What Was Your Epiphany?

[Woodsong]

I don't post here a lot. However, I just took the time over the last day or so to read through this entire thread. Extremely refreshing and such interesting insight- thanks to everyone who replied!

We just got back from a 9 day vacation in FL. Wife and I have realized (well, been realizing is probably more accurate) that we're bored with suburban life, despite us being very, very blessed where we are. Life is too short to miss the magic. We'll see what life changes we may start planning for. I'd like to begin planning to sail around the world, wife is not so interested in that yet. Maybe we settle and do America's Great Loop for now and see what happens.

Thanks again for the inspiring thread.

[Islandmike]

Woodsong,
Go.....

[Arch Stanton]

Originally Posted by linnetwoods

I was born...

hahaha

I slid down dark tunnel and suddenly a man in a white jacket slapped me in the face. At that moment I started crying because I realized I was on the hard.

[Jmolan]

At 53 years of age, I had the light bulb come on when I read a report of how long executive men live after retirement. A study of Boeing retired executive put the average at 18 months after they leave the company. It was due to not having a life outside of work. They were so used to hitting the hard ball in business.
Well as long as I have a sailboat, I will always have something to do!

I know that probably sounds silly, but the truth is, my mind is always running over the next upgrade, next trip, next haul out etc. I love to be so involved in something so cool....

[Hudson Force]

I decided to live on a sailboat in 1959. I was "young & in manure" and would have guessed that an epiphany was some religious letter written to the Macedonians... I wasn't able to buy a liveaboard sailboat until 1971, but I've stayed aboard since then. We've owned nothing ashore, stored or on wheels, since 2002. 'enjoying the freedom, Aythya crew

[Tempest245]

Great Thread...wonderful stories! Thanks...

[DWT]

Sharing a Dream call Adventure:

: I was a young child, alone with my father in the car. We drove north to the west side of Cleveland Ohio, about a 40 mile trip from home. I remember asking where we were going and he said, ”just wait and you will see”. After more than an hour we drove up to a huge gray galvanized steel covered building. We parked the car and got out, walked up a set of stair that wound up one end of the building, six flights, a total of three stories. We climbed those stairs to a rusty old door that led into a small cluttered office with papers and books stacked everywhere. My father was greeted by a tired looking older man, his name long gone from my memory. He was the owner and looked somewhat tattered in his old work shirt. He shook hands with my father and said hello to me. I still did not know why we were there. We were led back thru this office with its heaps of paper to another old rusty door at the back of the office. After that squeaky door opened, what I saw next was absolutely amazing!
On the other side of that door to my right there was a walkway running the length of the building that looked endless. Remember we are 3 stories up and the inside of this building (seeing it from my eyes) that looked as big as today’s domed football stadiums. I remember looking straight down and seeing thru the steel mesh flooring and catching my breath as to how high we were. And then I looked over and down between the hand rail and was transfixed by what I saw. There before me was an assembly line of sailboats, three of them all of the same 30’size, all of them in a row, all in different stages of completion. Questions and amazement all at the same time filled my head. I remember saying to myself, “Is this how they build boats? Why are we here looking at boats?” I was having a hard time taking in all of what I was seeing. I remember this feeling of excitement as if it happened yesterday. The first boat was just a fiberglass hull standing upright (I know now the use of fiberglass was just getting started in the pleasure boat industry and this was cutting edge). My nose smelled the resin. The second boat had the interior being worked on and I remember looking straight down into it. All of the standing bulkheads were cut out and fitted in place, a settee and galley with a sink that was stainless steel shining bright. And the third boat, in the distance, was showing bright teak trim, with bronze hardware gleaming in the overhead lights, and the mast with standing rigging complete. The boat was finished, ready to get splashed. WOW! I started down the endless walkway with both hands clutching the railing to see the finished boat but my father called me back. He had to call me a second time to get me to stop and turn around. I am still wondering and dreaming of what it would have been like to go to the end of that walkway and see that finished boat more closely. My father talked with the owner for a few more minutes, and then we left. It was the most memorable time I spent with my father. We shared a dream called adventure.
Soon after that my father had all of the navigational charts of the Great Lakes and I spent hours dreaming of one of those assembly line boats going thru the markers, channels, and locks that were so colorfully illustrated. We never did do the adventure together. He got caught up in another one of his dreams. Now that my father is gone I am hoping to fulfill my part of that adventure and sail those markers, channels, and locks sometime soon. His charts of the Great Lakes are long gone but replaced with ones of the Gulf of Mexico, the east coast of the United States, and Bahamas for now and we’ll be sailing to them soon. Hopefully, in the near future, I’ll be looking at charts of the Mediterranean or the Panama Canal and beyond.
This is where it all began with me.

[svEmerald]

I'm new here, but I had to put in my 2c worth. My family are non-boaters, I never even stepped foot on a sailboat until I was in my mid 20's. That was when, in the middle of an Ontario winter, cold, bored and unhappy at work, I had the crazy idea of learning to sail. I did some research, went to the boat show. Before I even got near the water, I discovered a calling I hadn't even known I was missing. Then I discovered that some people actually lived on their boats and sailed to all sorts of places! Well, I don't remember an actual epiphanous moment (is epiphanous even a word??) but looking back, it was as if I suddenly had a name for what my heart had always been seeking, why I always seemed out of place, never able to focus. Now, 10 years later, I have the boat, and the 5 year escape plan, and a daughter to share it with (not part of the original plan, but an added bonus!) It still feels like simply fitting into something that was defined for me long before I even went looking... No wonder I never succeeded at 'normal' life...

[BadFish]

I also came from a non-boating fam. However, my fam were always huge "beach bums," and we'd take 2 or 3 vacations to the beach every year. This was my foundation. Life by the water, be it ocean, river, or lake, was relaxed, simple, and fun. I liked to let the sun warm me bones. I liked to fish. I liked the smell of suntan lotion.

Later: Got off active duty so I could go to college. Wanted a professional job and life in the suburbs, like my parents and grandparents before me. Plan was a wife, kids, dog, SUV, and a house with hardwood floors, etc. Only problem was that I've always been the rebel type, and failed miserably when trying to fit the "norms."

Graduated college with a B.A. in Econ, and an Associates in Buis (and a PHD in partying). Bought a suit, borrowed a tie, and started interviewing for jobs and looking for suburban housing.

Epiphany #1: "The Crap-Job Interview." I walk into a basement office of a rather large and successful corporation I will not name. A middle age, heavy-set woman greets me, and proceeds to interview me. Everything goes smashingly, my answers are outstandingly witty, and I keep flashing her my smile, which makes her blush because I am really rather good-looking. She tells me I am the most qualified candidate she has interviewed so far, and offers to show me around... To my disappointment, the rather large office has no windows. Employees here have bags under their eyes and disgruntled expressions in their faces. A "production line" of record and document reveiwing has been formed by the dismantling of cubicle walls. "This is where all the big shots get their start," she says. "A year and a half hear and you'll be on your way!" A YEAR AND A HALF, of basement offices, no windows, unsatisfying and boring work, and mediocre pay. F* this, and I do not return the phone call offering me the job.

I end up working civilian for the military, doing what I was trained to do by them, doing what I am good at, doing what I actually enjoyed, and getting paid pretty damn well for it. A buddy from work is an avid boater, owns four of 'em, and invited me down to his docks.

Epiphany #2: "The Docks." Upon arriving at my friends docks, I was greeted with a beer, warm humid breezes, sunlight shining off the water, a lineup of beautiful boats, and friendly fun-loving people. My dog came along too, and although I had taken him swimming and fishing before, I had never seen him have so much fun. Playing/running/swimming with the other dogs, chasing geese, retrieving sticks: how he did he not fall out from exhaustion? An overall wonderful day/evening. Life-changing. I met some people who "lived aboard" their boats. This was their everyday lives. What's more, they had cruised sections of the Great Loop, Bahamas, and Caribbean. They had seen places I've always wanted to go. The next day, after 5 tylenol and 1 Gatorade, I realized that this was the life I was meant to live. I wanted to be by the water every day. I was going to see far away places. And most importantly, I was going to get a suntan on parts of my body that have never seen the light.

So here I am today, happy, drinking, tanned in forsaken places, and wishing winter were over. I have a few more years of work till I have the funds necessary for an extended cruise (Ohio to Tenn-Tom to Keys to Flo E. Coast to Bahamas). But once warm weather hits, I am stupidly happy with wakin up on and coming home to the rivers of Da 'Burgh.

Sorry for the long and and sentimental post. That's not like me. I'm too badass for that.... Must be the cold weather and warm rum.

Hope you enjoy, if not, then you suck.

Cheers

Bill

[hpeer]

I've had a couple of epiphanies in life. The first was sudden. We had a particularly militaristic coach squad who were advocating injuring opposing players if possible. This bothered me. After not playing in my Sophomore year I had been selected to play on the Varsity squad that, our opening weekend. Sitting in last period 11th grade History class in 1967 I saw a progression of uniforms from Cub Scouts & Little League, to Boy Scouts, to high school sports, to the military, and on to the uniform of business suits. I went to practice and told them I quit. Period.


Being of a fortunate sort my father was a janitor at this same school and he was promptly summoned to find out what ailed this un-American son of his. While I don't recall the details it was not pretty. Dad did not hold with organized sports and said if I quit it was OK with him. No more said. I did pay a pretty high price in school though.


Not about sailing but an epiphany none the less.


My parents passed and left me with some inheritance. With half I bought a piece of land. With the rest I got the thought of buying a small day sailer. A Cape Dory Typhoon had caught my eye. As had Good Old Boat. Flipping through GOB I saw this sailboat. After much consternation (which is another story) I bought the boat. Now my Dad had, when I was younger, been a bayman in NJ. He went clamming every day until I was about 11. This was on 32-foot flat bottom open know locally as the Garvey. I spent a few years in small runabouts myself working at clamming during summer vacation and did a very small amount of coastal fishing and clamming in the ocean. I spent 4-years in the Coast Guard but on aircraft as a radioman. After one particular nasty night circling a dismasted sailboat I said I would “Never ever” be tempted to do that.


Essentially I had zero experience on sailboats. None the less I was smitten. After two four-hour lessons with the previous owner I took control of my own 33-foot steel cutter and headed out Shebourne harbour towards Cape Breton, alone. There was no hesitation in my mind. I knew I could do this. I knew I would make mistakes. It is not like I had confidence in myself, I did not. There was something in my soul. I've had her 4 summers. I've got about 2,500 miles experience. I've been to St. Pierre and around the Newfoundland Northern Peninsula and seen icebergs and Humpbacks breach and towns with 150 souls and no roads or cars and made three day passages (unplanned as it were.) I'm not “confident” nor without a great deal of humility toward the sea. But I'm OK.


Now land feels harsh, unmoving, especially the concrete city sidewalks. Something just feels “right” in mutual compliance of my boat and my body as they ever so slightly adjust to one another, snuggle.

[Sinuous]

Hmmm. Forced to go where we really wanted to go anyway, I'd say. Economy threw us in thet thar briar patch...

Well, when my wife and I married 17 years ago, we decided that upon retirement we would buy a boat, learn to sail, and go cruising. That goal, at the time, was some 30+ years away. But it was, and still is, our dream.

Last year, she got laid off, and has been working part-time for low wages and no bennies ever since. My salary ain't enough to live on alone in our current situation, and there are rumblings at the lab that there'll be layoffs soon for me as well.

Now, we're trying desperately to sell the nice whitebread suburbia house before it forecloses, and we had to have a major replanning session to decide what to do. We decided, Well, why not "retire" early? So, we spent the last several months researching, planning, investigating, window-shopping, lurking on forums like this one...and we decided to roll the dice and go for it.

So, we found a boat and bought it, free and clear, while we still could; it was the fourth one we looked at. Going to sell one car now, the other when we don't need it anymore--hopefully soon. So goodbye, huge 2100sf house with swimming pool and two-car garage and too much stuff, hello 33' sloop!

Basically, we're dropping out of the rat race as much as possible, trading down for a simpler life. Both of us can work, making enough money to maintain and "spruce up" the boat while we build the sailing and navigating skillsets.

So that's the epiphany. Early "retirement," not in quite the easy manner we'd planned, but hey, we're living the dream, and I'm even a bit thankful that hard times pushed us into it early.

[Charlie]

Originally Posted by Sinuous

Hmmm. Forced to go where we really wanted to go anyway, I'd say. Economy threw us in thet thar briar patch...

Well, when my wife and I married 17 years ago, we decided that upon retirement we would buy a boat, learn to sail, and go cruising. That goal, at the time, was some 30+ years away. But it was, and still is, our dream.

Last year, she got laid off, and has been working part-time for low wages and no bennies ever since. My salary ain't enough to live on alone in our current situation, and there are rumblings at the lab that there'll be layoffs soon for me as well.

Now, we're trying desperately to sell the nice whitebread suburbia house before it forecloses, and we had to have a major replanning session to decide what to do. We decided, Well, why not "retire" early? So, we spent the last several months researching, planning, investigating, window-shopping, lurking on forums like this one...and we decided to roll the dice and go for it.

So, we found a boat and bought it, free and clear, while we still could; it was the fourth one we looked at. Going to sell one car now, the other when we don't need it anymore--hopefully soon. So goodbye, huge 2100sf house with swimming pool and two-car garage and too much stuff, hello 33' sloop!

Basically, we're dropping out of the rat race as much as possible, trading down for a simpler life. Both of us can work, making enough money to maintain and "spruce up" the boat while we build the sailing and navigating skillsets.

So that's the epiphany. Early "retirement," not in quite the easy manner we'd planned, but hey, we're living the dream, and I'm even a bit thankful that hard times pushed us into it early.

I'm glad something good is coming out of this economic crisis!!!

[Jim Cate]

Hey, Sinuous,
Ann Cate (Insatiable II) here.
If, along with building your sailing and navigation skill sets, you and/or your wife also acquire your marine refrigeration and diesel mechanic "tickets", you'll be in demand throughout the
cruising fleet. Electronicking (sp?) tickets work, too. Most cruisers don't seem to learn about these aspects of cruising, before they leave, and wind up spending time and money in
marinas, when others are happpily at anchor. Free advice is worth what you pay for it, but IMO, cultivating an attitude of being creative about problem solving is a way, way good thing to do.

Ann Cate, s/v Insatiable II, lying Gladstone, Qld. Oz
Ann

[Sinuous]

Thanks, Ann!

I know electronics and engines--gas, not diesel, but I'll learn the differences quickly. I'm hoping the barter system is alive and well in the sailing community.

[TexSail]

Sinuous, I like your attitude. I wish you the best of luck.