Great Expectations

Good morning everyone. Well it has been some old busy around here. Like the bees in our field we just go, go, go. We have had some great cruises and seldom do we have time to bask in the glow of each week. We are attempting to make family time on the “weekends” our top priority. We have actually mowed the lawn twice since we started sailed, already ahead of last year! Some one recently asked me if we get tired of this crazy life we lead. My response is simple. I get tired, yes, but I do not get tired of this. I just wish I had more juice to give to each day. As I explained the real balancing act for me is one of self-expectations. Trying to be all things to all people ends up making me feel more tired and more like a failure which in turn makes me feel more tired and the now you got the dog chasing its own tail. Expectations would seem to be easy to keep in check but as one friend recently explained to me expectations are premeditated resentments. Not sure I believe it but there is a Zen quality to that idea makes some sense. Perhaps Popeye was right… I amsk what I amsk. It is what it is.

So the schooner is doing great. I can’t tell you how delighted I am with the crew. They have been working incredibly hard. We are starting to get time off for folks with Rob and Sara each having had a week off. Molly has just a few weeks to go before she has to head back to school. Curtis just keeps smiling. And how does Mary do it? Day in and day out she just keeps creating beautiful meals.

This week is our annual Wooden Boat sail training course. So for all you folks who have dreamed about being a deckhand on the schooner, keep your eyes peeled. I should be able to get ashore to the office there and get a few pictures on. In the meantime…

Have a great day. Be well. Do good.

Photo of Mary Day from this years Great Schooner Race by Neal Parent.

Hail Mary

My heart is heavy with sadness as I write this particular blog. Since the beginning of August our dear friend and cook for the last 12 years, Mary Barney, had been struggling with cancer. I have intentionally respected Mary’s privacy and I apologize to you for not sharing any news about Mary’s health sooner. On Monday afternoon Mary passed away very peacefully at home, surrounded by friends and “family”. Her departure was as graceful as the rest of her life. Many people, including Jen, have been doing heroic work to support Mary these last few weeks. Oddly enough Mary was never very excited about transitions though this was about the fastest transition she ever made. And as I struggle to let go of Mary I realize I am terrible with transitions as well. We used to joke about how we liked things just the way they are, thank you very much, so why change what is working already even if it might be less labor intensive. Hard works is its own reward. I used to joke about getting Mary a Cui...

Swimming Anyone?

Good morning everyone. Winter is still here in New England though it seems to be taking a rest these days. We have enjoyed a little bit of a thaw. We still have snow covering our field but it is thinning out in the sunny patches. Mary Day rests comfortably in the harbor, bilges dry, cover intact, waiting for the crew to return. Another busy week has passed so I will get you up to speed on everything that is happening here at the global headquarters. Jen is putting the finishing touches on year end taxes. Blockfest 2008 is finally finished. The blocks have received quite the massaging. And while we have the off-white paint out we are starting in on the lifeline stanchions, the davits, and a few other miscellaneous parts. Alex asked me last night how we were doing with our pace. We are doing great but in the back of my mind I know that there is never enough time to do it all. Having perfectionist tendencies is a curse. I want to do it all and know we will never have enough time. There se...

Fall Maintenance

Good morning everyone. The sun has been kind to us these past few days and the crew has been spending much time aloft prepping and painting the mast heads and tarring the rig as part of our annual fall maintenance schedule. They were a little silly on tar fumes by the end of the day hence the rat board dance moves. Am I the only one who is reminded of Willy Wonka's little friends at the sight of the crew in their tyvek suits? Schoona-loompas? The smell of tar, after all, is what we sailors live for. Extracted from the stumps and roots of pine trees through dry distillation pine tar will cure what ails you especially some skin conditions and any emotional maladies from being too long away from the sea. All we know for sure is that Mary Day’s rigging is kept hail and hearty by coats of tar mixed with boiled linseed oil. Notice that I specified boiled linseed oil and not raw linseed oil. Tar mix with raw linseed oil will not “kick”. Don’t ask me how I know this… just take my wo...

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