[QUOTE=SomethingsFishy;143720]Who did everyone go to work for once they’d gotten their third mate’s? I was once given the figure of 6 months with Shell and $60,000. Then again, if I could work on an icebreaker thatd be pretty cool too. If I can make the money, putt around the world and wear out my body while I’m young, I’ll be all lined to become one of those mean, borderline alcoholic old farts, like you guys :)[/QUOTE]
Hey. Borderline alcoholic old fart? I resemble that remark. And don’t ever accuse me of being a deckie again. My parents were married.
[QUOTE=SomethingsFishy;143720]Who did everyone go to work for once they’d gotten their third mate’s? I was once given the figure of 6 months with Shell and $60,000. Then again, if I could work on an icebreaker thatd be pretty cool too. If I can make the money, putt around the world and wear out my body while I’m young, I’ll be all lined to become one of those mean, borderline alcoholic old farts, like you guys :)[/QUOTE]
This kid has some balls, nice!
I’m pushing going to sea first before you go to an academy so you can decide if you are prone to sea sickness and whether or not you like the lifestyle before you commit thousands of dollars and years of your life towards a degree you decide is not for you. Most academy grads leave the sea life behind after 5 years; most of them had the same dreams as you do. As far as money goes, yeah there’s some, especially in the Gulf of Mexico. Obtaining dynamic positioning (DP) credentials will definitely increase your earning potential with many of those guys making in the mid $100k per year range. I personally don’t want to work for an oil company. I’m not the only one either. To me work/life balance is more important than a huge paycheck. If money is what you are after, I’ve heard engineers do really well. So if you like engines and fixing things, consider engineering as it is more in demand at the moment and tends to pay a bit better. You mentioned earlier about ice breaking and from what I know that is a job for tug boats and the Coast Guard. I don’t have a clue about tug boats so you’ll have to ask someone else about that. As far as the Coast Guard, that is a different commitment altogether. If you sign up you are going to lock in years of your life to something you may not like. Two of my friends went into the Coast Guard: one went to Manasquan, NJ and basically hung out on the Jersey Shore the whole time and the other went to Ketchikan, AK and became a cop for the local fishing industry. The one who went to NJ loved it; the one who went to AK hated it as the whole town pretty much despised him since he was the one taking food out of their mouths when he fined them. That’s about all I really know about the CG.
Bottom line is get your ass out there. The most exciting thing about life is figuring out your own path and fucking up a few times is just part of the process. So don’t sweat the small things and just go.
[QUOTE=catherder;143721]Hey. Borderline alcoholic old fart? I resemble that remark. And don’t ever accuse me of being a deckie again. My parents were married.[/QUOTE]
You said “resemble,” which means to exhibit similarity or likeness to. I think you meant “resent,” to feel indignantly aggrieved at. Have you been drinking again? And why do you want to marry my parents?
[QUOTE=catherder;143721]Hey. Borderline alcoholic old fart? [/QUOTE]
That’s kinda mild compared to reality. Psychotic, deviant, socially awkward, depraved, alcoholic and anti-social old farts may be getting closer to the truth. And that is just from dealing with the average wankers on board.
When provoked, unpredictably violent lashing out can enter into the mix there kiddie, so leave us old farts alone while we mumble into our plate and glare across the table and scan the room for anyone that may serve as a target for our venom. In truth we are just wanting to do our job as quickly and easily as possible with no BS, and go home to live our own dreams, ones that have nothing to do with yours.
Shut up and pass the Tabasco. (not you Cat - but rather the instigator)
To reply to Domer’s earlier question about why I chose this over the Navy or CG, I suppose it was a gradual progression. Dad enlisted with the Navy since he had a low draft number, and he got to go all over. But he was too busy with counter-intel Ruskie-Busting that he never really had a hand in ship operations. After a while I just found out that you could make some decent money, see the world (at a glance) and your office was a giant metal sea-cleaver.
Catherder, I’m actually an authentic bastard. Not a furlough baby though, so I’m not as cool.
I do have someone I could ask about employment. Cap. Kelly Sweeney out of Woodby Island, I mention the name since he manages a maritime job placement program. Trainman, I’m with you on satisfaction before money, but I wanted to eliminate the student debt I will inevitably have as soon as possible. I’d like to get a gig on a research vessel, since it was a toss up for me between going to school for this or marine biology. To address the engineering end, I just don’t know if its my thing. I’m already gritting my teeth with the thought of the math and hard science involved with the marine transport major, this coming from someone who passed high school geometry by a sliver. I’ve never been good with engines or taking stuff apart, but its not as if ship guts aren’t interesting to me. Time will tell.
Here is some sincere advice from one of those addled, old, near alcoholic (started drinking with Dad in waterfront bars at 12 years old), anti-social, potentially violent, depraved and psychotic mariners.
Going to sea for a living can be great fun, and grueling lonely work. Not a lot of it involves strutting around the bridge in fancy duds. It is mainly working a shift, then overtime, all while being hot, tired, and away from home. The adventure bit comes in between.
Life is one seriously big adventure. Most seafarers think of it that way. We seek adventure and mainly as a side effect, get hooked by the pay, and then the hook is set by obligations of life and family. So we stay with it. Eventually we drift off, and some just turn mean like c captain.
The adventure is one way. Eventually you get old and cannot do what you want to do or what you have done before. Well, that sucks, and you and everyone else on the planet are NOT exempt from this. So make it a worthwhile adventure and be a good person.
Since there is no “re-do”, truly enjoy what you do for work and adapt to it — be it a taxi driver, a chef, a hospital worker, a foodie, captain of an oil containment boom, or a shipboard research assistant dipping Nansen bottles. (look it up)
Be passionate about your work, considerate of your family and others. Smile and listen. Often… this is what people will remember.
When you work with people, offer up no drama. Just be a steady shipmate, with reliable work and predictable results. (predictable - they do not even have to be excellent - just good enough) A low maintenance modest performer with no drama is better than a super hero that needs his ego stroked and complaints managed.
Save your money and start early. Living costs and wages are really out of whack nowadays. Young folks do not have it easy, and for that matter old ones too.
Life is not fair Bad stuff happens. Good people - some of the very best - get sick and die far too young, or get crippled or killed in accidents. Divorce, loss of mind, financial reverses, it is all part of the adventure and after enough exposure, it can make us old people (your turn is next) anti-social and grumpy. So be nice.
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There are so many seagoing and marine related variants and possibilities. But each of them has some bar to entry that must be overcome, be it a TWIC, medical fitness cert and BST — or highly advanced skills and training. You might even need basic math to work on a research ship, and you will need to know how to add, subtract, multiply and divide to work on any ship. (to calculate your overtime at minimum)
Pick a maritime sector that interests YOU and ask questions about THAT sector. The forum posters here come from deep sea, offshore, drilling, government, fishing, shore based and other maritime sectors. So there is a lot of experience at your service. Just don’t abuse us. We are not predisposed to strike, but if taunted, we will become venomous snakes.
[QUOTE=Fraqrat;143731]What does this mean? Work for an oil company? What does your vessel being chartered to an oil company have to do with work/life balance or huge pay?[/QUOTE]
Work/life balance refers to liking what I do regardless of paycheck and having the standard half year off most mariners enjoy. The part about huge pay is more me not really understanding the particulars of GoM work with the exception that it seems to be where the money is lately. I know some people who went on to work for the oil companies and the one recurring theme they all share is that the oil companies own them (again affecting work/life balance) by owning I mean these guys never seem to know when they are going to get a few days off and then on their time off I’ve seen each one of them called back to work. One guy is a MWD, the other is a geologist and the third is a project manager. I have a cousin who works for OSG as an engineer but we aren’t very close. With the exception of my cousin (who I rarely ever see/ talk to) I don’t know what the oil business is like for mariners.
Get where I’m coming from? In my experience the oil business means huge paychecks in exchange for one’s soul. No thank you.
Well I think I’ve gotten the necessary direction and even more necessary kick in the ass to get started on some of this stuff. There’s one more thing I can’t find any info on elsewhere though. Some of the guys I have spoken to have sworn that getting[I] sponsored [/I]by a major shipping company will save you headaches in both finding a job and furthering specialized training without much cost to you, while I had one guy tell me it cornered him into a shitty position and he was out of pocket for training. Are these a part of the internships you find offered at academies?
No it’s different than cadet shipping. Those guys were probably talking about some type of seaman advancement programs some companies have. I know you said you were bad at math, just some advise. If you want to be a mate there’s gonna be a lot of math involved. Whether you go college or not, someday you’ll have to take the USCG exams if you want to advance. You can still make a great living as an OS or AB or with a limited tonnage license but you should consider the ways you’ll be limited by them and what your own limitations are. I suck at math too and wish I’d known how much there was when I first started, but I was able to push through it.
[QUOTE=SomethingsFishy;143749]Well I think I’ve gotten the necessary direction and even more necessary kick in the ass to get started on some of this stuff. There’s one more thing I can’t find any info on elsewhere though. Some of the guys I have spoken to have sworn that getting[I] sponsored [/I]by a major shipping company will save you headaches in both finding a job and furthering specialized training without much cost to you, while I had one guy tell me it cornered him into a shitty position and he was out of pocket for training. Are these a part of the internships you find offered at academies?[/QUOTE]
It sounds like your advisor may be speaking about non-US flag opportunities. Yes - many companies, particularly cruise lines with UK flagged ships, sponsor cadets and pay educational expenses (they geta tonnage tax break to do so), but these are usually not US based and not generally available to US citizens.
Similar with your quote on Shell. Shell has very few if any US flag [U]ships[/U] (???), but plenty of foreign ones.
No! I have absolutely no fucking clue where you are coming from. I work for a company chartered to oil companies. I report to work, do my job, then after a few months I go home on vacation. I don’t remember the part about giving my paycheck in exchange for my soul. Usually the old man just ask cash or check.
Ok now I feel a little better I wasn’t picking up what he was putting down either. I work 21/21 even time for a company that charters vessels to oil companies and I don’t think I’ve sold my soul. My quality of life is fantastic I don’t really give this joint a second thought when I’m home.
I feel like the even time off people speak of is the unicorn of the OSV industry. I keep looking but I sure don’t see anyone offering. Guess ill find out this week!
I would love even time rotation. I would even stay where I am if they did that and didn’t kill OT, which is rumored. I will not work for 17 bucks an hour straight time at sea even for a rotation. No way. There is not a damn thing wrong with making great money while you can. You can throw me in that briar patch anytime.