28 April, 2007
I had a lovely birthday, happy to be underway but five minutes into the next day we set sail and quieted our engines. My arms trembled and the elbows rubbered out as we poured all energy into raising the main. My body is very tired and yet awakened to life. As cook, I'm not obligated to help with deck stuff. If I wanted, I could be a galley hermit, turning out food at 0730, 0800, 1130, 1200, 1600,1930, 2000 and midnight and grabbing all interim time to nest in my bunk. To step up on deck though and see the moonlight playing the shadows of the brails on the fores'l or feel the stretching of the boat as she makes love to the water... ah, how could I just turn over and go to bed?
I shakily settle down onto the bench here in the main salon. My head was just nearly bashed in by the block on the starboard runner. The line had parted and snapped under the strain of our aggressive sailing. I turned ans saw it swinging toward me, fell to my knees with my hands over my head and heard it whoosh past me. By this time I was flat on my belly and had full realization that my life would no doubt be richer without an extra hole in my head. If I had not dropped down right then, my head would most certainly have been stove in. When all was finally secure, both Ryan and Joe ripped open some cigarettes and took long drags. How I wished I smoked, if only to give calming finality to a harrowing moment. Well, life goes on and there is dinner to prepare.
... Perhaps it was my near brush with the runner block that caused me to look up and really think about this boat. Pride of Baltimore II is the first wooden vessel I've ever spent much time on and so I'm still awash with how much she stretches and moves. The boat is not rigid; she is built to move in the weathetr. I only begin to understand these things.
Monday, May 7, 2007
The birthday-girl Afloat
27 April, 2007
We are in Virginia, water in every direction and rain saturating our decks and swelling them to plumped up perfection, I've just come down from the helm where Ben gently apologized that there was not better weather for my birthday and that we have to run with the engines instead of purely sailing. 'Silly! I'm just happy to be on a boat!' We then did a merry little dance in the rain and he gave me a tremendous hug from behind in the general spirit of enjoying whatever life dishes out. By no means are we a frou-frou crew but rugged as we all are, there is no fear of affirming touch. Joan is a massage therapist, Sarah is very free with hugs... in fact, everyone is. Ryan picked me up, giving me a very acrobatic foredeck hug. I was both delighted and peeved that I'd be the cause of some awful future backstrain, for as much as they love me, I am no flower. Rewind all that blather though! I was chit-chatting back at the helm with Shllama when a great blue heron heavily flew from the clogging mist. Its wings were enormous and he overtook us to land on our bowsprit. How envious I was to see him stretch his neck all unruffled and settle into that forwardmost place, the bow not evn cutting the water yet, the wind as yet untasted. Our friend the blue heron stayed with us for quite some time and I would venture to say that he blessed our ship by alighting on our bow... yawn... enough of that. By the way, sailing on a wooden vessel is tremendous. She is solid and strong and yet I hear her stretching and settling into her couse. As the boys brought the anchor aboard this morning, she winced and trembled like a child when there is a sliver to be pulled. I've loved my time on Inland Seas and Liberty Clipper, both of them steel vessels, but even so, I start to understand another dimension of value- no, not value... there is a sense of spirit in wood. It came from the earth, gre over time and was chosen, timbered, milled, shaped and formed into this book I sail in... ...Huzzah for us... Jacksonville-bound.
We are in Virginia, water in every direction and rain saturating our decks and swelling them to plumped up perfection, I've just come down from the helm where Ben gently apologized that there was not better weather for my birthday and that we have to run with the engines instead of purely sailing. 'Silly! I'm just happy to be on a boat!' We then did a merry little dance in the rain and he gave me a tremendous hug from behind in the general spirit of enjoying whatever life dishes out. By no means are we a frou-frou crew but rugged as we all are, there is no fear of affirming touch. Joan is a massage therapist, Sarah is very free with hugs... in fact, everyone is. Ryan picked me up, giving me a very acrobatic foredeck hug. I was both delighted and peeved that I'd be the cause of some awful future backstrain, for as much as they love me, I am no flower. Rewind all that blather though! I was chit-chatting back at the helm with Shllama when a great blue heron heavily flew from the clogging mist. Its wings were enormous and he overtook us to land on our bowsprit. How envious I was to see him stretch his neck all unruffled and settle into that forwardmost place, the bow not evn cutting the water yet, the wind as yet untasted. Our friend the blue heron stayed with us for quite some time and I would venture to say that he blessed our ship by alighting on our bow... yawn... enough of that. By the way, sailing on a wooden vessel is tremendous. She is solid and strong and yet I hear her stretching and settling into her couse. As the boys brought the anchor aboard this morning, she winced and trembled like a child when there is a sliver to be pulled. I've loved my time on Inland Seas and Liberty Clipper, both of them steel vessels, but even so, I start to understand another dimension of value- no, not value... there is a sense of spirit in wood. It came from the earth, gre over time and was chosen, timbered, milled, shaped and formed into this book I sail in... ...Huzzah for us... Jacksonville-bound.
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