# Another inexperienced couple sinks their boat. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 12, 2018, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657 "2018-02-12T00:39:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Fugazi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f08c70/32.png) [@Fugazi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fugazi)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/41 "2018-02-12T18:57:53Z")
This is my “favorite” part from the article > [@](#): > > “You only have one life. Why spend it doing what you don’t love. Money isn’t everything!” Walsh told the Post. But it’s OK for everyone else to spend their lives doing what they don’t love so they can give you money to do what you love? ---
**Author:** ![BeeGee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b5a626/32.png) [@BeeGee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeeGee)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/42 "2018-02-12T18:59:07Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > Their Gofundme has only raised $425. 😃 > > [https://www.gofundme.com/TannerandNikki](https://www.gofundme.com/TannerandNikki) That doesn’t appear to be the right Tanner and Nikki. > **[Donate to Couple’s Sunken Dreams, organized by Nikki Walsh](https://www.gofundme.com/f/new-sailing-life)** > >   My boyfriend (Tanner, 26) and I (Nikki, 24) had planned for a year to buy a sail boat, live on … Nikki Walsh needs your support for Couple’s Sunken Dreams I know a grown man in his fifties who thought he could sail a houseboat from Florida to Texas with no real experience just by following the coast line. There was a fiasco for the ages. I have no problem with a Uber driver and a telemarketer giving up everything and buying a boat to sail around in. I think it ended about like I would have expected it to. I certainly am not going to contribute to a go fund me page so they can do it again. Got my own adventures to fund now that I’m getting closer to retirement. After working all these years. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/43 "2018-02-12T19:29:20Z")
> [@CurtC](#): > > Two millidollars? Two million dollars? Either doesn’t make sense, so I’m not sure what you’re saying here. m = [thousand](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_numerals) & is the standard way of abbreviating in the financial world. Fighting ignorance & all that. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/44 "2018-02-12T19:31:22Z")
> [@Spiderman](#): > > m = [thousand](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_numerals) & is the standard way of abbreviating in the financial world. > > Fighting ignorance & all that. The SDMB is a financial institution? ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/45 "2018-02-12T19:44:28Z")
> [@Spiderman](#): > > m = [thousand](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_numerals) & is the standard way of abbreviating in the financial world. > > Fighting ignorance & all that. Historically, maybe, but not any longer, except maybe for some specialized purposes (accountants, I don’t know?). MM is still widely used for millions, but most people in the financial world would write K for thousands. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/46 "2018-02-12T20:19:08Z")
The OP’s title made me think of the [other famous idiot couple](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=840124) that was rescued last year from an ill-advised sailing career. I Googled for an update, but couldn’t find anything recent - although I see they have started a [GoFundMe campaign](https://www.gofundme.com/truth-in-media) to raise money so they could “pursue the media” who made them look like idiots (methods of pursuit not specified). In 2.5 months, they’ve raised $15. ---
**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/47 "2018-02-12T20:19:45Z")
Only here would the thread take such a mundane turn over silly abbreviations. Anyway, forget about saving the dog toys, you need to [save the surfboards](https://youtu.be/3Zo-Ec6CDOw). ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/48 "2018-02-12T21:04:31Z")
> [@FairyChatMom](#): > > I could be wrong, but I suspect it’s the GoFundMe aspect of the story that people may find irritating… I almost wonder if the whole thing was a setup to justify a GoFundMe. I.e., they’re way overstating how much money they put into the boat, and hoping for a big sympathy payoff. I guess nearly drowning is a long way to go to sell a con job, though. > [@Czarcasm](#): > > With a job like that you would think she would be immune to “Let’s spend everything we got and blow it on a vacation we are ill-prepared to take” mentality. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/49 "2018-02-12T21:10:23Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > Oh, what the hell. They had a little adventure that was cut short. It didn’t cost them that much. They’re in their 20s, so their whole life is ahead of them. Sold their car and quit their jobs? So what? There’s two major things I have learned from the Straight Dope: 1. There are an alarming amount of weirdos out there who wash their bath towels after just one or two uses. 2. There is no way to overestimate the general resentment among the general population of people who live their lives differently than you. Which isn’t shocking, but the level of resentment and superiority directed toward people increases in the inverse to the impact that such people have on our lives. In other words, Aunt Jane and her many cats get eye rolls and jokes behind her back; a unnamed college student whom we have never met, never will meet, never remember the name of, and will never be thought of again is subject to unlimited disdain. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/50 "2018-02-12T21:15:22Z")
Well in this case, it is because they’re the poster children for that ‘Perhaps the purpose of your life is to serve as a warning to others’ demotivational poster. If you knew them, you’d maybe snark at them about it, then they’d know how you felt and while you may occasionally joke about their experience, oh, for the rest of their natural lives, you likely would’t just let them have it in a prolonged blast about how stupid they are. ---
**Author:** ![CurtC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ce73a5/32.png) [@CurtC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CurtC)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/51 "2018-02-12T21:21:03Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > The OP’s title made me think of the [other famous idiot couple](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=840124) that was rescued last year from an ill-advised sailing career. I was assuming that the “another” in the thread title referred to that very thing. ---
**Author:** ![Flyer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/flyer/32/7298_2.png) [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/52 "2018-02-12T21:36:50Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > What ever happened to the simple past-tense word “sank”? > [@aceplace57](#): > > Sank their boat is a better headline. I don’t understand needlessly shifting tense either. This is a rhetorical device that is at least 2,000 years old. It goes by several different names, but one of the most common is “historical present.” ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/53 "2018-02-12T22:09:33Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > 1. There is no way to overestimate the general resentment among the general population of people who live their lives differently than you. Which isn’t shocking, but the level of resentment and superiority directed toward people increases in the inverse to the impact that such people have on our lives. In other words, Aunt Jane and her many cats get eye rolls and jokes behind her back; a unnamed college student whom we have never met, never will meet, never remember the name of, and will never be thought of again is subject to unlimited disdain. It sounds like you’re saying having a negative opinion about something someone has done is resentment. I can’t speak for the general population, but personally, I think what this couple did was idiotic and begging for money is just the idiotic cherry on the idiotic sundae. I don’t resent them - I have no reason to resent them. They’re entitled to make their own choices and even beg from strangers. And I’m entitled to my opinion. ---
**Author:** ![Skara\_Brae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Skara\_Brae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skara_Brae)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/54 "2018-02-12T22:21:23Z")
I have nothing but respect for people who commit to live their lives outside the norm. I think in general these people are a net positive to society. However, there is this thing called being responsible and capable. These people had limited sailing experience, no insurance, and apparently no cash to their names. How were they going to eat? How were they going to pay docking fees for their boat? ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/55 "2018-02-12T22:45:49Z")
> [@Skara\_Brae](#): > > How were they going to eat? The ocean is filled with fish. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2018, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/56 "2018-02-12T22:52:49Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > The ocean is filled with fish. I wonder if they had any fishing equipment. Given their lack of funds, they probably had some strange idea about being able to work a day or two here and there to pay for dockage and meals. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2018, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/57 "2018-02-13T00:22:58Z")
> [@steatopygia](#): > > The article mentions that they saved the dog’s toys when abandoning ship. > So yeah, it’ll work out fine next time. > [@Loach](#): > > And they saved the dog toys. Dog toys float. They saved themselves. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Backwater\_Under\_Duck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ba8739/32.png) [@Backwater\_Under\_Duck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Backwater_Under_Duck)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2018, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/58 "2018-02-13T02:21:50Z")
As far as the _no insurance_ thing goes, I’m pretty sure that insurance is not available for off shore sailing. Even though they never made it all the way off shore, as they say, they would have been denied insurance had they bothered to ask. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2018, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/59 "2018-02-13T03:22:32Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > I wonder if they had any fishing equipment. > > Given their lack of funds, they probably had some strange idea about being able to work a day or two here and there to pay for dockage and meals. I suspect this is exactly what they had in mind. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2018, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657/60 "2018-02-13T03:33:37Z")
I have heard of young people who hang out around marinas and get jobs as crew on boats and yachts belonging to rich people. But I think it’s assumed you know how to sail and can otherwise be useful onboard. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-inexperienced-couple-sinks-their-boat/808657.md?page=4)