When There's Nothing to Write About...

 

As if there'd EVER be nothing to write about! I'm never at a loss for ideas (or words). There's always something to write about … always. Have you ever read the book Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott? Friends Ted and Karen on Sequester gave it to me in New Zealand and it's so good, I've kept it instead of passing it on. I've read and reread it. It's tagline is “Some instructions on writing and life.” Lamott quotes Flannery O'Connor who said “anyone who survived childhood has enough material to write for the rest of his or her life.”

Lamott's younger brother has procrastinated writing a term paper on birds for his science class and he's grousing and verklempt about it as he sits the night before the paper's due date, wondering where to begin and how to tackle the writing task. His father merely states “Bird by bird, son, bird by bird.”. It's the same with writing a daily blog, a novel or dealing with any major challenge in life. It's the way to handle life's dragons … one at a time... dragon by dragon … bird by bird.

All I need to do is read a newspaper or a magazine, take a walk or a ride, think about our sailing life, edit photos, watch (or not watch) television or just veg out. I can come up with a hundred ideas that can turn into blog posts with some thought and nurturing. I keep a running list of possible blog topics and have maybe a dozen posts in different states of progress going at any one time. Of course, come to think of it, this also might reflect upon the fact that I'm easily distracted by shiny, bright objects and concentration isn't my long suit.

Days and Ways to Celebrate

A daily list of mostly obscure holidays and fun ways to celebrate them.

Talk Like Shakespeare Day

T'is the Bard's day of birth. Doth thou not celebrate when the moment presents? Read a play...read a poem, talk like Shakespeare!

Diamonds - a girl's best friend...really?

Marilyn Monroe sang it best … “Diamonds are a girl's best friend.” There were several pull-out ads in today's Boston Globe newspaper for diamonds. Rings, bracelets, pendants, brooches … you name it, it was on sale. Maybe because folks have their income tax refunds to spend or maybe because the diamond is the gemstone of the month of April. Maybe it's a good time to get engaged? I don't know. I do know diamonds on a boat don't make much sense. Jewels and expensive baubles, in general, were left behind long ago.

David gave me a beautiful diamond ring for an anniversary gift one year. My sister has it … along with a few other “jewels” I'd accumulated over the years. Having it on the boat just didn't make sense. I seldom wear jewelry other than my gold wedding band and a seahorse on a gold chain. For some reason, high class jewelry and cut-off shorts with t-shirts just don't mesh.

That said, when we visit a country that has a special gemstone associated with it, I feel obligated to buy something to … support the local economy. Yeah, that's it. I bought larimar in the Dominican Republic, emeralds in Colombia, lapis lazuli in Chile and black pearls in Polynesia.

I haven't purchased any opals in Australia yet, but I just might. In fact, we might find it necessary to go to Coober Peedy, so we can find something I like. And then, of course, I didn't buy gold or diamonds when last in South Africa, but this time … well, there's the local economy to consider.

Days and Ways to Celebrate

A daily list of mostly obscure holidays and fun ways to celebrate them.

Happy Birthday, Rome!

Yup, it's Rome, Italy's 2,766th birthday. Learn a phrase or two of Italian; eat Italian tonight.

Tiny Spaces? Try living on a boat

 

There's an urban trend in the US towards tiny spaces...mini-apartments...micro living units with catchy names like “Smart Space”. They're really laid out like boats to tell you the truth. Long and narrow....10 x 29, they offer about 200-300 sq ft of living space. I think these people have never been inside a boat since they're thinking of it as a major innovation, but it sounds as if a naval architect might have had a hand in designing their apartment layouts. Some don't seem much larger than the playhouses we had as kids.

These folks make it sound as if they've re-invented the wheel. They should take a lesson from long distance cruisers. We don't call it “tiny space” though; we call it space efficiency. Cruisers use every square inch of available space: under berths, under settees, under ladder steps, under the sole. We also invent useable space where there is none … hammocks, hanging baskets.

The “minis” have no moveable furniture; everything is built in and serves a purpose. Nothing superfluous. Sound familiar? That said, aboard Nine of Cups, the space efficiency is handled with graceful lines and style and lots of teak. Not so in these micro housing units which seem to be basic, even spartan, but serve the purpose especially for young singles.

We've made use of under berth space for a wine cellar and anchors and we use behind door space for hanging flat things from fry pans to machetes to shroud cutters. We're actually a bit put off by wide open space now when we're on land. We don't know what to do with it all. Where else can you sit at the salon table and reach over to place the dinner dishes in the sink without getting up?

Our boat at ~250 sq ft of living space is large compared to the boats of many other cruisers we know. Somehow we manage to make everything fit and nothing is brought aboard without thought to the space it will occupy. Sometimes something's gotta go before something new moves in.

Incidentally, these 200-300 sq ft micro apartments run ~ $1,700/month in downtown San Francisco and Boston... and they don't even float. Give me a boat anytime.

Days and Ways to Celebrate

A daily list of mostly obscure holidays and fun ways to celebrate them.

International Louie, Louie Day

This is the 50th anniversary of the release of the 60's frat anthem Louie, Louie by Richard Berry. Even the FBI was involved in deciphering the controversial lyrics.