One good thing about taking forever to finish TLSOTTCS is that self is acquiring all this shipping lore, which is proving very useful in her seagoing stories (Oh, did self fail to mention she’s now into writing seafaring stories? They’re full of adventure and the exhilaration of discovery. Exciting! It is apparently a genre that has quite a few devoted followers) Anyhoo, she’s still on Chapter Thirty, which is still about the USS Heermann. For the third time since this book began, the Heermann finds itself on a collision course with another American destroyer. This time, it’s the hapless USS Johnston, which had only one working propeller after being hit by a barrage of Japanese missiles. “All engines back full!” the Johnston‘s skipper shouts, and the hull shudders, and a couple of crew on the Johnston‘s deck nearly get pitched into the water. A collision is avoided (but just barely) and the Heermann continues on its majestic way until . . . it nearly collides with another “tin can steaming alongside close to port.” They think it’s another American destroyer until they get really close and realize all that shouting from the other ship is in . . . Japanese! Oh my bacon! Luckily for the Heermann, the Japanese destroyer has its eyes on another target, and slips right by the Heermann.
Stay tuned, dear blog readers. Stay tuned.
Kanlaon 