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All Work and No Play?
Let's face it. Being an adult can be just plain B-O-R-I-N-G. Learn how to spice it up!
ALL WORK AND NO PLAY?
How to have a successful and EXCITING life!
Do you have an “okay” life, one that’s overall satisfactory, but none too...
Beverages to Toast the Holiday Season
Winter winds, crunchy snow, sledding, skiing, or whatever your cold weather activities are - nothing warms you and gives your body a lift like an aromatic hot beverage - sipped by an open fire, sitting in a cozy chair near the fireplace, or by a...
Camera Cell Phones -- More uses than you could have imagined
I was shopping in the large superstore with my five-year-old daughter, perfectly unaware that in the next few minutes I would be living through every parent’s nightmare – in an instant my child would disappear from my side. She had been looking...
Heavenly Honeymoons--Advice and Tips for That Perfect Getaway!
Getting married is one of the most anticipated and exciting times of your life. And your honeymoon can be the most exciting and romantic trip you will ever take, since it represents a celebration of your love, your new marriage, and the lifetime...
How To Kitesurf
You have been bitten by the KiteSurfing bug, you can’t wait to hit the first current to propel your body screaming 40-feet into the air and crashing into the water. With each gusts of wind your elevated high off the surface and breaking each...
I Was Not Amused
true friendship: blue suede shoes and Chaucer
Sometimes I just really want to shoot people.
Case in point: my husband and I had finally completed furnishing our house with the proud purchase of a Queen Anne writing desk - a delicate piece...
Is Your Child Having Trouble in School?
Did you know that the school system is only able to meet 50% of student learning needs? That’s right! - only 50% of the student population is in an environment at school which enables them to be successful learners. The reason for this is not...
Sailing Is Not A Complicated Sport
It seems obvious how a sailboat sails downwind: It is pushed along by the wind in its sails. Less obvious is how it can sail upwind or how some sailboats can sail faster than the wind. Sir Isaac Newton formulated three basic laws that pertain to...
The Castaway
In the recent movie, "The Castaway," Tom Hanks played the role of a FedEx delivery man. His job was to fly all over the world making sure that the packages were delivered on time.
One fateful trip found his cargo plane flying through a nasty...
The Goddess Nut
Nut the Mother Goddess Of Us All
Her name is pronunced 'Noot'. 'Nuit' means 'night.' Nut was originally a mother-goddess who had many children. The
hieroglyph for her name, which she is often seen wearing on her head is
a water pot, but it...
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Simple Things for the “Sailing Life”
Owning a boat has an oxymoronic quality to it. “The simple life” can be pretty complex--I think of it as having a plane, a car, and a house compressed into a very small space. This specialized environment calls for specialized equipment and tactics...sometimes. In spite of what marine retailers would like us to think, there are a number of 'normal' (and inexpensive) items that we can put to very efficient use aboard our boats. For example:
- For easy lighting that won't impair your night vision, stock red cellophane (the kind you get in rolls in a gift wrap store) and rubber bands. Cut squares to fit over flashlights and rubber band them in to place.
- Forget buying purpose-made bag clips. Clothespins can do double duty by securing laundry to the life lines as well as keeping the bag of potato chips (or whatever) closed. And only use rubber covered clothespins--the metal hinges on the wooden ones rust out in about five seconds in a marine environment.
- When the clothes dryer eats a sock, don't throw away its mate. Save those unmatched socks to use as jar and bottle covers aboard the boat. They provide good shock absorbency.
- If you haven't completely switched over to a digital camera, you should have plastic film canisters hanging around. Reuse them for storage aboard the boat--small fittings, pill boxes, herbs/spices, anything small that needs a compact home.
- Have several plastic spray bottles on board. Besides their use for cleaning solutions (e.g., a bleach/water
combination for controlling mildew), they are great 'hand showers'. Douse yourself on hot days to encourage evaporative cooling. And when you’re out on the ocean and go over the side for a bath, use a spray bottle to rinse yourself off with fresh water-- works great. Just make sure you keep your cleaning solution bottles separate from your shower bottles!
- If you aren't already doing so, save your old toothbrushes for cleaning and maintenance on the boat. There are loads of tight places above and below decks where a small brush works great. One overlooked spot: Use a toothbrush to clean the inside of anchor chain links.
- You can never have too many zip-locking bags. Keep several sizes available, and use them for more than just food storage. Spare parts, clothes, office equipment, medicines, and lots of other stuff will pack more compactly when transferred to zip locking bags. And reuse the bags: invert, wash, and then hang to dry with those double-duty clothespins.
These are just a few examples of the use of 'non-marine' things that have a place aboard a boat.
(c)Copyright 2004 Kerry S. Mason
Kerry Mason is the webmaster for http://www.finesailing.com, The #1 resource on the Internet for sailing, boating and water sports enthusiasts. Be sure to visit his complete archive of articles at... http://www.finesailing.com/articles/index.html
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