"Jessica B" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 30 Jan 2011 09:29:41 -0500, "Wilbur Hubbard"
wrote:

snipped a bunch

Sharp! It looks like it's brand new. You must be meticulous in your
care. I confess that I don't know much about sailboats, but I do know
about neat and tidy (and warm weather!).



I must have missed this post in the shuffle. Thanks for the good words,
Jessica. It's refreshing after the constant jealousy-related put downs
some
of the pretend sailors in the group seem overly fond of dishing out.

Neat and tidy is important in a sailboat as cluttered and untidy results
in
accidents and equipment failures. What many people seem to forget is that
"first she's a sailboat." In other words, first things first and don't
install or change anything that reduces the efficiency of the sailing
machine. And, spend the majority of time on the boat as a sailing system
than anything else.

Yes this is certainly true. One thing we're constantly reminded about
is to be aware of the general condition of a job site. It's a clue
about what you'll find when you start really looking. Our first
priority as inspectors is for personal safety. I have my PPE kit with
me at all times. I don't go into areas that look messy, e.g., piping
laying around. Again, I don't do much commercial these days, and we
tend to give resid. consumers a break, but commercial sites have been
cited for stuff strewn about.

I keep reminding myself that boats are female! So, we have to be
handled surely but gently.

Sounds like fun!

We're a bit fickle but if we're treated
right, we have great moves!

And most of you can dance well. That clueless Bruce (stuck at the Bangkock
dock) didn't have a clue what I was talking about when I refered to a
sailboat as an 'interface dancer.' Duh. Like having the hull in the water
and the sails in the air and working the interface between water and air -
and dancing the interface if treated right - with great moves. Heck, you
haven't had much sailing experience at all and you already know more than
Bruce seems to know about it.

snippage


Well, I'm certainly not into the "comforts of home" too much. I'm not
spartan, but I don't have an apartment filled with stuffed animals
either!

The comforts of home are OK - AT HOME! However, even at home too much
clutter is just a big pain in the neck. How much crap does a body need
anyway. Pretty soon if you have too many things the things own you and not
the other way around like it's supposed to be. But on a sailboat one should
expect to rough it a little. The same goes for camping. Some people call
driving around in large, comfy RVs camping. What a joke! Camping is supposed
to be a little primitive so you can enjoy nature without all the
distractions. Same goes for sailing. You can have comforts in a small boat
but they should never get in the way of the true function of the machine
which is to sail and to survive the elements and keep the occupants safe and
relatively comfortable. Those who try to turn their boats into a big
floating condo are missing the point.


Wilbur Hubbard