Capt SpaceBat

Summer is definitely long past and almost equally far away (at least in the Northern hemisphere) but for a pleasant change (apart from the planet careering to destruction, politically, economically and environmentally) things don’t seem quite so bad in comparison.

With what is anyone’s guess.

Interesting typo just then: “comparison” came out as “comaprison.” Before jumping on the Freudian slip and all its ramifications, I did consider leaving it in: (1) to see if anyone noticed and (2) because it seemed like quite an apt description to the “living dead” state in which many of us find ourselves, unable to break free of the chains with which we are bound and escape from the dungeon-sarcophagus of our thoughts, memories and abreactions.

That said, and the tangent veered off onto & back, I return, like the famed dog unto its vomit, to the subject of today’s post: how do we ever change?

With the bright sunny weather many moons since past (although still rumoured to exist in places outside the United Kingdom), long periods of holiday or enforced idleness and quite often not much else to do each day, what steps can we take to actually change the day-to-day patterns of our lives? There are, of course, the fairly low-impact activities that might not require too much interaction with others: go for a walk, sniff the flowers, even plant a few over-wintering veg (or take up guerrilla gardening) but at least they do get one out of the house, top up the vitamin D levels and remind us that there is a world outside. Nasty, short, dark and brutal perhaps, but it is still out there and won’t go away, despite our fondest wishes.

For most of the time, this sort of suggestion is pretty much like being asked to volunteer for root canal therapy by a sadist without anesthesia – not without a certain attraction, but, equally, rather unlikely to be met with wild enthusiasm.

As I spend most of my life either online or at home, with the occasional visit to clients to sort out their IT problems, back in those halcyon days of summer even I had realised that I had to do something that would get me out of the house, interested in something beyond my all-pervasive woes and worries, allow for a little interaction with others and burn off a few calories while watching the world go by. My first thought: get a “proper” job. Second: “don’t be such a fool; there are people out there, you will have to deal with them, think of something else, quick!”

After some quick thought, followed by long deliberation, I mulled over, along with my wife, how I could achieve such goals to our mutual benefit. Tada! – the answer came like a bolt from the Windows default sounds - buy a narrowboat.

Now, this might seem a bit extreme, but it did meet all the criteria, especially the ones regarding appreciation of nature in comparative solitude, and also I am not suggesting that we all take to the water like a committee of cygnets, but finding either a new interest outside of the house or returning to one from a happier earlier time seems like a pretty good idea to me. Then again, it has been said that I am easily led, but it is a complete change from the past 15 years or so, harking back to earlier holidays and interests, with most, if not, all negative associations stripped away.

This is my personal solution and I might even keep you all up to date on how well it is going. Sarah has noticed a complete change in my outlook – happy and willing to get stuck in to things on board and much less like my usual ephemeral obsessions. One day, I even made the bed! No mean feat, starting with a sheet of 2’ by 8’ marine plywood, a drill, saw, various screws and the supports from an abandoned chest of drawers.

With the icy north wind upon us, I have even come to the realisation that I will have to take some responsibility for ensuring that the boat does not sink, freeze up or in; hence the tarpaulins alluded to in a previous post (that came out as “pervious” - surely some connection with the bondage - that’s for another day) - days out will involve duct tape, buckets and engine turning; they still are days out and have more than one useful purpose beyond me.

This seems to be working for me – with what thoughts and solutions have others come up that work for them?

Please feel free to share them with the rest of us.

Land ho!