I finally got in my application for crewing on the Lady Washington, a Tall Ship that sails up and down the Pacific coast. I first read about the Barque Picton Castle and immediately decided to quit my job, cash out my retirement, and spend a year sailing around the world. After that, I'd live in a hermit shack in the Caribbean—or South Pacific, take your pick. (Luckily, Molly didn't take it personally when I blurted out, "I wish I was a rich bachelor.") When the coffee wore off and some shreds of sense found their way back into my brain, I started looking for something a bit more reasonable. A day of Googling, and I found the Lady Washington.

I know I should wait until I hear back from them before writing about it here, but how could I jinx this? Signs point to yes already: the day after I dropped the envelope in the mail, the web site announced that they've purchased another ship and need more crew now. (Ship? They say Lady Washington isn't a ship—are you supposed to say brig, not ship? They purchased a square topsail ketch. Or maybe "Tall Ship" is okay.)

Anyway, sailing, no, I've never sailed before. But it seems to be a lot like taking a long road trip, and I'm really good at doing nothing but watching the landscape go by for days on end. In the spring they'll be sailing up the Columbia; when we drove up the gorge with Judy I realized how amazing that trip would be. But I'll take anything they want to give me.

And some day, I'll sail around the world.