Some thoughts on turning 60.

Was thinking about my upcoming 60th birthday and trying to decide how I wanted to celebrate it. No great adventures came to mind, especially ones involving cords, like in bungee cords or rip cords. No jumping out of airplanes or off bridges. That is not how I want to mark this entering of another decade. So I started to think of the things that I really enjoy at this time of my life and I came to the conclusion that they are those things that were once called “small indulgences”. Faith Popcorn coined this phrase in the 80’s while studying upcoming trends. My recent “small indulgences” are rather simple. I enjoy having a cup of coffee in a mug rather than a paper cup and time to enjoy it. That means that I am not in motion like driving in the car. I savor spotting a great blue heron as they wait very patiently to acquire their dinner with the receding tide. I pause to take in the reflections of the boats in the water when the waters are smooth as glass. Zoie, our Cocker Spaniel, gives a great back massage as she jumps into bed with me and snuggles up against my back.
During my job as a Speech Therapist with special needs children in Florida I worked with many older women who lovingly cared and helped these children with their basic needs. When asked how they were they often responded with “I am blessed.“ I love that simple expression. I am truly blessed to be a Grandma. Rocking little Thomas to sleep in my arms, or telling a story to Sienna and watching the rapt expression on her face and getting a knee hug from Nolan as he runs up to me to say “hi Gammy” are precious blessed moments. I enjoy sharing in my grown children’s lives as they enter new stages of life. I can not help but be so proud of each of my children for the good people they have grown up to me. I relish that after 35 years of marriage Jim and still enjoy each other’s company and discuss new adventures that we will share. Thanks to all my friends, sometimes keeping in touch with a simple email, enriching my life with their friendships!
I have also discovered that I love seeking out new experiences at this stage of my life. Not those experiences that provide white knuckle moments but rather those experiences that at just new. Childhood provided those moments of shear pleasure. Riding a bike without training wheels, catching a fish, learning to sing a new song are just a few I can think of. I am forever on the lookout for those new moments of discovery and amazed at how many of those moments still enrich my life.
So on May 5th, I plan on enjoying a cup of coffee while watching the world outside our boat. Visit my grandchildren after work and give my children a call just to say Hi! and see what’s new with them. Jim and I will take Zoie for a walk on the docks. Oh, and I will enjoy another one of my favorite “small indulgences” the cupcake. It will be quite a feat to stick 60 candles in it! And next week I get to celebrate Mother’s Day!!

First Docking on April 22, 2011

I am an avid reader. The last year and a half or so I have been reading mostly nautically themed books.
I am currently reading Seaworthy: Adrift with William Willis in the Golden Age of Rafting by T.R Pearson. It is a fascinating read about his adventures crossing the Pacific on rafts of his own design. Even more fascinating is that he was in his 60’s when he made his first trip. I can relate, that is to being that age but I assure all family and friends that I will not be inspired to seek a similar adventure. While reading one evening I came across this line, “He suspected that a Pacific crossing would serve as a similar test of his mettle.” Mettle caught my attention. I could not recall seeing that term before. Well, mettle is defined as spirited determination. Synonyms being courage, bravery, guts, grit, nerve, pluck, resolve, valor, vigor and cojones. Cojones sounds like more of a breakfast food but I like those terms. These terms describe members of SSAPS. Boating enthusiasts test their mettle everytime they venture out. I had my first docking experience a couple of weeks ago and believe me I drew on my guts, grit, pluck, resolve, etc. and then relished the success!!! My dock steps were in danger for a time but it ended up that I was able to push them back into place, I had pulled them half over the water, as I brought the boat in. Well, it wasn’t planned that I was going to be able to reposition them but it worked out.

A great trip!

I wrote the following to my son while on my return trip from Alaska 2010. Decided to make it part of my blog. The other day a friend said to me "I would love to go to Alaska but I do not want to do a cruise ship." Here's one way to see Glacier Bay.

Hi Jason,
Sitting here anchored off in a little cove, Reid’s Inlet within Glacier Bay National Park, I was reading the travel books and looking at the paper charts (the boater’s best friend) and thinking about you and how you would love seeing this area. So then I started to think as I read what would be the ideal trip to make and how you would do it.
Alaska Air flies into Gustavus, a small, rural, community serving as the gateway to Glacier Bay National Park. A visit could then include many choices of activities, among them a day cruise up the Glacier Bay from Bartlett Cove, a half-day of fishing and/or whale watching ( I would do the fishing and probably see the whales too while out fishing), kayaking, and hiking just to name a few. And through in wild berry picking to have with your morning cereal as you hike along the trails. You can camp or stay in the Glacier Bay Lodge or other Inn or Lodge options in Gustavus.
It would truly be a jam packed vacation to a destination unmatched in scenery and wildlife.

Seattle Boat Show 2010

The long anticipated Boat Show of 2011 has come to an end. It will be a long wait til the next Show but I have my Boat Show
tchotches for memories. I line up my collection of key chains, my favorite being the ones that open. I have yet to decide on just the right objects
to put in them but I have them available when it comes to me. I have long since run out of keys that need one so I am thinking of new uses. I am wondering
if I connect them all together and put them around the dog if it would be an effective float should she fall in.
Ah, what an assortment of reusable bags I have amassed. Allocating them to their specific tasks takes the better part of the morning. My favorite is the red medium sized one. A pride of living green overcomes me as I take them with me to Freddy Meyers (we like the nickname, feeling a personal attachment to the store).
If you should find yourself without a pen at any of the meetings please seek me out. I have a wonderful collection of imprinted pens, most with a nautical theme. Pens seem to be the most selected object for free distribution. I will have to remember that if I am looking for a company's phone number to check my pens.
The ultimate giveaway for me is the chapstick. As I collected the new ones I was able to dispose of the older ones acquired at The Boat Show I attended this past summer.
I wonder how many hershey kisses I have eaten in the course of the week?? Maybe next year I will keep a tally.
My humor aside, The Boat Show has afforded me a great time to connect to more people interested in boating in all manner of involvement. I learned so much from other knowledgable members during my volunteer time at the Power Squadron booth. I have some ideas of what I would like to accomplish as the Executive Officer with The SSAPS. I look forward to sharing them and getting everyone's valuable input.

Flybridge enclosure January 2011

January 24th 2011 Boat Show Presentation

Presentation for NWWB Women's Panel at The Boat Show on January 24, 2011

Introduction:
You and your husband transferred to Seattle in July 2007, wanting to be close to your grandchildren. You wanted to live close to the water and had an epiphany, "why not ON the water?" Never having been boaters, you bought a 1989 Transworld 40' aft cabin twin diesel power boat and moved aboard last September.
Question:
As someone newly retired and new to boating, tell us some ways you and your husband’s sudden decision to live aboard has affected your life?

Response:
July 2007 we transferred to Seattle. Buying a house in West Seattle, I knew I wanted to look out at the water every day. I thought that would be enough. We soon thought about living on the water. One day a friend invited me to go to Bainbridge to see her son's boat that he was living aboard. Having dinner, overlooking the beautiful marina, he proceeded to tell me about life aboard a boat. I was hooked!! Went home, said to husband, "What do you think about living on a boat?" One problem, we knew almost nothing about boats. Oh, my husband's family had a 21 foot Century Raven that they enjoyed on Long Island Sound and the Connecticutt River when he was young and I loved water skiing on the 3 rivers of Pittsburgh, my hometown, but that was about all. We set out to learn about boats. We read and read, book after boating book. I built up muscles reading Chapman's book in bed. We looked at boats. We climbed over, under, around boats everywhere. Analyzed endlessly. Talked about boats to everyone. Joined Seattle Sail and Power Squadron and took incredibly interesting classes. Then we found her. We liked the aft cabin and the covered aft deck and the ease of walking up steps, not using a ladder! "Priority" a 40' aft cabin, twin 210 hp Cummins diesel engines, power boat. We fell in love. Now for the survey and sea trial.

October 2009 What a day!! A day of firsts, anticipation of surprises both good and bad and the decision whether to proceed with the purchase looming! It was a typical October day in Seattle. It was raining! Taking the boat out from Lake Union to Lake Washington presented some great scenery and our first experience being behind the wheel! After a thorough inspection of the boat by the Surveyor, with a tap, tap, tap down the hull he proclaimed her "A good boat!"We were relieved, if we had found any serious problems it would have been hard to let her go!

November 2009 After finalizing the paperwork and financial end of the transaction my husband and the Broker brought her through the locks and into Shilshole Bay Marina. I watched from shore, wanting to see Priority in the water. We proceeded to learn all her systems and make some repairs we knew were needed. Through the winter we hauled all the past owners stuff off the boat, thankful for large dumpsters. And you hear there is not much storage on a boat!! Went through everything else, reorganizing and getting the our boat "ship shape". We learned alot! I helped my husband carry 2 boat batteries onto the boat. Each battery weighing over 100 lbs Big D12 batteries! It was the first time I heard the expression "Man up". I learned I will never do that again! I took a Diesel Mechanic Class and among other things I changed the zincs in the heat exchanger. I now know more than I thought I would ever want to know about "heads".

March 2010 we put the house up for sale and started to make the decisions about what to do with all the stuff and deciding what to take on the boat.

Summer 2010 would prove to be a very memorable one. On July 6 I flew to Juneau, Alaska to join Andrea and 2 other friends of hers on her 45’ well appointed WestBay cruiser on a 17 day trip. My leg of her trip would be Juneau up Lynn Canal to Skagway, the furthest Northern point of the Inner Passage of Alaska, on to the Villages of Haines and Hoonah and ending with Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. The one thousand miles of protected, scenic waterways from Olympia, Washington to Skagway, Alaska make up the "Inside Passage" and are considered the best cruising waters in the world. I found out why!!
Not only was I cruising the best waters in the world but I was also learning vast information about boating. With Andrea’s invitation to join her on her boat in Alaska came the opportunity to gain "hands on" experience on a trip to a destination few boaters experience. Days were filled with first experiences and jam packed with learning opportunities in every aspect of boating. There were unanticipated delightful opportunities. I could not begin to tell about them all. I learned how to "set a crab pot". We were not successful but buying Dungeness Crabs, that had been living in the waters just hours before, off a fishing boat made up for the disappointment of not catching our own. I had never been on a Fishing Charter trip, catching Dolly Varden and Salmon and cooking them for dinner made a new fish lover out of me.

September 2010 We move aboard!
Yesterday, relaxing on the couch, my husband and I watched the Steelers, ate sloppy joes, took the dog for a walk and talked to our children. A typical Sunday except we are living on a boat.