A New Project

After being kept home a few extra days I was sent back to work.The lack of a contract for my boat led me to another boat within the company nicknamed tug matchbox.It gets this name from the size and feel of it.The boat is the smallest in the company fleet,66 gross tons,and feels every bit of it.It was good to be back at work but very frustrating being on a small boat with three other large men.Large men who don't clean up after themselves or do any regular maintenance to the tug.However after thirteen days on the tug I was sent back to my original boat which,you guessed it,is back in the shipyard.The only difference is this time we aren't working on our boat we are working on an over used,under appreciated boat in the fleet.The boat has gone five years since being pulled out of the water and looks every bit of it.These are the really tough days to be a mariner.The days when you would rather be towing a barge offshore not picking up the pieces someone else left behind.The four other guys I'm working with would all rather be doing something else besides looking like they just got out of a coal mine at the end of the day.It's one of those projects that everywhere you look it needs to be fixed.Whether it's rusty,broken or just plain dirty.There isn't anything we can do but just take it day by day.Chances are when the upper management sees the work needed below decks the boat will either be scrapped or sold,have fun with that.Either way I just need to keep telling myself it's good to have a job,I guess.Pictures to come in the next few days.