“Oh, how neat,” some people exclaim when I tell them I live on a sailboat, “how romantic; how adventurous.” They assume that boat life is all about snorkeling, fair winds, and white-sand beaches. Well, it is, but it isn’t always that way. In fact, I haven’t so much as touched a snorkel since I moved onto the boat, but that’s what I tell people I signed up for. After all, it was Brian’s main point of debate, when we began talking about it several years ago.
More often, people look at me in bewilderment, “You live on that?” Yep. I live in a 10′ x 37′ floating space. It is a hard concept for some to grasp. Sure, it’s tight sometimes, especially when Brian is working on a project with every last one of our belongings pulled out of their places and strewn about in complete disarray. But when we are on the water and our field of vision opens up so that we can see for miles and miles, it’s a complete luxury.
It’s a simpler existence, one that makes me conscious of my water consumption, aware of every piece of trash that exits the boat, how much power I use in a day, and infinitely more aware of the natural world around me. When I initially moved aboard, I had to carefully choose which material possessions to bring along, as we had a finite amount of space. Since then, I have carefully weighed every material purchase decision against what I already had, and my material possessions have shrank considerably. Do I really need that new dress? Probably not. All this is to say, that I’ve been thinking about the ways in which I have begun to live responsibly on the boat and consider things I can do to decrease our impact even further.
Since we became mobile, Brian and I have been trying to reach a target point of self-sustainability and eco-friendly living. I consider this a worthy effort, because the environment is important to me (as you may have deduced from my art), and regardless of any politics surrounding the matter, I want to enjoy and admire it in it’s natural state for a long long time. It’s only right to respect the environment, appreciate what it has to offer, and live consciously. With this in mind, I’ve decided to add a new category to this blog of a sustainable slant. This means that from now on, I will be including posts about the ways in which we are conserving, reducing our impact on the environment, or using renewable resources for energy. Or as my mother recently said, ways in which we are “going native.”
Patience is virtue. Enjoy the trip, and I know you and Brian will make the best of it. Remember Illusion will enjoy Australia! Still so proud of first-mate, best-mate and the ONLY mate (and on occasion co-captain)!
How Quaker-like too!
Here on C’est la Vie (10.5′ X 34′ of floating space) we feel your pains and share your sentiments. Thanks for sharing your thoughts so very eloquently.
Jeff, great to hear from you. I just caught myself up to speed on your blog. Your trip north sounds much like ours! I hope you enjoyed Charleston. I miss it. Are you spending the rest of the summer in Beaufort or continuing north?
Lara, I seriously can’t wait to read your future posts. My mind is more and more often drifting to this topic and I’d love any advice and perspective you have to offer. On a different note, Ben’s mom and stepdad just bought a motor sailer and between that and our short time with you guys, he’s been smitten with the idea of living on a boat. Not a possibility for us at this time, but definitely something to consider for the future.
Sarah,
Hope the farming is going well; keep me updated!
In some ways it is a simpler lifestyle, but there are plenty of complexities to consider. I hope to tackle this topic in more depth in some of my future posts. I had no idea what I was getting into when we first moved aboard. If you guys are seriously considering the boat life, Brian and I have plenty of advice on that topic….