SAILBLOGS

[Marlene Anne Sassaman]

http://www.sailblogs.com/member/sassea/

 

Hm, while being distracted by the myriad of websites flashing before my eyes, I found SAILBLOG. So, I thought, why not have two separate blogs. Sure I can post the same information on both; "redundancy you say?" Permy haps, but my #1 sailing fan tells me I have to get my story told. Besides, recovering from an emotional breakdown last night, I had to take the day off of work.

The breakdown seems to be a direct result of my final house clearing out. Thirty five years of a wonderful partnership have drifted off toward heaven's gates and I will left to decide what to do with the physical remains. Not his body, that has been taken care of with utmost dignity. It's the stuff he left behind, much of which makes no logical sense to me. Books of mathematical equations, pages upon pages of computer jibberish, and a cherished copy of his master's thesis dealing signal processing. Then, there are the pictures of our early sailing days, my personal letters from students, teddy bears galore, and an awful lot of kitchen stuff (tons for someone who doesn't cook).

Anyway, amidst today's ramblings I did accomplish an e-mail to Chris Parker, the infamous weather router. I need to buy an SSB and will employ his service for this first solo sail to Sandy Hook. I am still looking for a buddy boat. Though I am only six weeks short of having to cruise along with Captain Ron, owner and builder of a Corsair F31; not that I would be able to keep up with him, and not that he is the iconic movie captain, but someone I met per chance when he and his crew, Earl, sought shelter at the Port Canaveral Yacht Club this past week-end. Having an accomplished boat builder nearby is certainly an asset. Be that as it may these boys are well on their way, should be near Jacksonville or Georgia by now as they make headway toward their home in Maine.

Well, I need to quit writing, quit researching, and generally quit procrastinating about cleaning out the house. You know I can't take it with me.

           Tally ho for now!

 

 

[John V. G. Mayton]

I recall the difficulty of going through the “will it fit on the boat” exercise back when we moved aboard our O’Day 40 in 1985.  Lots of stuff had sentimental value that was irreplaceable, some of which had emotional content for other family members.  It was both a painful and a liberating process.  Now I am at that place again as I prepare to move aboard and get ready for retirement.  I find that I’m reluctant to start the process in any meaningful way.  Sure I’ve unloaded a few things, such as pictures that I know are going to someone who will cherish them as I had, but not much more than that so far.  I have come to understand the Buddhist concepts of “attachment” as being an adversary of enlightenment (pun intended).  Congratulations on your spiritual progress.