Everyone has their own personal reasons for serving in the military. Some do it for education, some for personal growth, a few for a sense of patriotism, still others because of a court order, hah! Whatever the reason, we all still put that uniform on and head out every day.
This is my story.
Growing up around my grandfather, I kept hearing key words like "the war", or "Asiatic Fleet", and "my old ship". Those words didn't mean a lot to me at the time, until I tagged along during an Asiatic Fleet Four-Stacker Destroyer reunion. I met those people he served with, I would catch a story here and there and soon realized that they had gone through hell and back.
The romantic idea of the World War 2 Navy stayed with me all the way to the day I took my own oath on April 27th 2005. My wife and I decided that the military would be a good way to start our new lives together in bad economy. We didn't have a lot of money, we had just been evicted out of our home, and neither of our job prospects looked very good at all. Those 6 months in Erwin, TN at my grandparents old home I spent running, lifting weights, doing push-ups, and thinking about what the Navy will be like.
This continued all the way until Laura and I traveled to Cullowhee to drop me off the day before I was supposed to ship off to Boot Camp, Oct 31 2005. That goodbye has been the hardest to date.
I was processed at the Charlotte MEPS stationed and sent to the airport on my favorite holiday, Halloween. The plane arrived at O'Hare airport that night at around 9pm, and we were ushered to the USO. From there we were marched onto the bus, where on the way I executed a perfect marching band-style corner turn. I was yelled at for attempted such a maneuver, though years of marching told me otherwise, hah!
It didn't take me long after I arrived at boot camp, went on to my schools, and finally out to the fleet to realize that it was now what we refer to as the "new Navy". Yeah sure, hearing my grandfather's stories, seeing those battleships in Mobile Bay, Alabama and Wilmington, NC and being inspired by the characters in films like Band of Brothers really influenced what I though life was going to be like in the service. I'm happy that I was able to experience everything that I seen and done, I think it has made me a better, more worldly person. I think that it has made my marriage that much stronger for having endured through all these deployments.
My motivation was originally a sense of duty and a means to start a family. I promised Laura that if we wanted to start a family, I would show her how committed I was. Along the way I've gained technical training, seen many many countries, lived in Japan, and received many accolades for my work. The new Navy's been pretty good to me.
A skipped a lot, but that's basically my story.
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Rememberall
Dear Future Chase,
If you are thinking about re-enlisting or coming back into the Navy after you become a civilian, please remember a day like this one, and the other reasons you said you were getting out. But first, smack yo' self, foo. I'm waiting.....did that feel good? No? Good.
1. Wearing PT gear in extremely hot weather instead of coveralls that become incredibly hot makes the work seem a little better. Wearing said PT gear, then having a "khaki" that just came out of the A/C to inspect your working progress and telling you that you need to be wearing coveralls while working outside, makes me a little upset.
2. Painting in the rain really does happen, and it is a bad idea. Water-based mean that WATER THINS THE PAINT.
3. Sweeping water
4. Howard, the "do as I say, not as I do" capital. Telling you not to drink and make a fool of yourself, then seeing the same person later that night...passed out.
5. YOU ARE ON PERMANENT SHORE DUTY, DO YOU NEED A BETTER REASON?!?!?
So, Future Chase, I hope you learned something. Even though there are only five examples here, I'm sure a flood of memories will start resurfacing. Remember, you are a special person to me, you are a contributing member of society, and dog-gone it people like you.
Love,
Past Chase
If you are thinking about re-enlisting or coming back into the Navy after you become a civilian, please remember a day like this one, and the other reasons you said you were getting out. But first, smack yo' self, foo. I'm waiting.....did that feel good? No? Good.
1. Wearing PT gear in extremely hot weather instead of coveralls that become incredibly hot makes the work seem a little better. Wearing said PT gear, then having a "khaki" that just came out of the A/C to inspect your working progress and telling you that you need to be wearing coveralls while working outside, makes me a little upset.
2. Painting in the rain really does happen, and it is a bad idea. Water-based mean that WATER THINS THE PAINT.
3. Sweeping water
4. Howard, the "do as I say, not as I do" capital. Telling you not to drink and make a fool of yourself, then seeing the same person later that night...passed out.
5. YOU ARE ON PERMANENT SHORE DUTY, DO YOU NEED A BETTER REASON?!?!?
So, Future Chase, I hope you learned something. Even though there are only five examples here, I'm sure a flood of memories will start resurfacing. Remember, you are a special person to me, you are a contributing member of society, and dog-gone it people like you.
Love,
Past Chase
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Reflections on Folk art
This post really has nothing to do with being underway, though it does have something to do with my frame of mind while at sea. So, there, I justified myself, ha!
While listening to Joni Mitchell to relax I looked my iPod to check out more songs and noticed that I was looking at an album cover that Ms. Mitchell created herself. I had forgotten how much I really liked her simplistic approach so I brought up Court and Spark, then So Far. Those albums brought up two points, 1. Album art is a lost art now (Which my friend Andy Voelker and I constantly exchange points of view on), and 2. I absolutely love Joni's folk art from the 60's and 70's, mostly consisting of single-line drawings and minimal/solid coloring.
I've never been the subject of any kind of art, and probably will never be because I've got an ugly mug these days, hah! But imagine being Graham Nash or Neil Young and being captured forever in a work of art by someone like Joni Mitchell?
So, make friends with artists, you never know where they'll end up!While growing up I was exposed to Penland School of the Arts, now let me tell you...If you were a child with an active imagination, then Penland was probably the place to be. Sculptures of every kind were (and still are!) in every nook and cranny on the wooded campus, just waiting to be discovered. It was a little dreamland for the child with his/her feet not quite on the ground. My friend Kaete and her older brother Richie seemed to have a lot of fun here during the early 80's, as both our fathers taught at the school.
This school set the mood for how I view the 70's and 80's, a crazy, wonderful world filled with a bit of cigarette haze, handmade dresses, acoustic guitar music, bare hand-carved wood, and wide open spaces.
Sunday, July 10, 2011
In the Name of our Ford
I'm currently re-reading 1984 again. Seems like every time I get into the mood to read that book I'm always underway. It also seems that I keep drawing the same parallels between the world of Big Brother and our current state. Mind you, I don't mean to say that we are living in a "Negative Utopian" world, but the more the idea of "Doublethink".
We, the people, say we are free. But we give up our rights in the name of the Patriot Act. Tapping phones, fondling for screening at the airport, being treated like cattle, forcing to abide through sheer threats of being detained....it's all ok if it's for a great purpose (read: finding those anti-freedom terrorists). We have let the government take us hostage, like an overbearing mother with her precious offspring.
Warning: Opinion is expressed in the next paragraph.
I'm not anti-government at all. But when you have folks in congress that couldn't give two shits about someone that makes less money than they do (and they make a lot), then you have situations where their own military may go without getting paid.
That being said, it seems like there are too many parallels within 1984 and Atlas Shrugged for me to be comfortable with. If one doesn't find the cap and/or ability to control Internet connectivity, surveillance everywhere, the huge debt we're incurring, a blatant disregard from the high class that depends on the working class, and most of all...the insane dependence on oil.
Again, not anti-gov't, just upset with our situation.
Decadence is dependence...
We, the people, say we are free. But we give up our rights in the name of the Patriot Act. Tapping phones, fondling for screening at the airport, being treated like cattle, forcing to abide through sheer threats of being detained....it's all ok if it's for a great purpose (read: finding those anti-freedom terrorists). We have let the government take us hostage, like an overbearing mother with her precious offspring.
Warning: Opinion is expressed in the next paragraph.
I'm not anti-government at all. But when you have folks in congress that couldn't give two shits about someone that makes less money than they do (and they make a lot), then you have situations where their own military may go without getting paid.
That being said, it seems like there are too many parallels within 1984 and Atlas Shrugged for me to be comfortable with. If one doesn't find the cap and/or ability to control Internet connectivity, surveillance everywhere, the huge debt we're incurring, a blatant disregard from the high class that depends on the working class, and most of all...the insane dependence on oil.
Again, not anti-gov't, just upset with our situation.
Decadence is dependence...
Friday, July 8, 2011
A Re-occurring Dream
This is a re-occurring dream that I originally had when I about 5 years old. It originally came to me I think when I had a friend stay the night and I remember it was an exceptionally clear night when I looked out of the window. I've had this particular dream several times over the years with very little change to the overall feel. About a month into deployment it happened again, so I thought I would share it in prose form.
The Machinist's Plan
Hums of a mechanical heart purr away.
The one in my arms, her cares are astray.
Our final minute once seemed so long,
the starlight highlights this last time.
The dark sky feels the home I know not,
A danger nearby that could have hardly forgot.
The machine hums closer, without eyes guiding.
The girl closes her eyes, our thoughts collide.
We're outside sleeping on concrete unreal.
Whispers back and forth of innocence we feel.
It makes it hard to see beyond the metal,
and the deathly steel which a doom will settle.
Stars are now falling all around & between.
The calm in our eyes and thoughts are now seen.
"They will be fine, and the others like them.",
a voice calmly tells us, a voice without sin.
The scene is now ending, two loves are removed.
the machina's will of desire for now, soothed.
the mechanical heart still purrs away,
the night that should never be, stays at bay.
The Machinist's Plan
Hums of a mechanical heart purr away.
The one in my arms, her cares are astray.
Our final minute once seemed so long,
the starlight highlights this last time.
The dark sky feels the home I know not,
A danger nearby that could have hardly forgot.
The machine hums closer, without eyes guiding.
The girl closes her eyes, our thoughts collide.
We're outside sleeping on concrete unreal.
Whispers back and forth of innocence we feel.
It makes it hard to see beyond the metal,
and the deathly steel which a doom will settle.
Stars are now falling all around & between.
The calm in our eyes and thoughts are now seen.
"They will be fine, and the others like them.",
a voice calmly tells us, a voice without sin.
The scene is now ending, two loves are removed.
the machina's will of desire for now, soothed.
the mechanical heart still purrs away,
the night that should never be, stays at bay.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Oh, the things you will see.
This entry roughly makes my third time trying to piece words together in a blank text field. This is mostly due to an overwhelming amount of information to relay to a limited number of folks eagerly awaiting word from me. It's been 10 days since my last entry, and so much has happened...I suppose a good place to start would be the beginning. Who knew?
We arrived in Puerto Princesa, Philippines on the 28th of June and even though I didn't have duty until the 30th I either remained aboard the ship or cruised into town only for food. Really what I was doing was conserving my monies for the hotel that I was wholly anticipating!
I've been to the Philippines twice before in my life, once in Manila where I was very close to where my grandfather had been during World War 2, and the second in a nice city named Cebu! Both were great places filled with a friendly populous, who were intrigued by blue-eyed, light-skinned folk not unlike myself. I tried a bit of the food and was surprised by how delicious it was! But none of that would compare to what I experienced here in Puerto Princesa.
The day finally arrived that I would get to stay in my first actual bed in 2 1/2 months, on the 1st of July. I could hardly wait, the anticipation was killing me! I departed the ship with my liberty buddy, FC2 Richard Manley, and we signed out of the logbook as "O/N", or Over Night and we made our way to the buses that would drop us off in town. On it's way into town we passed the usual sights that I've grown accustomed to, the small tin-roofed, nail-and-board shops with hand painted signs advertising their fares hanging on chicken wire. Small children shouting prices for their goods, chickens running around behind said shops, and the exposed orange dirt that seems to take the place of grass in these more urban areas and is always seen underfoot of the everyman. The scene is completed with the smell that can only be associated with certain Pacific countries, the smell that will always remind me of my navy days. It's a smell that's a mix of food in various stages of preparation, something of raw fish displayed for selling, the grilling of pork, chicken, and fish on open grills...and of the ocean.
I took many pictures on my way to the town center, at which on our arrival we rented a "Tuk Tuk". The best way to describe these Tuk Tuks is to imagine a 155cc motorcycle, now fit that motorcycle with a sidecar that seats two people, one sitting forward and one sitting backwards. Now, rust over the entire vehicle and cover the whole thing with a roof and a small luggage rack in the rear. This is a Tuk Tuk. A lot of the Tuk Tuk drivers will decorate their vehicles with a plastic body that would resemble a sports car.
We took the Tuk Tuk to the hotel which turned out to be on the outskirts of town, an added bonus! No one was really around, which added to what a great find this was. We walked onto the property and found a veritable paradise, the kind of place where a sailor can go to unwind. Many of the rooms were being renovated and we were shown around the property by the owner, Mark, who as it turns out, has traveled more than most people I know. He was an incredible host keeping us company through meals, sharing his stories, and letting us put music on his sound system while we swam in the HUGE pool located in the center of everything.
Our first day at the hotel/resort was mainly filled with lounging at the pool and having a much appreciated intake of alcohol. We had a fantastic sampling of local food at the pool-bar. The dish I sampling was something that sounded like "See-See", not sure if that's exactly how you spell it though. I was told what it was until after I had taken a few bites, though even when they told me I still had more, it was delicious! Turns out it was cartilage, pork face, and some pork intestines. Yum! We left the pool after our appetizer and ate ourselves a phenomenal dinner at the huge restaurant just past the pool. At this point I had had enough of the local brews, San Miguel and Re Horse, to be feeling pretty fancy-free. I don't remember many of the pictures taken at this point. C'est la Vie, I was having a blast, that much I remember. Good fun times with good people. I went to bed that night in my REAL bed, my belly full, my spirits high, and the anticipation of getting to webcam with my wife and daughter for the first time since I left her in San Diego, California.
The next morning I woke up and flipped open my laptop and immediately jumped on Google Chat, which is our main means of communication on and off the ship. What luck! She was signed in and active, so I gave her a poke and we got things up and going on my flimsy-at-best connection. She was the most beautiful thing I had seen in quite some time...then my daughter came into view. Oh my God, how she had grown in the short time I had been away. "I can see you, daddy! Can you see me?!" She said. Choking back tears of joy I said, "Of course I can, Shelby, it's so nice to see you!". Shelby continued to dominate the conversation, which I had no problem with. She went on to show me her "Daddy Doll", and tell me that she liked when I tell her stories at bedtime. All this while speaking very fluidly and much more developed than when I had left, she's getting so smart and interactive! Laura and I seemed content to finally be able to each other in real-time again. It was good to see those pictures of Laura finally come to life to tell me they loved me in return.
After about an hour or so of talking, we had to say our reluctant goodbyes because the fellas I checked out with had plans for the day!
We met up with a Filipino buddy, LS2 Juliber Fernandez, who had some of his family come down to meet him in Puerto Princesa. His folks had set up an entire day of island hopping in one of the many catamaran boats at the local port. The trip to the first island took about 30 minutes or so, but this was where we ate the homemade meal that his sister had brought along. Pork Adobo, corn, grilled squid, pork jaw, beer, and even more food! Eating on the island beach with coconut trees around us with the salty wind blowing in from the ocean, the sand in my toes and a beer in my hand. For three hours I thought nothing of a Navy ship, nothing of the worries of the world, nothing of hate, anger, jealousy, of the hurt of being gone.
I found my Zen on that island. I was at peace, and loved so many beautiful things in the world.
I've posted pictures on my Facebook account under the folder "Deployment 2011", they'll be some of the pictures at the bottom of the list, but they'll be labeled appropriately.
Later that night after spending all day at the islands we came back to the hotel where I started finishing off the bottle of that delicious local rum. I wondered on down to the pool again where some of the local folks were splashing around, that's when I ran into four local college students. One of the girls was celebrating her 20st birthday by trading shot of the same local rum with her other four cohorts. My buddy, Steve, has never met a stranger in his life and we quickly became friends with the celebrators. The guy I was talking with was a hotels & restaurant management major. After a while I decided to buy everyone a round of beer, but before I order they asked if I would be interested in trying some more of the local food. Feeling the liquid courage building inside me, "Hell Yeah!".
I forget the name of it, something like Chi-Caron...the American version of Chicarrons? I tried some, not too bad, a little tough but otherwise very enjoyable. Turns out I was munching on some fried pork intestines again, prepared differently. I had fun with our friends that night, we exchanged stories about our different lives and how alike that we really are in more ways than we know. We all talked until the pool closed at 11:30pm and we wish each other well and good fortune in the future. I went to bed that night, knowing it was my last time sleeping in a bed that didn't have an inch-thick mattress in a coffin-like space.
In the morning we all woke up early even though we didn't have to and made our way down to the restaurant and had an English breakfast of Sunny side up eggs, orange marmalade and toast, & bacon. I went for a quick swim to get the blood flowing and to wake up a bit, then settled the bill and headed out to the ship via Tuk Tuk for duty.
I fell in love with the people and their food, and I can easily see why my grandfather loved it here. The hotel & resort we stayed at is called the Royal Olberoi.
Here's to finding Zen on your remote Pacific island.
We arrived in Puerto Princesa, Philippines on the 28th of June and even though I didn't have duty until the 30th I either remained aboard the ship or cruised into town only for food. Really what I was doing was conserving my monies for the hotel that I was wholly anticipating!
I've been to the Philippines twice before in my life, once in Manila where I was very close to where my grandfather had been during World War 2, and the second in a nice city named Cebu! Both were great places filled with a friendly populous, who were intrigued by blue-eyed, light-skinned folk not unlike myself. I tried a bit of the food and was surprised by how delicious it was! But none of that would compare to what I experienced here in Puerto Princesa.
The day finally arrived that I would get to stay in my first actual bed in 2 1/2 months, on the 1st of July. I could hardly wait, the anticipation was killing me! I departed the ship with my liberty buddy, FC2 Richard Manley, and we signed out of the logbook as "O/N", or Over Night and we made our way to the buses that would drop us off in town. On it's way into town we passed the usual sights that I've grown accustomed to, the small tin-roofed, nail-and-board shops with hand painted signs advertising their fares hanging on chicken wire. Small children shouting prices for their goods, chickens running around behind said shops, and the exposed orange dirt that seems to take the place of grass in these more urban areas and is always seen underfoot of the everyman. The scene is completed with the smell that can only be associated with certain Pacific countries, the smell that will always remind me of my navy days. It's a smell that's a mix of food in various stages of preparation, something of raw fish displayed for selling, the grilling of pork, chicken, and fish on open grills...and of the ocean.
I took many pictures on my way to the town center, at which on our arrival we rented a "Tuk Tuk". The best way to describe these Tuk Tuks is to imagine a 155cc motorcycle, now fit that motorcycle with a sidecar that seats two people, one sitting forward and one sitting backwards. Now, rust over the entire vehicle and cover the whole thing with a roof and a small luggage rack in the rear. This is a Tuk Tuk. A lot of the Tuk Tuk drivers will decorate their vehicles with a plastic body that would resemble a sports car.
We took the Tuk Tuk to the hotel which turned out to be on the outskirts of town, an added bonus! No one was really around, which added to what a great find this was. We walked onto the property and found a veritable paradise, the kind of place where a sailor can go to unwind. Many of the rooms were being renovated and we were shown around the property by the owner, Mark, who as it turns out, has traveled more than most people I know. He was an incredible host keeping us company through meals, sharing his stories, and letting us put music on his sound system while we swam in the HUGE pool located in the center of everything.
Our first day at the hotel/resort was mainly filled with lounging at the pool and having a much appreciated intake of alcohol. We had a fantastic sampling of local food at the pool-bar. The dish I sampling was something that sounded like "See-See", not sure if that's exactly how you spell it though. I was told what it was until after I had taken a few bites, though even when they told me I still had more, it was delicious! Turns out it was cartilage, pork face, and some pork intestines. Yum! We left the pool after our appetizer and ate ourselves a phenomenal dinner at the huge restaurant just past the pool. At this point I had had enough of the local brews, San Miguel and Re Horse, to be feeling pretty fancy-free. I don't remember many of the pictures taken at this point. C'est la Vie, I was having a blast, that much I remember. Good fun times with good people. I went to bed that night in my REAL bed, my belly full, my spirits high, and the anticipation of getting to webcam with my wife and daughter for the first time since I left her in San Diego, California.
The next morning I woke up and flipped open my laptop and immediately jumped on Google Chat, which is our main means of communication on and off the ship. What luck! She was signed in and active, so I gave her a poke and we got things up and going on my flimsy-at-best connection. She was the most beautiful thing I had seen in quite some time...then my daughter came into view. Oh my God, how she had grown in the short time I had been away. "I can see you, daddy! Can you see me?!" She said. Choking back tears of joy I said, "Of course I can, Shelby, it's so nice to see you!". Shelby continued to dominate the conversation, which I had no problem with. She went on to show me her "Daddy Doll", and tell me that she liked when I tell her stories at bedtime. All this while speaking very fluidly and much more developed than when I had left, she's getting so smart and interactive! Laura and I seemed content to finally be able to each other in real-time again. It was good to see those pictures of Laura finally come to life to tell me they loved me in return.
After about an hour or so of talking, we had to say our reluctant goodbyes because the fellas I checked out with had plans for the day!
We met up with a Filipino buddy, LS2 Juliber Fernandez, who had some of his family come down to meet him in Puerto Princesa. His folks had set up an entire day of island hopping in one of the many catamaran boats at the local port. The trip to the first island took about 30 minutes or so, but this was where we ate the homemade meal that his sister had brought along. Pork Adobo, corn, grilled squid, pork jaw, beer, and even more food! Eating on the island beach with coconut trees around us with the salty wind blowing in from the ocean, the sand in my toes and a beer in my hand. For three hours I thought nothing of a Navy ship, nothing of the worries of the world, nothing of hate, anger, jealousy, of the hurt of being gone.
I found my Zen on that island. I was at peace, and loved so many beautiful things in the world.
I've posted pictures on my Facebook account under the folder "Deployment 2011", they'll be some of the pictures at the bottom of the list, but they'll be labeled appropriately.
Later that night after spending all day at the islands we came back to the hotel where I started finishing off the bottle of that delicious local rum. I wondered on down to the pool again where some of the local folks were splashing around, that's when I ran into four local college students. One of the girls was celebrating her 20st birthday by trading shot of the same local rum with her other four cohorts. My buddy, Steve, has never met a stranger in his life and we quickly became friends with the celebrators. The guy I was talking with was a hotels & restaurant management major. After a while I decided to buy everyone a round of beer, but before I order they asked if I would be interested in trying some more of the local food. Feeling the liquid courage building inside me, "Hell Yeah!".
I forget the name of it, something like Chi-Caron...the American version of Chicarrons? I tried some, not too bad, a little tough but otherwise very enjoyable. Turns out I was munching on some fried pork intestines again, prepared differently. I had fun with our friends that night, we exchanged stories about our different lives and how alike that we really are in more ways than we know. We all talked until the pool closed at 11:30pm and we wish each other well and good fortune in the future. I went to bed that night, knowing it was my last time sleeping in a bed that didn't have an inch-thick mattress in a coffin-like space.
In the morning we all woke up early even though we didn't have to and made our way down to the restaurant and had an English breakfast of Sunny side up eggs, orange marmalade and toast, & bacon. I went for a quick swim to get the blood flowing and to wake up a bit, then settled the bill and headed out to the ship via Tuk Tuk for duty.
I fell in love with the people and their food, and I can easily see why my grandfather loved it here. The hotel & resort we stayed at is called the Royal Olberoi.
Here's to finding Zen on your remote Pacific island.
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