Back on shore because of Engine issues

Fish count: Just over 80,000 pounds, a little behind what we wanted, but we're hoping to catch up.

Well, we were ashore of a little while on the 10th, but I didn't get a chance to check E-mail, or do laundry or anything, so I was pretty bummed about that. The oil pan sprung a leak, so we had oil everywhere, and I was the lucky fellow to clean it up, so that's why I didn't have time to do anything. We were in the harbor for the whole morning, but I was busy pumping, wiping, and scrubbing all the oil off the floor and engine tubes, and walls. Yeah, I was quite bummed that I didn't get to go ashore and get those things done that I wanted to, but I know that there is a reason for everything, even if I don't know what it is.

Rick patched the leak with some full tank fixer that is suppose to work, but unfortunately, today (the 11th) it cracked again, so we are back at the harbor. This time we are going to take the oil pan off and maybe get someone to weld it, we'll see. There isn't oil everywhere like last time, because Rick set it up so that it wouldn't spay all over everything, but that it would just pool up in one spot, so it was just a matter of pumping out, and cleaning up that one spot, so I got that done pretty quickly.

It has been a pretty tiring last 6 days, we have been fishing 9 hours on 3 hours off, so by the time we deliver our fish we have a bout 2 hours to sleep before starting fishing again. Hence, we've been working in shifts, most of the time 2 guys will be fishing and the 3rd guy will be sleeping, and he'll only come out if we get a lot of fish. The fish come in squirts, so we can have a lot of fish one time, and then very few fish the next time, so sometimes when we could see a lot of fish hitting the net we'd get the third guy up before we picked the net. Then afterwards, if we weren't getting a lot of fish anymore then we'd let someone go to bed.

Like I was saying, it's been a pretty tiring last couple days, I'm not sure if it's been that we've been fishing longer hours, or it's been colder, or the wind has been blowing harder, or maybe all of them combined, but I've really been struggling these last couple of days. Power rolling is a lot of work. Power rolling is when we pull the net in by hand and then pick the fish out after the whole net is aboard, you can get the net out of the water quickly, but it takes a lot longer overall, so we only do it when we are running out of time, and have to get our net out of the water, or when we are drifting over the boundary line, and have to get the net out of the water before we cross the line, sometimes we power roll when Rick gets a tip that there is some really good fishing aways away, and wants to get there quickly so that we can try there. Power rolling is always strenuous because, firstly, we have to pull the net in by hand, and that is exhausting, then we have to get the fish out and straighten the net and get it ready to go out again, and that is very stressful because Rick wants us to go as quickly as possible because we can't get the net back in the water until we get all the fish out and stack it up in a nice pile so that it will go out without tangling up, but it's hard to go quickly because we are tired, so yeah, I try to do my best, but it's hard sometimes. I keep thinking about the Patch the Pirate song that goes, "100% of the the time, I'm doing my best..." And Corinthians 10:31, "Whether therefore ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." So I try to do my best to glorify God, and because it's the right thing to do. It's been cold, wet and windy, and there have been several times that I have just been out there picking and I'm wet, and cold, and tired, and just not feeling motivated, so I just repeating to myself, "Lord, give me strength." It's been hard, and will probably get harder before it gets easier, but I'll going to just keep at it, try to do my best and keep working as hard as I can.

"I can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth me."

With God,
Timothy

I uploaded a few more pictures. (6 I think)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/27950064@N02/2659803104/