Steward
Steward Marco "Two Sugar" Rossi
Naples, Italy
Aspiring TikTok influencer. The reason there are new rules.
Twenty two years old, first contract, entirely convinced he is one viral video away from a modelling career in Milan. Handles the officers' mess with more charm than skill, which everyone has decided is enough. Responsible, personally, for the new fleet wide policy prohibiting drones on the monkey island.
Portrait is a comic book invention. Under the conditions of my passage, no likeness of the working crew may appear here, names have been changed and faces drawn from memory.
Saturday, 31 October 2026Halloween in the Mess
A pumpkin carved like the ship, a crew party at sea, Big Kev dressed as himself, a costume coincidence, and a very small pie.
Wednesday, 28 October 2026Paperwork and Suspicion
The day before landfall. Forms, crew lists, Marco ironing everything, a shopping list of exactly two items, and a cat who will not leave my bag.
Monday, 26 October 2026The Albatross
A Laysan albatross follows the ship for most of a day. I borrow Coleridge from the library, Yuki corrects my ornithology, and Priya has one rule.
Wednesday, 21 October 2026The Starboard Minds Win
After two seconds, a third, and a debrief I still think about, our trivia team finally wins. A car question decides it. Priya's high five lasts slightly too long.
Tuesday, 20 October 2026Ethiopia, by Way of the Mess
Elena's world menu reaches the Horn of Africa. We eat with our hands, Big Kev has a technique, and I learn which stew carries a warning.
Saturday, 17 October 2026Saturday, Twice
We crossed the date line in the night and were handed the same Saturday again. I spent the first one becoming a Golden Dragon and the second one wondering what to do with a free day.
Friday, 16 October 2026Followed Everywhere
A quiet day after the excitement, a long walk with my silent escort, and an attempt to discover exactly how a cat enters a locked cabin.
Friday, 2 October 2026Busan and the Important Cargo
Busan supplies another impressive port, a short shopping expedition, and biscuits that immediately attract senior management.
15 August 2026Port Said Anchorage
Anchored in a queue of ships waiting for a convoy slot, watching a city glow on the horizon that I am not permitted to visit.
13 August 2026South of Malta
Thirty four degrees on deck, a dinner that silenced the mess, and the beginning of Suez paperwork season.
10 August 2026The Mediterranean and the Pool
Sea temperature crossed the threshold. The pool has been filled. I have swum in a metal box on the deck of a moving ship and I would like everyone to know about it.
4 August 2026The Supermarket Dash
Eighteen hours in Rotterdam, a shopping list written like an operations order, and a personal stash that is now the most valuable cargo aboard.
9 July 2026Aboard at Last: Berth 8, Garden City Terminal
I am on the ship. I have a cabin. I have met three of the crew. We sail tomorrow on the tide.