You know, those sailing shows, they got me hooked. Never been on a boat in my life, get seasick just lookin’ at water, but I watch ’em. All kinds. Seen one about some fella, Matt Rutherford, called “Red Dot on the Ocean”. Troubled kid, they said, but he sails around the Americas all by his lonesome. Imagine that? Just you and the water, for months on end. Don’t know how he did it, probably had to talk to himself a lot. I talk to my chickens, but they don’t talk back. He probably wished the fish would talk.
Then there was that “Manry at Sea” one. In the wake of a dream, they called it. Sounded fancy. Some fella dreaming about sailing, I guess. Dreams are funny things, ain’t they? I dreamt I won the lottery once, woke up with nothin’ but a crick in my neck. This Manry fella, he probably dreamt of big waves and sunshine, not like my lottery dream.
Saw another one, “Between Home”, about some young fella, called it an odyssey. Big word, that. Means a long journey, I think. He was a sea bandit, they said. Don’t know what he stole, maybe fish? Probably just a way to make the story sound excitin’. They always do that, make things sound bigger than they are. Like when they said my prize-winning pumpkin was the biggest they ever saw. It wasn’t, but it made me feel good for a while.
These sailing shows, they got good pictures though. Blue water, pretty skies, sometimes storms. Makes you feel like you’re right there with ’em, even though you’re just sittin’ in your chair. I like the ones with the whales. Big creatures, them whales. Makes you wonder what’s really down there in the ocean. Probably more things we don’t know about than things we do.
- They show you how to tie knots, too. Fancy knots. Don’t know why you’d need ’em, but they look complicated. Probably takes a long time to learn. I can barely tie my shoelaces these days. My fingers ain’t what they used to be. Arthritis, they call it. Just means you’re gettin’ old.
- And the maps! They show them maps with all the lines and arrows. Don’t understand ’em, but they look important. Probably tells you where the wind is blowin’ or somethin’. Wind’s a funny thing, ain’t it? Can’t see it, but it can knock you right off your feet.
Sometimes they talk about “navigatin’” by the stars. How do you do that? Stars are just little dots in the sky. Looks like someone sprinkled glitter up there. But these fellas, they know which star is which. Smart, I guess. I can barely find my way to the store without gettin’ lost.
They always have these fancy cameras on the boats too. Capture everything. Sunsets, sunrises, dolphins jumpin’. Makes you wanna go see it for yourself. But then I remember the seasickness and think, maybe I’ll just stick to watchin’ it on TV. Safer that way.
And the food! They cook on these tiny little stoves. Fish mostly, I guess. Wonder if they get tired of eatin’ fish all the time. I like a good burger now and then. Or some fried chicken. Can’t fry chicken on a boat, can you? Too much grease, probably start a fire.
These shows, they make you think. About life, I guess. About journey’s. We’re all on a journey, ain’t we? Some of us sail across oceans, some of us just try to get through the day. But we’re all goin’ somewhere, even if we don’t know where that is.
Tags: sailing, documentary, films, ocean, adventure, journey, boat, sea, movies, tv
