Sunday, July 10, 2011

Erland "Cappy" Quinn


A while ago I wrote in this space about a remarkable man I had met many years ago and I lamented that I could not remember his name. Well, the mind (or God, or something) works in remarkable ways. I tried to consciously remember the name for several days, running the alphabet, thinking of common names. looking in the phonebook but of course none of it worked.

Then one night, when I was in that netherland between wake and sleep a name came into my head - Earle Quinn. And I had the presence of mind (and a handy pen and pad of paper by my bedside just for such occasions) to write it down. When I was fully awake the next morning the name was completely lost to my memory but there it was indelibly written on my bedside note pad! But I knew it was not quite right, so I just left it there to consider further.

Days later as I was just waking up a thought came to me: not "Earle", but "Erlon" so I wrote that down by my original note. Today I decided to see what this all meant, so I fired up Google and went to work.

Turns out, my subconscious mind had it almost right - in fact the remarkable individual I encountered all those years ago was a gentleman by the name of Captain Erland Quinn. It also turns out, not surprisingly, that my experience with him was typical of how he treated people. Here's a quote from a brief biography published on the menu of Cappy's Chowder House, a restaurant in Camden so named in his honor:
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Just who the heck is Cappy anyway?

Our customers always ask "Who is Cappy?" Cappy Quinn was old Maine stock, born and brought up on Eagle Island in Penobscot Bay. For many years, he was a familiar face around the Camden waterfront, always willing to give a helping hand to anyone in need. To us, he gave his love of the bay, of boats, and of life. Nothing gave us more pleasure than reminiscing with Cappy about the old days and old boats of Maine long gone. He taught us about pride, and we hope your experience here shows that.
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They even had a picture of him and that's it at the top of this post.

Sadly, but I guess not surprisingly, Captain Quinn is no longer with us. He died on July 25, 1991, at age 90 so he lived a long and by all accounts very full life - no one can hope for more than that. And clearly he lives on in the hearts and memories of those he affected in life, including me.

I wish you fair winds and following seas Captain Erland Quinn - God bless you and the ship you sail on.

9 comments:

  1. Gotta love Google! I read the original story you posted about him the first day I found your blog, so it was nice to catch this update.

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  2. @Deb - thanks so much for reading the posts about "Cappy". Most of what I write here is for my own entertainment and I don't especially care if any one else reads it or not, but I really wanted others to know the story of my encounter with the remarkable Captain Erland Quinn.

    And yes, you gotta love Google - but it's a little scary, I think. I'm considering a post on the subject - stay tuned for details!

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  3. I also loved this story. Google is wonderful. Anything and everything you ever wanted to know is available with a few key strokes.

    Re memory: both my grandmother and uncle had Alzheimer's and I live with the fear that it may darken my life as well, as I have always been a list-maker and written things down, because I do not have a good memory. But then the other day I got such a thrill. I was working in my front garden when a woman who was passing by stopped and said hello. I said hello back, thinking she was just being friendly but she stood there and asked how I was. For a split second I thought "Who IS this person?" and then from nowhere I said "Lucy?" This was someone I had seen a few times during my visits to a local pool for synchronized swimming lessons. That was almost 25 years ago and I had not seen or heard anything about that woman, nor had she even crossed my mind one time since then. I could hardly believe that somehow I had dredged that name out of nowhere. So there is hope for the old girl yet! Even if I can never remember where I put my keys....

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  4. @Pippin - that's a great "memory" story; as I said, the mind works in strange (and sometimes wonderful) ways. One of the reasons I love to do crosswords is because it gives the mind a chance to dredge up stuff you have long since forgotten or didn't even know that you knew! I leave my keys in my truck - that way I always know where they are! I glad you enjoyed the post - I enjoyed writing it.

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  5. @Pippin - I had a similar encounter when I was canvassing for Obama in 2008. A woman who answered the door at one of the homes on my list had a face that was SO familiar to me, and I said as much but we were unable to figure it out (she didn't seem to recognize me). A day later, it came to me, along with her name: We had worked at the same restaurant for a couple of months over thirty years prior.

    BTW, there's some research that suggests doing mental exercises (think CROSSWORDS!) can help stave off Alzheimer's, so you're on the right track! Dementia is my mother's number-one fear, but she won't attempt anything harder than word search puzzles. It's kind of frustrating, frankly, because she take excellent care of her physical health, but seems to think that watching the local evening news and reading romance novels is all the exercise her mind needs to stay agile.

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  6. May I ask? Who are you; how did you know my father? What did you write about him - after you found out his name? Curiosity makes me ask... Arline Quinn Heline

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    1. Well, Arline Quinn Heline, I am so glad that you stumbled across my little missive about recalling your dad's name. I met him just once, but it was a remarkable encounter indeed- for me, anyway. Here's a link to the story - I hope you enjoy it and it makes you even more proud of hour dad. http://dirigonzo.blogspot.com/2011/06/captain-samaritan.html

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    2. Well, it took me a few months to find you again. But this time I am sad to announce that Cappy's Chowder House is no more.! I am very sad that the new owners, decided that it was more important to run a brewery, rather than an eatery. I just hope many people have good memories and great pictures taken there. It was his place.... for 37 years. Arline Q.

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    3. I am not good at this.... the address you gave me does not work. Or is it just me. (or Windows 10) I hate it, for sure. AQH

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