Life has twists & turns!

Many people have gone cruising and thanked me for my inspiration. Helping people find the way to living their dreams is my reward and really what Project BlueSphere is all about. Before I went cruising Annie Hill was one of my mentors. I came across her book “Cruising on a small income” and it inspired me in many ways. Not only did she inspire me to go cruising, but she inspired me to inspire people. I had a $240 a month income (Pension check) but could I go cruising on that much? After much consideration I decided that if I got the boat I could do it. I would no longer be living on steaks and good wine. However rice and fish, flavored with a large topping of freedom sounded like a meal I could feast on without a problem. Over the past few years I’ve managed to increase my monthly income with my DVD sales. I have also managed to make a few extra bucks by doing the odd charter and writing for Latitudes and Attitudes. At the end of the day I live on around $400.00 a month. I’ve had some big purchases latel= y (Cameras & Laptop) and that’s where the charter money went. Would life be interesting without twists & turns? Probably not! I found out yesterday that my pension check will be paused until December of this year. They made an accounting error and started my payments early and as a result my monthly income just got slashed $240 a month for the next 11 months. Time for damage control I should be really stressed but that’s not the case. I always preach the whole “less is more” thing and this may be a good opportunity to live leaner. How can I save money? No more shopping in the super market. The local fruit & vegetable markets are MUCH cheaper. I’m going to turn off the refrigerator. It costs me about a half gallon of diesel a day to charge the batteries for it not to mention the wear on the motor, filters, and belts. The motor is running well but I’m going to sail everywhere and use the motor as sparingly as possible. The outboard is coming off of the dingy. I could stand to loose a few pounds and rowing everywhere wont kill me, right? I’m going to start a new diet. Vegetarians don’t eat meat, but I’m only going to eat meat that I kill (fish). Would that make me a killetarian? I recently quit drinking and it’s been fantastic, my alcohol budget just got cut. You might think I’m crazy but I think it will work. A positive attitude has got me this far and I don’t plan on quitting just yet. I have about 40 minutes of the next DVD finished but I want it to be at least 60-75 minutes long. I need an ending and I think I’ve found it. My new plan is to sail for Hawaii via Mexico. Once I finish the DVD I can work in Hawaii and stockpile cash for 6-8 months then continue to the Marquesas via Kiribati. What was it I said “never make plans”! Needless to say, If anyone is interested in a charter please contact me. I’m going to wrap things up here over the next few weeks, say “good bye”to my friends and prepare to put some miles under the Keel. Hawaii is over 4000 miles from here. After studying the charts Acapulco Mexico looks like a good jumping off point. Cass will be continuing her journey with her father. This is not an easy thing for me and something I really don’t want to write about now, but “it is what it is”. Cass has been such a positive influence in my life lately I don’t know how I’ll get about without her, perhaps this will make us even closer? Well…, lots to think about. Peace, Love, and “Less is more” – Alex.