The Return of the Bibliographer

Good afternoon folks...

And I can truly mean that as I am now in the New York time zone and have partially slept off my jet lag. I just want to thank everybody for all their support. It isn't often when coming home I happen to get greeted by cheering parents shouting, "Hey, its Joe, the Librarian!" Also an apology since at that time I was in the throws (and still am) of jet lag having not slept on the ride back at all, which thankfully passed with no incident and allowed me to finish an entire book (it was on the sailor's disease of Scurvy) before we landed! But, I definitely wasn't at my best both unkempt and bewildered. :)

Now, for those of you following the entire cruise, you probably already know, but in case you do not, Richard D, is doing his own blog at http://bibliosailor.blogspot.com/.

For anybody who may wish to reach me, my email is jwilliams@sunymaritime.edu, and I will also be publishing semi-regular posts on items that may (or may not) be related to items of interest.

Thanks again!

Fair Winds and Following Seas,

Joe

A Report from Dublin

Folks...

My dogs are realy barking. It is 8:17 pm now and I've been walking around since 11 am.

Dublin, of course, is a very lovely city so in the limited amount of time I have I've been trying to make the most of it. This is the official list of what I did today:

1. Took the shuttle bus to the city. Saw the book of Keels and the Long Room at Trinity College. (no pictures allowed)
2. Went to an internet cafe and posted the pictures in the prior post for your viewing pleasure.
3. Purchased post cards.
4. At at Pacinos. Filled out post cards. I had the siloin ciabatta. Not bad! Then went to post office to mail afformentioned post cards.
5. Made a call to the U.S. You know, I'm not even sure what airline we are flying in on.
6. Wandered over to Dublin Castle and then the Chester Beatty Library to enjoy their exhibition on comparative religion.
7. Went to "Dublinia and the Viking World. " This is a fun exhibit where I got to see how Vikings went to the bathroom. (see images below)
8. Went to Christ Church Cathedral where I explored the crypt. I had my first run-in with cadets there. Is there a sort of irony that I would run into them in a tomb?
9. Wandered over the Jameson Distillery and took the tour (which is essentially a huge advertisement for Jamesons). I think alcoholics should avoid this place. AND I ran into a bunch of cadets here... (predictable, right?) I also volunteered for the whiskey tasting where we compared Scotch, Jameson, and Jack Daniels. And yes, Jameson is better. I even got a certificate! The funny part of this was that when they asked for volunteers for the taste test, all the cadets present shot up their hands in unison before the question was even finished.
10. Continued on the alcoholics anonymous tour and headed to the Guinness Brewery... guess who was there? More cadets! They said it was cool, but by the time I got there the museum part was closed. I might try tomorrow.
11. I then wandered through St. Stephen's Green with the intention of going to Iveagh Gardens. But alas, they were closed, so....
12. I trotted over to a shopping center, bought a luggage tag. The only tag available was one with the Guinness label. I think there is an unsublimible message here.
13. Now, after all this, I somehow found myself in a pub where I ordered... Guinness! I don't know what made me do it, but folks, trust me, it tastes the same here as it does at home. I also got a smoked salmon sandwich.
14. With my feet crying for mercy I started to head back, but compulsively wanted to write up a post before I go to the ship and pass out.

Tomorrow's agenda:
1. Retrieve passport.
2. Meet with Richard, my successor.
3. Go back into Dublin, see the Archaeology Museum and maybe the Guinness factory.
4. Shop.
5. Go back, go to airport.
6. Home!

See you soon!
Fair Winds and Following Seas,
Joe


St. Stephen's Green (well not the green, but in the park)

The distillery at the Jameson Distillery

Christ Church Cathedral

A footbridge leading to the Cathedral

View of Dublin

View of Dublin

View of Dublin

View of Dublin

At the museum, Dublinia, they show you how Vikings use the loo!

Dublin Castle

Pics!

We have arrived in Dublin and I'm not at an internet cafe. Here are pictures since Greece.

The Tower of the Winds - Athens

National Archaeology Museum - Athens

The Port of Piraeus


The Spanish Coast Guard

Spanish Coast Guard

Cadet Mess Deck

Cadets eating

Plugging leaks

Plugging leaks

Plugging leaks

Plugging leaks

Plugging leaks - yeah I found it interesting so I took a bunch of pictures

M-12, my new cabin

M-12, my new cabin

Students doing work in library

Dilligent cadets

The harbor pilot from Piraeus leaves the ship down the pilots ladder

A tugboat in Piraeus hauling us out

Piraeus from the stern

Agristi island

Sunset on my last full day at sea

The Flat World

6-20-10


As we steam through the Celtic Sea and into the Irish Sea we have met nice, fair weather and a beautiful view of a boundless ocean with no land in sight. It is calm, and everything is flat like a disc.

So today is my last full day at sea and as such one might say I have *not* become sentimental – as the lovely Michelle could tell you, I abhor sentimentality even when I am sentimental. So with that being said, I have composed, in the best spirit of David Letterman, the “Top Twenty Most Memorable Moments of this Cruise.” Ten would be far too few.

20 – Seeing Mallorca for the millionth time and contemplating mutiny so I can go visit.
19 – Deciding what to do about Jane Fonda’s Workout Book
18 – Listening to Johnny Cash while visiting Ronda
17 – Sea Disease, the high seas and battling flying carts that are possessed by poltergeists.
16 – The VHS Tape player drama.
15 – Finding out I was too square to be a mate.
14 – Watching cadets plug leaks
13 – Passing through the Strait of Gibraltar (the first time)
12 – My Undisclosed Location
11 – Having the navigation systems explained to me by a cadet and not understanding a word he was saying.
10 – Seeing cetaceans!
9 – Watching cadets “cliff dive” at Andros
8 – The “Bed Wetting” incident and its aftermath
7 – Smearing my pants on a greasy line the first day aboard.
6 – Compulsively eating French fries and pizza at 11:15 pm every night.
5 – Learning the scale to the sound of needle guns
4 – Setting foot on land at Malaga and then being sent back to get a liberty card.
3 – Learning how to improve my balance by practicing on the heavy bag while at sea.
2 – Seeing the Empire State VI from the Alcazaba in Malaga
1 – Gaining modest notoriety among the cadets and crew as this blog went viral among the fathers and mothers of Maritime College.

Seriously, your comments and interest have made me compulsively post about our trip and I appreciate that immensely. In fact, I am considering continuing this blog as interesting things happen at the college or wherever.

In any event, today I did abbreviated hours since I have not had a day off since we left Greece and I’ve become afflicted with an obsession for Doritos. I think when I get back I might put myself on a cleansing diet (after the lovely Michelle makes me a delicious egg sandwich).

That’s all for now. Stay tuned for some pics and entries on Dublin on the next post.

Fair Winds and Following Seas,
Joe

The Bay of Biscay

As we sail full steam ahead into the Bay of Biscay the rough seas have
continued. This time, however, the Bibliographic Mariner has learned his
lesson and has firmly secured everything with bungee cords. I have had no
incidents of flying book carts!

In fact, although we are in a 10 foot swell, it is not nearly as obnoxious
as our initial crossing (or I have learned to tolerate it better). I have
only had one teeny passing bout of sea disease, and now I’m fine.

On the plus side I did see a pod of small dolphins today. They couldn’t
have been more than four or five feet long as they followed the ship and
were playing. There was also a whale sighting (dead ahead), but I didn’t
see the leviathan unfortunately. Yet I ponder what the ship would do if
the whale decided if he didn’t want to move. Do we play chicken with it?

I firmly believe there is a conspiracy aboard. This is not a conspiracy
to mutiny, but a conspiracy to make all the hands grotesquely obese. For
dinner tonight we were served chicken fried steak with some sort of cream
sauce on top, as well as cheese grits. I forwent any hint of green in
this meal and the current capacity of my innards is at full. Naturally,
the slow rocking of the ship does not aid digestion. Still, it was a very
good meal.

So today is my last full day behind the desk. Tomorrow, I am doing
abbreviated hours in the evening. The extra time will be spent packing
and cleaning up my mess for Richard, my replacement (this may take hours)..

Also, I was inundated with a flood of donations today. It seems that as
some of the crew wraps things up, they want to get rid of their of their
paperbacks and other material they don’t want to bring home. So among
today’s contributions were a couple of Clive Cussler books, a book on
spider silk (a rather esoteric topic), flies (I guess if you have a book
on spider silk, it naturally follows to have one on flies), snowflakes,
and covert Navy SEAL operations. The largest donation came in the form of
a stack of Life magazines that one of the officers thought the cadets
might find interesting since they are from the 1960s and 70s. On the
covers: “Disney World Opens,” “Ali vs. Frazier” (with photos taken by
Frank Sinatra), “The Love and Terror Cult” (with a photo of Charles
Manson), “Paul Mcartney and Linda,” “John Lennon” (psychedelic photo),
“Marijuana: At least 12 million Americans have now tried it. Are
penalties too severe? Should it be legalized?” (amazing how the debate is
the same), etc.

You get the idea.

So I need to figure out what to do with these. On the one hand they are
interesting to look at for historic value, but on the other, they make my
library seem even more out of date! Oh what to do. Maybe I’ll just let
Richard figure it out.

You see, that is the best part about being a short-timer. All the hard
decisions can be passed onto the new guy!

Anyway…

The cadets are now finishing up their tests, so tomorrow should be a free
day for them (more or less). This does not mean that they are free not to
work, so I am still expecting a noisome onslaught in the morning.

In other news, I have completed the Dublin port guide and have begun
distribution. Of the sites the cadets are asking about two in particular
have come up repeatedly: The Old Jameson Distillery and the Guinness
Factory. These are *actually* supposedly really cool museums and high on
the tourist itinerary, but this observation is merely an insight into the
mind of our future mariners.

That’s all for today!

Fair Winds and Following Seas,
Joe

Walking Papers

As we emerged from the Straits of Gibraltar and into the Atlantic, a
change has overtaken the water. Where once the smooth seas of the
Mediterranean lay beneath us, it has been replaced by the slow and steady
rocking of the Atlantic. Yay.

The water looks different visually as well – it is somewhat grayer. But,
on the good side I did see a dolphin or a small whale today peaking up
with its dorsal fin. It was just a passing glance and I didn’t see it
after the first look.

We are now about 80 miles off the coast of Portugal and moving at roughly
full steam north to the Bay of Biscay and then the waters of Great Britain
and Ireland. With only two days to go before our next landfall, a certain
sense of “channel fever” or restless giddiness has fallen over the hands.
Jokes are getting sillier, and the cadets seem caught between the tension
of their testing, while at the same time the coming landfall. It should
be noted that there is an inherent jealously of those who are on the ship
for the full 90 days versus those who are aboard for 45. It is rather
nice being on the receiving end of that jealousy.

Today, I have received my “Walking Papers” so to speak. This is a nice
letter I found tacked to my cabin door which thanked me for my help on
this half of the cruise. It went over departure procedures such as
remembering to get my passport (can’t go far without that item), and to
leave my lifejacket behind. It looks like there is also no assigned
seating on the charter plane, so it will be first-come-first serve. Hmmm,
I wonder how I can plot to get one of the first class seats.

And in other items of interest I had this rather lengthy conversation with
some deck officers at dinner tonight about longitude, how to find it
either by the moons of Jupiter or chronometers, how it was so difficult to
calculate longitude and how it was related to Hawaii.

I told you “channel fever” is setting in.

Fair winds and following seas,
Joe

Are You Doing Your Part?

This morning was perhaps the foggiest it has been on the whole cruise. I
emerged on the deck only to be greeting with a wall of white mist and the
ship’s foghorn blaring. I happened upon Professor Palmiotti, the head of
the Deck Department and mentioned that I hoped that the radar was still
working. He said because there was no wind the fog is just sticking.

By lunch time, this spectral mist had passed and the day was more or less
filled with cadets preparing for their exams. Even as we passed through
the mighty Pillars of Hercules (which happened earlier than expected so I
didn’t get to see the Rock), almost all hands seem in their own universe
of studying --- ahem – or goofing off… take your pick.

So even as I write this we have entered the Atlantic and the sea is
already slightly rougher, but nowhere near what we had experienced on our
initial crossing. Yet a warning has been posted on the “Plan of Day”
saying to make sure things get secured.

Speaking of which, I don’t think I ever mentioned these “Plans of the
Day,” but in order to give you a taste of the daily grind around here, you
must indulge me in this relevant tangent.

The “Plan of the Day” is a sheet that gets posted all about the ship that
gives a general outline of what is happening on a given day. It includes
a list of class sections that are meeting, the sections on watch, and then
a schedule of events… Here is today’s schedule as listed, with some
explanatory commentary:

0600 – Reveille (don’t worry, they don’t use bugles)
0615 – Report to Cleaning Station (Muster on Sun Deck)
0615-0645: Cleaning Stations (this is when they clean all the popcorn from
the floor of the Cadet Lounge)
0645-0700: Cleaning Station Inspections (this is when they make sure there
is no popcorn on the floor of the Cadet Lounge)
0615-0750: Breakfast (I never make it to breakfast – I am a night owl on
this ship)
0800: Cadet Formation (this is where they make sure everybody is here who
is supposed to be here)
1100-1250: Lunch 1/c (because of their seniority the First Class gets to
eat first – at 11am)
1130 – 1250: Lunch 2/c
1200-1250: Lunch 3/c (they get to eat if they are lucky)
1700-1850: Dinner 1/c
1730-1850: Dinner 2/c
1800-1850: Dinner 3/c
1900-2100: Mess Deck Closed
1900: Cadet berthing inspections (undoubtedly somebody is going down to
the holds with a white glove)
1930: Movie: The Hangover (I didn’t pick this one I swear!)
2115: Movie: Signs (I didn’t pick this either)
2100-0000: Cadet Snack Bar (this is where our cadets can stock up on
pizza, nachos, popcorn, and other snack foods)
2300: All quiet about the ship (this is purely theoretical, but mostly
obeyed. At least there is no needle guns going off at this hour)

The plan of the day also includes various hours of operation such as the
library, the ship’s barber (bet you didn’t know we had one – I’m sure he’s
skilled, but I am leery of letting someone cut my hair on a moving
platform), and sickbay.

It is also a place where we put important announcements such as
information on our flight to JFK (Flight WO3001 landing at terminal #4 at
1215am), that you can’t do laundry while in port, when certain exams are,
and of course the most important announcement of all: RETURN YOUR LIBRARY
BOOKS!

Other announcements are made as well, such as the need to conserve fresh
water with instructions for sea showering such as, “Wet yourself down,
turn off the water, lather up with soap, turn shower on to rinse off
quickly, turn shower off.” I also think if we just dunked cadets over the
side it would keep them clean and totally conserve water.

It is also a place where birthdays are announced, such as Cadet William
Schroeder’s. Happy birthday to Mr. Schroeder!

These plans of the day are good, because a) it shows we do have a plan and
b) it lets everybody know we have a plan. Yet in all seriousness, it is
the most public form of announcements and bulletins we use.

Perhaps if everybody made up their own individual plans of the day, the
world would be a more organized place. If you took the effort to write
out your plan, then you would no doubt gain the discipline we are
instilling to our young cadets as well as conserve our resources… Just
remember, everybody must do their part. Are you?

Fair Winds and Following Seas,
Jo