The Forgotten Maritime Movie from 2015

I was surprised to learn that the old-time New England whalerman movie "In the Heart of the Sea" was released way back in 2015. I had only recently seen this movie starring Chris Hemsworth as Chief Mate, and thought it was a new picture. Despite medicore reviews from the cinema intelligentia, the plot is compelling, and culminates in a board of inquiry that pits the Chief Mate against The Powers That Be. The film actually inspired me to make a trip to New Bedford, the center of 19th century whaling activity in the United States. Digging further, I understood why this movie did not gain traction in maritime circles, as the 2020 Tom Hanks action film "Greyhound" did. Personally, I was onboard the USNS Sacagawea in provincial Korea at the time, and thus could not view the movie in theater. As an industry, the film was released just two months after the SS El Faro disaster. Existential questions abounded concerning the roles of the US Coast Guard, the American Bureau of Shipping, the maritime unions that crewed the ship, the insurance companies, and the ships' senior officers; in that they all deemed the ship fit to sail- or were under financial pressure to keep quiet. All ears were tuned into daily findings from the ongoing deep-sea salvage effort; and later to what the NTSB would reveal in a present-day, real-life inquiry. For the movie producers, it was simply bad luck that the relative escapism of the sailship era was out of touch with the active concerns of the maritime community at the time. In conclusion, I believe that "In the Heart of the Sea" deserves a second look.

On Decommissioning a Suitcase

The suitcase has developed a terminal flaw. A wheel missing or a threadbare coat. It is now time to decommission the suitcase, and prepare it for new life as a storage box. Remove the airline luggage tags and stickers. The ones with your three-letter destination and the bright orange ones shouting"Priority". Toss the paper baggage tags- they rarely last more than one journey. Save the plastic baggage tags for your next suitcase- make sure the contact information is up-to-date. Take off the custom boonoggles that identify your bag from a hundred others on the airport carousel, including the ironic "remove before flight" lanyard. There will certainly be writing pens and change in the outside pockets. Save these for later. Check for cash and cards in the inside pockets. They have a propensity to get lost in there. Don't forget Saint Christopher's memento. Make sure he keeps travelling with you in future years.