Maine Maritime Academy Enrollment at All Time High!

I have been so busy lately with graduate school and my job that I have had almost no time to work on the site or the blog! I appreciate all the people that consistenly check my page and hope that my inactivity will scare you away!

Okay- so I don't want to talk about the same old same old this time around. You know, safety, pay, schedules, geo-politics... Nope. I would like to talk about my old stomping grounds- Yes that is right. I am a Mainiac. I am not from Maine, but I sure as hell went to the best Maritime school in the world. That is right- I said it- Maine Maritime is the best school in the country (if you want to work on a ship, that is).

Since I have been in the industry I have run across a lot of different officers- both deck and engine- and I can say without a doubt that the Maine Maritime grads were always the hardest workers. Maybe it is the cold, the isolation, the endless chipping of paint on the TS State of Maine-- Hell I had a Casual (California) Maritime cadet on my ship a few years back that said they did not have to do Maintenance on their training ship! The kid could hardly figure out which end of the needle-gun to stick on the deck!

Yes, I would have to say that I am very biased. I wasn't much of a fan of Maine Maritime when I left- I was actually dying to get away (Most of my friends could say the same). But there was something about the place that taught me how to put in a good hard days work. They taught me how to get along with my shipmates and instilled some pride in me that I might not have had otherwise. I still haven't managed to donate any money to the school yet- and I have heard rumblings from some old-timers that my class has been the worst about donating money in the history of the school. HA! (we already paid to work for them- what else do they want?)

But, the last time I went back to my old school I was happy to see the place getting a face-lift. The dorms were being renewed- new furniture- a fresh coat of paint- they even did some landscaping.

I almost didn't recognize the place.

So I was pretty happy to read an article in the Ellsworth American (a local paper, with a corresponding web-page) that said MMA was at an all-time high for new enrollments. I think that the renovations may have something to do with the increase in the student population. Well, I hope that with all the fluff on the outside that Maine Maritime will continue to pump out the rough and tumble stock of cadets (Officers) that aren't afraid to get thier hands dirty.

And hey- if any of you new kids read this and want to write about your experiences- I would love to hear it. You can submit something here- or if you would like to you could email me at webmaster (at) maritimelinks.net I am looking for some young blood to write for us part time- and YES we will pay for article submissions (upon approval). so if there are any cadets out there with some writing ability and a nose for the news- send me a resume and a short article.