Flying Colors

When you ace a difficult exam, your teacher says you passed with "flying colors." This phrase comes from the ultimate display of naval victory! In naval combat, the universal sign of surrender was physically lowering your ship's flag (striking your colors). If a ship survived a brutal battle and returned to its home port with its flags still raised and fluttering in the wind, it was a massive statement of victory. Despite having a shredded hull and broken masts, returning with "flying colors" meant they had faced the ultimate test of survival and won!

The Mainstay

When a person is the absolute most reliable, supportive member of a team or a family, they are called the "mainstay." This is a purely architectural naval term! On a massive sailing galleon, the tallest and heaviest wooden pole was the mainmast. To keep this massive mast from snapping and falling backward during a violent hurricane, it was supported by a single, incredibly thick diagonal hemp rope known as the "main-stay." If the mainstay snapped, the entire ship would physically collapse. Because it was the ultimate source of support, the word evolved to describe highly dependable humans!

Fan made Jaws poster - artwork by Paul Mann

Paul Mann official website

 

Palm tree on island wallpaper

Feel free to use this palm tree image as your phone's wallpaper if you like. I usually try to stay away from the AI artwork that you see all over the place now, especially on Instagram. But I guess staying away from it is like trying to keep the ocean back with a broom, it's just impossible. If you like palm trees like I do though, this is a fun wallpaper.

 

Davy Jones fan art - before the days of AI