Annapolis girl, 14, dies after boat capsizes during sailing camp

Annapolis girl, 14, dies after boat capsizes during sailing camp

This is a tragedy & a reminder that sailing can be a very dangerous sport. My heart goes out to her family.

Summer "Sailstice"

"Sail Locally, Celebrate Globally"

 

http://www.summersailstice.com/

 This weekend was a busy one as usual & it was full of sailing--of course.  Xing Fu & I were on opposite race days so on Saturday he was out there for the "Sailstice" racing on a boat designed by the skipper--they took two bullets so I guess that design is working...A bit south down in Deale, I was out with one of my teammates from Bump & one of our friends on his boat.  We were cruising--racers cruising is ALWAYS interesting & this was no different.  But I digress..."Sailstice" is a little non-profit that celebrates the summer & sailing--being out sailing around the solstice is always cool so having a little celebration & actually being out there is even better.  Xing Fu told me he would look south & think of us out there..nice.

So off we go & our skipper says that he picked up a spinnaker for free & would we like to fly it?  No twisting of arms necessary--although he wasn't sure what shape it was actually in--we soon discovered that it was an asymmetric kite & was about 20 feet too short for the boat--probably a very good J/22 spinnaker, not for a Columbia 9.6.....but being who we are, we decided to fly the thing anyway & as a symmetric kite too...at one point we considered flying it from the backstay to see if we could get the boat to go backwards....just a thought.

"The Kid" under "spinnaker"

As the wind got lighter we decided to go swimming--I'd never been dragged behind a boat under sail--2 knots--very cool--the entire day was fun & of course the company....cruising can be fun after all..


Next day back out on Bump for the AYC Annual Regatta.  The first race was a good one, the second, well, anyone who knows the Chesapeake Bay in the summer, no wind.  The second race was given three gunshots & we were done.  Despite no wind for the second race, it was good just to be out with the crew again--always fun & entertaining.  Next weekend is the Twilight Race--starts late in the day after the wind has filled in (we hope).  And as the summer progresses...Screwpile is on the horizon...summer=sailing.

Another Great Weekend

We tend to write this in an email after every weekend we spend together--obviously a very good thing but it brings me to the idea of appreciation.  I ran across a little snippet about strengthening your relationship with your significant other.  It read:

Get In Your Head

To be happy with your husband, you may have to re-train your brain, says Achor. For 21 days in a row, write down one new thing you're grateful for about your husband. "Research shows that by the end of those three weeks, you will have taught your brain to be more appreciative and loving toward your mate," she says.

We already to this to some degree is what I wrote in an email this morning.  Even if Xing Fu tries to drown me, or knock me out with the boom, he does not blow off the little advice blurbs I send him.  He treats them with respect & recognizes how much we both work to keep our relationship a strong & healthy one.  To that end I certainly appreciate the effort we both put forth--it shows a deep commitment to each other.  And we're going to give it a try without being redundant.  My first one: 

I appreciate that you treat these little relationship advice snippets that I find & send seriously & not just "humor" me.

And I wonder, looking at the recent failure of a relationship that an acquaintance of mine had blow up in her face, if we're the lucky ones.  Of course, she had it coming--hatred spewing people cannot find others who will find them positive, loving people--if you hate, you will see Karma come right back atcha'--how can you have a loving relationship with anyone when you exude such anger & negativity?

I also like to think that for the most part my friends' relationships & marriages are also ones that show deep appreciation--they seem to--this weekend demonstrated that as we all descended on BFF(J)'s house on the water for an impromptu BBQ--