Argh....and set sail

Growing up on the Pacific Ocean I have always been fascinated by the sea.  My Irish grandfather used to take us walking on the beach in Seal Beach as children and we'd watch ships sailing and cruising to exotic locations (like a few miles further to the Ports A Call in the freight area where now they have cruise ships leaving).  When we moved south to San Diego I got to see sail boats up close and personal.  I was amazed at the idea of taking those little itty bitty hunks of wood and canvas and embarking wherever to see what there was to see on the sea.  The Saturday morning movies introduced me to the idea of pirates.  I was completely hooked.  That robbers would suddenly sail up and steal from unsuspecting folks with nowhere to run and hide tripped my imagination.  I was all of ten or eleven at some Boys and Girls Club summer day camp when I was introduced to paper mache.  Naturally I took the coffee cup and made a gray and green felt monstrosity resembling a pirate.  It was crafted either in mid-June or July because I gave to my father for either Father's Day or his birthday in July.  My dad had that on his desk for decades and later moved it home.  In fact when I went back to my parents house in my forties my dad still had it on his dresser.  It moved to his home office when mom redecorated. 

When I was a teenager my cousin moved down the coast bringing with him his sail boat.  He took us out and I loved the feeling of the wind whipping my hair around and the vastness of the ocean beneath the wooden hull of his boat.  Once he passed away when I was 17 my older brother and I tried to convince my folks that we could keep up the boat.  Alas, it wasn't to be and it got sold or given away before winter set in and my parents would have to pay to have someone live aboard to make sure it didn't rot on the docks. 

Enter the summer movies.  Pirates of the Caribbean, in Search of More Money (yeah I know that's not the name).  Like Sand said in her review on Piker Press (http://www.pikerpress.com/) it's based on a kids ride at Disneyland so don't expect tons just enjoy.  And I did enjoy.  But it reminded me again that I've always had that fascination. 

Over the years, I read the history of pirates in a few books and found the privateers to be something other than what many of the movies portrayed.  And that many a captain abused his crew to mutiny and some of the historical personalities who charted and 'discovered' new islands were often set a drift or slain by their crew.  It didn't diminish my interest just illustrated the cautionary tale of treat others as you want to be treated.  As some of my friends know two or so years ago I was supposed to house sit for a neighbor while the family went sailing around the world.  At least that was their intention.  Like many intentions it was derailed.  I didn't end up house sitting because of complications and they didn't stay out for the two years they'd planned. 

Their planning was odd.  The husband of my friend ran the computer department of a major university for decades.  Born into a wealthy family he could afford to retire early and buy the boat of his dreams.  I saw pictures and was less than impressed in this day and age.  It didn't look sturdy enough or large enough for two adults and a very high strung teenager to spend two years.  Hell, the kitchen-storage area was little more than what you get in a Embassy Suites or Comfort Inn extended stay room.  Only smaller!  They didn't have a satellite phone or any of the fancy electronics I expected from the man.  Slowly it dawned on me that he never intended the sailing to be easy but his Hemingway-esque venture to remember in his declining years.  Man against Sea (just with wife and Internet addicted gamer kid in tow).  My friend was stunned to find out that she wasn't keeping her cell phone and would be able to access the Internet now and then - when they weren't out on the water.  He didn't have any weapons aboard but a spear gun for fishing. Another neighbor and I joked that the captain would have a mutiny on his hands for sure at the rate he was going. 

They nevertheless set sail a month later than planned and went south.  First stop was Baja California (Mexico) where we got one postcard.  "Having fun" sort.  I didn't have a way to reply easily. All I could think was, "Oh My God, you've been out at sea for a month you must be out of wine by now."  My friend likes her nightly bottle of wine.  The news was sporatic and eventually just a comment from her adult daughter how her mom was missing everyone.  Their trip was cut short due to illness in the family (her sister who's an absolute hoot is dying of a nasty variety of cancer) so they flew home at Christmas.  They were gone for little more than 13 months. 

Yes, flew home ...from Australia. 

This weekend the husband flew back to Australia to go sail the boat home.  All I can wonder is if now he's going to find that slice of his life he wanted for his declining years.  He will be sailing by himself ...Man Against Sea.