Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
BLOG 18
True to form the Belfast crew brought good humour and a great sense of fun to the ship, and moreover they had a good work ethic and were keen to learn. They quickly fitted into the ships routine, notwithstanding the usual tidiness and noise issues. Fortunately the weather remained calm in the early days of the voyage and the incidents of sea sickness were minimal, it did however become noticeably cooler and fog was ever present as we sailed across the Grand Banks, south of Newfoundland.
I did fail to metion that one guy bought his entire juggling paraphanalia with him which I thought was rather optimistic, if not a little inappropriate, especially as it turned out it he was only a learner. I doubt the 'Juggling for Dummies' book suggests practising on a ship heeled over at 40 degrees. There were more than a few complaints from trainees woken from their slumber as the big skittly things crashed to the deck time after time and the Captain brought a swift end to the practice. He also politely suggested that next time he chose an adventure holiday, he spend three weeks with Billy Smarts circus. Ouch!!!
Despite the pletherer of weather information available to the Captain and the mate there are no guarantees as to its accuracy and we often prepare for heavy weather which fails to materialise. So unless Michael Fish forecasts light winds, its more a case of suck it and see and try and second guess the high and low pressure systems. However we leave nothing to chance and if bad weather is indicated we make preparations to ensure as best as possible nothing breaks and everything is sea fast.
All trainees congregate on the main deck at 1.45pm each day and the Captain gives an update as to our position, sail plans, wildlife sightings and any housekeeping issues that need addressing. He will also give a general weather outlook which can cause a little consternation if there is any suggestion of stormy weather. Too much information can of course be dangerous in terms of misinterpretation, and the first time he gave such a message just happened to be the day I was tasked with doing the annual check on the immersion suits and life jackets, which I deliberately conducted on the main deck for all to see. Now did that cause a stir or what and when asked by some of the nervous trainees as to what was coming I did gild the lily a little......wicked!!!!
Now one of the watch tasks is to wake up the next watch, it is of course in their best interests to do so as the watch on duty cannot stand down until the new watch has reported for duty, and at 4.00am most would like to get to bed pretty sharpish. Alarm clocks are clearly a no no as each cabin accommodates trainees from each watch and if its not your turn to be up at this unearthly hour, you get a little tetchy to say the least.
The proper way to wake up a fellow trainee is to enter the cabin quietly armed with a torch and whisper or touch the individual to wake them from their slumber. The torch is essential to find your way round the cabin which is of course pitch black, not for putting under your chin and scaring the poor buggar to death, this is not the Blairwitch Project!! Once the trainee is awake you give him a brief update as to the weather so that they can dress appropriate to the conditions.In a perfect world etc etc, but in reality the quality of wake ups and in time the tomfoolery leads to total mayhem.
However different people react differently to being woken up at unsociable hours of the day, some accept their fate and rise promptly and even thank you. Some turn over as soon as you leave the cabin and go back to sleep which neccessitates a second more assertive visit. Some tell you quite frankly to sod off, some lie "Ive been given the watch off" or "I'm not on that watch anymore" and some get confused as to where they are, "I'm off school today mum" or "can I have a bowl of coco pops". And there are those who are woken in the middle of some romantic dream and ask "Just one more kiss Marilyn" !!!!!!......which comes as a bit of a surprise as I thought she was my girlfriend.
And then there are the jolly japes that come into play as the watches become more familiar with each other. The favourite is lying about the weather especially when it is fine and dry. "Heavy storm and torrential rain, you will need all your wet weather gear" which sends everybody into raptures when they come onto deck into the blazing sunshine fully souwestered up.
But by far the funniest and most effective wake up I ever saw was this week. We have cleaning duties through the night which includes washing the gangway floors down below. Young Amy had just finished and was carrying her bucket of rather grotty grey water back to the laundry. The weather was worsening and all of a sudden the ship heeled to starboard which just happened to be at the moment she was passing a cabin, the door of which had been left open for ventilation. Unable to keep her balance Amy was seen to disappear, (akin to that famous comedey clip where Dereck Trotter falls behind the bar), falling headlong into the cabin and in turn throwing the entire contents of her bucket onto Kelsey who was fast asleep in her bunk. Kelsey normally has some difficuly waking but she shot up and emerged from the cabin dripping wet and I have to say a tadge mardy....probably not helped by the fact that the rest of us were rolling on the floor in fits of laughter. She did eventually see the funny side....as did most of the people of Northern Ireland as the incident was broadcast on the BBC morning show. Some people will do anything to get their five minutes of fame.
As I write the weather is worsening and the weather forecasts are indicating severe gales. Somehow I think there probably right this time and the next 48 hours maybe very interesting.
Doddy
- comments