The Myths of Sailboat Life

There are two myths of sailboat life, on either side of the spectrum: one is the romantic ideal of "sailing into the sunset"; the other is the uncontrollable fury of nature's Perfect Storm. Movies and songs always reinforce these two images. The lone fisherman/sailor fighting for his life. The retired couple sunbathing in the Carribean. These are the stereotypical extremes, but the weird thing about sailing, is that both extremes are true.

When people find out I live aboard a sailboat, either they think I'm nuts, or they're totally envious. The reaction is never ambiguous, depending on which stereotype they have in mind. Everyone freaks out, either at how cool or how crazy the idea is. The concept of living afloat, and being completely exposed to the elements, is very foreign to the majority of landlocked folks. It's such a different world than what the average person is used to, that people are really curious about it. "Is your boat on the dock? No? So how do you get out there? Rowing a boat, right. But what about a bathroom. Do you have a shower?"

There are a lot of people that have lived in boats all their lives. In comparison, I'm a fledgling - I've lived aboard my 29 foot Columbia, the Raza, for only 10 months. Everything is still new to me. I'm in a constant state of adjustment to my marine environment. Although I've spent all my life by the ocean, I'm still a landlubber in many ways; the sailboat life was foreign from the start and continues to be intimidating. But that's Ok! A distinguishing trait in my personality is that I enjoy the intimidation; the Challenge, that is. Which makes every day an adventure- what more could I ask for.

So my task is to record all the intricacies of boat life, while I'm here doing it. I don't know how much longer I'll have my boat. For the benefit of those who are curious, and for my own introspective delight, I'm going to begin a multi-part series entitled Boat Life. I'm going to use flashbacks from the past year, and details of the current moment, everything from the mundane to the extraordinary. The extremes of romance and fury come and go; but there's more to it than just the myths. Boat Life is a thing all of its own!