An interesting world we live in
A friend sent me a quote, I thought I would share it here.
“There’s three types of people on this planet. Those alive, those dead, and those at sea.”
He says it’s an old maritime saying, but I think it’s pretty spot on. Living on a ship in the ocean is definitely an alternative state. Electronic gadgets have come a long way towards bridging the gap between the living and seaman, but there is still a long way to go. If it weren’t for the ability to communicate with satellite services most people here today would not make it a week. I know this for sure.
I’m not a huge fan of crazy new technologies that seem to be popping up today, but I sure am grateful for this cool invention. Satellite internet has given the seaman just enough reality to still be a part of the real world.
The reason why I bring this up is a good friend has resigned from his position on the ship recently. This happens commonly here, and I don’t think that the average person, who works in a “normal” 9-5 type job can understand it. When you go off to sea your life in the outside world is at a stand still, but the problem is the world still goes on with out you. You get older, your friends get older and have life experiences, family changes and for that matter the whole world changes.
At first this isn’t so noticeable, but with time it becomes more and more evident to the seaman. Things like having a home that “feels” like a home and having “normal” relationships get farther and farther away with time at sea. Sooner or later this becomes a huge burden, and the burden leads to a career change. For some this burden comes in months, and for others it comes in years, but it comes no matter what.
So this gets me thinking of what I’m going to do to keep myself from feeling the strain. I think that in some ways, I am slightly immune to the relationship part of the strain, because of my situation. I have two kids, two ex-wives and I’m in no big hurry for more. There is no biological clock ticking. I’ve lived that life already. I’m sure someday I will be able to have a relationship that works for me and my career, but I’m not overly concerned about it.
The house and feeling like a home part has already started to wear on me a bit. Currently, I’m homeless. I just rent a place for a few weeks when I go home then put all of my stuff in storage while I’m gone. This has been a great way to get ahead and live cheaply, but I’m pretty much over it at this point. I have a mission, and that is to find a nice little house, where my things can live while I’m gone and I can be comfortable when I’m home. It doesn’t have to be anything special, or huge, but I need it to be mine.
When I go home next, I’m going to find a home. That’s my plan, and I’m sticking to it. Once I do that, I think I’ll be good to go with this career for quite some time.
The picture above is pilot whales, and it’s the closest I’ve gotten to a decent picture of whales to date. I’ve only seen pilot whales a couple times so far, so it was pretty cool to see.
