No barriers…everyday people

This post is a re-iteration from another post on my sailing blog. Only a few read both so I thought I’d put it here changed a bit for this venue as there are surprisingly almost twice as many readers here as there. Which is a big surprise. With that in mind I am doing something different and doing a double post although this one is a bit different from the original.

There maybe no barriers according in life according to Neal Petersen but there is for real, Bad traffic, accidents, slow downs. This is what I’m thinking whilst Lady Z and I are on our way to San Fransisco…

( it helps while you read the following below if you have “it’s a small world” playing in the background)

The Internet is a amazing place, when you really think about it, how you can reach out and touch the world from your home while sitting in your favorite chair in your briefs if you like.

Places and people you would never come in contact with, most likely on your own. Add in the boat and sailing factor, things expand, yet narrow and the same time.

In the time I have been blogging which is just a little over a year. I have met, encountered, contacted, or corresponded with some pretty amazing people. Some of which I’ve had face to face talks with. There is the retired history professor who sails and plays Jazz both locally and internationally. There is the Zen Master who sailed around the world when he was young in a home-built boat. Another retired sailor from Ca who lives in Japan and runs a sailing school,  who turned me on to the ASA and teaching sailing. The writer from the great NorthPacific of another blog on Sailing gear and such, the world famous couple who are considered one of the foremost small boat sailing authorities. A couple of local sailors, one of which has the same boat as me, the other who visited my marina. Those who I have not met but have chatted with, the retired sailor merchant marine, who has a made in Japan wife with almost the same name as my wife, who sails the same type of boat as mine, who’s wife making an amazing recovery after under going Reiki treatments, there numerous contacts from SailFar.net, all of whom have been helpful and friendlier than many regular folks one meets in real life. There are the folks we met from Gaijin-in-Japan/Oyamake Ceramics & Kobe Kung Fu we’ve met up with in Japan, via the net who took around, fed us and offered help and advice on relocating. There is the sadly now missing, Blasian couple from Japan we hung out with a bit, the Ca Heart Zen leader. Then there are the other few that I have had just small side conversations via email, but not met in person, on things like Zen/Tai Chi/Ceramics, etc, like Stepping Stones of Truth, Three Fold Twenty, Art by Linda Lou These are all significant because in our day to day lives we do not often met people we can relate to, we have few friend interactions. Just what do we call friends these days…has the definition of a friend, friends changed in these days and times of less personal interaction with people. Out of all the people I have met through the years, very very few I am still in touch with, not for my lack of trying…for some… for others not so much 🙂 We have many acquaintances these days, but do we have friends…I digress, that is another topic…

Plus others who my brain is too tired to think of, but the point here is the world has become much smaller, and broader at the small time.

So now I add to the list an award winning author, world class yacht racer, and a professional lecturer, who speaks around the world in front of thousands of people.

All this is going through my head as we inch our way past the accident on the Bay Bridge, on our way to have dinner with Neal Petersen.

I had corresponded with Neal several times over the last year or so, after becoming aware of him via the SailFar board . After a very brief bit on the chat section of SailFar one evening and reading his book “Journey of a Hope Merchant” ( if you have not read this book I recommend it) I had a couple of questions I was wondering about while writing one of my blog entries, the one on Spiritual Sailors. I had sent Neal a email asking a short question or two. To my great surprise he had written back almost right away. Unlike an local unknown writer who ignored me, anyway we exchanged a few emails on the topics and said hope to meet some day…Fairly common statement that rarely happens I figured. Times passes, as time does, and one day while looking at his site, I notice a couple of lectures on his schedule for in the Bay Area. I drop him a short note, saying if you have time and want to met for a break from the hussle & bussle please let me know. Again to my surprised I am contacted, yes, he says.

The Lady Z and I pick up Neal at his hotel and drive over to Lil Osaka, Japan-town. We pick a shushi place the Lady Zen spotted on our last visit and we have a light meal and conversations there.

It was a pleasant evening, even with Lady Zen a little sick. We ate and spoke of world events & conditions, the environment and our undeniable connection to it, our future with and because of it. The government here and it’s sad state, even more interesting coming from someone not from here and has lived in other parts of the world. Also of course boats and sailing. His Japanese friend who just last year I believe sailed around the world solo at 70 yrs old, setting some kind of record. Maybe the oldest man to single-hand around the world. This same man had not started sailing until he was 50 yrs old (that should be inspiring for us silver sailors). Now he, the friend sails in major world class races. To add to that, he sails to the races from Japan, then races throughout the world then sails back. Lady Z had her own questions about being sea sick (many use half of the patch now-a-days to help) and Neal’s wife and her sailing. His wife currently loves to sail, but had not always been sailing ( a little FYI). Neal currently owns and is redoing a 40ft or so Catamaran. His wife, he said was the one who was instrumental in his buying this Cat. Sadly It was damage in the hurricane there in Southeast and is being repaired. It was interesting to hear someone who has raced in world events yacht races say that they did not really like to sail heeling that much either, in response to Lady Zen comment about sailing on a Cat.

So another pleasant, informative and surprisingly nice contact with a person who I was able to reach out and “touch” ( hear the it’s a small world theme playing in the background) due to the world wide web. It a good name for it when you think about it, we are all connected via this web of wireless wire…there are no barriers( firewalls, yes …heheh), but no barriers…and even the rich and famous can still be and meet, everyday people…Sugoi ne! ( amazing)