OK, it has come to my knowledge that we have senior citizens visiting my web page. How hard can it
be? So it's not very easy for them to see the blue coloured links to the next page. Jiffy (also jiff)
noun [in SING.] informal a moment: we'll be back in a jiffy.
ORIGIN late 18th cent.: of unknown origin.
So as you understand, in a jiff pretty much depends on your internet.
Marunong ka mag-tagalog? Walang problema! Magpunta sa kabilang pahina pindutin ang “NEXT” button sa itaas
Faites vous parlez le français? Pas de problème! Pour arriver à la page suivante faites s'il vous plaît un déclic le bouton “Next” ci-dessus!
Haga usted dice el español? No hay problema! Ver la siguiente página sólo hacer clic el botón “Next” encima!
Farla parla l'italiano? Non problemi! Per vedere la prossima pagina lo scatto per favore giusto Il bottone “Next” sopra
Sprechen sie Deutsch! Kein problem! Wenn Sie die folgende Seite sehen wollen gerade klicken der Knopf “Next” oben!
คุณพูดภาษาไทยได้ไหม ไม่มีปัญหา ถ้าคุณต้องการไปหน้าถัดไป ให้กดปุ่ม “Next”
ข้างบนนี้
Вы говорите по-русски? NJET PROBLEMA! Просто нажмите синюю кнопку "Next" с левой стороны и Вы моментально переместитесь на следующую страницу!
E ni Svenskar och inte förstår Engelska så ska ni skämmas. J och Björn, med det menar jag inte att alla mina stavfel ska ältas varje gång vi träffas.
Well, the flag of Skåne, just a BONUS flag.
“The postings on this site are my own and don't represent Maersk Group's position, strategies or opinions. All views are my own”
No longer any need to use the Internet Explorer or run the Internet Explorer rendering engine. I gave up IE after the introduction of Internet Explorer 11
Page is tested in Fire Fox, Chrome and Safari. Looks like it works OK in all browsers, except the sounds in Safari.
Of course, browsing www.aladdin.st in Safari on an iPad is a different story, nothing looks as it should
Page is tested in Fire Fox, Chrome and Safari. Looks like it works OK in all browsers, except the sounds in Safari.Of course, browsing www.aladdin.st in Safari on an iPad is a different story, nothing looks as it should
Sunday 12 th of May 2013 and I wasn't exactly delirious with anticipation over the arrival to Sillamae when I came on the bridge at 8 o'clock. A wee bit tired as we had advanced ships time by
one hour during the night. But I was full of vim a pot of tea and 2 slices of black bread later. And of course, it was yet another glorious morning and that helped a lot.Our Pilot was onboard at 11 o'clock and he told me that he recognised me. I told him that I had been in Sillamae with Ek-Star a few years back. And I asked him if it was Ek-Star that was anchored at the Pilot station. Now I don't remember if he said it was Ek-Star or Ek - Sky. We approached the jetty and we had a tug boat coming towards us. I left
the bridge for my office when we had connected the tug boat.We had all fast 10 minutes past 12 and what a difference from Asia, one Loading Master and one Surveyor and we had soon finished all the paper work. In Indonesia we had like 50 Surveyors and Loading Masters. And when I told them that it was enough with Loading Masters there was no more Loading Masters coming onboard. Now they were all from the
Port Authorities. And they were all fighting to carry on-signers luggage so they could ask for cigarettes.As long as it is summer I prefer Europe. But come October and I don't care how many Port Authorities Officials there are coming. But I must admit, it is fun sometimes, yeah right out hilarious when a guy coming over the gangway wearing one shoe. And there are so much hole in his clothes he is about to fall out of the trousers.
- Who are you?
- Port Authorities
Well, anyway we were ready to receive cargo at 15:20. But they had to fill up the shore line and
we didn't received cargo until just after 4 o'clock.Our Cadets went ashore in the afternoon and they will keep their eyes open for Diet MAX and some tea cups.
And when our Pump Man and one of the ABs went ashore I gave them 90 € that I had borrowed of our 2nd Officer. And I asked them to buy Diet MAX , as much as they could carry. And they would keep an eye out, well, it is not like I'm holding my breath. I was back in my cabin after dinner, with a stop to pick up some Snickers on B-deck. I told the Cook to remove ice cream and other bad stuff from the “Saturday allowance” list. So from now on it will cost me 1000$ to eat ice cream, good.
+++++++++++++++
Monday 13 th
of May 2013
and they called me 10 minutes before 7.
- We will be ready in less than 1 hour
- OK, I'm on my wayLuckily enough, I was in bed around 11 yesterday so I was full of vim and I bounced out of bed
and in to my shower. Yes, I was on the “GO” and I swung my door open and I ran in to a pack of Diet MAX
and I
was delayed on my way to the CCR.Not only did I had to climb over big bottles of Diet MAX . On top of that I had to open a pack so I could bring a bottle to the CCR and I was delayed by several seconds. I stopped in the mess room on my way to the CCR to pick up a wine glass.
Our Cadets had failed to find anything ashore, no tea cups and no Diet MAX . They had only been up in Sillamae, but our Pump Man and one of the ABs had taken
a taxi to Narva and they had emptied the village of all the Diet MAX
available.Pilot was onboard at 11 thirty and it started to rain just in time for departure. But it was OK and I was back in my office at 12 o'clock. A quick lunch and I completed the cargo plan for Malmö in the afternoon.
So I was in a good mood when I left my office. Everything is ready for next port and I can concentrate on deck tomorrow.
So I was in a good mood when I stepped in to my cabin, just to
get in to a VERY VERY bad mood as soon as I realised that I had forgot to bring a wine glass for my Diet MAX
.I went to bed trying to get some sleep, and of course, I failed to fall asleep. I don't say it is because of the Diet MAX , but maybe.Hmm, most likely. Well, anyway, I went to my desk and my Thai alphabet CD and some learning Thai videos and it was soon time for dinner.
Even though he is busy 24/7 to keep an eye on what I'm eating he have time to wash the windows
Chief Engineer just finished a computer based training course on Piracy & Robbery
And as it is well known what I think about these courses I won't go in to what I think about them
I actually managed to almost finish my Thai books before it was time to get on watch at 8 o'clock. It was a glorious evening when I came on the bridge. Sunshine and Gulf of Finland was like a
windmill pond. We were passing the ferry route between Helsinki and Tallinn when I came up on the bridge and we had to change course for a ferry bound for Tallinn.One of our Cadets was on the bridge and he will be on deck for 3 weeks while the other Cadet is in the engine room. After 3 weeks they will change, well, our by now Deck Cadet got home work for tomorrow. ISGOTT, chapter 11 and I will cross exam him tomorrow.
Chapter 11, for everyone to know, at least if you want to become a Chief Officer. Well, anyway, he will start to work at 7 o'clock tomorrow morning with Pump Man. Purging pumps and measure tanks for gas and H2S.
The other Cadet came to the bridge a little later and he was chocked when his friend had got home work. And I don't know, it might have been my imagination. But I'm pretty sure the Deck
Cadet looked excited when he left the bridge with the
ISGOTT.Yes, ISGOTT is for sure exciting reading and I'm sure
he will enjoy him self while reading it tonight.And tomorrow I will ask him about LEL%, VOL % and inert gas
and LEL limits and other questions and who knows. He might bring a gift for his Teacher. At least that's the spirit him hoping for, especially after the fiasco with the Diet MAX
in Sillamae.
A gorgeous evening
A gorgeous evening
21:47 and still sunshine
22:07 and we're steaming towards West in the Gulf of Finland
23:30 and we're steaming towards West in the Gulf of Finland
Midnight in the Gulf of Finland
Our 2nd Officer brought one of those hand trainers to the bridge the other day. The handle made out of a spring to squeeze. So now I do a few hundred of those per watch, and of course, the squats. Diet on track and I'm feeling good, especially after taking in another hole on my belt today. If i can continue like this I will soon look good, well, better.
+++++++++++++++
Tuesday 14 th
of May 2013
and it was gloomy and grey when I came on the bridge at 8. And put a head wind force 5 - 6 on top of that and a beautiful spring had turned in to something not so very
nice. I enjoyed my tea and black bread while watching the Deck Cadet and our Pump Man measuring our ballast tanks for gas.We didn't make much speed with the head wind and I really want to arrive to Malmö before lunch, at least I don't want to arrive late in the afternoon. We will only top up our tanks and we don't expect to stay alongside for very long.
Would be nice to leave before midnight and of course, would be nice if the Cadets would get the time to arrange tea cups and
Diet MAX
plus some surprise gifts. I will not have any chance to go ashore but maybe we will be back sometimes to load full cargo.We had planned to held a fire drill after the 10 o'clock coffee break and we meet in the CCR at 10 thirty. Fire at the manifold and I was soon having 2 fire fighting team fighting the fire. We also held a few other drills on the bridge when we finished the fire drill. We finished with the defibrillators and people think this machine starts the heart when you suffer cardiac arrest. But the defibrillators stop the heart so you can start the CPR.
I don't say it is the most handsome crew in the world
But it is probably “ONE” of the most handsome crew in the world
It was almost 12 when we were ready with the drills and of course, I got a picture of the crew before we left the bridge. A quick lunch and I checked that our Deck Cadet had done is homework
in my office while we were waiting for our Pump Man.We went through the VOL% LEL % and oxygen content and how to do tank cleaning without inert gas. Tomorrow we will do the gas detectors and I gave him 50 pages in ISGOTT for homework. So no chance for him to get bored tonight.
But this afternoon we have more exciting stuff on the program. Start the cargo heating, adjust 2 ballast
sensors and fix one tank radar. Our Deck Cadet was delirious with anticipation and he
turned cartwheels out on deck when we left to start the cargo heating.When we had the heating up and running we did the tank radar in Slop tank Port or as we call it CT 7 P. Now we had 2 ballast sensors to go, but I had the guys for a Diet MAX in my office before we continued the work on deck.
And as it was pretty cold on deck it was nice to come inside for a few minutes. I didn't had to go on deck again as I was going to stay in the CCR with radio contact with Pump Man
and the Deck Cadet.And Pump Man told us the story from when he bought Diet MAX in Sillamae. There was plenty Pepsi, but only 16 big bottles of Diet MAX . 1 pack and the remaining
4 bottles they put in a plastic bag. He was even showing how he had been carrying the pack of Diet MAX
back to the ship.- That's the motherfoocking spirit!!
I returned to my cabin when we were ready, in a good mood. Ballast sensors showing the right value. Now we have to adjust them when they are full to make sure
they are working. Tank radar is showing the correct ullage. And I still have 12 big bottles of Diet MAX
remaining and I ripped one bottle open as soon as I was back in my cabin.Our Cadets were busy making a shopping list for Malmö
at the dinner. Of course, Kims Sprøde Flæskesvær was on top of the list. I was surprised to see that Jordnötsringar came in on second place. I had been talking about Jordnötsringar during the dinner
and as our Cadets were from Denmark they knew foock all about Jordnötsringar, almost as good as Kims Sprøde Flæskesvær.Of course, if you're in a mood for Jordnötsringar they are better than Kims Sprøde Flæskesvær. But as it is hard to decide you're better of
with a “PARTY”
bag of both. And a party bag isn't very small, that is for sure. There was more stuff on their shopping list. Most of the stuff available in Sweden, but remoulade, should be available. But i told them that they might have to take the train to Copenhagen to get the real Danish remoulade• Remoulade
• Diet MAX
• Øl glas (beer glass, yet another item for me)
Skåne Staajl 
Yes, we're approaching Skåne right at this moment
The wind was almost gone when I came on my watch at 8 o'clock in the evening and we were steering towards South East and Öland's Södra Grund and then we will pass between Skåne and the Danish island Bornholm. We had 1h 45m to go to Öland's Södra Grund when I left the bridge at midnight and I'm afraid that we have passed Skåne when I'm coming up tomorrow morning. Never mind, we will be in Malmö on Thursday afternoon.
I will be busy, but I have high expectations on the Cadet's shopping list.
+++++++++++++++
Wednesday 15 th
of May 2013
and we were in the middle of the Bornholmsgat when I came on the bridge at 8 o'clock. Skåne on right hand side and Bornholm on my left hand side. We were steering
towards SW in the TSS and I changed course towards Kadettrenden around 9 thirty. It was a nice day but we had a force 5
to 6 wind coming in from the East and it was chilli in the wind.Time turned pretty fast and it was soon time for a quick lunch before our Deck Cadet and I went to my office to calibrate the gas detectors. A good experience for him and luckily enough one of the sensors were broken so he got “hands on” experience on how to change a gas se9sor.
A good day in the office and time turned quick and suddenly we had 2 Pilots outside my office.
They had asked us if they could board us at Gedser instead of in the Great Belt. Yeah, good, 6
hours extra with Pilots onboard, exactly what I want.I up dated my web page when I was back in my cabin and I had time for 2 Thai language videos and the Thai alpabhet CD before it was time for dinner. And when I was back in my cabin I continued
(and finished my Thai books) before I went to the bridge at 8 o'clock.Plenty people on the bridge when I came up 5 minutes before 8 o’clock and at 8 we changed course to North and we entered the Great Belt and we expect to reach the Great Belt Bridge around 23 thirty. I could see lightning in the West and the sky was black West. But it was 18°C and it was a beautiful evening. Passing showers over Denmark in the East, but we never got any rain falling over us. So I was looking forward to a pleasant evening.
Just changed to a Northerly course entering the Great Belt
North bound in the Great Belt
Our Cadets were on the bridge excited over passing through the Great Belt and our Pilot showed
them his equipment.We were steering North in the Great Belt and our Deck Cadet stayed on the bridge. He is from Omø, a very small island just south of the Great Belt Bridge and he wanted to see the island.
I checked the island in the chart and it was a very small island with only a few houses and I asked him how many people that lived on the island. 140 people or something like that, and he confirmed what I suspected, not any night
life on the island.- You have to take a ferry to Sjælland. Mainland, Denmark, well Sjælland is also an island. But a big island and Copenhagen are located on Sjælland. And as we know, in Copenhagen there is night life to last you for a life time.
Sjælland, mainland, Denmark, well Sjælland is also an island. But a big island and Copenhagen are located on Sjælland. And as we know, in Copenhagen there is night life to last you for a life time. But Copenhagen is still very far from Omø
- And then... When you reach Sjælland...
- Well, not much...
- As I thought
We passed the island he came from and there was not even a light to be seen. OK, there was a light house but that was it. We were soon approaching the Great Belt Bridge and we were delirious by excitement. And I tried to take a picture of our Deck Cadet with the bridge in the back. Not
easy while on a shaking boat.If I use a flash everything will be black behind the Cadet. If I don’t use a flash our Cadet will be very dark. So the trick is to use a flash and a long shutter time. But then, on a shaking ship the light in the dark will be a wee bit blurred due to movements of the camera. But it is better than nothing. And I could have brought my Canon D60 for perfect result, but that is too much to carry.
Hmm, maybe next time now when I have given up snus. Plenty space in my luggage.
Deck Cadet on the bridge wing when we approach the Great Belt Bridge
Deck Cadet on the bridge wing when we approach the Great Belt Bridge
Deck Cadet on the bridge wing when we approach the Great Belt Bridge
It was almost midnight when we had passed the Great Belt Bridge and I returned to my cabin. Straight to bed as I had finished my Thai books. But it might be hard to fall asleep. I’m pretty excited over the arrival to Malmö tomorrow. Well, I'm most excited over our Cadets shopping list. Kims Sprøde Flæskesvær tomorrow night? I hope so!
+++++++++++++++
Thursday 16 th
of May 2013
and we were anchored between Gilleleje and Hornbæck at the entrance
to Öresund when I woke up. I thought it was quiet when I woke up and I looked out my window.They were heaving up the anchor when I came on the bridge with my 2 slices of black bread. We started to move slowly towards Hornbæck where we were going to
change from Danish to Swedish Pilot. Or most likely a Pilot from Skåne.I enjoyed a cup of tea and my black bread and it was a gorgeous morning, 17°C and it was only 8 o'clock in the morning. We were soon at Hornbæck and there was one Pilot boat coming from the Danish side and one coming from the Skåne side of Öresund.
I expected the Danish Pilot boat first but he continued to a Southbound Torm ship on our port side. So we got the Pilot from Skåne aboard first. He got a few minutes with the Danish Pilot before it was time for him to leave. The Danish Pilot boat had left a Pilot aboard the Torm ship and he was now coming
towards us.I talked with the Pilot and I asked how old he was. He was the same age at me and he started the Navigation School in Go:teborg one year after me. So we had some old school pals from navigation school in common.
And of course, time turned very quick when we were talking about these old school pals. Our deck Cadet was training in taking positions on our way South to Malmö.
- GPS is not allowed! Only bearing and distances, of course you can compare with GPS.
- Why not, it is always working
- Then you can as well have your 7 years old sister to come do the job!
We were soon passing Helsingborg and Helsingør and there were no ferries going to pass a head of us, but as soon as we had passed there were ferries leaving. We were approaching the island Ven
South of Helsingborg when our Pilot's phone rang. It was his friend crossing us in his sailing boat.According to our Pilot this was a guy that I should know, but I didn't remember his name. Well, anyway, it was a gorgeous morning on the bridge and it was sunshine and it became 20°C, in the
shadow and that must be some kind of record for this year. And of course, a record for Scandinavia, and not Bangkok.
Waiting for the tug boat on poop deck
Tug boat is coming up forward
Connecting the tug boat on tank deck forward
Connecting the tug boat on tank deck forward
Connecting the tug boat on tank deck forward
We were approaching Malmö and I left the bridge to assist our guys to connect the tug boat aft. We will have 2 tug boats, one forward and one aft. So we went forward on the tank deck to
connect the tug forward when we had connected the tug on the poop deck.Our 2nd Officer came forward and relieved me just in time for the forward tug boat and I went to my office for some “last minute” paper work. Not only are our Cadets going ashore, our Pump Man is going ashore. Of course, Diet MAX is on his list. And I needed a few other items and I realised that our Pump Man don't know the stuff. So I wrote a note to the cashier and I
instructed Pump Man to hand the note to the cashier.I wrote the note while we were approaching Malmö oil harbour. And of course, I had just printed and errased the note when I realised that I needed a “few”
additional items. So I filled up the note with hand written additional stuff I needed. Aladdin chocolate will come in handy so I asked for 10 boxes.Our Cadets were pretty much ready to leave as soon as the gangway were down and we made a last
minute check of their shopping list.They took off and I can't wait for them to come back. The Surveyors took samples and ullages and when we had finished all the paper work we were ready to start loading. We started quarter to 5 and we expect 6 or 7 hours of loading plus 4 hours of paper work. So we will leave in the middle of the night.
I will most likely not be able to sleep before it is time to return to the CCR. So I have planned to kill the time with my Thai language videos. And they are on U tube if you want to learn. Just search for Learn Thai with Mod or Alif Silpachai . And you can visit Mod's web page www.learnthaiwithmod.com. There are of course plenty others, but I down
loaded their videos, well, some of them.I was back in my cabin updating my web page when they called from the CCR to inform me that the Pilot was aboard. I had just been in the CCR to update myself. Completion expected around 11 o'clock tonight and 4 hours of paper work, so we're not expecting to leave until 3 o'clock in the morning. So yes, I was surprised to learn that the Pilot was
aboard. But then, it was OK, no need to book the Pilot 5 hours in advance.I was back in my cabin and a few minutes later I could hear the rustle from plastic bags outside my door. I opened the door and I saw our Pump Man bringing plastic bags of Diet MAX to my door.
It was a cubic tone of Diet MAX plus the “EXTRA” stuff I had wrote down on the note. And lunch korv, Skånsk as I had instructed what turned out to be a beautiful girl at the supermarket.
- Was it a girl?
- Yes
- Beautiful?
- Yes
Pump Man had handed her the note and she had been laughing according to Pump Man.
- Was she asking for my number?- No!
Well, anyway, the Lunch korv was made in Skåne, by SP Chark in Asmundtorp. So I'm looking forward to “hygge” myself with the Cadets for an evening with Skånsk lunch korv. They saw my list before they went ashore and they asked what Lunchkorv was. I told them that Lunch korv was way way better than Dansk pølse.
- One of those days when we have the time we will cook them and you will try!
Some of the “EXTRA” stuff on the list
And yes, I'm on diet so the Aladdin and Schweizernöt is not for me. Swedish chocolate is popular gifts to bring back home to Bangkok
I had just sorted out what our Pump Man had brought me. Now it was the Cadet and as soon as I
saw him with two “party” bags of Jordnöts ringar I regretted that I had asked them to buy them.Our Cadets had obviously noted that I was wearing a cap all
the time and they had bought me a cap. I don't say that I will never wear it, but most likely not in Bangkok.Or, why not?I will have to finish the snacks by myself, or I can give away one bag. I ripped one bag open instantly so this one I can't give away.
All the commotion during the evening had prevented me from concentrating on my Thai books. Well, it was not like I had opened them. So I might kill some time with Learn Thai with Mod or Alif Silpachai videos. Of course, while munching on Jordnötsringar.
But I think I was lucky that they only stayed in Sweden. The Cadets never crossed Öresund and they never found any Kims Sprøde Flæskesvær. Good, no, it is very good for my diet.
+++++++++++++++
Friday 17 th
of May 2013
and the day started in the CCR. We had completed loading 10 minutes before midnight and they were busy taking samples and they were blowing the shore line. 2nd
Officer coming on watch at midnight spotted my new cap.He threw himself on me and he grabbed my new cap and I ran in to a hard time trying to get it back.
So yes, maybe this is something to wear when walking around Bangkok. My new cap will be the talk of the town and a very good ice breaker when hanging in the bar. Well, I will
hopefully manage to stay away from the concrete hat while in the bar. Should be no problem as I
have given up alcohol.My cap was an instant success and I can't wait until boarding the flight home with my cap.
Surveyor aboard and we were waiting for them to complete the blowing of the cargo arm so we could get ullages. I asked the Surveyor if he had bought an e-cigarette while he was home in the afternoon. We were smoking in the Suez Cabin when we were waiting to start loading. He caught sight of my e-cigarette and he was going to buy
one as well. He had a friend who owned a tobacco shop and he sold e-cigarettes. I asked how much he charged.- Between 20 and 100$
- Go for the quality, I suggested
But he had been home sleeping and he hadn't had any time to buy one. But he would get right on to it as soon
as he could find the time. I was at my desk waiting for the ullage result.And yes, I was enjoying a glass of Diet MAX while waiting. Suddenly our 2nd Officer came to grab my bottle of Diet MAX and he returned to the CCR.
- What the
I dashed in to the CCR and he was soaking the white board eraser with my Diet MAX
- What the- This removes everything, he said.
He handed me a marker pen and he told me that the pen could not be used for white board.
- Of course not, it is a permanent marker, I said.
Someone had filled the white board with notes ( Our 2nd Officer guaranteed me that it wasn't
him) with a permanent marker and our 2nd Officer was desperately trying to remove the “Permanent” notes.- What have you done?
- It is not me, it is you!
- Me? I know the foocking difference between a permanent and a white board marker!
When the Surveyor was back in my office I brought him to the CCR to show him the mess and 2nd officer was desperately denying that he had foocked up. Our Surveyor was laughing and we pestered the 2nd Officer who got more
and more stressed.When we were doing the calculation our 2nd Officer came to my office, no he was
turning cartwheels in to my office beaming of joy.
- Mosquito repellent works wonders!He had tried everything he could find and he found the Mosquito repellent to work best on our by now “pink” white board.
We finished all the paper work and the Surveyor left us at 1 thirty and he would be back with the cargo documents at 2 thirty. Pilot would be onboard at 3 o'clock.
I had an hour to do my own paper work and to prepare my office for departure. And we completed all the paper work at 3 o'clock and we had to wait for our 2nd tug boat to arrive. The tug was busy with another ship, but we could see the tug approaching from the bridge and it was almost 4 when we had left Malmö behind.
We're leaving Malmö 4 o'clock in the morning
We're leaving Malmö 4 o'clock in the morning
We're leaving Malmö 4 o'clock in the morning
Letting go the tug boat and I'm finally off to bed
We let go the tug boats 20 minutes past 4 o'clock in the morning and we left Malmö behind. I was back in my cabin at 4 thirty and you can enjoy yet another EXCELLENT video MADE IN SKÅNE
while I get my power nap. I'm really tired after all the excitements we have experienced in Malmö during our stay. And I'm tired and I will sleep until tomorrow afternoon.And when I wake up we will have put Malmö, Öresund and Skåne behind. And of course, my 250 €, but hey! I have my cabin full of Diet
MAX
and Aladdin chocolate instead of 250 € in my valet.250 €hmm, that's about 10,000 Baht and that is 1 month at Sophia Muay Thai gym. Well, I guess the money would have been better spent at Sophia Muay Thai Gym. But this is not an option while in Malmö. I could have saved the money, but then I would not have had any Diet MAX or any boxes of Aladdin chocolate.
And I would for sure not have had any Skånsk lunchkorv, that will most likely been thrown away as I'm on diet. And the Jordnötsringar, I had ripped open one bag as soon as I got the bags in to my hands, so I could not give that bag away.
But I gave the other bag to our Pump Man before departure from Malmö.
Malmö Standard
I woke up at 12 still tired and I instantly regretted that I had given my bag of Jordnötsringar to our pump Man this morning. The other bag was of course empty, even before departure from Malmö. But I have plenty Diet MAX the only problem is that I opened a Swedish Diet MAX and believe me, in comparison the Estonian Diet MAX tasted like sewage.
Reminded me of back in the time when the only choice was Diet Coke, today I wouldn't touch it with gloves on. But back then I didn't know any better and I was known to enjoy an occasional Diet Coke. I was in a mini mart passing the fridge and I saw the price tag on the Diet Cokes.
- What theThis was cheap and I bought two cans and I opened a can as soon as I was home. Sitting in my
sofa ready to enjoy a Diet Coke. I had a sip and I was about to throw up. I looked
at the can for the expiry date and it took me a while to realise that it wasn't written in Swedish on the can, it was Polish. The soda tasted like sewer and I poured out the soda in the sink. I never bothered to try the second can.We had passed Skagen when I came on the bridge at 8 and we were just about to change course from West to South West. It was a nice but cloudy evening and plenty traffic. And plenty traffic means that the time turns quick and it was soon midnight and I was down to bed for a well needed power nap.
+++++++++++++++
Saturday 18 th
of May 2013
and we were steaming South West in the North Sea when I came on
the bridge at 8 o'clock. Gloomy and grey but the weather was OK, 17 °C and no wind.After an hour or so it became a wee bit foggy and it became a little bit chilli. Time turned quick and it was soon time for lunch. Pump Man and our Deck Cadet
had prepared the MMCs in the CCR for testing. They had also put a bucket of water in the freezer this morning.We're going to test the thermometers in the MMC and we need cold water and hot water. Hot water is no problem, just to boil.
But ice cold water will take longer to prepare.So our Deck Cadet and I had a quick lunch before going back to the CCR and the MMCs. We brought a bucket of water, by now covered in ice.
When we finished the cold water we took boiling water and we had soon tested the MMCs.I spent the afternoon with my cargo plan and when I was, well, not ready, but I went to watch a safety video about enclosed space entry with some of the guys. I don't know how long it lasted but it was over 4 o'clock when we were ready and I was about to return to my cabin. I needed a Diet MAX and to update my web page.
And of course, my Thai studies.But I ran in to our Cadets and they needed an enclosed space entry permit for the Pump room. What a coincidence, we just watched the video and now they were going to get some “hands on” experience of making an enclosed space entry permit.
We did the paper work and we tested the gas detectors. The Cadets asked me if we did this every time we did an enclosed space entry permit
- Yes, of course! Who knows, maybe some Polish librarian have been playing with the instruments since we checked the gas detectors last time.
Our Cadets in the pump room
Our Cadets in the pump room
Saturday dinner and I asked our kitchen staff to put up n utella on the forbidden list. Last Saturday it was ice cream. So I had a wee bit too much n utella today and this was the
last time I eat n utella
aboard Richard Maersk. So from now on, 1000$ every time I get caught+++++++++++++++
Sunday 19 th
of May 2013
and we were approaching Dover Strait when I came on the bridge 8 o'clock in the morning. Gloomy and grey, but it was a nice morning and I had soon the kettle on. I
had forgot to do my black bread with cheese yesterday so I had to drink my tea without anything to eat. Well, don't tell anyone, but I found some Ritz crackers and, well, there is no more Ritz crackers on the bridge anymore.- Hmm, wondering what happened to them
I had planned to purge our cargo tanks in the afternoon so our Pump Man and I had to start up the IG plant in the afternoon.
I had a quick lunch before I went to the CCR to meet our Pump Man. When the IG plant was up and running our Pump Man measured the tanks. I was in the galley preparing some Skånsk lunchkorv. Only 10 of them and our Danish Cadets were very excited when they discovered what I
had going for dinner. Our Cook was making Roast steak, but, well, Skånsk lunchkorv
anytime instead of any roast.We stopped the IG when the tank atmosphere was OK I finished my loading plan and I was back in my cabin at 4 o'clock.
Sunday today and no Thai studies, well, I have not had any Thai studies for the last two days. And
today I will try to get some sleep after dinner.It was soon 5 thirty and I dashed down the stairs to the mess room. No lunchkorv so I went to the kitchen and the lunchkorv was
ready. It looked like they had been in boiling water way too long.And as I suspected, much of the taste was gone. But even then, it was excellent lunchkorv. Well, at least I thought so, the other guys were, well, not as enthusiastic as I was. Our 2nd Engineer came in to the mess room and he had a lunchkorv. He wasn't looking very enthusiastic either. He had a bite and he started to glow. The lunchkorv disappeared like an aspirin and he stood up from the table
taking aim at the bowl of lunchkorvar.There were no more lunchkorv and he was at least to say disappointed.
- What the
He looked out the mess room towards the kitchen
- Do we have more lunchkorv?
- No
- What the
I was at the table looking at him and I had my camera ready to late for his “shaking the arms” in disappointment. He told me the sausages were the best ever. I told him that I would make more lunchkorv. I just wanted to make 10, unnecessary to make a cubic ton if no one liked the lunchkorv.
- A you bought the sausage yourself?
- Yes, well, I had Pump Man to buy them for me- I thought so, this was high quality.
Top score for SP Chark in Asmundtorp and I promised to make more lunchkorv before he signed off.
- And I will supervise the cooking as this is a sensitive task and it requires 100% commitment !
- I'm soon signing off, Chief Engineer said
- Well, I didn't hear anything about the lunchkorv from you!
Sleeping after dinner failed big time, well, good? Easier to fall asleep tonight?
Our Cadets taking pictures of the sun setting over Isle of Weight
And today was the first time in my life I heard the word Professional and Nikon in the same sentence
Our Cadets taking pictures of the sun setting over Isle of Weight
And today was the first time in my life I heard the word Professional and Nikon in the same sentence
Our Cadets taking pictures of the sun setting over Isle of Weight
And today was the first time in my life I heard the word Professional and Nikon in the same sentence
Our Cadets enjoying the sun setting over Isle of Weight
We were steering towards West and Isle of Weight when I came on the bridge at 8 o'clock in the evening. We were heading towards Nab anchorage #9 but they changed it to anchorage #8
when we approached the anchorage. Our Cadets were on the bridge and I heard something I never heard before in my life.- I'm going to get my Nikon camera, professional camera.
- Whoa whoa, the word Nikon and professional in the same sentence. Careful now! I said.
He came back with his Nikon and he was taking pictures of the sun set while I was taking pictures of him taking pictures. And yes, he was not satisfied with his pictures and he asked if he could copy my pictures. Well, Canon and nothing but satisfaction is expected.
I took our Deck Cadet forward to the fo'c's'le just after 9 o'clock and we had dropped our anchor at 21 thirty. Latest news is that we're expected to go alongside at 18:00 tomorrow evening. We will see about that. I was son back on the bridge and I enjoyed some tea before it was time to go for my power nap.
+++++++++++++++
Monday 20 th
of May 2013
and we were still anchored when I came on the bridge 8 o'clock in the morning. Still gloomy and grey and the latest is for us to be alongside 2100 tonight.Later on in the afternoon it was changing to Pilot boarding time and we expect to be alongside around midnight. Yeah, a full night of kickin' behinds ahead of me.
Approaching jetty 4 at ESSO in Fawley
At jetty 4 at ESSO in Fawley
At jetty 4 at ESSO in Fawley
They called me a 10 thirty in the evening, time to connect the tug boats. We were approaching ESSO and we had our first line ashore at jetty 2 at 23:40.
+++++++++++++++
Tuesday 21 st
of May 2013
and we had all fast a quarter past midnight and Loading Master and Surveyor was onboard 5 minutes before 1 o'clock. Paper work, ullageing, sampling and calculations and we started discharging at 03:15.We were soon giving up trying to pump ashore our cargo. We had 7 bars on the manifold but no cargo got out of the cargo tank. So the shore line was obviously blocked. We gave it a try for 3 times and we stopped for the last time at 05:35. I was in bed around 7 and no news from the ESSO Fawley when the terminal would be ready to receive our cargo.
Shifting jetty in Fawley
They called me quarter to 12 and it felt like I just had felt asleep. We will shift to jetty #2
quarter past 12.I had a hot shower and I felt better than I could have wished for after just a few hours of sleep. I had been up for almost 24 hours with a one hour power nap in the afternoon, so yes, I had expected to be very tired.
I went for lunch, a very quick lunch and then we went out to let go all our mooring ropes and we left jetty #4 around 12 thirty and we were soon at jetty #2. And we will
hopefully be able to
discharge our cargo here.I was in my office waiting for the Loading Master when Our Pump Man came to tell me that the garbage barge arrived.
- Good, let's go get rid of our garbage, I said.
We went out so I could supervise, no food and oily waste was allowed to be dropped down to the barge. But
we got rid of a cubic meter of paper, glass and other garbage. Loading Master came onboard and we did a little paper work and we started to discharge our cargo without any problem. So the pipe line must have been blocked between jetty #4 and #2. We discharged 2 line displacements and at 19:00 we could start discharging. First we topped of the tanks ONE BY ONE until we had less than 95% in the tanks.
Throwing garbage to the garbage barge in Fawley
By then I was in my cabin, I already had 14 hours and I had been red since 3 o'clock in the afternoon. I ran in to another problem in my cabin, the Aladdin and Schwizernöt chocolate in my
cabin. I bought 10 boxes of Aladdin chocolate and 10 Scweizernöt in Malmö. Popular gifts when I'm back home in Bangkok.But I have come up with a plan to stay here until October if my reliever isn't coming back.
The Schweizernöt expires in October, no problem. But the Aladdin chocolate expires in August. The chocolate will still be of the very best quality available in October. But it is a wee bit embarrassing to give away expired chocolate. If I
go home in July it is no problem. But as I'm aiming for October I was a little angry that I had spent 100€++ on the Aladdin chocolate. And in order to prevent it to go in to a total loss I ripped open a box.Yes, to have 10 boxes of Aladdin chocolate in the fridge is proved to be a very hard
test of my self-discipline. So I packed all the chocolate in my bag and I will bring it
to our Cook's fridge in the kitchen. And the chocolate willhopefully be safe from me finishing it before the expiry date.I went down to the CCR at 9 o'clock in the evening and I passed the TV room. Our Cadets were watching movie. And I was chocked to discover that they were eating apples while watching the movie.
- What theWatching movie and some nice snacks are required and not
apples. As we say in Denmark, D e ju Hænge røv. That is a sagging ass in English. But it sounds nice in Danish. And Danish is a language I would love to be able to speak. They have another expression that I use on a daily basis with our Cadets. “D e fis” I will not translate that, well, anyway, I returned to my cabin and I got a box of Aladdin and I returned to the TV room with the Aladdin chocolate.And I handed the box to our Cadets. And I learnt a new Danish word instantly, “Jule slik” Well, they said thank you when I left for the CCR.
- Foock that! I'm the one saying thank you for saving me from eating this chocolate!
Jule slik in the TV room
Aladdin chocolate, first time ever for our Cadets
Open the darn box already!
About foocking time
Plenty to choose from
Mm - mm - mm, this is some delicious chocolate
Of course, Aladdin is not known to buy some poor quality shit
Motherfoocker, Aladdin knows what’s good
Of course, Aladdin is not known to buy some poor quality shit
I was in the CCR for a few minutes to check out the progress and when I was back there were only 3 pieces of chocolate remaining. And none of my favourites, NO PROBLEM, there are 2 layers and I removed the top layer just to discover that our Cadets had raided this layer as well.
+++++++++++++++
Wednesday 22 nd
of May 2013
and I got out of bed at 10 o'clock, or just a few minutes after. A
long hot shower and I was in the CCR.Looks like we will complete discharging around 4 in the morning. It also looks like our next load port is Immingham. Fawley Immingham is not very long and we need time, plenty jobs to be done on deck. Cargo valve, steam traps and ballast sensors.
So yes, I wasn't very happy about our new load port. But things was soon changed, we had orders to proceed to Immingham at a “SUPER” slow speed. 2 days, just what I needed on deck and I was in a very good mood when I and Pump Man left Captain's office.
Foocking A, we turned cartwheels all the way to the CCR.And just when I thought it was impossible to improve my mood we discovered 4 new cargo valves in the deck store. Changing the cargo valve tomorrow will be very quick for our Pump Man and my good mood really reached new heights.
And of course, new loading orders came with the job to do new cargo plan so I got right on with the preparation. We haven't got any details yet, but minimum 30,000MT.
They refuse to leave Chief Officer alone while he is doing super important jobs
They refuse to leave Chief Officer alone while he is doing super important jobs
I went to bed after dinner trying to get some sleep, I expect a full night in the CCR. But I don't expect to be able to fall asleep. But I'm looking forward to leave Fawley behind tomorrow morning.
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