It’s almost six months since my last blog entry, so much happening, some good, some very sad.
I had a nice leave over Christmas, but then had to leave on New Years day. A trip over to Norway, a mobilization and then the start of a transit with the Ship bound for India. We only went as far as Malta with it, but I did get some photographs going through the Straits of Gibraltar and entering the historic Grand Harbour at Valletta. It was a short trip, then I had to return to the UK before returning to Colorado to get my Offshore Survival Refresher course done.
Every time I do my Offshore Survival I say “this is the last”, well this time I accept that it isn’t! If I do it one more time, then I can work offshore until I’m 57, which sort of ties in with when I want to retire.
After getting back to Colorado, I had a longish leave. Lots of hassles trying to get visa and paperwork sorted out for India, and also getting my new passport.
Then I had the trip to India. The job was a strange one, in many ways it did not go well, but because most of the problems were not “our” fault, but because of circumstances out of our control, the company still made money of the job, even though we had to leave it half finished.
While I was in India, I got bad news. My dad collapsed with a heart attack on Thursday the 15th. Despite the best efforts of a passer-by, who performed CPR, the emergency services and the staff at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary he never regained consciousness.
I had a mega-journey from India back to Buckie. I was able to see dad in hospital but, it was obvious that he was already gone even though it was a week before he passed.
To get back to the UK, I had two ship to ship transfers, a load of paperwork, a mad 3 hour car ride and 5 flights. The flight connections were so tight, I never even saw two of the airports that I passed through, and the only wait I had was an hour at Heathrow before my flight to Aberdeen.
After dad’s passing there was a lot to sort out in Buckie and then the funeral, before coming back to Colorado.
Now that I am back in Colorado, it’s been a long “leave”, part compassionate, part scheduled. In fact, combined, probably one of the longest leave’s I’ve had in a very long time.
