Home again, gone again

The Waterfront, where I sail in St. Pete, likes to take their cruising boats on short three day cruises out into the Gulf of Mexico every few months.  I was fortunate enough last May to go with them on one of their little outings, and I was elated to notice last week while poking around on their website that they have two more coming up this month.  I can't go on the first one this coming weekend because I already have plans to go rowing on Saturday, (more about that later), but when I saw the dates for the second trip, November 21-23 I emailed Zac, the coordinator, and asked if there were any openings left.  He said that there were a few, and I called the Waterfront.  An hour later I had the best thing in the world to look forward to - three days and two nights on a sailboat and another chance to sail beyond the Skyway.

I asked for the time off at work yesterday, but one of my bosses was quick to notice that corporate had made that weekend a blackout weekend; when corporate takes what they think will be a busy time and use it as an excuse to not allow anyone to take time off.  I asked my boss what to do, and he said to tell the general manager that I had a family function that I couldn't miss.  He said that should work, and if it doesn't then I'll quit - I've been meaning to do that anyways.  For me, this three day sail is a rare and exciting opportunity that will disappear in a year when I graduate and I have no intentions of missing it for such a miserable job.  It's one of those "beg forgiveness, not permission" kind of things, and that's exactly what I'm going to do.

Between joining the sailing team, finding Masthead Enterprises on Thursday, signing up for this cruise, and getting back into rowing on Saturday, this has been a busy week.  I'm not sure what all I'm getting myself into here, but I know that's it's things that I love and have a passion for, which I guess is better than most people can say.  I'm just glad to be given the opportunities to fulfill the dreams that I moved here for.  My friends, family, and coordinator at UTC can easily give you a thousand reasons why I left Tennessee and moved to Florida, but the real reason can be summed up in one word, sailing.  It's part of the reason that I first came to the bay area almost twenty years ago, it's why I've always wanted to return, and it's what has given me my friends and life here.  I owe it everything, and in a few weeks I'll get a chance to come full circle and return the favor to the other sailors on the cruise who, as I learned last time, will be struggling to find their beginning in sailing as I did for so long.  I will be able to teach them the basics, share a few tricks, and hopefully pass along to them some of the love and passion for sailing that was once passed on to me.  That's the best thing about sailing, it's livelihood is in the sharing of it, and sailors are eager to share what they love.  It's taken me a lifetime to become a semi-established sailor, but with the help of a lot of good people, I have.  It's time to return the favor.