Captain Lee: This Crew Needs to Stick a Sock in It

How do I start this week out? By now, you have all seen my contribution to the luau, so consider my dignity sufficiently sacrificed for the greater good. For all those crew that think they were singled out and embarrassed by having to dress up in a ridiculous costume and parade in front of the guests, stick a sock in it. If I can do it, so can you (without all the drama), so get over yourself. If you think you’re all that, I have a surprise for you.

Let’s talk about the weather. Believe it or not, I have no control over it. Wish I did. But it always seems that when you deliver the bad news that you can’t leave because of it (the weather), you get the look like, “These guys are lying, it’s not that bad out there, it looks calm to me.”  Well yeah, it is calm here — at the dock. Sometimes you just have to let them experience it for themselves so that they know you have their best interest at heart, and you’re not just a mean old bastard that doesn’t want to do his job. I would much rather have you guys having fun on the ocean than hear you complain at the dock. And these guys took it well, really, much better than some I have seen. So, my hat’s off to them.

Now let’s move on to the crew and see how they fared this week. I’m going to start with Nico again this week. His week didn’t start out so well and got worse as it went on. I thought that last week when he stepped up and admitted that the beach party flop was on him, we were getting somewhere. Didn’t last long. After a night of drinking, he let he mouth get the better of his brain once again. EJ was just looking out for the yacht as usual. Nice display of manners by you and your brother, Nico. Oh, by the way, did you notice my sarcasm there?          

Sorry you got hurt, but I’m not altogether sure how hurt you were given your little wink and a nod when you were complimenting Bri on how well she was attending to you. I hope that time in your bunk gave you a good chance to reflect on your past behavior and how you want to proceed in the future. Who are you going to blame when you don’t have EJ to kick anymore? Might be time to break out the big boy pants and step up to the plate. Just sayin’. Did you, by the way, notice how smoothly things went on deck this week?          

Brianna, I thought you had a good week, kept your head down, and worked hard in spite of some of the flack you were getting. When Kate confronted you, you handled that very well. No back talk, no sass — you just went ahead to get the job at hand done and determined that you would deal with the rest of it later at a more appropriate time. You handled it like an adult and with professionalism, and it looks good on you. Now, can we spread some of that to your bunkie just a bit? Also, nice job trying to deal with Jen. Glad you didn’t let it escalate and dealt with it another time. Good week — thanks.

Matt, I don’t know how we’re going to get you to trust in your talent and ability. I don’t fault you because one of the guests didn’t want a double seafood dinner, but you had no way to know that, so just let it roll off and file it away for future reference. Perhaps you should tell them ahead of time so that if someone has an issue, you can find out about it early on and avoid the grief. C’mon, Matt — you don’t have to go to Hawaii to know what makes a decent luau menu is. You already know, but for some reason, you don’t trust your instincts. And after all that worry, you knocked it out of the park. You do a good job, if you would just believe in yourself a bit. Forget about your ex and the last complaint someone had about your food. That was then, this is now, and you know if it’s good or not. Just have a bit of faith. Keep pushing through, and you will be fine. I trust your talents.

Bruno Duarte Butts Heads with the Stews

Bruno, where did this bout of arrogance come from? Have you been drinking out of the Kool Aid bowl? The crew mess belongs to all of you. It’s not just the interior girls that have to help keep it clean, it’s all of you.  For you to clean it up a bit and then throw shade on the interior team was uncalled for. The way you went around and criticized the rest of the crew, considering how much you really don’t know about yachting, I found rather condescending. We’re a team, and we’re supposed to work together. As this episode wore on, I was really surprised by your attitude. But you’re full of surprises; when you stepped up to the plate and admitted that you were still learning and maybe should not have been so vocal, and that you had a lot to learn and should be more humble, that was impressive. Well done, sir. That showed a lot of class and maturity.  Oh, not for nothing, good job in showing some initiative on the beach outing. I know that it didn’t go unnoticed. I had my doubts at the beginning of the episode, but great recovery IMO.

EJ, what can I say. Solid week. Good job. Again, handled yourself like I would expect when confronted by people who obviously wanted to see you fail rather than succeed. At least you had cooperation from Baker and Bruno. Proud of them both. The deck crew has not run that smoothly since we started this season. Not throwing shade, just telling it like it is. I’m going to be sorry to see you go. It wasn’t the news I wanted to hear, but you did yourself proud, and I would expect nothing less from you. Thanks for looking out for our yacht and your crew. Can’t wait to see how the goodbyes go next week. I know you won’t disappoint.

Baker, way to hang tough. As always, you had a stellar week. Solid work ethic, and you got your job done and done well. Proud of you. You’re really moving at a pace of learning that you should be proud of. You’ve gone the extra mile, given respect where it’s due, and acquitted yourself quite nicely. It really is quite refreshing to have you on board. Thank you.

Jen, you seem hell-bent on digging yourself a hole that you can’t ever climb out of. I really don’t understand why you’re behaving the way you are. All that time to make a few lattes, and then when someone lets you know that you’re really messing up and the clients are getting pissed at your incompetence, and you get stressed. Seriously? You weren’t the one suffering; your guests were the ones that were going without. And you get indignant? Your boss catches you on an unauthorized break, you don’t answer your radio, you talk back more than a pissed off 3-year-old, and you just can’t get your butt out of the pity pool. You certainly didn’t help Bri much — too busy having a “20 minute lunch.” Well, I have news for you: If you’re looking for sympathy, it’s in the dictionary between s--- and syphilis, because I have none for you and your behavior this week.  Your behavior at the buffet was horrendous, and for my part, I thought deliberate. Your comment about Bri putting it all together and saying you had no idea what she was doing was so uncalled for, it was incredible. You are so fortunate that your boss has not once come to me with your behavior issues, or I would have sent you home in a heartbeat. The only issue Kate seems to have is with you. Lucky for you, she’s dealing with it and not relaying it to me. I really hope you can pull it together and get on the right track.

Kate, despite all you were dealing with, I thought you had a really good week. You dealt with Jen and Bri, although we know where most of the irritation was coming from. Toss in a little attitude from Bruno, but I thought you put him in his place like only you can do. Then with the difficulties in the galley, I thought you did a great job. I consider myself put in my place when I tried to bail on the outfit you bought for me, but I survived — thanks for all the help. I know it was tough to catch a break this week, with all that happened, but you did well. As I have come to expect, you always deliver.

Well, that’s my take on this week. Let me know your thoughts on Facebook (Capt Lee), Twitter (@capthlr),  or Instagram (@captain_lee_rosbach) — I’d love to hear from you. I hope you enjoyed it. This season is flying by so fast, I can’t believe it!

So until next week, keep the wind at your back and calm seas beneath your keel.

Captain Lee