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Diaries, Letters and Stories

 

A range of materials about Canada's sacrifices in war,
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Diary

Frank Curry

Royal Canadian Navy
War Diary
1940 to 1945
Corvette

Sunday--October 19
Sunday routine on board ship. After two hours spent cleaning mess decks, crew ashore to the jetty where a Navy chaplain held an open-air Church service. Very impressive. On board to put away a good dinner. Spent the rest of the day on board ship, reading and writing letters. Weather has turned very cold after a week of perfect Indian summer... and so another day.

Monday--October 20
The Old Man, the Jimmie, Ron, Cosburn, Rus Telfer and myself headed ashore to the Asdic Base where we spent the day brushing up on new attack procedure. Carried out numerous attacks on subs. Duty Quartermaster--always helps matters to have a night watch to keep when one is on the weary side . . . and so goodnight.

Tuesday--October 21
All the Asdic team back to spend another long day in the Asdic Base carrying out continuous attacks on the table. Went off ashore in the evening with the new W/T who hails from Oakburn Manitoba. Very dead evening for us and glad to wander back to the ship quite early.

Wednesday--October 22
They are certainly throwing everything at us in the Asdic Base where we again spent the whole day attacking, attacking, attacking. I think the Old Man will be a pretty cool customer when we run up against the real thing in the days to come. Went off ashore this evening by myself and spent a quiet evening in Atlantic House, browsing through their fine library of books. Some good ones on early Nova Scotia. On board at 2300.

Thursday--October 23
Once again we Asdics spent the morning in the Asdic Base, but a much more pleasant task was in store for us in the afternoon--scrubbing the upper decks in pouring rain. Those fiends of officers must scream in delight when they hit upon such masterpieces of tasks for us lowly ratings of the lower deck. Oh to be a great and wonderful officer. No thank you – I prefer to live with the men! Quartermaster from 1600-2000. Helped push a car back onto the wharf that almost saw it into the pitch dark of the harbour. Boys whooping it up in the messdeck.

Friday--October 24
Attack and counter-attack – that seems to be the story of daily life these days as we practically live in the Asdic Base. Remained on board in the evening to do some washing and ironing. Getting to be quite domesticated – it is practically a must. Wrote home, and then started into a good book. Very cold outside, but our messdeck is comfortable . . . turned into my mick early.

Saturday--October 25
There seems to be no end to the pleasant tasks that turn up on board ship. Today it was sloshing around on a catamaran between ships washing slimy oil and dirt off our ship's sides with coal oil. To help matters, every few minutes someone throws some article out of a porthole, such as a pot of old coffee grinds, or a bucket of soogey – or even better, a passing harbour craft or tug raises a swell which practically washes us into the harbour..make and mend in the afternoon so I wandered off ashore took in a show (poor) and had a meal in the Y. Walked back to the ship deep in thoughts of what this is all about.

Sunday--October 26
Sunday again on board ship – after cleaning ship, crew ashore to the jetty where a Church Service was held in a driving snowstorm. We almost froze to death and tons of nattering could be heard from deep in the ranks. Lounged around all afternoon on board. Duty watch, and stood the 2000-2400 watch. Very tired when at last it came to an end. But woe is me, it took me 20 minutes to get Brady, my refreshing relief out of his cart. That, of course, put me in a wonderful frame of mind.

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Date Modified:
2011-10-01