upon reaching the age of 12, popeye had startled everyone he knew by the sheer fact that he was now like a full-grown man, puberty having hit him hard as he now had to shave after every meal and he even had muscles so tough that they could be used as grindstones, with popeye even renting out his forearms for just that purpose for some extra side cash. it was around this time that popeye finally (but unknowingly) set out to sea, having been shanghaied onto a crew one night after some bilge rat put a mickey in his "sodie pop" to knock him out. after he woke, he found himself aboard the "josie lee" with a new crew bossing him around, so he decided to slip a "mickey" himself to everyone in the crew with his fists, including the captain. it was then that the "josie lee" began to drift out to sea and after a few days, popeye realized that he liked this style of living and would go on to devote his life to that of the sailor's way, deciding to join the crew of the "josie lee" and begin practicing his "sailor's walk" from then on. popeye then dedicated himself to sailing the seas, looking for fights and new adventure, as well as any clue to the whereabouts of his long-lost pappy.