Imagine my surprise...

... when I go down for my dinner, which on a Friday evening is always a curry. Normally with all the peripherals and paraphernalia laid out on one of the tables, so the Chef can have an early evening of it. 

So the galley boy asks me what I want, and I off-handedly reply, "Well, steak, egg and chips would be nice, but I'll help myself from over there, thanks."

Expecting no more, I go over and start helping myself, and the Chef taps me on the shoulder and says, "I have the steak ready, sir, how would you like your eggs?"

Dumbfounded and not a little surprised, I sit down with my first course of salad, and just as I'm polishing off the last tomato, out comes the Chef with a plate of steak, egg and chips.

Amazing.

Thank you very much, Ignacius.

And another thing...

I read with total dismay that the UK government (it doesn't deserve a capital 'G') is with one hand putting a freeze on Military Veterans pensions, while with the other is allowing families of terror suspects, who've had their assets frozen, access to hundreds of pounds per week of benefits.
It beggars belief that in the queue for government handouts, the men and women who put their lives on the line for the good of our country seem to be behind those are prepared to die in the battle against it.

Grrrr.

Rucker.

Wildlife

We've been out here for five days so far, and hardly seen a thing on the wildlife front. Supposedly a haven for lots of marine mammals and fish of all shapes and sizes.

But this morning, a pod, if you can call it that, of about 200, yes, 200 dolphins splished and splashed their way past. Probably spinner dolphins, as some of them would jump, spinning three or four times before landing with a huge fountain of a splash. Wonderful to see.

Then, not half an hour later, a massive whale wallows its way in a similar direction. Judging by its size and shape, it was a lone Minke whale, with a tiny dorsal fin.

And then, a couple of sea turtles playfully come up alongside, say hello, and then dive back to the depths again.

Hopefully that's the start of a great migration, and we'll get to see lots more marine wildlife in the coming days.

Cheers,

Rucker

Exercise

I've been meaning to do some exercise again for quite some time now. It's been difficult to get into any kind of regime since the injury. So I'm hitting the, erm, floor?
I'm using the change of being on board to knuckle down try and eat healthily (trying, when most items on the chef's menu are generally deep-fried to a cinder), and do some home-made circuits.
Hopefully, by the time I get home again, a few pounds will have been shed, and the muscle that has been hiding away for some time now will start to peek out from behind the layers of mid-life which have been building around the middle for the past few years!
Cheers,
Rucker

Starting a blog

How do you start a blog?
I suppose you need a scene setter.
So, I'm out here in the middle of the ocean, working on a ship performing submarine cable operations.
I suppose that's vague enough to keep the authorities happy.
I expect I'll be here for another month or so, depending on how well and how successful the trip is.
So there we are.
The first hurdle.
Over the coming weeks, I'll be dishing out general ramblings, occasional rants, and obtuse mutterings on subjects that interest and affect me.
That is, if I keep these entries going!
Cheers,
Rucker