Round-the-world research

[ChrisE]

Corollary of the Lazy test - the boredomn test

I kind of understand tcm's reasoning and would like to add a few thoughts of my own. We have spent a year on board and the one thing that my better half and I agreed on is how boring it can become. On the face of it drfiting from Caribbean island to Caribbean island is most people's dream and I'm sure for some that is the way it turns out. However, we found ourselves bored sh**less with a constant round of finding water, 3rd world food and other yotties just drifting around, it all seemed rather pointless.

Now, you might rightly say that we are acting like spoilt 1st world peeps who don't realise how well off we are. Possibly, but we did meet an awful lot of other people who were in the same boat. We were lucky, we had a home to go back to and were still young enough to go back to work. After a year we had both had enough of life without direction.

After all that I'm still a keen cruising yottie who looks forward to the next voyage but only if it challenges me. An endless round of parties and lounging around, whilst superficially attractive soon loses its appeal, or it did for us.

 

[David_Jersey]

Re: Corollary of the Lazy test - the boredomn test

Chris_E

I can understand this, although not on a boat, I have tried in recent years to limit myself to a max of 6 months away from "home" - I have been away longer - but I find that I lose something (often the plot /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif) without having some form of "purpose" - endless holidays and no responsibilities are not all they are cracked up to be. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif Be interesting to see how I will get on with doing this aboard.........in due course.

.........and earning money as well as spending it helps my decisions to come "home"! - although 5 minutes later I can never remember why I came back.

Of course, as you say, it is nice to have the luxury of something like this to moan about.......


TCM

The "not in a hurry" approach would also have an advantage on costs as well, I found from my travels (sans Boat, so far!) that the longer I am based somewhere the cheaper it becomes, as you have time to find out where the best deals are, on everything from food upwards, and are not "forced" to pay for conveniance and can make deals for a month or two.

And you don't feel like you have to do "Everything immediately", akin to a 2 week package trip. You do not even have to stay all the time where you are based. I have found that the more "local" one can live by having the time to sniff around, the cheaper things become.

Also helps for me that I have a tendency to be a lazy beggar........ and do not feel the need to "always be doing something"....... but as I said above, I have found for me that 6 months is about my limit, with no overall specific purpose, sans boats anyway.

 

[ChrisE]

Re: Corollary of the Lazy test - the boredomn test

Best of luck with your plans

 

[cliffb]

Re: Corollary of the Lazy test - the boredomn test

Interestingly, when I first started thinking about going liveaboard (have yet to do it), I PM'd a liveaboard (can't remember his name just now) and asked 'what makes you get up in the morning? Surely you need a reason?'
His answer was along the lines of :- 'As long as I can do some good that day - that's reason enough'
At the time I wasn't sure that that was a good enough reason for me. But thought that maybe that's part of the mindset change that happens. And besides, it's not that bad a reason.....
Having read your post; I'm now wondering if he wasn't just kidding himself. Isn't it healthy to have a 'direction' in ones life? Apart from esoteric ones, that is.

 

[tcm]

Direction in life

well yes. There's the humdrum process of living as chris say getting water and food, but this might not be enough.

I'm afraid to say that I get quite lot of enjoyment out of boatfixing (on our boat, somewhat LESS rewarding on a charter boat of course!) and I read tons of books too. And i like a bit of investigating ashore as well. And then i'd pootle off somewhere else.

 

[cliffb]

Re: Direction in life

tcm.
Hmmm ...that's sounds good enough for me!

 

[CharlesM]

Re: Direction in life

Yo TCM

My boat has LOADS to do - you feeling bored at the moment?

Charles

--as a matter of fact I am a little daunted by the amount of work the boat needs...

 

[poter]

Re: Direction in life

TCM,

looks like they are linning up.... can you do some work for me as well??? /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

poter

 

[tcm]

Re: Direction in life

Maybe! well, at least you are a bit closer. What's the project - the boat from yr pix seems fairly ok, bit of a cleanup but whasit need? However, one condition is that i won't get involved with any blimmin TV boat restoring project where it all has to get done in an afternoon, erk...

 

[ChrisE]

Re: Direction in life

We might be onto something here, I'll saill the boat to interesting places and when it breaks down, I'll fly home, you repair it read for a bit, then you fly home, I'll take it to somewhere else interesting, etc, some kind of Buddhist cycle methinks.

 

[DaveNTL]

Re: Direction in life

This has become a great thread.

Different people will relate to different parts of it, but the 'truths' i get out of it are :-

'sailing into the sunset' isn't the cliche it's cracked up to be

bigger isn't better, just more complicated

it doesn't matter how small it is, so long as you can still do it (this guy has been trailing me for four days in a plywood home built DIY thing with an outboard and he still set off before me this morning and looks happy enough to me)

if you win the lottery tomorrow you won't be happy unless you are so disposed anyway - believe me, i know (i haven't won the lottery btw)

if you suddenly find yourself in the position to be sailing all the time instead of working you'll worry that you should be working because you've become conditioned, but you can't afford to worry that it's not what it's cracked up to be, so you fill your time working on your boat when you're not sailing so you're not worrying that you're not working..... oh.. sorry... thats just me /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

 

[poter]

Re: Direction in life

My idea of getting away is to get a boat & put all the work in so that I know all about her & what makes her tick, which I think is important if you have to live on a retirement budget, so to this end the Dufour was an ideal boat, not too costly so the capital tied up is manageable.

She is a 1974 Dufour 37, she requires a load of TLC & refit of the basics. Not too concerned with electronics etc. but its not a TV job either to be completed in a couple of weeks, I intend to work on her over a couple of years, & get the basic kit to make life comfortable upgraded to a modern standard, she is a real solid boat, & has a good liveaboard interior that’s reasonably spacious
So far I have renewed all the running rigging & serviced all the deck gear, so at least she sails reasonably well. The engine & steering gear were stripped & now running sweet. The big job now is the standing rigging, the gelcoat & cockpit painting...........lotsa rubbing down & elbow grease...

3 years and she is in the water & we go.................That’s the idea anyway!

poter.

 

[tcm]

Re: Dufour in life

new thread needed i think. Will you sail the thing during the season and return to works in the winter?

 

[poter]

Re: Dufour in life

Yup thats the idea.

Some really nice cruising area's within a days sail.

poter