Sailor Dog locked down.

The Lockdown or travel restriction meant we were at home most of the time except for when we were out buying food.

The Admiral was working from home. I wasn’t able to do any canvas work as the industrial sewing machines are in the marina, and the sewing room has been turned into a temporary dormitory for the marina’s staff from Malaysia affected by their own lockdown. I was at home most of the time and I chose to educate myself on how the global pandemic is affecting the world’s economic environment and the likely impact and outcome, thereafter. I would spend my time listening to YouTube contents and reading articles by great macro-economic minds such as Raoul Pal, Jim Rikards, Miles Harris, Mike Maloney, George Gammon, Brent Johnson and most recently Lior Grantz. These are not your textbook economists. These are successful fund managers who manage investment portfolios worth hundreds of millions if not billions. Their hugely successful track records are a result of their in depth understanding of the financial economic system of the world and how mostly from experience, they are able to see the likely outcome of events such as the current pandemic through their understanding of this complex system. The understanding of the mechanisms of the US Federal Reserve Bank and its workings with the US Federal Government. The exact workings of monetary and fiscal policies, the REPO market (overnight and short term lending market) and their direct impact on the liquidity of the US dollar, Euro Dollars and inter central banks swaplines. IN SHORT, these are not exactly what you can learn from textbooks and by piecing together what I could learn from each, I can hopefully form a better broader understanding of where we have come from, where we are now and where we are heading. The “when” is a harder factor to determine, but what is evident are the sequence of progressions along some of the postulations. Most of these videos and articles were created way before this pandemic and this in a way provide evidence of whether their thesis fit into the sequence of events which have and is taking place right now. These insights are immensely interesting to me with my background in International economics. Yes that was my major. Frankly speaking, some of the potential scenarios are downright scary. Collapse of the financial system, hyperinflation, and the potential for civil unrest.

My interest in the works of some of the above names started a few years ago, when after my exit from the corporate world gave me time to research and read.  I did become a “gold bug” (those who believe that gold still plays an important role as a store of value and acts as real money) and as a result bought some physical gold as an insurance policy.  That was almost 2 years ago. Gold proved to be the asset of choice in the event of crisis, as we are seeing now. Gold bugs are somewhat suspicious of the present fiat currency system which the entire world’s economies revolves around.  They believe that all fiat currencies will eventually collapse and that gold is the one true money that has survived through the thousands of years of human civilization. Perhaps a biased view but history does concur with their views, to a certain extent.

I will not be doing any preaching here, rest assured.  The next form of “money” is likely to evolve into an entirely digital form which may or may not be backed by gold or having a gold standard.  The later, may be required to instill board base confidence in the new digital currency. Without the confidence that one is able to transact with it in the future, no currencies will be effective as a form of money.  

The Covid-19 pandemic has caused such a disruption around the entire world that we could very well be waking up into a new world, once we are set free of our current home imprisonment. One wouldn’t expect a sudden overnight change but we can expect to see hastening changes and certainly some new social aspects which will become the new “normal”.

The Sailor Dog has been a very good girl all through this lockdown. She would be laying down most of the time looking bored perhaps. She will come to me when she is hungry, thirsty (when her drinking bowl is empty) or when nature calls. Apart from that she is hardly obtrusive. Of course, without the need to adhere to some strict work hour guidelines, my daily routine has completely gone out of whack. I have been reading or listening to YouTube videos well into the wee hours of the morning. Sailor Dog has a much better biological clock than I do. Past midnight she would come to distract me from my studies. At least letting me know that it’s late and it’s past bedtime. She will only go to the bedroom to sleep (on her doggie bed, on the floor) when accompanied by me. Just the other day, I was ignoring her distraction when it was very late at night or very early in the morning. When reaching out for my mouse on the coffee table, she gently nudged my hand away from touching the mouse. She did that no lesser than 3 times in a row. That wasn’t by accident. She wanted me to stop. I simply had to stop and brought her to sleep. Every now and then I will need to go and check on the boat. The marina will grant us entry after checking on our temperature. Sailor Dog gets her temperature taken as well although no one would know what her normal should be. Sailor Dog will be all excited when told we are going to the boat. Skipped and bounded her way towards the door to wait for me. She would sit quietly in the car, now much more used to being in a moving car that she hasn’t gotten car sick lately. Once at her marina, she would run around her familiar backyard, like she owns the place. Still observing the rule that her paws needed wiping before jumping onto the cockpit, she’ll wait for me next to her wipe down bucket. She is still the Sailor Dog at heart and Micasa our floating home was the only home she had known for more than 3 years, prior to living on land at the beginning of this year. She knows every corner of the boat and her favorite place is of course the bed. Strangely enough, she has not once jumped onto my bed at the new home. Sleeping instead, on her own doggie bed on the floor, next to my bed. She is still the queen of the marina. Winning hearts wherever she goes. She would greet her Godma, with such a tail wag that her rear end would be thrown from side to side. Yes, she’s our adorable Sailor Dog. She can still bring joy to our hearts in this time of endless sad news and the prospect of an uncertain future. Such a different “person” from when we first brought her back from the pound. She is confident in her demeanor knowing that she has a home and that we are there for her. Likewise, she has and will protect us and her home from unknown strangers, be they the delivery man or new neighbours whom she hasn’t seen before. Sometimes a little embarrassing when she barked at new neighbours, but she will very soon learn that they are our neighbours. She is such a gentle creature that at times I would be surprised by her ferocity when strangers had invaded our space. She is such a joy to have around. If ever you have room in your life to accommodate a furry friend, do not hesitate to adopt a rescued pet. A chance for them to have a life and for you to be blessed with the untold joys they can bring into your life at the same time. This after all is the story of how a pound dog became a Sailor Dog.

Stay safe everyone and look for the beacons of hope and joy in these rather dark hours of history that we are living through now.

Sailor Dog and the Captain ⚓ signing off for now. Cheers!