The end is definitely within sight now. I thought I was going home on Sunday but those plans changed so the big vessel exodus is still Monday.
I was going to take my morning off training today and watch the Wales v Belgium football game but I was so tired I slept in until 23:30. I think it’s just coming to the end of the trip and my body has completely worn down. I was happy for Wales though as they won 3-1. I missed a good game apparently. Typical!
I’ll probably go for a session after shift and then I’ll go for a final one tomorrow when I wake up and that will be the end of the offshore sessions.
I’m getting some weird pains in my left arm when I try and throw a left hook which is really strange. I’m not sure where that’s come from in the last few days but it feels like the pain vibrates right up my arm to my bicep. It’s quite a sharp pain. Almost makes me freeze.
It’s been good though. Training-wise it’s been great. Boxing offshore’s really given me something to look forward to every single day. The boxing gear I ordered for the ship arrived as well. To be honest I try and stay away from the welfare committee nowadays as I feel it’s becoming more of a thankless task.
The welfare commitee is basically a group of people on the vessel who discuss what to do with the welfare money in order to improve the living of the rest of the crew. Like getting gym equipment, buying a new TV for the day room, organizing a day trip out to a theme park – that’s all classed as “welfare”.
The aim is to try and do some good but then someone starts to complain yet you find yourself roped into doing it again because (a) You’re one of the few that can be bothered and (b) you’re that guy.
It can get to the stage where your crew have fallen out with the other crew over something and the welfare money gets split into two. You end up in a situation where “You do what you want with it and we do what we want with it.” That kind of thing. That’s a rare case but it’s just an example.
I have to visit Lusby’s boxing gym when I get home and Gary can see if I’ve made any progress. My arms definitely have better stamina now and it feels like I can punch a little faster. Note I said faster not harder.
My Adidas boxing boots are stained with dirt, a few salt water marks and the grip on the sole’s worn down a little as well for good measure.
I went and bought a pair of Winning Pro gloves from ebay which I’m seriously excited about. They’re almost like the Holy Grail of boxing training gloves and a pair of flourescent yellow Nike Hyper KOs. The Adidas boots I’ll take offshore with me to train and the Nike ones I’ll keep at home.
I’m a bit wary of buying nice gear though. Let’s face it, you don’t want to buy great gear when you’re absolutely crap at something – you just end up looking stupid. I just love that colour and design of boot though and as for the boxing gloves, I’ve heard that there’s no fit and protection like Winning. Let’s face it, out here I was spending between 2 to 3 hours a day training so protecting my hands is really important.
More than anything though I miss Emma and my dog. I just want to go home and enjoy their company, do a little more writing. I miss visiting the boxing gyms near my home and I just miss being a civillian I guess. My wife even told me someone from my local village football team was looking for me to play. Now there’s something new. I’ve been talking to them for a few weeks now to see if I can get a game and they finally came calling! I watched a few games down our local playing fields and it looked a little “blood guts and thunder” which I’m not too sure about. It’s a different vibe to your friendly game of fives. As a country we talk about wanting to be on a technical par with the rest of the world but you look down at this level and we’re still a nation of warriors when it comes to football and I think to myself – is that something I want to be part of?
[Sigh] I’ll see when I get home.
A Southpaw Swan 