Can This Marriage Be Saved?

When I was growing up my mom had subscriptions to a few womens magazines. My very favorite article in all of the magazines was a feature in the Ladies Home Journal called "Can This Marriage Be Saved?" The article gave the separate perspectives of each member of the couple (whose marriage was in trouble), then the marriage counselor's perspective and, finally, the outcome. Most times the marriage was indeed saved.

I decided to steal the title of that article to write about a communication device we have been using called the Marriage Saver. And, no, our marriage is not in trouble.

When we are anchoring the boat I am at the helm and George is at the bow operating the windlass. We initially tried hand signals so that George could signal to me when to go forward, in reverse, turn toward port or starboard. The hand signals worked pretty well but were a little limited. Also, since the throttle and gear shift are on the floor I have to be sitting to operate them. That means that the top of the dodger obstructs my view of George.

I had heard of these wireless headsets called the Marriage Saver and wanted to give them a try. George was a little skeptical but agreed to try them after a found a slightly used set for half price. He is now a big fan.

We do often hear static if we are both in the cockpit and have them on. Once he goes up to the bow, though, we can hear each other quite well. I like the fact the we can communicate more than we could with hand signals. If, for example, he asks for me to put the boat in reverse, I can ask if that was enough, does he need more, etc. He likes the fact that he now has both hands free. One hand to operate the electic windlass and the other to operate the deck wash to clean the Chesapeake mud off of the chain and anchor as they come up.

Our marriage has definitely been saved.

 

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