Enough with the lurking...

[EdCharbo]

Hello everyone!

I've been lurking for a while, thought I should jump in and at least say "Hi".

Will be buying my first hole in the water shortly, the hope is, eventually, that my wife and I will get enough experience and be comfortable enough to trade up to a bigger hole in the water and sail off into the sunset (probably in search of spare parts...I get the vibe around here, I think).

Things that I have going for me in achieving this dream:

• My wife has agreed (this was a biggie - she actually brought it up, I was silently daydreaming about it!)
• I have a job where I can work remotely, as long as there is cell phone and internet access
• I do know how to sail (I raced in high school, and refreshed my skills this summer - did you know that you no longer have to flint knap your own winch handles?)
• Our house is walking distance to a marina with a work yard
• I have been thinking and talking about this for years, and thanks to my borderline OCD, I think I have a pretty good budget worked out

Things working against me:

• My kids haven't quite left the nest, yet (two down, two to go)
• I am handy, but with a small "h"...Still intimidated by some of the huge overhauls I see discussed here and on other sites, but willing to try fixing anything. If I try to fix something that's broken and I fail, the worst that can happen is that it is still broken, right?
• I think I have a pretty good budget worked out.

Hoping to get more information about different approaches to boat ownership and how to get our journey started.

We are currently looking for a 28 - 32 footer to begin with, and a couple of years down the road something in the 38 - 42 foot range to live and travel on.