From 9 a.m. until 4:30 this afternoon down at Fiddler's Cove Marina, under the tutelage of Captain Steve, I tacked, jibed, trimmed my sails and I think spliced the mainbrace a time or two.
And these weren't baby sailboats with training wheels, ala the SunFish. These were 16.5 foot Capri sailboats, like the one pictured below.
Tomorrow, we're going to learn to tie knots! How exciting. ( and how sad that I'm not saying that sarcastically).
The hubs, Leo, didn't want to go because he had a muscle car show to attend. He doesn't much like being on the water anyway. Our honeymoon cruise was the longest he has ever really been on a ship (did I mention it was a week-long Caribbean cruise). Being a Navy combat medic, he's "boots on the ground"--not much for ships.
Anyway, I got very sunburned but only in really weird areas. Like my kneecaps and my elbows. I guess these were the spots most exposed to the sun.
I did almost become the first casualty of Captain Steve's crew when I nearly fell in trying to disembark, but luckily Capt. Steve grabbed my arm before I met my maker at the bottom of Davy Jones's Locker.
Speaking of which, in honor of pirates I thought I'd share some pirate lingo with everyone. (I got this on the back of a St. George's Brewing Company brochure at the annual Blackbeard Festival in Hampton, Virginia.
- Ahoy: Used to hail a ship or person
- Arr!/Argh/Arrgh!/Yarr!/Harr!/Etc: General Pirate Talk--can be used with anything
- Avast!: Used as a command to stop or desist
- Aye: Yes, as in Aye, Aye Captain!
- Belay: Used as an order as in to stop. Belay there!
- Blimey!: used to express frustration
- Dead Men Tell No Tales: Leave no survivors
- Gangway!: Used to clear a passage in a crowd
- Grog: Rum dilated with water
- Hang the Jib: To look ill-tempered or annoyed
- Hempen Halter: The hangman's noose
- Hornswaggle: To cheat
- Me: My. A term of familiar address, as in Me hearties.
- Shiver me Timbers!: An expression of surprise
- Smartly: Quickly
- Yo-Ho-Ho: Completely meanginlgess, but fun to say
And yes, these have been hanging on my refrigerator for over 4 years.
Every year, the city of Hampton, Va. hosts the Blackbeard Festival. After years of terrorizing the citizens around the Chesapeake Bay, Blackbeard was killed in 1718 and his severed head was hung as a warning to all pirates at the mouth of the Hampton River. If you're in the area in early June, I highly recommend attending.
If you're a history buff and historical re-enactor, you can be part of Blackbeard's crew like these people:
But, if getting drunk on grog and terrorizing little kids is more your thing, you can be what they call a "polyester pirate" which according to the website, means you don't really have to bother too much with historical accuracy (maybe a quick trip to Spencer's Gifts?) and you just basically run around with an eye patch yelling, "Arrggh!!" at everyone.
Below is the link if anyone's interested! Happy pirating!
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