Tag Archives: Preparing to cruise

It’s All Part of the Process

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Mike and I need to stop perseverating and just calm ourselves down. Maybe a few Quaaludes would help, or large quantities of alcohol. I have some sleeping pills, but they give me a massive headache. That won’t work. But basically if we don’t find some kind of mind numbing drug substitute, we’re going to be spending the next week talking each other off the ledge continuously. Our sea trial and survey is a week from Wednesday.

Her pretty stern.

Her pretty stern. Is she going to look less like the incredible hulk when we get this cover off of her?

I wish when we made the offer on Flying Gull we hadn’t needed to be in such a hurry. I mean, we haven’t even seen this boat without the huge canvas cover on her.  I just hate the feeling of being rushed in these big life decisions, and yet we felt compelled to not let this boat fall from our grasp without trying. The fact that it turned out to not be quite the crisis we thought it was only rubs salt in that wound. On the other hand, maybe we needed a little shot in the behind to get moving. I mean there is no way that we would be getting to have a sea trial on Flying Gull, or even see her without her clothes on, without having made an offer of a long term commitment. It feels a little like an unsettled engagement. So you see how we roll lately.

I guess we are doing the thing that all people do when struck by lightning; things like making sure all of our faculties are still intact. But we’re also overloading with information about this boat and boats like this boat. Our brains feel like they are literally on fire. We look at other boats on Yachtworld, looking for what we could get if this one falls through. Some of them look pretty good, but none have the charm of Flying Gull.

The wheel in the cockpit. I wonder if we could put engine controls back here somehow.

The wheel in the cockpit. I wonder if we could put engine controls back here somehow.

We’ve talked yet again to Peter Kaiser, who owns S/V Awab, the sister ship to this one. We’ve asked him so many questions about how he handles his boat and what kinds of situations give him pause. He is a wealth of information and very kind to talk to us for so long. He bought Awab when he was a complete novice in terms of large boats, so that gives us a little hope. He is clear that this is a big, heavy boat and that this causes problems in certain situations. He is clear that this is not a boat that is easy to take out sailing for 3 hours in the evening. We will not be in and out of the slip in less than 15 minutes like we are with Moonrise.  He is clear that to really appreciate this kind of boat, you need to live on it. But he is also clear that he loves his boat better than any other boat he’s ever seen and that all of these things are worth it.

One thing Peter told us was that he had some pretty squirrely adventures with Awab until he sprung for an $11,000 bowthruster. And this solved all the problems he was having with handling! Wow. I’m afraid I almost hit one of those ledges I’ve been talking about. The fear began talking to me again. It goes something like this: ‘This boat is too big. We weren’t really looking for a boat this big. No one can dock this thing alone. The engine controls are only in the wheelhouse, not in the cockpit. You can’t get out of the wheelhouse very fast. But we really love this boat, damn this boat is beautiful. ‘  You can see why we are all over the bipolar spectrum.

S/V Awab, built 18 years later than Flying Gull, for the same owner, using the same plans. The owner wanted this boat slightly longer and beamier. She also carries 3 sails to Flying Gull's 4.

S/V Awab, built 18 years later than Flying Gull, for the same owner, using the same plans. The owner wanted this boat slightly longer and beamier. She also carries 3 sails to Flying Gull’s 4. Photo courtesy of Awab.net.

We figure that the test sail is going to be the make it or break it moment for our relationship with this boat. It’s a huge gamble for us, and also for the owner who flew up to handle this sale, not to mention the broker wanting to close the deal. So not being able to be sure until the test sail is tantamount to not being sure you won’t jilt the groom at the alter. And yet, that’s better than a bad divorce two years later. No pressure, though, right? So we heave a lot of big sighs, talk each other off the ledge, find something to distract ourselves, and take solace in the fact that we have hired one of the very best surveyors. In the quiet moments, we both already feel connected to the boat. Logic and the heart move closer together. But the test sail looms. If it’s a stormy day, you can blame us because we pray for wind.

Enough already about boats. Tonight there will be DVD’s to watch! Just say ‘yes!’ to comedy when drugs are not available. By the end of this month, we will have a new boat. Or we won’t. I  guarantee that one of those two things will happen. I guess it’s all part of the process.

Click on the monkey’s fist to read others bloggers on this topic.

The Monkey's Fist

If It’s Spring, It Must Be Boating Season

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If it’s sunny and warm, then boating season must surely be upon us. What was that you said? It’s only the first week in April? Then we must be existing in some kind time/space/dimension vortex because not only were we out on a sailboat all day on Saturday, in beautiful, SUNNY 69 degree weather with light wind, but we’ve been doing boat-type activities of other kinds. Break out the sunscreen!

Beautiful Easter Sunday in Seattle.

Beautiful Easter Sunday in Seattle.

Surely summer is upon us. Experienced PNWers might be laughing into their Starbucks cups, but, hey, we are due some decent warm weather. The last two years spring has been late, cold, and nasty and summer has been almost non-existent. I keep track of these things.  We NEED this! This weekend we were about 10F degrees above the average temperature for this time of year. Keep it coming, weather gods.

Oh yes, many things are happening around the Cunning Plan household;  many boaty things. The only boaty thing that is NOT happening is that we still haven’t sold Moonrise. This is becoming almost comical as we wait for that ‘perfect’ buyer. Still, boat selling season is picking up so we keep our fingers crossed. We put in notice at our marina, (that was hard) and if she is still ours at the end of this month, we move her down to Olympia to sit in front of the broker’s office where they get a lot of traffic of boat buyers who, apparently, buy on impulse (?!). Who knew? The price is already a winner, so we don’t know what else we can do. She’s probably the cleanest boat of her kind available right now. And we really have to sell her before we can do much else.

Moonrise on her way to Barkley Sound. This boat will take you anywhere in the Pacific Northwest.

Moonrise on her way to Barkley Sound. This boat will take you anywhere in the Pacific Northwest.

But that hasn’t stopped us from thinking about our next move, including the possibilities of that beautiful Sparkman and Stephens sailboat, Flying Gull. We continue to think about that boat, have done some research on financing and on the marina she sits in, and have taken a peek into the future to see what it might be like to live aboard her some day. On Easter Sunday, a day when many people celebrate the renewal of life, Mike and I drove to Seattle and stopped by the marina to visit Flying Gull, hoping her cover had been removed. The symbolism of the day was not lost upon me, I can tell you.

There she is with her full cover. Have mercy, she's big! She probably sweeps through the water like an opera diva on steroids!

There she is with her full cover. Have mercy, she’s big! She probably sweeps through the water like an opera diva on steroids, her song a rich contralto. This picture does not do justice to her considerable size.

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Colorful houseboat on the pier adjacent to Flying Gull. How cute is this?

Our current ownership of Moonrise holds us back, and that might be a good thing because it’s best to be cautious when choosing a boat, especially one that is clearly outside almost all of our criteria. Sometimes that’s what those parameters are good for: drawing lines in the sand that will surely be crossed. I don’t like rules, and I tend to break them with impunity. So we are looking at her again on Saturday. I almost wish that someone else would buy her because it would put me out of my misery. And probably Mike’s, too. Put ME out of Mike’s misery, that is. To buy this sailboat is to have already made the decision to sell the house, and this is harder than it sounds on paper.

The view of Gasworks Park, across Lake Union from Flying Gull.

The view of Gasworks Park, across Lake Union from Flying Gull.

Meanwhile we get other kinds of boating experiences. Saturday we delivered a Hunter 31 down to Olympia. It was our first experience delivering a boat and we loved it. Do you see how the Universe is opening up in front of us? I will go on record here saying I was right proud of myself getting that boat out of her slip in Tacoma, with wicked tidal currents pushing her nose in all the wrong directions, without becoming overly friendly with any other boat, or any dock. Excellent. Sighs of relief all around.  Then I did the docking down in Olympia in a tight space at the very head of the pier, starboard side tie. Woot! If I had known how to turn off the engine, it would have been pretty impressive. Oy, the fool archetype always makes its presence known in times like these (link provided for educational purposes, you know). It’s always been clear a Captain’s License is in Mike’s future, but for the first time I began thinking maybe it’s in mine, too. What a concept. 20130330_46

Finally, our boat reviews are getting more traction. I am very excited to report that we will be writing boat reviews for Three Sheets Northwest, a comprehensive blog about all things boating in the Pacific Northwest. They’ve been on our blog roll for some time because if there is news about boating up here, they are going to be reporting about it. They also have a compendium of boat related blogs that they feature, Little Cunning Plan now among them. If you go to their front page you’ll see Mike’s recent post on Winchers featured. It makes me want to dance, so please close your eyes.

You will never get a photo of me dancing, so here is one of my man doing one of the things he does best on Moonrise.

You will never get a photo of me dancing, so here is one of my man doing one of the things he does best on Moonrise.

 

I

Days of Sloth

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It’s the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day, a time when people reflect on their lives and what they’ve accomplished over the year, setting goals for the future. The dark days of winter are, I’m sure, created in order for us to have time to be introspective, thoughtful, mindful of how we live our lives. And I intend to do just that. After I’m finished resting and relaxing.

Hermione knows what I’m talking about. What a face!

Yes, indeed, I have hit the days of Sloth full force with my resting ways. Today I have accomplished the following: a shower, throwing wrapping paper from Christmas into the recycle bin. That is all, really. And I am completely satisfied with my level of usefulness in the world. My needs this week, in terms of being at all useful to others, are small.  And in this slow-moving, deliberate living I have embraced of late, I have, indeed, had some time to think, even if I haven’t given it much notice.

The ultra cool Space Needle in Seattle. I stuck this in here because it’s a groovy photo I took this season. Some day I will buy myself a really awesome camera and learn how to use it.

I’ve been thinking about how this time last year I was on a rampage getting rid of stuff. It’s as though I somehow thought that our cutting of the dock lines was just around the corner of our lives and that I had to hurry up and simplify. Oh, brother.  In so doing, I have complicated things terribly. Whatever you do, don’t believe everything you read about how ‘freeing’ it is to get rid of all your stuff because sometimes that is just a damn lie. And this lie comes home to roost on Christmas day when you have 9 people over for dinner and own only 3 dining room chairs because you gave the other chairs away since they were cluttering up the place. And then you have the neighbors over for dinner and apologize about the lack of chairs, commenting that you don’t know what happened to them and they respond with, “You gave them to our son last year because you didn’t need them anymore. Do you need them back? You don’t have anyplace for people to sit when you entertain.” Right. Like I’m going to take back chairs I gave to someone just starting out in life who can barely make a living much less buy new chairs. How embarrassing.

Oh sure, throwing everything out would be freeing if I didn’t ever need things again, or if I was moving onto a boat, say, tomorrow. But since neither of those things is true, I better slow down or we won’t have anyplace to sit in our own home.

What we have here is a collection of very tiny ornaments. I will NOT be getting rid of my collection of tiny Christmas ornaments. They will go with us on whatever boat we have. They take up almost no room. Without Christmas, there would be no Days of Sloth. And I must have them.

Oh, we’ve de-cluttered the place nicely this year. We’ve made so many trips to Goodwill that they know us by name. But the dirty truth is this: getting rid too much stuff well in advance of making a move to a small place, or a boat, is useless. Why? Because nature abhors a vacuum, that’s why. We live in a 3000 square foot house, more or less. Already with both kids gone most of the time, we feel as though we are knocking around in a huge empty space. Getting rid of things that take up that empty space just creates more empty space, and, naturally, it somehow gets filled with more stuff.  It just feels weird to have big blank areas where furniture needs to be. I took the advice of all the self-help gurus and got rid of all the stuff I didn’t use or have on display. That leaves exactly 3000 square feet of stuff that I DO use and IS on display. The house is too big for just us, but we’re in a transitional phase just now and we’re not getting rid of it anytime soon.

And speaking of that, I’ve been pretty attached to my house lately. Maybe it’s just that it’s winter, and cold and wet but I’ve come to realize that my dreams of being on a boat really do generally include warm weather and sunshine. Not that I don’t want to sail in colder climates. I do, but I don’t intend to be miserable all the time while doing it. So this time of year when I miss the boat and think ‘let’s go sailing’, I look outside, realize that what’s in my head doesn’t match the reality outside,  and then become thankful that I’m warm and dry. Call me middle-aged. Call me a sailing wimp. Whatever. I prefer to think of it as ‘blooming where I’m planted’.

Here’s a photo from the butterfly house at the Pacific Science Center, for those who need a break from the narration. I like how this butterfly totally brings together the colors of the plants. This is how gardeners think in the winter time.

Mike has been more productive today, but then, he has a more finely developed sense of guilt than I have. After all, he did grow up in the south. He and Andrew replaced the brake shoes on two cars today, so he feels like he deserves to be laying on the couch reading one of his many new books he received from Santa this Christmas…books on sailing. Mike received 4 riveting books that are sailing oriented, and we’ll post about them later. For now, suffice to say that while Mike received books on sailing adventures, and Andrew received new sailing boots and a new anchor roller for Danger Kitten, I received kitchen utensils and a gift certificate to the spa. I’m beginning to sense a trend. Now, to be fair, I have been ‘into’ cooking lately, as is evidenced by the luscious Beef Bourguignon I served for Christmas dinner. Still, I believe my point is well taken. I will be reading his books so I dearly hope he is in a sharing kind of mood.

He must be really enjoying this book because I’ve heard a lot of snorting and guffawing, and comments like ‘this guy either has balls or he’s an idiot’. And also things like, “I know what’s going to happen next because we’ve done this. Oh, Lord, at least we know he lived to tell of it.” I can’t wait to read this book.

And so during these days of sloth when I’ve given myself the gift of not giving a damn what I get done, Mike lies on one couch, I type on another couch… you can see where I’m going with this: we simply must buy a boat with two generously built settees. Otherwise, there is no other way this whole plan will actually work.