warning: this will make you feel good. do not read and click if feeling good induces anxiety. free-associating w matt and roz

before pbp in '07, i watched a series of youtubes chronicling roz savage's then goal to sail from the canary islands to antigua. i fell in love w her as i watched her shimmy back up and over the boat w a knife between her teeth after having cut herself free from a malfunctioning sea anchor. it's amazing what a human can do when determined. the relentless pursuit of something significant to a person is fascinating to watch, and fascinating to analyze when that person is from time to time you.


a couple weeks ago i decided to check in on roz. she's a hoss, a powerhouse and altogether inspiring. i like boats and even took lessons to get my sailing license 13 or so years back. what roz has done w her skill and passion, however, is nothing short of incredible. so when i visited her website and saw i could get a daily blog update on her latest rowing endeavor, i had to sign right up. in the meantime, i asked a friend if she were willing to cross the english channel w me in a tandem sea kayak and was turned down. doesn't mean i don't want to do it, but it won't be w her.

yesterday roz included at the bottom of her post a quote from alexander solzhenitsyn -- own only what you can carry with you; know language, know countries, know people. let your memory be your travel bag. gotta like that. and then it made me think of matt and another oldish youtube. fave part 2:33-2:43. neato song for sure. sounds like hope and belief and embracing bigness as well as smallness, the near and the far. what if remoteness is only a state of mind?

thank you, sensei grover. feels like i might need to add more stamps to my passport soon.