When we got our new boat back home, we noticed her name ‘Luna Sea’. It is one of those names that uses clever nautical wordplay, double meanings and sometimes sexual innuendo like ‘Breakin’ Wind’, ‘Cirrhosis of the River’, or ‘Master Baiter’. Neither of us were very happy with it, and decided to change it.
Apparently it is not as easy as peeling off the old name and slapping on a new one. There are gods that must be appeased. Ceremony must be strictly adhered to or else tragedy is sure to befall you. Unfortunately, there is no official consensus as to what you’re supposed to do. We were more concerned with finding the perfect name than angering Poseidon.
Around this time, Erika and I were in the middle of the new adventures of Horatio Hornblower. A British miniseries that followed the naval career of Midshipman Hornblower played by Ioan Gruffudd in the time of the Napoleonic Wars.
We love them. Hornblower is a fallible hero, courageous in battle, an idiot with women. We knew one of the ships in Horatio’s adventures would be a great place to start when looking for a name. Lots of great ships with great names fought with and against our hero, so which do we pick? Some of the finalists include:
Justinian, La Reve, Renown, Retribution, Hotspur, Witch of Endor, Lotus, Raven, Pheobe, Porta Ceoli
But we decided to go with the ship that was always there to save the day. Whenever Horatio was facing certain doom at the hands of the French. This is the ship that would appear on the horizon under the command of Capt. Pellew.
long blue road 