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To jump or not?

2K views 8 replies 5 participants last post by  eryka 
#1 ·
I am at a cross roads. Heres the short/long story. I own a co-op in Alameda, where I live, its a sleepy, very boring island, across a terrible commute bridge to San Francisco. My girlfriend and I both work in SF and commute almost every day. My son (6) spends Fri/Sat/Sun with us and the rest of the week with his mom in her house in alameda and goes to school near her. My girlfriend rents a small studio in a great neighborhood in SF, "where little cable cars climb half way to the stars" kind of neighborhood. The boat is in SF too.
My girlfriend and I have previously, and want to now live in SF again. We can't stand Alameda, but the mom hates SF and will never move there. We kicked out the sublettors in the SF apt and now have lots of options. Here they are:
Sell the Alameda house(co-op) and make about 125k profit, use that money to put a down on a house in SF. Problem here is how expensive it is in SF, we might have to give up the boat and the apartment to make ends meet. They are both about a grand a month. What I want is to live in SF and have a boat. I don't think I could be a total livaboard with my girlfriends career. I am wondering if I can live between the apartment and the boat and survive without going crazy. I love my CS34, but its a little tight for a live aboard, but it might work with the apartment too. Keep in mind I have a 6 year old three days a week
I could sell the house and the CS and then buy a 40 footer, my slip size, that is a better live aboard and could do some coastal cruising, and keep the apt.
I hate to give up this apartment, even though it is small, it is right in the heart of an incredible area, and would be three times as much without the rent control of ten years.
My longterm goal...Have a base in SF and cruise around the Pacific and Caribbean, sailing, surfing, and diving. That is about ten years away.

Anybody have any ideas, or is this just too much drivel. Ask any questions you like.
 
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#4 ·
If you hate Alameda, why would you keep the house there? Sell it, invest the money, and skim a bit of the interest to play with the kid in exotic places???

What about GF's career makes it impossible to be a fulltime liveaboard? We've lived aboard a 33' year-round for 5 years now while I work as a Washington bureaucrat ...
 
#5 ·
GEORGE BUSH! IS THAT YOU??? YOU GET OFF OF OUR FORUM! HAHA! Just kidding Eryka.

Well, BF, you already know how I feel (smile).

I will say to live your life for what makes you happy and the kiddo happy (and GF too). If that is a house, it is a house. If a boat, a boat. FOr me it was a boat.

Crazy, but I find that the boat is one of the few places that I can truly relax and escape. I don't even have to leave the slip. About the second both feet are on the dock, my shoulders drop down out of my ears, I smile, I laugh, and a lot of the worlds problems are "at my back".

I like the idea of the boat because it is close to nature and gives you more freedom than any other form of 'trasportation' or escape. It is my place and where I feel at home. That attitude rubs off on my wife and my kids, and in such, we all find ourselves happier and distanced from the problems of land life.

It is not neccessarily the boat. Others may find this in a plane, or RV, or motorcycle. Each person must figure that one out for themselves. And make sure whatever you do that the boat you get, should you choose that option, is a comfortable LIVEABOARD boat. THat is soooo important. More people are burnt out of cruising because their boat is a shoebox than anything else I know of (with storms being a close second).

Your friend,

- CD
 
#7 ·
1-20-09

GEORGE BUSH! IS THAT YOU??? YOU GET OFF OF OUR FORUM! HAHA! Just kidding Eryka.
Okay, CD, I'm really offended. But on the off chance that all that time at sea has made you miss the subtle distinctions of land life, let me explain how you can tell the difference between us.

1. Politically, I stand a tad farther to the left. ... No, farther left. ... No, a little farther than that ...

2. I have a better than 29% approval rating from my colleagues.

3. He lives in a big white house, I live in a small yellow sailboat.

4. I pronounce it "nuclear;" he says "nuke-u-lur."

5. And here's the kicker - my 'bureaucratic Washington job' - really! - is to review environmental impact statements for scientific accuracy, so we as a society can make smart decisions about our actions based on reality. He ... ah, never mind. Ever hear of global warming? :mad:
 
#6 ·
Thanks guys. First step is underway, following in CD's footsteps, getting the house ready to sell. We will keep the apartment in the city and the boat, and I can still use the house while its up for sale. But the house in Alameda has to go!
 
#9 ·
Valiente

As is often the case, the real situation is more complex than the soundbites ...

Remember that my job is not to make the decisions, just to make sure the info is available - and if you're hearing the rumors, I must be doing okay ;)
 
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