Sunday, July 12, 2015

Notes From the Peanut Gallery

Dissatisfied Reader writes:

           How blase we have become. That title is not up to your usual high standards. If you do not
           want to call it Passage to Oz (parts I, II etc.) you can still do better than "Moving the Boat".
           You crossed the Coral Sea, [...] for the love of Pete.

I realize this was a friendly, joking note. I do. But I think this topic is worth explaining, so I am going to pretend this was a serious criticism. And it's nice to know that people aren't shy about expressing themselves around here. Don't let the quality slip, people! Keep me honest!

Moving the Boat does sound rather workaday. Objectively, crossing the Coral Sea in a sailboat sounds like a dangerous adventure worthy of dramatic language and furrowed brow. I should wear a Captain Highliner cap and beard as I type out my tales. And we certainly took the trip seriously. It would have been irresponsible, suicidal madness to be blasé about the crossing. But (and here we finally reach my point), that wasn't my perspective on the trip. 

The whole reason we made the crossing was to Move the Boat. That mindset coloured all of my experiences on this trip. It was not an adventure - it was a pain in the neck. It meant missed school, missed work, keeping to a schedule, and a host of other minor irritations that made the passage into a chore.

Think of it this way. Imagine the Harry Potter series rewritten from Dumbledore's perspective. Or Hagrid's. Or Neville's. We would experience the same events in a very different manner through the lens of that particular character. 

And so it is with this blog. This is not a simple log of our travels. It is my point of view about our trip. And, to me, this crossing was not Swashbuckling Across the Coral Sea. It was not How To Ignore The Child Peeing in a Bucket Two Feet Away. It was Moving the Boat. That's my perspective, and I'm sticking with it.

With that in mind, you can all look forward to Moving the Boat, part III, later in the week. The drama continues!

5 comments:

Little Red and the Wolf said...

Lol. It's my party and I'll cry if want to... You go girl. I love your blog

John B. said...

Maybe I missed it, but why are we (rhetorical) "Moving the Boat"? Why Oz over New Caledonia? Maybe better mooring now that she's off the hard??

Amy Schaefer said...

John B, every country only allows a boat to stay for a certain length of time before they force you to import it. We had reached our limit in New Caledonia, so we relocated the boat to Australia. Papillon is back on the hard; we didn't want to leave her in the water unattended.

Calorie Bombshell said...

I really love your blog, Amy. Found it awhile back when I read one of your contest entries for the queen shark herself. I dream about one day slashing the tires on my perfectly functional Honda and floating downstream somewhere. Anywhere. With my daughter in tow, of course! Anyway, keep blogging. There are many of us on dry land who have restless sea leg syndrome!

Cindy aka "Calorie Bombshell"

Amy Schaefer said...

Aww, thanks, Cindy. And don't forget - there is room for adventure everywhere. Even in a Honda.

 
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