BOATING TIPS -- FEBRUARY 1994
Boating is a Perfect Waste of Time

I read a lot of boating magazines, and the other day in Boating I read a neat editorial that has a premise I want to pass on to you:

"Boating is a Perfect Waste of Time."

Can you think of anything that sums up boating better? It is a perfect waste of time! What could be more perfect? What pursuit could give us more individual memories that are set with friends or family, a special project, or just nature herself?

What do you think of when you think of boating? Is it the wind in the sails? The gorgeous Northwest countryside going by in its gentle way? The satisfaction of having "the boat" just right for Opening Day or a special trip? Is it a moment with friends or family in a once-in-a-lifetime mood or setting?

Is there a better way to spend a day than getting half done what you planned because so many friends came by the dock or the anchorage that you had to waste the time chatting about the fish that got away or that new boat you saw or the new gadget you got or the great cruise you had or the challenge you overcame?

Sometimes (especially if you write a boating tips column) it's easy to forget why we are boaters! We get so involved in making it fun that we forget that boating is fun, and that's its only purpose.

We talk, read, and write so much about the projects, the rules, the safety, the accidents, the risks, the challenges, the hard work, that we forget that it is boating's capacity for all these things to any degree that each of us wants, that makes it so satisfactory.

So whether your boating is a rowboat or shell on Samish, a ski boat on Whatcom, a sailboard on the Bay, or a sailboat or cruiser somewhere in these plentiful Northwest waters, take a minute with me and stop talking, reading, or writing to enjoy your own special moments in this wonderful activity:

Boating. The Perfect Waste of Time!

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