Living Aboard in Silicon Valley
Winston Churchill is reported to have said that if you want the experience of boat ownership without owning one, stand in a cold shower and tear up hundred dollar bills. There's some truth in that. Nonetheless I loved my five years living aboard a 41' Ketch named Torrens. Linda and I had many adventures living aboard and sailing Torrens around San Francisco Bay. Pete's harbor in Redwood City was a wonderful community with folks from all walks of life sharing a love of boats. During this time I worked at AlterEgo Networks, Stanford and Yahoo! After a day in the tech wars, stepping aboard Torrens was always a great balm. Torrens forced me to learn about DC wiring, diesel engines, fiberglassing and repairing marine toilets (which I had to replace 2 or 3 times), In 2006, I sold Torrens to a fellow who, I learned later, sailed her to Mexico to avoid charges of embezzling funds from the town where he was treasurer.
