On birds and birds

I frequently, after gaining a certain measure of consciousness, experience a rush of panic after waking.

This morning, as I lay there listening to the birds madly twittering, I got the feeling again.

Then I realized I could hear, over the twittering, a helicopter hovering nearby. I don't know if that's what woke me, but hearing a helicopter hovering around here only means one of two things: there's a big fire or something is amiss on the ocean.

Usually it's the latter.

Last week, as I stood outside talking to a neighbor, I heard the helicopter and the a couple of days later read in the Daily News about the lobster boat from Maine that went down off the Isles of Shoals and how debris had been found on Salisbury beach. Read about it here and here, in the Daily News.

Usually I'm a big fan of drama but this kind of drama leaves me cold and shivering. The Coast Guard halted its search for the missing captain, Christopher Tobey, the other day. I guess if they found his body, that's for the best. If they found him alive, that would be even better.

Me being who I am, I'm still holding out hope for those guys from the Andrea Gail, which went down in 1991 during the 'Perfect Storm.'

By the way, if you want to read a good blog about commercial fishing, check out Kate Yeomans' blog.