Pirate Ship
Playing with our kids has given us the opportunity to flex our long-unused technical theater skills. For the last few years, Betsy has created miniature sets for the kids' birthday parties - a swamp hut for a Shrek party, an Arabian palace for an Aladdin theme, etc. In January 2007, Nia wanted a Tinkerbell party and Sophie favored the Little Mermaid, so Betsy decided to build a ship in our living room, figuring it would serve for both events. Originally, it was going to be made out of cardboard boxes, but while doing preliminary sketches on graph paper, we had this exchange:
Shep: You'd better put a strong railing on that quarterdeck.
Betsy: Why?
Shep: Well, so the kids don't fall off it.
Betsy: Off it? They can’t get on it. It's made of cardboard!
Shep: You can't build a quarterdeck and not let them climb on it!
Betsy: Why?
Shep: Well, so the kids don't fall off it.
Betsy: Off it? They can’t get on it. It's made of cardboard!
Shep: You can't build a quarterdeck and not let them climb on it!
This was how a cardboard ship morphed into a two-story 19-foot-long wooden pirate galleon with a ship's wheel, captain’s quarters, and a cargo hold.
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