The next little bit is basically about Ishmael and his views on whaling and the sea.  He always stands of for the whaling proffession because he says it is heroic, necessary for the economy, and also because it has expanded geographical knowledge.  Some ways that he defends himself and his sayings is by pointing out that the bible and other books mention whales.  And also that there is a constellation in the southern sky called Cetus, which is named after a whale.  This also reminds me of my friends and i, and how we always stand behind what we say, even if it might be wrong.  But so far this is an enjoyable book.   

The ship ends up leaving the port on a cold Christmas morning.  Bildad and Peleg steer the ship out of the port.  They still have not seen the captain.  Ishmael is feeling kind of discomforting at the start of the voyage and goes into deep thinking about sailing when Peleg kicks him in the butt for no reason.  Thats funny to me.  It reminds me of when me and my friends just goof off, and hit each other for no reason. Anyway, they get out of the port and head into the vast Atlantic ocean. 

Ishmael is walking by the ship at dawn and thinks he sees men boarding the ship, so he figures the ship must be leaving at sunrise.  As they are getting ready to board the Pequod, they encounter Elijah.  He asks them if they say people boarding the ship and they replied yes.  The ship, however, is quiet except for one sailor, who tells them that the captain is already aboard.  As the sun rises, the crew arrives and the ship prepares to sail.

Queequeg impresses the owners of the ship with his sharp shooting harpooner skills.  They give him the ninetieth lay, i forgot what that was.  Anyway, Bildad tries to convert Queequeg to Christianity, but Peleg tells him to give up.  He says, "Pious harpooners never make good voyagers, it takes the shark out of them, no harpooner is worth a straw who ain't pretty sharkish." Peleg also tells Bildad that at sea, practical concerns shove religious matters aside.  

Blogs have totally crossed my mind the past few weeks, sorry Mrs. C.  Anyway, Ishmael and Queequeg return to their hotel.  Queequeg needs to do his "ramadan" ceremonies, so Ishmael allows him a day to meditate and do whatever he does.  The next day, Ishmael goes to the door, but Queequeg won't answer it.  Ishmael finally gets the door open, and finds Queequeg sitting down in deep meditation.  He meditates untill the next morning.  Ishmael is kind of uncomfortable with Queequeg's religion.  The next day, they return to the ship.  Man, i am really getting tired of writing "Queequeg". Every time i type it, i miss spell it and have to fix it.