Thoughts and reflections form the past week or so from my own financial independence campaign.

Progress on my goals

Boat Plan

First hatch is in!

Turns out that the answer to the hatch problem was brute force and destruction.

We used an oscillating multi-tool to cut the hatch at its moulded seam, then I pulled it apart by using one side of the cut as a lever. Violence and swearing got it free.

Lady SierraWhiskyMike used a marine fibreglass filler to patch up the damage on Thursday, then this morning I drilled pilot holes, lined the hatch with butyl tape and screwed it down.

Sealant should set by the end of the weekend, then I can cut away the waste from around the hatch base and she’s in.

There’s one more hatch to go, but when you’re working in one area of the boat you have to clear all the stuff in that area to another part of it, and we also live here. One hatch at a time, there’s a good boy.

Second one should be much easier because (a) we know what we’re doing now, and (b) it isn’t in a recessed area like the forward cabin hatch was. We can attack the sealant from all sides with our shiny new power tool.

The cabin is now mostly leak-proofed, just the stanchion posts on the port side to do now. That’s not the end of work, mind you. Boat life involves a lot of maintenance, you’ve got to love fiddling with things. But, when the big bits are waterproof, we can get some sailing in around the constant repairs.

Distractions and detours

Writing class

Week 2 of writing class has cleared. I’m not sure if my writing is actually getting any better, but I’ve decided to take it a bit more seriously.

After listening to an interview with Neil Gaiman on The Tim Ferriss Show – it’s a few years old now, but I reckon it’s still relevant – I was surprised to learn that the famous author still prefers to write in pen and paper for the first draft. His theory goes that typing up is a lot quicker than being creative while typing, he can do the first edit while doing the type-up anyway, and he doesn’t feel so distracted when he’s writing by hand.

Turns out, he’s not the only big name writer to do this.

So I decided to pay a bit of money and get a nice Moleskine writing notebook. I’ve started writing in it, but unlike Neil (who loves a fountain pen) I’m sticking with your standard rollerballs. Bottles of ink don’t seem compatible with living on a boat.

Non-FIRE goals

My guitar rock god quest (AKA learning to play)

Week 2 of Can I play with madness?. I reckon I’ve got easily another two weeks of learning ahead of me.

I’ve started experimenting with different guitar picks. When I started, I liked the reassuring feel of a solid Tortex 0.88mm heavy pick. Inflexible but reasonably grippy.

However, as I got better I had a go with a much lighter pick, a Dunlop 0.58mm thing. While I didn’t find it as reassuring to grip, my playing sounded better. I then spent ages reading into it, and it turns out that despite the general rule that rock guitarists like a solid pick both Tommy Iommi and Paul Gilbert play pretty much everything with light, flexible picks.

I figure that there’s got to be a middle ground somewhere, so I bought a mixed bag of light-medium weight picks to see what I would play with after experimenting. Jury’s out.

Fitness

Got a cycle in, a bit of running and a swim. So-so, ticking along but not making bit gains.

Final thoughts

A week of experimenting and being creative.

I reckon it’s a combination of the weather picking up and the dog being aboard that’s done it. With life now being (temporarily) less hectic, I’ve got a bit more time to be creative in. Happy to grab the opportunity while it’s there.

My financial independence campaign continues!