I am being cautiously converted from my lifetime membership in the Crock Pot Posse to the Cult of Instant Pot. The induction began when I recently lamented to fellow sailors that although I love cooking in my crock pot, I fear I need a faster, more energy-efficient alternative for life outside the marina (when shore power will not be an option). Search no more they cried. Viola! The Instant Pot....

One of our favorite parts of marina life is gathering on the dock with our boat neighbors to share some grog and grub. An old-fashioned pot luck pitch-in, exchanging the church basement for God’s gifts of surf and stars. We’ve been spearheading these gatherings for a few months now, “hosting” the gang approximately every two or three weeks. Not sure that we got elected social chairmen,...