I've been in tankers for 50 years, and I like it. For me, it's still fun.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
I love boats. I can be on a boat for days.
I love boats. Anything that runs, anything mechanical. It's my God-given passion in life.
Seafaring can be lucrative - the elite, such as gas-tanker captains, can earn $100,000 for six months' work - but the isolation is a heavy price to pay.
Taking command of HMS Portland is definitely the highlight of my 16 years in the Navy. It is a challenge that I am fully trained for and ready to undertake.
We know that, too often, oil and other hazardous materials are shipped across the country on aging tankers. Too many communities have seen what happens when trains derail and in some cases catch fire.
The last couple of years I've been on an empty tank. And that's gotta change.
I love boating - not flash, 'noisy go fast' nonsense, but the general relaxation of it. My wife and I love to get in our little Wellcraft and go as far out to sea as we can, hopefully beyond land. That is the best thing you can ever do. It clears your psyche.
I respected it. I submerged myself into it. So on a lot of days off I would go and fish with the fishermen and the families that ran the boats. I would go work the fields with farmers. I would go and talk with farmers about growing particular products for me.
What I like most about an aquarium is that all ages, from toddlers to pre-schoolers to retired grandparents, can really enjoy the wonders of the sea.
After 28 years of owning boats, I'm over it.