swapping boat life (A repost) 2 September, 2021

 The longer I am around boats the more I "see"... or should I say "the more I realize"

The boat mentality is not easily understood,  just "possessing the traits" is not enough, "owning" them and yielding to them is not enough, there is some sort of "conversion" one must go through, a rite of passage ritual, graduation or "key-to-the-attic" event that occurs in a boat brain... it takes years to develop the "boat mentality" and one day you simply realize, holy crap!  I cannot ever go ashore or endure a dry land lifestyle ever again.

This epiphany throws the switches to fully exclude (absolutely without toleration) those from our ashore years and the past (family-coworkers-friends), who can never understand, will not understand, are disappointed by, and even averse to our becoming a full-time live aboard (and not owning real-taxable property).

Of immensely huge notation... these 0500 fisherman winding up their little noisy outboards, and the owners of all these derelict craft tied up in your harbor, your port management, and maintenance crew, and even those craftsmen you oft-times hire for boat work ARE NOT boat mentality qualified. 

In American life we currently (2021) have many hidden (even denied and lied about) stances used by our family/friends/etc to maintain civility, friendship, and calm (albeit insincere).

The key to "seeing" or "realizing" boat mentality requires many personal pegs to fall into place, many realities to surface and to be identified, and only a very few even have the potential... (about 1/2 of one % of the global population of 7 billion) ... that's 35 million boat brains.

This is a very small slice of humankind... 99.5% of the world population live ashore... are you unique ? odd ? alternative ?  you betcha' !!  we live in a world of commonality and community think-alike and follow, we are conditioned from birth to almost everything as a lifestyle.

A house (a large house), an end table, a sofa, a lawn, a garage, carpeting, on and on... to break from these conditioned needs is virtually impossible for 99 1/2 % of people, also built into the conditioning is  an intolerance to alternative lifestyles (and people).

Wintering in the rain aboard a boat allows you to ponder clearly what the realities are... access to income source is the #1 driver of staying ashore, if you are an independent or consultant, this is not a problem, need for childhood ties as identity, is #2, the majority of society is stay-at-hometown existence and familiarity based, #3 is extended family ties... my Mom, Uncle Joe, cousin Sara, my old High School pals all live here ! if a boat live-a-board/cruiser candidate can get past those, the "real" hurdles appear.

#1 is being an accomplished complete human, which means being in control of your entire environment... carpentry, electrical, auto repair, computer repair, knowledge of camping/outdoor skills and survival, having these personal disciplines are only BASIC requirements to move on in this identity, without being an accomplished person... just stay ashore, you will either go broke, excite a divorce, lose your life, or suffer ego damage.

#2 Realizing that boat life and ashore life are in direct opposition to each other, and that a complete transition must be made (you cannot live both ashore and on a boat) the choice has to be made and fully readjusted to, it "is" an identity change.

Through these many pages of entries over the past five years, we have told tales about much of boat life, it is best to take the time (click the four bars up there at top left) for "archives" 
and go to August 2016 to follow, then compare stories with others, do the you tube videos, and above all... get real with yourself, your abilities, your finances, and how well you endure challenge and the fail/succeed cyclic.


A NOTE AND REFERRAL:  https://www.humanrightsatsea.org/