Mind the Gap

I realize it's difficult for most people to understand what we're about to do. I don't think we fully understand at this point exactly what we're getting into. I just got back from visiting friends in California and got the perspective of non-boaters & their children.

I get the impression most adults just think we're nuts (boaters or not) and we won't make it very long. In fact, one person actually said we wouldn't make it more than 2 years. Maybe I'll put a poll on the blog. Everybody is entitled to their opinion, I guess. I really hope we make it longer than that - there are a lot of places we'd like to see and I think this will be a great experience for us as a family. Not to mention... who wouldn't want to spend Christmas on the beach in the Bahamas rather than freezing your butt off in Chicago?

Anyway, the kids thought it was cool - especially once they found out there are "trampolines" on the boat. I did find myself having to explain several times that we are moving onto the boat. That the boat is where we will be living - not in a house. That was a tough concept for them (hell, it's still a tough one for me to wrap my brain around sometimes). One of the kids simply said we were crazy and another said it was a terrible place for a little kid. I think the most important thing I'm trying to take away from the less than positive comments I hear (from kids and adults, alike) is that I don't need to defend our decision.... um... although I am still compelled to do so. I really need to get over that. My friends, Daneal & Chris, were very supportive and curious about the logistics of the whole thing.

I'm going to get on a bit of a soapbox now. Chris works for a water/wastewater company so we talked a bit about wastewater and specifically pumping out and legality/practice of dumping the holding tank off shore. Somehow, Daneal & I got onto the topic of flushing medications and what a huge problem this is for wastewater treatment facilities (and more generally, for the environment as a whole). If you flush meds, PLEASE STOP!!! This article gets into the details if you're interested in learning more: http://pubs.acs.org/cen/coverstory/86/8608cover.html.

The Boat

After almost two years of research, boat shows, and inspecting new and used boats, Jen and I found the perfect platform for our cruising home. We found it in the form of a Lagoon 420. Our primary criteria were 1) A safe blue-water sailboat, 2) A comfortable home, and 3) Decent sailing performance. We spent a lot of time looking at used catamarans and found that we needed to stick with fairly recent models to meet the comfortable home requirement. When we got on the 420, it was love at first sight. It feels like it was designed just for us, but more on that in later posts. We decided on buying a new 420, partially so that we could get the diesel model rather than the electric for ease of maintenance during cruising. While we thought the the electric version was cool, it was a bit of a concern for a cruising boat. We needed something that was not going to require specialized skills and difficult-to-get replacement parts when repairs were required.

REALLY?!?!?!?!?!?

Now, I know it's still the midwest, and I know it's still March... but COME ON ALREADY!!! It was almost completely gone... then yesterday... 6 or so more inches of fresh snow.

Fortunately, it doesn't look like it will be around for too long. It does, however, make the waiting even more difficult.

Chesapeake Bay

I am so ready to be out on the water again...
As much as I have enjoyed summers in the midwest, I am totally over the winters. Mother Nature must have known that this would be our last Chicago winter and decided to give us quite the send off. This has been one of the worst winters I can remember... and I've lived here most of my 39 years.