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1- When the Captain of a warship asks the helmsman " How's the head" he is asking for the ships heading.
2- The helmsman can be as lowly as a seaman in rank as he/she does no free thinking, simply turning a tiny knob as directed.
The Captain of our ship entered the bridge after we had sailed from a 5 day r&r visit toThailand and this exchange took place.
Captain "How's the head"
Helmsman ( (very) ordinary seaman Black ) " Not too bad thanks sir. I came back a little earlier cos I knew I was gonna be driving"
footnote; it was later discovered that this exchange had already taken place and had been documented in an anecdotal book. Black had read said book and had been bursting for an opportunity to test it out.
Yes, the Skipper eventually saw the funny side of the situation but his initial glare and protracted stunned silence had us in fear of Blacks immediate future.
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