Bad times/Good times/Bad times

[j.sabourn]

I think that anyone going to sea can probably catogorize their lives into Good times or Bad times, I find it hard to do this, I only know it finished up with bad times. As there are many on this site who have lead a similar life and times they will have their own views on this. The early 50"s to the Early 60"s although the wages and conditions were not much to write home about, believe this is the period that most remember with more affection than any other times. Although believe most ships were dry, and any off duty entertainment was home made or some ships carried a modest number of films and also had a library of sorts. However seamen used to let their hair down in port, as most cargo ships spent at least enough time in port to do this. The stupid shipowners rules during this period, I remember one quite clearly was that all women had to be off the ship by nightfall this was in UK, and also included wives. The next period in time seems to have jumped to the opposite. Bars were introduced on ships, wives could accompany husbands, and was probably a period when the shipowner was trying to retain people. To me the bars worked ok if they were policed by a crew committee and saw less trouble than there was with cabin drinking. The next period from the 80"s to I think probably the present, was no alcohol of any sort to be drunk on vessel, the penalty in the late eighties was instant dismissal. A complete reversal on previous life styles. Also to my mind the undermanning of ships, wages never rose correspondingly to account for the extra work load in some cases, and a good few other laws and regs. brought in not to the seafarers benefit I would say. This was to me the bad times and is one that exists to the present day as far as I am aware. Nothing has changed since some of us started except that we are as bad off if not worse than the early 50"s. When most of us considered it a pleasure to work at sea. Cheers John Sabourn

[Les Woodard]

Can only comment on the sixties and to this day still think that was the best decade to be at sea. As you point out the shipping companies relaxed the rules a bit due to shortage of labour. Once those bloody ACT ships started I could see the beginning of the end for life at sea as we knew it. Like everything else the more advanced and profitable it becomes the worse it gets for the coal face worker.

[Captain Kong]

Hi John .
after the EXXON VALDES disaster all bars and alcohol were taken off the ESSO tankers, the Master had a breathalizer kit and could ask anyone to blow into it, especially the morning after a night ashore at the breakfast table.
I saw an Engineer sacked instantly over that, Also the Companiy`s non contributary Pension was cancelled.
A heavy price to pay for a few bevies. Seafaring was becoming an ordeal and criminalized.
I was once accused by the Captain of drinking Lemonade after Midnight as the bar for soft drinks closed at 10pm.
.
.With rose coloured glasses I thought the 50s were the best period but then we didnt know any difference, then it went downhill.
Brian

[Keith Tindell]

I would agree that the Late 50`s -middle 60`s (the only ones i went to sea ) were great , jobs a plenty, never waited for a ship more than a couple of days, lots of time because i was being choosey.
There was a heavy drinking culture at that time, and i was guilty as most, but once the skipper started to threaten to double up on the loggings, it brought us into line a bit quick. The world seemed a lovely place, and mostly away from tourist spots KT

[j.sabourn]

Brian was a bloke in the next little seaside village to me here in Oz who someone told me was master on the ship mentioned, at one time before the disaster. However he died a couple of years ago so never got a chance to meet him. I believe I mentioned in an earlier post how I received a letter from the company (for your eyes only) wanting me to report undercover on the drinking habits of everyone on board. I posted the letter on the ships notice board for everyone to see. Of course it was reported back to the office by some worm. I was put near the top of the redundancy list. You could be breathalized coming through the dock gates by the guard and refused permission of entry. What a way to live, especially when the ship was your home so to speak. I found that the powers to be blamed everything on drink, probably was a good excuse for everything else that was liable to go wrong. I worked for the MOD for just over 4 years, if they had a drinking problem with any of their men, they took responsibility for saying he learnt the social problem when employed by them, and had their own drying out farm, they were allowed 2 visits before loosing their pension etc. I have sailed with ex alkies and to me they are a pain in the ass, there is none so pure as the purified. Dont think I could afford to get to that stage. Ref. the post on being shanghaid from the pub, I kept a bottle on board and would have been sacked if found out, it happened twice to me being landed with a bloke who when he came to had the DTs and had to wean him off bit by bit, when you had to put a man in a FRC in a force 6, you wanted him in a reasonable shape, however enough said about that. Cheers John Sabourn

[alf corbyn]

i think the fifties were great. i experienced liners, tankers, cargo, passnger cargo's. i enjoyed them all. not from the company veiw but for the camaradie of the crew.round africa, great, oz and kiwi coast, parties, meeting new people from different cultures. i usually had my bicycle, and roller and ice skates.
yyes i went on the grog but i also explored the places i visited. in ports where we worked day on day off i used to get on a train or bus and see the country. i also hired a horse in oz and NZ. i couldn't stand the pi*sheads who could only tell you the nearest boozer to the ship. if i wanted a bottle, i only had to ask an officer to get one for about six bob.

[Les Woodard]

Just wish I could remember most of my time at sea Hic Hic. How better could it have got. Pay of on Mon sober up on Wed and ship out on Thur. Just to do it all again. Was told my book was a disaster because I did not sign on the same ship twice for deep sea. Idiot did not look at the dates where I was only ever ashore without a ship for the maximum of a week.

[happy daze john in oz]

It was not just a good time to tbe at sea, but a good time for the world. Just after the war and up until the early 70's was in my opinion maybe one of the best eras the world has known. There was a happy feel about almost every thing, work was plentiful in most fields of employment, shipping was at it's height and there was a feeling of peace. As an individual decade I think most will agree the 60's was the one. So much change and new concepts began to emerge, Liverpool became famous for a second time and the new technology was just begining to emerge with the lunar landings.
But there was also sadness to come from all of this advancement with the decline of the British Merchant navy. The advent of the Jumbo and container saw to that. But for all of it I know thta those of us who sailed during that time were some of th eluckiest people vere to hvae been born. we saw and experienced something thta no other group of people ever did or will ever do so, again.

[Captain Kong]

We were the last of the Seafarers, the world will not see the likes of us again.

[Tony Wilding]

hi Alf, i did my share of drinking, but i liked to explore, rented a car in Capetown for 3 days, saw a lot of the Cape including a visit upTable Mountain, was in the Jungle in Colombia, Mangrove Swamps in Jamaica, halfway up a mountain in Peru, only stopped because we were in the clouds, was cold and no visibility,so came back down. visited the Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy, only a short Train ride from Livorno, saw Niagara Falls , one day walked along the Beaches in Venezuela near Puerto Cabello, about 5 miles each way, really out in the sticks, jungle down to the Sea with smallFresh Water Rivers running into the sea, those were the days.