Above: Sunset from the Cramer; below: Giselle playing guitar to the setting sun

Hello all! Kim here from the galley of the SSV Corwith Cramer! The last few days have felt like a dream as we finally shoved off from Dyer’s dock and made it out into Vineyard Sound. My outstanding assistant steward (Sarah Witcher!), intern stewards (Jen, Justin, and Wika), along with countless other helpers and dish technicians, have made working in the galley a true joy!

We are so lucky to have a group of students and crew so enthusiastic about their culinary ideas and inspirations. Before every meal, at least one student will stop by to see what we are creating, and offer up suggestions that remind them of home. For example, Ollie suggested we toast some ramen noodles for croutons, which went perfectly on the South Asian-style salad we whipped up! Their ideas and feedback remind me just how important diversity is in our daily lives, whether it be cultural diversity, different life experience, or varying goals. We are constantly learning from each other’s diversity, and the result in the galley has been wildly successful!

Cooking on the Cramer is so much more than feeding the hungry, growing masses. It is an expression of creativity, of love, of ourselves. When we make food for our shipmates, we share a part of ourselves with each of them. Someone once told me that a meal done right will evoke a memory in those consuming it. Maybe the smell of your grandmother’s cardamom bread before Christmas, or the soul soothing warmth of a hearty corn chowder after a cold day working on the water. By working together on meals, we try to bring each other back to a feeling we once had and want to share.

Last night as we put the final touches on homemade hamburgers with brioche buns, we got a call down from deck that humpback whales were breaching! Seeing this jubilant greeting from the mega fauna as the sun set left us with a tremendous feeling of belonging. As if they were somehow telling us exactly we are supposed to be.

Sending lots of love to everyone back home! Hope you’re all adventuring too!

- Kim Nutt, Steward