Ken Kurtis
Contributor
Fall started last week and my home was very cold this morning when I got up . . .
GOOD OPENING WEEKEND - I saw many posts about successful lobster-hunting this weekend so congrats to all of you who succeeded. But even more congrats to all who dove because we made it through Opening Weekend unscathed. No fatalities (as far as we know as of this writing) and not even a Chamber treatment. So good job everyone!!! In all seriousness, whether it's lobster-hunting, photoing Giant Sea Bass, or any other activity where you need to multi-task, always keep on eye on all of your diving metrics like depth, time, and . . . AIR SUPPLY!!! Don't let whatever it is you're doing distract you from a safe dive.
CONCEPTION UPDATE - Just a quick one. Sources close to the investigation "not authorized to comment publicly" said on Friday that the initial investigation of the actual charred remains of the hull have been completed and we're no closer to any answers in terms of fire origin (cause or location) or how/why it spread so quickly. While this is disappointing, it's not unexpected when you consider what the boat went through in terms of burning, sinking, and then sitting on the bottom before it was raised. I'll discuss this in more detail, and go over what we know and don't know, in the October newsletter, which should go out Monday evening.
HAD TO HAPPEN BUT STILL SEEMS SLEAZY - Sunday L.A. Times, section 1, page 15, lower left. You'll know it when you see it.
COZUMEL IS CLOSING DOWN MANY DIVES SITES - The Mexican government announced last week that starting October 7, they are closing down many of the southern dive sites due to an infestation of Stony Coral Tissue Loss. It's not the same as coral bleaching but can be just as devastating as it's a bacteria that kills many corals. There's no end date yet projected for the closure although they're hoping to see enough recovery that things could re-open by the beginning of January. But it could be longer, even much longer. If you have a Cozumel trip planned in the near future, you might want to double-check with your tour operator. You can read more about it here: COZUMEL CLOSURE.
JAPAN AIRLINES IDs BABY SEATS - Japan Airlines (JAL) announced an interesting policy last week where they will now show on their seat maps any seats that will be occupied by children between the ages of 8 days and 2 years. (They get special rates so that's how they'll know they're sitting there.) So if you want to avoid sitting around screaming babies all the way across the Pacific, now you can. This is different from a baby-free zone but at least you'll know what's what. The baby-occupied seats will be designated by a special icon. Read more about it here: JAL'S BABY SEAT ICONS.
MEET HEIDI THE OCTOPUS ON WEDNESDAY - The PBS series Nature premieres Wednesday @ 8PM with the story of Heidi the Octopus and shows how brilliant and communicative these creatures really are. Check your local listings but around SoCal, it's most likely going to be KOCE-TV. Here's a preview: OCTOPUS: MAKING CONTACT.
FINAL FUN FLYING FACTOID - I was purchasing my plane ticket for our Sea of Cortez trip in December over the weekend, and I ran across something from the State Department that said "You may be eligible to have your exit tax refunded." And you click on the link and it lists the reasons you can get it back, one of which is if you are being deported. Yup, seriously. If our government forces you to leave, you won't be charged the extra $15. And they say compassion in Washington is dead . . .
And that'll do it for now. Have a great week, and let's go diving soon!!!
- Ken
GOOD OPENING WEEKEND - I saw many posts about successful lobster-hunting this weekend so congrats to all of you who succeeded. But even more congrats to all who dove because we made it through Opening Weekend unscathed. No fatalities (as far as we know as of this writing) and not even a Chamber treatment. So good job everyone!!! In all seriousness, whether it's lobster-hunting, photoing Giant Sea Bass, or any other activity where you need to multi-task, always keep on eye on all of your diving metrics like depth, time, and . . . AIR SUPPLY!!! Don't let whatever it is you're doing distract you from a safe dive.
CONCEPTION UPDATE - Just a quick one. Sources close to the investigation "not authorized to comment publicly" said on Friday that the initial investigation of the actual charred remains of the hull have been completed and we're no closer to any answers in terms of fire origin (cause or location) or how/why it spread so quickly. While this is disappointing, it's not unexpected when you consider what the boat went through in terms of burning, sinking, and then sitting on the bottom before it was raised. I'll discuss this in more detail, and go over what we know and don't know, in the October newsletter, which should go out Monday evening.
HAD TO HAPPEN BUT STILL SEEMS SLEAZY - Sunday L.A. Times, section 1, page 15, lower left. You'll know it when you see it.
COZUMEL IS CLOSING DOWN MANY DIVES SITES - The Mexican government announced last week that starting October 7, they are closing down many of the southern dive sites due to an infestation of Stony Coral Tissue Loss. It's not the same as coral bleaching but can be just as devastating as it's a bacteria that kills many corals. There's no end date yet projected for the closure although they're hoping to see enough recovery that things could re-open by the beginning of January. But it could be longer, even much longer. If you have a Cozumel trip planned in the near future, you might want to double-check with your tour operator. You can read more about it here: COZUMEL CLOSURE.
JAPAN AIRLINES IDs BABY SEATS - Japan Airlines (JAL) announced an interesting policy last week where they will now show on their seat maps any seats that will be occupied by children between the ages of 8 days and 2 years. (They get special rates so that's how they'll know they're sitting there.) So if you want to avoid sitting around screaming babies all the way across the Pacific, now you can. This is different from a baby-free zone but at least you'll know what's what. The baby-occupied seats will be designated by a special icon. Read more about it here: JAL'S BABY SEAT ICONS.
MEET HEIDI THE OCTOPUS ON WEDNESDAY - The PBS series Nature premieres Wednesday @ 8PM with the story of Heidi the Octopus and shows how brilliant and communicative these creatures really are. Check your local listings but around SoCal, it's most likely going to be KOCE-TV. Here's a preview: OCTOPUS: MAKING CONTACT.
FINAL FUN FLYING FACTOID - I was purchasing my plane ticket for our Sea of Cortez trip in December over the weekend, and I ran across something from the State Department that said "You may be eligible to have your exit tax refunded." And you click on the link and it lists the reasons you can get it back, one of which is if you are being deported. Yup, seriously. If our government forces you to leave, you won't be charged the extra $15. And they say compassion in Washington is dead . . .
And that'll do it for now. Have a great week, and let's go diving soon!!!
- Ken
