Its finally over! My house is sold, closed, and funded. What an emotional roller coaster ordeal. My blogging synapses were immobilized by stress and the fear that something would happen that would kill the deal and my home owner status would continue indefinitely. Well, that didn't happen. It seems that once again my angels looked out for me...now the adventure begins....from this day forward this becomes a true sailing blog instead of one made up of wishful philosophical ramblings of an impatient traveler. After the sale was completed, the first order of business was to sell, donate, and/or throw away a lifetime worth of accumulations...my heart was palpitating as my stuff was going out the door, into the trash or deposited at Goodwill....My furniture, my art, my rugs, my antiques, my Emeril pots and pans.....Oh-Oh..is this a mistake? You know what? I can't even remember what I had........What a waste of time...all those years of coveting these purported treasured possessions only to discover that after three or four days I can't remember what they were nor do I care ! Mmmmm...wonder is this sudden intuitive perception and insight into the reality of essential meaning that was brought about by a simple, commonplace occurrence is ...is..is an epiphany?? Of course it was and this is one thankful blogger.....There is a blog out there, mnmlst. The author has what I consider to be relevant thoughts on the subject of minimalism and how we encumber our lives with superfluous possessions and commitments that collectively collaborate to add stress to our existence and diminish the fulfillment of our human experience . This guy shares his thoughts on how we might be able to unencumber our lives if we so desire and return to a calmer sense of being. Good stuff here....you might want to check it out. Don't forget that our dear friend Sterling Hayden was a minimalist long before it became fashionable to be one...."what does a man need-really need? A few pounds of food each day, heat, shelter, six feet to lie down in-and some form of working activity that will yield a sense of accomplishment-that's all."- Wanderer, 1963. You must admit that those of us that live on boats especially small boats are minimalists whether we want to be or not.
The mnmlst blogger suggests that we consider paring down our possessions to only those things that we really need. This makes perfect sense to me. Some of us probably really need the two thousand things that we own! My intent is to pare down my possessions excluding my boat and equipment to fifty essential items. Lets see.....
A. 1 pair flip flops
B. 1 pair Chuck Taylor high tops
3. 2 pair board shorts
4. 2 pair Levi's.......................Mmmmm.....eight items already, this is gonna take some thinking. We'll revisit this list soon....................................
Now, lets talk about my boat ZOSHA, this is a sailing blog-right? right. The time has finally come to get her ready for cruising. She has a wonderful compliment of mostly unused headsails but her Main is shot, stretched out, flabby, out of shape, and tired...........I know what you're thinking....don't say it...we're friends. So a new Mainsail is on the "to buy" list. The Harken furler on the jib works fine. The staysail is a hank on.
The electronics are all 1978 and most don't work. Thats OK. Don't need a knot-log-GPS will give me this info. Wind instruments? do we really need them? They are expensive and troublesome. Most of us know when its too windy. If there is not enough wind, who cares where its not coming from and at what speed? To my amazement the 1978 Signet depth sounder is working fine, unbelieveable! It will be retired though and replaced. My dilemma is how to deal with the three 4 inch holes that are left in my cabinside when the antiquated knot and wind instruments are trashed and not replaced??
You all take care my friends... Be safe. Be loving. Be careful. Be kind. Gotta go work on my list of fifty things. If you know of anybody that wants some Frankie Avalon 45's, drop me a comment.......
seeya
No comments:
Post a Comment