Yesterday was my 43rd day of Laser sailing in 2013.
In some ways it was nothing unusual or spectacular. I launched from Fogland Beach on the Sakonnet River and sailed upwind to the south for a couple of miles or so, to the point where Indian Avenue starts on the Portsmouth side of the river. Then I sailed downwind back to my starting point.
But it was about as perfect a sail as I could ever wish for. Enjoying the quiet and solitude and relatively rural surroundings of the Sakonnet. Seeing an occasional yacht or two but otherwise pretty much having the river to myself. Beautiful warm sunny afternoon. I am so lucky that I live in a place where I can enjoy an afternoon like that. And that I still am fit and able to sail a Laser whenever I want.
When we moved to Rhode Island I don't think I had quite realized that I would be spending summer afternoons in this way.
We moved to be closer to our eldest son and his family. We didn't know that our younger son would settle in New England too and that a few years later we would have four grandchildren, and that we would be able to spend so much time with them.
I wanted to be near Newport so that I could race in the Laser frostbite fleet there. And I have sailed with that fleet, but not as much as I expected.
I knew there were plenty of Laser regattas around southern New England. And some years I have sailed in a lot of regattas, but I feel that my appetite for competitive Laser racing every weekend is waning as I get older.
These days I mainly get my sailing kicks from solitary afternoons in various scenic corners of the bays. Some days I tell myself I am "training". Working on improving my sailing skills. More and more I do it for the simple pleasure of being close to nature, enjoying the sky and the wind and the scenery and the waves... and the solitude.
Mostly the solitude.
9 comments:
Excellent post - spot on.
Only negative part is that 43 picture this year is not the same quality as last year.
Yes, it is a little out of focus, isn't it. Perhaps the photographer had imbibed too much Cuarenta y Tres?
Mojo will not be happy. I envy your convenient access to the water and opportunities to sail in solitude. It seems to have worked out even better than you'd imagined. You deserve it.
Why wil Mojo not be happy? Doesn't he like Licor 43?
The story behind Licor 43 dates back to the time of the Romans. After having conquered the city of Quart Hadas, they discovered liquor made from a combination of citrus fruits and aromatic plants. This drink’s popularity soon traversed the leadership hierarchy of the Roman Empire. This popularity has continued to present day culture. Made of a mix of citrus and orange blossom flavors with a subtle vanilla tone, a sip of Licor 43 is marketed as “conjuring a feeling of a summer”.
Licor 43 also known as "Cuarenta Y Tres" is 31%abv / 62 proof and is a light bodied, sweet liqueur. In color it is yellow tinged with a touch of gold. The aroma is sharp, warm, and complex, with vanilla up front; and then tangy sweet fruit, spices, and an aged rum like presence. The flavor is similar to the aroma; vanilla, complex intermixed spices, tangy fruits, and hints of citrus, carried by a flavor similar to fine aged rum.
Sounds lovely, but he prefers wine and the young lady with the Polamalu jersey.
That picture was taken years ago. She's probably got 5 kids and gray hair by now.
she might have that now - but she didn't 5 years ago in the picture.
Roger to Baydog's first comment: I envy you that you have a boat you can sail by yourself at the spur of a spontaneous impulse. My bucket wish.
It is a wonderful thing to be able to do. I think that if (when) I get too old or too unfit to be able to sail a Laser I will still want some other singlehanded boat that I can use to potter around the bays on summer afternoons.
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