Rain

It doesn't seem to rain much around here. But it doesn't seem to stop when it does. When my parents were here visiting last Friday, we had a twenty-nine-hour thunderstorm, and no one could leave because there were six inches of water in the parking lot and well over two feet in the street outside. Fortuitously, we were on a ship. Although that would not have helped us with that string of barges out of control that missed us by no more than fifty meters a little before lunch. The ship moored behind us wasn't as lucky, although the impact appeared to have left only a large dent.

Anyway. Thunderstorms and flash floods again today, so i finished up my day in Hold 1 with a grinder, on an officially sanctioned mission to go around cutting off pieces of steel that looked like they didn't belong. David, whom i discovered and joined working down there below the waterline, remarked upon how unpleasant it would be for us if, at that particular moment, a poorly captained tug-and-barge were to tear a twenty-foot gash in our hull like that one two weeks ago did to the wood-pulp carrier Star Drivanger, which proceeded to sink in the channel within sight of us. (news stories here and here; see also a photo on another crewmember's blog.) Fortunately, this river isn't all that deep.

But, i mean, come on, people. Shipyard. We're here to fix the holes.