🏴‍☠️ The Salty Sailor’s Scorecard 🏴‍☠️

Turns out my tattoos need a mileage upgrade. Cross the equator once, and you graduate from soggy deckhand Polywog to shiny “Trusted Shellback,” courtesy of Neptune’s salty fraternity. The ceremony’s part hazing, part ocean‑blessed baptism, and the prize is a turtle tattoo — your lifelong shell of honor. After that, tradition says every 5,000 miles earns you a sparrow tattoo.

Cover myself with a flock of sparrows? Not a lot of real estate left. So I promoted my wrists to prime real estate — the billboards for my nautical scorecard. Think frequent‑flyer miles, but saltier, inkier, and about as easy to redeem as a coupon in a hurricane.

I’ve stacked up more than 40,000 miles under my keel on this trip — enough saltwater scribbles on the log to fill a lifetime — which means the board is begging for another graceful tally mark.

Also tradition says you only get a turtle tattoo the first time, but I’ve danced across Neptune’s line ten times and I like tattoos. So... 😂 I’m overdue for a tenth tally mark there as well. These aren’t trophies to brag about — they’re living memories carved into skin, salt‑stained chapters signed off by the sea god himself. Each mark whispers of crossings survived, storms bested, and Neptune’s grin when I dared to step over his line again.

Brian’s Equator Crossings:

La Cruz, Mexico → Nuku Hiva, French Polynesia - My first shellback moment — a rookie sailor diving headfirst into the Southern Hemisphere like it was a baptism by saltwater fire.

Port Denarau, Fiji → Tarawa, Kiribati - Instead of following the fleet and chasing kangaroos in Australia, I called an audible and zigzagged north across the line, dodging cyclones like it was a cosmic game of hopscotch.

Koror, Palau → Sorong, Indonesia - Southbound into Indonesia, the grand entrance to my Southeast Asia chapter — equal parts chaos, curry, and current.

Sorong, Indonesia → Wayag, Indonesia - I had no idea I was about to stumble into my favorite place on the entire planet, where paradise looks Photoshopped.

Wayag, Indonesia → Sorong, Indonesia - Back down for food, fuel, and crew — basically the sailor’s version of a Costco run across the equator.

Sorong, Indonesia → Wayag, Indonesia - Couldn’t resist. Wayag pulled me back like a magnet dipped in coconut oil.

Wayag, Indonesia → Sorong, Indonesia - Leaving heaven hurt, but the horizon was whispering that more beauty was ahead. Spoiler: it wasn’t lying.

Jakarta → Batam, Indonesia - Northbound toward the big leagues: Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand — a Southeast Asian buffet waiting to be devoured.

Batam → Jakarta, Indonesia - Back south through the Sunda Strait, retracing my wake and eyeing the wide Indian Ocean like a restless dance partner.

Recife, Brazil → Le Marin, Martinique - Paradise views on deck, boatyard chaos below — beauty and bilge pumps in the same breath.

Days Sober: 2,078