The First Steps

Day 1 (Sun, Nov 13): Brother (an amazing Brother, father and person – more about Brad later), dropped us off at Gaia in Chesapeake City. Patrick had parked her there due to the fog that had been closing the canal in the morning hours. Brad came up from Florida to get our most personal possessions and memorabilia. He drove a rental truck filled with these personal items, a few antiques and my portfolios back to Florida and his house. With a hug and wave, we departed on our last trip to Still Pond. We spent countless weekends at this little anchorage on the upper Chesapeake. I dare say the Sassafras River is probably one of the prettiest rivers in the world, for simple beauty of rolling hills and trees and an overwhelming sense of restfulness. We learned about Gaia on the Sassafras. It was my refuge. There is a bonding that occurs with your boat as you learn her. Much like when I had horses, you learn the sounds, smells, small shudders and what they mean. Gaia is a good boat and I can’t believe we have been so fortunate to first, have found her and second, to have found the dear set of friends we have through her. Amazing people and you will see as our story unfolds how special each one has been. And, the ones we have yet to meet.

Still Pond was quite uneventful and served as our perfect launch anchorage for the journey.

Day 2 (Mon, Nov 14): We were up and underway at 5am. Patrick wanted to get an early start; we knew the area well and could go well before dawn. We were shooting for somewhere south of Annapolis. We settled on the Choptank River. We had anchored there before. And to be quite honest, I won the toss on this one. It was getting pretty windy and Dobbie was still acquiring his sea legs. We stopped and had a nice evening.

Day 3 (Tues, Nov 15): We were up and underway just before dawn again. We had to make it to the Potomac to meet Al. One of our dearest friends and probably the best sailor I have and will ever meet. He is absolutely one of the best people on the planet. If everyone could role model Al, we would live in a utopia. Needless to say, I am officially the president of the 3^rd Rock, Al Fan Club (before setting sail on our journey, I was only the local Delaware Chapter president, a bit of a promotion for me). And yes, you will hear much, much more about Al.

Prework:

Phase I - We sold our house and quite a bit of our furniture. Minus some antiques and pieces we simply could not part with… For the Puffers and Emma and Admundson (4 puffer fish and 2 cats), Patrick’s number one wifey became care giver and supervisor. We left early one Friday around the first of November with our usual Puffer Moving set up. A 44 gallon trash can filled with seasoned water, some of their aragonite, some soft plants from the tank and one fairly dirty pump. All this to preserve the all important bacteria. We should start a fish moving company. We have this down. Then, the tank with just enough water to slosh around and keep the majority of the aragonite alive. 90 gallon tank with some water is very heavy. Patrick and I lifted the tank and placed it next to the 44 gallon in a rental van. Then the cat apartment (a large pet cage filled with blankies and good stuff). Emma simply did not like the experience. She was quite vocal for the entire trip to West Palm Beach from Delaware. We arrived after a grueling 21 hours of driving. Unloaded the fish. Set up the tank and placed Puffy, Harry Spotter and crew in their new home. A non event. All were quite happy. Kitties also managed to come around after sloothing a  bit. Nothing like lizards and butterflies to chase to get you going in your new home. Patrick stayed for a week to ensure everyone was comfortable… Rosie is amazing and we would not be setting off without her help.

Phase II – I shared with bosses and co-workers our plans. Most were quite startled but quickly commented on how envious they were of our bold decision. I shared that we needed to get Gaia and crew safely to FL before I could begin to do any consulting work. But, I truly am grateful they all felt that whey would like to keep me involved to some extent. The departure from the everyday pace of the corporate world will help me regain my creativity, sharpen my skills and whit and begin to feel things again without the anxiety I had been feeling each week. Turning 50 this year really made me take a hard look at who I am, what I have been doing and where I get the most joy. It will come but will take a bit before I can calm down enough to get back to normal. Not that I am thinking the journey will be calm and relaxing but “different is good.”

Change and the endless pursuit

The start of anything new brings a medley of emotions: anxiety, hopefulness and a sense of “what’s around the corner.”  A good friend asked, “where’s there.” I had no reply other than South and Ocean. Thus our story begins...

It feels like a lifetime of preparing for this journey. Personal choices, career choices and a boat load of learning along the way. People have asked what I am running from and what I am running to. Very profound but no simple answer. A compelling sense of urgency to change and to embark on this journey. The only way I could begin to explain it was a vegetable soup of emotions, reasons (some rational and other not so rational) and an overwhelming desire to learn more about myself.  This year was a very tragic year for us with the loss of some very, very dear friends and the realization that we (Patrick and I) are not getting any younger. That said, we are still in relatively good shape and we’re both healthy. Life is short and the traditional path is not necessarily the one that offers the most opportunity for growth. Patrick and I both felt a quote from a favorite move was apropos for the start of our journey, “let's not make plans together.”

Our journey to this point brought several exciting and chapters. To spare you the trauma of adjusting to two people and a cat living in a relatively small space, stocked with our personal possessions and provisions, I will only share with you a few of the more comical details of our launch...