Well, it was loads of fun but, after only 3 1/2 years, I had to wave the white flag.
Here are the reasons we’re selling the boat:
1. They’re dangerous for, um, clumsy people like me
As I shared (in graphic detail) in last week’s article, I recently had my third boat accident. I’m not saying “boating” because the boat wasn’t moving during any of my accidents. I broke my toe, re-injured my shoulder, and more.
Two years ago, I fell while getting on the boat, and severely injured my leg. I still have a gelatinized blood clot to prove it though it is MUCH better than it was in the photos featured in the articles linked above.
Several months ago, I fell getting out of the cockpit, and narrowly missed taking a dive in the drink. I still have a scar on my left leg from that.
Thank Heaven the boys never sustained any injuries on the boat. I’ve never been very graceful (my mother put me in gymnastics when I was very young but that didn’t work) but my clumsiness seemed amplified on the boat.
2. That darned funnel cloud! Poor Mason is scarred for life.
3. Protests, riots, and a city that is no longer peaceful
St. Petersburg, Florida made national headlines this year for very unsavory things happening in the streets. On the night the protests began, we had to flee the marina, and rent a hotel room several miles away.
4. Hurricanes
I am, admittedly, an adrenaline junky but having one tropical storm and hurricane after another over the past 3 1/2 years has taken a toll on all of us. Putting sails up, pulling sails down, moving everything off the boat, and back on the boat, worrying that we’ll no longer have a “home” to come back to…
Do I feel like a failure? Of course. Do I miss living on a boat. YES! I was so sad the day we moved off of No Tan Lines that I cried. I’m still grieving over it. I’ve never felt more “at home” than I did living on a boat. And, I miss our Dock 4 neighbors terribly! But, I had to do what was best for the children.
What’s next? We’re looking at property in the mountains of Tennessee…though northern Georgia is beautiful, too, and the homes seem less expensive. We’re not in any hurry.
Right now, we are living in the townhouse we rented after the funnel cloud. Mason LOVES it here. Compared to his room on the boat, his room here is ginormous! However, we’re having a BIG problem with our next door neighbor, Nosy Nancy.
I will share that humorous story with you next week. 🙂
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Angela Hoy lives on a mountain in North Georgia. She is the publisher of WritersWeekly.com, the President and CEO of BookLocker.com and AbuzzPress, and the author of 24 books.
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Pingback: WE NEED YOUR HELP! How Should We Deal with Our Neighbor, Nosy Nancy? | WritersWeekly.com
Angela, you know there are two perfect days in the life of a boat owner – The day he buys the boat and the day he sells it!!
Good luck with your move, Angela.
You can always move to Vietnam. (We’re in Danang).
Life here is good!
Best Regards,
Roy Stevenson
I think I’d have to give it up too! But it’s an experience few people have ever had.
At some point in your search, check out the Greenville, SC, area. Wonderful downtown, but 40 minutes from the mountains. Between Atlanta and Charlotte but much less expensive. Three hours from the coast.
I grew up in Tennessee, not too far from those mountains, and I agree that is beautiful country. So is North Georgia. I drive through the backroads there to go to Dalton to see my PT – and Dalton itself is a beautiful small town.
Wherever you wind up, I’m sure there will be another set of great adventures the make for good stories!
Nothing wrong with change. I’m in residence #40. Cheating a little as I am counting Panama where I was conceived but born in NY. Lived coast-to-coast. Had a boat- 40 footer fishing, but for weekends only. I see nothing wrong with moving kids unless it’s not an improvement but my kids say I am a perfect example of why you shouldn’t. Checked out Alabama, think Georgia might be the same, bad weather and bugs. As you probably know there are sites where you can find out the tornado record, average temp etc of various places. Be careful where averaging temp is concerned as they often include night time temps and that changes the daytime average. Have friends and family in TN. Seems to be a difference in character between western and eastern Tenn residents. One end doesn’t seem to associate with the other. ISorry your son was traumatized by his experiences, but after 3 major earthquakes, one tornado, 2 major fires and a flood, I was able to regain my composure. Ask anyone who knows me – well, no maybe that’s not a good idea. HAPPY THANKSGIVING.
How about one last big family cruise before you put her on the market. I recommend ft. Jefferson. Write me if you need a hand with the boat
We already have a buyer! Supposed to close in about a week. 🙂
You are NOT a failure. You are one brave cookie. I would have tossed in the towel after the first squall. You had a great adventure, and your boys (and you) will have fabulous memories. You made great friends that you would have otherwise never known. You’re not quitting, you’re just turning the page to a new adventure. (one without Noisy Nancy) I send you all my best wishes. Cheers to you!
Sounds like you’re going to be a half-backer. That’s what folks in North Carolina call people who move from New England down to Florida for a few years then up to North Carolina.
We split our time between Florida and the North Carolina mountains for several years as do many others. Half the car tags in a NC parking lot in the summer are Florida tags. As we grew older, however, it occurred to us that the nearest surgeons we would trust with a knife were either 70 miles to the north or 120 miles south, so we reluctantly left the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains.
Sometimes you just can’t outrun a hurricane. One year while we were up there a couple fled their home on the Florida panhandle to their home in the NC mountains to escape a hurricane. Their NC home, with them inside, was swept away by a mudslide caused by the hurricane’s torrential rains.
A half-backer!! I love it!!!!! 🙂
I sold my last sailboat four years ago. I have owned seven boats in my long sailing life. My final was a 24 ft. pocket cruiser when I came down from a 42 ft. blue water cruiser. I loved the 42 and lived on it for a while. I’ve reconsidered buying another and moving on to it as a protest to what I see happening in this country today. So I know the tug and pull of owning and living and leaving a boat. I’m just too old now. At 80, boats and my knees just don’t mix well. Good luck with your search for a house. Consider North Carolina. I moved here two and a half years ago and love it. Wherever you go be safe and stay healthy! Good luck and best regards. Bob
3-1/2 years on a boat is/are a good run.
El Landlubber McMeen
It sounds like a wise decision. I’ve had a similar one though without the injuries. For years I enjoyed driving to visit my family at Christmas. It’s an 800 mile drive so 1600 mile round trip by myself. I loved it but I noticed that each year it got longer. I’d swear someone doubled the length of the miles. So I have reluctantly taken to flying. I don’t mind flying except all you see is an airport, then a lot of clouds then another airport. But someone else is doing the driving! I think these decisions about recognizing our limitations are difficult but it really sounds you are off on a new adventure!