Holiday: Defined.

ser·en·dip·i·ty/ˌserənˈdipitē/

Noun:

The occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way: "a fortunate stroke of serendipity".

hol·i·day/ˈhäliˌdā/

Noun:

A day of festivity or recreation when no work is done.

grat·i·tude/ˈgratəˌt(y)o͞od/

Noun:

The quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.

It is my hope, from the furthest and deepest reaches of my selves, that whatever the holiday season means or doesn't or holds or doesn't or brings or doesn't- that, at the very least, a single moment can be shared, whether across moments, miles, or merely in the passing of strangers, which can serve to remind us that even in our darkest moments, even as the festivities fade and life returns to the everyday, that simply:

The world is made better with every act of kindness.

(and, if you're me, a lil' time on the water.)

May you all find your selves.  Period.

May love abound.

May we all sail true.

Cheers friends.

~Salty.


PS and for your viewing pleasure....the epic champagne FAIL of Christmas Eve 2011.  Neffy style.  Below.

Champagne FAIL!


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A Limerick for Vashon.

I have chosen to summarize the 2011 Vashon Island race, 1st in the Southern Sound Series, by partially nonsensical limerick. Enjoy!

There once was a race in South Sound

To sail Vashon the wrong way around

I was late to the boat (!)

...worthy of a demote...

But at least Kirkland's nickname was found.

PS we won.  (2nd overall.)

Go team!

Out of the Woodwork, Into the SEA...

omg.

Really?

Yes.  Really.  It's really me.

But, for realsies?

Yes, for realsies.

After a brief hiatus from the planet, I'd like to catch up on a few (oh so very much fun) regattas we've had over the last few months, beginning, of course, with Round the County.  Why?  Because someone saw an Orca whale.  It wasn't us.  It was Neptune's Car.  But still...pretty cool, right?

# of days sailing around Island County, WA (read: the San Juan Islands): 2

# of crockpots needed to feed just the Peterson brothers: 1

# of crockpots needed to feed the entire rest of the crew: 1.5

# of gnarly rope burn incidents: 1

# of huge gloves on board: 4

# of crew members experimenting with the utility of replacing foul weather gear with a dry suit: 1

# of days the dry suit lasted: 1

# of huge wind holes we picnicked in 1/4 mile from the finish to avoid winning: 1

# of wipeouts: 2. Maybe 3

 # of wipeouts that weren't any fun: BIG FAT ZERO.

And to sum it up, a lovely photo taken by Sean Trew depicting the lovely, lovely weather we were so fortunate enough to reach around some islands in:

Nefarious!

Cheers everyone!