Coming into this year, I decided that I wanted to take this chance to learn something new, and to get back to those things I've enjoyed before that fell to the wayside in the hustle and bustle of Princeton. My best pal from Princeton came to visit me for a week and a half, and between cooking (mis)adventures, the thrill of avoiding being run off the road by Baltimore drivers, being treated to a delicious tapas dinner by my great mentor Lindsay, and lots of talking and snacking, it was a welcome bit of relaxation as I work to find my bearings here. During one of our many jaunts to the Inner Harbor she mentioned that she intended to pick up sailing again by joining the sailing club when she got to grad school. On a whim, I Googled "Baltimore sailing", found a group called Downtown Sailing Center, and signed up for lessons! Having never stepped in a sailboat before I wasn't sure what to expect, but after my first lesson I was in love. The Domino factory made the harbor smell like sugar, the wind felt great, and the water was quiet but active. We sailed from the city to Fort McHenry (the one over which waved the famous Star Spangled Banner that Francis Scott Key wrote about). As of now I've only completed the introductory course, but I'm looking forward to practicing during the club's open sails and completing the rest of the courses, and hopefully by the time I end this fellowship I'll be a US Sailing certified skipper with plenty of seafaring tales.
Mark Twain once said "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw of the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover". Although I'll be sailing in safe harbor... with a life jacket... I do intend to take these words to heart. I'm very excited for a year of sailing, sewing, piano playing, making new friends among my coworkers, and getting to know the other fellows! A far cry from toiling over Finite Element Methods problem sets, that's for sure, and a welcome and much appreciated new adventure.
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