May 18, 2001
[TO NARRATIVES AND PHOTOS LIST]
Page 2 of 2
Varnish is what I call the civilized finish for wood. I don't know of a better
way to seal in the beauty of wood on a boat. Sure there's oils, polyurethanes, bleaches
and 'wunder finishes', but compared to varnish, none offer the same richness
and true preservation of boat woods. With that comes a minor chore
resembling a five day workout on a Nautilus machine. Two times a year,
this finish needs to be caressed with a scrub down, a wipe down with naptha, a sanding with 220
grit sandpaper, another wipe down and an application of the best varnish you can afford applied with a
badger hair brush on a calm day while humming your varnishing mantra given to you
by the Maharishi in 1964. I remember in the 50's my father and I worked three weekends
out of the month and went sailing on the fourth weekend ... on our wood boat. The smell of fresh varnish
was pleasantly noticeable when you walked down the dock, and boat 'work'
was part of the pleasure.
There's Valhalla, Nirvana, Heaven and the fourth metaphysical bliss
which are my days on the deck, in the cabin , and at my workbench.