Monday 17 January 2011

Picton Castle at sea; Monday 17 January 2011 בס"ד

Woke up at 0630, wrote my log, breakfast, work. Today's jobs included:

- paint chock plugs two coats white

- red primer on trash pump frame

- aluminum primer on trash pump manifold

- second coat of corroseal on trash pump engine

- red primer on starboard aft panama chock

- red primer on corrosealed parts of starboard breezeway tgallant rail

- second coat of red primer on all primed parts of starboard breezeway

- second coat of red primer on main lower topsl sheet cleats

- sand bare wood parts of new sponge hotel and penetrol

- scuff sponge hotel doors and paint stone

- paint latches of sponge hotel stone

- spot paint port fore backstays and shrouds at pinrail level

- spot paint port fore tgallant rail black and white

- sand starboard flyrail spindle C 100-180 and 50/50 varnish

- scuff port flyrail spindles B and C 180 and 50/50 and 80/20 varnish

- paint stenciled letters PICTON CASTLE and AVATIU on the transom of the old skiff on the galleyhouse strongbacks

- paint stenciled letters on started oars

- sand and penetrol two new oars

- remove one side of letters from oar blades (oops)

- stencil big letters PICTON CASTLE on aft thwart in the Monomoy

- red primer on corrosealed parts of bowsprit

- paint white the port focslehead drain pipe

- insert chock plugs on the well deck

- wirebrush and corroseal trash pump filter on tube

- overhaul paint locker door latch, wirebrush, and corroseal

- return PFDs to the scuttle

- overhaul bunts on the fore and the main after bracing

After lunch, something really cool happened when we saw a tanker on the horizon. It turned out to be Siri's last job, the Bow Faith from Bergen, Norway, of Odfjell Tankers company. She had been on the radio with them, and they came by very close on starboard to “speak us.” We each gave each other a three horn salute, and Siri told us all her friends aboard were jealous of our women. They were bound for Durban. Later, when she was hanging out in the forepeak, she asked me if I'd like to work on a ship like that, to which I replied “awww shitchea!” Somebody also asked her how they clean out the tanks, which carry anything from vegetable oil to orange juice to ethanol, and she explained the device, which I told everybody was a Butterworth. When asked how I knew this, I was just like, “Well, I studied the book!” and pulled out my notes and sure enough I had the definition of Butterworth right there. Anyway, that made me feel cool. Today was a hectic workday but busy. Closed shop at 1615 and had a 1630 power shower. Then I shaved my beard into mutton chops to test that out. Pania won't talk to me now, or even look at my face. She hates it a lot. A LOT! Did a heavy workout on the well deck before dinner, then ate. Started reading but quickly passed out in my rack. Woke up at 2000, when the watch changed, and watched the last hour of Apocalypse Now! Redux. Read some Odyssey, and thought about my future, which combined with my nap earlier kept me up a while. Finally to sleep after midnight.