Groundhog Day. Groundhog Day. Groundhog ....

Groundhog Day

More than halfway to the end of my probationary period, and the “new job” smell has pretty much worn off.

Don’t get me wrong; I enjoy my work. Really, I do.

The days and nights, though, are starting to all run together. Seas are higher this week than the last week I was on the boat, someone got off and someone came back, but other than that … it’s mostly just more of the same.

I finally got to meet our new port captain when we were last at the dock. He said he was bringing supplies, and in fact we did get three new halogen light bulbs. He explained the new supply procedures and it does indeed sound like a significant process improvement.

But only if we start getting the stuff we started asking for three months ago.

Can I run the Atchafalaya at night without a spotlight? Probably. Will I, if I have a choice? No.

Can we pump out our waste oil tank with a suction hose made up of the remnants of three others? Yes – we did, tonight, but it made a hell of a mess in the engine room. That’s just more work for a guy who already has enough to do.

Should we wash down the wheelhouse with freshwater every night? I’d like that. Will I ask the deckhand to do it if we don’t have a nozzle for the end of the hose? Nope.

Will our patch on the turbo cooling line on the number four engine hold a while longer? Maybe. But it would be really nice to have the part we asked for a month ago.

I could go on, but that’s probably enough of a rant. I’m sure most folks in this industry – no matter what company they work for – have similar frustrations.

Things aren’t bad, but they could be better.

Update: Back at the dock Wednesday, and somewhere around here allegedly is a pallet ... a freakin' PALLET of supplies with our boat's name on it. Sweet.