One of the better stories ever told

JO tour rotations...

2010-02-26T00:59:00.000-08:00

Milestones of a Junior Officer's Career:

1. Finding out what boat/port he got. Can be as sweet as hardpack and chocolate chip cookies, or as bitter (and sour) as the navy's version of collard greens and that trash malt vinegar we have in the wardroom.
2. Getting your fish
3. PNEO. The promise land. Succeed gloriously or fail miserably and endure the few options you have, all of them painful and humiliating. Classic submarine force style.
4. Playing the slate!

Due to some training pipeline issues, the JO supply to the fleet was inconsistent, and caused some hiccups in rotation times, tour lengths, etc. etc. This resulted in some hate and discontent (i.e. sea tours that were anywhere from 40-46 months) by many a JO. Now, mention this to a senior officer, and of course you'll get the "RAMBLE RAMBLE back in MY day, JO tours were 45 months STANDARD and we did it UPHILL and in the SNOW, RAMBLE RAMBLE. JO tour's need to be longer so that JO's can learn the ship better, RAMBLE RAMBLE."

My reply to that is: go f-yourself. Back in the day, submarines were way freakin sweeter, with much less admin, red tape, politics, and general pussy-footing. Back in the day, you CPA'd closer, turned harder, and pulled into sweet ass ports like Thailand, India, France, Spain, Norway, etc., on a regular basis. Now, it's almost as if one boat per squadron gets that squadron's quota of "sweet port call." Obviously, it's budgeting, but either way, I know how it affects the life of a submariner.

So end tangent/rant. Back to the slate. Apparently, the PERS42 dude has a twitter page. That's freakin lame. I looked at it, and it might as well have updates such as "totally ate two hotdogs today for lunch - considering a third tomorrow" or "sorry I haven't gotten to your emails, because honestly, I didn't want this job either - my detailer screwed me! LOL!"
They should invest in a webpage that tracks, in real time, the size of the bonejob that the JO playing the slate is about to get.

http://twitter.com/PERS421C

Regardless of the issues with playing the slate, the real issue at hand is the way that CO's can control your tour length, and totally throw your life off track. This remains to be seen with my career, however seeing the direct affect of such puppeteering on other JO's left a sour taste in my mouth, and a sinking feeling when I think about the end of my sea tour (spoken: no end in sight).

SUB IC joke:
A guy walks into a bar, and spots a hot blond. She's surrounded by her dickhating girlfriends.
She makes clear advances towards him, but he doesn't know what to do.
She says: "I'll do anything you want, but you have to say right here, right now"
He says: " I want you to close me"

Terrible joke. Terrible...

The RETURN

2010-02-23T00:13:00.000-08:00

I'm back, from a long hiatus. Unplanned, but not undeserved. Not in any sort of chronological order:
I have now under my belt:
1. Fish (for a while now)
2. A deployment
3. May more collateral duties than I ever expected to get
4. A squad of NUBS below me that my CoC expect me to train (uh oh...)
5. Months of local ops experience, including a long SCC ops underway. Yes, if you have ever been a SCC student, this goes to you: I HATE SCC OPS. Nonetheless, I still got to do tons of stuff as a submariner, JO, and OOD.

I am nearing the 'promise-land' break that every JO gets, and if they're stupid, get's twice. Yes, PNEO.

I won't post any statuses on that as to not jinx myself.

In other news, I have done a lot of thinking of what I like and do not like about the sub force, and how that has affected my clear and unwavering decision with my career path (i.e. to stay in or get out). I have already decided, but will hold the results, for suspense's sake, and again as to not jinx myself.

Quick recap of deployment:
Saw a few ports, not as many as I'd like - one stood out the most. To maintain the anonymity, I will not mention the port, but it was very international and awesome. Will descibe in detail later.
Stood a ton of watch back aft (bleh) and saw my CO flip out way too many times. Luckily, he's gone and morale has sky rocketed.
I am saving a great post about my old CO for later... Muhaha...

Recently:
I've anchored a 688. Who's done that? Not many, to be honest. Any especially not many JO's. I've anchored small pleasure craft numerous times, and this was nothing like that. I actually hope to never do it again.

I'll end this post with a love/hate about subs:
LOVE/HATE: watching a full moon through the scope at night - the detail you can see is actually amazing / being at PD at night for your whole watch, and continuous search, with no contacts.

FAIL

2009-03-23T15:10:00.000-07:00

Obviously everyone's heard the news. This isn't a "hot off the press post," but more of a "how the hell could this have happened, what are you the USS San Fransisco, the CO is so fired he might as well be a FSA (aka cranks), thank god no one died" type of post.

Though it may seem I am making light of the situation, this is very serious. I genuinely empathize with the crew of the Hartford. Despite what happened, they saved the ship and no one died.

Yeah... That's gonna need a WAF.
*zing*!

Still Alive

2009-02-11T00:38:00.001-08:00

Since my last post I've been:
-Out to sea a bunch (fast attack tough)
-Standing an inordinate amount of watch and duty
-Getting punched in the dick
-Scrambling to get my fish

As it stands, I should be getting them pretty soon - definitely before deployment.

Probably one of the most influential Americans ever:

Obviously, much has transpired since August. Off the top of my head:

1. We have a new president! I wish him the best and hope that he can find a true balance for America in the 21st century.
2. A sailor on the USS Nevada died after getting his leg caught in a rudder ram. Never been on a boomer, but apparently there's a lot of space back there.
3. The USS Port Royal (CG 73) ran aground outside of Pearl Harbor and was stuck there for about 4 days. The latest news reports that their CO so fired, he's now an Ensign at an Antarctic research lab.
4. We're b*llz deep in a recession, nay, dare I say, a depression. I am reminded daily of the stark irony of my lack of job satisfaction and the smug comfort of my job security.
5. I'm sure I've missed many other landmark events - until next time.

Fair Winds, and Following Seas...

Here we go again

2008-08-01T17:37:00.000-07:00

My recent bear poem was just for fun. This is a real story. Well not really. It's a story because people will flip out due to their ignorance.

U.S. sub leaked radioactive water, possibly for months (CNN)

Holy radioactive blue balls batman. The USS Houston, SSN-713, was found to have a valve cap that was filled with 'radioactive water.' The "build-up of leaking water popped a covered valve and poured onto a sailor's leg while the submarine was in dry dock."
The sailor now has cancer, aids, herpes, and a really bad cough. The first was probably from smoking, and the last three, from partying too much. All joking aside, I'm really curious to find out the details of this story. Key word: DETAILS. Not the 'truth,' because the TRUTH is that extremely pure primary water with negligible curie content leaked out, as the submarine "traveled around the Pacific to pots in Guam, Japan, and Hawaii."
"The total amount leaked while the sub was in port in Guam, Japan and Hawaii was less than a half of a microcurie (0.0000005 curies), or less than what is found in a 50-pound bag of lawn and garden fertilizer."

This quantity of radiation is beyond negligible. Again, another case of sensationalized anti-nuclear propaganda. Nuclear power doesn't kill people - lack of shielding does. HA!
More to follow on this topic, after I talk to my INSIDE SOURCES.

On a completely unrelated topic, I've been getting into aquariums, and I just got my first fish! See below for pic:

An ode to a bear past

2008-07-30T21:04:00.000-07:00

My posting frequency has risen as of late,

For our wild friend has suffered a tragic fate [LINK]

A creature savage,

And fierce at times,

Was a victim of neglect and rubbish,

Such senseless crimes.

This bear unnamed,
Whose mother had cherished,
Was living untamed,
And too early perished.

We'll never know,
The fauna he befriended,
Again he'll never go,
To the bear parties he attended.

Possible he was searching,
For a morsel to woo,
A coy she-bear perching,
At a ledge to coo.

Stumbled into a jar,
Of human origin,
He wandered a far,
Losing strength within.

The police discounted,
The plight of this yogi,
Their bullets they counted,
As he wandered so lonely.

With lead and fire,
Ursidae dispatched,
In a jar still mired,
His fur was no match.

Before you throw trash,
Forget not this beast,
When our worlds clash,
Theirs do cease.

Remembering the unnamed bear (1997 - 2008):

Baby bear's first tree climb (1998)

High School Graduation (2005)

Bear with childhood friend, Bambi

Head caught in a jar

We'll Miss You

FRESH NUCLEAR ACCIDENT!

2008-07-23T23:16:00.000-07:00

BREAKING NEWS: NUCLEAR ACCIDENT IN FRANCE!

HOLY CRAP (article link)

Ya'll better hide your kids!!!!

Seriously though, the media's (and therefore PUBLIC) perception of nuclear power is ridiculous. I (and probably many in the nuclear field) am pretty tired of the sensationalist yellow journalism that surrounds nuclear power. Much like sharks, the Bermuda Triangle, and Michael Jackson's true alien identity, it is a sorely misunderstood topic. US Nuclear power deaths since it's inception: 0. Russian nuclear power related deaths since it's inception: a bunch, but Russians have had a reputation for not caring about human lives anyway, so honestly, it doesn't really count. Chernobyl (for those who are familiar with it) was due to severe operator error and a NON-fail-safe design, which is just SILLY. See below for depiction of Russian's and their design principles:
Anyway, back to the original article:
"About 100 staff at a nuclear plant in southern France have been exposed to a low dose of radiation, power firm Electricite de France (EDF) says."
"Seventy of them show low traces of radioelements, below one 40th of the authorised limit," EDF said, adding that the incident would not affect people's health or the environment."

Apparently, workers were exposed during maintenance. Possible scenario: Pressurized system, partially isolated for maintenance, error in establishing barrier criteria (whatever theirs are), and poof, some liquid spray (which is the most likely method of activity going airborne in this case). Some air particulate detector alarmed, and people ran out. They recieved 1/40th!! Without using any absurd analogies, I will simply say that recieving 1/40th of your authorized dose is insignificant. Dose bases are calculated are with extremely conservative methods, incorporating stochastic and deterministic results of worst case radiation exposure with a 100% dose rate. Bottom line: 1/40th of a conservative dose limit is a pittance.

RADIATION IS DANGEROUS! People cry. Oh yeah? Well so are you. Anyone who says nuclear power is dangerous because radiation is dangerous is a silly goose (see previous picture). Let's put it this way:
1. If you are overweight, you are dangerous. And a drain on society. Food made you overweight, so food is dangerous. Let's not eat anymore. Millions of Americans will die from obesity related illnesses (heart disease, diabetes, etc) this year. 0 will die from radiation exposure. Radiation will generate thousands of gigawatts across America. Fat people will generate millions of tons of poop.
2. If you smoke (at all) or drink (in excess, and/or have driven under the influence), you are dangerous. You are a drain on society. You endanger yourself and those around you every time you smoke and/or drink. Cancer deaths from cigarettes infinitely (mathematically true) outnumber deaths from nuclear reactor accidents. Furthermore, cigarettes aren't that cool. What's cool is a 2000 Mw reactor plant busting out more juice than you can suck up with useless flat panel televisions.
3. If you purchase electricity from a coal burning power plant (knowingly or unknowingly), you are directly causing the output of millions of tons of carcinogens into the environment that have been scientifically proven to result in thousands of deaths across the country. Baby killer!
4. If you read the Da Vinci code, and thought it was a good book, then you are an idiot.

[None of the above points have cited statistics, due to the blatant truths behind them]

If you do not fall into any of the above categories, than you can have a logically sustainable position against nuclear power and it's dangers. Otherwise, you are an American killing, Apple Pie hating, flag burning communist, and have no right to purport the dangers of nuclear power when you are part of the problem.

Fear not the unknown, but your inability to get off your butt, turn off the TV, and go PT.

Fair winds and Following Seas

Ruff Ryder

2008-07-21T22:57:00.000-07:00

The best part of my day is on my bike. I've been riding to/from work pretty consistently for a couple of months now. I'm slowly becoming the "rides a 10 speed everywhere guy," as featured in the hit animated series "Family Guy."

I had a fender attached to my bike for a while, and finally took it off because it was detrimental to mounting my rear safety light - plus it's been dry for weeks. But of course, one day after work, it pours. I mean, dumps. So I rode home in my first rain ride, without a fender, and all that tasty oily, muddy, hepatitis filled gutter water splashing onto my back from my rear tire, and splashing into my face from my front tire.
Even then, it was refreshing, fun, and a great way to stay in shape.
------
Tricia: Tom, residents all over Quahog have been effected by the heavy rains. Although some are doing their best to ride it out. For example, I'm standing here with 'rides a ten speed everywhere' guy. Sir, why are you riding your ten speed in the rain?
Rides A Ten Speed Everywhere Guy: I don't mind, a little drizzle never hurt anybody. I like riding the ten speed because it's fun it gives me energy and it's a great way to stay in shape.
Tricia: What do you do for a living?
Rides A Ten Speed Everywhere Guy: I work at accounts receivable at Quahog Insurance, it's not to demanding, the pay is good and it's a great way to stay in shape.
Tricia: Well we should wrap this up, you're getting wet.
Rides A Ten Speed Everywhere Guy: Well I'm living life before the cancer I have kills me so I don't mind the rain. The water feels good on my skin, it's cool refreshing and it's a great way to stay in shape.
Tricia: What kind of cancer?
Rides A Ten Speed Everywhere Guy: It's rectal cancer, it's slowly eating away at my lower insides. It's a quick process, both painful and untreatable and it's a great way to stay in shape.
-----------

I've seen some funny stuff having ridden hundreds of miles on the locals roads here. I actually hit a bird a month ago, which was gross. It wasn't badly injured, but I'm sure it sprayed bird flu all over me. I used to take a bike path that paralleled a main road, but later found out that the main road is faster, and safer, because the bike path is in disrepair, and has blind intersections. Plus, the bike path has a small colony of bums that live there. At 0615, on most mornings, this one long haired dude is always fishing with this old piece of yarn off the path, that runs over a small river. His cats are usually nearby. After changing my route to the main road, I no longer saw the guy, and didn't miss the stench of the hobo camp. However, the return trip of my new route takes me by these two old lady bums, who squat by this shrub every evening between 1700-1800. They creep me out, because it looks like they just laid a claymore or something.

There's also a lady bum fishing off the other side of the main road, visible on my return trip. I wonder if she knows that a fisherman bum is on the other side? Maybe they will meet one day, and fish together...
I've also seen more broken glass than you can shake a stick at. And I can shake a stick at a lot of things.

Work rave: [ERROR, INSUFFICIENT DATA]
Work rant: [ERROR, STACK OVERFLOW]

LOVE IT

2008-07-12T01:55:00.000-07:00

Kahlil Gibran, "The Prophet" - An overall mediocre text I thought, because it was all pretty obvious stuff. However certain portions had unique perspective. I frequently recall this quote while at work:

"The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain."

Rickover's nuclear knife carves my heart out on a daily basis. The funny thing is, it is not nuclear power, or submarining that deepens my "joy bowl." It is the daily interactions with over 120 people on board. There are at LEAST 30-40 people that you are forced to interact with on any given day. Out of that 35, how many are having a good day? Let's say 30. Those 5 that are having a bad day, steady state, are they cool or not? I would say 3 would be joe blow's, 1 would a generally positive person, and the fifth... Well, the fifth would be some bitter ass mofo. And this is being generous. Especially in port, and in any sort of upkeep, with poop hitting the fan, THERE WILL BE BLOOD.

The point is, that submarining is a people business, not just one of reactor safety, and approach and attack. I think many people forget that. Now, chicken or egg? Who was the first person to have a bad submarine day? I would probably say Rickover, who according to historical records administered the first nuclear spanking. And then, due to the nature of the average person to pass on the ass-chewing, whoever got spanked with Rickover's control rod shaped beat stick, subsequently chewed ass at the next level down. Decades later, we have bitter whiners everywhere. This is a mere identification of said problem, and does not come close to providing due diligence on the subject.

MOVING ON.

So we had a quick underway, which was fun. Doc prophetically warned the crew to take their vitamins and 'airborne' (a sham, I think), as everyone will catch a cold. I scoffed. A week later, I coughed. I quickly caught a cold, and was miserable for the last week of the underway, and at least a week into port. The cold was particularly pernicious because all the JO's slept about 3 hrs a night for a week straight due to all this watch manning biznazz.

I should be getting my EOOW/EDO board soon, after months of riling by the crew. Once qualified EOOW/EDO, I can stand back aft and receive more riling from the crew, for finally qualifying. Such is submarine life.

On a related note, we all got the "Order of the Ditch" certificate for crossing the Panama Canal. WOOT!

I've done my quick schpiel (sp?) on work life. Life outside of work is swell! I've met a lot of cool people even after only being here at my permanent duty station for less than 3 months. It's a weird thing, because I'm very excited about going on deployment (and having dolphins by then), and seeing awesome things, but I've never been gone for that long. Who knows what will happen to my house in that amount of time. Something Jumanji-esque? Will my friends remember me? Will my car drive itself away? Deployment is far away, so these are trivial musings anyway...

Quick book reviews:

Siddhartha, by Herman Hesse: Amazing! I went in, expecting a plain old novel, and came out unsure yet satisfied. Like a protein shake made with spoiled milk. If you like thinking, this book is for you. If you like non-thinking, avoid this book.

Old Man and the Sea, by Ernest Hemmingway: I actually got stressed out when the sharks were eating his fish. This was my first Hemmingway, and I think I'm a fan. I love his stark yet effective prose.

One Hundred Years of Solitude, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez: Holy crap, this won the Nobel Prize in Literature? Sure it was kinda fun to read, but I spent a lot of time doubting this fictional universe that Marquez created. Even more so, I thought the rampant incest was unnecessary. And all the cool characters kept dying. Overall, an annoying book.

Rock Climbing Anchors, by Mountaineer's Outdoor Expert Series: Ironically, there aren't many climbable rocks in my parts now - but I still yearn for the stone.

In the suck

2008-05-10T00:28:00.000-07:00

HOORAH.

Wrong service, wrong geographic location, similar gas masks. I am in the suck. I am in the thick of quals, 3-section Engineering Duty Officer under instruction watches, because that's how my boat rolls, to which I say:
Welcome to the US Navy. Despite all of this, I am standing fast, and have no plans to self immolate in protest. I am saving that one for later. I recently obtained a division, which is a key part of a JO's career. I am becoming very familiar with how our boat operates day to day, week to week, and in the long term as well. The current state of morale on the boat is tenuous, for many reasons, and a frequent term is "getting humped in the face."
I am also learning the different leadership styles of Dept. Heads and above, for better or for worse. Every day, I face new challenges in dealing with my sailors, chiefs, and bosses. While frustrating, I am trying to keep everything in perspective and realize that this is one of the most invaluable experiences in ones life. This is a quote that I frequently recall when facing adversity :

“We learn wisdom from failure much more than from success. We often discover what will do, by finding out what will not do; and probably he who never made a mistake never made a discovery.” - Samuel Smiles, Scottish Author.

This is one of my favorite quotations of late, as it truly speaks to the foundations of a positive, successful attitude.

I am still in the phase of watching/listening/learning, and formulating my leadership style, with which I hope to make an impact in my fellow shipmates lives. I say shipmates because leadership is not Reaganomics. Leadership is like a light bulb. It illuminates in all directions. Placing a lampshade on the light bulb, to direct that light, a self limiting belief. It degrades that light of leadership into the glow of management. This statement rests on an assumption of what leadership is. Everyone has their definition for leadership, and I have come to find that most people are correct in their definition. Leadership is not a simple noun. It is an attitude, a philosophy, and a living thing.
A simple definition of leadership that can be put into practice by ANYONE is as follows: -Leadership is inspiration and motivation. It is persuasion. It is moving the hearts, then minds, of people around you-
My hopes is that I will be able to eventually convey this to my junior sailors, and apathetic senior ones, and show them that change starts with oneself.

END SERIOUS TOPIC

I have been riding my bicycle to work, which is a dream. I love bicycles, and I love not using my car. On duty days I usually end up driving because of an early turnover time, but I get back at the command by standing topside and looking at fish that come up to the side of the boat. HAH.

Being out to sea actually has its benefits over being in port.
Sea:
PRO
1. Berthing is always dark. That means if you don't have anything going on, RACK TIME.
2. Shift work. That means you don't see everyone all the time. This means less whining, oversight, etc.
3. Berthing is always dark! Seriously, this is key folks. Rack time, all the time. Being at sea, you get woken up all the f-ing time, so if you get 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep, you should probably bake yourself a congratulatory cake. The usual routine is: Get off watch, do other work, go to bed, get woken up 3 hours into it, give wake up guy the evil eye, go back to sleep, get woken up again 2 hours later, for good this time, because you have to go back on watch. Repeat for weeks on end.
CON:
1. You're out to sea.

In port:
PRO
1. You get to go home and sleep in your own bed.
2. You can get real exercise.
3. Real food.
4. Women.
5. The Internet.

CON:
1. Duty days.
2. Officer/LPO Call
3. Seeing your CO all the time
4. Missing all daylight hours due to being at work.

That's enough for now, I have duty tomorrow. I will end with this:

Jondakine: The thing is, Bob, it's not that I'm lazy, it's that I just don't care.
Bob Porter: Don't... don't care?
Jondakine: It's a problem of motivation, all right? Now if I work my ass off and the US Navy kills a few extra terrorists, I don't see another dime; so where's the motivation? And here's something else, Bob: I have eight different bosses right now.
Bob Slydell: I beg your pardon?
Jondakine: EIGHT bosses.
Bob Slydell: Eight?
Jondakine: Eight, Bob. So that means that when I make a mistake, I have eight different people coming by to tell me about it. That's my only real motivation is not to be hassled; that, and the fear of losing my job. But you know, Bob, that will only make someone work just hard enough not to get fired.

Dashed hopes, and counterfeit components

2008-04-10T20:37:00.000-07:00

Two part entry. Part 'un':

Some thoughts on the realities of my naval career:

Things that I won't do, that I would like to do:
1. Set condition 1-SQ: for strategic missile launch (for boomer ***'s only)
2. Fight for the missile key
3. Violate the hard-deck
4. Getting to close for missiles, forcing me to switch to guns
5. Participate in a fence line shooting
6. Ride into work in a Huey blasting "Ride of the Valkyries"

Things that I have done or will do:
1. Smoke cigars on the bridge of a 688
2. Get racked out for stupid shit
3. Shoot tomahawks in the name of the US economy
4. Pull ups in the engine room

Things that I am glad I won't ever do:
1. Die of lactic acidosis because someone shoved a rag in my mouth
2. Stand there in my 'faggoty white uniform' and show a marine colonel some disrespect
3. Enter into an unrecoverable spin due to interruption of airflow by jetwash
4. Play beach volleyball in jeans... Seriously, who the hell does that. Only in a movie...

Part deux:

"Watch for Counterfeit Parts, NRC Reminds Operators, Applicants"
article link

Apparently there have been inadvertent purchases of counterfeit reactor plant parts. Supposedly this can result in safety and security issues. I don't feel like talking about the heavy nature of nuclear power, so all seriousness aside, this is pretty damn funny.

So here are some questions to ask yourself while operating:
1. Is that a genuine Coach® EOOW Chair you're sitting in?
2. Before your reactor operator starts shimming like it's going out of style, are you sure that the shim switch is truly a Prada® shim switch, as specified by the RPM?
3. Don't settle for generic Reactor Coolant Pumps, make sure you have the top of the line Bergdorf and Goodman Reactor Coolant pumps.
4. Finally, check out the new RPM's with genuine Moleskine® covers

Don't settle for anything less. You're gonna love the way you shim. I guarantee it®.

A taste of salt

2008-04-07T20:21:00.001-07:00

I'm finally back in my homeport, after a few weeks out at sea. I met my boat thousands of miles away, and rode her back. It was a good "first sea time" experience. Despite some bitterness from an extended shipyard period, everyone was excited to be underway. As much as I would like to say that the excitement was due to being operational again, it was probably more so due to the crew's desire to see their families. We hauled ass to get to where we were going, only really slowing to go through THE ditch. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, that is our good ship, transiting the locks.
We ended up in a different ocean within 12 hours. I was quite excited to cross the canal, however once actually IN the canal, the ordeal was decidedly less enthralling than expected. We got to go topside, and it was hot, muggy, and cloudy. The water looked gross, and during the Gaillard cut, all you could see was impenetrable jungle, likely rife with drug runners and booby traps.
The highlight of the canal crossing was seeing the Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, tending the lines for the locks:

I was honored, that a level headed, compassionate statesman like Chavez would practice servant leadership and row the steel mooring lines to our boat. Gracias Senior, Gracias...

After the ditch, we did a quick stop in another port for 48 hours of business, and then finally, home. When we heard the distinctive echolocation call of minke whales, we knew we were close (obviously far more precise and direct methods of determining our position in the world exist on a US Attack Submarine, however they remove the romanticism of seafaring).

It is interesting to note how novel things become significantly less exciting when you're busy, locked in a steel tube, and lacking on sleep.

What I thought was cool for the first week:
1. The periscopes
2. Water slugs
3. The engine room
4. Wardroom meals
What I tried to avoid by the third week:
1. The periscopes
2. Water slugs
3. The engine room
4. Wardroom meals

Obviously, the above mentioned are part of my daily existence as a JO, so I 100% failed in avoiding those four things. But I can say that in the back of my head, I was trying. All in all, I'm still quite positive about the whole experience, but had to add just a little bit of nuke cynicism in there. If you ever read a personal account of submarine life that doesn't have cynicism in it, it is probably made up.

Fair winds, and uncontaminated seas

A review of Naval Base gyms

2008-03-11T01:05:00.000-07:00

It is time that I discuss the gyms I have frequented at Navy bases across the country:

Thanks to the Navy and its fitness facilities, I now look very similar to Arnie.
1. Charleston, S.C. : Naval Weapons Station Goose Creek is home to at least 3 fitness facilities. -Sam's gym is the main one. It has slightly old weight equipment, although perfectly functional. The locker room is OK. The shower stalls have a tendency to flood... There are also racquetball courts and a basketball court. The worst part of the gym is definitely the hours. Definitely more closed than open!
-The Bowman center, which is right outside of the power school building on base, actually has a newer, cleaner facility. The weights are also slightly old, but the locker rooms are very new and nice! Plus it's a 5 min trip from power school so you can get in a legitimate work out at lunch. I attribute this gym for helping me maintain my sanity and 25'' biceps during power school.
-The barge gym, at prototype, down the road. Gross. They have newish cardio equipment, but cardio should be done outside on the pavement, not in a room. The barge is obviously a floating pile of s***t so you can imagine the locker room.

2. Groton, CT: Submarine Base New London is one of the oldest Naval bases in the country, having been built in 1872. There are two fitness facilities here, both in older brick buildings.
-Morton Hall Gymnasium: A true "gymnasium" it has 4 full sized basketball courts, and a raised indoor track (7.5 laps = 1 mile). There is a portion cordoned off for weights and cardio equipment. The lifting equipment there is actually quite new and nice! The funny thing is they have tons of machines except this one:

What the heck? Who doesn't have an ab bench? The locker rooms here though are the biggest complaint. The lockers themselves are coin operated. LAME. Then the shower is a huge prison shower. Next.
-Body Works fitness center: With a name like that, it's got to be filled with beautiful women and luxurious amenities. Then you remember that you're in the navy and that there will be no women and you can maybe hope for decent amenities. Well, there are decent amenities! This location is a cardio heavy location, and has mostly weight machines. There are 3 racks of free weights, but no bench!! There is a cable assisted tower for squats and such, but those are for commies anyway. You can still do a whole bicep + ab workout here, and even a leg workout if you are willing to use the commie tower. The locker room is the best part. When you give them your military ID, the give you a towel and a locker with a key! The showers are funny: there are 3 stalls, in a row. You can tell that they hooked up the heads in series because the first one gets to a certain temp, and the rest can't get as hot. Haha! That being said, always grab the one on the right.

3. My current home port gym: I shall leave my homeport a mystery for now, but I will say that the equipment there is old, some of it like the Charleston gym, much of it even older. Being that it's a pretty populous port, it gets use by many more people than in Charleston or Groton facilities. The locker room was also not as nice as Groton. As happy as I was to leave 20 degree weather, the gyms sure were nice...

I finished packing my sea bag today, as I will be heading out for a while. I'm disappointed that I can't get to know my new homeport for a little longer, however I signed up to go to sea and am very excited to get out there! I even got my submarine glasses and submarine bowler hat. Take a look:

Fair winds and Following Seas!

SECURITE! SECURITE!

2008-02-28T16:09:00.000-08:00

My entries during my stay at Submarine Officer Basic Course (SOBC) have been sparse, with good reason. With a copious amount of free time on my hands, I would rather work out, read, sleep, and travel on the weekends. As such, I spent most of my spare time working out, reading, and traveling. Sleep was squeezed in on train and car rides.

SOBC was a great time, we still had to work, however compared to power school and prototype, it paled in comparison. This is how the Navy tricks you. Horrible working hours are made the norm, and then when they give you a 9 to 5, suddenly you become grateful and forget about all the hard times. Great strategy I have to say.

Let me recap a few of my trips and escapades while here at SOBC:

New York City: 4 trips, lots of eating out, nightlife, museums (the MET, MOMA), and musicals (Avenue Q). I tried walking as much as possible and over the 4 trips, covered everywhere from downtown (to see the WTC site, check that box) to the Met, all the way uptown around 82nd. NYC is a great city, and I would love to continue visiting: I'm not sure if I could make a life there, it's a freaking zoo.

Boston: 2 trips. It's actually a very small town, and in my opinion, with not much to do. I saw everything I needed to see in two trips, and left with the sound of belligerent drivers ringing in my ear.

Newport RI: 1 trip, stayed at a friend's place, who is from Newport. I got there at dark, and left in the morning, so I didn't see much, but it was fun for the 18 hours I was there. Also, the winter season doesn't seem to lend itself to be a bustling town.

New Haven: Hung out at Yale once, but also made 5-6 more trips, to the climbing gym there, trying to get back into my climbing grove. Lots of fun.

Skiing/Boarding: Went up to some small mountain in MA. I skied and tried boarding for the first time, and did quite well.

I was kept quite busy, and to be honest, am ready to work!

Of course there has been other things going on, i.e. national and world news!

One day was particularly a blockbuster news day:
19 FEB 08, Fidel Castro announced his resignation as the president of Cuba! Almost surreal. What will be the effect? Honestly, I'm not really that interested, because there are bigger problems out there.
That same day (plus or minus a few), Blu Ray was declared the victor in the epic Blu Ray v HD DVD battle. The world has not seen such blood shed since the VHS v Betamax battle of the 80's. In the recent war, Toshiba ceded to Sony after several major Hollywood studios, who were on the fence, ran to Blu Ray. Ironically, Sony LOST the battle in the 80s as Betamax was their proprietary standard, and VHS was JVC's.

There are a few other on going stories that affect every American.
1. The recession. No one wants to use that term, but we ARE in one. A recession "is a slowdown in a country's gross domestic product (GDP), or negative real economic growth, for two or more successive quarters of a year." (thanks wikipedia)
Done. So now that's out of the way, are we in a depression? I think we're headed for one. You can see it everywhere. Housing continuing its slide like a sorority girl in a jello wrestling match. The stock market is stuttering in the downward direction. And this is some bad luck right here:
A few days ago, the dollar hit its ALL TIME LOW against the Euro, while on the very same day, Oil hit its ALL TIME HIGH of over $102 a barrel. HOLY COW, is anyone worried? Well I am only sort of, because I have a secure job, and in fact, we just got a navy wide pay raise this year. However, I'm worried for my fellow Americans.
2. The presidential primaries: Well, McCain's got the republican nomination secured, while Obama and Hilary are duking it out, alternating between periods of peaceful, positive dialogue, and shin breaking swipes. As Obama slowly edges ahead, I am realizing that this is the first presidential election that I'm looking forward to, because I like both Obama and McCain. Now, you may wonder, why is the possibility of indecision a good thing? Well because either way, I'll be happy with the election results.

You have McCain, a liberal-ish conservative and a former naval officer + POW (street cred!), and Obama, a man who has inspired America in a way not seen since JFK. You can't lose!

[image credited to their respective owners: not me!]

As I head off to my boat, I bid the Northeast fair winds and following seas!

Two girls one sub

2007-12-24T22:40:00.001-08:00

With the viral video rage these days, I'm thinking of releasing a short I've been working on. It involves two girls, taking turns sampling the primary without procedure, permission, or anti-c's. They then take a swig of primary and then proceed to make pop-tarts in nucleonics. GROSS!

While you all wait for that amazing video to hit the streets, mull on my razor efficient movie reviews . With winter stand down, I have had a chance to catch up on my books and movies.

I'll start with the less satisfying of the two, movies:

1. I Now Pronounce you Chuck & Larry: Adam Sandler and that fat guy from "Hitch". Hilarious jokes with a solid plot, great message (don't hate!), and Jessica Biel. Two Periscopes up.

2. Rush Hour 3: Jackie Chan still throws furniture with his legs and Chris Tucker still won't shut the f up.

3. I am Legend: Movie peaked at the scene where he chased deer through the streets of NY. Too much zombie, not enough Fresh Prince. Plus a huge pie of religious allegory smashed into your face at the end. No thanks.

4. The Bourne Ultimatum: Bourne runs. Bourne kicks ass in hand to hand combat. He gets into a car, chase ensues. Repeat x5 = one full movie.

5. Live Free or Die Hard: John McClane drives a car into a helicopter. Love it.

Books:
1. "Blink" by Malcom Gladwell: Another great book by Gladwell, it examines the process of split second judgements. At first, it is hard to believe that one could write an entire book on this, but after reading it, one could write volumes on the topic. Much like his other book, "The Tipping Point," it delves into the underlying reasons for simple human behavior and interactions. Enlightening.

2. "Mind Gym: An Athlete's guide to Inner Excellence" by Gary Mack. I actually found this book on Amazon while clicking on one book, then clicking on "other customers bought," repeatedly, which eventually leads you to some completely unrelated book that you find interesting. This book is written at a fourth grade level, so that any "athlete" may understand. This actually made it hard for me to read. However, it still gave good tips on improving your performance in sports. After gleaning some tidbits in being "present minded" while playing your sport, I headed out to play a round with the pop's at the local course. I lost a ball at every hole, and at the ninth hole, I "presently hated golf." Thanks Mind Gym.

Fair winds and following sea's

Nuclear Winter

2007-12-11T16:37:00.000-08:00

My sacrifice was sufficient in the eyes of the gods, and I finished prototype, ahead of schedule, as our entire class got pushed out right before Thanksgiving. HOORAH!

After an overly restful leave period, I embarked to SOBC. For those in the know, it is effectively the calm between the storms for a JO. Yes, still a training command, still studying, etc., however it is RADIATION FREE. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, NO dosimetry required!
It is a true winter here in SOBC, and I am freezing, as my genteel skin, accustomed to the year round arid and warm climate of my hometown, is not prepared for this. I hope that I will make it out of here, and to my boat, whether she likes it or not!

Fair winds, and Freezing seas!

And the Lord said, let there be hell

2007-10-11T16:22:00.000-07:00

In the beginning, God created the surface ship and the airplane. And all was good.
On the second day, he created Rickover. And Rickover said, let there be neutrons.
And here I am.

Prototype is one huge pain train, but it's all for the better. As a masochist, I manage to keep in sight the invaluable lessons learned from rotating shift work, inevitable double standards, ephemeral scheduling, and infinite red tape.

So far I have escaped 'plus hours', some steam leak by, and malaria from living in the "low country" as they call it down here.

It certainly is low on:
- The amount of good drivers
- Culture
- Egalitarianism
- Good drivers
- The much touted 'red drum,' a regional croaker species.

There is plenty of:
- Really really bad drivers
- Swamp stench
- Paper factory stench
- Bad driver stench
- Blue crab

Only a few more months to go, we finish on Thanksgiving. I will then be giving much thanks for having gone through and COMPLETED prototype on an S5W.

Oh and of course, there are no more S5W's in the fleet.

Tuna Salad, Nuke style

2007-09-23T18:30:00.000-07:00

Hello Shipmates!
Do you love procedure?
Do you circle x when you read the morning paper?

If so, this recipe is for you!

So get your grease pencil and your warm up your "point - read - operate" hand, because you're in for a treat!

How to make a great Tuna pasta salad, perfect for lunch at work, a picnic, or a snack:

For the remainder of this discussion, refer to the following table for reference guides:
KDOP: Kitchen Department Operating Procedures
KDCP: Kitchen Department Casualty Procedures
KPM: Kitchen Plant Manual
-Vol. 1: Systems
-Vol. 2:
-Book 1: Operating Instructions
-Book 2: Operating Procedures
-Book 3: Casualty Procedures
SPILLCON: Spill Control for Kitchens
Ing Chem Manual: Ingredient Chemistry for Kitchen Plants

GO!
This is your last piece of informal guidance; begin by using KDOP - 2, table 22: Tuna Salad.

KDOP - 2, Table 22:
1. Gather all ingredients:
a. 1 Can of Albacore tuna, 1 stick of celery, 1 tbsp of Onion, one cup of Farfalle pasta, salt, black pepper, 2 tbsp's of light mayonnaise, 1 tsp of lemon juice, half of an avocado.
b. Observe all expiration dates and packaging requirements per (Ing Chem Manual). Do not use expired ingredients.
c. Place on Kitchen counter, per KPM, Vol. 2, Book 1, OI 6.2: Kitchen Counter
2. Boil water using a class B, type II receptacle.
a. Fill receptacle per KPM, Vol. 2, Book 1, OI 10.1: Filling a pot, and condition water per Ing Chem Manual.
b. Boil water, per KPM, Vol. 2, Book 2, OP A.1, Gas Range Startup, and perform a normal Gas Range Startup
i. Refer to KPM, Vol. 1, Book 1, OI 12.1, Operating the Gas Range
c. Monitor water per KPM, Vol. 2, Book 2, OP B.2, Steady State Heat Operations, and add pasta when the prerequisites of the following references are met:
i. Ing Chem Manual, 533.3: Indications of a Wet Vapor
ii. KPM, Vol. 2, Book 1, OI 9.2, Adding ingredients to a Wet Vapor
d. Remove the pasta upon completion, according to article 440, Ing Chem Manual.
3. Chop and dice the celery, cilantro, and avocado, per reference KPM OI 15.1: Knife Operations.
a. Pare the ingredients as follow:
i. Celery & Avocado: .25 x .25 in.
ii. Cilantro: Finely chopped (see Ing Chem Manual for chopping guidelines)
4. If any spills occur, refer to SPILLCON.
5. If any burns (thermal or chemical), lacerations, punctures, during the procedure, refer to KDCP.
6. Combine all prepared ingredients in a OSHA approved bowl, and mix, as per OI 19.2: Mixing in medium to large bowls. Add Mayonnaise, Lemon Juice, and pinch of salt and pepper (see Ing Chem Manual for pinch guidelines)
7. Transfer to a non-porous storage container, meeting guidelines of Ing Chem Manual article 800: Perishable Food Storage
8. Clean up the kitchen, per KDCP - 2, Table 18: Kitchen Cleanup
9. Enjoy at any time, don't forget to wash your hands!

(Note: your tuna salad will in no way look or taste like
the professionally made one above
- photo credit: not me)

The Dog Days of Prototype

2007-08-25T20:40:00.001-07:00

Some recent notable events:

1. We have finished one full cycle of shifts. The most notable was the swings to mids shift, where we got off work at 2330 (11:30PM for you scrubs out there) and commenced partying till 8 am in order to adjust to the midnight shift (1900 - 0700).
Quick breakdown:
2330: Get off work, go change out of our smelly coveralls
2400: Our crew meets up at a local wings/sports bar. We had a buttload of wings and some beers. We ordered the "china syndrome" and "chernobyl" flavored ones, and sat with bated breath.
We briefed the procedure, checked our dosimetry, and established communications. The wings arrived, and we dug in, eagerly hoping to exceed our yearly exposure limit so that they would tell us that we couldn't come into work anymore.
Needless to say, we received more exposure from the radon gas that was baked into the wings, and went to work a few days later.
0100: We went to an after hours establishment and spent about an hour grabbing a beer or two. For some reason, all of Charleston closes down after 12pm on Monday nights. Ridiculous!
0200: Our entire crew assembled back at our house to begin imbibing with no repercussions. Instruments were collected, and the house began to fill with the sounds of 2 djembe's, 2 didgeridoo's, a guitar, and some horrible singing.
0330: A crewmate and myself walked over to the dock to do a little night fishing. Results: one croaker, which was grudgingly tossed back into the briny deep.
0530: Return to the house, to find half the crew passed out on the couches. We grabbed some more beers, and headed out back to the dock to watch the sunrise.
0700: Breakfast: we grilled up some steaks, eggs, and I made chocolate chip pancakes. A grand time was had by the 4 remaining awake members of our crew.
0800: End mid's party. We are officially shifted over!

2. A grandmother gives her grandson a gift. The gift of red lobster. A shipmate of mine received a gift certificate to red lobster from his grandmother, for five-zero dollars. Naturally, he wanted to share this gift with his colleagues. So thus four Naval Officers embarked on a journey to consume epic amounts of trans fats and triple fried shrimp.

1900: We pile in the car, morale was high.
1930: We are lost. In North Charleston nonetheless. It is dark, and the streets are poorly labeled. I think I heard a gunshot.
1940: With the help of my blackberry, I guide us to the eatery. We have arrived at the seafood feeding trough of America.
1950: We put our names down, for 4. 10 min wait she says. TEN minutes? Are you serious? At a flippin' red lobster? I don't wait for subcritical multiplication, let alone the staff at a trashy seafood chain. Seat me now!
2000: We are seated. The host brings us three different menus each. One is the standard menu. The second is there "as seen on TV specials" (no shit, he said this), and the third was... I don't even know what the third was, but it was there. I quickly moved to coloring a kids menu.
2010: After much debate on how we wanted to increase our cholesterol levels, we all settled on what we wanted to eat.
Me: Choose your own feast, coconut shrimp + crab alfredo.
Shipmate1: Three shrimp platter
Shipmate2: Ultimate Feast
Shipmate3: Ultimate Feast. Copy cat.
Bottomless cheesy bread all around!
We also order lobster dip and calamari as appetizers.
2035: The food arrives. After about three bites, I have diabetes.
2100: Red Lobster was a bad choice.
We pay, and pour into the car, there are talks of making large head calls at home.
0010: As I write this, I realize that the waitress didn't bring us our freaking sides!!! I ordered a baked potato. I GOT JIPPED. Add THAT to the list of things I hate about red lobster.

That's all the chronological events for tonight...

Other frequent prototype activities have been: crabbing, sleeping, fishing, and sleeping. I haven't gotten my room 100% light proof for mids, but it's good enough.

I may go see the doctor next week for prescription to help with my newfound high cholesterol.

The Second Step

2007-06-14T19:43:00.000-07:00

In a Journey of a Thousand Miles. Power school has been completed! I got out just fine... I had a great 2 week vacation, visiting family and friends back at home, slept a LOT, and read loads of books that contained NO "topical guide objectives," or a table of specs. BITE ME!

BOOK REVIEWS:
I just finished Heinleins "Stranger in a Strange Land," supposedly one of the most famous science fiction novels ever. Very interesting. The ending left me wanting more, something more definitive. However, I think that was the point of the novel, in that "Michael Smith," the Martian, was trying to convey a sense of timelessness & lack of urgency in existence. Too bad I'm only an Earthling, and have to go to work everyday...

Also "The Tipping Point" by Malcom Gladwell. Excellent read, very enlightening. It gives insight into the nature of large scale human interaction. Not much more to be said on that, other than, highly recommended!

NAVY TALK:
Right now, we have started prototype, and it is a complete CLUSTER F**K. The class has a record # of people due to the Navy's infinite wisdom, therefore everything is harder to accomplish due to the crowds (anyone who knows about prototype can relate to this).
However, I'm getting that much closer to the boat, so I'm still excited. And I'm learning a ton of stuff every day.

The favorite outfit of RL DIV (not really):

NAVY NEWS:
I just saw the logo of the USS Hawaii's (SSN-776), a brank spanking new Virginia Class Submarine, the 3rd in its class. It was commissioned on 5 MAY 07, as the first commissioned US Navy vessel to be named after the aloha state. I love Hawaii, and I love submarines... We'll see where my destiny takes me.

Sweet logo huh!

Fair Winds & Following Seas

Halfway...

2007-03-03T12:53:00.000-08:00

I am officially halfway through officer nuclear power shool. Surprisingly, it has become much more manageable. I find myself less stressed out, and yet doing fine. I guess I'm finally adapting to the environment. I am enjoying myself as much as the I was the first day I got here, so that is also a plus.

I still think about Hawaii everyday, and getting to my submarine so I can do real navy things. This keeps me going while I'm here busy getting the foundations for my career.

I have been seeing the alligator a lot more lately, likely attributed to the warming weather and longer hours of sunlight.

I have also been dreaming about nuclear power much less these days. I haven't had a power school dream in a few weeks. *crosses fingers*

Fair Winds
and Following seas

Some signs that I'm studying too much

2007-01-04T19:10:00.000-08:00

And also that I may like what I'm doing...

I had a dream last night that I was designing a Cadmium based reactor. Haha!! I chose cadmium because it was more plentiful than uranium. Now, I have no idea if that is even true. I actually don't even know anything about Cadmium. I'm pretty sure it's non-radioactive. It could be comparable to making an Aluminum based reactor. What a weird thought.

In that same dream, I was stressed out at one point because my carbonic acid concentration was too high. WTF? Questions for myself: Where was this carbonic acid (H2CO3)?
Why was there too much?
What was I going to do??

All I remember was that the carbonic acid was dissociating in water to produce hydronium ions. I didn't include the fact that carbonic acid is polyprotic. I realized that upon waking up. Hahaha...

If you have read this far without yelling "DORK," outloud, then I thank you. If only you could understand...

If I keep having dreams like this, I will either:
1. Go crazy
Or
2. Invent something really cool (like a magnesium based squirrel poo reactor that auto corrects for carbonic acid concentrations) in my sleep and then go crazy

Fair winds and following seas

Happy Holidays - and bad news

2006-12-29T17:20:00.000-08:00

I'm home for my first real leave period. Class on Friday felt like high school, where everyone was restless right before vacation. As we got the top copy of our leave chits, and were released for our stand down period, everyone WALKED as fast as they could out of the building and into their vacation.
The first month of power school was great - it's nothing like I expected, but everything that I expected. By that I mean, I couldn't have imagined what or how I would learn, but I knew it would be insanely hard.
My weeks are 80 hrs at least. I wake up at 4am during the week, around 8 on Saturday (sleeping in by any means), and 7 on Sunday to get back into an early wake up schedule.
No further alligator sightings - it has gotten quite cold so he/she probably went into some warm winter cabin.
I've been making the most of my winter leave with:
sleeping
climbing (on REAL rock, finally!)
cycling
golfing (which I actually hate)
having friends visit (buddies from the east coast and west coast)
painting (and realizing how hard it is)

Before I know it, power school will be over, and I'll be at prototype, then my boat.

On a somber note, another accident involving a US Submarine has occurred:

Two U.S. sailors die after falling from submarine
POSTED: 1:04 p.m. EST, December 29, 2006

Apparently, a few sailors fell off in rough weather and two of them died as they were hanging off the deck in the water, periodically being drowned.
I mourn the loss of the two sailors, and am cringing at the impending fallout from this tragedy. Who's idea was it to put sailors on the deck in foul weather? Who will take responsibility?

Pour one out for the homies...

It's strange that all modern casualties on US Navy Submarines are non-nuclear; indicative to how safe nuclear power is (due to the vigilance of our sailors). However it also shows how dangerous a shipboard environment is.

Respect

Begin reactor start up sequence

2006-12-02T20:38:00.000-08:00

I just finished pre-nuclear power school, a 3 week course to bring individuals up to speed on math, physics, and heat transfer. The best part of PNPS was that it got be back into the studying tempo, which will help me keep up come Monday.

I graduate at the end of May 07.

So begins the rest of the next 6 months of my nuclear powered career.

I am truly looking forward to learning about nuclear power, and applying it to the world's impending (or some would argue, current) energy crisis, directly, or in the form of power systems in general.

Technology-wise, in order for the human race to progress, we need:
1. Clean, renewable, economically feasible power generation
2. Space exploration and colonization

The latter cannot be achieved without the first, so I'll get cracking!

Back to the topic of power school:

There is an alligator that lives in the front pond of the complex. I've seen him only once - he (or she?) is a decent size - about 5 feet long. There are also turtles that come out to sunbathe when the sun is out - nature watching is a welcome break from the rigors of this program.

More on the reptilian residents of Rickover pond to come!

Fair winds and following seas...

Road Trip To Charleston, SC

2006-11-22T18:57:00.000-08:00

I arrived in Charleston on 29 Nov, after a great road trip with great friends.

Here is a synopsis of the trip:
Departed San Diego on a Monday
Drove 19 hrs straight to Austin, TX, rotating between the 3 of us.
One of my buddies got a ticket for going 86 in an 85 zone in West Texas... :(

We spent 2 nights in Austin, seeing the nightlife, and daylife - their modern art museum was meager, but there were a lot of cool small galleries. The only downer was that it was raining the whole time. We paced a giant rainstorm all the way to New Orleans
We left the next morning to New Orleans, arriving in the afternoon - we went all out in New Orleans, staying at the Inn on Bourbon - a great location. We even got a balcony room.
New Orleans was a blast, and we left 2 nights later, to Atlanta.
The drive to Atlanta was pleasant, and we arrived on Saturday evening, spending the night there and leaving the next morning - the drive to Charleston took us through Augusta, where we had lunch at a great pit bbq place.
The road trip really gave me a perspective onto the rest on the country - as a native Californian that has travelled more internationally than domestically, I saw a lot of new things. Hardees is Carls. Jr?
I ate Sonic for the first time.
All the cities we drove through were new to me as well. Austin was a very college-y town. The French Quarter had a distinct smell - I'll just say it gave it "character." We stopped in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi for gas - we drove by 10 gas stations until we could find one that was open - the rest had been destroyed by a hurricane...

Charleston is a vastly different place than San Diego or Los Angeles - and I'm slowly acclimating myself. I'm getting a mixed experience as far as "Southern Hospitality" goes - a friend who had lived in the South told me that Southern Hospitality can sometimes mean two-faced. Fine by me, as long as I get served at Cracker Barrel! HAH!

I'm staying with a buddy right now, and am moving to my own place in downtown soon.

As planned, I'm beginning to see the world!

First post, First protest

2006-10-07T23:32:00.000-07:00

As of late, I have been attached to a local recruiting head quarters. We have a large coverage area and are at the height of recruiting season, as school has just started on college campuses. I work with the officer programs office, which means we recruit for officers - specifically on college campuses because officers are required to have college degrees.

Today was my second recruitment fair. It was quite a production, as the navy brought in marketing subcontractors to help out, and we had all sorts of stuff, including this giant inflatable navy balloon, shirts, hats, etc., free food, etc.

There were rumors of a planned protest. The rumors were true.

The protesters has signs such as "accelerate your death" (hehe kinda funny), "officers = soliders, officers kill people too!", and "does dropping bombs on kids sound like fun to you?"

The protesters were a mixture of men and women, but more women. A few of them were muslim - merely an observation, not any sort of correlational implication. All of the protesters were minorities, and predominantly latino. We were targeting latinos for officer programs that day with spanish language ads and so forth.

I ignored them for most of the day, however as the day went on, they became more belligerent and aggressive, finally standing right outside of our tent and screaming. A senior enlisted individual got into quite an argument, but no screaming took place on the navy side, which I am proud of.

I'm enjoying my short stint as a recruiter. It's directly supporting the Navy and it's goals, and in turn our nations interests.

To the foam.