It's about to get serious!

Today was one of those days where the fun stopped, and the serious work began.

We were divided into groups of three, and we were told to try different stations. Lashing, stowage of trailer and the before mentioned crane. We started with the stowage of a trailer. There were a few pallets on it, that we had to get down on the ground, and then put back onto the trailer again. We worked well as a team, so we got that done very quickly. I have worked with pallets before, and one person in my group just had a weeks work experience working with pallets and pallet lifters, so it was a fairly easy task for us to complete.

Then we moved on to the crane, which was a tricky bit. We had to lift a gate, and make sure it was level. We got a few tips from the teacher, and then we replicated what he said. I will need some more practical work with it, so I have that nailed down. It shouldn't take long to do as well, since I am a very fast learner. Give me a week of full on practice, and I'll know it like the back of my hand. Speaking of things I know like the back of my hand..

Lashings. The lashings were done in quite a fast time, since I am confident with that. It doesn't hurt to repeat it, to see if I really have it nailed down. We were given a friction number and the weight of the load, and then we went to work. When we were done, the teacher came by, looked at our lashings and went "That's pretty much perfect! Well done. Unstrap it, and pack up".

To finish off the day, we were given a stern talking to by both teachers. It turns out, that some of the people in my class weren't pulling their weight, and would rather sit and smoke cigarettes than actually learn and practice. The talking to lasted about 15 minutes, and once it was done, we were let go for the day. I decided to catch the teachers to ask them, if I had to put in more work, or if I was one of the students who knew what they were doing and was pulling my weight. "You have nothing to worry about, you just keep doing what you do. You are pulling your weight". That made me happy! It means I am not one of those people who need a stern talking to. I just need to be more confident around the cranes, which we will learn about in due time.

About a month and a half in already, and I am still thrilled about what I have picked as my education! I can't wait for week 44!