The best part of Karachi, Pakistan was, indeed, “getting the fuck out of Karachi,” as so eloquently stated by the 3rd Engineer. The smell of the city, the pollution in the waterways, the open dislike for Americans by the Paki longshoremen, and the slow extortion of the ship by a port that does business the same way a kidnapper does- holding the ship hostage until it has extracted as much as is possible- makes for a tedious stay.
The seas have been on our beam since leaving the coast and the roll, roll, rolling of the ship has taken its toll on my sleep- not so much for the motion (which is lulling) but for the odd banging door, the rolling of things in drawers, and the falling over of non-permanently affixed things… my sleep has been interrupted!
I have also started to run out of steam. When motivation erodes you must rely on habit and doing-by-rote, and that’s where I am today. Perhaps with a good night’s sleep I’ll be recharged, but today ain’t that day (a good night’s sleep fixed me up, after all).
We have been advancing clocks. One hour last night, one hour today during the day, and tomorrow during the day- soon I will return to 15 hours later than Seattle time. The only people aboard who dislike advancing clocks during the day are the steward’s department- their shorter day means they have to work much harder to be ready for mealtimes.
The flies we picked up in Pakistan are still with us.
I trained a man on the crane who was, by all accounts, unable to operate that kind of equipment. He does fine… better than some, even. Since he went ashore last time we were in Singapore, this next time he will remain aboard to do what I did last time - operate the crane. Give a man a fish/ Teach a man to fish, and all that… but I’m gonna shore-hound my happy ass this next visit, come hell or come high water.
The elevator was on the kaputz since I came aboard. A day out of Karachi the electrician and reefer requested I build them staging on C deck (4th deck above the “ground floor” of the Upper Deck, 6.5 floors above the lowest stop down on one of the decks in the engine room) in the elevator shaft. I had to have them request it of my head of department (chain of command, and all that) but soon I was requisitioned to build them staging.
As with all projects, I started by combing the ship for the best - usually only - available materials… which means digging in the forecastle and steering room, rummaging in the tunnels, and even going so far as to dismantle other non-vital, forgotten stuff if necessary. Walk a mile in my shoes (in a moving convection oven) and you’ll feel me.
I found three old boards and two stamped walk-boards (certified to a maximum weights for staging). Instead of cutting the expensive, regulated and stamped walk-boards, I figured I’d cut one of the old paint-covered planks. Yeah. It was teak. I could have cried. The last board of teak I bought was 100 dollars a board foot (my 1.25” x 10” x 10 foot board cost a thousand dollars)... it felt like burning money.
The four foot section of 2 inch by 12 inch iron-wood was also a good score. I don’t know what I am gonna do with it… but I haven’t lost my wood hoarding skills while at sea, apparently.
Anyway- they spent a few days repairing the elevator and finally- after over a month aboard- I didn’t have to climb the 13 story ladder 200 times a day anymore. My first ride up to the bridge was a luxury unlike anything I’ve experienced since the Polk- it seems the elevator on every ship I’ve been on since has been broken! And then like That! We had elevator.
Until we started rolling- which has been every single day since they repaired it. Now, before I start the climb, I check to see if the light is back on, yet…
And that is how it is.
NOTE: It is easier to climb the ladder when it’s rolling if you wait for the ship to roll in the “helping” direction. You can also climb against the roll if you really want to suffer the additional G’s working against you. Often times I’ll go into the ladder well and there will be someone standing at the landing, frozen, waiting until the ship rolls back around before they start their climb up. I do it all the time, but it’s quite funny to witness. An 8 second period between swells is the perfect amount of time to casually walk up the ship’s switch-backing ladder with the least amount of effort. That is how sailors do.
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