Close enough to taste it

We are currently heading towards Kodiak Island, almost a day ahead of
schedule. We made pretty good time trying to outrun a storm the other
night, and we're here early. The bad news is that we can't dock until
tomorrow, because we have to enter the harbor at high tide. On the plus
side, we're close enough for cell phones to work, and the decks are
covered with people calling the outside world. I called my wife, Kari.
She was pretty excited.
As excited as I am to be off the ship and back in the world, I'm kind of
sad to be leaving the experience and many new friends behind. Thank god
for email and facebook. The experience has left me cold, (really, really
cold) seasick, bored, and sleepless at various times the past month. I am
probably also a little heavier than when I left, thanks to excessive Coast
Guard portions and 5 mealtimes per day.
I'm gonna miss the people and the experience.
Steve