Aloha! Are you wondering exactly what a Nautie Mermate is? Me too. Kidding - sort of. The short and sweet of it all is that I'm Megan the Nautie Mermate and this is where I talk about being a Merchant Mariner and a chick from Hawaii who doesn't stay in one place for too long. I've explained where I came up with such a nonsense filled name like Nautie Mermate here.

I mostly started the blog to help keep in touch with friends and family - which can be quite tricky when you work on ships. It has morphed into one of my favorite things! I've had so much FUN getting reconnected to old friends and connected to new ones! Any which way...I'm excited you're here and I love answering questions especially those that Nautie Friends Ask!

Several key tidbits to get you started:

• I L-O-V-E the Big Island of Hawaii. I especially love being from Hilo. I don't think there can ever be a better place to call home. That being said, I'm very rarely home! Such is the life of a sailor!
• I went to school in Maine. I also love Maine - but it's not home. The thing about Maine is that it's hard to resist...the leaves change color, there is snow and I know LOTS of friends with boats.
• I used to be a Deck Officer on a product tanker. We mostly carried jet fuel and diesel. I sailed tankers on the West Coast (Alaska, Washington, Oregon and California), Persian Gulf / North Africa (Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, The UAE, Djibouti and Egypt), and the Mediterranean (Greece, Italy, Spain, Turkey). There are a lot of gaps to fill there but that's the gyst of it.
• I am now sailing as Chief Officer on a heavy lift ship. This is the first non-tanker I've sailed on...and it's also my first ship where I've been a Chief Officer. I'm LOVING it.

Who are the Nautie Friends? Well, in general anyone who reads the blog but, here are a few of the key players (clearly there are more - I'll add you all someday):

My Ma. She's probably my bestie. Dorky I know.

My Pa. I give him a really hard time sometimes...

Baisey. She's so crafty it makes me wanna gag.

Mamacholla. She rocks and has a very cute kid.

My Cousin Rhi. She lives in Vancouver and is the best thing that this blog has brought me.

Big Bertha. She's my Nikon D90. She goes everywhere I go. She also makes magic happen.

Some disclaimers:

My life isn't too stable - being on and off the ship are two very, very different things - my posts vary wildy....and when I say wildly I mean wildly.

In fact, my home life is almost boring....I seem way, way, way cooler when I'm at work. What the hell! That is just wrong.

I hope you don't mind poor grammar. I can barely punctuate a sentence. If it offends you greatly, I apologize in advance.

I also swear sometimes - I mean, I swear all the time. I blame this on being a sailor. I probably won't stop swearing anytime soon.

All that aside, Welcome!

I'm so excited you're here and I Hope you stay and read awhile!

Send a shout out! nautiemermate@gmail.com