Welcome

Hi Joe



The work you do is worthy of admiration and respect.

THE SHIPPING FORECAST



From Faeroes and Forties to North German Bight,

Humber and Thames, Dover and Wight,

Plymouth and Portland, Biscay and Sole,

Fastnet and Lundy (where puffins patrol).



Iceland and Malin plus Cromarty,

Fair Isle, Fisher and South Irish Sea,

Trafalgar and Fitzroy, Forth and the Tyne,

Bailey, Rockall, Shannon in line.



Accepted by shore folk but maybe obscure,

Though focal for seamen sailing offshore,

Diction is clear in a slow measured pace,

For writing it down in a nautical space.



Viking, Utsire, of course Hebrides,

These regions distinct as part of our seas,

Enduring and well known by Seamen out there,

Remembering well the old Finisterre.



All form of vessels that steam round our land,

Depend on the weather for voyages planned,

With ferries and freighters, fishermen too,

Tankers and coasters just butting through.



`Prospects are stormy` `visibility low`,

Whatever the forecast it’s handy to know,

Winds perhaps veering or pointer to fall,

A Mariner’s ready for sunshine or squall.



Good Night Gentlemen and Good sailing.

Joe sailed with you on the phoelas and on Frederick m in Glasgow where can I get your poem books from ?

Hi Jo this is the steward of the Clifton 1979 1984

remember when we went from avonmouth dock to portbury dock I cant say any more with out committing my self

Joe,



A very good website reflective of the creative work you are have put into it. I enjoyed reading your verse and 'traversing your life under the Red Duster'. Nice shot of the bow of HMS London during an Arctic Convoy (I am trying to date it).



David V. (your speaker on DEMS at MNA Bristol April 2015)

Hi Joe

Sorry but never I knew you, enjoyed your web site whilst trying to locate the father of a friend of mine who served on the Sussex Trader between 1956 and 1962. A China man Lam Fat rose from galley boy to chief cook. Any recollections? Great name for a ships
cook !

Joe:What a great sight,good looking through the pictures,so whish i could of got dad to see,and also done one himself
Adrian

stumbled across your sight today,terrific,thanks for the memories.
some good nostalgic poems, especially the Wilson line. formerly of Scotland east Anglia and now wales..

Hey Captain, good stuff here! Glad to meet you. I'm the American cable ship officer that crashed your Merchant Navy party a couple weeks ago.

Hi joe love your site,very interesting with good stories and poems keep up the good work. Ex vindi boy deck 1964 .

great pics joe,very interesting site wish you well for the future . Ray Sharp ex AB pill branch MNA

Thanks Norman - Anyone clicking on your link would be interested in `We Made It Kid` at the start of Verse page Five -
Great to see you Norm - chees Joe

Hi Joe

i have put the story link referred to in my previous post below as the text does not seem to accept clickable URLs

Norman

Good to see you today at the Bristol MN Memorial Joe. I see you have an image of the Arctic Star on your site. Here is an example of just what the Merchant seamen had to endure in order to wear this medal.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/08/a2112508.shtml

Best
Wishes
Norman

Looks good Joe, enjoying the site.

Hi again Joe. A couple of the lads from the Eldonian in Liverpool send their best regards. I will pass on details of your website to them soon, now that I have it written down properly. By the way is the big lad with the animal on his belly, your wrestling
brother?

Joe
This Aidan Jeremy's mate - sadly we met last week at Barbara's funeral in Birmingham and you kindly gave me your site details.
You are have done a cracking job so keep up the great work & you have a great talent.
Best wishes

Thanks Joe you are an inspiration: K.

Kieran.

LINK: http://mntribute.proboards.com/index.cgi

Thank You so much to all of you that took the time and effort to sign my guestbook - much appreciated. My very best regards Joe.

Hi Joe,

What a terrific web site, I’ll add it to our LINKS pages.

Regards,
Steve.

Indefatigable Old Boys Association (IOBA): Secretary & Archives

Keith at Tregenna reccomended I look in, great advice: Kieran.

http://mntribute.proboards.com/index.cgi

KEITH IS AT: http://www.ss-tregenna.co.uk/

Hi Joe, Great to read all the verse and life, mesmerizing and so glad your have now got some little bits of it up into the air.

What an accomplished storyteller you are, Joe. I was mesmerised by your accounts of life on the messdeck, and I couldn't stop reading. Well done.

What a terrific website Joe well done. Joe you have been a great friend and inspirational in my newsletter writing for Vindi lads not only in WA, Australia but all around the world. What would we do without lads like you. From acorns come oak trees and
will watch this site grow with much interest.

Just finished reading your story Joe. A thoroughly entertaining read with some interesting facts along the way. Thank you for sharing it and I look forward to reading more on the site over the coming days.

The brother that tormented me from morning to night,
And coloured my hair with blue ink,
Has turned out to be a bit of alright-
And he's managed never to sink!

Joe. delighted to get an e-mail from your brother (I think) pointing me in the direction of this site. I've had a quick skim through some of it already, great stuff. You were a good looking bugger when you were younger and I bet you still draw the birds
like a magnet. Now off to check through some more of your site... Well done. Bing

I am very proud of you and your story, Joe. it is an example of what a young man should aspire to when he is thinking of what to do for a living. I know that things are not the same, but are not as bad, as when you started life.

A good website,easy to navigate,and lots of ships nostalgia. photos.Well done,Joe.

What a great start & a wonderful "rogues gallery" A great privilege to be part of it all, thanks Joe.

“You make me laugh you make me cry”

“Really Dear, I wonder why”?

“I think your verse is pretty good,
And what’s more it`s understood.
As time goes on, life can be so grim,
Emotions racked and pain within,
But humour`s
there and just abounds,
When I read your prose - the way it sounds”

“Yes you`re right - I ain`t no pro,
But in my poems I just let go,
So if I scribe of life when hard,
I’m hoisted on my own petard,
I`d rather write of things more
funny,
Apart from that - I could make some money”