Megan the Nautie Mermate
THE LIFE AND TIMES OF A LADY SAILOR
We are back on our routine charter....we are no longer spot chartering with BP. That means one big difference....we have 12 navy personnel onboard providing force protection. That means many things for ships crew: less internet time, more mouths to feed, less milk in the fridge, loud voices in passageways, dirty common heads...but mostly we are happy because we are going to Djibouti and it means this:
Even though they make my life miserable at times I love them. I love their lines and how they ride in a swell. I love that they haven't changed the design in hundreds of years....why?....because they don't have to! It is just a well designed vessel that has stood the test of time. I took this photo yesterday and figured since I've been a blogging slacker I'd add it in.
This is a VLCC (Very Large Crude Carrier).
This tanker crossed our bow the other day when we were anchored.
Just for perspective she was approximately 0.4 nautical miles away. You can see just to the left of our forward mast the pilot boat alongside for a size comparison. This ship is twice the length of the vessel I'm on. She is 332 meters (1088ft) compared to our 182.5 meters (600ft)!
What also makes her very different is that she only carries crude oil. I spoke with her officers and they were going to load 900,000 barrels of crude. That is 37.8 million gallons (0r roughly 151.2 liters) of crude oil! Considering that you can refine more than 1 barrel of product from 1 barrel of crude oil we are talking about A LOT.
This vessel was able to take a full load in just over 24 hours! We will potentially have a 15 hour longer cargo evolution!
When I think about how many vessels this size are transiting the worlds oceans and how much product is really being moved it really puts things in perspective. I personally drive an SUV....I think I have a 15 gal tank....but if you assume I have a 20 gal tank I'd have to fill up my 4Runner 1.89 million times to use 37.8 million gallons of gasoline!!! If I fill up my tank more than once a week (5 times a month) every year for 80 years I'd use 4800 gallons. 393.75 SUVs could fill up for 80 years with this tankers load!
You'll be happy to know that it is not the wild wild west out here. Young Second Mate's are not allowed to sass-mouth. The law of the sea remains intact....the Captain is still in charge. I received my very first letter of warning. For the record....I've never been to the principals office. I graduated from Maine Maritime Academy with not one demerit to my name. My shipmates assure me that this a rite of passage....that everyone gets one or they just aren't salty. I think they are just saying that so I don't start roaming the passageways at night looking for a fire axe. I almost cried....but then I didn't....because at the end of the day there is still 'NO crying on tankers'!
There is always some point in my rotation where I get dark and cloudy. Today was that day. I start thinking too hard. I get worried that I'm not using my life for good. I think what really happens is that the romance wears thin and reality sets in. I'm sitting at anchor on a tanker with over a million gallons of jet fuel - for what?! I'm not serving a greater cause! I'm not adventuring! I'm not trying new foods and meeting new people! I'm simply waiting for vacation - and again, for what?! So I can rush off to my union school and upgrade my license! Then what?!
I've been reading some other maritime-y blogs. I read things like 'oh how I love the smell of epoxy' - you do?! I say, if you can smell epoxy it means the space isn't properly ventilated! Are you sure you aren't actually high off the smell of epoxy?! If I'm honest with myself I realize that I'm just jealous. I want to be able to complete a rotation without hating my job by the end of it! By the time my vacation is up I'm getting itchy feet...I never understand how I can want to come back to work knowing that in 90 days I'll be dark and cloudy!
It's not just that the romance is gone...it's the people. When I get dark and cloudy there are people that I can't even look at without getting irritated. Today in the mess deck I had a melt down - those of you who know me know that there is no stopping me once I get started (I'm like my Mother that way). I overheard the Captain having a discussion with the Steward....the conversation went like this:
Capt: Are people eating the beans?
Steward: No not that much....
Capt: What do you think about laying off the beans for awhile?
Steward: Okay.....
Capt: How about making a little pasta instead.
The Captain then came into the mess deck and I pounced:
Me: Did you just tell the Steward not to make beans?!
Capt: No....
Me: Yes you did!!! I HEARD you!!! You said 'LAY OFF THE BEANS!!!'
Capt: No....I said lets make a little pasta!
Me: NO! YOU SAID LAY OFF THE BEANS!!!! THAT MEANS THAT WE AREN'T GOING TO HAVE BEANS ANYMORE!!!!!
I'm looking around the room and everyone is just staring at me like I've really really lost my marbles...so then I address the crowd:
Me: You guys are all thinking the same thing except I'm the only one with the balls to say anything!! Beans are a FIFTY CENT meal! I know for a fact that there are people who eat the beans EVERYDAY! Beans are a protein and pasta is a carbohydrate! We are ADULTS we should be able to eat beans when we want beans! The Steward is not going to make beans and pasta! You mark my words there won't be any beans tomorrow!!!! *I look around the room with accusation in my eyes* Thanks for backing me up you guys!!! Just wait until you want beans and there aren't any!
Cheif Engineer: I think you guys are all full of beans!
Me: THIS ISN'T FUNNY! WE AREN'T GOING TO HAVE ANY FREAKIN' BEANS!!!!!
I just got done reading a book called The Help. My favorite maid in the book was Minny....at one point in the book Minny says, 'I tell myself, Tuck it in, Minny. Tuck in whatever might fly out my mouth and tuck in my behind too.'
I really need to tuck it in too. I have no idea how I'm not fired. I have a problem with sass-mouthing just like Minny. Being dark and cloudy is no excuse for a melt down over beans....but really, it's my only excuse!
The bean incident spread through the ship like wild fire. Everyone heard about it by coffee time. People were coming up to me saying things like: 'thanks for sticking up for us Mate!' and 'if I was there I would have backed you up!'. Unbelievable. This is what I'm talking about! The fact that the bean meltdown is headline news is pathetic. I really need to get off this floating trailer park.
We are still at anchor! We got a little closer today...we shifted from the outer anchorage to the inner anchorage. I am definitely getting stir crazy. It's kind of funny when you feel stir crazy on a ship....if we got underway today I'd still be here tomorrow! What is the difference really?! My garden isn't doing so hot (not that it has ever really thrived). For awhile I thought my sweet potato was going to go Jumanji on me....but now it has brown spots. I try to talk to the plants when I water them (today is day 108 but I swear I'm not really crazy) today I said, 'if you don't start to grow I'm going to chop your heads off'! One of the little old Japanese ladies at my church attributes her gardening success to this method.
