Houses, are but badly built boats so firmly aground that you cannot think of moving them. They are definitely inferior things, belonging to the vegetable not the animal world, rooted and stationary, incapable of gay transition. I admit, doubtfully, as exceptions, snail-shells and caravans. The desire to build a house is the tired wish of a man content thenceforward with a single anchorage. The desire to build a boat is the desire of youth, unwilling yet to accept the idea of a final resting-place. It is for that reason, perhaps, that, when it comes, the desire to build a boat is one of those that cannot be resisted. It begins as a little cloud on a serene horizon. It ends by covering the whole sky, so that you can think of nothing else. You must build to regain your freedom.

Arthur Ransome - Racundra's First Cruise (Chapter 1), 1923

GLEDA (Pronounced GLEE DA) - Old English Female Name meaning 'To Make Happy'

A man who set sail in a homemade boat and had to be rescued about 400m (1,313ft) off Dorset has been criticised by coastguards.

Portland Coastguard said it had been aware of a wooden and metal catamaran “contraption” on the beach at Charmouth for the past few days.

The owner decided to launch it on Wednesday afternoon but quickly got into trouble and started drifting.

An RNLI lifeboat towed the boat back to shore and the man was given advice.

‘Wooden paddles’

A coastguard spokesman said: “We knew about this contraption on the beach for the last week or so.

“With the offshore winds he was never going to get back with his wooden paddles.

“People on the shore raised the alarm and we had to rescue him.

“It was an irresponsible thing to do, that lifeboat could have been needed for another emergency.”

The spokesman said people cannot be stopped entering the sea in homemade devices

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/dorset/8636609.stm