Still, I had to deal with the reality of getting on with life. I was broke and jobless. I had to somehow find a way to get back on my feet. My wife was less than pleased with me. "What am I going to do?", I thought It's like starting over in a way. "Where will I work? Where will we end up living? How am I going to get through the month?"
When the plane began descending over San Diego I felt relieved that the discomfort of this ordeal was coming to an end, and anxious to see my family again after what was supposed to be a three month separation. My dad met me at the airport and brought me back. After eating, showering, and putting away all my gear it was time to begin the long process of mending the damages and moving forward.
I needed some time to hide away. I didn't want to see anybody initially but had to regardless. I felt lost, almost as if in a new land, suspicious of others, wanting to protect what little dignity remained in me. I had to start working as soon as possible. During the first month after my return times were financially very difficult. I had random jobs, or gigs. It certainly wasn't enough. I decided I needed to get into a career and I applied for the Border Patrol. I applied and waited for a response. Meanwhile, I got a part-time job on the weekends and resumed working as a background performer on TV shows in Los Angeles.
During the past seven months I continued to stay in contact with Felipe and Ricardo regarding the expedition. Alberto even wrote to me after I left saying that he appreciated my help while I was there but didn't approve of the way I left. He said that I was still welcome to join up with them in Florida where they will meet the second boat that will accompany them on the voyage. He also said that I'm more than welcome to visit his ranch in Sao Paulo but that I probably wouldn't like the food. This comment made me chuckle. I ignored his email because I learned that he is not trustworthy. I preferred to get my information from Felipe and Ricardo instead.
I am still in touch with Felipe and Ricardo. They both seem to prefer to leave the expedition in the depths of the abyss but through tidbits of information that I received from them as well as the marina owners, Bruce in Port Milford, CT and Keith in Florida. Basically, they finally set sail about a month after I left. The crew consisted of Alberto, Ricardo, Felipe and two or three others, I think local guys. They sailed to Bermuda and according to Alberto's claims, they survived I think three hurricanes. I think one was supposedly while they were still at sea. Regardless, the sail was badly damaged by the strong winds and Alberto was asking for someone to donate a sail. While at Bermuda, Chris, an female adventurer from Brazil, flew to Bermuda with a man who I believe was her boyfriend. They were there only a few days and left. She sent me a message warning me not to go to Florida. She further said that the boat was junk and Alberto was crazy. She referred to the boat as Alberto's floating museum. As there are always two sides to every story, Alberto returned fire accusing Chris of engaging in lewd acts of promiscuity with the locals and intent to import narcotics to Brazil.
A short time later Felipe's time had run out and he returned to Brazil. Alberto accused him of being a coward claiming that a true friend and seaman would never abandon his crew. I found his remarks to be totally out of line and unfair. Felipe clearly had a seventy-five day vacation and no more. The expedition was clearly off to a terrible start. Why didn't Alberto accuse me of even worse conduct? I left after only a few days. Furthermore, I went AWOL.
It was longer than a month later when Ricardo returned to Brazil. The other crew members had obviously left long before and Alberto remained there alone. Since that time I've received a few emails from the dock owner in Florida, Keith. The Poseidon Flyer has been parked in his yard for a long time and Alberto hadn't made a payment in months. Keith had had enough and sent a message to Alberto informing him that the boat would be towed the next week and placed in a salvage yard. Alberto replied with a desperate plea for mercy claiming that he was stuck in Bermuda with a sail-less boat, broke, ill with a heart condition, going through a divorce as his wife was leaving him, and deeply depressed. He promised to make a payment by credit card. A couple months later (January 10th of 2011) I received a similar message from Keith. This time Alberto claimed to be in a free hospital in London waiting for permission by the physician to travel. He further said that he really needs Keith to be a friend at this time since his wife is soliciting a divorce and he is in financial ruin. He then invited Keith to visit him at one of his apartments in Rio and Sao Paulo, or to visit his farm there. He proposed that he connect Keith with miners of precious stones where he could get a good price for emeralds, diamonds, and amethysts.
I don't know the current location of Alberto nor his status. I wish him well. He has had a lot of life experience. I will always remember him. I think his time of high adventure has, however, come to an end. He needs to redirect his energies to other pursuits.
As for Ricardo and Felipe, they are back on track in Brazil. I recently received a greeting from Ricardo. He was at Felipe's house. I wrote back to both of them. Felipe let me in on their sailing news. They are planning to do a sailing adventure along the coast of Brazil in the next couple of years and when the time becomes nearer they would like to discuss it with me.
As for me, I passed the written test for the Border Patrol but failed the oral exam which consisted of three questions that depict hypothetical scenarios and test your response to each situation. I am convinced that a regular job just isn't in the cards for me. So, I'm working more hours at my part-time job, doing modeling and acting gigs, and stock photography. I've also intensified my language studies with the goal of becoming certified in Spanish interpretation and gaining a conversational level of Russian. I've recently had the pleasure of working with director Carl Weathers, aka Apollo Creed, on a military type video shoot in San Diego where I played a U.S. army soldier on patrol in Iraq who is badly injured by a rocket propelled grenade blast. It was a very unique experience. Ultrasound modeling jobs have enriched my travel life sending me to Vancouver, Canada and Las Vegas with future trips soon to New Orleans and Baltimore, and many more locations.
I've also recently acquired a DSLR camera capable of recording HD video. I've been learning video, and I love it. I really enjoy doing video because it involves many more creative elements such as movement and acting. I remember what I said to my wife, "I can do anything". In this expedition, I was just a crew member trusting another to navigate the waters of our expedition, one who was obviously incompetent. I have big plans once again, in fact, there are many, many things I feel that I must do, but this time I will take the wheel and navigate the vessel through the waters of the seas and straits.
