Be a Mule
Ships and wind-ups go together. Deck cadets are warned about some of it during their two-week induction course. To be …
Author Archives: David
The Mystery of the Disappearing Engineers
The Sheaf Royal berthed in Mobile, Alabama on Saturday 12 January 1974. Workload meant that fellow cadet George and I …
Fire
At 06:00 on 4 January 1974 the Sheaf Royal was finally alongside in Puerto Ordaz after a 200-mile pilotage up …
Orinoco Flow
The Sheaf Royal sailed from Rotterdam on 22 December 1973. I had never spent Christmas away from home before and …
I Don’t Believe in Father Christmas
In the previous post the Sheaf Royal had arrived in Rotterdam. We weren’t there long. It took 36 hours to …
Rotterdam or Anywhere
Rotterdam was the third port we visited on the Sheaf Royal during my first trip to sea. Arriving off Rotterdam …
Dirt and Dust
Joining the Merchant Navy as an officer cadet sounds glamourous don’t you think? Smart uniforms, sailing to distant places, shore …
Welcome to America
During the voyage from Gothenburg to New Orleans fellow first trip cadet George and I spent a lot of time …
The Mate
The one person who loomed larger than any other on the Sheaf Royal for the deck cadets was chief officer …
The Captain
Captain Bob Andrews joined the Sheaf Royal just before we sailed from Gothenburg. Captain Andrews, who was quite a serious …
Learning the Rules
Cadets were required to complete projects for college while at sea as well as studying maths, physics, navigation, etc. Fellow …
Leaving the Old World for the New
After two weeks in a repair yard and in drydock the Sheaf Royal was finally due to sail for New …
Forgiven
Two of the shoreside team at the Swedish repair yard where the Sheaf Royal was berthed were expat Brits who …
Speaking in Tongues
Joining my first ship in Sweden could have posed some problems linguistically had the Swedes not been so fluent in …
Awesome
Awesome is not a word we used much when I was sixteen, although awesome would more than adequately describe my …
Not Alone
It is probably time that I revisited the experience of joining my first ship back in October 1973. My father …
Taken for Granted
What made me join the Merchant Navy? Was it my early connections with the sea through living in Plymouth and …
Ship to Shore
In a life that had already been full of goodbyes I struggled to say goodbye to Marilyn for the first …
When the Honeymoon is Over
The previous post (Two Honeymoons) ended with the Geestland going to the rescue of two French yachtsmen in a particularly …
Two Honeymoons
Celebrating our forty-second wedding anniversary earlier this week brought back memories of our wedding day and our honeymoon in Guernsey. …
Forty-Two
According to the Douglas Adams book The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy 42 is the ‘answer to the ultimate question …
Nine Decades
I’m sure that my father will not mind me sharing that he turned ninety this week. I still remember Dad …
Who is Jesus?
You may or may not be a fan of Brennan Manning. You may not even know who he is. I …
Going Home
I have many years of experience of going home. One of my longest journeys was travelling back to the UK …
Memorial Stones
Whenever I visit my Dad in Holcombe in Devon I try to get a walk or two in on the …
Happy Birthday!
Those birthdays with zeroes at the end impact each of us differently. I still remember the first one when Dad …
Family Matters
Losing two family members in the space of three months this year served as a reminder of just how much …
Wish You Were Here
It is just over one month since the eldest of my three younger sisters took her last breath. Linda left …
Stolen Joy or Good Grief?
It could be argued that the one selfish act of my sister’s adult life was her leaving us all at …
Linda Joy
I was first introduced to Linda on the day she was born. I think my parents must have mentioned something …
A Time to Plant
My mother never told me what her feelings were about marrying a Baptist Minister and moving to a small village …
