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From: KSC_ADMIN (IDS.NET!KSC_ADMIN)
Date: Wed Oct 16 1996 - 01:40:18 EDT
The Seven Seas Cruising Association publishes an equipment survey
Don't mention THOSE <Irish expletive deleted> around me!!!.. ;-)
Was an Associate member AND Commodore since the Early 70's until late 80's, when had to stop cruising because of Wife's Medical problem (See our WESTSAIL 32 home page at http://spacecon.net/public/sail/syrinx.htm), (Underwent Open-Heart Surgery myself, later) and like any good cruising sailor, had no insurance and paid for the flight to Boston and hospital costs out-of-pocket. There went ALL the cruising funds AND we still owed Thousands (which they wrote off, God-bless-'em!), And the SYRINX family (complete with a dozen or so Hermit crabs) moved in with my Parents in Scituate Mass. .. Ergo, SSCA Membership payments were WAY down on the priority list, and have had to remain there.. I also signed up to be a SSCA Cruising Station for Port Canaveral. (Only had a few calls, as they apparently didn't publish the info often, or nobody cared about good ol' port Canaveral! :-) )
I am currently 100% disabled (Heart disease and Post-Polio Syndrome) and, at 58, on SS, but as Irish luck and Scotch frugality prevailed, i was able to convince an ISP to use my home as a base for their local operations (Got a laundry room full of MODEM's and Net stuff! <G>), and i got (in exchange) a gratis 56K line (all of 20 feet long) to the POP equipment!.
The point of all this history is that I could now can offer (for free or trade) Home pages on my WC5 BETA Server (http://spacecon.net), and offered to trade SSCA a "forever" home page and all the associated maintenance, updates, photo-scans, ad nauseum, for the small initial setup costs ONLY, re-instatement of my Rear Commodore status, and ongoing membership as i was still at low income. This all occurred via a number of E-Mail messages, and i even offered to forget the setup costs, if they wanted.. I set up one for the ol' dis-organization anyways (at http://spacecon.net/sail/ssca.htm) back in April.. Shucks, why not - This is my long-lost cruising family, right?... RIGHT!
MONTHS later I get a letter saying they now have a HP and don't need mine. (That's OK - They got a free one up on my Server already..) The Letter then tells me, however, that if I want re-instatement, I HAVE to BUY ALL THE SSCA BACK ISSUES I MISSED OVER THE LAST 11 YEARS FIRST!! - Say WHAT?? - Did I read THAT right?? When did THAT become a requirement??? Also, they know my financial/medical problems, and THIS is what the Board considers appropriate?? - THIS is NOT the SSCA I Joined back in the 70's!! - The warm dis-organization I loved and respected THEN had a HEART and CARED about the members! (Where is Ginny when we need her??? :-))) )
Bottom Line: I worked HARD (as did many others) to achieve Commodore status, and to promote SSCA and the Clean-Wake philosophy, and have flown the Burgee(s) proudly and with affection for my SSCA (and Slocum Society AND WR&CC) brothers and sisters wherever we met 'em. Re-Instatement of my rear-Commodore status should NOT require paying out for 11 years of old bulletins. God knows, I've got a 5-foot stack of them ALREADY. :-))
But, What the hey.. SYRINX Broke our Hearts a few months ago when she ACTUALLY sold! (We secretly hoped she wouldn't.. <G>) We're hoping to find a smaller craft, like a Cape-Cod Cat, or the like, to sail around The Indian and Banana rivers, and what the heck do we need that Red Burgee with the Shield and the small white Star for any more, right? ;-< . . .
I just miss the "old" SSCA, (Seems I read those words in the bulletin back in'77 or so? <G>) and the loose group of REAL friends we bonded with "in the good ol' days".. (There i go - waxing nostalgic, again! <G>) C'est La Vie.. :-)
Anybody need a 5-foot stack of old SSCA Bulletins, Cheap?? <G>
Tom
(ex-Rear Commodore, SSCA)
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