What are We Up To?
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As soon as we announced that Leap of Faith was for sale, the questions started. What are you guys doing next? Are you getting a bigger boat? Are you buying an RV? Are you okay? Just why is Miss Leap for sale?
I’ll post more in-depth thoughts on the whole subject later in this post, but here’s the deal:
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We are moving into this log cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. We take possession August 1. It’s east of Banner Elk, near the ski lodges at Beech Mountain and Sugar Mountain. There’s an honest-to-goodness babbling brook running through the property. It’s very private.
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We’ll be doing lots of “porch sitting.” You can hear the brook from the back porch.
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It’s nothing extravagant, but it’s cozy. Looking forward to burning some wood.
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Kim is looking forward to that tub!
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The loft will become my new writing space, plus extra bunks for guests to visit. My daughter and grandkids are already making plans to stay with us for Christmas.
What brought this about? I’d say it was a combination of factors. It likely started with Hurricane Irma. We spent a ton of money and hundreds of hours putting the pieces back together afterward. It was worth the effort as Miss Leap is better than ever, however, we started questioning things. First, we considered a bigger boat. We are spending much more time in the marina these days, appreciating the electricity, unlimited water and swimming pool. Why not get a nicer, newer boat? We looked at several, but I had a hard time coming to grips with parting with Leap of Faith. We put the search on hold.
Skin Cancer: Somewhere during that time I got the first hunks of flesh removed. Six months later there was more cutting. A few more months and I had to do it again. This time Kim had to have some spots cut out. I felt more and more affected by the Florida sun and heat. What’s the point of living on a boat if you have to stay out of the sun all the time?
The Cruising Life: The past seven years have been the best of our lives for so many reasons. It was truly a Leap of Faith that worked out for us. We did it. We conquered it. Sometimes we felt like we owned it. We made a name for ourselves in the cruising community. We overcame our fears and ventured out on one adventure after another. We put many miles under our keel. It’s been a very rewarding growth experience for us, but we’ve lost our wanderlust. We have no desire to travel to foreign ports in the Caribbean or elsewhere. We got the most out of our experience, and now it’s time to move on to something else. We want to thank all the special people we’ve met over the years who’ve enriched our lives. We’ve met our share of bums, but overall the cruising world is full of quality folks.
My Writing: Between boat projects and an active social life, the distractions are many. I’m not the most disciplined worker to begin with. It’s easy to neglect my work with all of the activity going on around me. My plan is to seclude myself in the loft and write prolifically. I even hope to write a more serious novel that won’t include Breeze. I’d like to do a children’s book for my granddaughter, about a pirate dog! Who knows what I’ll come up with. I’m a writer when I’m actively writing. Otherwise, I’m just a guy who wrote some books. Look forward to lots of new stories from me in the future.
Seven Year Itch: Kim and I have talked this through quite thoroughly. We’re both ready for a change. We’ve proven that change is not something we are afraid of. It worked out great seven years ago, no reason it won’t work out great again. If we find that the cabin life doesn’t suit us, well . . . we’ll just do something else. Ain’t scared.
Once again, we both thank you all from the bottom of our heart for the support we’ve been given. You people help us keep our faith in humanity. Now excuse us as we go hide from you all in the mountains!
Love to all,
Ed and Kim
