The Philosophy Behind Sailing Simply and Cheaply

[susanna reiter]

Originally Posted by s/v Beth

What about scrapping a head and just using a bucket? Anybody doing that long term? And how about going without a frig and heater?

Now your slicing to the bone....

seriously, been there....makes one a bit more resourceful overall, NWS the other benefits.

[callmecrazy]

Originally Posted by Pelagic

Since this is a philosophical discussion, …….a challenge to the basic tenet of the belief that sailing can be inherently “simple”?

Compared to living on land with all the developed and supporting infrastructure around you, the act of moving your floating island around all the marine dynamics I spoke earlier about… is by comparison….. Quite complicated!

Regardless of your chosen standard or budget, you will need to plan, provision, monitor and execute… in essence…. manage your daily basic needs in a much more sophisticated and multifunctional way, than in any shore side community.

The perception by others that it can be simple, is false!

I think 'simple' is rarely 'easy'...

I compare (my ideal of) living on a sailboat with living in a remote part of the country. It's not 'easier' living, in fact its quite difficult by most standards. Hunting, fishing, farming, building, reparing, travelling for supplies, etc.. etc.. But the 'simplicity' comes from not having to rely on others, having what you need at hand, building something from nothing, and taking pleasure in whatever nature has to offer.

It's similar to the differences between mindless pacifying entertainment (like watching TV) vs. entertaining yourself with a walk in the park, or a ball of twine.... It's much easier to just watch TV... But it complicates your life in a general sense on an emotional/spiritual level.

I'm not sure how to explain how these things complicate our lives, But for some reason, I know it's true

On a boat, simplicity should come from the fact that you have to get up and take care of things every day. That you have to work a little harder to get your water and food. That you have to know a thing or two, to get from one place to another... etc..

I guess it's a zen thing. Focusing on the task at hand, because it's actually important, is 'simple', but not always so easy... While focusing on superficial entertainment, obtaining wealth, increasing possesions, etc.. is actually 'easier' (because it's more common and accessable), and yet more complicated.

[Pelagic]

Originally Posted by callmecrazy

I think 'simple' is rarely 'easy'...
.....I guess it's a zen thing. Focusing on the task at hand, because it's actually important, is 'simple', but not always so easy... While focusing on superficial entertainment, obtaining wealth, increasing possesions, etc.. is actually 'easier' (because it's more common and accessable), and yet more complicated.

That’s what makes life interesting…. balancing the spiritual with the practical in a way that gives us some inner peace.

Sailors have been known to “run away to Sea” … is that what we do to avoid temptation?...

[susanna reiter]

Originally Posted by callmecrazy

A wise person once said; If you want to go cruising (on a budget), stop thinking about what you need, and start thinking about what you don't need.

..consistent with thread..simply and succinctly said...!

[callmecrazy]

Originally Posted by Pelagic

That’s what makes life interesting…. balancing the spiritual with the practical in a way that gives us some inner peace.

Sailors have been known to “run away to Sea” … is that what we do to avoid temptation?...

Well, yes.

I'd quote the bible here, but I fear the ramifications

Put simply:
We're too weak to fight temptation, so we must avoid them if we wish to seek (insert religious experience here)

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by Pelagic

Compared to living on land with all the developed and supporting infrastructure around you, the act of moving your floating island around all the marine dynamics I spoke earlier about… is by comparison….. Quite complicated

I understand what you're saying Pelagic, but I think your conclusion depends on where you start your analysis. Our land-based lives are supported by a massive, and highly complex, infrastructure. And even the simplest homes (at least in North America) are far more elaborate than most boats (at least than my boat). So if you were to do some sort of full-cycle analysis, life on most of our boats is far less complex than life on land.

But I certainly agree that life afloat is not easy, compared to life on land. It's not easy, in large part, b/c we no longer have this massive infrastructure to support us. We have to do a lot more ourselves. This is exactly what attracts me to this life.

[Doodles]

Originally Posted by Pelagic

That’s what makes life interesting…. balancing the spiritual with the practical in a way that gives us some inner peace.

Sailors have been known to “run away to Sea” … is that what we do to avoid temptation?...

I really don't think you can do that though. Seems to me you take your personality and problems with you wherever you go, land or sea. If you gravitate toward a simple life you will find that on land as well as on the water, if you don't the water won't make life simple, in fact it will more likely frustrate you. People I have known that really lived the most simple have all lived on land.

I've always been attracted to the "philosophy" of the simple but don't live that way anymore than the average person. I thought at one time that living aboard would simplify my life but it didn't. Now its more about balance and what works for me and my resources.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by barnakiel

Fish we eat fresh. Some fall on the deck overnight and if I fail to spot them then that's it and we have them for breakfast.

Sometimes there are too dew too bother, or they are to small. These I just hang in the rigging and eat them a couple days later - dry.

Sure thing, the ones I do spot (or more likely at night - hear) I let them go.

b.

GROSS.....

[callmecrazy]

To quote a movie I'm about to watch for the third time... (Crosswinds):

"Unless a man wants to live on dried fish and coconuts, he has to run away from the world between jobs".

[barnakiel]

The guy who wrote that script did not sound like a lot of a sailor: dried fish and coconut???

This would be yuck!

Dried fish I can live on, but why mix it up with coconut?

OMG

b.

[s/v Beth]

Pelagic- don't confuse simple with lazy. When I am living on board I have things to do all day. My life is busy, but its not complicated. I don't have to worry about pink slime because I am not eating out, I don't worry about insurance for the car because I travel by boat, etc...
If I were to compare my life now (being a busy physician) and the one I experience on board, there is no comparison. My life on the water is much simpler. But if I were to compare my life when I used to sit on a mesa and watch the sun rise before I collected roots and berries, you win. As Mike pointed out, however being away and cruising allows for an emotionally simpler life, and the boat can be modified to where it is pretty easy to take care of.
BTW Barnakiel- have you dried a large fish on deck and used it later? How was it?

[atoll]

i have spent many hours sittin here pondering the philisophical aspects of sailing,watching the aries steer the boat .....................

[s/v Beth]

That water makes me want to get up and leave for the Caribbean right now!

[Blue Crab]

That's a real Airhead, atoll.

US watercops might give you trouble.

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by Pelagic

That’s what makes life interesting…. balancing the spiritual with the practical in a way that gives us some inner peace.

Sailors have been known to “run away to Sea” … is that what we do to avoid temptation?...

One of the principles that is driving me to "run away to the sea" is the idea of cessation. I want to stop contributing to systems and actions that I don't support. I don't have the personal fortitude to not be part of the problem (as I define the problem) while living here in a rich, northern country. The seductions are too strong, but more than that, the systems around me make it virtual impossible to not be part of it all. So I am choosing to stop.

I could chose to be an activist, and to try and change the world, but that takes too much effort and energy, and like Newt, I'm just too lazy (must know thyself ). So I choose not to participate -- to actively ceased. Much like the power of the consumer to change practice by not buying something, I am choosing not to participate in things I find objectionable.

So ya, I am running away to the sea.

(And yes, I'm a terrible hypocrite b/c I can't ceased completely ... I know.)