The Back Story

May 11, 2010

Antigua

 I've alluded to the fact I have kind of a cool job. Aside from living on and cruising our boat, I also work as a freelance writer. While this occasionally puts me in really sucky situations (which is where the freelancer mantra 'bad for me, good for the story' comes from), much of the time my life is just a little bit charmed.

Antigua Sailing Week should have been one of the charmed experiences. But, well, 'bad for me, good for the story' sometimes turns into, 'this sucks but I  need to get the freaking story anyway.'
One of my only tourist shots is of a sail loft, yup, I'm a geek.
Which is why I don't have many pictures of Antigua. Actually, I never planned to take more than a few personal snapshots. My magazine sent me with the most amazing photographer, Paul Wyeth (Look for me in the back row-and check his link below and see me sailing on Brian Thompson's boat) but because, well, most of the trip really, really sucked (except for the rockstar sailing and meeting the awesome editor from Sail, David Schmidt) my pictures are more limited than planned.
Somewhere, over there, is our boat. The problem is it was faster than us. We were low on gas. And the boat didn't know it was being chased...
Paul is at the mast, taking pictures of Brian Thompson, who is on helm. For my story. I'm, umm, in a chase boat. Chasing my story.
In fact, my photos are limited to the day when David and I needed to finangle ourselves a chase boat, so we could chase down our race boat before the race started, because it left without us. The story about why we weren't on it when it left is one of those journalistic tales best left untold (but it did include a stoner journalist, a defective alarm clock and a PR team that should be doing something very, very different their lives...). It's better if you all have an unsullied view of what it is writers do, just enjoy the pretty pictures and wait for the magazine to come out.
We really don't sell our souls to get the story--unless we have to.

Paul Wyeth : Marine Photography
(I'm in the middle)

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4 comments:

  1. Hello Diane, Evan and Maia, my wife and I are looking to start our cruise in 5 years. Our daughter, Kynzi Maia, will be 7 then so we find your blog very interesting! Our friends, Lorri, Gary and Buster, just left La Paz headed north on the S/V Endless Summer 2. I was wondering if you ran into them in La Paz?

    Enjoy your adventure,
    Tom, Athena & Kynzi

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  2. Hi Tom, Athena & Kynzi,
    We've shared an anchorage or two with Endless Summer II. We both had guests at the same time so never really met, but will keep an eye out for them.
    Also, I may be biased, but 7 seems like the perfect age to start cruising. Maia has been blossoming with the experience.

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  3. It surely seems so from both of your blogs! ES2 is currently up by Santa Marta, you can track them on Spot @ http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0E8FkMMfkCzMFF2KQspKELzUnCiv4N8U6

    On another note our middle daughter's name is Kayleigh (she is 22 and does not think her sister will like cruising), and we our in the beginning stages of planning a build of Richard Woods 40' Rhea Catamaran, so your blog really is an inspiration to us.

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  4. Well that is indeed a patient tester experience you have... anyway, I'd been researching for holidays plan and I came across your blog. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don't know what to say anymore except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog!

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