Never Done Before...

I teased some of my blogging friends not too long ago. I mentioned that I spent many of my teen years (well, actually all of them) sailing the Bahamas and Caribbean, and never followed up with any stories. Well, here is the beginning (of probably many):

Flash back to 1968 (yes, I am that old and was 12, almost 13 at this time), Carmichael, CA (a suburb of Sacramento)... The Rimington family has lived on Marshall Avenue since Dad graduated from Cal Poly. We (the four sons) attended John Barrett Elementary, then Albert Schweitzer Elementary (when Barrett became a middle/Jr High School) and then back to Barrett as 7th graders (and yes, the Barrett family, one of the kids my age and a friend, still lived on a plot of land next to the school)... My best friends were Randy and Lee Brock (who lived next door) their Dad was a friend of Art Linkletter, which really impressed me at the time... Our best family friends were the Baldwins (Mr and Mrs) and their children Judy, Terry, and Michael, I remember playing with Michael's GI Joe dolls (not sure if that actually means anything) and Judy and I were always hanging out...

As we became older, I truly think Dad became worried about us as we got closer to High School age (I am #2 son of the 4 and the 60's were just the beginning of the pot, drug, and sex laden 70's)... I think also, he had an unfulfilled dream that he needed to realize...

He said he wanted to take his wife, 4 sons, cat, and dog. Find a large sailboat, work when necessary (mind you, as I recall, my Dad designed the guidance control system for the minuteman missile, working for Aero Jet General after attaining his 2 degrees) and sail around the world...

The dream started to become a reality that year. Mom and Dad sold the house on Marshall Avenue, their most important belongings were shipped up to my grandparent's house, and as Dad said; we can't see the rest of the world without seeing the USA... The "Griswold Family Vacation" was off and running... We visited my Great Grandparents in Tucson AZ; we drove through the continent of Texas, visited family living in St. Louis (at the time that MLK was assassinated), drove on to Washington DC, and then finally back to my Aunt and Uncle's place in Blytheville, AR...

Dad had made arrangements to deliver the family truckster (a 1965 Cadillac Sedan Deville) to a buyer nearby in Tennessee, which is also where we flew out of on our trek to find "the" sailboat that would take us on our journey. We flew out of Memphis, into New Orleans for a brief stop, and then on to San Juan, Puerto Rico... On our way to St. Croix, in the USVI...

Interested to find out more?

Stay tuned, Over and "Out" from a warm spring day, in Portsmouth, VA