# Are bosun's boring?



## BIG E (17 Jul 2009)

Ive been told that being a Bosn in the Navy is boring? We'll at least compared to other trades like Infantry and such..is this true? Do Bosn's fire small arms weapons a lot? Do Naval Boarding parties take action a lot?


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## Ex-Dragoon (17 Jul 2009)

Its all a matter of perspective. You will be kidding yourself if you don't believe you will be bored in the infantry either.


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## Journeyman (17 Jul 2009)

BIG E said:
			
		

> Ive been told that being a Bosn in the Navy is boring? We'll at least compared to other trades like Infantry and such..is this true? Do Bosn's fire small arms weapons a lot? Do Naval Boarding parties take action a lot?





			
				BIG E said:
			
		

> Hi guys.
> I'm really considering to be a boatswain in the Canadian Navy. How does it compare to an infantryman? Do you fire many small arms weapons? Can you become a small arms specialist in the navy?





			
				BIG E said:
			
		

> Is there anyone here who is a Boatswain in the navy?Do you fire many small arms weapons?



So, how many times do you plan on asking the same question?
You're not related to worldtraveller321 are you?

As Ex-Dragoon said, there are times of boredom in every trade. Similarly, there are times of excitement, contentment, satisfaction, frustration, and a range of emotions that (perhaps sadly) you will not begin to _remotely_ comprehend until you've been there.

Now, since I'm not a sailor, I'll back out of this thread*


* You did mention infantry though


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## Ex-Dragoon (17 Jul 2009)

Excellent points JM, I too was wondering if he was related to world traveller as well


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## BIG E (17 Jul 2009)

Thank you for the reply's.

No, I am associated with Worldtraveller


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## gcclarke (18 Jul 2009)

Being neither a bos'n, nor an infanteer, I won't speak of the relative business levels of the two. However, it does seem to me that bos'ns are a lot busier at sea than they are when the ship they are posted to is ashore. I cannot speak to how busy they are (or seem) when posted to a shore unit (such as a training unit).


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## Klinkaroo (18 Jul 2009)

Being from the navy I will just throw my two cents in here.

It all depends, when the ship is in home port yes it probably can be a little boring, alot of sitting around finding odd jobs to do, maintenance and stuff but that is all part of life in the navy and is pretty much the same for every trade. At sea you will be kept busy, as a bos'n there will be long nights driving the ship but also days of driving around in a RHIB (Riggid Hulled Inflatable Boat), maintaining weapons, other Bosn related stuff and you will get to man the .50. BTW the boarding party is an Any Trade Required position on a ship. That being said you can be part of the boarding party as a Bos'n but being a Bos'n doesn't guarantee a position on the team as many other trades are also a part of it.

Now I have never worked with the infantry but from what I can gather talking around yes infantry can be pretty cool, running around the woods with your rifle tactically and all that stuff but two things to add here. What you see in the movies is not real life. Get ready to hump your ruck sack for days before even seeing enemy forces some times. When the infantry isn't deployed and they are in garrison if they are not on an exercise it's alot of days of morning pt, maybe some lectures and trying to find stuff to do.

Also may I ask where you got this information? Ask around just because there is one pised off bos'n that says his job is boring does that really mean anything... Or if it's some new infantry guy all gun ho and still has it in his head that the navy sucks well again can you really trust that information.


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## Ex-Dragoon (18 Jul 2009)

Title thread changed to reflect the actual question asked.

Milnet. Ca Staff


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## Old_navy_062 (21 Jul 2009)

As the Coxswain of a CPF, I can assure you that the BOSN's I have onboard are far from boring!


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## Pat in Halifax (21 Jul 2009)

First off, you can tell it is lunch time in Halifax as the site is r e a l l y   s l o w!! Anyway, probably for the best as being a C2 stoker with +++ years in, my response may have been a little over the edge and possibly even derogitory wrt the original questions! ! - as I am sure some understand! Anyway, cooler heads prevailed and I can only expand on 'Old Navy' s comments that NO TRADE is boring and I am sure he can attest to this given his ship's current deployment. I think it all depends on what you want to do. All I can recommend is that you go to the Recruiting website and view the videos for all the trades. These are real life people who, in most cases, were picked by their supervisors to be the 'stars' so they are not really glossed over. I didn't check where you are, but if you are able to get aboard a ship, I suggest you ask to speak to someone from any trades you are interested in. I will say this much; Recruiting 'should' attempt to talk you into another trade as Bos'n currently is at it's required numbers.


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## Loachman (21 Jul 2009)

I'm a Pilot and I've been bored many, many times.

And occasionally, during periods of almost overwhelming excitement, I've wished that I could be bored instead.


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## Otis (21 Jul 2009)

Old Navy said:
			
		

> As the Coxswain of a CPF, I can assure you that the BOSN's I have onboard are far from boring!



I don't even know which ship Old Navy is Coxn of and this made me laugh ... just knowing the Bosn's I know ...  :nod:


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## Klinkaroo (21 Jul 2009)

Just like the pilot just said. You could be a sniper (a job many would think would be considered cool and part of the elite). But do you think their job get's boring when you lay beside your rifle for 14 hours waiting for the enemy to walk by...

Every job has it's ups and downs.


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## Pat in Halifax (28 Jul 2009)

Otis: It is WIN...and if you knew what they were(are) doing you would understand my original entry that no one trade is boring. Everything we do as sailors/soldiers/airmen(women) is training for deployment. SNMG1/OP APOLLO/OP ALTAIR deployments are absolutely nothing like FISHPAT/SOVPATs, MISSELEXs and even WUPs. The potentials are real and as many have elluded to in the answers to the original question, pretty much any trade in any Service has it's moments of boredom...but to say, or imply that the comment made you laugh I believe borderlines on an insult to WIN's crew and their efforts.


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## Radar114 (28 Jul 2009)

I think Pat nailed it down.  I have met boring Bosuns but they are the same as us and have lots of times been bored but many times so busy they wish they were bored.

I don't think they have a boring job, they always seem to be busy with something on the go.


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## FSTO (28 Jul 2009)

Its a laugh a minute at sea and ashore with the Bosn's. 

But bored at sea? Doubt it, they are always busy with something as is everyone else in the ship.


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## Otis (28 Jul 2009)

Pat in Halifax said:
			
		

> Otis: It is WIN...and if you knew what they were(are) doing you would understand my original entry that no one trade is boring. Everything we do as sailors/soldiers/airmen(women) is training for deployment. SNMG1/OP APOLLO/OP ALTAIR deployments are absolutely nothing like FISHPAT/SOVPATs, MISSELEXs and even WUPs. The potentials are real and as many have elluded to in the answers to the original question, pretty much any trade in any Service has it's moments of boredom...but to say, or imply that the comment made you laugh I believe borderlines on an insult to WIN's crew and their efforts.



Oh Pat ... you have misunderstood my laughter.

I was not laughing AT the bosn's (implying that I thought they were boring or not busy or unimportant, as your post seems to state)

I was laughing at the thought that Bosn's COULD be boring ... in all my experiences with those of the deck department, they tend to be SO "interesting" and antic-prone for supervisors that some WISH they would be less interesting!

No need to take offense on behalf of the bon's ...

Otis


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## armyvern (8 Aug 2009)

Otis said:
			
		

> I don't even know which ship Old Navy is Coxn of and this made me laugh ... just knowing the Bosn's I know ...  :nod:



I'd have to agree with you here ...

I've never met a boring Bosn in my life; quite the opposite rather. Gawd ... the memories. The visuals.  8)


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## Greymatters (8 Aug 2009)

Anyone can perceive a job as boring.  When someone says that a specific job is boring they are telling you more about what they regard as interesting than about the actual job.  Most people who have a genuine interest in their own work dont find their jobs boring.


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## RhumRunner (29 Aug 2009)

Ask a Bosn how he likes his job when he's a spare during the Mids.

Ask the same Bosn how he likes his job while he is watching a floating target sinking after he just shot 200 .50 cal tracer rounds at a it off the quarterdeck at dusk.

It's all subjective based on your perspective.

Boredom breeds interesting personalities which may generally leads to amusing episodes... which may keep the Coxn out of boredom.


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## Double-R (29 Aug 2009)

BIG E said:
			
		

> Ive been told that being a Bosn in the Navy is boring? We'll at least compared to other trades like Infantry and such..is this true? Do Bosn's fire small arms weapons a lot? Do Naval Boarding parties take action a lot?




We have our fair share of boreing days in the infantry.  It's not all battle runs, raids etc.  You need to ask your self what kind of "action" are you looking for.


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## FDO (30 Aug 2009)

30 years as a Bos'n. We have our good days and we have our bad. If the bad out numbered the good I wouldn't be making this post. I always said that as soon as I lost  interest or didn't want to get out of bed to go to work (for other than being over served at the bar) I'd be done. Yes the mids suck, and oh yeah the 5 cal is cool. RAS is cool, towing, etc it all makes our job interesting.


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## sea.sea.sea (15 Nov 2009)

I'm a bosn and I love what I do. We are not boring, we're fun people!  Like any job (military or not) there are boring moments. We are the jack of all trades. Bosn's fire weapons and clean them too. (Not that weapon cleaning is boring.) Bosn's do so much, I haven't done everything a bosn does, yet, but I can't wait.


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## Greymatters (16 Nov 2009)

sea.sea.sea said:
			
		

> (Not that weapon cleaning is boring.)



Yes it is!  That's why we often watch TV, play music, or talk to others while doing it...


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## FDO (17 Nov 2009)

Weapons cleaning isn't boring. I've watched it for hours!!


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## cdn_STiCK (17 Nov 2009)

I believe "*bosun*" is spelled "*boatswain*".


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## FDO (17 Nov 2009)

Boatswain is the correct full spelling. By the way in old English it means "keeper of the boats"  Today the accepted short form is Bos'n.


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## PMedMoe (18 Nov 2009)

cdn_STiCK said:
			
		

> I believe "*bosun*" is spelled "*boatswain*".


Gee, thanks for pointing that out.   :


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## Occam (18 Nov 2009)

FDO said:
			
		

> Boatswain is the correct full spelling. By the way in old English it means "keeper of the boats"



What does Coxswain translate into in old English?    ;D

Come on, you knew someone was going to go there.


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## gcclarke (18 Nov 2009)

Same thing really.



> From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
> Jump to: navigation, search
> The coxswain (pronounced /ˈkɒksən/) is the person in charge of a boat, particularly its navigation and steering. The etymology of the word gives us a literal meaning of "boat servant" since it comes from cox, a coxboat or other small vessel kept aboard a ship, and swain, which can be rendered as boy, in authority.


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## FDO (18 Nov 2009)

Way back when, before even Otis was glint in his father's eye, part of the steering of a vessel was called the "Cog" The person in charge of or responsible for steering and navigating was responsible for the cog as well. He was called the "Cogswain" or "Keeper of the Cog". Today we call him/her the Coxswain or Cox'n as the person responsible for steering the small boats such as RHIBs and zodiacs, even in olympic rowing the person who steers the boat and navigates it down the course is called the Cox'n or Cox. There are many references to this term. But most start late, around the time of the British rule of the seas. Cool thing about being the winner is you get to write the history books.

This is what I was taught and that's where the RN got it. May come from the time of the Roman occupation of Great Britan. 

Thus ends todays lesson on Naval lore.


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## Greymatters (18 Nov 2009)

Is that in any way related to 'Drop your cox and grab your socks', a formerly common army phrase?


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## FDO (19 Nov 2009)

Could be. Many of todays common words and phrases come for terms used at sea. The correct Naval term was "drop your cox AND your socks". The Army just altered it to suit their own needs.


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## Ex-Dragoon (19 Nov 2009)

Back on topic please

Milnet.Ca Staff


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## BIG E (26 Nov 2009)

I took in a ton of information from all of your replys! Thank you everyone so much! I love this website.
Yes. The recruiters tried really hard for me to get into a technical trade in the Navy. But Boatswain interested me the most because of the wide variety of jobs. However, it is full until April. So I gotta be patient. Patience is key in the Forces.  
Infantry is full until April as well. Had a family talk and the Infantry is not for me.


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## trigger324 (26 Nov 2009)

why not think about sonar op?  did they try to convince you of that? you wouldn't have to wait til april and you'd still get to do a variety of jobs with more than your share of bosn work ;D


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## FDO (26 Nov 2009)

"why not think about sonar op? you wouldn't have to wait til april and you'd still get to do a variety of jobs with more than your share of bosn work"


That's why we call them "Ping Bos'ns"


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## Ex-Dragoon (26 Nov 2009)

And locked

Milnet.Ca Staff


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