afrika!

well I am now checking off the list of continents I have visited, africa. though I will be honest we can't leave the pier because of the "area" there was a bus to the local store but only officers got to go cause us blue shirts had an all hands working party for 6 straight hours. many of you might wonder how much food do we go through or how they get it on board well let me tell you..... the hard way. we had roughly 50 pallets stacked two high of food and stuff. we form a long line and pass the item from person to person. some of the things will weigh well over 50 pounds and there will be alot of them. frozen meats, vegetables, giant cans of canned fruit and whatnot. due to the massive amount of things bought we ended up working through all the things we were supposed to be able to do. So I apologize that I was not able to get anything from africa this time. I was trying to get something from everywhere I go but oh well.

I am completely and utterly exhausted and with us still on water hours no shower though everyone was streaming in their own sweat. its currently 106 and suprisingly its not a dry heat. its a very wet and humid heat when we started working the heat index was over 130. as far as everything else. we are slowly looking to fall into a pattern. I am learning to live off of roughly 3 hours of sleep and I am trying to pick up how everything works around the ship. I am pushed hard by my chief and I think its cause he knows I will get it done but at the same time I feel like my plate is overflowing and some are starving for jobs... and other just refuse to eat. but I can't say I can complain I believe that deep down I am happiest when I am working. something about digging my teeth into a job and getting things done. its alot harder to feel like I am accomplishing as much but I know what I do is important and I have to push through that. The new watch standers are starting to know that I am trustworthy and when I tell them something they believe me. the combat tactical officer actually argued with the bridge about a ship because I told them it was something and they said it looked like something else. they believed me over what someone actually saw..... I was right in the end hehe but thats my job and I dont get alot of thanks just the satisfaction of stickin it to the bridge every so often. I just realized I am like the catcher, not the flashiest postion but I block the plate when something happens and people only remember when I do something wrong. hehe great analogy, will have to use it when I am a chief someday.

well I am going to go pass out, if I can actually get out of this chair. I will have to say that though this is not the best opener for a first imporession of africa I do wish to comeback someday.

Take care and be safe.

Mark