Chapter 1     AS I climbed out of the taxi I was astounded by the noise on the dock . The Taxi driver said something .” What ! “ . “ Is he staying there “ , nodding at my travel companion .” Er , no “, then a bit more confidently ,” He’s absolutely buggered“. I leaned into the open taxi door , “ C’mon Tony , we’re at the dock “ . “John , I must have nodded off “ . He yawned and continued . “Has he said which ship it is” ,” No ,but he’s over there talking to that guy with the briefcase under his arm , oh hey up , he's coming over” . “Hi lads “ , he introduced himself ,”I’m from Falmouth pool , we are just sorting out ships for you all , wont be long now “and with that rejoined his colleague , also from Falmouth pool who had travelled with us in the taxi . There had been a second taxi carrying three more ratings from the pool office and they came over and joined us with their kit . The know it all of the three piped in . “ I’ve shipped out of here before , they're not sticking me on an effin tub , if they try It I'll stick em one on “. “What was your last post” I inquired . “Table waiter on the Star line and I told them what they could do with their effin job “ . I replied “I cant imagine why you left “ ? .” I think they had it in for me” he replied . I quipped “That must have hurt “ . The rest chuckled but he went on , “It did “ , More stifled laughter . “ I told em , I can take it “ . Riotous laughter ensued and our learned worldly wise friend was suspiciously confused . Were we laughing at him , or with him . He decided the latter and joined in the laughter . That made us howl even more . “Getting on lads “ . The guy with the briefcase and his colleague rejoined our party “,We've sorted it out . Grab your gear and follow us “. The three , and Tony my companion from Goole pool were taken along the dockside towards their ship but the guy with the briefcase steered me towards a pontoon with small fishing boats lazily bobbing around. Stopping at one of them he said . “Get in the boat and I'll hand you your gear “. It always surprises me how submissive to orders one can be but mechanically and without question , especially after two days of travelling and very little sleep , I followed his instructions. “ The boatman’s going to take you to your ship , Its the one anchored in the bay “. My eyes following the general direction of his pointing finger . “The orangey coloured one” I queried . “Er yes “he offered ” . “Loose the aft line boy “, the boatman said and , complying , we left the pontoon . He pointing the bow in no general direction to the ship in the bay . “This your first trip boy “, he chirped hopefully wanting to start a life long friendship until we got to the ship . “Yeah “.My heart sank as I realized the ship wasn’t orange , it was rust . We had been going about 5 minutes and I thought . We don’t seem to be getting any closer , also the sea state was becoming increasingly rough .” Better hang on boy it’s going to get rougher than this” . and he broke into a sea shanty about sinking which cheered me up no end . I’ve had a few regrets in my young life . Not getting my hands inside Liz Ravensfield’s bra etc , but this boat ride was beginning to be a very close second . The ship , became a colossus against the tiny fishing boat as we arrived alongside and started riding and dropping some three feet due to the swell , ” Where’s the gangway “! I asked very disturbed by the inhospitable waters . There came a cry from up above . No , not the lord ,  someone on the ship . “Tie your kit on to this “ . I looked up . Just in time , to get clobbered by a line that dangled a foot above the deck of the fishing boat , but in the next second was four feet In the air .This isn’t going to be easy on a bouncing boat . I caught hold of the rope and managed to gain some slack just enough to make it possible to tie my kit on , stood back and waved my arm to those atop . The guy on the other end of the line hauled , and all my worldly goods went heavenwards.” But how am I ? “. Crack ! .A Jacob’s ladder came rattling down the side of the ship . ,.”Jump for it boy “, I looked at the fisherman in disbelief, “You've got to be fucking joking” . “Get on the ladder boy or you can swim back “.  My lifelong friend what happened to my lifelong friend ? . I tried grabbing the ladder but realized with the swell I was going to have to go for it on the apex of the rise .” Now “! he shouted . I clung . Oh how I clung ,and then clung some more . This was madness . I was on the ladder and the friendly fisherman was away . I tried to step up but the ladder swung away from the ship which caused me to grip even tighter . Above , “ Come on son , stop admiring the view ,we haven’t got all day “ . My response of effs and anything else I could think of was lost in the sound of the ship's engines vibrating through the plates . Coming to life , and I thought , we were moving forward . What the fuck .They're trying to kill me , then realised we were still riding the anchor . I thought .Right you bastards I'll show you . Anger and a will to kill erupted within my very being and I began to climb , but some eight feet still to climb I was spent and , looking down , I was truly considering a swift end when suddenly, the ladder began to move upwards. Renewal of life surged through my veins as I rose majestically from a certain watery grave . I grabbed the guard rail and vaulted over onto the deck . I was  faced with three deckhands laughing , responsible no doubt , but thankfully , for my meteoric rise . One of the deckhands quipped . “You shouldn't have tried that with your overcoat on “ .I offered , “I always do things the hard way “ . but then regretted saying it . “C'mon son , let’s get you somewhere to bed down” ,” your on duty tomorrow “. The aft accommodation consisted of a small galley . A dining come sitting area . A table garnished with books and magazines , Hmm nice tits , I'll have a butchers at that one later .” It'll be your job to keep this tidy lad . I'll explain the rest of your duties tomorrow morning “ Be on deck for six a.m . Your in number six at the bottom of the companionway. Evening meal is six on the dot , if your not there you go without” .What is it about ultimatum speeches that give a person power over the lower classes , the lesser bred , the serfs . This was no ordinary individual , this was being announced by the boson )of a shit tip ship . He left the galley , down or up ,who cares , I was still affected by my experience on the Jacob's and my sudden recollection caused me to jump for the kitchen sink where I unceremoniously dumped my breakfast , the first and last time I was sick at sea .. The adventure , the quest for discovery in the face of adversity was rapidly becoming , “What on earth have I done “ . Wearily , the energy , now spent from my already tired body . I rescued my gear and proceeded to negotiate the companion way down to my cabin ,Ah ! Here it is , number six . I looked around the small cabin . In one corner there seemed to be a tall steel box which later was identified to me as a wardrobe .The opposite side contained the bed which rested on four metal bars from the ceiling to the floor. That was it . No carpet no desk no drawers . Nothing . , Hmm , homely eh ! . On the bed there were clean folded sheets and a couple of laundered blankets that were showing signs of age . On making the bed I realised that my first observation was not keen enough and worn was definitely on the up . I checked the time with my watch . Quarter past one . I decided to relax , get out of my decent clothes and put on Jean’s and casual shirt and climbed onto the bed .it was then I noticed the vibration of the ship's engine which seemed to increase in intensity within thesolitude of the small room . Hope I will be able to sleep with that racket going on . I lit my last fag , took a huge inhale of smoke that made me splutter and cough . Oh heck , where am I going to put it out , no flipping ashtray . I recovered the discarded packet and nipped the lit end which fell into the foil wrapping in the empty packet . Resting my head on the pillow my mind meandered back to the start of this adventure .