I heard a hi pitched peeping and there it was, this poor little lost duckling. I searched the marina for its mother so I could reunite them but she was nowhere to be found. I worried about this lonely little duckling but there was nothing I could do.
Spring has finally sprung and the work continues, I could feel overwhelmed but I don’t. I will do what I can, my budget is slowly building but I have to be careful. I only have so much to work with, the budget is split between boat gear, food, and a small savings so I have a month of breathing room when the cruising season ends.
I’ve been using this wonderful vegan cookbook to attempt to make a list of base stores that will last for three months. I’m not a vegan but with my small budget there wont be any meat on the table unless I catch it. Sweet potatoes, onions, and potatoes will be my base food and I hope to work the summer here and there as a migrant farmer on the islands exchanging labor for fresh island grown produce.
I still have no water tank, stove, or engine but I’m not worried. I have a camp stove that is safe at anchor, I will carry 30 gallons in small portable water tanks and the whole engine is up in the air. I found a nice little hard dingy for $300 bucks but my 25 year old inflatable dingy/liferaft might have to do it for now. Because I work on commission only I have no idea what lies ahead in way of budget but again I’m not even thinking about it.
Once again I am revisiting cheap Chinese shit. I broke my new replacement cleat the replaced the broken cleat that proceeded it. Today I will buy two more, one to replace the previous two and one to use as a mold to cast all new ones in either stainless or aluminum.
Life is good on the good ship The`
Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
I RECEIVED THE FUNNIEST COMMENT A WHILE BACK FROM MY FRIEND BEN, http://bccelizabeth.com/ , IT WAS ALL IN CAPITALS AND IT READ YEAH I’M SCREAMING. YEP YOU GUESSED IT, TODAY I’M SCREAMING
EVERYBODY NEEDS MONEY, THAT’S WHY THEY CALL IT MONEY.
MY TEN DAY WORKING VACATION CAME TO AN END LAST NIGHT I WAS SITTING IN THE BOAT WHEN I GOT A TEXT, “MEET ME IN THE PARKING LOT” I WALKED UP TO THE GATE AND THERE WAS A MERCEDES WITH TINTED WINDOWS. I STARED AT IT AND THE WINDOW ROLLED DOWN, A PLATE WITH A GIANT HUNK OF TIRAMISO WAS HANDED TO ME WITH A SMILE AND THE CAR SPED OFF. I SPENT A BEAUTIFUL RAINY EVENING ENJOYING MY TREAT WITH A GLASS OF 2 BUCK CHUCK. I ENTERTAINED DIFFERENT GUESTS FOR TEN DAYS STRAIGHT ON 50 BUCKS. SUNDAY WAS WAS FIRST DAY IN OVER TWO YEARS THAT I HAVE HAD THREE SQUARE MEALS IN A DAY AND IT WAS AWESOME.
WHEN YOU DON’T CREATE THINGS YOU BECOME DEFINED BY YOUR TASTES RATHER THAN ABILITY. YOUR TASTES ONLY NARROW AND EXCLUDE PEOPLE, SO CREATE.
I’M CONSTANTLY AMAZED AT HOW MUCH LIFE CAN CHANGE FROM YEAR TO YEAR, 14 MONTHS AGO I SIGNED A PIECE OF PAPER AND MY LIFE BECAME AN EMPTY VOID. SINCE THEN I HAVE COMPLETELY RECREATED MY EXISTENCE. I HAVE MY REDUCED MY LIFE TO SIMPLE NEEDS, SURE I COULD FILL A BOOK OF THINGS I WANT BUT WHEN IT REALLY COMES DOWN TO IT I HAVE EVERYTHING I NEED, I AM AS FREE AS A BIRD AND THE WORLD IS MY OYSTER. THE BOTTOM LINE IS, IF I CANT AFFORD TO PAY CASH, I CANT AFFORD IT PERIOD.
~If you want to feel rich, just count the things you have that money can’t buy. Proverb
All of the problems we’re facing with debt are man made problems. We created them. It’s called fantasy economics. Fantasy economics only works in a fantasy world. It doesn’t work in reality.
~Michele Bachman
TAKE A GOOD LOOK AT YOUR LIFE. HOW MUCH OF IT HAVE YOU WASTED AS A SLAVE TO THE DOLLAR TO SURROUND YOURSELF WITH CHEAP WORTHLESS SHIT. LIFE IS ABOUT SHARING, CARING, TEACHING AND LEARNING. IF YOU CANT BE HAPPY WITH NOTHING YOU MOST CERTAINLY CANT BE HAPPY WITH EVERYTHING.
WHEN LIFE GOT SHITTY I COULD HAVE CANCELLED THIS BLOG BUT I DIDN’T. I LEFT IT UP AND LET YOU WATCH ME GO DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE. I DID THIS BECAUSE I KNEW I WOULD EVENTUALLY CLIMB BACK UP AND PROVE THAT THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING IN THS WORLD THAT CANT BE ATTAINED IF YOU WANT IT BADLY ENOUGH. MY SECRET??? PATIENCE, HARD WORK, AND DETERMINATION. PAY AS YOU GO AND YOU WILL ALWAYS BE FREE.
A man in debt is so far a slave. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson
I was recently told that I am full of shit and cant possibly have done all the things that I have, It was one of the greatest complements I have ever received. I Don’t know why I do the things I do, I don’t seek adventure, I simply want to live well.
A letter from Chris McCandles
I’d like to repeat the advice I gave you before, in that I think you really should make a radical change in your lifestyle and begin to boldly do things which you may previously never have thought of doing, or been too hesitant to attempt. So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future.
The very basic core of a man’s living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun. If you want to get more out of life, Ron, you must lose your inclination for monotonous security and adopt a helter-skelter style of life that will at first appear to you to be crazy. But once you become accustomed to such a life you will see its full meaning and its incredible beauty. And so, Ron, in short, get out of Salton City and hit the Road.
When people ask me what it is that I love so much about the voyaging lifestyle, I always respond, “its the people you meet”.
Every person I know in Bellingham I either met on the water, in the boatyard, or through sailor friends. This week has been absolutely amazing. I decided to take the whole week off from boat work and just play. Wednesday my good friend Manuka, kidnapped me for steamers and black beer. Thursday Liz and Melissa showed up for wine, tonight Rae is coming over for dinner and the balance of the weekend will be spent backpacking and dancing naked in the woods around a huge fire.
Bellingham has the most amazing weather patterns, One day its stormy, the next its dead calm and the sun is shining. I don’t know how I can possibly finish all my projects by July but for now I’m not even thinking about them.
A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world. ~Oscar Wilde
Thou wilt find rest from vain fancies if thou doest every act in life as though it were thy last. ~Aristotle
I learned more about cinematography in the first 6 months of my 5 years in Hollywood than I did in 3 years of art school.
My little project is coming along well, I have officially started my search for a full time camera person from July 1st to October 1st. no experience necessary.
We realized that the important thing was not the film itself but that which the film provoked.
And in my dreams she spoke to me. I could feel the warm sun on my back, the smell of Hibiscus permeated the air, soft sugar white sand between my toes. Yesterday I fell into the deepest most peaceful sleep I have ever known. I walked out of the office finding a cool sanctuary from the warm spring sun in The’s cabin and drifted off.
I have so many wonderful dreams, dreams that will flourish, others will fade, and some that will simply change with each and every day. Last night I fell asleep in a square bed with clean sheets and a big fluffy pillow. I woke to a flush toilet and a hot shower followed by black coffee and farm fresh eggs. I still have dirt under my nails from planting a garden and am craving the salad I had last night, made with fresh radish and beet greens.
I have no shortage of wants and needs. Someday I will restore and sail a Bristol Channel Cutter, I will clear my land and build a small cabin with my own two hands, I will sail the world, I will …
When I set foot on the’ this morning I knew I was home. Sure I miss the luxuries I have gone without for so long but small and simple as she is, she, The’ is my reality. I don’t have to dream about her, she is real. I remember how small she was when I first moved aboard, I hit my head on something ten times a day. Those days have long gone but every now and then I hear a bonk and soft little ouch from Rae. I chuckle under my breath but I do feel her pain. The` is testing her as she tested me. With each day Rae gets a bit more comfortable and is starting to feel how wonderful little the` is. I could easily sell her and put 50% down on the “perfect” boat but then I would be trapped. More and more I appreciate that the` is the perfect boat because like me she is free. My life has fallen into a poetic journey with no destination, no time frames, no pressure, nothing but simple living.
This last week has been impossibly perfect, It all started Monday night when I met this little girl. I have fallen into a time vacuume, days Feel like hours, hours feel like minutes, minutes feel like seconds, wait I’m getting ahead of myself.
One Latte, two bottles of exquisite wine and a giant donut, what more could a person ask for.
Sunday evening one week ago I fell asleep to the prospect that I had 6 days until the marina confiscated my boat due to past due moorage. I awoke Monday and a long past due loan was paid to me in full saving my boat.
Monday brought beautiful warm sun and a little girl stumbled into my life.
Tuesday I put a boat into contract.
Wednesday I put another boat into contract.
Thursday I wrote an offer that is still being negotiated but will go in I hope. I was also kidnapped by good friends and stuffed with steak potatoes, fresh greens, scotch and beer.
Friday my brother came to visit and stuffed me with Steak potatoes, whiskey beer and award winning wine. http://www.jscottcellars.com/
Saturday was spent lounging around in the sun doing nothing and generally just enjoying life, this was the first time this year I have just wasted time and enjoyed life and it was good. When My brother left I was a case of amazing wine richer and as I started to straighten up the boat I started to find money everywhere. Jon had stashed cash in every place I could imagine and I’m still finding more, today I found some stuffed behind a picture, in my hat, in my boot, and under my water jug.
I have always found it easy to give but accepting from others has been very difficult. I guess I have finally been broken because I accepted this windfall with much gratitude.
Sunday I was up early and after 7 hours of hard work The` was gleaming and I’m almost ready to start off where I ended in October. I crawled into the cool boat to hide from the sun and have a beer when Rae showed up with her puppers Echo and kidnapped me for Ice Cream and a long stroll down a shaded wooded path. The day ended perfectly with wet stinky dogs in the cabin and Rae and I laying in the v-birth wrapped up like a pretzel staring through the giant hatch at the sky, our soft tired giggles echoing across the calm water of the marina.
If I had only one day left to live in this beautiful world I would want it to be just like Sunday, I truly am the most fortunate person alive.
A successful relationship requires falling in love many times, always with the same person.
Today I am going to put up a real time blog, I rarely spend more than 5-10 minutes writing but it is often done in stages throughout the day between clients or other little projects. Today I will update each section as I write it so you can see the progression of my ADD influenced writing style.
Spring is in the air and I have survived another brutally lonely and depressing winter. Holed up in the boat I had time to think, time to feel and time to discover. I have been pushing so hard and for so long to make this journey happen that I’m completely burned out. There has been so much going on in my life and with only so many hours in the day, none was left for Alan time. Last week I read Who Moved My Cheese and something clicked in my tired brain. I took my good friend ken’s advice and became a cloud, now I am just hovering. I have walked away from everything, cleared my head and my heart and am just flowing with the ebb and flow of the tide. Last Friday I received a piece of certified mail from the marina, pay $992.00 within 10 days or we seize your boat. Well I have made exactly $1500 year to date and had about $8.00 to my name when received the letter. I read the letter, folded it up and went back to hoover mode. Nothing matters and nothing can bring any negative thoughts or patterns into my life. A small miracle happened over the weekend and I my boat is safe for now.
For over half my life surfing was my life’s blood. I searched the world for the perfect break, but having found it I didn’t just paddle out. I would kneel on the beach and study the lineup, when I felt ready I would paddle out and sit waiting for the perfect wave. I have let thousands roll by but when the perfect one came along I would paddle with all my might and ride the wave as long as I possible could. I treat love the same way, there are millions of fish in the ocean but only one for me, when I found her I dove right in paddled with all my might and caught her, it’s gonna be a good ride.
“I’m selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can’t handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don’t deserve me at my best.” ~Marilyn Monroe
I was in the boat the other night when I heard Chloe going nuts outside the boat, she usually reserves her spastic cry’s and whimpers for a select few. I walked out and there she was, draped in beautiful long red curls, the most beautiful woman I had ever laid eyes on, crouched down and playing with Chloe. She stood up and gave me a giant hug. This meeting was pure serendipity, I invited her into my cockpit and stared into her beautiful grey eyes. We chatted and laughed as if we had known each other our entire life’s. The more we talked the more we had in common, I felt a chill in my spine and we both went silent for a moment, through random conversation it turned out that my father was her fathers college professor over thirty years ago.
When she pulled out this bottle of whiskey I smiled, then she asked If I smoked. We toasted and shared a smoke and laughed the night away. Together we share more in common than any I have known but also are clearly on different paths. Every trial has a river to cross just as every river flows to the sea, evaporates and is returned to the mountains from which it came. They say that people come into our life’s for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. This beautiful evening may have been just that, one beautiful moment stopped in time. I’m living in the moment, open to everything but expecting nothing, I’m an cloud, I’m just hoovering.
The moment I gave up everything was the moment life opened to me. If you see me walking through the marina you might notice something is a little different about me, my step is a little lighter, my smile is a little brighter. Last night I crawled into my bed covered in girly pheromones and sang myself to sleep.
“Only once in your life, I truly believe, you find someone who can completely turn your world around. You tell them things that you’ve never shared with another soul and they absorb everything you say and actually want to hear more. You share hopes for the future, dreams that will never come true, goals that were never achieved and the many disappointments life has thrown at you. When something wonderful happens, you can’t wait to tell them about it, knowing they will share in your excitement. They are not embarrassed to cry with you when you are hurting or laugh with you when you make a fool of yourself. Never do they hurt your feelings or make you feel like you are not good enough, but rather they build you up and show you the things about yourself that make you special and even beautiful. There is never any pressure, jealousy or competition but only a quiet calmness when they are around. You can be yourself and not worry about what they will think of you because they love you for who you are. The things that seem insignificant to most people such as a note, song or walk become invaluable treasures kept safe in your heart to cherish forever. Memories of your childhood come back and are so clear and vivid it’s like being young again. Colours seem brighter and more brilliant. Laughter seems part of daily life where before it was infrequent or didn’t exist at all. A phone call or two during the day helps to get you through a long day’s work and always brings a smile to your face. In their presence, there’s no need for continuous conversation, but you find you’re quite content in just having them nearby. Things that never interested you before become fascinating because you know they are important to this person who is so special to you. You think of this person on every occasion and in everything you do. Simple things bring them to mind like a pale blue sky, gentle wind or even a storm cloud on the horizon. You open your heart knowing that there’s a chance it may be broken one day and in opening your heart, you experience a love and joy that you never dreamed possible. You find that being vulnerable is the only way to allow your heart to feel true pleasure that’s so real it scares you. You find strength in knowing you have a true friend and possibly a soul mate who will remain loyal to the end. Life seems completely different, exciting and worthwhile. Your only hope and security is in knowing that they are a part of your life.” ~ Bob Marley
One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, “My son, the battle is between two “wolves” inside us all..
One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.
The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence,empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.”
The grand son thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf wins?”
The old Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed.”
