Anybody out there,??? was going to tell another sea story but better not as somebody might tell me off again?? on the other hand who cares?

Can't remember if I told this one or not maybe some of you have heard of the battleship HMS Vanguard that was the Royal Navies pride and joy in the Post War years, she took the Royal Family to South
Africa in 1947.in Ausgust 1948 I joined her in Devonport to do a world cruise that would have taken her to Australia,New Zealand, Far East and North America.

However the cruise was cancelled when the King took ill and in January 1949 we were sent to the Mediteranean for six months.

While we were doing gunnery exercises off Malta one of our Marines who came from Dublin was killed while trying to take a short cut to his action station in one of the gun turrets,as he crawled through the machinery space under the turret the turret was trained outboard crushing him. Upon discovering the tragedy we immediately returned to Malta and he was given a full military honours funeral in which I particated, it was a really sad day. Mauri

Mauri, I can't believe the life you've lived
and the adventures you've had. Thank you for sharing another ripping yarn with us.

Ann, I often think of that poor Marine who was only nineteen at the time being buried in Malta as opposed to those killed in action in places like Afganistan who were flown back to the UK where at least their families could pay their respects, though financially things were tougher back then. Mauri

Mauri,

Another story to interest us, accidents happen when we least expect them. Poor fellow...

If we could see an accident coming or a fall we could avoid it but there it is, I blame my knee injury on falls, over the Hoover cord, steps, the dog when he was a pup, etc, all unforseen.

It learnt me a lesson to take it slowly & carefully in old age, but sometimes still slip or trip over a mat.!!!!!

Pat

Yes Pat, Falls can be dangerous especially for the older folks, I have had several since moving into this condo,polished floors don't help. I even fell out of the shower not too long ago the rubber mat I was on slipped and "Zoom" I was on the floor,luckly didn't break anything but took a while to get up.

Way back on my first ship and just seventeen at the time I was at the top of the Mainmast hanging from the yardarm in a Bosun's chair when the rope the chair was hanging from started parting, I managed to grap the yardarm and go hand over hand back to the Mainmast.the ship was rolling quite a bit at the time which didn't make it any easier.

I didn't get one bit of sympathy, but was told off for not checking the rope more thoroughly.???? Mauri

That,s the usual response Mauri. Pat