MarkC

Ah, that's where Skimbleshanks came from!

'tis what we call the Sewage - sorry, Suez - Canal. They all demand that brand from choice, for some reason...

After 24 years & 3 children, it wasn't the job, especially after 1990 and both promotion and shorter trips, but, as I subsequently found, being manipulated by charlatans who persuaded her that "the grass was greener on the other side", having also first persuaded her that she had <the gift> of foreseeing the future - with training, natch - so I'm pretty sure that you can all work out what I'm inferring. Almost 3 grand of my money (we had a joint account - more fool me in hindsight, but there we go...) had gone to these shysters too... ...but that's another debate entirely. Some people believe that sort of thing, as is their perogative. Mark

Hmmm - one has to wonder... ...still, surely nobody in their right mind would take him on, simply on merit. Coming bearing a fistful of images of dead Presidents though - well, who knows?

It was definitely 1976/7 - first year of 6th Form, IIRC - a day trip from Crosby. ISTR our coach having serious *fun getting round some of the corners on the North Wales roads... *other descriptions are possible...

I do wonder if this is partly due to DJH using the same parts for several models back then? From memory, the old B16/A8/H1 kits shared a lot of components, particularly the chassis. Mark

It was a very interesting place to visit. There was also a visitor centre at Hartlepool Power Station, which is near me, at one time too. I also recall a school trip to Trawsfynydd power station, back in the mid-70s. We were taken further into the plant than the visitor centre. Fascinating stuff. Mark

You might be in for a long wait...

Agree 100% with this 👍

Indeed so - better the devil you know. This was truly an example of, well, "Spanish practices"... As for Egypt - yes, monkey business a go-go, for sure. The Marlboro Canal might be interesting the first time, but after a while it becomes a pain in the... Pilfering is rife - if it's not welded down or locked up VERY securely then it'll 'grow legs'. Mind you, compared to West Africa, Nigeria & Cote d'Ivoire in particular, the Egyptians are amateurs... Mark

Funnily enough, the port I've just left gave me one of those "Uh huh" moments a few years ago. We had finished cargo, and were ready to sail, when the Agent came on board with a letter from the local Port State office, saying that we were arrested for departing with too much sludge in our holding tanks. This came as a shock to the Old Man and myself, as we knew that we were legal - but apparently there was a <local bylaw> with much lower limits... In the next breath the Agent says that there's no real problem, as he had the phone number for a local receiver... Much shouting from our Owners because of the delay, but what could we do? Turned out that the receiver company was a one-man band operation, said man was the Agent's brother-in-law... Mark

I was actually 18 when I started my cadetship - being 18 as opposed to 16, which the majority of my intake were, was quite marked. A couple of years of maturity definitely made a difference. Would have been my 39th anniversary next month - had wife V1.0 not walked out on me in 2008... whilst I was away at sea... and yes, these days, Dear Johns are done by email... Wife V2.0 is much better - it'll be 14 years on Wednesday since we first met... As for Mr Monkey - I guess we'll never know now. It was most entertaining though, watching councillors running round like headless chickens - no doubt there was plenty of hamster bedding being produced, with shredders working overtime 😁 Mark

Just looking at my Little Engines A8, the cylinders/crossheads/slide bars do look a little less, well, <agricultural> than the DJH offerings, so every little helps. We will see. Mind you, even these aren't as neat as the ones in 52F Models' A8 & H1 chassis kits. Those kits are also designed with bogie swing control via a central pin, plus full compensation. Mark

Good points. I too know a few people who should not have been at sea, for medical (as in mental health) issues. Regarding going ashore; a few folk I know got a trip or two as Master or Chief, then swallowed the anchor because - and I quote - "Need to do it now before the wife gets used to the film star wages". Film star wages? I wish... but that's another story. I know a few folk who worked on pretty much the same ship for many, many years. Nah - you need to move around. We (as in the top 4 - the so-called 'god squad' in earlier times) do two to 3 years on one ship here in Anthony Veder, then move. It keeps a chap interested & stops you from becoming stale. Mark

It might well be - I don't know the museum - but at least it's not met the gas-axe. Mark

@New Haven Neil Going back to Mr Monkey in South Shields - it was actually GBP214K!!! One link https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/south-tyneside-council-calls-hunt-7371954# And the blog itself https://mrmonkeysblog.wordpress.com/ And this was interesting too https://www.taxpayersalliance.com/taxpayers_shouldn_t_be_funding_south_tyneside_councillors_to_sue_twitter_and_catch_mr_monkey I was so pleased that I had moved away - I would have been absolutely furious if my cash was going towards this Mark

Sorry about that, David! Aye, containerisation screwed everyone really - and the UK dockies hated it. Cost a lot of them their jobs, of course, then more lost their jobs thanks to strikes in protest - shipping companies simply went elsewhere. Yes, engine rooms without hearing protection - not going to end well. I insisted on having ear defenders right from the start - yet a few Chiefs & Seconds would take the mickey out of you for doing that. Not good. Cheers Mark

Thanks for that, David - I was just doing the right thing - and it sounds as though you actually benefited from what you got out of your training. Yes, Bowaters were part of the group too - and Hector Whaling. Old man Cayzer had no sons, of course, and neither did his brother. He said, apparently, on the occasion of the end of the Union Castle mailboat service in 1977, that he'd be out of shipping in 10 years. It took 9 - the last ship, Scottish Eagle, went on 1st May 1986. I was there - the last Third Engineer... I had a family tradition in the Company - my paternal grandfather was a Master with Clan Line during WW2 (and is mentioned in several books), his elder son, my uncle, was manager of the Manchester office, and his elder son, my cousin, got as far as Second Engineer. Going back to South Shields - in December 1982, 120 of us finished our cadetship. All bar 5 were put on the beach immediately, 3 of the others got one trip with their company - I think it was Shell - and that left 2 of us - both B&C. The other lad was gone from B&C within 2 trips, & went ashore a couple of years later. That left me - one out of 120. Sobering thought. Mark

You'll know all about Mr Monkey then - and the tens of thousands of local ratepayers' pounds wasted by certain councillors trying to stop him/her (mustn't assume the gender!) from blowing the whistle on their dodgy dealings... Mark

I'm not sure what the score was with cadet fees, but I think that most was paid by the shipping companies - written off against tax, I would suspect, but we're talking almost half a century ago now. As an aside, I believe that I may be the last ex British & Commonwealth Group (Union Castle, Clan line, King Line, Scottish Tankers) seafarer still at sea, and possibly also the last (British) Gibson Gas Tankers seafarer still going. Mark (who is suddenly feeling quite sad)

As I have said before, as I was climbing the greasy pole, now more years ago than I care to remember, I sailed with all sorts of characters - some good, some not so good, some incredibly good and some who really shouldn't ever have been there. Many of these folk were in senior positions. I used to try & pick up the good things & discard the bad things that I witnessed. You know - "If I turn out half as good as this bloke, all will be well", to "If I turn out like this geezer, somebody shoot me". In general, it's for others to judge, but I think that I got it right, judging by the number of young folk who seem to enjoy sailing with me... I actively encourage my team to better themselves - indeed, some 15+ years ago, I saw a couple of my ER ratings, just wipers, respond to my encouragement & go for their tickets - they've been sailing as 3rd Engineers for several years now & are happy there. Good for them - both could have gone higher, but age/finances sadly worked against them. Mark

I'm sure that a signalling specialist will be along to answer that query - obviously I haven't seen the show yet - although it'll have been recorded for me... That's a very interesting question - when indeed? Mark

Hi David A mystery then - especially as, back in the late 80s, the wonderful* local council wanted to get rid of the marine side. That was until it was pointed out to them that marine students, particularly those from abroad, contributed hugely to the town's finances and employment... *other descriptions are available... Mark

There are traps to be seen in this photo of Goathland https://www.webarchive.org.uk/wayback/archive/20141204193954im_/http://www.davidheyscollection.com/userimages/ne-stead-dmu-goathland.jpg A similar arrangement, which did have a trap on each of the roads coming off the first point in the yard although this photo isn't really clear - I'll see if I can find a better one - was to be found at Scalby. They worked in conjunction with the point off the main line/ https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQvJ1LG0Pb58qqLtk6DmA-ksYdfF-8ccMk_MY1wQxEgZA&s

They still are - always good to catch out first-trippers; telling them to see the Cook & have some carrots to feed the mules which draw us through the locks!