Whoops.
Just lost my shit at a tugboat operator, and cussed him out on the VHF radio.
Never a good idea to do one's laundry in public.
He had it coming though. We're issued personal VHF radios, and I've got another one mounted above my desk... so when the dude in question toots the horn rather than use the radio while drifting, not doing anything at all, I got heated. I have people trying to sleep, and that big-ass horn is pointed right at 'em, 30 feet away.
One, two toots? Sure. Sometimes deckhands turn down the volume on their radio. Passing arrangements have to be made, I guess. Safety reasons, you use the horn, no problem. But just to avoid using a VHF? No. After a short while wen we're doing fuck all, I got all fussy on the radio myself.
He hasn't blown the horn since, though.
In my days on oil tankers, I was known once or twice to stand in the passageway outside someone's stateroom (bunk room), line up right next to where their bed was on the other side of the bulkhead, and swing a 5lb sledgehammer at the wall and ring their bell. Or, if we were rolling in a swell, to tie a bolt on a string and hang it from their doorknob and let the tick-tick-tick ruin their sleep enough until they got out of bed and opened the door. Do this every hour for 2-3 hours and your point is made.
EDIT: All's well that ends well. This is a good example of how bad communication leads to butthurt, butthurt leads to frustration, and frustration leads to hissy fits. Had I been home and rested, I'd have certainly handled that better. Still, later on there was an explanation, a mutual apology, and all involved walked away satisfied. At this point I feel slightly sheepish, but loyalty trumps decorum.
Waiting until someone emails or calls me and tells me to get back in my place, peasant. I'm a firm believer in the chain of command, and respect it. I don't, however, bow to any man, period.
