At 8 am in the morning, after a decent breakfast, Peggy and Audrey clocked in at the Silversands Radar Station to begin their first shift as Radar Operators. Audrey groaned but secretly smiled when she discovered that Frank was to be one of the technicians on her shift. Technician Lt. Cecil Jorgensen whom they’d met at lunch the day before decided to join them for their first shift; he was only on duty for the next shift. Cecil was very tall, skinny with blonde hair and gray eyes. He was a quiet fellow, but when he spoke or laughed, you immediately knew he was an honest and caring person. It was evident that Frank and Cecil were very good friends regardless of their opposite personalities.
Peggy sat in front of the round TV-like Radar screen nervously thinking of all she had learned over her six-week course. The screen was blank with a white stripe going around in circles. “Do you know how to switch it on?” Frank smugly asked her.
“No,” Peggy replied sarcastically and switched on the screen. It came to life with a few blips and Frank smiled turning to Audrey.
“Don’t you even think of being smart with me Frank,” Audrey warned him just as he was about to poke fun at her.
Peggy and Audrey settled their ear sets on over their neatly pinned hair. Peggy complimented herself silently on how she got her hair to curl exactly right so that the ear sets sat comfortably on her head. Audrey fidgeted with her ear set a little, adjusted one or two bobby pins and then gathered her things necessary for the plotting or tracking on the large map.
There was not much going on in the sea waters to cause much alarm, but Frank kept them on their toes leading them to believe certain blips were enemy ships and not merely fishing vessels. Peggy had to draw every ounce of memory to remain calm and confident in her assessments. Audrey did not escape his initiation, for whenever she turned her back Frank had moved a pin or two. Every time Audrey would stare at the map not quite sure if she was seeing correctly or not. She would revert to her notes, soon realizing what had happened and while setting the map straight again she cursed Frank under her breath. Cecil watched in fascination at Frank’s every attempt to fluster the ladies and at their calm composed reaction.
It was almost 1 pm, and time for their shift to end when the door swung open, Frank and Cecil jumped to attention and saluted. Peggy and Audrey, far more delayed in their reaction, slowly stood and saluted when they eventually realized a senior officer had entered the room.
“At ease.” The senior officer said after saluting them in return. Their arms were just relaxing when another senior officer entered, this time, a woman. They saluted again; at least this time Peggy and Audrey were quick to draw. “At ease.” She said.
Frank introduced Peggy and Audrey to their Station Officer Commanding - OC Lt. Mrs. Vivien Simpson and the Station Officer Commanding Captain Maxwell Vogel. The conversation was light and introductory with little of importance spoken.
Lt. Mrs. Simpson waited until their shift ended, and was introduced to Dorothy and Maisy when they entered the room to start their five-hour shift. As Peggy and Audrey made their way back to their quarters Lt. Mrs. Simpson hurriedly caught up with them. She was not much older than Peggy or Audrey, a lot shorter than them, and they were not sure if her hair was naturally blonde or not; her eyes were a gentle brown. Lt. Mrs. Simpson had a lovely smile that was shadowed by her very husky smoker’s voice.
“Have you ladies settled in okay?” Peggy and Audrey nodded in agreement. “Good. After the other ladies have finished their shift, I want to see you four ladies in my office for a briefing.”
“Yes, Lieutenant.” Peggy and Audrey answered. Lt. Mrs. Simpson nodded acknowledgment of their response and went to her office.
“I don’t know what to make of her. Is she a grouch or not?” Audrey confusedly admitted.
“Well, time will tell, so let’s just stay on her good side.” They entered the function room to enjoy a healthy lunch. No-one was there except them which meant they had to contain relaying their excitement of their first shift to anyone until Dorothy and Maisy had finished their shift and they’d had their meeting with Lt. Mrs. Simpson.
Even with a heavy wind blowing Peggy and Audrey went down to the beach and sat nearby the rock pools. It was high tide, so the waves were sent crashing over the rocks making the rock pools inaccessible, but the waves did give a wondrous display of the power of the ocean.
***
Peggy, Audrey, Dorothy, and Maisy sat in Lt. Mrs. Simpson’s small office. “Ladies. Welcome to Silversands.” Lt. Mrs. Simpson sat at her desk with her elbows on the table and her hands linked into each other. Her ashtray had been recently emptied; however, ash still dusted the glass ashtray and left a stale smell around the room.
“I am hoping we will work together as a tight unit, depending, supporting and defending each other. In a few weeks, the rest of the female operators will arrive, so we need to iron out any complicated issues by then. There will be no fraternization with the men at this station and if there is; well immediate dismissal is very possible. If you have any problems or concerns, please come to me, I won’t bite I promise.” Lt. Mrs. Simpson’s voice crackled as she spoke. She smiled, unlinked her hands and pointed the palms upward to the ladies. “Do you have any questions?”
Maisy raised her hand very sheepishly. “We need one technician per shift; we’ve only met two, where do the others come from?”
Lt. Mrs. Simpson raised an eyebrow not quite expecting this to be the question that concerned them. “The technicians rotate between here and the Hangklip Radar Station. The operators there are mostly vets, and I’m sure you will get to meet them all soon enough.”
Maisy thanked her and blushed.
“One more thing,” she added “this is not an order but a request. In the evenings, the Rec. room is usually the place where everyone gathers. Each lady will take a turn to make tea or coffee for everyone, and when the other operators arrive, they will also assist. There is a small kitchen there and an urn. All you have to do is make sure the urn is filled with water and boiled and set out all the necessities. You will not be expected to pour for anyone or tend after anyone so make sure the men don’t abuse or take advantage of your kindness.” When Lt. Mrs. Simpson smiled her tanned face wrinkled beneath her eyes aging her in seconds. “Just so that you know, I love chocolate cake, so if anyone has a need to bake, I will gladly help to eat.” The ladies all laughed together dismissing any apprehension that might have existed.
That evening the Rec. room was occupied with most of the Lieutenants and poor Maisy squeaked out her disapproval that she was first on the tea duty roster.
“Oh, Maisy don’t get so worked up. You know we will help you.” Audrey assured her. And they did help her; well, all of them that is, except Dorothy. The men found Dorothy far more engaging than coffee and biscuits and absorbed all her attention. Peggy, Audrey, and Maisy sighed and shrugged; they were so used to this reaction from men when Dorothy was nearby that they expected it rather than be disappointed by it.
Peggy, Audrey, Dorothy and Maisy enjoyed the company of the men and the stories they told of their earlier days in the Army. Some of the stories the ladies were told were hard to believe at a stretch, and others were very awe inspiring. The fireplace enhanced the comfortable atmosphere as they wasted the night away playing darts, Chinese checkers, backgammon or cards. Some Lieutenants left for their shifts as the others joined them when their shift had finished.
After the initial introductions had taken place, Harvey Newsome sat quietly in front of the fireplace reading and smoking his pipe for most of the evening barely communicating at all with anyone. His silent demure intrigued the ladies; was he shy or just rude they wondered.