landards

A noun, invented by Karen, to describe people who live on land. For example, “Why do landards shower every day?”

life jackets

Depending on the context, the term “life jackets” refers to any of the 4 different types of life jackets that we use and own. My kids agreed to model each type of life jacket.

lizard chicken

A terrible and memorable chicken dinner that I made in Saint-Pierre, Martinique using an Instant Pot.

After being cooked, this chicken looked like a lizard and was put to sea. A chicken dinner was lost. Perhaps the chicken saved a few fish from the food chain that evening.

lock up

When we go to shore, we lock all doors and windows and shut off some power switches. If we think we might be back after dark, we bring flashlights and leave our anchor light on. We also remove valuables from the deck. Locking up our boat takes about 10 minutes.

At night, we lock up our dinghy with heavy chain and a padlock. Sometimes we raise the dinghy as well. We have started to lock our Yamaha gas tank because ours was stolen right off the back of our boat in Micronesia in January 2024.

long-sleeved shirt

Refers to a shirt used for sun protection, not warmth.

Luperon spoon

Refers to a large, pitted serving spoon that I bought as a sand toy in Luperon, Dominican Republic. It has been missing for several weeks. I suspect it went overboard.

math music

Kate Bush, The Kick Inside, album. Rick listened to it when he was studying math and space physics at the Florida Institute of Technology. He sometimes plays it for our kids when they are studying.

Miss Scarlett

The name of our 17-foot double-seat kayak. Miss Scarlett has watertight holds and is excellent for taking snorkeling or transporting groceries. When the dinghy is in use, the kayak is like having a second car.

money

Money depends on where we are. We think of local currency in terms of Canadian or US dollars. We plan large purchases in advance because ATM machines may not be functioning or might have daily limits. We guard our bank cards because they are extremely difficult to replace in this part of the world.

Because we are so far away, we are unable to visit a local Canadian bank for a new card. It has been challenging to convince our bank to send us a new debit card but they do, eventually, after we explain our situation.

In the more remote islands in the Pacific, there is no need for money. We have traded for produce using: Advil and a knee brace (to the same person), clothing, pectin for jam making, rice, rum, reading glasses, shoes, dive fins, flip flops, fishhooks, and resins and fabric for fiberglass.

One boy asked for a cellphone in exchange for a bunch of fresh peanuts. I admired his chutzpah, but we did not have a phone to trade. In French Polynesia, we traded a good-quality sailing line for an entire truck bed of fruits and vegetables.

The people in the Pacific islands are just as eager to receive hard-to-find goods as we are to receive fresh food.

monster crawling

Running on all fours by hopping or crawling. Sometimes my children do this while putting their arms fully down their pant legs, giving the effect of having dinosaur or monster legs.

moose-nosed e

Refers to a handwritten ‘e’ that lacks a sharp point. Instead the ‘e’ is entirely curved. The terms comes from going to elementary school in Whitehorse, Yukon, where I first learned to print. Moose was a common term in my childhood. Further, my family ate moose meat because beef was prohibitively expensive.

Ned

The name I sometimes give to a protuberance that is bothering my children. If someone complains of a pimple, or an occipital bun (which is normal), I might suggest we call it “Ned” as it is something that we must learn to live with.

new shoes

In developing countries, it is difficult to buy good quality shoes of any type. Shoes do not hold up well in a salty environment. We don’t often wear shoes around the boat.

To solve the problem, years ago, I bought boys and girls running shoes and sandals in every size, from about size 3-12 in Savannah, Georgia and Little Havana, Miami.

When my kids outgrow their shoes, it is an occasion. We open up a locker and access a storage area under our cockpit table. I pull out some shoes. My children try on a pair they like until we find a shoe that fits.

Nimbleton

Refers to a person with athletic ability. A Nimbleton might be asked to lock up the dinghy in rough weather or climb up the mast with safety gear. Paul deserves special mention; he is a fully certified Nimbleton and has gone on the deck many times in extremely rough weather to manage the sails and lines.

Antonym: Hobbleton

office

Our office is a desk with a bench, located on the starboard side.

on the hard

Refers to a situation when our boat is hauled out of the water and placed on stands. Being “on the hard” allows for boat repairs and painting.

Opa’s knife

A good-quality, wood-handled carpet knife that belonged to Rick’s dad, Alfred. The knife is not very sharp, but it is very useful.

Also, it is something tangible that embodies Rick’s dad commitment to precision and hard work. Alfred founded and ran Centennial Floors in Calgary. Opa means Grandpa in German.

outside fridge

The outside fridge is a storage locker with a refrigeration unit inside. We use the outside fridge to store water bottles, beer, wine and produce.

papers

Refers to passports, receipts from Immigration and Customs, VISAs, entry and exit clearances, boat registration paperwork, crew list, and vaccination booklets. We need these documents to enter and exit every country.

We often require copies of our paperwork (in print and electronic format). In the pictures, I provide an email from Rick to a coastguard office in the Philippines, requesting permission and procedures to arrive in that country. It is sometimes very easy, and lately, very convoluted.

peeling cans

We label and remove the paper labels from our tin cans. We have heard that insects may like to nest under the labels. By “peeling the cans” we hope to avoid bug eggs getting into our cupboards.

Peter shorts

Refers to a style of boys’ shorts, popular in the “Keywords with Peter and Jane” series. Used in a sentence, Henry might say:

 “I don’t want to wear those shorts. They are Peter shorts!”

Or, Paul might say:

 “Peter shorts give me a better tan.”

pool noodles

Refers to a swimming circle we originally made using pool noodles on a line. The row of floats helps other boaters to see us swimming in the water. The U-shape prevents us from getting dragged away from the hulls, even with a strong current. Other boaters sometimes hold onto the pool noodles while they are talking to us.

The original pool noodles did not stand up to constant use. In 2017, I wrote a blog post about our DIY swim enclosure. The original pool noodles were replaced with fishing floats that we bought in Grenada. But we continue to call them pool noodles.

put out your bingo wings

Another Canadian sailboat called, SV Party of Five originated this phrase but they called it, “putting out your bitch wings”. This phrase is probably more descriptive, given its intended purpose.

To “put out your bingo wings”, refers to the practice of standing on deck with arms akimbo to perhaps intimidate another boat from anchoring close by.

rainwater bins

We collect rainwater in two bins and filter it to put into our potable water tanks. Rick built us a system that collects, purifies, and directs water to our port or starboard tanks.

From a switch at the nav desk, we can turn the rain collection on or off. This is important because, during a heavy rain, our two 178 US gallon tanks can fill in as little as 45 minutes.

Without this we would have to run our generator (consuming 0.33 US gallons per hour of diesel) and reverse osmosis system (producing 25 US gallons per hour) for about 14 hours to collect the same amount of water (356 US gallons). That’s 4.7 US gallons of diesel saved or US$34.00 given the price of diesel in Chuuk Lagoon, FSM.

real milk

UHT milk sold in a box. This milk tends to be heavy and expensive. Our family buys powdered whole milk. We have not had fresh milk in years.

red light

We use red LED lights at night to preserve our night vision. It allows our eyes to adjust to seeing outside when it is dark.

red pasta

Pasta with tomato sauce.

R. Escher

A name I call my husband, when “Rick” is not enough.