Mmmmm

Soon, Jenn will be here for another visit! As usual, I am ridiculously excited.

Not all that long after we met, I told her I wanted to be her vacation. She has always been mine…my respite from the mundanities, my escape to fantasy.

  

I often think about the nature of our relationship. Sure, it is rather unconventional, but I am deliriously happy (and last time I checked, that was high on my list of goals). I know that to move in together would probably destroy my career. She’s my vacation and you can’t have vacation every day—it’s bad for business. In her case, really bad.  There’s also a bit more to it. Living in the moment means when I’m at work, I am working. When I am on vacation, I am vacationing, pointedly not working. And when I am loving, that’s the only thing I want to be doing. 

 

As our relationship matures, there are compromises. I have to laugh about the time she suggested we go to Rome. I’ve always wanted to go, but going with Jenn at the time would have been tragic. Rome, the ancient beauty, art everywhere, the food, the modern and the antiquity—I still look forward to seeing it one day. But when I’m sightseeing, I want to be sightseeing. And when I’m loving… 

This is a compromise I see coming to my life. If things continue as they have been, Jenn will never meet my friends, I will never meet her family, we will never see Rome together. I guess it’s time for me to grow up a little.

Catalina in May

A very nice visit to Catalina for Cinco de Mayo weekend!

The initial crossing was a trial, as engine troubles limited our speed and lengthened the journey considerably. My spirits fell when the sun dipped below the horizon. As the twilight faded, however, the moon rose majestically, bathing the island and water with that silvery-blue light I enjoy so much. I was nervous, but we picked up the mooring uneventfully, and soon I was enjoying my first Buffalo Milk of the season.

 

Look at that blue sky!

It's not often I see Catalina this green

Cat Harbor

Saturday started with a hearty breakfast and a hike.

Cinco de Mayo bandito

Lunch was an impromptu affair, when I commandeered the galley on our neighbors' boat and fixed some delightful chimichangas, while they forced me to drink margaritas. After a long nap, it was time to make good on the invitation we received from a yacht club that was hosting a party onshore. The carne asada was delicious and the booze, prodigious! The after-party featured billiards, more Buffalo Milk, and Catalina Punch, followed by a dinghy ride back to the Felix.

View of the pier from Felix

Sunday started early for me, and far too early for my guests. I was eager to be underway, as I was afraid the wind would be light and our progress slow. Instead, we had a beautiful crossing with an average of about 11 knots and a great point of sail. My guests slept, but I drank in the sun and sea and breeze. Just gorgeous!

The crossing gave me plenty of time for quiet reflection. It was nice to commune with Felix and the Pacific. I'm thinking trips to Catalina have a lot to offer. Perhaps my summer will be filled with excursions?

Batch Lore

I am deeply concerned about an obvious failure in this great nation’s Food and Drug Administration regulations. As a bachelor, it is clear the government has failed me. I found myself reading the expiration date on a bottle of salad dressing. “Best before AUG2008”?  What the heck is that? What does “best” mean? And more importantly, where is the label that reads, “TOXIC AFTER: XX/XXXX”?

In case you were wondering, it didn’t taste very good.

Felix!

Saturday was Felix Appreciation Day! I want to make good on one of my New Year's Resolutions, which was to make better use of Felix.

Felix is a 34' Gemini catamaran, affectionately known as the Catalinamobile. 

Last weekend, I did some serious scrubbing on Felix's deck. The non-skid surfaces again got this stubborn black algae, or something like that, so I took some harsh chemicals and a scrub brush to them. Thankfully, it was far easier defeating the menace this year--last year was ghastly. 

 Spud the Wonder Chili looking Bristol off Santa Barbara Island

Felix has a dinghy, named Spud the Wonder Chili. (It's probably best if you don't ask). I got to Felix on Saturday, late morning, and immediately splashed the dink. With the outboard still in the shop, now was the time to give old Spud some cleaning. I pulled the inflatable up onto the dock and broke out the air pump, (foot model). Soon, Spud was back in the correct shape, then I broke out the Comet and a nylon scouring pad. Eek! Old Spud was a lot dirtier than I thought. I joked with myself about owning my own new island formed by the ridiculous amount of dirt running off with each rinse. It was some serious work and I was soon filthy and winded. After the dink, I scrubbed the oars, the gas tank and quite a few other things lurking in the hold. Finally, thanks to a well-timed text from the Virgin Islands, I found the bolt-thingy that attaches the BBQ to the rail! Felix is far more prepared for Catalina! Yippeeee!  

Sunday

What a day!

I woke up early on Sunday morning, saw the sunrise, then decided to hibernate a little longer. I took a refreshing shower. As usual, my body came clean, my mind, less so. The weather was fair, so I dressed for weekend work at the office: shorts and a tshirt.

Breakfast was a bachelory affair, pepperoni and ham omelet, with lots of cheese…mmm. While fixing breakfast, I noticed it was an exceptionally nice day out. I opened the sliding door…this proved to be my undoing. The sun was shining, the breeze was blowing, the birds were singing. It was a remarkable day, and this in Southern California, that’s saying something! I decided to postpone my ride into work to read a little in the backyard. Armed with my Kindle, I settled into the steamer chair and read a few chapters.

Why, oh why am I clothed for this? I wondered to myself. Moments later, my clothes formed a disorderly pile in the yard. My day was looking up. I read some more and felt my pale skin pinking up a little, so I moved to the shade.

Hmmm, time for some lunch, methinks—work can wait. And wait, and wait, as I found excuse after excuse to forego dressing and ride into the office. I puttered, instead. I watered plants, I washed towels, I reveled in the silence, which is unusual for me. Generally, I have music playing throughout the house, but not today. Just the birds. It has been quite a while since the house felt like it was only mine, and throughout the day I smiled.

Eventually, I mixed myself an adult beverage and fixed dinner: spicy taco salad. I watched most of the movie, “Tangled” (again), played some online scrabble, and returned to my book before crashing early.

I feel much better for having recharged my batteries.

Anniversary

Today is my wedding anniversary. It’s kinda funny to note that today is the day, many years ago, I got married, but I no longer increment the years, even in my head. Yup, I was married for 25 years, and today is the anniversary, but I don’t even know how many years ago that was.

Damnit, now I want to do the math… Ha!

It is an auspicious day in my life. Although it’s over, my marriage was central in making me into myself. Honestly, I cannot imagine what my life would be like if I hadn’t gotten married. Today, I looked through some old pictures of travels with Teri, some pictures of the boys, and some family adventures. Teri and I traveled a lot together—nearly all of the adventurous things in my life I owe to her. Shark diving! Sailing in the South Pacific and the Caribbean! Eating satay and peanut sauce in a market in Singapore! Cuba Libres with sweet Belizean rum on Water Cay.

New Caledonia 2001

Fiji 2007

Key West 2006

We are no longer married, each with lives of our own. But there is no denying we have a past together. I will be toasting Teri and my family today!

Too Easy?

When I was a lad, my grandpa asked us kids to collect up these little lead weights they use to balance car tires. They come off frequently and you can find them in the street gutters, (a place I spent a lot of time as a kid). So, we collected up these little things for a while, then my grandpa showed me what he was going to do with them. He had a small crucible, (I didn’t even know that word back then, and neither did he), and used a propane torch to melt the metal. He poured the molten lead into a mold he had, added a couple of wires and let it cool. An hour or so later, he popped the molds open and voila! Fishing sinkers!

Lately, I’ve been riding my bicycle to and from work each day, and, of course, as I’m riding along, I notice a lot of these tire weights. Many of them. This gets me thinking—well, of course, by the time I collected up the weights, found a crucible, found a propane torch and bought propane, well, the whole thing would be rather silly unless it turned out to be a lot of fun, too. I’m a little busy in my life for this sort of fun, but I bet I could do it. It’s not a question of would I do it or should I do it, (not economically feasible/busy guy), but could I do it?

In our modern life, I find it remarkable that so many incredible things have become disposable. Take cell phones, for instance. They are amazing gizmos, full to the brim with modern technology. When one goes bad, it is cheaper to buy a new one than to fix the old one. Cell phones, like fishing weights, are readily and cheaply available. When you think about it, there are a lot of things like that these days.

But what do we lose when we do not apply our problem solving skills to things like making fishing weights? Just today, I made the decision to replace a car battery, rather than figure out how to charge the old one. (It was probably dead. I jumped the car, let it run for 30 minutes, stopped the engine, but it wouldn’t turn over again). I could have taken the battery to an auto parts store, had it tested, bought a charger, charged it at home, etc. I didn’t even want to invest the time to learn about that process; brand new Costco battery, $79 and 15 minutes of my time. I stand by my decision, but I wonder if that battery had life in it? Would I have learned something today? I have never been very handy when it comes to cars, but I am Mr. Goodwrench compared to my sons. Will they be hostages to the car dealership? You can guess how I feel about them…

I often tell my sons that the two most valuable attributes I look for in employees: problem solving skills, and the ability to retain things learned. But what happens when I opt out of problem solving in favor of cheap and easy? Do I become a dull knife?