“Messing About in Boats” – A Toast to Water Rats Everywhere

July 10, 2009 · Filed Under Critiques, Lore of the Sea, Seastories 

Sometimes an author gains immortality from a body of work and sometimes from a single line of poetry or prose.  John Masefield will forever be known for his poem “Sea Fever” and the phrase ”all I need is a tall ship and a star to steer her by.”  Only slightly less famous is the comment by the Water Rat in Kenneth Grahame’s Wind in the Willows - “Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing — absolutely nothing — half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.”

Masefield is more serious, addressing both the professional mariner and the dedicated amateur sailor. Grahame’s Water Rat, on the other hand, calls to all of us stuck in offices or shops, toiling away at desks, on the floor or at counters, who escape whenever possible to the water front, to the boatyard or marina just to mess about in boats.  A toast to water rats everywhere.

This minor soliloquy was inspired by a NY Times article about two new annotated versions of the Wind and the Willows which have recently been released roughly one hundred years after Kenneth Grahame’s children’s book was published.   Having read the review I would recommend staying away from the annotated versions.   The Times notes: “The book is still perfectly readable without pedantic notes or explanations, and Ms. Gauger’s edition, in particular, is so laden with commentary that it sometimes resembles the Talmud, with more commentary than text on the page.’“    The annotations seem likely to ruin a perfectly fine children’s book that I loved reading to my sons at bedtime at least as much as they enjoyed having it read to them. 

Various non-annotated versions of the book are widely available.   The book is also available on the internet, which is great but somewhat limiting for bedtime reading to children.

Tags: , , ,

Comments

3 Responses to ““Messing About in Boats” – A Toast to Water Rats Everywhere”

  1. Thomas Armstrong on July 10th, 2009 5:52 pm

    Loved this, thanks.

  2. Rick on July 10th, 2009 6:15 pm

    Glad you liked it. Thanks for the comment.

  3. Steve "Blackbead" Sanders on July 13th, 2009 2:43 pm

    Ahoy, Old Salt!

    Thank ye kindly for the lovely sentiments and the reminder that whether ye be seadogs or water rats or just old pirates there is wonder to the water that cannot be described ‘cept in the arts, whetehr it be prose, free verse or words a-rhyming. Here’s one I penned that I hope ye like:

    Raising the Black Flag

    Golden flames, purple and pink:
    The colors of the sunset
    Blend and flow among the clouds
    As we take in our lines
    And slip away from the dock.
    And the crew counts the dolphins
    As we escape down the channel to the sea.

    Home falls away behind us
    As we close with the perils
    Of a life spent in the sweet trade:
    Bad food, worse water, eels in the rigging,
    French muskets, Spanish cannon, Dutch rope,
    Dying of thirst becalmed in the doldrums
    Or drowning when the ship comes apart in a gale.

    We measure these dangers against
    Phantom coins in untaken treasure chests
    Spent on red wine nights in exotic ports
    With companions paid to make us feel like gods.
    They do their jobs well.
    And when we sail we have the wind in our hair
    And the horizon to scan for prizes.

    A pirate’s life is most likely short,
    A pirate’s death is most likely sharp.
    But we are not slaves to any wage
    And we call no man “sire” or “squire.”
    In the end, it’s not the gold that sets our sails;
    ‘Tis freedom and the fair expectation of a better life
    That raises our black flags.

    Stephen Sanders
    ©2008

    Fair winds, dry powder, cool grog, and a full treasure chest to ye!

    Blackbead

Leave a Reply




Video of the Moment

HMS Surprise and Star of India

Also featuring the Californian
and the Lynx

To be notified of blog updates
enter your email address:

  • Viagra ordre
  • Cialis en ligne
  • Levitra en ligne
  • Propecia acheter
  • Viagra acheter
  • Acheter cialis
  • Ordre levitra
  • Ordre propecia
  • En ligne viagra
  • Vente cialis
  • Levitra bon marche
  • Propecia en ligne
  • Viagra online
  • Buy cialis
  • Order Levitra
  • Buy propecia
  • Buy viagra
  • Cheap cialis
  • Cheap Levitra
  • propecia online
  • Viagra prescription
  • Cialis online
  • Buy Levitra
  • Order propecia