Wordless Wednesday

Canadian Museum of Civilization in Hull, Québec

The Amazing Foks at Portland Yacht Services

One thing that many people don't know about the Maine Boatbuilder's Show is the Portland Flower Show is held in the same space. Phin Sprague's crew cleans out the boats in winter storage in preparation for the show and the Flower Show is set up. After that weekend's show, they clean the shop out again and set up the Boatbuilder's Show for the following weekend. Keep in mind that what you see here is only a very small portion of this sprawling multi-story facility. Time lapse of the whole process below:



Wow. Just. Wow.

Wordless Wednesday

Cabin Fever

I get asked a lot about why we build boats from the fall through until late spring. Where I live, we have a "hard water" season where you really can't paddle. If you're an active outdoor person, this can be a hard time of year for you - particularly if the groundhog has just let you know that there will be 6 more weeks of winter. If you don't ski, snowshoe, ice-fish or go winter camping, cabin fever can become a bit problem.

To counteract this, you have to switch to some absorbing indoor activities. Reading is always high on the list, but as a paddler, the highlights include building boats and maintaining them. really, it's much more selfish than that - we want to be paddling the boats building during our regular paddling season, not building them. Anyway, as a paddler, you've got to have some "indoor" boating things to keep you going to keep from going stir-crazy.

Another great activity this time of year is dreaming about where you're going to paddle. Growing up, my Scout troop used this time of year to plot and plan our trips. We would pore over topographic maps and guidebooks of the ares where we were thinking of going. We would plan menus and start to accumulate gear. We'd repair old gear, waterproofing tents and varnishing paddles.

Kids

Most people who don't have children don't understand those of us who do. Surprisingly, they don't understand our offspring, either. Even though they were children once themselves, they appear to have forgotten most of their own childhood and probably don't remember the joys of it or the trials and tribulations of their (very) patient parents.

I suppose those people who are young and single don't give too much thought to the bathroom, either. They just take it for granted. Parents of toddlers have to give it lots of thought.

For example, I was in the bathroom getting ready this morning and had just flushed the toilet and was preparing to shave when DS wandered into the bathroom in a dazed manner to use the toilet.


"What's that noise?", he asked.

"Uh, that's the toilet tank filling up with water." Being that I am an engineer by profession, I proceeded to explain to him the inner workings of the toilet and why it was filling the tank with water.

Then it dawned on me.

"Why did you ask? Have you never heard the toilet tank fill before?"

I got a particularly confused look from DS.

Probably not.

For the longest period of time, DS seems to have been imbued with some mutant predisposition that left him unable to flush the toilet. As a parent of a child this age, you must understand that this had both good points and bad points for DW and I. First, there is the obvious bad point of coming into the bathroom to find that the toilet has a "surprise" of some sort in it. Then, there are the good points. You can almost instantly determine both the gastric health of your child and know if he wiped.

Yup.

Did any wiping occur? For the longest time, DS seems to have assumed that he has a Teflon bottom as he would tell us that he didn't need to wipe. A quick check of the laundry basket would always shoot this assumption down faster than a Scud missle over Tel Aviv.

'Skid marks'? Check.

C'mon kid.

We'd be ecstatic if he'd just use the papyrus as reliably as the kid below:

To be quite honest, I think that there is a distinct difference between the genders when it comes to potty training. I don't remember it being such a big issue for DD as she was growing up. As a matter of fact, it was the day that DS first came home from teh hospital that she managed to sleep through the night without a diaper and wake up dry in the morning. She just decided that was what she was going to do and did it.

At the moment, we have different issues with DD. She's at that in between stage. To borrow and excellent expression from one of DW's bloggy friends, Expat Mum ,(One of a group of wonderful ex-patriot, mostly British, blogging moms - do go visit her!) DD is turning into a...

Queenager.

While others find her to be a delightful and charming young lady when she is out and about, at home she can be much more, um, assertive.


She's decided that those things that she doesn't deign to do, she will not - and let you know that she won't.

In no uncertain terms.

At this point, her progress on the kayak that we've been building has ground to a halt and we're having a bit of a tête-à-tête in regard to the terms for doing the building work. As it is something that I know that DD wants to do, I've put a condition on when we can work on the boat. It's not extreme or anything. I've simply told DD that if we are to work on her boat, her room has to be clean. Not spotless, mind you - just neat. It still doesn't seem to be a great motivation for her even though I know she wants to work on the kayak.

I'm still looking for a motivational tool.

Got any ideas?

Oh yeah, I know what you're thinking, by the way - and no, it's not blackmail!

Wordless Wednesday

Maine Boatbuilder's Show 2010

It's getting to be that time of year again, so mark your calendars! The Maine Boatbuilders Show will be taking place in Portland, Maine on Friday and Saturday, March 19th and 20th from 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM and on Sunday the 21st from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. The show is hosted by the well-organized folks at Portland Yacht Services located at 58 Fore Street - right on the water. It is the traditional harbinger of Spring for the Maine boating community.

For my canoe building class it has become a "field trip" that really offers lots for all. It is a chance to see large and small craft of all kinds, power, sail, paddle and oar as well as tools, materials and information. I think the opportunity to see and take pictures of all the professional joinery and hardware really gives them some ideas for finishing their own boats. I enjoy seeing the variety of small craft and traditionally built boats and some of the people that I know.

Don't miss it!