15. Desperate men

Thursday 21 April 1988, Koei Maru 30

Today hasn’t actually begun yet or at least I suppose it has in Japan and will in the UK fairly shortly. Bit of a cock up on the time front. Well I slept for some 12 hours on and off – bad dreams all the time. I lay awake for half that time. Missed all daylight – God it’s so depressing doing that. I am planning to go to bed at about 10-11 this morning with a view to radioing Stanley at 10 on Friday. Tonight’s fishing completes my first week back of the second voyage – I suppose that has to be good news.

My mind keeps going back to mum on the phone saying “write a book”, “why not?” – I could think of a million reasons why not, beginning with ‘I have nothing to say, nothing new happens’ – too difficult – I cannot express myself – nobody would find it interesting.

I had a good sleep and feel quite refreshed. Changed my socks, or at least my 7-day-old pair walked away from me. In fact they weren’t too smelly.

‘Name of the Rose’ is getting good, but I can’t help feeling that Umberto Eco’s vanity has entered into it a little too much. He uses the characters to show how much he himself knows about monastic history from the period 1100 to 1400 or so. Why not write a history instead of a thriller? Vanity? money? I wrote to Deb and to Andy W yesterday. I have become a little less prolific recently, probably all part of my general gloom at the moment.

Friday 22 April 1988, Koei Maru 30

I have managed to get through midnight without my customary snooze, which gives me great cheer and I don’t feel too tired yet, which is a good sign. I have learned to make myself as comfortable as I can and use the mattress from the other bunk to sit across my bed on. It is not ideal, but more comfortable than my fold up writing chair.

I feel it is time to enter some football; results and tables:

I’ve been meaning to do that for ages and feel really good now that it is done. I only yearn now for my next bunch of newspapers.

21:30 hrs – What a lot to talk about.

I must just say on e thing that made me laugh – one of the crew was standing with 5 or 6 packets of liquorice comfits and he said ‘no goo’, whereupon he promptly filled his hand with some and swiftly chucked them in his mouth.

Are these desperate men?

Are these men desperate?

These men are desperate

These are desperate men

Desperate these men are

Desperate men these are

These men desperate are

These desperate men are.

Best news is that I’m going to Uruguay! Yahoo! – all payed for etc etc.

Shit I’m lucky.

It has all come about because of some argument to do with the KSJ/Fisheries Directorate agreement. It seems that KSJ want an observer to watch and report on the refit in Montevideo and count this as part of the 120 day programme of long-lining. Still, I’m not complaining, especially as it now means that my leave will be in July/August instead of June. Much better for everyone.