Eben, the title of your thread is a very provocative one. At least, I hope so, you just wanted provocate. Otherwise I'd have to see it as "negative stigmatisation".
Its a real nonsense if one would do the false assumption, that "living on land" is the right form, and "living on sea/sailing offshore" only can be interprated as "running away from the right form of living". That would be very silly same saying: All who live on land are cowards fearing the sea to be drowned and eaten by sharks or monster wales like Mobby Dick.
Why is it not a "running away" ?
We know, that 20% of all humans have so called "adventure gene" =
R7 (Rec.: The genetic variant is DRD4-7R.
D4 is the Dopamine receptor.).
Watch this video and you see, that the fashion industries, e.g. producing sailing gears are analysing the motives of buyers, e.g. in cities who like to wear "clothes of adventurers".
Automotive industries like Landrover brand is analysing such sciences, too for understanding the "habit of being an adventurer"...
New Discovery Sport Adventure Gene Test by Land Rover
We should be clear, that by
history of seafarers it was not a running away.... sail ships had a function, e.g. exploring new land, transporting goods (e.g. spices delivered by the East Indian Company to the consumers in Europe), slavery ships (transporting human flesh as
cheap workers to the
Carribean plantages), exploring ships (e.g. nowadays seen in Arctic regions) and battle ships for conquering or defending territories.
Many of the seafarers we know from our ancestors havent become sailors by free will. E.g. people had been driven by hunger and lack of
work to take a ship for emigrating (e.g. the
Irish arriving in New York in the 19th century).
Many of the simple sailors of low ranks who had no
school education had been been
shanghaied in the 18th/19th century being made drunken in a harbour bar, knocked down and found themselves waking up on high seas being misused over years to
work on wale ships or war ships. - We all know that Seamanship isnt as romantic as "land rats" like to think.
Okeys.. now we live in 21st century. Times have changed. We live in luxury times nowadays to have sports sailing, yacht
racing and cruising yachts made cheaply of plastic (epoxy glas fibre), either as
charter boats or as living on a
boat owners... and some few made it having earned enough
money (on land) to buy a
boat and decided for the right job (as freelancer) to be free living very individually their own life style, e.g. working as
software developer or translators on their yachts using
Internet and
Wifi.
On my own I can say for my self that comparing a land based land with a living on a boat (I know both styles)... is has some (+) and (-), as every coin has two sides.
Living on board means you have your own cosmos, following your own rules of traditionally seamanship. Simple rules to follow... like using daily a check list what to do and all the "donts" you avoid for safetyness. But same on yachts one has lots of bureaucracy to get the permits for staying for some weeks or months in foreign countries. Not only
funny to
cruise around.
For me living on a boat is "simplyfing my life". I dont get stressed with the burdons I have on a ship... while the "modern life" on land is full of garbage wasting lots of time for nothing good you see everyday stupidity around, from violence (within families/partnerships and between nations) to destroying the
environment (e.g. using huge energy ressources for nothing good), modern slavery misusing
cheap workers, corruption and betraying. Being animated daily by advertising to buy this, to be that, to do this can get on one nerves as its just to consume steadily. Very boring.
But truthfully to say, there are good people living on land, too. Being in harmony, doing ecologically farming, living together in a community or own
family avoiding to produce
lost of waste and try to handle their energy ressources well balanced. There exist some few attractive life styles on land, too.
For me living on a boat is "slow down the speed". It trains own senses, it let you live the moment of now, not forgetting to do a well pre-planning (e.g.
weather routing) for own safetyness. But its not overcomplicated... all the parameters are given since long. And its not too difficult to handle them so long one got a good education in sailing, yachting and skippering.
Sailing can teach a lot, about yourself, same as you can do rock climbing to learn about yourself or free
diving with sharks, or playing GO (eldest strategic board game). There are many ways to find yourself, sailing is just one form. - It let you be close to mother nature.... which can give me energy back. Why should I waste my time in a gym while I can train my physically strength steadily during handling a yacht ?
I dont think, one should go sailing because the motive is "running away". It would be something like "hiding from yourself". Not very healthy I would say. One should decide actively for something and not against something.
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