Grrrrrrr...OK, now, all together...Grrrrrrrrrr!

[LCBrandt]

I am on a campaign!

Against helium-filled balloons.

OK, so there are a LOT of other annoyances in life that could or should get me really riled up, but I am always amazed at the number of balloons that wind up in the rivers and streams (and presumably, the forests and fields) of our beautiful land. Every trip out in Puget Sound, or the Columbia, and occasionally even on the ocean, I see balloons floating on the surface. One can only wonder at the unseen mass of mylar drifting silently beneath the surface.

Join me, won't you, in two efforts? First, if you spot one of these foul things, retrieve it if you can, to dispose in the dumpster at the next marina; and second, avoid buying the damn things in the first place.

There must be better ways to say "It's a Girl!", or "Happy Valentine!", or "I Love You!", some of the messages on balloons I've retrieved over the last year. This could be our way of saying "I Love You" to our planet.

(Sigh. I feel better now.)

[jvilimek]

Actually, I feel that Helium filled ballons serve a very important purpose. When we are sailing (Lake Michigan) we see a good number of these culprits. However, I have instructed all my crew (guests) that this is an automatic "man over board drill". On command we all go into rescue mode and retrieve the "poor" soul from the deep. (then we dispose of it in a humane manner) Everyone has fun and learns a valuable lesson.

Joe/ Grand Cru/ 1459

[LCBrandt]

Bless you, Joe.

Actually, we do the same. It's quite a realistic simulation, if you think about it...return to the 'victim', get out the boathook and *stab* them to get them aboard. :)

[dejavu]

and *stab* them to get them aboard. :)

That's it, Larry, I'm not going sailing with YOU!:D I'm with you on your quest, I fish them out of the marina all the time.

Mike

[Steve Frost]

On the Oakland estuary we do not have much of a problem with mylar balloons, guess the folks in Oakland are just not that happy about birthdays. What is a problem is urban tumbleweed, plastic shopping bags, I fish them out of the marina all the time, that and foil Frito bags.

I sometimes ask for plastic bags when picking up supplies for the boat as they stow easily for packing out the trash. They are not prone to disitigrating when wet like paper and things can get wet on a boat but, banning them would most likely keep our streets and water ways much cleaner.

As for the mylar balloons, you could recycle them. Hoist them on a halyard and use them as radar reflectors and make the boat look festive at the same time.

[LCBrandt]

But Steve, there's a much better suggestion for making the rigging festive. See photo below.

(Photo I took of race competitors just before the 2006 Vic-Maui, Victoria harbour, BC.)

[chooch]

Larry,
In the Old (prior PC) Navy, we called Signalmen by the term "Skivvy Waivers."
Looks like some lady skivvies waiving on one of the boats' hoist! ;)

[LCBrandt]

Gosh, Chooch. And here I thought those were race burgees.

[deising]

Well, some are "racy." ;)