Attempted Trip to Bermuda

[Richard_W]

Great pics, awesome trip, a sailor was born ... impressive ...

[Cormorant]

Cool trip, BO! How were the winds? I hear it's usually easy to get to the Dry Tortugas and hard to get home.

[2manyboats]

Hey BO, great thread. To the detractomatics, blah blah blah...I read all of your posts and a lot of supportive comments, but only saw brief glimpses of the fact you have wife and kids at home in Memphis. Screw all the sailing mumbo jumbo, how are you pulling that off???? My loving wife of 28 years, two awesome daughters and two really awesome grandsons would collectively whip my @$$ if I was gone that long. I need a post here, bro...

[I.Grind]

Lol I was wondering the same thing, but figured he'd tell us in his own time. It's a good trick if you can pull it off.

[BlackOak]

Originally Posted by 2manyboats

Hey BO, great thread. To the detractomatics, blah blah blah...I read all of your posts and a lot of supportive comments, but only saw brief glimpses of the fact you have wife and kids at home in Memphis. Screw all the sailing mumbo jumbo, how are you pulling that off???? My loving wife of 28 years, two awesome daughters and two really awesome grandsons would collectively whip my @$$ if I was gone that long. I need a post here, bro...

I have a very understanding supportive family? Actually, my wife knows I have wanted to do this for a long time now, so she is pretty much ok with this adventure. But, she has told me to sell the boat and come home, in that order. I have mentioned just leaving the boat here on this mooring Endoftheroad has graciously permitted me to use as long as I want, but she said it would be better just to sell the boat, and not just leave it unattended. My daughter Ana, always ask me when I was coming home when we talk. Being away from my kid is tough on me, and I imagine tough on her. She's my little buddy, and we do alot of things together when Im at home. One of our favorite things is on a saturday or sunday morning is to jump on the harley and ride down to the waffle house for breakfast. We sit at the counter so she can watch them cook the food. My wife doesnt like Ana riding on my bike, so we have to push the bike out of the garage and down the street a little way, fire it up and go. Ana's been riding on the back of my harley since she was 3, at my wife's constant protest.

I miss my kid. I am planning to fly home in a couple of weeks, boat sold or not and spend some time at home. Though, I must admit, I wonder if I will come back to the boat or not. My fear it that I will get home, surrounded by my loving family, my big screen TV, my chair, my harley, my friends, and my master bathroom, I wont want to leave again. My boat doesnt have the creature comforts of home, so its a little different for me than some of yall with your big boats, refridgerators, microwave and breadmakers.

I have mentioned to my wife, that she and Ana fly down here and spend a week or so on the boat, but to my dismay, my wife considers a boat worse than my harley where my daughter is concerned. Its a quandary!

So to answer the question, yes its hard on my family and me being away from each other, but we are making the best of it. We skype, and we call, and we email, so thats how we are getting by, or have gotten by so far.

[2manyboats]

So I'll threaten to get a Harley to take my grandsons out on (me and bikes parted ways, literally and at high speed some years ago- good Lord road rash hurts...) and work on buying another sailboat. The boat will will be much more palatable since the girls grew up sailing. Yeah, that's it!

My wife knows I long for long passages and is on board, although admits she will hate me while I'm gone. Her longest run was from Marigot up around the east side of Anguila, round the North end and over to St. Barth's. It was a great run, made even better by her meeting Paul McCartney in a grocery store on St. Barth's. If I could only convince her it happens all the time...

[carstenb]

BO. Think about you, your wifeand daughter sitting in the cockpit with the sun going down chomping away on some crabs, shrimp, lobster.

Still can't convince her?

[Alecadi]

Originally Posted by carstenb

BO. Think about you, your wifeand daughter sitting in the cockpit with the sun going down chomping away on some crabs, shrimp, lobster.

Still can't convince her?

Not today: wind is blowing rain is falling right now in KW
And my Admiral is complaining, didn't sleep well!

[nagrom snoyl]

Hey there black oak i only found your thread the other day and reading through it has been entertaining to say the least. just wishing you all the best and hope things work in your favour for the rest of your trip if you keep going

[endoftheroad]

BlackOak is a good friend of mine, he is living on my mooring. He does this liveaboard thing really well. He is adaptable and fits in good here in Key West. I'm happy to say he just jumped on a plane about lunchtime today for a short visit with family.

endoftheroad

[GrowleyMonster]

Originally Posted by endoftheroad

BlackOak is a good friend of mine, he is living on my mooring. He does this liveaboard thing really well. He is adaptable and fits in good here in Key West. I'm happy to say he just jumped on a plane about lunchtime today for a short visit with family.

endoftheroad

It would be cool if Mrs Oak and the little Oak-lets would fly back down with him and see what this sailboat thing is all about. I bet they would love it.

[BlackOak]

Thanks EOTR, youre an awesome friend, and I am blessed by your friendship.

I am presently home in Memphis, flew in last night. Very happy to be here, but cant say Im too happy about being back in civilization. Just too much busy-ness on the hard. 3 weeks here, then back to the boat.

The one thing that stood out to me during my flying home, was the fact that everytime the plane touched down on the runway, out came the cell phones, and a texting craze began. Young and old alike, with their thumbs going frantic on the little keyboards. Not just one or two people, but more like 4 out of 5 people was texting away as fast as they little thumbs could go. Even while I was walking through the airport, everywhere I looked, people were into their mobile communication devices. No conversations, just texting, and nose to screen as they meandered along the gates. What kind of a society have we become? I would see people seated together at the airport feed troughs, not talking or engaged in conversation, just noses pressed to their mobile screens, thumbs busy at work on the keyboard. Its really sad.

Was so wonderful to see the smiles from my family as I walked out into the main airport area. I was grinning ear to ear to see them. My wife with that...good to see you smile, coupled with that "what the hell was you thinking glare". But its all good now, been trying to convince her of that, " lets sell everything and take off on the boat forever speech", but I can tell it aint happening. She is the sensible one in this relationship. My kid is like "heck yeah mom, lets do it!" Its gonna be a, "that dog wont hunt" situation with the wife. So, for now, I will just go along as before, but now looking to sell my boat, get a bigger boat, more wife friendly than my present man cave boat, and see where that goes.

PS. Sleeping in a bed that wasnt moving felt weird, I didnt sleep very good at all.

[boatsail]

awesome update. I was worried earlier that you were going to sell and give it up. now your talking about selling and getting one you can get her on! way to go man!

[Alecadi]

And what about the passport? Did you solve that problem yet? Or what?

[endoftheroad]

hahaha......your awesome Blackie!
Sleeping in a still and stuffy box inside a house sucks, it's for the retired.
Living in the elements keeps you connected and your senses sharp!

I just blasted past your boat, she looks happy.

endoftheroad