Now Playing: On The Hook - Ending the Cruise
Topic: Retrospect
On The Hook - Ending the Cruise June 16, 2005 For the last six months, great changes have occurred since I last wrote. When we last found me cruising on the boat in late October at Alamitos Bay in Long Beach. I had been cruising around Catalina Island and a few anchorages near Malibu. I had intended to make Avalon on Catalina Island to make my home on then moorings this picturesque little town. It's like a Mediterranean village with small cottages along the hillside. The church bell rings on the harbor a few times each day. I was hoping to do some writing, history and know some of the locals there. The internet provider there covers most of the area including over the bay. I was hoping to broadcast live on Coverunner Radio from the boat. I was getting the boat ready for supplies and was cleaning the bottom of the dinghy. I had been riding the electric bike for seven miles and then took the train up to work in Hollywood. It was riding in the rain for the last few days. I was getting tired out. So, I rented a car for the last day of work. Next day, I had hauled the dinghy, scraped off lots of growth, and rubbed surfboard wax on the hull hoping that it might work stop the growth (it's ok). I just turned the dinghy over the dock and slipped it into the water. I felt a little bit tired, but I had been doing a lot of work. I was just about to get onto the big boat and starting to make some coffee. My left leg was straddled into cockpit of the boat. The right side was straddled on the dock. I was stuck. I couldn't really move again. I was aware of tunnel-vision and everything cloudy around my peripheral vision, or hear any sound. Yet, I still had acute clarity about what was happening. I noticed that my right arm was doing a little snake dance voluntarily. Sometimes it would go behind my back and then fly around on the air. Sometimes it seemed to have been disappeared. Finally, I grasped the left hand and secured the flailing right arm. For a few minutes I just sat there. I realized that something might be wrong. Soon, for who knows when, I finally was able to move again. I moved down below onto the boat. I changed my wet clothes from cleaning the boat, put on warm clothes, socks, shoes and everything I needed it wallet, keys, Blackberry etc. Turned off the propane gas, electrical and closed the thru-hull valves on the boat. I knew I was going to the hospital. I made sure that I'd at least be warm, hospitals always make me cold. I'd make sure there was at least comfort. I couldn't talk verbally or still couldn't try to even know to be able to make effort to communicate or visually to wave by a few of the boaters next by. I was able to use the Blackberry phone, could actually control of the menus, some of my technical ability for part of the brain to make those things to work. When my son called me, but I couldn't talk. I couldn't cry and make any sense verbally. I only was cussed and could only use the only word I could. Use called as "Crumped" was the only word I could use (I have my some recorded speech during that crisis). My son spent over an hour talking me trying to get some info from me by twenty questions. He didn't know where I might be have moved the boat recently, was I on Catalina? No. Paradise Cove? No. Finally he figured out that I was in Alamitos Bay. He was able to get on the phone with the Harbor Patrol and was able to find me easily, the office was just across the boat. The Fire CRT people tried to check me out and took me down dock on a gurney. My neighbor had recently interviewed & photographed both him and me for an Orange County newspaper about liveaboards. As he went by my rescuers, my neighbor came by his boat. He gave me a clipping of the article and photo about me. I was able to give it to them and only point to it them. It gave me at least some sense about my lost identity. I started to relax a bit and felt that they had control on the situation. This was the end of my cruise. During the next few months the start of recovery was to start and now a complete change of my life. It turns out that the winter storms (call nor'easters. Usually this is the calm lee side) on the Avalon where I had been headed to. They got blasted there a few times. They lost boats, had torrential rains and had six foot surf. I saw three headlines with scary photos on The San Diego Log, the boating newspaper. Who knows what else had occurred to me instead. Mercy Harbor (her hidden name). Noel Diotte noel@coverunner.com Coverunner Radio - Ocean/Island Music Website: http://www.coverunner.com Listen: http://www.live365.com/stations/coverunner

Every Day is Better, Thanks.
I'm doing greatly. Physically I'm good can biking around, psychologically, everything is mostly abouts things like learning.

I can talk a lot of conversations word vocabulary lost, spotty talking is pretty good. Some days I will seem normal. During some days I'll have so patchy sentences, I'm looking for substitutes for new words or will remember new words or will stutter new sylables, lost of spelling.

The worst problem is my old enthusism about sunjects. I'm able to know all my intellectual abilities from years for my years of incessant subjects. I can't are frustrated because I can't work fragmented talking. Reading is lost to enjoy. It takes a labor for a chapter or is difficult.

I've started a few of my songwriters are almost to actually making a few melodies and actually played performance with song, harmonica and my songs first. Old ones are lost songs. Can old song sheets, no songs able memorized not able. I had problems bad before for memorization for my whole live for my whole life.

Every today I'm feeling starting to feel for the first day seems for the first day to actually has some crasp of my comprehesion...sp. Words. A little bluring, sound is loud enough but makes doesn't quality for audio is lost.

I might sing some guitar/harmonica for some Old GasLight downtown in San Diego to make some effort to perform for some money, and to tell therapy for people.I'm waiting for a few weeks for some Disability money I hope soon.

I'm getting great with from my son, Braden for doing great therapy daily making great strides for me of learning challenges. Braden learned from few pages from an hour therapist to give us a crash lesson. Must of the ideas he made for inovation lessons are helping. We certainly are giving me a new "Head Start" for me to do these times for therapy to help right away since the stroke. People get quick for therapy should be now.

We still have not been able to get into therapists or groups just has not been possible for County and other National Stroke help isn't got into a program yet. I'm very glad for the ready time for getting the next efforts and learning soon. I'll soon be gabbying back myself as the same old person soon. I'm sure I will soon have been a diificulty, old abilities will learn better. I got to do it can.

I can to do it over again "got to go back again" we'll see soon.

Noel Diotte
coverunner@tmo.blackberry.net
310 376-7057

or soon to will be as:
noel@coverunner.com

On The Hook, a sort a bit.
James,

I appreciated your submission recently for The London Morning Paper on wednesday. Some day I will try to get effort an every day.

I do hope to learn any person my learn of the serious problems that millions of people (20 million U.5.) that can effect with high blood pressure, stress, smoking and many other causes that will occur for many for a stroke.

The CoveRunner was just recently sailing, free from a fairly stressed,I sailed and surfing waves, rode my electric bicycle for ten or fifteen miles each day. I lost about twenty pounds of weight for a year I recently lost.

I did also for years of terrible junk food. I was not worst of the fast food. Years will cause a toll. I enjoyed a good steaks, pasta, cake, etc. I loved it all. I didn't have a beer, may be beer maybe two. No real excess.

Twenty two years of addiction for smoking was difficult. I alway enjoyed smoking. I never played games about quitting for cigarettes. I was easy doing the "cold turkey" while I was in at the hospital. I was able to get a chance right now to stop addiction.

I'm glad for my son, my relatives and friends are getting smoke free right away now.

I'll follow you some of the problems for the stroke for brain damage, communication therapy, and info about the interesting changes have made for me to deal with me and friends since this.

I am looking for this optimistic changes. Problems with Strokes can be months and years of other patients. It will certainly change your whole life. Hope is certainly for everyone. Problems can certainly be potential strokes before you now.

Every sentence for a few efforts takes a few hours. I use to get ideas quickly within a few minutes then. I'll show you how some of the efforts for old paths of memory, and some for new paths are renewed for fresh learning. Not some things are not intact.

We may be able to soon find later what may be for new problems, that's sort of waiting for the wobbling of the coin. Once the coin flats on the heads or the tails side. After that problem we'll see why may never be different. Life whole else may once again be a new person again.


Time will tell me later. Who knows?
Some days are good. Some days are terrible as work. As we shall see.


Noel Diotte
coverunner@tmo.blackberry.net
310 376-7057

Coverunner Radio - Ocean/Island Music
Listen: http://www.live365.com/stations/coverunner

Site: www.coverunner.com

Sent wirelessly from the sailboat, "Shearwater" off the Southern California coast.

Noel Diotte
coverunner@tmo.blackberry.net
310 376-7057

Coverunner Radio - Ocean/Island Music
Listen: http://www.live365.com/stations/coverunner

Site: www.coverunner.com

Sent wirelessly from the sailboat, "Shearwater" off the Southern California coast.

Shearwater Looking for our old Friend
Friends,

I'll going out to the boat on Newport this monday. I want to see my computer out of my boat so I can guess some work later.

I got a two days and figure a way I might get a less boat..we'll see. Looked up at some older boats around 30' boats I looked for in San Diego. I'm waiting for a few months until my brain is addled when I seeks another boat later.

There's some nice boats on over 1970-80s that have good gear on old boats. Even the old girl on Shearwater 1988 needs a fixing now. We'll see.

Getting a simple slip/liveaboard for a boat in the $20k makes a simple life would make easy for me. Looking what I'll be able for EDD disability for a year..will see when we see some eggs from the government first when we actually gets..

Better even day I've feeling today. I
So far I'm getting a percentage like 1% ever even each day on writing and words. Optimistic. Hope all fog dispelled soon.

Thank you for my friends!
Soon I'll be making the old gabby person soon will be to make won't be too long.

"Shearwater" waiting dear old girl. She's waiting for me to get back some day.
Now Playing: The whole of the boat waiting for me some day.
My old plastic shell of my boat, has no one to here
to see with every one else gone.I left my whole of my boat was my life I've known of these sixteen years. Echos of all left another to broken of the worken stays, brown old teak, rusted of stainless hardware, that could call of the whole rigging to bring the whole mast to full once again it will never disaster again. How can I ever again once again cleaned, fouled, hull, scum come all new getting my broken parts still need to more once to make it renewed. All stories I had are like wind in the stays of howling ghosts waiting. When are beliefs are gone. Like an old dereliction of old letters, love was there but no more, but not never again. Old scraps. Old sail tatters of our sail repaired. Cannot I ever to make all what is only to be saved while a small mud and sand bank, while we are just a few feet of water almost all is to once to be be made against. Will I start a who whole start once again. How can I once again to see all is so more about me high over the flood I am to able. I'm enable to do what I did who I once was a person the same person I was read from a long time. How with all i be the same person as a new person that I used to be. Hope again. Can "Shearwater" once again to bring grace me again.

The Blog for Shearwater
Now Playing: Sail from Alamitos to Catalina and then to Newport Harbor
I tried to find a new effort to find a new mooring for Shearwater. The Two Harbor/Catalina Island Harbor would not allow us to leave the untended boat there. I had to sail from Alamitos for 24 nm to Catalina to get there first. It was a waste of our time. Always cruising a fun sail to the island, but we they didn't find a new port now.

We took another sail there for a forty miles of a sail to Newport Harbor. It took a sail with Randy Probst during a 18-20 knot, northeast winds, took for us from 9 am to 12 midnight to get there until Newport Harbor.

We had a fun trip. Will be able to get there for about twenty or sixty days for the moorings there. $5.00 for each day there. We'll see what we're going to do next time.

We may try Dana Point next for more for fifteen days there. We'll see next.

Thankful for Coffee
Now Playing: The Golden Hill Coffee
Today I was able to hang out the Golden Hill coffee shop at the diner. My son, Braden had once called it as the "greasy spoon" once. Of course, it was OK, nice people not really dirty. Nice OK. I made not to make so that he wouldn't hear me to say on my writings.

Great coffee. I only had four dollars, I let hear know what she could help me could give to do this. I didn't ask her what she could gave me. I told her what she get to me. I didn't know it might have given to me....I thought maybe it was a donut...she said it was a donut, what was it was? A sticky bun? Didn't tell me what it was to hear me. It was a biscuit, fresh! Butter, warm, jam...not bad. I need to ask next time. First time since I had a problem making sure I will have this. Waitress, just gave me the problem for me, he didn't I really solved me to help.

I've had it for crappy coffee from 7/11 for a days. The great coffee at the hospital, for four days of the rest of the hospital. The food at the hospital of the rubber food. The coffee was great. Two cups for every meal was to save my life at the hospital. Pancake and greasy bacon wasn't amazing for somebody that was supposed to be part of their way to die. I guess it's ok for them to die for dieticians. The two cups every meal was excellent for me. I add everything you gave me, spinach, zucchini, grey-looking meat, might could have been turkey, or not really for sure what you got. I ate it everything. Good or for bad. It's good for to help me when you nothing when you're to eat. I could have been dead, so I'm thankful to eat, or see what ever day what could happened.

Coffee for the that or for a bisquit. Thank you for all we get and all the begin of the sun all of us.

Living On The Hook
Now Playing: I could have lost....once again I will Survive!
STROKE Aphasia is a total or partial loss of the ability to use words. The loss may be caused by brain injury or disease. It's most often caused by a stroke that damages the brain's language center. Some people quickly and completely recover from aphasia after a stroke. Others may have permanent speech and language problems. * Speech problems can range from trouble finding words to being unable to speak. * Some people have problems understanding what others are saying or have trouble with reading, writing or math. * In other cases, someone with aphasia may have trouble talking but can understand what others say. Each person's speech and language problem is unique. A language professional can help set up a treatment plan and help others understand an aphasic person's needs. Here's difficult. Shows reading as a way the problems I have: It is very difficult. I can't words easily, for in emails, the Blog, words any sentences what used to be a breeze. If I were to talk to you, verbal, eighty percent, you might have seen everything believed. It makes months to learn. It was never to learn...I don't know if it will happen like a child again...but, all of my wisdom is still for me. We'll see what was happen. I'm fighting if I must try until if takes me years to get it better. What else I can do until I try it. I could get better, I may never get everything...it may never perfect... knows what will happen. It's only five days now. We'll see later. Only for an hour just to try this is very almost where I couldn't see a small for the small sentence. I was foggied to do nothing at all when I first. Now of the words didn't even a problem twenty a minutes. Hopefully, I'm getting therapy with my Son for very simple like words as if I were six year child. Simple things, such as things like words such as "window, doors, lamps, etc." I can look some of these things I don't even help me to of many things. There's a "hole" in my brain. I'm finding new ways to get the words putting the "digital", memory to get myself for another place for those where the words can try another place to use it. Anyway, let's see if it happens. One more opens a day. Could be better? Will see what happens. I'm quite there terrible sentences. We'll see what happens for October 28th. I couldn't do my songs. Musical couldn't do that any more. LOL! Somebody maybe I had a problem for music/songs anyway. I'm getting my music some day. I'm very discouraged...hopefully I will find this someday. I'll take all of the problems for all of you will see what is happened...perhaps we'll see. Soon we'll see....Talk phone to see what I'm able pretty normal. Noel Diotte San Diego, CA 310 376-7057

Living On The Hook
Now Playing: Getting to Work By Bus, Bike and Train in The Rain

It poured buckets of rain last night in the first rain of the season. Thunder and lightning woke me sometime in the early hours.

By 4 am the rain had stopped in the harbor. I switched on ABC's local coverage and took a look at their Doppler 7000 radar coverage which usually shows nothing in Sunny Southern California.
I've used their images and other on-line satellite photos to sail around weather during big breaks in the on-shore flow.

I could see another front with a mean red colored center just off shore of Seal Beach. Figuring the wind was light, I thought I might have at least a half hour of clear skies to ride the electric bike to the train. On Sundays, there are no early buses running even if I wanted to leave the bike at home.

I wrapped the battery in plastic and put strips of gaffer's tape over the cooling vents of the motor cowling. I made it to the train with no problem. As I settled in the the train, the rain started again.

I'm due at the Regeant Beverly Wilshire at 8:30, you've seen the hotel. Where Pretty Woman was kept by Richard Gere. Where Axel Foley stuck a banana in the tailpiipe of the Beverly Hills cops waiting outside for him in a car.

Don't know what the film is today.
I spent the last two days with a sick Hugh Grant on a press junket for the sequel to Bridget Jones' Diary. Bridget Jones, The Edge of Reason is based on the second book.

Hugh spent much of the day blowing off personal questions by drooling female reporters, who were besides themselves meeting the man, some to the point of laying professionalism aside and offering themselves to him in no uncertain terms.

Now, this might become a bit much even in a randier mood. But, when you're sick and drugged on Nyquil, it had to be intolerable. No wonder Grant keeps promising that he's giving up acting. He wants his life back, some normalcy. He's bored with acting and doesn't need the money! He says.

He's played roles that are pretty much variations of his own witty, charming self. A few reporters suggested some roles as a villian, a mass murderer.
He said, "I quite fancy that idea. I'd like to stab some people." His good looks and middle-class politeness would add to the power of a sinister role.

The are quite a few people on this train that are settled into their seats, with arms inside jackets and hoods over their heads, as if they may have ridden all night to stay out of the rain.

Across from me is a young, pudgy Latina woman with a two year old boy asleep in a stroller. A number of older guys that may have drank their way into this morning are rousing themselves to start all over again...one more day of life.

Raced down Wilshire Blvd. to do a day of interviews for yet another Chucky (that evil doll) sequel, SEED of CHUCKY.

The best thing about the film is a very pretty, expressive, young British actress, Hannah Spearritt, who plays a loyal but abused Production Assistant to Jennifer Tilly who plays a diva-version of herself in the film. I was thankful to roll tape in her room rather than Chucky, the doll's. Yes, he had his own interview room, believe it or not.

Living On The Hook
Now Playing: Alamitos Bay to The Inner City

To my friend, Tom I answer:

Thanks once again for the encouraging words about my writing and making a submission to The LA Weekly for possible publication.

I did have a copy of The LA Weekly in hand to find the submission info but some actress snatched it to put under her little English Bulldog's fancy food dishes in our shooting suite during a recent press junket shoot

Besides that, he attacked me and latched on to my pants leg three times that day..Me! The Friend of All Dogs. So, you see, it's kind of like the old " the dog ate my homework" excuse.

It's also hard to get any work done when you are commuting five hours a day. The first six miles are done on bike from Los Alamitos, next To Seal Beach to First and Pine in Long Beach. My first rides in to he city started out at 4:30 am. Now I'm leaving at 5 and 5:30 cause I know what I'm doing transit-wise.

Speeding past the closed shops of Belmont Shores and along Ocean Avenue, I'd arrive for the first Blue Line train at 5 am. I can usually write my piece before I hit the Red Line transfer. I try to do a spell check before I hit the streets on the bike at Hollywood and Highland. Another half hour of downhill rolling on La Brea or Fairfax, some pedaling along Melrose or Santa Monica to 3rd and Doheny in Beverly Hills takes another half hour. I can usually make the whole trip in under two and a half hours.

So, you see I have plenty of time to write. And believe me, I'd rather write than stare back at all those hardworking faces that can't figure out what a white man with a wierd looking bike is doing on their train in their neighborhood at that hour.

Perhaps the Metro Rail has more white-collar riders towards 9 am. I don't know. But, so far, the evening ridership doesn't look anything like San Francisco's BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) riders, which is mostly office worker types.

Picked up mail tonight in Marina Del Rey and took the Green Line out of LAX. I got off at the Rosa Parks Station, you know of "I won't sit in the back of the bus no more" fame?

Well, the later night riders are a little bit different in that kneck of the woods. Some cool-looking kids weariing lots of bling were getting on the train. A few glassey-eyed ones with I- kill-people-for-fun vibes got on too. They made a lot of the riders nervous. Lucky for me, I was just some old, white wierdo to them. They instead gave a hard stare-down to a Black sister in a TSA uniform who checks baggage at LAX for the Feds.

The trains seem to be sort of a social center in the inner city. There's a lot of youth hanging at the stations and more greetings that usual on the train. Three bucks gives you an all day pass. Although, I've never been asked to show my ticket but once in six days and 24 boardings. It's certainly a safer place to hang out than on the streets.

Transit Security have been riding with dogs trained in smelling ammo and fired guns. And though there's warnings to potential criminals about undercover cops on board, I've been seeing some big, bad-looking cops in full uniform lately walking the cars lately.

Most of the people are pretty nice and I do have a lot people ask me about my bike. But, that's about it.

I wouldn't advise many of you to sell your cars just yet and embrace LA's rapid transit system just yet.But, I will say this. It's fairly clean, dirt cheap and on time.

It's raining now. Some little low curving in from the Southeast, rattling the rigging. How I'm going to get to work in the rain on an electric bike on a Sunday when there's few early buses is something I'm too tired to figure out right now. A little plastic. A little gaffers tape. A little good timing? Luck. What do they say?
What doesn't kill you makes you stronger?

I'm looking forward to leaving off this daily marathon of traversing the city. Next week: South to Dana Point or just across the Channel to Avalon.