A quick look at journalistic priorities.

Maybe it's just me, but I can't think of anything about the experience of being a child that I really prefer to being an adult, especially as I get older. I was never particularly athletic or even physical, so I don't know that I got much out of the kid ability to bounce and do crazy things that give multiple broken bones to adults. There are kid things that I'm glad I carry into adulthood--wonderment, curiosity, open-mindedness, the ability to sponge information--but in the end I think the whole spiel adults give kids about "being grown up is really hard, enjoy being a kid" is bunk, the same way "sixth grade is really hard" was bunk. I suspect adults tell that to kids to shut them up, make them feel better, make them behave, or some combination of the three. I've seen how much work kids are, though, and it's hard to fault most people for it.

(I realize I'm very lucky in a lot of ways that make being an adult more fun for me: I'm smart, pretty cute, and gifted in a profession that challenges me, pays well, and gives me a lot of lifestyle leeway. I think the big thing has been that I'm introspective and I've been able to grow into more of who I really am and who I want to be, which is someone who lives well.)

I went sailboat racing today! I posted an ad on craigslist saying I was looking for boats to sail on, and a nice woman emailed to say I could show up at the Coyote Point Yacht Club this morning and people may have space for crew while racing. I ended up on a boat with her, her husband, a couple other people, and a tactician who's a good and very competent guy but who tends to yell or snap at people. Not to excess, by my standards: I've met his type in aikido before, and I'm strong enough to not take it personally, though it gets old even for me. I learned a lot: racing is vastly more complicated than Just Sailing, which I've done my whole life. You're so focused on your particular job--cranking or releasing a winch during a turn, in my case--that you lose track of the larger sense of what's happening, because it's irrelevant. I did my job on the winch, and five minutes later I looked up and only then really noticed we were going in a different direction.

Pretty cool people, though, not really the sorts I normally associate with "yacht club", and I learned a lot and it was nice to get back on the water, even if it was sunny out. (I hate summer.) I got sunburned *everywhere* I'd neglected to put sunscreen and a few places I'd covered: cheeks, ears, and knees are the only victims this time, at least.