Confession: I inherited the family curse

When I was a kid my dad made sure we had the fastest boat on the lake. Dad loved boats. He built boats before he became a masonry contractor and he owned a boat until the day he died. One of the last trips my dad and I took after he had to go into a nursing home with Alzheimers was to a lake to boat.

I inherited my dad's love of boats and quite frankly, it's a curse.

But how could I have avoided it given that I was named after his father's best friend, a boat builder and grew up in boats from old aluminum fishing boats to fancy jet boats. My earliest memories are in boats. I still recall fondly falling asleep to the gentle rock and the lap of water when I was small enough to sleep sideways in the bottom my dad's an old aluminum fishing boat.
When I was really little, Dad tied me to a milk jug so if I fell over they could retrieve me -- which they once had to do. I grew up on a lake and as a teenager spent many hours in a boat or being dragged behind one.

So is it any wonder I'm cursed? I see a big fast boat and I itch to get behind the wheel. One of my dreams is to take out a cigarette boat and see how fast it will go.

But this weekend I spent all day on a pontoon boat with my husband, my step-daughter, son-in-law and our four grandchildren. The boat didn't go fast. It moved like a barge. It couldn't even plane. But I'm sold. I want a pontoon boat.

All of us were able to be aboard, including the youngest who is not even a year old yet. The canopy provided shade and yet there were plenty of seats for those who wanted the sun. We could walk around easily without rocking the boat and of course we had to jump off and swim when it got nice and hot out.

It was the perfect day -- and the perfect boat for grandchildren. Our two Springer Spaniels would like it, too, if they got to come along, which they would sans the babies.

I remember our neighbors on Hebgen had a Flote boat. As a teenager we made fun of it. Pontoon boats were for old people. Funny, how now I remember the "old" people sitting around under the canopy laughing with a cold drink in their hands as we zoomed past them.

Well...I'm ready for mine. Not that we will get rid of the motorboat. I still like to race across the water and feel my hair blow back -- even if it isn't as fast as half the boats I grew up in.

I can make a good argument for another boat and it isn't just my love of boats or my need to be out on the water summer mornings. I need this boat so I can write.

Seriously, I've found it really helps my writing. Last summer I got way ahead on my deadlines. And that's not all. You'd probably be a better judge of this than me, but some readers have told me that I'm finally hitting my stride evidenced by my last three books making Borders top ten bestseller list. More proof: I wrote those last summer after spending the mornings on the lake. Clearly it is of upmost importance that I spend as many mornings as possible on water.

And I could write on a pontoon boat. :)

Heck, now it is just a matter of convincing my accountant that a pontoon boat is a writing deduction.

If my dad was still alive I know what he'd say. He'd tell me to buy myself a brand new one today and not worry about how to pay for it. That's what he would have done. Dad understood the importance of boats till his dying day. That and credit. :)

While I live enough like my dad that it's scary, I'm afraid I'm going to have to look around for a used pontoon boat. Sorry Dad, but don't worry, I'll be on the water one way or another. After all, thanks to you, it's in my genes.