renaming ceremony, libations, and such

[Love and Luck]

I'm acquiring an old boat, that I wish to rename.
I am familiar with the ceremony, but there is a problem:
The boat will be sailed, docked, etc. almost exclusively on a lake entirely within a Pennsylvania state park, where no alcohol is allowed. (Not that there isn't a whole lot of red solo cup stuff going on.) But for a public ceremony, breaking a bottle of Dom over the bow may result in a fine for alcohol. (And littering, fwiw.)
Do you think Poseidon will accept bubbly Welch's grape juice instead? Should I trailer the boat up to less-restricted Lake Erie for the ceremony?

I am not willing to tempt the Fates and the Wrath of the Gods and the things from up on high of the things.

Also, and I don't know if it's relevant or not, but here's the nerdy name I want on the side of my boat:

Which, in the Latin alphabet is 'Aerlinn.'
It means "holy song" or "sea song" in Sindarin, the language of the elves. "The exact meaning of the word is ambiguous: no word for 'holy' has been attested in Sindarin but it is believed that the equivalent of the Quenya word aira would be aer. On the other hand aer means 'sea'. In that case these songs express their longing for Valinor beyond the Sea."
My girlfriend thinks it's stupid, and "Something Sheldon would name a boat," whatever that means. I think it's meaningful, original, and a conversation piece. So I win.

Edit: I originally referred to the Latin alphabet as the "Arabic" alphabet, above, and caused some confusion in the replies, below. That is now corrected, and confused-sounding replies below that mention "Arabic" are my fault.

 

[rgranger]

Cleaver or not...it is your boat... so you win....

but....Good luck calling that into the coast guard during an SOS

 

[dlochner]

There is considerable latitude allowed in renaming ceremonies. With that said it would be a waste of sparkling grape juice if it violated some long forgotten rule. Pouring a libation over the bow of the boat would be far preferable to breaking a bottle. If you must break a bottle, there are christening bottles available on line. These are easily broken and come wrapped in a net to catch the shards of glass that will spew forth.

It would be a particularly cranky Park Ranger and a even more cranky judge who would actually ticket and fine you for pouring champagne over the bow of your boat. Rather than having a dockside celebration, sail off to a more remote and less visible part of the lake, this will also be handy if your ceremony involves other actions of socially questionable nature.

As for the name, all who are not in the Arab speaking world will be unable to read the name. Your boat may also raise the suspicions of Homeland Security, who might well enforce the no champagne on the bow clause of the State Park regulations.

 

[kito]

My renaming ceremony will consist of peeling off the old name and sticking on the new one. The Alcohol Gods would get me for wasting good booze otherwise. Btw, Dom?....really? Isn't that stuff around $200 a bottle?
I agree with others. You need to name your boat a name others will be able to read and understand. If I seen your boat in trouble, I wouldn't have clue what your boat name is.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Pouring a libation over the bow of the boat would be far preferable to breaking a bottle.

Yup, you needn't break a bottle over the bow. That's for Navy ships.

 

[BlowMeAway]

I'm acquiring an old boat, that I wish to rename. My girlfriend thinks it's stupid, and "Something Sheldon would name a boat," whatever that means. I think it's meaningful, original, and a conversation piece. So I win.

I'm pretty sure that any "Ship" to Sheldon Cooper (Big Bang Theory) would be named Enterprise, with reference to his addiction to Star Trek or something ridiculous in Klingon. Even so, I'd recognize that Enterprise name and be the first to assist in an SOS condition given the opportunity. I suppose you could put the literal phoenetical English equivalent spelling directly beneath the desired artwork. But, still that would look like a two name boat from a distance. Good luck with your choice, and welcome to SBO forum as well.

Whatever your boat christening event has in store, please don't break glass into the Marina of your choosing. We threw water balloons at the bow for our virgin launch, with the boat name sharpied on the balloons...then fished the balloon shards off the waters surface. The champagne was then uncorked, poured into red cups, distributed to participating crew, and imbibed...until all 4 bottles were consumed. All performed within an alcohol free State Park Marina.

I haven't been arrested...yet!

 

[Rich Stidger]

.....and don't forget to sacrifice a virgin. Good luck finding one of those also......

 

[Love and Luck]

Lol.

There is no Arabic involved here. I had a brain melt. The alphabet we use, that I am typing and you are reading, is Latin. Our numbers are Arabic. I wrote "Arabic alphabet" above and caused much confusion. My wires got crossed. Sorry about that.

The name, in the Latin alphabet, is "Aerlinn." That's easy enough to pronounce. aer-linn. Yeah, I'd probably put it on the hull both as "Aerlinn," like that in the Latin alphabet, and in the above strange script. (That's called Tengwar, invented by Tolkein.)

There is no legal requirement for naming of small (non-documented) craft, at least not in my state.

If it really bothers anybody, the boat's name is "Aerlinn" and there will be some decorative squiggles on the hull too.

Anyone who can't pronounce Aerlinn can call it "nerd boat," for all I care.

Sheesh.

Dom is expensive, yes, but not as expensive as replacing a boat if I piss off Poseidon. I have been informed that the ceremony requires offering the good stuff to the gods.

Thanks for the input, all. I'll be back to bother you all later.

 

[31seahorse]

Once upon a time in a harbor far, far away we bought an O'Day 272 named "Oday Je Vu". Cute play on words, full of meaning, and dear to the Previous Owners' hearts I guess. The first time I called for a slip and haul out at a boatyard where we planned to make the usual repairs and new-owner changes the following "conversation" occurred:
"Really Nice Boat Storage. Really Nice Boat Storage. Really Nice Boat Storage. This is the sailboat Oday Je Vu. Over."
Their Response: "This is Really Nice Boat Storage. What (laugh, laugh) is the name of your boat? (snicker, snicker). Over."
My Response: "This is Oday Je Vu. Over."
Their Response: "Are you serious? (chuckle, chuckle) How do you spell that?"
My Response: "I have no clue. Don't blame me. I just bought the boat today. Over."
Their Response: "We'll fill in the name when you get here. Over."
My Response: "One of the first things we plan to do is change the name! Over."
Their Response: "Good Idea. Out."

As discussed in other naming discussions on this site the boat's name should certainly be of personal interest, meaning, and importance to the owner(s), but the practical, clear, simple, and understandable use of the name on the radio and on official documents will be of greater importance in the long tern enjoyment of the boat.

RE: spilling wine or grape juice.....Have a hose and some Bar Keepers Friend or your other favorite cleanser handy for the clean-up of the poured liquid to prevent a stain on the foredeck! Enjoy your new boat!

 

[BlowMeAway]

Once upon a time in a harbor far, far away we bought an O'Day 272 named "Oday Je Vu".

Nice follow-up Phil. Where've you been all summer? Hope all is well in Penn Yan. We're two weeks from haul out and winterize. Such a bummer!!!

 

[Stu Jackson]

I have been informed that the ceremony requires offering the good stuff to the gods.

Then you heard wrong. Sheesh.

We did our ceremony when we bought the boat 18 years ago. While the PO took the old name off 'cuz he wanted to use it for his new boat, we did both sections of the ceremony: off and on with the new.

We spilled a little in the water, drank the rest. Shame to waste good stuff, any stuff, for that matter.

Good luck.

 

[Love and Luck]

As discussed in other naming discussions on this site the boat's name should certainly be of personal interest, meaning, and importance to the owner(s), but the practical, clear, simple, and understandable use of the name on the radio and on official documents will be of greater importance in the long tern enjoyment of the boat.

Is "Aerlinn" actually that difficult?

 

[31seahorse]

Sorry, I (kinda) quoted Star Wars, not Star Trek. But you get the point.

I think the lettering is a concern because without an explanation no one else would recognize the name. Maybe that is OK.?.?.

 

[Kermit]

Is "Aerlinn" actually that difficult?

Aerlinn is not difficult to say. You sorta hinted at asking for opinions on the name but even if you didn't you're gonna get them here. You can name your boat whatever you wish. I personally think it's a cool name. (Being on an inland lake names aren't as important to understand.) Wherever you are just make sure rescuers can locate you. But I doubt anyone will pull up beside a sinking boat and say, "It don't look like Aerlinn to me" and drive off.

I'd be more concerned about what my girlfriend thought than what Poseidon might think. But I have a feeling she may not care that you don't care.

 

[Charlie Jones s/v Tehani]

Since you are sailing a lake, might not be a problem, but consider calling the Coast Guard for assistance, and how the name sounds. Might make a huge difference

 

[All U Get]

Same as TSBB 2, you may have trouble with Border Patrols, etc. I like Sea Song for a name. Maybe you could have the Latin version on the bow.

All U Get

 

[Scott T-Bird]

I think you'd better use the Dom as Poseidon would probably be contemptuous of the Welch's bubbly grape juice. If you don't mind the expense of pouring Dom in the water, then why would you need to worry about the fine if you got caught breaking an ordinance? Besides, Poseidon would be more pleased if you used the good stuff AND paid a fine in reverence toward him.
I'd also put the name on the boat just as you portray. What difference does it make what anybody else thinks of it, who cares if they can't read it and so what if they can't pronounce it unless you tell them how to pronounce it? I'd say go for it. If it was written in Russian, Chinese, German, French or Italian, I would have the same difficulty.

 

[lehighsail]

I'm not in favor of changing a boats name. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. We had our new to us boat for over a year before we finally felt we had to change the name. Even the bridge tenders were making fun of us. It was 'Sponge Rob' named after the previous owner with a picture of the character on the stern.

 

[Scott T-Bird]

Ha! Yes, that needed changing!