Smudger Snippets
Created | Updated Aug 2, 2005
Adjusting
With the weather being so great over the past couple of weeks I must admit to neglecting my computer time, I am usually on here for about two hours every evening. Recently it has only been for a few minutes just to check for Emails and to pop into my favourite site for a quick look round. It has been a long time since the weather has been so good here in the UK. In fact it has been so hot that some people, including my wife can not stand the heat, and have to stay in the shade.
This reminded me of my time in the Gulf where it really hot every day, and a lot of the lads required time to adjust to it. I suppose I was one of the lucky ones, as it never bothered me at all, in fact I took a tan instantly.
It used to get so hot out there that it was not possible to stand on the upper deck for too long, as the paint would soften with the intense heat and the sole of your sandals would begin to stick in it.
The worst job of all for us would be storing ship before we went out into the Gulf on patrol. This meant taking on all the supplies we would need for our few weeks at sea, by means of carrying it up the gang plank onto the ship, then down below decks.
Of course a crane would have been ideal for this job, but then again, why use a crane when you have all the {men under punishment} to keep occupied on a sweltering hot afternoon! As is the thinking of the Royal Navy officers, and while your at it, wait until the tide is at it highest before commencing, that way the gang plank will be at its steepest angle?
Of course the amount of supplies required is far more than the few men under punishment can handle, so the entire ships company is called, except for those on duty watch, who have to remain at their work stations. Depending on what part of the ship and branch you are, this could be a blessing. Unless you are unlucky enough to be the duty stoker down below in the boiler room, as that is the worst place to be as regards to suffering form heat! In fact if the choice had to be made, I would definitely take to the carrying supplies up the gang way.
Yet looking back on it now, I find it amazing as to just how we can adjust to different situations and weather conditions. The human body can take a lot of punishment and still function, mind you we had to drink a lot of water and take salt tablets with every meal. As well as having to cope with the heat, we also had to get used to going without sleep, not just for the watch keeping alone, but for the many times we would be called to action stations, which meant being closed up at your station in a sealed down ship for hours at a time. This was where a good sense of humour was required, in fact on some occasions it was compulsory!
It's a well documented fact that when people bring back memories of the past, they always recall the good times, and seem to forget all about the not so good ones. Yet when I think back now, a smile seems to come first, as it is probably one of those memories that came into mind first. When you are in a situation there is always some bloke who is the comedian that comes out with all the witty remarks and the quick come backs. You find yourself so engrossed in the humour that you tend to forget everything else. I suppose that the sense of humour that comes with life in the forces has never changed for generations, and is the one thing that can bridge the gap between young and old alike.
Another time when you find your self having to adapt is when you are living and working in a different country. This becomes even harder if there is a language problem and no one can understand a word you say. There is also the local customs and regulations that you have to abide by, be it dress code or any other matter. Yet even in that kind of situation it is surprising just how quickly you can adapt and learn to accept the situation.
The secret there is to appreciate all the things you have got, and not to dwell on the others that you havent got.
A smile can bring down many a barrier and take the heat out of an attitude; a laugh can do a lot more. So I suppose its not just the body that has to adjust to new surroundings, the mind has a lot to do with it as well.
When you come to think about it, we are constantly adjusting to different things just by going through every day life. For example we could be adjusting to a new job or neighbourhood, if you moved house. Even to a new partner in a new relationship, or coping with the loss of a partner, there seems to be no end to the list.
We are constantly changing things around us, as we ourselves change as we get older, so the need to adjust must be already built into us. I suppose at end of the day it just boils down to how quickly we adjust to certain changes. The time we take can affect all those around us at that time, for example children form different relationships suddenly finding themselves living together, can make for a very unhappy household for a while, yet all will settle down again once the period of adjusting has passed.
I have no idea where this ability to adjust comes from, all I know is that I am so pleased that I have it, as there has been so many changes in my lifetime alone so far, and I am by no means finished yet!
