Friday, December 11, 2009

Reality Stranger than Fiction


There was this one time....well, it does happen quite often but not like this certain time. We were out at anchorage for a MONTH due to complications, delay of cargo to be precise. Everyone onboard always brings along about 2 cartons of cigarette when we leave on a voyage. but nobody guessed this certain one would last a month without getting to touch land.

Not only were we running out of food and water, but most importantly(for most ppl anyway) we were short on cigarettes. the quickest puffers the earliest. Pretty soon everyone was getting sick.....for a puff. Upto the point where arguments and lashing outs were a daily habit. Just then, there were rumours that someone onboard still had some. Everyone rushed to him at once and started bidding. The guy had no intention of selling but then again everyone and everything has a breaking price.

How much did the winner of the bid pay? Rf350. Here in Male' we can get a carton for Rf155. thats more than TWICE that amount. i know i know, ur thinking its not that much to pay considering its jes twice the price and there was a shortage. but here's the catch. the price of Rf350 WASNT for a carton.......it was for a single packet. Yes! a single packet consisting of 20 cigarettes was sold for the price of 400 cigarettes. Thats Rf17.5 for a single cigarette which would last what......2-3mins? But then again....its just another day at sea where weird stuff happens all the time. Like they say "sometimes reality can be stranger than fiction".