A quick note to introduce the lads that I call friends from the Baltrum Trader:
There is Joey and Freddie (he prefers to be called Eric). Young 25 year olds doing the best they can to secure a good future. Joey is a show pony, one day he will grow up to me the President or King of His Phillipines and he will rule with a loving dictatorship. Everyone will pin photos of him everywhere because he loves having his photo taken. My fondest memory of Joey will be him getting jealous of all the attention I was getting and he wasn't as we walked along the wharf together. Eric is shy to begin with, but hilariously funny once he is comfortable, I don't think he spoke to me for 3/4 of the trip because he was too embarrased to speak English with me. He will grow up to be the best father that will make his kids and then grand kids laugh at the turn of an eye. My fondest memory of Eric will be protecting him from the working girls in The Aristocrat Bar, Duxford St, Singapore.
Then there was Eric the fourth engineer and Raul the cross dresser. Both a little older than Joey and Eric and maybe they know themselves a little better as well. Eric is the sort of man that gets on with the job and with everyone around him. Just having him in the room makes you feel comfortable. Eric will continue to be a great and reliable engineer, one day his European bosses will realise his value and pay him what he is worth, but the real riches of Eric will go not to his ship but his wife and kids who must miss him terribly. My fondest memory of Eric is playing Table Tennis for hours and hours (and beating him!!)
Raul is sly and flirtatious. His stocky stature is complimented by a huge heart and his conversation is always delivered by a smile. One day Raul is going to fall in love and he will not know what to do with himself, where to put himself or how to look her in the eye. It will be a great moment! If his wish comes true she will look something like Shakira. My favourite memory of Raul will be cross dressing, him in a gorgeous Chinese red dress, hair in pigtails and me in Eric the Engineer's, overalls and hard hat.
Then there is Martin. Martin is a quiet seaman. He doesn't love his job, although it is good and he doesn't dislike it either. He accepts life as it is. He is a third mate with more sea time experience than the chief mate, but he is not ambitious about getting a higher rank.
In the galley there
