maunderings of a meandering mind

There is that element, yes. Which brings to mind the 20^th Century's greatest contribution to that idea, the cargo container. I have often been puzzled, when I've been someplace where I could observe barge traffic, why I've never seen small barges designed to carry a few containers — it seems such a natural fit. (A little googling shows that there are large barges equipped to carry containers — which, come to think of it, I think I may have seen on the Mississippi.)