Pleasure can be a lot of work
Things seldom go as planned, but they do seem to work themselves out.
Last night I rented a truck so I could haul my boat 30 miles south to get the motor mount put on. Simple right? No.
The sun was setting fast, so I only got one side of the hull buffed (to remove oxidation). I had to turn my attentions to hitching up the boat for next morning’s journey. The other side would have to wait until the weekend.
I got the boat strapped down tight and went to hitch up the truck. Also easy, right? No.
The 2” ball on my hitch was too high so I needed to attach it to the other side of the ‘L’ bracket to lower the ball. Easy, right? Ah, no.
The large nut on the ball was too tight and I didn’t have the right tools to release it. My vise grips were too small. So, I had to wait until morning to buy a new hitch.
I’d hoped to be to town by 8am, but after stuffing supplies into the truck, doing last minute checks to make sure the boat wasn’t going to slide off the trailer, buying a new hitch, hooking up the truck, and searching for my lost wallet, it was 9:15. This put me into town at 10:00. Late, but still good.
The drive to town should have been relaxing, right? No.
One tire on the boat trailer was low and I didn’t stop to pump it up. I took the risk because I was running late. I stopped at a rest stop to check the tire out. It was warmer than the other, but not too much. So I spent the rest of the drive glancing at my mirror watching the low tire. My trailer is a single axle, meaning it only has two tires. Getting a flat while towing a 4000 lb. sailboat is not a good idea.
I got there okay though. And, after all the rush, I spent a goodly part of the day in my truck waiting for the mount and motor to be attached to the boat.
Then I hauled the boat to the wharf where it will be launched on Monday. Between now and then I have to finish the buffing, attach the remote throttle, clean & dry out the bilge, install the starter battery, charge my main battery, build a bed frame, make a new hatch door, and clean & stock the boat.
No one told me pleasure boating would be so much work. I’m pretty sure that once we’re underway and heading to the island, I will forget the hassles of preparing for the trip.
Whew!
Love this article, Jim. I gotta show this to my 10-year-old – we’re learning ALL about persistence and doing things we don’t necessarily want to do when they need to be done.
Start with the end in mind: PLEASURE boating. Even though my wife and I aren’t into boating and/or sailing, we do enjoy going to the shores of Lake Ontario with our daughter to relax and play on the beach and boardwalk. This time of year, there are LOTS of folks out on the lake boating and sailing. They always look like they’re having a GREAT time.
My daughter looks dreamily out across the water, seeing the many different colored boats and sails. I get the sense that she might like to get a ride on one of them some day. However, when I show her YOUR story, she may get yet another lesson in appreciation for hard work and doing the things you don’t necessarily FEEL like doing; or tackling those jobs that seem too hard or even impossible in the moment.
Just this morning as I was cleaning up around the house, I asked her how many times she saw me taking a break. She had to answer, ‘None’. Then I asked her, “How many times do you thing I FELT like taking a break or giving up altogether, because it’s such a GLORIOUS day.”
That question stumped her so I had to tell her, “I didn’t feel like doing this stuff AT ALL!”
“Then why did you do it?” she innocently asked.
Ah, to be 10 years old again, huh? Just turn on the cartoons and watch life slip through your fingers!
So I’ll show her your story and then I’ll use it to remind her every time we go to the beach exactly what it took for all those people to get out there on the water, PLEASURE boating!
All the best from Toronto,
Russ
You sound like a good Dad. Lessons, like the one about the need for hard work, will do her well when she enters the ‘grown-ups’ world. I just hope my story doesn’t discourage her from sailing.