A Ship Passing in the Night

Welcome to another edition of small-town news. I took the boys to see a nautical marvel last night at one of our favorite spots in Seattle. The largest ship to ever navigate Ballard Locks passed from Lake Washington out to sea on its way to Alaska. We go to the locks quite often in the summer to picnic and watch the yachts and fishing boats as they make their way to and from the Pacific. In the fall, we come to watch the thousands of salmon use the fish ladder as they make their way back to their birthplaces to lay eggs and spend their final days in the creeks and streams. Yes, we love Ballard Locks, and we joined the hundreds that lined the waterway to watch this curiosity. The 443-foot cruise ship had a slim seven feet to spare on each side of the lock. Most of the 208 passengers and 164 crew seemed to enjoy the spectacle as much as we did. I hope they liked the ukulele band performing "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" as they waited for passage too.

On the way home, I thought about boat- and ship-themed songs that would make good candidates to accompany this post. Too many to count, really, but "Six Months in a Leaky Boat", "Ship of Fools", "Chris-Craft No. 10", "Me Ship Came In!" and "Shipbuilding" were some early contenders. I decided on a rather obscure B-side by Close Lobsters from the 1987 12" "Never Seen Before" because the title works so well, and I'm always looking for an excuse to play this band anyway. What's the first song that popped into your mind?

Wide Waterways