Back in the 1980s I was on the Big Island of Hawaii. The sea was calling and I chartered a beautiful Hunter sailboat for the day. The owners, a husband and wife came along. It was
not a bareboat charter; the boat was their pride and joy. We cruised down the coast toward Kona.
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After a bit the Captain asked me if I'd like to take the helm. He stood behind me and watched me carefully as I drove.
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"Here, take the wheel for a moment, please," I said. I moved forward and adjusted the main sheet, the boom vang, and the downhaul and then returned to the wheel. I had been racing sailboats all my life and I could not help myself.
I took a cassette tape (remember those?) from my pocket and handed it to the Captain. "Could we put this on the stereo?"
He was still looking up at the sails.
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"Huh? What's this?" He looked at the tape. It was the fall of 1985 and Jimmy Buffett had just released
Last Mango In Paris. (Off to See the Lizard was still a few years away.)
"Is this Buffett's latest?"
His wife and First Mate popped up in the companionway.
"He has the latest Jimmy?"
"Yeah, and he can sail."
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"Well hand me the tape and I'll put it on!"
By the end of the day I had traded three Jimmy Buffett tapes for another full-day sail. Imagine what you could trade for with the boxed set!
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