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Old 13-06-2020, 05:53   #1
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2. Selling up to Sail off

Hi I'm new here. My name's Pete.



My plan for a number of years has been to sell up and sail off, on my modest and quite old catamaran. The boat is a 1972 30ft Aristocat (predecessor to the Gemini). Beyond that I don't have a destination but, as a design engineer (early retired), I hoped to find a purpose in life, or at least one for my senior years, in using my profession skills, talent and hands-on experience to help others (possibly third world communities). Before I go though I’d like to go around Britain and to see the country ..because very likely I’ll not be coming back.

The reality in taking the plan into reality proves to be somewhat different to the ideal. In the first instance I, like a lot of us here, don’t have a partner, let alone one who shares the grand vision. And that means motivation always has to come from within. Self motivation is one thing, which may be sustained for a month, a year or two, or perhaps 5 years according to the scale and interest of the project, but here we’re talking about maintaining perpetual motion ..in the same direction, when things get held up or delayed for months (like injury or annual weather) or years at a time (everyday life circumstances like finances or virus). Then the mind gets distracted and there’s no-one to help you get back on track, and the quality-of-life reasoning for wanting to drop out and live the dream become almost void ..because even great experiences soon become hollow when you are alone.

In my own case, I have just one friend, Steve, who was trying to do much the same, but he was (relatively) wealthy and had a bigger boat, so many of the things he had to deal with were in the first instance resolved by spending another couple of thousand pounds. Oddly his greatest frustrations seem to be in the job done or the product bought was really not as good as he had expected, so they then had to be reworked or sent back. Unfortunately his long term girlfriend realized that she was fine with being a school teacher and being there for her family ..and that the prospect of living with Steve in a cramped, damp and often cold boat, going places where she would always be out of her comfort zone, was not for her. She gracefully declined but retained the close friendship ..so he doesn’t feel free to date other ladies who might want to sail off into the blue yonder. He’s now in limbo, doesn’t want to do it on his own, nor does he want to go back to a ‘normal’ dull on-shore lifestyle with no prospect but to get old and bored &/or drunk and disgruntled.

Over the years, I’ve enjoyed friendships through other keen interests such as a vintage motorcycles (a number of mine were also assets / a form of savings account) and classic cars. I would love to live on a boat and to have an old but interesting car to use as a daily driver and for touring across country ..inland of wherever the boat is moored. I’ve tried to work towards this but in the first instance I bought a beautiful classic Jaguar that was really beyond my means. I then tried a couple of other interesting classic cars (a Scimitar and then a Citroen) but found those to be less useful than I had anticipated. Most recently I tried to buy an old Triumph sports car, which I had plans to convert to a shooting-brake (estate sports car). I am a design engineer with a lot of hands-on experience - so such a conversion is not particularly difficult for me. However the car I was trying to buy never came to fruition after the seller inadvertently mucked me about for a year.

What’s this got to do with selling up and sailing away, well a lot really. In the first instance I recognized that I want and am working to refit my a boat as a sailing cottage, rather than as a deep water ocean rolling survival cocoon. Secondly I have other interests and friends that I really don’t want to discard and walk away from. And thirdly because my home is full of other stuff, books, lifestyle and nostalgia that I equally don’t want to just discard and walk away from.

For the past 16 years I’ve been living in an old and rather run down but beautifully located farmhouse. With old cars and motorcycles I have a garage and a shed full of tools n’ bits and a home full of books and other things which make this my home. Over those past sixteen years my parents have passed on as has a very close aunt, so much of what I have inherited is a comfortable memory of a loving family life.
However.., and in my life there always seems to be a however, Two weeks ago my landlady gave me the legal-minimum notice to vacate. It was totally unexpected, and the gravity of it strikes home when you look around every room in the house and into every drawer, cupboard, or shelf. And then again those places on top of and underneath that still more ‘stuff’ is tucked away in. That was bad enough, but the reality sets in though when you’re being told to leave during something like the coronavirus pandemic.

To be honest I don’t even want to go into the grocery store, so to go collecting cardboard boxes, and to be pushed into viewing other people’s homes ..with the possibility of my moving into a house share ..well how does that work ? I know the charity shops are closed at the moment and even the council recycling tip is on an scheduled appointment slot basis only, so do I have to burn clothes, magazines and a pile of furniture that I can’t take with me.?

Social distancing essentially means that I really ought not to ask a friend or two to come around and help me move. And hang on Pete ..you’re also on the waiting list for a hernia operation. Lifting heavy boxes and furniture might be considered pretty foolhardy if not dangerous.
OK now I’m getting concerned. It’s not helped by the fact that they want me and my neighbour out so the brother can knock our two homes (yes, after 16 and 32 years respectively these are ‘homes’ and not just rental properties) into one for himself. So why the urgency when he already lives in the beautiful barn conversion just a mile down the lane ? Clearly it’s not a matter of a financial need ? Ah ha, the accompanying letter (to the correct & legal notice to vacate) tells us he has a ‘yearning’ to live here. OK. whatever.

I loathe the selfishness of the human race..

My response was to write a letter to say OK I accept that I must leave, but also how disappointed I was, and how I considered it unfair to give jus 90 days notice. I tried explain some of the ramifications of telling an old guy to go rental-house hunting and move out during a pandemic, that it’s not a good time to sell stuff or even to give it away, and of course I mentioned the medical predicament. I appealed to the family farm owners to let me wait until after the state of emergency.

The appeal was received and considered with expressed empathy but the notice remains in place, along with its legal footing. However, depending on circumstance ..and the effort I’m seen to be making - I might expect some flexibility on the final get-out-by date.

Jeez thanks.., I now have a date together with a touch of uncertainty.


Anyway I’m drifting off the topic.. I’m here to write about Stage 2. I have a boat but it’s work-in-progress ..a year of focused and often hard work ought to see her ready to go. Unfortunately, no I can’t go an live on it now because the marina won’t allow that during the corona crisis ..and anyway the boat has to be in the marina and not on the hard ..and presently they have no berths available.

So., Stage 1. was to get the boat ready

And., Stage 2. is to Sell up ready Sail off

So faced with : If you can’t take it with you, and yet it’s yours, you paid good money for it ..and it’s too good to throw away…
Most of this home’s furniture along with piles of other stuff I have will have to be discarded or given away. And whatever I can needs to be sold because that’s just part of financial reality. But I have garage full of tools and I still hope to keep one bike. So, I’ll need to pay for storage. My, perhaps naïve, viewpoint is - just because I live on a boat doesn’t mean all other interests have to stop, which it seems to be the case with many who choose a liveaboard life (..and perhaps why so many end up living alone).

Commercial storage facilities really work out expensive and so I’ll need to balance what’s the value of what I want to keep, versus what it’ll cost to store it for perhaps five years.? A less expensive option (in the long term), if I can find somewhere secure to park it cheaply, is to buy a container. A generally waterproof (by not condensation proof) 20ft storage container is anywhere between £1000 (for a rough one) to £1500. + let’s say £200 for delivery. However a one-trip 20ft comes with a 4 or 5 year plate starts of around about £2400.

Btw., a container’s plate is like a vehicle inspection, to say to the shipping company that it is structurally safe to lift & to secure onto a ship (none of us want our container’s doors to burst open or a crane’s attachment point to break and hurt someone). The advantage is that if I sail off and find some other country I’d like to settle in then (within 4 or 5 years) I can have the container picked up and shipped there. If it is not plated then it can still be transported by lorry, but if the distance is great or the continent is another then the options are limited.

Again, sentiment aside, the value of what one wants to keep might be considered against this purchase costs, even modest costs from where it is kept, and the thereafter handling costs to a port & its shipping to another country or continent. Over 5 years and 3000 miles this is likely to cost £5 -10,000 ! So then the decision comes back around to getting rid of stuff, and not keeping anything but necessary tools & materials, and whatever one can whittle personal and household stuff down to.

What other options do I have ?
The obvious is to put some stuff in someone else’s loft or garage loft. This is worthwhile option especially for smaller generally stuff that might be susceptible to moisture from condensation damage ..like some fabrics, rare books, important papers, or a stamp collection ..but don’t forget mice nest in lofts. And getting stuff up into a loft is via a small hatch, and the boxes cannot be that heavy.

I no longer have a family to be able to put stuff in their loft, and of my best friends ; Steve already lives on his boat ..although he’s now not planning to go anywhere, and the other tells me he has no space ..thanks Chris ! I do have the prospect of another loft space (to a very small house) that I might put some stuff in - but that’s an 8-hour round trip away, and I wouldn’t wish to impose upon that family during the corona-virus.

I still haven't yet got my head around getting rid of all the stuff I’ve had for years or have inherited. I’ve made a start though.. I’ve just sold a collection of 4-500 VHS tapes + two players, on ebay for just £40. Still that’s better than dragging those off to a landfill. I also have one of my vintage motorcycles for sale (..although its not a good time to sell) and I’m now sorting other stuff to try and sell it. I have a couple of months to get what I can. Some things will take too long to list individually, and the value of it versus the amount of time in listing, wrapping and taking it for postage isn’t worth it, so for example a collection of 500 postage first-day-covers (..collected over 30 years !) might be offered as lots or perhaps more likely will go to charity.

It does bring home just how bewildering our buying pattern has been during this past lifetime, for example yesterday I was sorting out and photographing (for valuation) inherited jewellery, watches, coins. I know what prices were paid for certain items and might only guess they are worth next to nothing now. As someone who wears no jewellery or watch at all, I wonder how for generations did we all become so suckered into buying stuff that glitters ? ..and why is that I value 11/6d in old pennies more than all of that jewellery ? Sentiment is a weird thing.

I have a thought to explore ..regarding the vintage motorcycle I want to keep & possibly a recently restored Triumph TR4 engine, might go on loan to a museum. That ought to keep them safe, while for the next five to ten years I go off-grid and live on the boat, and so now I struggle with having to dump my old boat, old motorcycle and old car magazines and books.? What is this turmoil in my mind ? or is it my soul ?? What will I regret most in a few years time, particularly if things don’t work out with my living ‘alone’ on a small boat. ?

Whatever it is I now have just ten weeks to sort it out and make it happen. I had a good day yesterday with recycling plastics and magazines, and then also a big bonfire. I did this as much as anything for its psychological statement “face it Pete ..it’s got to happen and see that blank wall, the empty spaces on those shelves.. well that’s just the start”.

It’s a long and difficult journey, and that's just from house to the boat.

Stay safe, Pete.
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Old 21-06-2020, 07:35   #2
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Re: 2. Selling up to Sail off

I've faced this sort of scenario a couple of times, when I've decided to go off and pursue my next adventure.

Firstly, check that the notice you've been given to quit the rental property is correct. I was under the impression in the UK that it had been pushed out to a minimum of 6 months rather than the usual 3. That said, if the owners want the property back, then ultimately you'll need to leave. The joys of renting unfortunately.

As for all your possessions...? Well, it looks like you've covered a lot of the bases already in what your options might be. You either need to pay for storage or find someone with a bit of land that you can plunk a container on. Or, get yourself into the mindset of the fact that it's all just "stuff", and let go. Frankly, that's what I found to be the most cathartic part of the process, but it may not be for you! I live on a 30 footer and have all that I "need" on her. That said, I do pay for a small 25 square foot storage space, but that's for tools I need for my trade and other assorted stuff that I really need to move on. It's not a horrendous cost (about 40 quid a month), but ultimately when I decide to push off on more prolonged adventures, I will need to get rid of most of that too (except the tools as I can use them to earn with, but the big tool chests will go).

I too am solo. It's a difficult thing to find a partner that wants the type of lifestyle I have. I'm ok with that, and if the right person comes along, then great, but if not, then I'll work with what I've got. I'm ok in my own company, but sure it would be great to have someone to share things with, but there's a world of difference between someone who just goes down to their boat at the weekends in summer and does a bit of day sailing, to someone who lives aboard during winter in the UK and heads off for a month at a time.

I think you need to decide what your priorities are going to be, moving forward. Pottering around the coast of the UK is great, but you can't exactly drag all that "stuff" with you and if you don't, you will spend time worrying about it. Personally, I just find the more I have, the more it weighs me down.
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Old 21-06-2020, 08:19   #3
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Re: 2. Selling up to Sail off

Hi,

I can only tell you how we did it. Our move was from an apartment in one country to a boat in another.

1) We sold everything we could, we took the cash (cash is easier to keep than a container full of stuff),

2) We gave away what we could not sell.

3) We kept a small number of items of sentimental value: photographs, our love affair mathoms, etc. - we placed these in a number of boxes and stored them with one of the family.

4) What was of use in the boat (some pans and utensils, some clothing, tools, camping stuff) we packed in a van that drove us to the boat.


5) We did not fix the boat (we got a boat to sail, not to fix things), we got the boat ready and sailed away. It took some 2 months of work.



6) As we moved on (in small short day trips), we discovered what needed to get done and what was just an illusion. Sorting out the important from the assumed important is only possible while slowly building miles and experience.


No big jumps before small ones have been mastered.



Imho sailing around UK is difficult (we sailed from Inverness to Ireland), and one ends up locked up there for another season. If your aim is to help remote communities with your skills, you need to get to those communities. This means getting on the boat and sailing away.



Attachment hurts. Confirmed in basic sayings from Mao to Ophra's. We are human and there is not much we can do about it. It will hurt. Every day less.



Too bad if your boat is not ready to go. In this case you may consider placing 80% of your effort in finding a place to be on land for another 12 months or so. If you are then close to the boat, you can get the boat ready.



Keep heart. On boat or on land, the point is to do what you love and get fun (motivation, inspiration, kicks, you name it) doing it. And then to find more inspiration when the old one expires.


I like one saying that goes "Inside every difficulty lies opportunity'. It may sound brutal but over years I found it a very accurate prognosis of how my fate plays out.


You are not as alone as you fancy. Others are out here and we were where you are now. Both in sailing and in land life terms. You have Steve but you have also this huge diaspora of dreamers, vagabonds, sailors, entrepreneurs, philosophers, poets, lovers and retirees.


Take care, stay safe. You will make it.


barnakiel
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Old 21-06-2020, 08:20   #4
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Re: 2. Selling up to Sail off

It’s tough, Many things I sold or really sold what I could, gave away what I could and threw away a lot.
But the “stuff” we just couldn’t bring ourselves to throw away we have in storage, and yes it’s expensive, and most probably we will end up throwing a lot of it away, I know this intellectually, but couldn’t face the Wife as I threw away her inherited things she wants to keep but has no use for.
Most anything you have stored that’s not stored in a climate controlled setting will deteriorate into junk, and climate controlled is expensive.
I kept an old airplane, more of an antique really, but it’s likely what I will get back to after sailing ends, I figure there will be a life after cruising, and I need to plan for it.
I sold the bikes, something I shouldn’t have done, but did.

But it all really comes down to what you can afford, it’s not what you should do or whatever, it’s what you can do.

I believe if I were in your shoes, I’d sell what can be sold, a surprising amount can’t, give away what can be given away, A surprising amount no one will want, store anything you can for free, the inherited jewelry etc that takes up almost no room, and I’m afraid junk the rest.

Then I assume your not a wealthy man, so I’d try to head for a warmer clime, one that you can live cheaply wherever that is.

In fact I’d contact a member we have who is called “boatman”. He would probably be a wealth of helpful information for you, people like me that aren’t Brits, well we may be well meaning, but I doubt we could possibly really know what we are talking about.

More I think about it, Boatie would probably be a much better resource, and I bet he may tell you that leaving England behind may be your best bet, or maybe not.
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Old 21-06-2020, 08:27   #5
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Re: 2. Selling up to Sail off

See if this gets you to Phil’s public profile
https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...n61-31807.html
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Old 23-06-2020, 09:04   #6
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Re: 2. Selling up to Sail off

Thanks barnakiel and a64pilot, you've both made some very valid and thought provoking comments, and your support at this time is a kindness when much the world around me seems determined to be the direct opposite.

My plan of attack is to sell whatever I can for this first (of 3-month notice period) months. At the same time I'm sorting and discarding stuff that I know will be relatively easy (I guess that is emotionally) to let go of.

Attachment to some things have surprised me though, for example the other day I (recycle) binned a lifelong collection of prior employer references and career history. At 63 years old I recognize that I'll not call on them again, but just binning those was like discarding those companies, those colleagues and that experience. And when one has no partner nor family it's a statement "no use to anyone now".

Although it must sound like dribble - it conflicts with the very real human condition to be needed and a personal trait to always be useful. I recognised the same in my mother, after my father died after five years of cancer. I think I was able at that time to give her a purpose, and in time I'm sure I will find my own ..but for the time being it seem a hemisphere away.

On top of what's got to be done, this past couple of week has been incredibly frustrating. My most valuable asset (to sell) is a very rare-condition early S7 Sunbeam motorcycle. I put it back on the market (it was very briefly beforehand but then the pandemic..) and someone seemed very interested in buying her, but the dynamo I'd just had rewound still didn't work. It's been back four times and is now off again to get it fixed. But of course I don't know if that prospective buyer will still be interested after a month of looking at what else might catch his fancy..

I've also sorted and then asked specialist for advice on selling a stamp collection ..35 years of first-day-covers and a whole lot of British colony school-boy stamps - no reply. Similarly inherited jewellery and a solitaire engagement ring - no reply from an auction house valuation. Similarly from selling things on ebay ..sold (very cheaply but better than nothing) - not paid ..and now no reply.

Anyway I'm sure you've all been there before..

I did start along the route of thinking further about the value of buying a one-trip container versus what I had. I realised one day that when someone dies - it's commonplace to just get a house clearance company to deal with it. I looked on line and found a couple of charities which do it too. They clear the house, sell through their charity shops what they can, and do their best to recycle anything else. And then there's no "guilt feeling" of throwing good things and inherited stuff away - if it is going to a good cause. Brilliant

But then I started listing what I might need if a.) I don't get on with living aboard or b.) in ten years time when I'm in my 70's and looking for a little cottage to rest my weary bones in. It's not the value of what you have, but its replacement value when you step back into an ashore lifestyle again.

Just the tools in the garage (from classic motorcycle and car restoration) include some pretty expensive stuff and then some... A decent mig-welder, bench polisher, pedestal drill, parts cleaner, air tools, electric power tools, spanners and screwdrivers of all sorts, tool chests, drawers of Whitworth, BSF and UNC fastenings, electrical kit, Vintage motorcycle spare parts. reference books, manuals and files of notes and contacts, a collection of metal panel working hand tools, motorcycle lift, engine stand, trolley jacks.. wow I could go on and on. Individually most are easily replaceable, but the cost very quickly adds up.

And then around the home and garden shed.. sure some of it is worthless but similar 'junk' which is actually quite necessary in and around any home costs good money to replace with new. Just look at your house insurance valuation. And even if it a tenth of the storage space was a tenth of the price of a 20ft container - it still doesn't work because some of the things most economical to keep are BIG.

And so having swung to getting rid of everything and having a refreshing new start, I'm back to thinking ten years down the line I'm going to want that ..and that ...and that. So I will need a container after all.

"it all really comes down to what you can afford, it’s not what you should do or whatever, it’s what you can do." can I afford to keep a container full of stuff, or can I afford to buy that stuff's replacement.?

Oh boy, its no wonder I'm all wound up.

I do however wish the charity shops were open though ..so I might at least start getting bags of stuff - GONE !

There is good news though ..and that is, on a good day, I'm actually pleased and almost excited in being pushed to move on. I've had the dream of living on a boat for many years, free to travel wherever, and to see fantastic places, to enjoy the experience of diverse cultures, and to end up doing kindly deeds and helping others, and possibly even to meet someone along the way to share such a lifestyle..

So I'll end here on that happy note.. Anxiety is in not knowing where things are going and the frustration is in things not falling into place. But in a year's time it will be resolved ..one way or the other

Thanks gents, Pete.
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Old 23-06-2020, 09:30   #7
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Re: 2. Selling up to Sail off

Thanks barnakiel and a64pilot, you've both made some very valid and thought provoking comments, and your support at this time is a kindness when much the world around me seems determined to be the direct opposite.

My plan of attack is to sell whatever I can for this first (of 3-month notice period) months. At the same time I'm sorting and discarding stuff that I know will be relatively easy (I guess that is emotionally) to let go of.

Attachment to some things have surprised me though, for example the other day I (recycle) binned a lifelong collection of prior employer references and career history. At 63 years old I recognize that I'll not call on them again, but just binning those was like discarding those companies, those colleagues and that experience. And when one has no partner nor family it's a statement "no use to anyone now".

Although it must sound like dribble - it conflicts with the very real human condition to be needed and a personal trait to always be useful. I recognised the same in my mother, after my father died after five years of cancer. I think I was able at that time to give her a purpose, and in time I'm sure I will find my own ..but for the time being it seem a hemisphere away.

On top of what's got to be done, this past couple of week has been incredibly frustrating. My most valuable asset (to sell) is a very rare-condition early S7 Sunbeam motorcycle. I put it back on the market (it was very briefly beforehand but then the pandemic..) and someone seemed very interested in buying her, but the dynamo I'd just had rewound still didn't work. It's been back four times and is now off again to get it fixed. But of course I don't know if that prospective buyer will still be interested after a month of looking at what else might catch his fancy..

I've also sorted and then asked specialist for advice on selling a stamp collection ..35 years of first-day-covers and a whole lot of British colony school-boy stamps - no reply. Similarly inherited jewellery and a solitaire engagement ring - no reply from an auction house valuation. Similarly from selling things on ebay ..sold (very cheaply but better than nothing) - not paid ..and now no reply.

Anyway I'm sure you've all been there before..

I did start along the route of thinking further about the value of buying a one-trip container versus what I had. I realised one day that when someone dies - it's commonplace to just get a house clearance company to deal with it. I looked on line and found a couple of charities which do it too. They clear the house, sell through their charity shops what they can, and do their best to recycle anything else. And if it is going to a good cause - then there's no "guilt feeling" of throwing good things and inherited stuff away. Brilliant

But then I started listing what I might need if a.) I don't get on with living aboard or b.) in ten years time when I'm in my 70's and looking for a little cottage to rest my weary bones in. It's not the value of what you have, but its replacement value when you step back into an ashore lifestyle again.

Just the tools in the garage (from classic motorcycle and car restoration) include some pretty expensive stuff and then some... A decent mig-welder, bench polisher, pedestal drill, parts cleaner, air tools, electric power tools, spanners and screwdrivers of all sorts, tool chests, drawers of Whitworth, BSF and UNC fastenings, electrical kit, Vintage motorcycle spare parts. reference books, manuals and files of notes and contacts, a collection of metal panel working hand tools, motorcycle lift, engine stand, trolley jacks.. wow I could go on and on. Individually most are easily replaceable, but the cost very quickly adds up.

And then around the home and garden shed.. sure some of it is worthless but similar 'junk' which is actually quite necessary in and around any home costs good money to replace with new. Just look at your house insurance valuation. And even if it a tenth of the storage space was a tenth of the price of a 20ft container - it still doesn't work because some of the things most economical to keep are BIG.

And so having swung to getting rid of everything and having a refreshing new start, I'm back to thinking ten years down the line I'm going to want that ..and that ...and that. So I will need a container after all.

"it all really comes down to what you can afford, it’s not what you should do or whatever, it’s what you can do." can I afford to keep a container full of stuff, or can I afford to buy that stuff's replacement.?

Oh boy, its no wonder I'm all wound up.

I do however wish the charity shops were open though ..so I might at least start getting bags of stuff - GONE !

There is good news though ..and that is, on a good day, I'm actually pleased and almost excited in being pushed to move on. I've had the dream of living on a boat for many years, free to travel wherever, and to see fantastic places, to enjoy the experience of diverse cultures, and to end up doing kindly deeds and helping others, and possibly even to meet someone along the way to share such a lifestyle..

So I'll end here on that happy note.. Anxiety is in not knowing where things are going and the frustration is in things not falling into place. But in a year's time it will be resolved ..one way or the other

Thanks gents, Pete.
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Old 23-06-2020, 12:48   #8
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Re: 2. Selling up to Sail off

Hello Pete,

I found myself in a similar situation. My wife and I decided to retire early, sell our house and move to Colombia. I had collected a barn full of tools, cars, motorcycles that were not going to fit in my suitcase or back pack.

I started selling the high value stuff first. I soon found that the value I put on an item was not what others were willing to pay. The frustration and time it took to deal with people who just wanted something for nothing was too much. In the end I gave away most of those items to friends and eventually anyone willing to haul it away for free. This helped me feel better during a very stressful time. What I could not part with, I put in one suitcase and left it at a friends house.

In a few years, if it doesńt work out on your boat at least you wońt have to deal with all your old stuff. Plus you will have lived your dream instead of just thinking about it. After a year of back packing through South America, I know it´s not for me. Í have decide that I, like you, want to live aboard a boat. It will be much easier because I dońt have to clear out a house or a storage unit of old stuff.

Good Luck Sir!
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Old 24-06-2020, 02:22   #9
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Re: 2. Selling up to Sail off

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bucho View Post
Hello Pete,

I found myself in a similar situation. My wife and I decided to retire early, sell our house and move to Colombia. I had collected a barn full of tools, cars, motorcycles that were not going to fit in my suitcase or back pack.

.. In a few years, if it doesńt work out on your boat at least you wońt have to deal with all your old stuff. Plus you will have lived your dream instead of just thinking about it. After a year of back packing through South America, I know it´s not for me. I have decide that I, like you, want to live aboard a boat. It will be much easier because I dońt have to clear out a house or a storage unit of old stuff.

Good Luck Sir!
Thanks Bucho, Seems like your and your wife's move was particularly drastic, I'd be very interested to hear her perspective on the experience. I do however note that after the first mention you thereafter write in singular. Non of our business but I do hope the marriage survived.

I've read a number of 'cruising couple' sail-away books written by the lady - to learn of their perspective, as well as 'Changing Course - a woman's guide to choosing the cruising life' by Debra Ann Cantrell - which admittedly I bought in the hope that I might then be particularly considerate and understanding to any lady who might possibly consider joining me in this lifestyle.

Reading those books (several times over) certainly gave me an outline of their challenges and how a woman (not used to life aboard) might cope, and how I might better support her with those anxieties and needs, but non really conveyed the depth of emotional attachment some of us have towards our own history and the part n' parcel things of our present lives. Admittedly even what I've written (above) is tempered by my trying to rationalize, be logical, and to 'sensibly' balance the budgetary arguments.

Those authors also make little mention of the pressure of deadlines, nor doing such a thing on their own. Most seem to have stored their personal and land based stuff with their parents, or in a locked-away part of their own home (which is otherwise let out).

Oddly perhaps., there was also little in regard to the minimum 'specification' she might expect. I was recently in correspondence with a lady whose was persuasively talking about dive tanks and a compressor, about self-sufficiency in water makers, and about a fridge freezer. That of course doesn't tell even half of the story, but they did give an indication of her expectations versus what was actually practical within a budget 30ft catamaran ..not connected to shore power 90% of the time.

Seemingly her experience of day sailing in a US bay, &/or on twice-as-large charter boats with Captain and Chef, already moored in idyllic tropical islands, gave her no idea of a liveaboard life.

re. your now wanting to live on a boat, might I recommend a modestly sized catamaran if only for its shoal draft, size of cockpit, and beam stability. They don't have the load carrying volume of a great white whale ..but then you've already downsized into a backpack so you'll have oodles of space. For the uninitiated their beam might seem daunting, but believe me they are easy to live with on a daily basis and although not designed to barrel rolling in the southern oceans they are fine for coastal hoping around most of the world.

Getting rid of things like your motorcycles & cars, I guess all comes down to how easily they might be replaceable. Like many in the classic car world I have personal experience of selling a vehicle because of immediate needs, only to find that five years later they have become collectors works valued at ten times (literally) what we sold it for. I could never afford to buy and own that classic car or motorcycle again. And so there's regret

Actually that's something I ought to figure into my budgetary argument.. inflation and the appreciation in value of collector's items.

Thanks to all for your thoughts, I look forward to furthering the conversation. It is helpful. Cheers, Pete.
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Old 24-06-2020, 18:54   #10
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Re: 2. Selling up to Sail off

Pete,

I’ll stay in the plural this time so you know my wife and I are still together. The move may seem drastic but we had a goal in mind that required that kind of action. I am lucky in that my wife was the one who suggested we try the live aboard lifestyle. We each have our requirements for what would make living aboard an exciting as well as comfortable life for both of us. She needs a catamaran, water maker and paddle board. I am a PADI dive master so I need a scuba compressor, good dingy and would like a great solar system. If you want a lady to accompany you then you have to make the adventure attractive. I think there is a lot more to the live aboard lifestyle than just sailing. We have decided a 37’ Prout Snowgoose will suit us perfectly. Now we are actively searching for one and hope to start our adventure in the Caribbean.
Stay focused and ask yourself “what is my goal?” and see if your attachment to an old bike or welder is going to help or hinder achieving that goal. In 5 years you’ll be 68. Would you rather have that garage full of old stuff or 5 years of great sailing?
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Old 25-06-2020, 02:59   #11
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Re: 2. Selling up to Sail off

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Originally Posted by Bucho View Post
Stay focused and ask yourself “what is my goal?” and see if your attachment to an old bike or welder is going to help or hinder achieving that goal. In 5 years you’ll be 68. Would you rather have that garage full of old stuff or 5 years of great sailing?
Very valid point ..I want both !

..but seriously., a matter for me to consider - Thanks.
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