looking for friends, back-up plan near St Martin

[wolfgal]

hey folks,

some of you know me quite well on here (i'm that gal in the land of the baguette who has been moving mountains to get her own boat and sail... for years now)

ok, i've booked to st martin, 3 weeks, leaving next week, returning end feb. i will be primarily in that area with some longer stints.

i'm reaching out to my CF friends (except mermaid seekers, etc) who would be willing to allow me to check in with them if ever i need a friend or a hand.

this is purely a back-up measure. every smart female has a back-up plan. seriously guys, we have to...

my scenario:
first off, know that i am all-but-absolutely-certain this will be a good experience. yes, i've done my homework: good folk. good boat. good intentions. clarity.

i am in NO WAY afraid of being in danger physically or getting pushed around or anything, anything like that.

i'm clearly dealing with someone with loads of integrity, very respectful and respected, well-intended, kind and safe. someone who is a part of a small community of sailors, good folk that i know of from years of reading about boats and everything sailing.

so, this is more about how if it just seems best for some reason... boats are small, intense places that amplify human dynamics. we all know about this.


so if you are in the area during feb and would be willing to be someone i could reach out to if need be, please let me know below (my mailbox is near full). and i thank you, truly, in advance

that said, of course, i'm hoping for other females and couples to step up to the plate. but the fact is so many of you are guys-on-boats, so please do guys... however, please, please know that i really haven't any interest or patience for mermaid seekers, wishful drinkers, women haters... and i don't mean to sound like the judge with the circles and arrows on the photograph in that song, Alice's Restaurant (remember Arlo Guthrie?), but every gal has to take care. and the last thing i want is a frying-pan-to-the-fire event.

anyone who requires the scoop on me before offering to be a contact: that's understandable, and quite easy as i've been posting for years and years. by the way, this site has been a such wonderfully rich and generous place to learn about everything from boat systems to fixing stuff to navigating. but most of all it has confirmed my sense of what makes up the cruiser community: good folk. i've gotten to know some wonderful, wonderful people here on CF over the years, and these folk have SO helped me keep my dream alive. Much Appreciated!

thanks everyone and a huge thank you to CF itself, for making my request possible.

wish me luck everyone! i haven't seen the stars, havent felt the air in my lungs, haven't marvelled at all the glorious shades of blue, havent heeeeeled! havent anything... and, especially, haven't been WITH PEOPLE (especially people who speak my first language and share cultural codes with me, YES!) for so long...

am being serious here: since all of this covid business (and all the restrictions over here), i have kind of forgotten what a smile looks like and even what it feels like to smile..., so yes, i get to steal a bit of my life back and experience being alive again with good people, on the water. grief, it feels like a jail break!





wolfie

Ps. am running like chicken getting it all done. haven't even moved into my bolthole yet, stuff in storage (as in, no sailing stuff, nothing)... but these days everything that is material is clearly just that, material. what counts is how well we experience the present moment and how well we share this good experience with those we trust most and how much combined courage the trust-team can muster to truly seize the day!



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[Chotu]

Wow, wow. WOOOOOOW!!!

This is one of the most exciting posts I’ve read in a long time!

Congratulations on the big opportunity! I’m so happy for you. I have no doubts at all that you will flourish in this adventure and have a wonderful time doing it. Please keep us all updated about your adventures and journey. I’d volunteer as a contact but you’d have to be way off course to end up in Florida. Ha ha ha.

Enjoy!

[GordMay]

Here's hoping you have a great cruise, and this [wise] posting become moot.

[boatman61]

Check your WhatsApp..

[wolfgal]

Originally Posted by Chotu

Wow, wow. WOOOOOOW!!!

This is one of the most exciting posts I’ve read in a long time!

Congratulations on the big opportunity! I’m so happy for you. I have no doubts at all that you will flourish in this adventure and have a wonderful time doing it. Please keep us all updated about your adventures and journey. I’d volunteer as a contact but you’d have to be way off course to end up in Florida. Ha ha ha.

Enjoy!

Hey Chotu,

thanks so much for your enthusiasm and support. yes, i DO think it will go fine... just scared sh°tless as any gal should be. and although i sooo appreciate all the time i have worked on boats on the hard (as i have learned so much about boat systems and repair!!!! bring it on!!!), FINALLY, FINALLY, FINALLY this will not only be about cleaning bilges, anti-fouling, doing teak work, scrubbing until the lines of my hands are gone... hey, i'm a gonna get to sail!

am a bit high with all the feel-good bubbles rising up within me right now, but still, even if i wasn't thrilled silly, i still think i'd be thrilled silly.

and, yes, best to check in every so often... geez i want to sail and be with good folk. fingers crossed!

hope everything is coming along with your boat. haven't followed much lately and now am out of time. but i'llbe back.


wolfie

[wolfgal]

Originally Posted by GordMay

Here's hoping you have a great cruise, and this [wise] posting become moot.

thanks Gord! and yes, i'm lucky to have you and the others here on CF. such good people here, and so many looking out for one another., even behind the scenes

and you never know, maybe other female sailors will follow my lead.




wolfie

[wolfgal]

Originally Posted by boatman61

Check your WhatsApp..

you're the best! a fantastic skipper and friend and for years now too!

will let you know if i meet up with your friends out there. so appreciate it!

thank you!

hope to catch up in the real again soon!



wolfie

[danstanford]

I see you are managing and mitigating your risks in the best way you can. This is the basis of doing wonderful things outside your comfort zone.

A wonderful definition of bravery is 'being the only one who knows how scared you are'.

[wolfgal]

Originally Posted by danstanford

I see you are managing and mitigating your risks in the best way you can. This is the basis of doing wonderful things outside your comfort zone.

A wonderful definition of bravery is 'being the only one who knows how scared you are'.

yups, i made a blank-my-comfortzone decision! thanks Danstanford!

and great quote! A wonderful definition of bravery is 'being the only one who know-how scared you are'.

Excellent! thanks!


wolfie

[JPA Cate]

Have a super trip, Wolfie, and after you have finished, come back and tell us how it was. Lots of us could do with a good sailing tale right now, full of the pretty creatures of the shallows, and soft, warmish trade winds, the clear seas, the puffy sleigh shaped clouds.... Go for it!

Ann

[wolfgal]

Originally Posted by JPA Cate

Have a super trip, Wolfie, and after you have finished, come back and tell us how it was. Lots of us could do with a good sailing tale right now, full of the pretty creatures of the shallows, and soft, warmish trade winds, the clear seas, the puffy sleigh shaped clouds.... Go for it!

Ann

thank you Ann! you've been such a good friend to me all these years (a guide of sorts). thank you for the encouragement. i cannot believe i'm going for it (got too good at being drastically frugal for a while there). and yes, i do plan on basking in as much Awe as possible. i so miss Nature, storms and all!

i do hope you two are doing well down under. thank you for looking out for me. i'll send you a kiss across the lengths of the ever-changing blue.



wolfie

[gamayun]

I am so not in the know. Where are you going? What are you doing? I'll be with you in spirit, of course, but must have missed some posts lately and very excited to be excited for you!!!! Inquiring minds wanna know...

[Tetepare]

Originally Posted by gamayun

I am so not in the know. Where are you going? What are you doing? I'll be with you in spirit, of course, but must have missed some posts lately and very excited to be excited for you!!!! Inquiring minds wanna know...

From OP: ok, i've booked to st martin, 3 weeks, leaving next week, returning end feb. i will be primarily in that area with some longer stints.


Have a great time in the islands, it’s magical. Don’t be afraid to talk to people, not even single men, most people are wonderful people. The atmosphere of happiness is catchy. Fair winds to you.

[wolfgal]

i've got a few more days before i make my way to st martin... so here's an update:

one of our CF members contacted me after reading my post and has very generously granted me permission/access/clear directions to his boat (in the area, no one on it) if ever need be.

i truly doubt it would come to that, but, if it does, i'm a gonna clean the decks and scrape the hull (as far down as i can go) or whatever needs doing (am experienced with teak work, but, of course, would ask first). i just SO appreciate knowing there are folks who understand that as female crew, i will always be female (even if i'm a tomboy).

so there we have it: the kind of kindness and generosity that holds our sailing/cruising community together.

i feel so blessed to have such good people out there in the ether, here in the matrix, who make efforts to help one another. sometimes it is information, but sometimes it is a helping hand and sometimes our paths do cross.

so, of course, am sending a HUGE thank you to this particular member! thanks too for those offering up contacts/tips (Boatie, in particular, what an awesome dude!), and those keeping tabs on me, sending encouraging vibes. and a big thanks too to CF!

hee hee! i'm a going sailing!




wolfie

[letsgetsailing3]

Best of luck and enjoy your adventure!


If anything's going to happen, it's going to happen out there! (Quote from a movie called "Captain Ron")