Life on the ocean waves

We were out on a boat this weekend. I'm not the best sailor; its slight exaggeration but sometimes I feel I could get nauseous in the bathtub, so you may understand some of my reticence when it comes to setting sail on the ocean. A friend of ours has a 29 foot sailboat which was our transportation system for the day. Anyway we had quite a pleasant ride out - no sails in sight and motored for about half an hour. We were buffeting the waves but my blueberry pancake breakfast stayed in one place. We stopped on an island and spent the day listening to some live folk music and getting warmed by the late summer sun. A friend, Cordelia and her little dog, Toto came and visited with us for a while.

At lunch a flock of pigeons flew by. One of them got caught in the wires of a sailboat. The pigeon plummeted to the water but managed to fly on somewhat shakily and settled on some rocks opposite us. A cloud of feathers wafted down in the air where the bird had hit the wire. As far as we could see the pigeon was not harmed, no broken wing or anything. I envisioned, in our litigious world, the pigeon sueing the boatowner for negligence for not putting out warning signs about the dangerous wire. I was thinking, on an island in the middle of the ocean, why should a pigeon have to worry about high wires as it goes about its business. Then I realized perhaps my second beer was kicking in.

As set off again, we saw what looked like plastic bag in the water, just outside the harbour. I was quietly grumbling about litterbugs on the ocean, but on closer inspection, it looked very like a dead baby seal. Which made me sad. A bit further along I saw what looked like an otter and proceeded to have a cheerful (one way) conversation with it, each time it appeared above the waves.
"Hello!"
"How do you feel about the price of gas?"
Again, appearances are deceptive. My little otter was a log, a deadhead as they call them in these parts.

We decided to sail back as there was some decent wind. I was a little on edge and wondered if I would toss my lunch but once I relaxed, it was fine, as we sped along at five knots. I can see how sailing helps people forget about their daily cares. I've not been in a boat for quite a while. It reminded me to take things easy - you can get so tied up in day to day cares, like e-mail messages, phone calls, and all the darn chores you meant to do today. To hell with it. Go sail for a day. Feel the rope in your hand, brace yourself and watch the sails fill out as you steer straight into the wind. I feel a sea shanty coming on. In South Australia I was born, heave away, haul away....