First, you build a little boat.

In life you don’t get a lot of do-overs. But you do get plenty of chance to practice. The first step in building a big boat is to build a little boat, a model precise to the plans in scale and detail. Except for being able to use balsa and a hot glue gun, the model is built using the same techniques used in the big boat. You learn a lot and you are left with a very cool toy.
Iain built one:

This is where I am going to build one. Someone taught me to make sure my work space was good. Sometimes I forget and I am always happier when I remember and clean up before I start a project.

Why?

This blog is about building a boat. But, because a boat is such a great metaphor for many of life’s issues, it will also be about stuff.
Why build this boat? I thought long and worked hard to face myself and make such a big decision. Ultimately, I thought about where I want to go and what I want to do with my life. Building this boat, Iain Oughtred’s version of Commodore Munroe’s Egret, is the best thing I can do to get there.

This boat can handle a variety of conditions because its hull shape responds well to many different conditions. And I want to sail in a variety of places. I don’t see myself happy with a big boat moored in one spot for long periods of time. I want to explore the nooks and crannies of Lake Huron. I want to wander north along the coast of Maine. I want to circumnavigate Martha’s Vineyard. I want to jump the Gulf Stream and laze around the Bahamas for weeks. This boat will live on a trailer and go 70 miles an hour toward the water. It is also a stunningly beautiful boat. This boat improves any view. We shouldn’t waste time doing ugly things.

I know I can get the same amount of boat for a lot less money if I buy a well-loved fiberglass boat from the 70s. But aside from breaking the rule about not doing anything ugly, it isn’t doing much. Building a large boat is a significant endeavor.
Journeys, struggles, choices, beauty, doing something with life: that might be worth chronicling.