Re-entry: Week Three

Just as it takes some time to shut down one's land life before heading to sea for several years, it takes some time to re-enter after living on a small boat in very large oceans.  Jon and I have been both busy and slow.  The boat is clean and we've begun to clear out things we will not need for life on the Chesapeake--that took about a week.

Jon is actively looking for gainful employment, and I am making arrangements to travel across the country to see family and friends and tend to some unfinished business related to my mother's passing last year.  While we still remember how to drive on the right, the traffic can be unpleasant and we are trying to remain calm in the face of stressed out drivers.  Here are some re-entry issues I find myself confronting, not unsurmountable my any means, but there nevertheless.

The first for me was lines.  I do not do lines, at least not yet.  I went into a Starbucks to buy a New York Times and get a tea, and the line was about 15 people deep.  I turned around and walked out--just not that important.  It has happened several times, and thus far, nothing I thought I wanted was worth 20 minutes or more waiting.

A more overwhelming moment occurred when I walked into a high-end grocery store.  In fact "grocery store" does not even seem like the right words.  Food porn is probably more appropriate.  I had some time to kill before an appointment and went into a Balducci's.  It is not that anything there was bad, or necessarily symbolic of conspicuous consumption; it's just that it all looked so perfect, so delicious and so abundant.  Cheeses, meats, pastries, produce, and things in gorgeous packaging making my eyes pop out.  I walked up and down the aisles, looking but not touching, not knowing how one decided what to select.  This is what newly arrived immigrants feel like when they go to an American grocery store for the first time.  It's not bad, just overwhelming.  I walked out, having purchased nothing, feeling a bit numb and speechless.

I also find myself noticing the absence of paying attention to where the wind is blowing from, planning for evening watches, and being attentive to the sails, the boat, and seas in general.  I know situational awareness can be important on land, but in normal civilian life, it does not require the same vigilance as at sea.  I am surprised to find myself missing that need to be sharply attentive.

Crowds and loud noises also require some acclimation.  My usual instinct is to get away from such circumstances as quickly as possible.  I do not panic, but again, find that crowds are a bit overwhelming compared to our quiet life of the last few years.  This evening, when Jon and I joined our son David at a Washington Nationals baseball game, it was particularly challenging.  The game was sold out, the lines for hot dogs or beer were way too long for me, the decibels were pretty high, and it was crowded.  I did not find it intolerable, just tiring.

Nevertheless, it was wonderful to sit outside on a cool summer evening and watch the Nationals break their three game losing streak with a 5-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves.  Baseball is America's pastime, and much preferable to Cricket in my opinion.  And after the game, there was a concert by Jacob Dylan and his band The Wallflowers.  Ahhhh, American rock-n-roll.  We are home and it is good to be back despite a few re-entry issues.  We'll adjust.