WHEN
I LOOK at a marina full of boats, I wonder if the boats are really as deserted
as they look. Just because they're not out sailing doesn't mean they're not
being used. I have spent many happy hours down below on docked boats. Some of
them were bigger than I could really afford, but they offered comforts that
smaller boats could not match.
Nothing
feels cozier than the cabin of a yacht when the wind is howling from the
southeast and cold rain is drumming on the skylights. What better way is there
for the harried city worker to relax than to stretch out on a bunk with a
favorite book or good music on the stereo?
To
go below into the womb-like confines of a cabin smelling of teak and lemon oil
is to shut out the worries of the weekday world. And alone, or with a loving
companion, there is a satisfaction approaching bliss in doing nothing in
peculiar, in simply relaxing in a snug little vessel floating on a highway that
— if you wanted to — would take you to all the exciting, exotic places in the
world.
Even
in summer, an afternoon spent in the sunny cockpit, happily tying a Turk's Head
on the tiller, or lazily re-varnishing the little spot where the jib sheet rubs
on the teak coaming, revitalizes the spirit and feeds the soul.
You
may sometimes feel the pressure to go sailing when you don't particularly want
to, simply to fall in with the popular notion that you have to leave your slip
to prove that you're a proper sailor and not a veranda yachtsman.
But
you don't have to fall for that. How you enjoy your boat is up to you. And if
you can afford a big boat in which you can goof off standing upright, why
should you make yourself miserable in one with no more than sitting
headroom?
Today's Thought
The bow that's always bent will quickly break;
But if unstrung will serve you at your need.
So let the mind some relaxation take
To come back to its task with fresher need.
— Phaedrus, Fables
Tailpiece
Confucius say: "If man think by the inch and talk by the yard, he
will be kicked by the foot."
2 comments:
John,
Have you heard use of Messmer's Oils for use either on interior or exterior teak? I've used it for the past five years on my deck which is made of Brazilian Ipe wood. It provides a protective finish unlike varnish but is certain to coat and protect fine wood. I recently saw a Cape Dory Typhoon finished off completely with Messmers and I was very impressed with the look. It as not glossy but was a rich wood color just the same.
Skeep
Hi Bill, no I've no experience of this oil. In fact I've never had any luck with any kind of oil on the exterior of a boat.
Cheers,
John V.
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