Continuation of Sightings

A Bear bumper sticker was spotted in NYC near 34st Street and 8th Avenue about 18th June by Joel DiGiacomo.

The corporate SEA-ROOM van's bumpersticker was spotted on 24 May, 05 at Winettka and I394, Plymouth MN by Jon Peterson.

Today I had just left the library [in Phoenix AZ] with "Blue at the Mizzen", on my way to pick up my little girl from after-school care, when I spotted "Aubrey/Maturin '04" on the back of a red four wheel drive jeep or jeep-like vehicle. As we turned onto Cave Creek road I read the many anti-Bush, pro-Kerry slogans and started laughing at the Aubrey/Maturin sticker. My wife asked me what was so funny and I had to tell her who the protagonists of the book series were, and the irony of getting the last book just before seeing this bumper sticker.

Bryan Dodd
27 Jan 04

In San Leandro, CA, on Thursday, 10/07/04: A full-size pick-up
(Chevy, maybe?) with "Aubrey/Maturin '04." Also on the same truck,
one reading something like "Kick-Ass Girls Drive Kick-Ass Trucks"!
Surely we can figure out which of our friends this is!
Eric A. Ladner

Just saw my first sticker at the Cow Palace in Daly City (near San
Francisco) in California on December 4th, 2004. It didn't click at first
as I'm re-reading the series and I'm deep into 'Fortune of War' so the
sight of 'Aubrey/Maturin' didn't click until I was well past the car in
question. My wife smoked it first and we had to back up through the
parking lot to get back to it and convince ourselves that it was really
there. Best part is, it led me to your site.

Frank

Just saw an Aubrey-Maturin bumper sticker in the library of the Maine
Maritime Musem in Bath!

Susan Beegel
Phippsburg, ME

I just spotted an Aubrey-Maturin sticker when coming off work today -- Monday, November 29, 2004 -- Fort Smith, AR.

Cheers,
Alexis

The Sept 5 sighting in Rockport, MA was likely of my car. Earlier in
the day, we had been in neighboring Gloucester for the Picton Castle's
dockside sale of South Pacific trade goods it had picked up in its
latest circumnavigation.

Don Seltzer

October 15, 2004, Annandale, Virginia. The car was a dark colored
older model of a Pontiac or Oldsmobile. It was traveling down Little River
Turnpike near the commercial center of Annandale.

Ray Caldwell.

The passenger of my car sighted a Bear and Man bumper sticker on Route
1 just south of Princeton, NJ on Saturday night. Said passenger
mentioned it to me after I passed the car in question (a black,
smallish, SUV-ish thing) so I proceeded to try to work my way back
behind the car to confirm the sighting, but the traffic was against
me. I decided this was not a good opportunity to "Never mind the
maneuvers" or to "go straight at 'em", it being dark out and the road
being very busy, so I'll just have to taken my passenger's word for
it.

So, if someone out there owns a black, smallish, SUV-ish thing with a
Bear and Man bumper sticker and is wondering why that red Saab was
driving so erratically just south of Princeton on Saturday, that's why.

-Eleanor

I saw one yesterday at the Fort Mason Center in San Francisco, CA.

Renee R. Perry, PhD
Director, First Year Seminar and Writing Workshop
Instructor, Statistics 250
building 21
California State University, Monterey Bay

"at heart I am an American artist and I have no guilt" -- Patti Smith

I saw the Aubrey-Maturin bumper sticker on a truck
parked at Umpqua Community College. I made a
double-take, as I was thrilled to see my absolute
favorite men's names somewhere other than in the
books!!! How totally cool, to know there are other
Aubrey-Maturin fanatics out there in the world.

Regards,
Mary Ellen

Sunday, September 05, 2004 7:44 PM
Sighting, Rockport, Mass.

Today we had our first sighting of "Aubrey & Maturin, '00" on the streets of
Rockport, Massachusetts.

What a hoot!

C. Wolfe
Derry, New Hampshire

I just chased a Chevvy Blazer with the Aubrey-Maturin sticker in heavy rain until I could get close enough to read the web site address. The entire POB series has been recorded by Books on Tape and Recorded Books. Two readers in particular : Richard Brown and Patrick Tull, are marvelous reading and speaking in the vernacular. Check your local library, take a break from reading and be transported by "hearing" these characters.
George Demmy, Pensacola, FL

My car now has two bumperstickers on it,
"Aubrey-Maturin '00" and "Aubrey-Maturin '04." (Both
from Searoom, for newbies.)

While sitting in a parking lot, I overheard a couple
of men exclaiming over the bumperstickers:

Man #1: Aubrey and Maturin? Hmm. Are they running for
re-election?
Man #2: I don't know. Who are they, anyway?

The two men walked off in confusion. I thought of
leaping from the car and running after them, but
reasoned that they wouldn't really care much if they
knew.

Re-election, for all love!

-Jessey

I saw your 'duet' Aubrey-Maturin bumper sticker on a maroon car parked in Pontardawe, West Glamorgan, Wales UK on Friday 18/06/04. This has alerted me to your most interesting site- congratulations! I'll tell my friends about you.

I note that you also celebrate other maritime authors as well as PO'B but you, perhaps so far, do not cite Nevil Shute. Admittedly much of his output reflects his professional background as an aeronautical engineer. Many of his books, however, including Marazan, Lonely Road, What Happened to the Corbetts, and spectacularly Trustee from the Toolroom involve yachting or seafaring. Most Secret and Requiem for a Wren feature WWII naval warfare and In the Wet sailing, (as do Pilotage and The Seafarers which were published after his death). I would commend all these to your web readers: if you like C.S.Forester, Patrick O'Brian and Arthur Ransome I believe you'll enjoy Shute's 'ordinary people doing extraordinary things'. (see www.nevilshute.org for further details)

Alison

PS- I challenge your location of Swallows and Amazons as the Norfolk Broads; Ransome's Author's Note at the front refers to its inspiration in his childhood holidays 'at the south end of Coniston', which is near Windermere in the Lake District; but, fair enough, several of his other books are located in East Anglia.

To the 5-6-04 poster - It was my maroon Jeep Cherokee you saw at Huntington Metro Station (lower level of parking garage on N. King's Hwy.). I'm there every day. I'm always happy to meet another fan.

Our next-door neighbor, Alan Lederman, is a fervent Patrick O'Brian fan. He has a bumper sticker.......he has turned us into fans... Our son-in-law, Charles Fox, administrator of the Somerset (pa.) Historical Center, is also a devotee.

frances Killpatrick
Alexandria, Va

Mates:

Greetings! I am in the midst of my first reading of the series and have
some questions. I am coming to the end of The Truelove and so picked up the
Wine-Dark Sea from the library-- they are so addictive, I cannot risk
finishing one without having the next in my possession. When I looked at
the list of titles at the front of the W-DS, where I had always seen the
Truelove, it had _Clarissa Oakes_ as the title! What is the story here?

Also, I discovered this listserv a few months ago because of a bumper
sticker (seeing it absolutely made my day!), went to website on the sticker,
added my sighting and signed up for the Sea Room. My sighting was in the
Huntington Metro station outside DC. Since, I have been back to that
initial site but have not seen my sighting listed there yet(it has been a
couple of months). [My apologies. and send me your address for a free bumpersticker of your choice.]

I saw an Aubrey-Maturin Duet bumper sticker in the Chicago Loop this
morning. It absolutely made my day! I'd love to see a new design for '04 that
looks even more electiony and official -- maybe with a red-white-and-blue
background. Keep up the good work!

Hey John,

Check out the attached pictures I took in Grenada. Look carefully
under the name on the transom. The second picture shows her under
sail.

cheers,
Duane Pontius

My daughter and I were driving down hwy 101 in San Luis Obispo, Ca. We saw one of the Aubrey/Maturin stickers on a car heading south.

I had read several of the books in the series and wondered if the names were a coincidence or if the sticker was referring to the books. I came right home to see if there was any other possible "Aubrey/Maturin" connection. I found your site and am letting you know we saw one of your stickers.

I hope to get my kids into the books soon.

Cheers!

Caitlin and Dana Christianson
San Luis Obispo, California

Victories continue for "Surprise" in the form of a Day Sailer. First sighting of was early April at Clear Lake Park but soon realized namesake frequent these waters most Wednesdays. The bumper sticker is on the transom of the attached photo. The skipper is Bob Hunkins and the crew Joe Cavallaro. This photo taken from http://www.clearlakeracing.com/ .

Jim

__/)_

From: Connie McMillin

Orlando, FL, Today.......noon.........Home Depot.......Blue Jeep A06UUZ.

Sighted May 10, 2003 in Bellingham, Washington on a burgundy Honda Accord.
We drove by too fast to note the license plate or the name of the street it
was parked on.

Bob Kegel
46°59'18.661"N 123°49'29.827"W

From: "Stephen P. Taylor" <spt@CLEMSON.EDU>
Sent: Wednesday, May 14, 2003 2:42 PM
Subject: Aubrey/Maturin bumper sticker sighting

Dear Sir(s):
In accordance with the instructions on the bumper sticker in
question, I am reporting the sighting on a Ford F-250 truck (SC lic.
plate no. FM65987) on the Clemson University campus.

Stephen Taylor

I spied my first Aubrey/Maturin bumper stickers two weeks ago in Old Town
Alexandria, Virginia on Washington Street headed north during the morning
rush. I was so delighted I made a monkey of myself trying to get the
driver's attention. Found this web site and ordered 5 of each bumper
sticker for friends and family who also adore Jack and the doctor. Now you
may sight them in North Baltimore, MD & Solana Beach, CA.

I'm a huge fan of POB, read the series many times and always find something
new to enjoy. Russell Crow not withstanding, I am looking forward to the
movie - the preview looks pretty exciting.

Sighted the HMS Surprise in San Diego Bay January 2003 at the commercial ship
yards. I suppose it's on its way home from shooting the movie. It's been
there fore several months, now. I will send pictures as soon as they are
developed.

Jessica Kaputa
Alexandria, VA

> From: Mdcalvert@aol.com
> Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 10:29:02 EST
> Subject: Bumper Sticker Sighting Report -- Re: Aubrey-Maturin
>
> On Wednesday, October 30, I saw a bumper sticker stating:
>
> "Not a moment to lose..."
> Aubrey-Maturin
>
> The sticker had the image of a dancing bear and a 18th century sailor.
>
> In very small print, the sticker also said, "Report sightings of this bumper
> sticker to.....(you)...
>
> The bumper sticker was on the back bumper of a gray Nissan pickup truck with
> Tennessee plate, HDT-040, and it was parked at the Home Depot parking lot in
> Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
>
> I am happy to make this report and hope that there is some connection to the
> most well written series of Aubrey-Maturin sea stories. I have purchased all
> of the series of the novels and read them with serious pleasure. I am
> currently looking for a school teacher who will use the books as an "extra
> credit" reading program for students who like to read and want to demonstrate
> their reading ability by reading each book in the series and either writing a
> short book report or giving a two minute summary of each day's reading to the
> class. I will "sweeten the pot" by including two huge dictionaries I used
> when I worked for a Federal agency.
>
> I will also check out the website (sea-room.com) that was listed on the
> sticker. I hope the site is a means to explore the books about Captain
> Aubrey and his friend and confidant, Dr. Maturin.
>
> Thanks for the fun,
>
> Melvin D Calvert

From: "GEORGE CASSIDEY" <casslum@email.msn.com>
To: <scuttlebutt@LISTBOX.COM>
Subject: Bumpersticker sighting in Mobile, Alabama
Date: Thu, 19 Jul 2001 08:43:07 -0500

Lissun's,

I was pleasantly surprised this morning as I went to work to see an
Aubrey+AFw-Maturin in '00 bumpersticker on a white GMC Yukon bearing Alabama
plates. This was at about 0755 hrs at the intersection of Bienville Avenue
and Dauphin Street. It's always good to see a fellow fan while on the road.

Best Regards,

George Cassidey

Date: Tue, 26 Jun 2001 06:55:36 -0500
From: Bob Williams <bwillms@peoplescom.net>
Subject: Sighting on the Arctic Circle

John,

Here's the photo of my bumper sticker at the Arctic Circle marker on the Dalton Hwy in Alaska heading up to Prudoe Bay. I was able to drive all the way to the Arctic Ocean at Prudoe Bay, Alaska. I'm not sure that the bumper sticker has been officially any further north then this (N70 deg 18.858 min. W148 deg 19.14 min).

I've also included a photo of me standing on the ice on the Arctic Ocean just off the Prudoe Bay dock.

Bob Williams

From: Dennis Bailey <DRB@RSJG.com>
To: "'sightings@sea-room.com'" <sightings@sea-room.com>
Subject: Auburn University
Date: Thu, 31 Aug 2000 12:06:07 -0500

Saw Aubrey-Maturin '00 sticker in parking lot of the AU Conference Center this a.m.

From: Calangst@aol.com
Posted-Date: Sun, 6 Aug 2000 20:51:28 -0500 (CDT)
Date: Sun, 6 Aug 2000 21:51:14 EDT
Subject: Not a moment to loose
To: sightings@sea-room.com

Blue Bear (any relation to Blue Peter?) sighted in the Park Slope
neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York - 6th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues
(near the Barnes and Noble)!

Alan Ashworth, <ashworth@aya.yale.edu>, reports that the president of the Yale Alumni Association of South Texas has the "Not a moment to lose" bumper sticker on his Dodge Ram. Sighted in San Antonio.

And the note: I sighted it myself! It's my own car, parked outside my house in central Stockholm, January 2000.

just wanted you to know, an aubrey-maturin bumper sticker is now in the art department at the university of Arizona! Since your bumper stickers say to report all sightings, i thought i would let you know that one of my brothers purchased the bumper sticker for me and it now hangs up in my office, which is in the u of a's art department. my brother, a long time o'brian fan, has hooked a sister-in-law that lives in san francisco and me on the series.

lisa
From: Lisa M Kreamer <kreamer@U.Arizona.EDU>

Subject: sighting
To: sightings@sea-room.com

To whom,

Bumpersticker sighted in Greenwood area of Seattle.

Ahoy!

I'm a bit surprised that in the "logbook" area you don't have a way for guests and visitors to log-in? Or do you and I missed it. I sighted my first bumper sticker yesterday and was pleasantly surprised, so followed-up today with your web page. Nice job. Take care.

Matt Chamberlain
MensNet@aol.com

From: "Eric A. Ladner" <eladner@mail.dnai.com
Subject: Re: Reverse bumper sticker sighting

The two stickers on the rear bumper of my car are "Not a Moment to Lose" and "I'd Rather Be Sailing." The other day I came out of the grocery store and found the tapes of "Unknown Shore" clipped under a windshield wiper,
with a note on the back of a business card: "I hope you haven't read this one," and a signature line indicating that the donor lives aboard a sail boat.

As it happens, "Unknown Shore" IS the only O'Brian nautical novel I have not yet read!

It's only the second time I've had any response to the O'Brian sticker (to my surprise and disappointment), but what a great one.

- EAL

END OF SIGHTINGS.