquarium.
So since I got up early enough, I did some searching online and found I was fairly close to Hyannis Whale Watcher Cruises in Barnstable Harbor and had enough time to get there.
It was a gorgeous day for being at sea. I felt as I always do when being near the ocean, especially when being out on the open ocean- as though I am reconnecting with the Great Lady. I can feel some part of myself yearning to be closer to Her. I get tears in my eyes, the longing is so great. For some reason, I have always felt this bond with the sea. I call out to Her and I listen. And then I feel her presence in the wind, in the sea spray, wrapping Herself around my very heart, my soul. I feel at peace and whole and strong, yet wild and fierce, as though the very spirit of the ocean is suddenly my spirit. There are very few times when I feel all those wonderful things at once, and I cherish those moments.
And in Her honor, I dedicate this song, by Loreena McKennitt.
The thundering waves are calling me home, home to you.
The pounding sea is calling me home, home to you.
On a dark new year's night
On the west coast of Clare
I hear your voice singing
Your eyes danced the song
Your hands played the tune
T'was a vision before me.
We left the music behind and the dance carried on
As we stole away to the seashore
We smelt the brine, felt the wind in our hair
With sadness you paused.
Suddenly I knew that you'd have to go
Your world was not mine, your eyes told me so
Yet it was there I felt the crossroads of time
And I wondered why.
As we cast our gaze on the tumbling sea
A vision came o'er me
Of thundering hooves and beating wings
In clouds above.
As you turned to go I heard you call my name.
You were like a bird in a cage,
Spreading its wings to fly
"The old ways are lost" you sang as you flew
And I wondered why.
The thundering waves are calling me home, home to you.
The pounding sea is calling me home, home to you.
The thundering waves are calling me home, home to you.
The pounding sea is calling me home, home to you.
The thundering waves are calling me home, home to you.
The pounding sea is calling me home, home to you.
Once we reached the feeding grounds we were blessed to witness several whales, mainly finback whales, although there were also some smaller minke whales. The finbacks are the second largest whale species in the world (the blue whale being the largest). They were easier to photograph and even then, getting a good picture is very difficult. I'm hoping to post the pictures I took in a few days.
Unfortunately, once the boat began its stopping and starting motion as we followed and then looked for more whales, I started to get sea sick, even though I had the foresight to take a double dose of dramamine. Yes, I know, laugh it up, a marine biologist getting sea sick. Are you done laughing? May we continue now? Thank you. Anyway, I didn't embarrass myself and I had no way of knowing if I turned an unflattering shade of green, but let's just say we turned back for shore just in time. I was much better once we were moving steadily again.
Afterwards I visited a neat local witchy type shop called Lavender Moon where I spent far too much money on books (only three though). The books I got are Be a Goddess! by Francesca De Grandis, Tarot for the Green Witch by Ann Moura, and The Mist-Filled Path: Celtic Wisdom for Exiles, Wanderers, and Seekers by Frank MacEowen. Feel free to post reviews. I also bought some stones as I haven't been able to find mine since all of our belongings were boxed.
Then I had a pleasant dinner and headed back to the room I'm staying at, which is in a lovely house (surrounded by lots of green) owned by a very nice couple with several cats :)
All in all, I can't complain about my Sunday.
So since I got up early enough, I did some searching online and found I was fairly close to Hyannis Whale Watcher Cruises in Barnstable Harbor and had enough time to get there.
It was a gorgeous day for being at sea. I felt as I always do when being near the ocean, especially when being out on the open ocean- as though I am reconnecting with the Great Lady. I can feel some part of myself yearning to be closer to Her. I get tears in my eyes, the longing is so great. For some reason, I have always felt this bond with the sea. I call out to Her and I listen. And then I feel her presence in the wind, in the sea spray, wrapping Herself around my very heart, my soul. I feel at peace and whole and strong, yet wild and fierce, as though the very spirit of the ocean is suddenly my spirit. There are very few times when I feel all those wonderful things at once, and I cherish those moments.
And in Her honor, I dedicate this song, by Loreena McKennitt.
The thundering waves are calling me home, home to you.
The pounding sea is calling me home, home to you.
On a dark new year's night
On the west coast of Clare
I hear your voice singing
Your eyes danced the song
Your hands played the tune
T'was a vision before me.
We left the music behind and the dance carried on
As we stole away to the seashore
We smelt the brine, felt the wind in our hair
With sadness you paused.
Suddenly I knew that you'd have to go
Your world was not mine, your eyes told me so
Yet it was there I felt the crossroads of time
And I wondered why.
As we cast our gaze on the tumbling sea
A vision came o'er me
Of thundering hooves and beating wings
In clouds above.
As you turned to go I heard you call my name.
You were like a bird in a cage,
Spreading its wings to fly
"The old ways are lost" you sang as you flew
And I wondered why.
The thundering waves are calling me home, home to you.
The pounding sea is calling me home, home to you.
The thundering waves are calling me home, home to you.
The pounding sea is calling me home, home to you.
The thundering waves are calling me home, home to you.
The pounding sea is calling me home, home to you.
Once we reached the feeding grounds we were blessed to witness several whales, mainly finback whales, although there were also some smaller minke whales. The finbacks are the second largest whale species in the world (the blue whale being the largest). They were easier to photograph and even then, getting a good picture is very difficult. I'm hoping to post the pictures I took in a few days.
Unfortunately, once the boat began its stopping and starting motion as we followed and then looked for more whales, I started to get sea sick, even though I had the foresight to take a double dose of dramamine. Yes, I know, laugh it up, a marine biologist getting sea sick. Are you done laughing? May we continue now? Thank you. Anyway, I didn't embarrass myself and I had no way of knowing if I turned an unflattering shade of green, but let's just say we turned back for shore just in time. I was much better once we were moving steadily again.
Afterwards I visited a neat local witchy type shop called Lavender Moon where I spent far too much money on books (only three though). The books I got are Be a Goddess! by Francesca De Grandis, Tarot for the Green Witch by Ann Moura, and The Mist-Filled Path: Celtic Wisdom for Exiles, Wanderers, and Seekers by Frank MacEowen. Feel free to post reviews. I also bought some stones as I haven't been able to find mine since all of our belongings were boxed.
Then I had a pleasant dinner and headed back to the room I'm staying at, which is in a lovely house (surrounded by lots of green) owned by a very nice couple with several cats :)
All in all, I can't complain about my Sunday.