Friday, October 19, 2007






What's in a name?

As we travel along and meet other cruisers we enjoy asking about their boat's name.
Many different categories can be used for the names.
Some names are a combination of the names of those on board e.g. Lorraine and Graham on "Lorrigray".
Some names evoke greatness and are very noble or majestic - "Victory", "Perseverance".
Some names are mythical - "Nausicaa", "Rhiannon", "Veleda", "Frejya", while others are more perception - "Bliss", "Dream Chaser", "Sandcastle", and "Monet".
Some names pertain to actual sailing and cruising - "Slow Dancing", "Meander", "Sojourn", "Windswept", "Molasses", "Vagabond" and "Voyageur".
Some names are just fun such as "Puddle Jumper" or Bob's boat which is named "Good Time Charlie" while others are just too much - "Kindness to the World".
Some names are taken from nature such as "Southern Cross", "Jet Stream" and "Sea Star", of course.
Some names give hints to the Captain's former profession, such as "Psyche", "Remedy", while others hint at the owner's land of origin - "Ngoma" (drum beat that travels across long distances - Zimbabwe),or "Beothuck" (native people of Newfoundland). The best boat name, showing place of origin, we've seen is "Famous Potatoes". Can you guess where this American boat is from?
But, hands down, the gay couples seem to be the most imaginative with their boat names. We met the two men sailing "Grace". They professed to us to being a couple of Queens and they were from England. Definitely a perfect name.
We didn't see the other gay couple's boat but did hear that they were both former American Airlines employees - both had been let go. Their boat featured the American Airlines logo of the 2 "A"s in circles, with a slash through each one. The boat name is "Double Shafted". They are gay men.

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