Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Weekend at Sea


Dear Readers;

Another day down as the ship approaches closer towards New York City. We had a very productive weekend. First, we had a fire/abandon ship drill on Friday. All personnel not involved in the fire fighting effort mustered at assigned stations while designated firefighting crews put out the “flames in engine room." Then on Saturday one of the mates, Heatly, gave an orientation seminar on jobs aboard NOAA vessels . Third, it was our last Sunday at sea this season so there was lots of barbequing with hot dogs, hamburgers and steaks, salads and soft drinks on the fare.

And last but not least, Cadet Adam Gray stopped by today to say that he “misses Alexa Grant so much!”

That would be it, see you all Friday!

Oleg.

Friday, August 2, 2013

GMT


Dear Readers,

As we head closer towards New York, students continue to study for their exams. The most popular academic books on the ship’s library are Bowditch’s “American Practical navigator,” the 2013 nautical almanac, the “Sight Reduction Tables for Marine Navigation” volumes, and the TSES VI safety manual. The students also vigorously practice Morse code on the library's computer for their upcoming exams.

In their leisure time cadets read news that I receive from my shore colleagues and from the campus library. They also play foosball, battleship, chess and also do a lot of recreational reading. The most popular fiction books requested are by Lee Child. This is closely followed by “Game of Thrones,” and the "Dexter "series.  
 
We are currently in the Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) zone and just recently had to set our clocks back one hour.

Until next time,

Oleg