I think the best grade I ever received in either high school or college algebra was a C-. Maybe a C, but lots of D's. I suck at math. Watching this video on navigation made me break out in a cold sweat. Not only is it math, but it's a critical thing I have to learn to be a solo-sailor.
Navigation skills are just ONE of the 1,0001 things I need to learn over the next six months. Other stuff I have to learn or do:
- How to sail
- How to tack
- How to gybe
- How to tell what the tides are
- How to dock a boat single handed
- How to get out of of a marina
- How to go through a lock
- How to cook on board a sail boat
- How to self-rescue if I fall overboard
- How to maintain and repair common breaks on a diesel engine
- How to dump the holding tanks
- How to set and raise anchor - including when anchor gets stuck
- How to tie about a dozen knots and when to use which knot
- How to operate whatever boat I get
- How to use a compass
- How to read a tide chart
- How to operate a GPS
- How to operate all the radios and gauges on the boat
- How to get my boat ungrounded if I run aground
- How to gas up in a Marina
- Marina etiquette and rules (showers, store, docking etc)
- How to find a place to anchor
- How to set up and run a successful IndieGoGo campaign
- How to find sponors
- How to find and buy a good, safe, sound boat
Oh, but there's more. Being FAT, I also need to lose about 50 pounds and GET IN SHAPE. I could sail while fat, but it will be harder and more dangerous. Being in shape means I'm more likely to not only ENJOY the experience, but to be able to complete it. So, the next six months means lots of time in the gym, eating better and focusing on diet etc.
This is NOT a small undertaking. It would have been much easier to FedEx half of Wild Betty's ashes to Florida and DRIVING the other half to North Carolina to her sister's lake house and being done with it in a few days. But I think I need more. I need to do this for several reasons, the least of which is to put Wild Betty into a final resting place. What's most important is proving to myself that I can do this, that I'm still capable of learning, doing, going.
No comments:
Post a Comment