Spider Web

[mcain]

We would like to cast off and start full time cruising this winter. We have the money and the boat and the major obligations are behind us. It should be easy to leave.

But the last 30 years have created lives that I compare to a Spider Web of strands, all holding us to land. Kids, parents, work, friends, house, insurance, banking, investments, cars, medical, dental, mail, email, phones, internet access, power, DirecTV, cable access, local Walmart, favorite toothpaste, West Marine, cutting grass, storage, renting house, drivers'' licenses, passports, boat documentation papers, radio licenses, favorite deodorant, safety deposit box, shaving, DVD player, ham radio, emergency availability, wills, inlaw barbeques, hurricane season, laptops and desktop computers, relative''s disapproval, blackberrys, palm pilots, cell phones, and on and on and on.

Slowly we are cutting each of the strands. One at a time. But it seems to take forever. We have been "preparing" for this for many years, and the last year it was serious. We have been sailing for all of the 30 years, including some offshore. It is not a surprise.

My question is open-ended. What experiences have the rest of you faced? Who has been successful and what has made it easier? Who has tried and failed--are you all even likely to be on this board? How draconian have you gotten and when? How long has it taken others to cut the ties? Any advice?