Thursday the mast came out of Sea Gypsy. The Olympic Crane truck showed up at 1000 hours, and by 1030 the mast was horizontal on sawhorses beside the boat.
Odin reminds me of tree guys we hired who swung from tree to tree with chainsaw dangling to prune 50-ft-high limbs. It was a lot of fun watching them (the chainsaws turned off during swinging time). More fun was watching the crew chief on the ground trying to walk across the yard. He wasn't so steady. He claimed to be made for heights, not the ground.
I loved this, Tod. Your courage and determination inspires me. May that "mysterious force" you describe stay with you. Both you and Sea Gypsy have more sailing in your souls.
Great guns, Tod! I think I got a little more than half the vocabulary you laid on us here. A lot of terms have remained the same from the 16-17-18th centuries, though everything was wood, iron, and hemp back then. And tar. Fibreglass and epoxy are useful things. Go Sea Gypsy!
You anticipate doing a lot of upgrade on Sea Gypsy, Tod.
I am quite sure you will sail her again. And even if it happens you don’t, you will have had the deep pleasure of making her the best expression of herself. Happy work and happy sailing.
I loved this, Tod, but perhaps not for the reason you might think. Since I have zero knowledge about boats and cars and how to repair anything related to them, I was (of course, in true Nancy tradition) reading this metaphorically, which is the only way I could process it. What occurs to me is that this is about repairing the rot and disintegration of the boat such that the mast will maintain its integrity, but it's also a love affair. It's no accident that we refer to boats with the pronoun "her," and that if you are actually living on one, you are kind of inside a sort of womb (forgive me for this), so I see it as a way to maintain the boat, yes, but also to not let something/someone go into disrepair and seem unloved and unwanted.
On a side note, I showed this piece to my husband, who is a repair freak and has replaced or repaired or rebuilt stuff like entire stairways, ceilings, laid concrete patios and created brick and cinder block walls and terracing, and he totally got it. He thinks you're fantastic to love a boat so much to maintain it and bring it back to its original glory.
Odin reminds me of tree guys we hired who swung from tree to tree with chainsaw dangling to prune 50-ft-high limbs. It was a lot of fun watching them (the chainsaws turned off during swinging time). More fun was watching the crew chief on the ground trying to walk across the yard. He wasn't so steady. He claimed to be made for heights, not the ground.
I loved this, Tod. Your courage and determination inspires me. May that "mysterious force" you describe stay with you. Both you and Sea Gypsy have more sailing in your souls.
I’d come help if I could.
Great guns, Tod! I think I got a little more than half the vocabulary you laid on us here. A lot of terms have remained the same from the 16-17-18th centuries, though everything was wood, iron, and hemp back then. And tar. Fibreglass and epoxy are useful things. Go Sea Gypsy!
I really enjoy reading about your sailboat. Thanks!
Wow! the language and knowledge is impressive. May she sail & never sink🧿❣️
You anticipate doing a lot of upgrade on Sea Gypsy, Tod.
I am quite sure you will sail her again. And even if it happens you don’t, you will have had the deep pleasure of making her the best expression of herself. Happy work and happy sailing.
I loved this, Tod, but perhaps not for the reason you might think. Since I have zero knowledge about boats and cars and how to repair anything related to them, I was (of course, in true Nancy tradition) reading this metaphorically, which is the only way I could process it. What occurs to me is that this is about repairing the rot and disintegration of the boat such that the mast will maintain its integrity, but it's also a love affair. It's no accident that we refer to boats with the pronoun "her," and that if you are actually living on one, you are kind of inside a sort of womb (forgive me for this), so I see it as a way to maintain the boat, yes, but also to not let something/someone go into disrepair and seem unloved and unwanted.
On a side note, I showed this piece to my husband, who is a repair freak and has replaced or repaired or rebuilt stuff like entire stairways, ceilings, laid concrete patios and created brick and cinder block walls and terracing, and he totally got it. He thinks you're fantastic to love a boat so much to maintain it and bring it back to its original glory.
So there's that. :)
Boats, like humans, are in a state of constant decline.