November 12, 2012

November 12, 2012

The devotion I read this morning was a reminder to accept the blessings God gives with open hands and a grateful heart. 

Sunday was a beautiful day.  It was a little cool, although the radio said it reached 70 degrees. Maybe 70 degrees on the water with a breeze in Maryland is a little cooler than 70 degrees in Georgia.  Barry, Janet and Matthew came to visit us.  My younger brother is much smarter than he used to be.  I store up questions to ask him about politics and the world.  Janet is such a delight.  She is always smiling and happy.  Matthew had a great time on the boat exploring all the nooks and crannies.  He somehow managed to fall into an open hatch, but he was not hurt and neither was the boat.  We don't know how he missed the 2x3 foot opening in the floor. 

I cooked a pork loin and tater tots in the convection oven for our first guests.  Both turned out perfectly.  Convection cooks much more quickly than a traditional oven--so I am learning how to adjust the time.  We took our plates to the fly bridge using the dumbwaiter that is standard on the Fleming boats.  Food seems to taste better when eaten outdoors. 

After lunch and clean up, we wandered around the docks looking at all of the other Flemings. Matthew continued to explore and pretend to be either a spy or a pirate.  We are not sure what exactly he was doing.  Janet and Barry sat with us on the cockpit while Steve removed the lettering for the previous name.  We have named this boat Meandering Joy.

Naming the boat was no easy task for us.  We each had a long list of names we liked.  After striking through several names, and running them by our children who were kind enough to share the implied meaning of some of the names we were considering.  It helps to have children who are in touch with what words mean as Merriam Webster does not always give all the definitions of words. 

Joy is an easy word to define --a source of delight.  We want our boat to be a source of delight.  Steve wants to take our time traveling slowly on the boat so that we see more sights.  This is quite a change for him as he usually likes to speed to our destination.  For proof of this, just ask the police officers who he has encountered over the years. 

I found several quotes about meandering that helped with the naming of the boat.  Ambrose Bierce defines meander this way: “MEANDER, n. To proceed sinuously and aimlessly. The word is the ancient name of a river about one hundred and fifty miles south of Troy, which turned and twisted in the effort to get out of hearing when the Greeks and Trojans boasted of their prowess.”

 

Leo D. Minnigh writes "Let your thoughts meander towards a sea of ideas."  We started this lifestyle with an idea of cruising the Great loop, so Minnigh's words are an interesting play on words as a sea of ideas began a life on the sea. 

 

I like what Craig Thomas writes about planning "We definitely have a plan in mind, but at the same time, maybe things will meander, and we're open to that, too."    Our plan as of today is to take our boat after Thanksgiving to Jacksonville, FL.  We are planning to take this trip in three weeks.  We have built in several meandering days. 

 

The Great Loop is a circle of waterways and rivers that form a circle or loop around the eastern part of the United States.  We hope to travel many rivers to enjoy parts of this country we have never visited.  Bob Dodson writes about one river "The Mississippi meanders down the spine of America."