Old man and the sea Monday July 31, 2006, 3 comments

Vacation complete. Mission? Not sure. We’ll see how long it takes for my stress to elevate to dangerous levels.

If you can believe it, there was a thunderstorm warning EVERY SINGLE DAY of the nine days I was off. Now, I know my boat is capable of dealing with a thunderstorm. People have sailed boats like mine around the world. The problem is more that the captain is a bit of a wimp, and doesn’t like sailing in heavy seas.

Nonetheless, Toronto Island Marina was a fantastic destination. Where else can you be 15 minutes from the downtown core of a major city, but not be exposed to all the problems associated with being in the downtown core of a city. No traffic (no cars!), no noise, no poor air quality. No major light pollution, no congestion. I could, and will, go there again.

I am relaxed and light as a fluffy cloud. Except not fluffy. Nor flying. Nor part of a thunderstorm warning. I did a lot of thinking, during some hours on the wheel. I did mention the failure of my autopilot, right?

I used my week well, otherwise. Read a LOT of books, mostly of the boring, industry kind. One notable exception was my first Hemingway. I read Old Man and the Sea, which took a couple hours.

It was a joyous read, quite a good story, but I found myself wondering about Hemingway. Specifically why he’s considered such a literary light. Oh, I enjoyed it, and the story was wonderful, but Hemingway is considered iconic in the literary world, and Old Man and the Sea is a seminal work. The story didn’t live up to the legend, at least for me.

Perhaps Hemingway’s legend is was built more for the man’s notable anti-American beliefs, or his peculiar personality and looks.

And perhaps I’m just a jaded Gen-Xer.


Comments

chris Monday July 31, 2006


perhaps.
welcome home Adrian.
~c

Daniel Tuesday August 1, 2006


Maybe you should pen your response, Young Man at the Sea.

Adrian Tuesday August 1, 2006


It’s certainly an idea.

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