What did you do this weekend?

Very little beyond the apocryphal rumination that typically follows a week of limited exercise and pandemic-induced cabin fever. But I became strangely inspired to learn how to sail!

I've been at least passingly interested in the maritime since I was young, perhaps originating with a picture book I was given as a child that contained several detailed cross-sectional diagrams of men-of-war (this book was also how I first learned what scurvy was, and how to avoid it!). That never translated into any real nautical expeditions, probably because my parents did not own a boat and I had also not yet developed my taste for adventure, but I maintained some manner of vague interest in bodies of water growing up nonetheless. I learned how to canoe in the Scouts, and still go on trips upstate relatively often; I realize that the lakes of the Adirondacks are a far cry from the open oceans, but I'm reminded of how taken I was (and am) with the equal parts serenity and peril the water offered. I'm no master paddler, but understanding the water, the wind, and my little boat taught me a lot of situational awareness, and learning that in a pseudo-wilderness context broadly devoid of societal pressures taught me a lot about myself. It also gave me a certain appreciation for being in a boat in a body of water, in a general sort of way. It's nice to get away from it all. It's also nice to just sit and look, and listen.

My recent captivation with the craft was probably nestled deep into my brain by a friend of mine, who mentioned a while ago that she was thinking of working as a crew member on a ship in the Caribbean. I'm also reading Moby Dick right now. I've developed something of a free spirit as I've gotten older, and have been dreaming of going on a very long trip for years: driving coast to coast or hiking the Appalachian Trail, climbing the Alps or the Rockies, or just sort of wandering for a while. Sailing across the Atlantic Ocean has just been added to that list too. It's possible that my interest here is primarily aesthetic—I suspect it's not, on account of my existing interests in 1) canoeing 2) occasional solitude 3) anything to break up the inevitable monotony of the rest of my life—but I guess I'll have to see (!).

Be there any hardy sailors amongst ye Tildestians reading this post? Might you have words of wisdom for one such as myself, who naïvely seeks to learn the ways of the sea but for pleasure? I've glanced at a few sites offering sailing lessons (Black Rock, etc.), and while they seem like they could be informative and a lot of fun, they're also a bit expensive. So is owning a boat, it appears. I'm curious if this is the best way to get started, or if I ought to just up and find work as a crew member on an outward-bound vessel and learn it on the fly. I do have a few worldly attachments at present, but when things get back to normal I expect I'll be all the more eager to try something completely new. Any thoughts are more than welcome.

I crocheted a Kirby for a friend! Sometimes I think he's cute, other times I think he's hideous. Ultimately I need to work on my uneven tension to help with how misshapen he is. I will note, embroidering one eye was such a fucking pain in the ass I made his other eye a wink so he looks like dis >v0. Way easier on my soul lmao.

This weekend I decided to port https://midnight.pub over to gemini. I simplified a lot of things to make it as simple as possible. It was a strange feeling removing features, but in a way I'm glad I did it.