I was just recently in California, back home for a glorious week. I went sailing with my dad on his Hunter 41DS both Saturday and Sunday of that week. When I left, I took with me a Latitude 38 – yay boat porn! – and a copy of “Maiden Voyage”, the story of then-18 years old Tania Aebi, who accepted a challenge from her father to singlehand a 26’ sailboat around the world. I don’t know where my dad dug this book up – he has odd sources sometimes, but I’m betting a boat show for this one – but I loved it.

Perhaps the most endearing part of it was how human Tania is. She speaks quite frankly of being absolutely terrified and feeling totally in over her head at the beginning; if she hadn’t, I’d have questioned her sanity.

Anyway, I read this book, and it sparked in me the “I want to do that too!” impulse. I’m still pondering it. I would really love to sail around the world…but could I handle doing that alone, without going absolutely crazy? Not to mention my relative lack of experience. I’ve never done any offshore cruising before. The farthest offshore I’ve sailed is…oh, I don’t know. How far out is the lightship buoy off San Francisco? Or Duxbury Reef? Because I did the Duxship regatta with a friend of my uncle’s last year, along with my uncle and my dad. But that’s it for offshore. Beyond that, I’ve just sailed around the Bay and once or twice down in Monterey Bay, out of Santa Cruz.

But I think the experience loses something if you do it with people.

But I’m in a relationship, and I’ve done the long-distance thing – for four years! – and I’m sick of it. It would probably mean the end of things for L and I.

Only I probably couldn’t take him with me anyway. He doesn’t swim well and doesn’t really like sailing.

Oy. This is going on my goals list, but tentatively for now.