Pop Quiz

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The lovely Emerald Lady

Answer this question: What is the coolest part of finally getting into the groove of boat shopping?  Is it A) Experiencing boat lust  B) Thinking about spending a million dollars  C) Wasting time trying to make appointments to look at boats or  D) None of the above. If you answered D, none of the above, you would be correct and win a prize if I had one to give you. The correct answer, for the bonus essay point, is ‘making new friends who live in Boat World’. First we met Lee Youngblood, then we went to a club meeting of all sailing people all the time and won a prize. And now, thanks to Lee, we’ve met sailors, soon-to-be cruisers, Kelly and John Wanamaker and their freaking fabulous Cheoy Lee Ketch, Emerald Lady. We spent the better part of 2 hours on this beautiful yacht talking boats, sailing, how to manifest dreams, healthy cooking in the galley, boat projects using non-boat materials, and all kinds of exciting and wonderful boaty boat things! It was so much fun I was practically levitating as we left!

Now before you go rolling your eyes at me and wondering if I’m just easily amused and all that, let’s consider this: when was the last time you had the chance to sit and visit with people who had the exact same interests as you and were just enough ahead of you in the game to be encouraging but not daunting, sharing wisdom and experience but not being condescending? Hmmm? As I thought. It was last year! Maybe even never!

We wanted to meet John and Kelly because we were told that they bought a fixer boat and turned her into a beauty. And that’s exactly what they’ve done! I can’t imagine how they’ve done it in a year’s time, but this is one lovely vessel and it has many of the ‘necessities’ we’re looking for, including an extremely cool aft cabin with its own hatch! They talked about the plans they have for making the boat even more comfortable in the future and Kelly talked about some of the compromises she made when choosing this boat. (She did use the word ‘compromise’, but I put my inner 4  year old in time out and Kelly remained safe. I was on my best behavior.)

As you enter Emerald Lady, you see this. This tells you something about John and Kelly.

So in an afternoon of visiting with new friends, we came away thinking more strongly about setting a date for departure, at Kelly’s urging. And we came away thinking ‘we could probably handle a boat larger than 40 feet if we wanted to, at John’s urging. We came away thinking that the more we look at boats like that Cheoy Lee, the more we like them because they are so comfortable and beautiful, and they feel like tiny houses, yet still like boats. Just maybe we don’t have to spend a million dollars right up front to get the boat of our dreams. Maybe we can spend it a little at a time. I even started thinking that maybe a big master cabin is not so necessary if you have a roomy and comfortable salon. Then I had to slap myself really hard because I started to get too flexible on that point.

As Mike and I walked away from Emerald Lady, I looked back at her and had a little deja vu moment; you know those times that make you wonder if you’ve lived that moment before, like you’ve just looked through the window into another dimension.  And then I remembered. A few years ago we were sailing in the south sound and spent a night at Harstine Island. There was this beautiful boat tied up at the dock. It had gentle curves and a sweet overhang. It looked like it was a modern version of an old sailing vessel; long and slender with teak decks and varnished brightwork. I remember standing on the dock with Mike, staring, sort of imagining what it would be like to be on that boat. I remember saying, “I would love to have a boat like that.” Walking up to the little store at the marina, we met a man coming down toward the docks. We asked him if that boat was his boat.  “The Cheoy Lee? Yep.”  He smiled at us in a dreamy sort of way.

 

 

It’s a Merry Library Christmas at Little Cunning Plan

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Mike is reading from the 'go small and go now' genre.

It’s Christmas and I know the question on your mind is this: ” What does the well-heeled, crap-discarding, boat-shopping couple give one another for Christmas?” Well, you can stop fretting about this and get some sleep, because I’m going to tell you: Books. Lots and lots of books about boats and cruising. And a kitchen aid mixer, but since I can’t imagine storing that on a boat, we’ll just move on from that now.

Yes, this Christmas, rather than supporting the economy by buying a lot of useless junk that no one wants, I went directly to my local book store, Amazon.com (and also Half Price Books) and bought books on the top-secret inner workings of sailboats, how to sail on a paltry sum of money, and how to outfit a boat for blue water sailing by spending a million dollars. We will be busily reading these for weeks to come.

Mike must have been a very good boy this year.

Got a boat library of your own? Drop us a line and let us know what books you think we need. For a complete list of the books we bought and what we think about them, see our new ‘Books You Should Get If You Want To‘ page. To find that page, go to The Plan in the menu at the top of the page.

 

 

 

The Perfect Boat, With Foot Stomping

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This is an actual boat. I'm not making this up.

Is there such a thing as the perfect boat? Mike and I are smack in the middle of boat lust (at least we’re in it together) and so the concept of the ‘perfect’ boat is one we knock around a bit. I keep hearing and reading that everything on a boat is a “compromise” and, frankly, I’m getting pretty tired of hearing that already.  I’m beginning to feel more than a bit oppositional, so I thought I better get some stuff out of my system on the blog. That way I won’t have to stomp around the docks gesturing and pointing and generally having a hissy fit. Mike hates it when I do that.

I think the word ‘compromise’ actually means I’m being told ‘no’. Let’s be clear: I am a Leo and probably low on several hormones. Telling me no is probably not a very good idea. Saying ‘no’ to me brings out my inner 4 year old and like any 4 year old worth her salt, I become filled with stubborn insistence. There is a good reason for this. All 4 year old kids know that pretty much anything is possible in this world and that there is no good reason why amazing things cannot happen. Young children are in complete accord with all of the possibilities of the Universe. This is why they are constantly disappointed when adults get in their way by slinging around ridiculous concepts like ‘everything on a boat is a compromise’. So this is why these words make me want to run screaming and stamping my feet, probably with my hands over my ears yelling ‘LALALALALALA! I DON’T HEAR YOU!” I simply cannot allow these alleged grown ups to get in my way.

As an actual adult, in fact, I have learned to deal with this issue of the internal 4 year old by very carefully defining what things are important to me, and putting those things in terms that are ultimately pretty flexible, most of the time. That way the Universe doesn’t have to tell me no very often and risk my narcissistic rage. I like to protect the Universe from my narcissistic rage. I find that when defining the perfect boat, I can divide the definition into two parts: wants and needs. Tonight, my flexibility is waxing toward the ‘want’ category, probably because I’ve had too many Christmas cookies.

You’d think that the wants would be flexible and the needs be concrete but you’d be wrong. Remember we’re dealing with early childhood here. The wants are pretty much written in stone, and they mostly have to do with the interior of the boat and, hence, our comfort when aboard. For instance, I want a good master cabin with a berth that is large enough for both of us to move around at will, and that will allow me to get in and out without kicking Mike in the head. I also want room to store clothing. I want it and I’m going to get it. There is no reason why I cannot have it and I am not prepared to negotiate on this.  We’ve already ruled out two very nice boats because the master cabin was too small. Do you see how serious I am about this issue? Consider my foot stamped, hands on hips, lower lip looming large.

A worthy master cabin. Unfortunately this boat is in Virginia.

Another thing I want is two facing settees in the salon. I want these, and I want them to be big and comfortable and useful as sea berths. I want to be able to lounge around on them and read, and have room for lots of pillows. I will find a way to snug them up when they are needed as sea berths. Even though I will be on a boat, I refuse to believe that good sailing boats cannot be very comfortable inside. I do not accept that. The Universe is too big to be limited by those kinds of things. In my 4 year old mind, the salon is colorful and bright, and comfortable with plenty of light, like a tiny living room. There is plenty of room for all 4 of our family members to sit comfortably and there is a table that is useful when we want it, and that gets out of the way when we don’t. Let it be written, let it be done.

A nice salon. On the same boat in Virginia.

The last thing I want is a separate place for my son to sleep when he is on board. My feelings about this are strong, but I find myself getting flexible about how this is manifested. Ideally, he would have his own cabin. That would encourage him to want to spend more time with us, and also my daughter might consider using it at times if it had enough privacy. I really see no reason why I should not have this but I wax and wane about how much foot stomping and lip trembling I want to do about it. Probably that’s because I begin to feel a little like one of THOSE women who just wants a condo on the water. Honestly, if I thought I could actually HAVE a condo on the water, and that it would be a boat that was still a good sailor, then I’d say right on! Maybe I just don’t want to be seen as one of THOSE women, whoever they are. I’m thinking my I-want-itis is coming smack up against some other part of my ego. I hate when that happens.  When I figure that out, I’ll let you know.

This is the second cabin in the above boat, a Moody 376 that would be perfect if it were on the west coast.

Meanwhile, let the boat touring continue. We’re looking for that one amazing boat, and I know she is out there!