Mid Life Crisis: Does Boatbuilding Qualify?

[Iggy]

A funny thing happened over the weekend.

I was busy in the garage, sanding excess filler epoxy off the sides & bottom of my Malahini while getting ready for fiberglassing next week when I had a though pop into my head.

You know those random thoughts you get when working away solo on the boat.. doing relatively low-brainpower work like sanding for hours... your mind wanders a little.. or at least mine does.

I got thinking "I wonder if my wife thinks this is my mid-life crisis?"

Hmmm.. I don't think so personally.. I mean.. I am only 39 years old... 2 young kids (5 and 10).. and really its just a boat. Sure, its a handcrafted boat... probably going to cost around $10k more give or take a few thousand.. and yes I am in the garage more evenings & weekends than ever before in my life.. but hey, thats just a hobby right?

Wouldn't you know it, on Sunday.. on the way to the family farm.. while my wife and myself are talking (again) about buying a new vehicle to replace our old Ford Windstar when she says "I want a truck, I've always wanted a truck and it can be my mid-life crisis thingy?".

Now... I am all for getting a truck.. but that "mid-life crisis thingy" comment got me wondering...

Me: "Honey, you don't think the boat is MY mid-life crisis thingy do you?"

Her: "Sure it is."

Me: "No it isn't..."

And off we went.. not an angry discussion but I found myself trying to explain how a mid-life crisis would be something more outrageous than just building a boat.

See.. I was trying to 'save' my actual mid-life crisis as an excuse to do something really silly... like dye my hair blue and buy a lime green Porche or something like that. You know.. use it up on something outrageous that I could simply blame on 'mid-life'.

But a boat.. or even building a boat.. does not seem that outrageous to me. Unusual maybe... but off-the-wall blue-haired with green sportscar crazy.. no way.

But then again.. I can't think of myself as totally normal.. it not like everyone out there builds boats for fun (most of them should... but thats another topic).

Regardless... the jury is still out, for me anyway.

[galamb]

Let's see, bought my F150 at age 40 and started planning my current boat build the following year.

Life expectancy is what, 80'ish.

The math works

[Bill Edmundson]

Mid Life Crisis? I went really crazy

I GOT MARRIED

Bill

[upspirate]

I moved off the sailboat at 39 years and bought a house.....HMMMMM????!!!!

And got out of Hot rodding...for a while!!

[DaveLott]

I haven't slowed down enough to even think about it.

Even while sanding, I was planning for the next step. The admiral says my mind does not even stop while I sleep.

I reckon I need more time in the boat

[upspirate]

You had a lot of time in the boat installing stuff!!!

[Oyster]

Actually anyone can have what we may know as a midlife crisis. In my personal point of view this normally includes wimmin, fast and shiny red cars, and alterations of their body to make you look like a freak or a witch. Neither requires much more than money and an impulse either. Building a boat and completing one requires an entirely different personality and chromesomes. Of course some of us revert back to out childhood and foolish ways when doing so after the fact which also destroys any notion having to do with midlife anything. SO if you ask me if boat building qualifies as having a midlife crisis, I will say no.

[Jerry&Adam]

The whole point of a "Mid Life Crisis" is to, first of all, not know that it is one, secondly deny it, and third, warn your spouse that you will have another biggger one if they think that is one.

I am on my fourth or fifth, maybe my sixth, depends on who you ask.

Give her the truck. You will need it to pull the boat around!

The whole point of a "Mid Life Crisis" is to, first of all, not know that it is one, secondly deny it, and third, warn your spouse that you will have another biggger one if they think that is one.

I am on my fourth or fifth, maybe my sixth, depends on who you ask.

Give her the truck. You will need it to pull the boat around!

http://jerryandadamswoodenboat2010.shutterfly.com/

[DaveLott]

. Of course some of us revert back to out childhood and foolish ways when doing so after the fact which also destroys any notion having to do with midlife anything.

I wish I had known a boat like this is a chick magnet back when I could something about it.

So maybe building a boat is replacement therapy.

[TiredParent]

Midlife crisis? I think that was when I got married (at 38). Deciding to build a boat is not a sign of midlife crisis in my, since I have always tended to jump from one interest to another. Its been about 15 years since the last time building a boat hit the top of the list, but it isn't the only thing I've tried as a project, or wanted to try.

As far as thinking ahead... I've got my first two boats already planned... Still pondering how to go about the third, sea-going boat, but that isn't in the cards until and unless we move out to the coast. That and the fact that my wife isn't convinced...

[vupilot]

This better not be a mid-life thing. Im only 28. This falls more under the catagory of "Mom wouldnt let me do this in HER house so I had to wait until I had my own..."-Crisis

[Grand Chillin]

Of course some of us revert back to our childhood and foolish ways

Some of us never made it to being an adult.

Chris,
Do it now while you can get away with it and before words like "mid life" come up in any type of your conversations.

[Blair]

Iggy,
Your are building a boat so that you can provide your family with the opportunity to enjoy boating, water sports, etc. and learning new skills in the pursuit of a reasonably safe hobby. To me that doesn't sound too off the wall. IF you were considering selling your wife and children to a white slaver so that you could raise money to build a full size replica of HMS Victory, THAT might be viewed as the onset of a mid life crisis...
Blair

[Lowka53]

I am well past mid life mine was a Irock that spent more time is the storage unit I had to keep her in due to the fact I was turning miles out driving long haul truck. the boat Is my retirement and to prove to people I can ( had a heated talk to my father recentelly about dreams and making them happen he was in the opinion that dreams never happen to completion I informed him they never happen is you never start them)plus If i dont complete my dream now I never will getting to dang old. I find myself working a little then setting down alot as I work in the shop

[TiredParent]

dreams never happen to completion I informed him they never happen is you never start them)plus If i dont complete my dream now I never will getting to dang old. I find myself working a little then setting down alot as I work in the shop

That's my take exactly! I'll be hitting 52 in about a month, and things aren't quite as easy to do as they were a few years back. I figure I've got another 5 - 10 years where I'll even want to do the heavy work, and after that, I'll be willing to do some light maintenance, and that's about all. Meanwhile, it gives me an excuse to buy some more tools.