The Rambling Writer: Playing Pirate!

Ahoy! Join Captain Thor and me as we launch our new pirate boat, RV (Recreational Vessel) Nereid.

NOTE: I promise we will return to the sacred Greek island of Delos in next week’s blog post. “Life” just got a little topsy-turvy this week, when I was kidnapped by pirate Thor….

If you follow my Rambling Writer episodes, you know that this has not been a typical summer of hiking and biking for me. A new physical therapy regime (after many months of false starts and reinjury) that I fervently hope will finally help my torn hip tendon heal mandated that I limit almost all walking. My hero Thor has been creative in coming up with ways to get me outside, as he may have noticed me ready to chew my leg off like some desperate animal in a trap. So he turned pirate and ordered an inflatable raft so we could go pillaging (and swimming) on the waves of nearby Lake Whatcom. Of course, this involved tricking out the raft with a transom and electric trolling motor, as well as bags of gear, beer, and a small battery-powered pump to inflate the raft. We never go light….

Ready to launch!

Off we sailed along the forested shoreline that has been saved from development as a wild park. We usually bike and hike the dirt trail along the shore to favorite swimming coves, but it was very different seeing it from the water. We felt like explorers watching the trees flow past.

Steady as she goes, Captain Thor! He allowed me to name the boat Nereid for my favorite smuggler’s boat in my novel THE ARIADNE CONNECTION.

There’s usually a brisk wind on the big lake, so we looked for a sheltered cove to throw out the anchor and have the first of several delightful swims in the clear, jade-colored shallows.

Thor likes to come prepared.

I was delighted to be out in the fresh air, on and in the water, my element.

Hoist the flag! We sight a juicy boat to plunder!

Why were they laughing as we approached with deadly marauding intent? Though they did offer us a beer….

Next week: Thor honors the lusty Greeks at the Delos shrine of Dionysos, and more.

*****

You will find The Rambling Writer’s blog posts here every Saturday. Sara’s latest novel from Book View Cafe is available in print and ebook: The Ariadne Connection.  It’s a near-future thriller set in the Greek islands. “Technology triggers a deadly new plague. Can a healer find the cure?”  The novel has received the Chanticleer Global Thriller Grand Prize and the Cygnus Award for Speculative Fiction. Sara has recently returned from another research trip in Greece and is back at work on the sequel, The Ariadne Disconnect. Sign up for her quarterly email newsletter at www.sarastamey.com