katy wrote:
Gilligan wrote:
"Ellen MacArthur" wrote in message
reenews.net...

This post is absolutely brilliant. In life one should always strive to
simplify, to reduce to the essentials.


Wind generators. Solar generators. Diesel generators. Shore
power cords. Fridges. Freezers.
Air conditioners. Water heaters. Microwave ovens. Propellers. What do
all these have to do with
sailboats? I think the answer is people like that don't want a
sailboat. They want to put their house
inside a boat. That's OK if they just stayed far far away from people
who don't want to be hassled
by all their commotion. And out of sight of people who don't want
houses navigating around.
Not to mention their air pollution.


Why do anchorages these days have to smell like an airport or a
truck stop?

All the crap they must haul around with them is a form of denial. They
"enjoy" life through possessing material objects.


Why does the biggest smelliest noisiest boat always anchor right
upwind of the fleet?
They can't seem to stay away. They get as close to you as they
can. It's as if they really want to
bother you. The one thing all boats need is a decibel meter. If it
gets higher than normal speech then
it explodes and sinks the boat.... YES! And they need a diesel fume
detector. If it goes off it empties
the holding tank into the bilge.
I always thought sailors were a quiet, uncomplicated group. I've
discovered there's way too many
selfish people who aren't sailors. They're Winnebago drivers lost on
the water.... They're confused.
They think Spock said "the needs of the one outweigh the needs of the
few or the many."

Cheers,
Ellen

This post is so excellent, I feel have almost ruined it by the
addition of my comments.

When things become "commercialized" (that is, money to be made) the
entry bar is lowered. Things are made comfortable, easy, "safe" and
"fun". There are some things this will never happen to. Things that
require great physical expenditure and suffering. Things that only pay
in contentment and are not fun.

Ya know, Chanteuse hasn't got any of the stuff mentioned on board...but
I am not going to sit and criticize someone else because they either
want, need, or just have that equipment. The important thing is that
they have a sailboat and that they sail. There is only one person on
this group who has an ulterior motive for talking about possessions, but
we all know his game. Carping about what someone else has just shows
what a mean spirit you have. This is not a group of purists. If you
want purism, go find a group that caters to anachronistic sailing...If
camping out in your boat is what you like, then camp. But don't sit and
judge those that don't suit your style.

oh...we do have a propeller...a two blade...whoop-dee....