Have you ever managed to survive something so very stupid, that the thought bubbles above everyone else’s heads are still screaming, “You are too dumb to exist. Please give your seat to the next available person with an IQ over 40”?

Yes, I went sailing in a storm in some of the most treacherous waters in the world.

And sure, occasionally life may not really be all that it is cracked up to be, but to choose no life at all, is not, to say the least, particularly appealing, nor interesting either.

Weather channel warning:
High surf advisory. 8-14 foot waves. High winds advisory. Avoid the coastlines. Storm conditions.

So now, as a bare minimum, I must redeem myself and prove that I still possess a few semi-functioning neurons.

To start with, I am thankful that during the bumpy return to port, the strength of a single small metal ring saved the day and that the line that held the mast to that ring didn’t unravel. The shrouds which hold up a mast from side to side held firm and that I managed to hold the backstay steady for forty minutes while parts of the jib mechanism crashed into the sea. Luckily the mast did not follow!

 

The minute that the boat was secured in its slip, and feeling as conflicted as the image below, I downed two shots of vodka and then gave one to the captain, too.

 

As a final penance for ignoring the small craft advisories and in lieu of writing – ‘I am insane’ one hundred times, I have drawn a few platitudes from my ‘Word on the Street’  collection. I swear that I will repeat them as my mantra, ad infinitum.

 

 

In the meantime, as a few encouraging words for my climb back into life,  a few bits of advice are:

 

These wall art messages have been collected from cities in the EU, the UK, USA and Canada. I will change my tack and listen.

I admit now, that since the winds have died down, the declarations below are starting to feel a lot more realistic..

THE END.