My brother has always been concerned with safety. As a pilot he conducts the most thorough aircraft pre-flight inspections of anyone in the business. He simply will not compromise safety which on occasion has put him at odds with other pilots and his employer when he refuses to fly an aircraft that has an unresolved issue. His concerns with safety extend to his family and earlier this week he convinced/coerced/bribed me to invest in a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB) given my frequent solo excursions into the back country and on the seas. This device, the size of a cell phone, once activated anywhere on the planet will send a distress signal to a network of satellites which will relay exact GPS coordinates to the appropriate search and rescue organization within minutes. It is a device I hope I never have to use but if that day comes I will have my brother to thank for saving my life. The antenna is shown deployed in the photo and normally warps neatly around the exterior of the case. Battery life is 5 years and the device is waterproof although it does not float. I plan to tether it to my kayaking PFD (life jacket) when on the water and throw it in my backpack when trekking.

Jeanine spent the evening sailing in Boston Harbor with members of her book group on the Edward’s boat while I had a soccer scrimmage, our last tune up before the big tournament this weekend.