Just got back from a 3wk refit of the Star Princess in S.F. My boss told me that he needs more help for the next one on 1/4/09 to 1/25/09. I figured that this would be a good place to inquire. I know work is slow in places and twice as slow in the winter. The moneies not bad and all you need is common sense. If anyone is interested let me know. We work 12/7 for three weeks. The work has a decent pace but quality is more important than speed.
For the last one he hired a bunch of guys from craigslist and most didn’t work out to well. I’m just trying to look out for him. If you have any questions just shoot me an e-mail at [email protected]
Replies
With 5 kids, I dont see the wife letting me escape for a month, but where is this at?
Family.....They're always there when they need you.
Edited 10/22/2008 8:03 pm ET by MSA1
The last one had us boarding in Seattle. We did some demo and loaded supplies and tools. That lasted a couple of days. Then we sailed to S.F. where we drydocked for 2 wks. You can searh online for Star Princess Drydock and find some news.
The next one is in the Caribbean. San Juan, Peurto Rico I think. I've heard rumors that we board in Fort Lauderdale, Fla and the sail to San Juan, but according to the web site the last passengers leave in San Juan, so my money is on that's where well board.
Even for the Seattle/S.F. job we had to get passports. We sail in International waters and therefore technically leave the country. One perk is that the bar stays open and the beer and cigs are cheap +-$1.
I don't know where the drydock is at. One problem is that we don't get a lot of info about travel until it's time to go because it's all handeld by the cruise line.
Im vaguely interested. I'll email ya.Neither cold, nor darkness will deter good people from hastening to the dreadful place to quench the flame. They do it not for the sake of reward or fame; but they have a reward in themselves, and they love one another.
-Benjamin Franklin
Anyone that's intrested needs to email me their contact info with address, so that I can turn it in. Make sure to include a phone # so that my boss Mike can contact you. It will be next week before he does and we probably have until the end of Nov. to get the names in.
I shot you an e-mail and phone #. Who knows what it'll be like in January.
I'm trying to stay up with all of the e-mails that I've been getting. I've gotten quite a few. If I don't respond soon, resend me your stuff and maybe put your screen name in the e-mail. I don't want to miss anyone, but I don't know everyone's screen name, so there's no way to know for sure. If I did respond to you, then all's good.
Kyle
Sounds like fun. Too bad I'm married and have Cub Scout meetings to go to.
I've heard that more and more women in the 20 to 35 age category are taking to cruise ships lately, is there demand for on board male escorts?
Only if you strip in front of a hundred of them. <G>
Tim
I could do that ----
however, who is gonna clean up the gag barf on the floor from 100 wimmens????<G>
OTOH, saw a 'news clip' once of an amateur hour at a womens strip club, the winner was a 60 YO fat bald guy who did his routine with a plumber helper stuck on his head like a unicorn and another stuck to his ----. He won, wimmens were rollling in the aisle laughing with him.
Edited 10/22/2008 10:45 pm ET by junkhound
man i didn't need that visual...before bed...
:)
p
Man there's always someone who has to go there. LOL. Actually most of the time there was only the ships crew that had some fems. And I heard that they will get fired if they get involved with the passengers. Towards the end we had all the sales ladies back on board and they were flat smokin'. Not what you really wan't to see after not being around them for a couple of weeks. They made it kind of hard to pay attention to your work. After three weeks of nothin' but men, I couldn't wait to get home to the wife.
We can get off anytime and go to town when we're not working. I did, probably three or four times. I'd get cabin fever and then three or four of us would head to town after work for a quick bite and some quick site seeing. I made sure that I got a late flight out the last day so that I would get to spend some time in S.F.
Here is a picture of the ship in S.F. These are some of the Drydock photos. Also one that I took with my phone as we were leaving S.F. for sea trials.
Do you have any pics of the work you did?
A thing is not necessarily true because a man dies for it. [Oscar Wilde]
I took a few pics. I started with demo and construction of the internet cafe for the crew. Then I moved to the constructing the Sanctuary and finished out the trip on the serving stations.
What kinda money we talking? Winter is setting in here... a different San Juan would be good.
I can't speak for anyone but myself, but I heard that most skilled people ranged in the 20 dollar and up range. Keep in mind that it's time and a half after 40 and your working 98hrs/wk. But I don't set the pay. That's not my department. Some people got more and some people got less.
Do you need to transport yourself to the points of departure, or do they fly you there?
They fly you there and back, pay you for 8hrs, and give you spending money for the day.
your working 98hrs/wk
7/12's equals 98? O.K. 40X$20=$800 and 58X$30=$1740 or TT $2540/wk. Can we stop in Jamaica mon? I need to procure some of that fine ganga they got dhere.
7 twelve hour shifts add up to a total of 84 hours, not 98. I am thinking they are working 14 hour shifts, 7 of those a week add up to 98 hours.
A ten hour day seven day a week schedule is pretty rough, even only for a few weeks, 7 - 14's is a tough road to hoe.
Yeah... it's 10:30 PM... do you know where your fingers are?
Sorry, we are scheduled to work 84 or 7/12s. But towards the end we do work some longer days 14 or 16, It just depends on the schedule.
"
Sorry, we are scheduled to work 84 or 7/12s. But towards the end we do work some longer days 14 or 16, It just depends on the schedule."
I suspect all you will get is young bucks and the experienced wont be there.
Tim
I'll probably die trying to out work some youngster, and doing it.
People have already been told not to count on me for long term, cause I'm not roofing past 70.
Just tryin' out some "new math", seein' if I could work 84 and get paid for 98.
is a tough road to hoe
No big deal but the original expression comes from farming, "a tough row to hoe".
I always thought it came from the practice of moving the backhoe without the trailer and large truck, hence "roading the hoe", or driving the backhoe on the road. They do have a tendency to bounce around quite a bit when driven on roads and a beat up road is indeed a "tough road to hoe"
I always appreciate learning where those old sayings come from.
I always appreciate learning where those old sayings come from.
Me too. Here's one that's easy to accept without question but whose true meaning is very obscure.
Sidekick: The origin of the term comes from pickpocket slang of the late 19th and early 20th century. The "kick" is the front side pocket of a pair of trousers, and was found to be the pocket safest from theft. Thus the "side-kick" became an inseparable companion.
Back when I did highway construction, we used to refer to the 7, 12-hour shifts that came in August, as the roaring 80s, because peoples tempers got short and screaming matches between foremen and inspectors were way too common.
The dawn to dusk, 7-days a week, that came up in the late fall, as we tried to finish up and pave before the freezing weather hit, as the swinging 100s. Because after about three weeks of it, peoples tempers got really short, and they were likely to start swinging at the slightest trigger.
What kind of skill sets are they looking for?
helpers?
mechanicals?
Trim?
Because it's not something most people have done before. They don't really expect to find people with this type of experience. Just people who have common sense, basic tool skills, and a patient personality to be able to work with material until it's right. We had a few people this time that had short tempers, and they ended up wanting and getting to go home.
Thats nice of you to try and help others get a job.
I dont need a job but i thought i might like to add this.
In the late 70s i went out of the hall to the boatyard and worked on boats used as fish barges in Alaska.
at first they gave me every rotten job they had but i loved them all.
I know there not gonna caulk with hot tar but i liked that too.
After awhile i trimmed inside the cabins but one of the best jobs i ever had maybe cause it was so different and new.
Yeah, I just know how tough it is right now to find some work. Espessially in January. Plus I figured that if someone comes here to Breaktime then that shows a couple of good things about their character. First that they care about their job and have some profesional pride about them. To many people treat building like an 9-5 job, but personally I think to be good at this it has to be more of a lifestyle/mindset. Which brings me to my second characteristic of a breaktime user. Always willing to learn. Sometimes I give advise, sometimes I get it (And othertimes I just like to jerk around the old guys). Every good carpenter knows that he doesn't know everything, and has to be willing to learn all the time. For example, I could be sitting in a funeral but I'm still looking at the trim and ceilings in the funeral home trying to figure out how it was installed. It's just in my nature. And I beleive in the nature of most here.
Kyle,
Thanks I sent an email, and btw, this might be a great place to find quality help, I may post something here as well.
JW
Bump