Almost into the final week onboard and I am now really looking forward to getting off and going home on leave. I spoke to Debbie earlier and I think I have got things timed almost right as her hips are now really giving her a lot of gip and she is finding it hard to look after the little one. We were expecting it as she had SPD with Elizabeth so we knew it was more than likely that she would have it again. It has been quite difficult to try and juggle things as if I got off too early I would go back shortly after the birth which would have been hard for Debbie. On the other hand if I stayed on here to long Debbie would have found it very hard to cope by herself as the SPD causes her great pain and makes it hard to walk. This didn’t matter so much last time as she could move in with her folks, however it is much harder this time as she little Beth to look after.
I have had my report, well sort of anyway. The XO didn’t even have the courtesy to give me a closing interview. He basically threw the report at me at 1815 last night and said if I wanted to discuss it I could go and see him. This is not the way a formal reporting procedure should be conducted. On top of this he couldn’t even be bothered to put comments in all the boxes. What really surprised me was that all he could muster to write in my overall performance was ‘Transferred to Mounts Bay for six week period’. This does not reflect my performance in any way. Once again though I feel it demonstrates that an 18 can reflect as much about the person writing it as the person being reported on. It was markedly obvious as well, seeing other reports, that the XO had favourites after he give a junior third mate two box 1’s (based on the number of SoPs and ROSTEMs he compiled for the XO). There is no doubt that the third mate in question performed well and deserved at least a box 2 but he certainly needs more experience on the bridge before he would be suitable for promotion to second off. However moaning aside the CO wrote a number of complimentary remarks about my performance which demonstrated that he had actually taken some time over it. The CO also agreed with my comment that due to the fragmented reporting period and the fact that the reporting period was actually only on 50 percent of my appointment it could not give a true reflection of my abilities.
Well at least it is another trip almost over and it has been a very depressing trip as there has been little to look forward to. SARC and OST for the first part of the trip and then basically glued alongside for the remainder of the trip. I long for another decent trip where I get more sea time than time in Port, I can’t see it happening for a few years though with all the in-year cost savings that the MoD is trying to make, there is just no money for the ship’s to go to sea with anymore, it is a great shame as I came to sea to go to sea and not sit along side. The feeling of being out in mid ocean, miles from land is indescribable. The sights I have seen and the starlit nights are magical and I do hark back to John Masefield’s ‘Sea Fever’.
‘I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by.’
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