Burnout

[ron ll]

I'm sure it's temporary, but I'm feeling overwhelmed and burned out on boat work right now. I've been recanvasing the trunk cabin and it's going well but just long. I have more trim, handrails etc. to reinstall and it seems to take forever and every little thing costs way more than I expect. Cotton canvas - $115. Small box of Monel staples - $54. A few bronze screws - $60. Another quart of bedding compound- $45.

Prior to this I had just finished having the fuel tanks replaced. In addition to the several thousand dollars to others, I still spent many hours re-plumbing the fuel system and rebuilding the surrounding floorboards and cabinets.

Sure starting to sound like a whine, isn't it? But it's 80 degrees out and I should be using the boat but I have more trim to scrape, sand and reinstall. I don't know how some of the rest of you keep your sense of humor. Dan, I can't imagine how you stayed sane thru that stern rebuild. And Lew, the amount of time and money it must take to keep Rita looking like that hard to comprehend.

I still love Snoose and I'm sure I'll feel better tomorrow. But today, I'd almost rather be mowing a lawn or something than work on the boat again. (and I don't even own a lawnmower).

So feel free to throw in an "atta boy" or an "it'll be okay" or something here. Just don't offer to buy her 'cause I might be tempted.

:D (obligitory emoticon indicating that none of the above should be taken to seriously. )

[Lew Barrett]

I completely understand how you feel. It will be OK and remember the old saw about enjoying the journey as much as the destination.

But it gets really wearisome, especially the part about the money, which can be quite depressing. One does the big jobs, or the work one really wants to get done, but nagging at the back of the mind are the other projects and there is no end with an old boat. It's never really too far from one's mind as the little jobs are put off for the big ones, but remain undone and nature and water take her back almost as fast as you can move her forward. Still, you'll enjoy your new canvas!

I feel your pain, Ron. You know I do! And no need to say you should suffer in silence. Finally, remember that misery loves company, and you have mine!

[getthemack]

Spend the rest of today talking to everyone you meet with a cockney accent. (think My Fair Lady) Have a single malt scotch on the rocks. DO NOT work on your boat today. Read something that has NOTHING to do with boats or water. Pray for someone who has it bad. Tomorrow.....BACK TO WORK.
She'll be a joy to you for many years, you owe her this; but not every day.

[David G]

Ron - if no fotos, it no happen :p

Seriously, it does get tedious at times. Just remember... at the darkest times, there's probably a light at the end of the tunnel. You might not see it yet. It might be right around the corner. And it might not be a train :rolleyes:


"What we hope ever to do with ease, we learn first to do with diligence" -- Samuel Johnson

ATTABOY! Hang in there.

[peter radclyffe]

I'm sure it's temporary, but I'm feeling overwhelmed and burned out on boat work right now. I've been recanvasing the trunk cabin and it's going well but just long. I have more trim, handrails etc. to reinstall and it seems to take forever and every little thing costs way more than I expect. Cotton canvas - $115. Small box of Monel staples - $54. A few bronze screws - $60. Another quart of bedding compound- $45.

Prior to this I had just finished having the fuel tanks replaced. In addition to the several thousand dollars to others, I still spent many hours re-plumbing the fuel system and rebuilding the surrounding floorboards and cabinets.

Sure starting to sound like a whine, isn't it? But it's 80 degrees out and I should be using the boat but I have more trim to scrape, sand and reinstall. I don't know how some of the rest of you keep your sense of humor. Dan, I can't imagine how you stayed sane thru that stern rebuild. And Lew, the amount of time and money it must take to keep Rita looking like that hard to comprehend.

I still love Snoose and I'm sure I'll feel better tomorrow. But today, I'd almost rather be mowing a lawn or something than work on the boat again. (and I don't even own a lawnmower).

So feel free to throw in an "atta boy" or an "it'll be okay" or something here. Just don't offer to buy her 'cause I might be tempted.

:D (obligitory emoticon indicating that none of the above should be taken to seriously. )

its a good idea to walk away from it for a couple of days, there is some powder you can buy in a chemist here called polase, its potassium and magnesium, it replenishes the sodium loss thru sweat, and its so common here its like asking for aspirin, most hard physical workers , athletes , use it here in summer, coming from a cold country i just wilt in summer without it, i guess one of the chemist majors on the forum could tell us what the usa trade name is

[JimD]

Got some pics of the burnout?

[BETTY-B]

I'd drop everything and go for a putt, Ron. Dinner in Kingston? The trim will wait.

By the way, it's looking real good.

DAN

[rkingsland]

Even though my boat is metal, not wood, I feel your pain. Thirty years ago, before I started building our present boat, I recanvased the deck and cabin top of my 32' Hunt Shoaler with my right leg in a cast up to my hip (a bad skiing break). Looking back I don't know how I did it, but that's probably why I ended up in a cast for 8 months, instead of 5 or 6. I don't imagine dragging that cast all over the boat was very good for it (the leg I mean). I like this forum because here I can find knowledgeable people doing interesting things, unlike most of the sailing/.cruising forums on the web where people are asking all kinds of questions about how to wax their glass hull in less than 4 hours, or how to mount their new handheld gps to their pedestal.

Keeping the motivation steady is something I’ve wrestled with for a (very) long time. I’ve found that it’s essential to have some sort of balance in your life, to not neglect the other aspects, like daughter’s recitals or wife’s wish to go out once in a while, even while you know you should be scraping that varnish or mixing epoxy for that new toe rail or whatever. The projects on the boat will always be there, but kids grow up in the blink of an eye, and good wives need a little care and feeding once in a while.

The only way I’ve gotten this far, while maintaining a family, commuting 2 hours+ per day, etc., is by cutting out all tv,(except some sports, on the tv in the shop with no sound), and by not sleeping much. What works for me is to have more or less 3 projects going on at the same time… 1: one I’m just starting, figuring out the design, procuring parts and materials, thinking about the how of it… 2: one I’m in the middle of, actually making components, cutting and fitting and epoxying together, and 3: one I’m finishing up on, maybe final install, varnishing, whatever.

If I’m burned out or frustrated with one, I just move on to one of the others, and come back to the one that’s giving me trouble later… let it stew for a while longer, mull about it on the commute, sleep on it. That way I can usually find something fairly productive to do, even if I’ve only got an hour or two. If I know, looking ahead, that money’s going to be tight for a while (again) I try to at least grab the materials I’m going to need so that I can then go into a labor intensive phase instead of a money intensive phase.

It’s a lot harder to pull off large projects like these if you can’t do it full time, because seeing results in a reasonable amount of time helps to provide the motivation to keep at it.

You’ve got to step back once in a while, and look at the totality of what you’ve already gotten done, to find the push to keep going. Instead of looking ahead all the time, glance back at what’s behind you occasionally and realize that you’ve already come a long way, and maybe don’t have quite so far to go as you thought. I just kind of keep trudging along, almost never at a full run, but rarely at a complete stop, either. I just keep putting one foot in front of the other, that’s all, and after a while find myself in a different place.

Of course, you’ve got to be somewhat crazy, and you’ve got to love it, or you’ll go crazier than you already are. When I reach that point, I get out on the water in my little boat, or in someone else’s boat, and that helps bring it all back home.

I don’t own a lawn mower either… life’s too short.

Best, Bob http://www.sv-restless.com

[ron ll]

All good advice, and I am taking the day off from it today. But it still nags at me that I'm wasting a whole day. :D. But I have found in the past that when I get tired is when I make stupid mistakes. The smaller ones requiring a do-over, the larger ones requiring stitches. :)

[carioca1232001]

If what I declare herewith can afford some consolation..............I say to myself at times as when I declare 'I am nearly done' on a major overhaul involving a wooden boat .......

'The boss is half-brained....... whereas, the hired hand is all-brawn, thank heavens !'

[John Bailey]

I was going gung ho on an Oughtred Whilly Boat until:

1. Got fired!
2. Building Dept. closed my shop. (forgot about that little thing called a permit when I built my shop.)
3. Ran out of money. (It happens when you get fired.)
4. Was getting bored being with myself all day. (Most people do when they're with me all day.)

So, what did I do? I did the best thing to take care of burn out. I got a job and went to work 12 hrs. a day. And what did that do:

1. Got a job (that takes care of being fired)
2. The job allowed me to pay the fines.
3. Got a job (now I've a bit of money to work on the boat.)
4. After having a job, working on the boat looks like a flaming good deal. Not bored anymore.

Let it be for awhile, it'll still be there when you're ready.

John

[jerry bark]

But today, I'd almost rather be mowing a lawn or something than work on the boat again. (and I don't even own a lawnmower).




Oh dear God NOOOO!

never choose a lawnmower over a boat!

cheers
jerry

PS: I think my next boat will be named "Not Mowin' Grass"

[willmarsh3]

Can you sail the boat right now with the work in progress? Then do it. Also what works for me sometimes it to just take a day completely off from dealing with the boat. During my construction of the Elver I took a whole month off at one point.

[mariner2k]

I agree with Willmarsh. It gives you a chance to see your boat with a different perspective. By the end of the sail, you'll have new ideas, and your enthusiasm back. Regroup. Been there.

[outofthenorm]

Ron, speaking as a guy who is currently in year 4 of a 1-year re-fit (well, since I'm doing this, I might as well do that, and that, and that other thing) I feel your pain too.

I took a break from the big job late last Summer and built a small boat as fast as I could, without stopping to sweat over anything, then took it sailing, just to get back on the water before the Winter. Very Therapeutic.

Now, come the Spring I've been back at it, doing covering boards, coamings, rub rails ..... and enjoying every minute again.

The one thing you know is that Snoose is worth every ounce of your labour. She's a beauty.

- Norm

[ron ll]

Got some pics of the burnout?

http://www.ronlloyd.com/oddstuff/face.jpg

[floatingkiwi]

Everything on Gods green earth has an opposite, to balance it. To compare it with, contrast it, nothing could be, without something it isn't, alongside.
Up down, left right, good bad, his hers, on off, over under,with without, happy sad, difficult easy, and it just goes on and on ,(or not).
Building and sailing a boat is going to be one of the most enjoyable and fulfilling undertakings one could ever hope to have anything to do with in a lifetime. It isn't going to be easy, wouldn't be as fulfilling otherwise, and it is not going to be fun all of the time, but when it is , it is more the enjoyable.
Sounds like you are just experiencing one of those times that I know I do, and feels like I can't see past the end of my chisel for the pile of messy timber in front of me.
Relish it, smell it breathe it in, for it is necessary for the time ahead to be what it will.
Through hardship, come good men.