Tin Foil Sailing

My sister Maria and I were creative kids. I know everyone says they were too, but we were really out there. We didn’t need toys to play with – gosh, the thought of having an ipad would be unworldly to us. When we did receive a new toy, it wouldn’t last a week. It’s hair would be chopped off or the board game pieces would be sacrificed for a secret time capsule burial ceremony in the backyard (just two examples off the top of my head).

I recall playing “tent world” – making a massive tent structure over the dining room table with the big green blanket. Of course this was about an hour before dinner. We cooked up mud soup in the backyard making a total mess of ourselves and my Mother’s good pots. When we got in trouble, we “ran away” from home and lived in the tool shed, which in turn got us in more trouble. We loved playing in the back room – which was my Dad’s room filled with items he found on the job, that he was planing on selling. Dad was one of New York’s Strongest for over 30 years.  The back room with all it’s treasures lead to our creative mischief!

One of our favorite rainy day adventures was playing “storm boats.” My sister and I would each make sail boats out of tinfoil, working diligently at the kitchen table. My Dad was happy when it rained – we weren’t messing around with his stuff in the back room. When our boats were completed we would go outside in the rain and let them sail away – down the stream of water that flowed next to the curb. Our boats would crash and need repairs. Sometimes we would make little tin foil people to man the boats and navigate the storm. If the tin people fell overboard, of course a rescue was needed before they drowned. We would compare boats saying “MINE IS BETTER”. Those were great times I shared with my sister.

With all the rain I decided, what the hell, I’m going to make a tin foil boat and sail it!

My sail fell off almost immediately so I threw it overboard.

As adults we try everything to avoid getting caught in the rain – boots, umbrellas, ponchos, justifying a cab ride! Sitting in the rain this morning sailing my boat felt amazing… a kid without a care.

Sailing a tin foil boat – Rockaway Queens from Glorified Tomato on Vimeo.