Heading back to the home 20, just to get ready for another trip… BUT…
I’m taking a slight detour, going to meet up with Keads and get a little shooting in on the way back. Get a few frustrations out before I hit I-95 one more time…
But I did get a good dessert last night…
But a real Key Lime pie DOESN’T have meringue on it… sigh
I’m back in the South when I see this…
I’ve been a tad busy this week working on my place, so I’m sorry for the lack of comments and postings. Thankfully friends gave me a place to sleep and fed me, and pitched in to help me fix doors… Sigh…
If I EVER mention renting my place again, somebody just shoot me…
From an old friend via the mil-email string…
Occasionally, I venture back to NAS, Meridian, where I’m greeted by an
imposing security guard who looks carefully at my identification card, hands
it back and says, “Have a good day, Master Chief”.
Every time I go back to any Navy Base it feels good to be called by my
previous rank, but odd to be in civilian clothes, walking among the
servicemen and servicewomen going about their duties as I once did, many
years ago.
The military is a comfort zone for anyone who has ever worn the uniform.
It’s a place where you know the rules and know they are enforced – a place
where everybody is busy, but not too busy to take care of business.
Because there exists behind the gates of every military facility an
institutional understanding of respect, order, uniformity, accountability
and dedication that becomes part of your marrow and never, ever leaves you.
Personally, I miss the fact that you always knew where you stood in the
military, and who you were dealing with. That’s because you could read
somebody’s uniform from 20 feet away and know the score.
Service personnel wear their careers on their sleeves, so to speak. When you
approach each other, you can read their name tag, examine their rank and, if
they are in dress uniform, read their ribbons and know where they’ve served.
I miss all those little things you take for granted when you’re in the
ranks, like breaking starch on a set of fatigues fresh from the laundry and
standing in a perfectly straight line military formation that looks like a
mirror as it stretches to the endless horizon.
I miss the sight of troops marching in the early morning mist, the sound of
boot heels thumping in unison on the tarmac, the bark of drill instructors
and the sing-song answers from the squads as they pass by in review.
To romanticize military service is to be far removed from its reality,
because it’s very serious business — especially in times of war.
But I miss the salutes I’d throw at officers and the crisp returns as we
criss-crossed with a “by your leave sir”.
I miss the smell of jet fuel hanging heavily on the night air and the sound
of engines roaring down runways and disappearing into the clouds. The same
While on carrier duty.
I even miss the hurry-up-and-wait mentality that enlisted men gripe about
constantly, a masterful invention that bonded people more than they’ll ever
know or admit.
I miss people taking off their hats when they enter a building, speaking
directly and clearly to others and never showing disrespect for rank, race,
religion or gender.
Mostly, I miss being a small cog in a machine so complex it constantly
circumnavigates the Earth and so simple it feeds everyone on time, three
times a day, on the ground, in the air or at sea.
Mostly, I don’t know anyone who has served who regrets it, and doesn’t feel
a sense of pride when they pass through those gates and re-enter the world
they left behind with their youth.
I wish I could express my thoughts as well about something I loved — and
hated sometimes.
Face it folks – we all miss it…Whether you had one tour or a career, it
shaped our lives.
h/t Frito
Tis the season…
For GRILLING!!!
This is a cautionary tale, and worth the few minutes to watch if you’re one that grills on a regular basis…
I stopped using a grill brush a few years ago, and use the ‘sponge’ type cleaners now. Luckily, I never had this problem.
h/t JP
This one is from 2012, but it’s worth watching again…
And yeah, I’m one of those bitter clingers…
But I will say Christians are sure as hell under the guns of every Social Justice Bully (SJB), PC police, and everybody else with an ax to grind…
But this one kinda answers them, IMHO…
Nuff said…
DW has a post up HERE on Ambulance Driver and Lawdog’s class from the NRA AM…
He took some GOOD notes, and his comments are definitely on point…
It’s well worth the read, and I highly recommend it!
Bottom line, we ALL hope we never have to use it, but having the knowledge just might save our life or someone else…
At least the management business…
San Francisco (AFP) – The head of the nonprofit group that oversees the world’s Internet addresses expressed confidence Thursday that it would be privatized and out of US government control by year’s end.
You can read the full article HERE on Yahoo news… Sigh…
Neutral and well governed… Yeah, right!
Your car down the highway… Days like this I’m GLAD I got rid of the 6 speed…
SEVEN frikkin hours on I-95 to go 400 miles!!! My butt hurts, and it took an hour to get the seat cushion out of my ass…
Speed up/slowdown- Check, check, check, lather, rinse, repeat…
Panic stops! Check, check
Run off the road- Check
Idiot bikers- 2, both on crotch rockets…
Idiot drivers- Check, check, check, lather, rinse, repeat… Strangest one, two blue hairs in an old Caddy that wouldn’t pass a wide load! Backup at least a mile long. The truck finally pulled over and stopped. When I finally got by them, they were STILL in the left lane doing 40, with the left turn signal on… sigh
Speed traps- fivish… that I saw… Most stopped car, Dodge Challengers.
Things seen- 1 canoe, some reassembly required…
2 1/2 mattresses, 3 chairs, 1 couch, 1 baby carriage, one truck topper (a ‘bit’ worse for wear), one wheel/tire
1970s Ford F-250 highboy towing a trailer with a brand new F-150 on it.
Brand new Ford F-250 towing a trailer with a ’56 F-100 Big window completely restored.
Down by Ft. Bragg, 3 up armored Humvees filled with soldiers in full battle rattle…
Normally the entire trip is 6 1/2 hours, today 8 hours…
Only 6 hours of driving today… Hopefully…
From the Naval Safety Center…
Yes, this is real. I’ve stripped off the header…
MSGID/GENADMIN/COMNAVSAFECEN/00/MAY//
SUBJ/SUMMARY OF MISHAPS//
GENTEXT/REMARKS/1. WELCOME TO THE LATEST EDITION OF THE SUMMARY OF MISHAPS. HEAR THOSE LONESOME COYOTES CALLING? SEE THAT TUMBLEWEED BLOWING ACROSS MAIN STREET? YOU GUESSED IT - WE'RE BACK AT THE NOT-O.K. CORRAL.
A. THIS TIME, BEFORE WE GET TO THE MAIN FEATURE, WE HAVE AN INTRODUCTORY, ONE-ACT COMEDY OF ERRORS SUBMITTED BY A LONGTIME CORRESPONDENT. EVEN THOUGH IT INVOLVES CIVILIAN GUNSLINGERS (AND WANNABE GUNSLINGERS), IT IS SO COGENT THAT I HAD TO SHARE IT. SEEMS HE WAS INCORPORATING PISTOL MARKSMANSHIP WITH DATE NIGHT BY INVITING HIS WIFE TO A LOCAL GUN RANGE. THE GROUP GREW WITH THE ADDITION OF A COWORKER (AARON) AND OUR CORRESPONDENT'S BROTHER KEVIN), WHO IN TURN INVITED A COWORKER (ERICKA). THOSE THREE RENTED ONE LANE AT THE RANGE. THE MARRIED COUPLE SET UP ON THE ADJACENT RANGE. ERICKA ASKED AARON FOR HELP, ADDING, "ASSUME I KNOW NOTHING ABOUT GUNS." AARON OBLIGED. HE SET OUT THE MAGAZINE, OPENED A BOX OF AMMO, AND TOLD ERICKA THAT THE FIRST THING SHE NEEDED TO DO WAS LOAD THE MAGAZINE. AARON UNPACKED HIS OWN FIREARM. THEN HE SHOWED ERICKA HOW TO LOAD THE MAGAZINE INTO THE GUN GRIP AND RELEASE THE SLIDE. SHE TRIED TO DO SO, EXCEPT IT SLAMMED A ROUND PARTLY OUT OF THE MAGAZINE AND JAMMED THE GUN. SHE HAD LOADED THE MAGAZINE WITH THE CARTRIDGES POINTING BACKWARD, A NIFTY TRICK THAT YOU CAN SEE BY VISITING THIS WEEK'S PHOTO OF THE WEEK AT WWW.PUBLIC.NAVY.MIL/COMNAVSAFECEN/PAGES/PHOTO/INDEX.ASPX. ERICKA EXCLAIMED, "I TOLD YOU TO ASSUME I KNOW NOTHING ABOUT FIREARMS. IT'S YOUR FAULT!" AARON REPLIED, "YEAH, WELL, I THOUGHT YOU WERE JOKING." I WAS SO PLEASED TO FIND SOMEONE ADMITTING THEY DIDN'T KNOW VERY MUCH ABOUT FIREARMS, BECAUSE USUALLY I HAVE TO WRITE ABOUT PEOPLE WHO THINK THEY KNOW A LOT AND THEN ACT LIKE THEY DON'T. SUCH AS THE FOLLOWING, THE LATEST IN A LONG LINE OF CAST MEMBERS OF THE NOT-OK CORRAL.
B. OUR FIRST PERFORATED PROTAGONIST WAS AN E-5 FIRE CONTROLMAN.ABOUT A HALF-HOUR BEFORE MIDNIGHT, HE WAS AT HOME "HANDLING" HISROOMMATE'S .45 CA. PISTOL. I ALWAYS WISH IT WOULD STOP AT "HANDLING," BUT IT NEVER DOES, IT ALWAYS CONTINUES ON TO PUSHING AND CLICKING AND SHOVING. IN THE FUTURE, WHENEVER YOU SEE THE WORD "HANDLING" IN THIS MESSAGE, READ IT AS "MISHANDLING." IN THIS CASE, THE PISTOL WAS LOADED, AND IT HAD A ROUND IN THE CHAMBER, A FACT THAT HE FIRST BECAME AWARE OF WHEN HE TRIED TO REMOVE THE MAGAZINE AND SHOT A HOLE IN HIS LEFT HAND.
C. NEXT UP (DOWN?) WAS ANOTHER E-5, THIS ONE A MACHINIST'S MATE FROM AN AMPHIB. AGAIN, IT WAS A HALF-HOUR BEFORE MIDNIGHT, ANDAGAIN THE WEAPON BELONGED TO SOMEBODY ELSE (IN THIS CASE, A FRIEND). AGAIN, THE NEBULOUS VERB WAS "HANDLING," WHICH THIS TIME MEANT "DOING WHATEVER IT TAKES TO SHOOT YOURSELF IN THE ABDOMEN." FURTHER DETAILS WERE MISSING FROM THE REPORT, EXCEPT THAT A NURSE AT THE HOSPITAL WHERE THE 911 RESPONDERS TOOK HIM SAID THE SAILOR WAS DRUNK WHEN HE ARRIVED. HE SPENT 13 DAYS IN A HOSPITAL, ACCORDING TO THE REPORT, WHICH IS A LOT , THESE DAYs.
2. OK, YOU CAN TAKE OFF YOUR BODY ARMOR, THE SHOOTING IS OVER FOR A WHILE.// BT
Back in the day, sailors had their bars…
Sometimes a whole bunch of them…
Olongapo City, back in the 1970s, over 200 bars…
Sometimes it was just one bar…
George the Crooks in the Azores…
There were always places that sailors were attracted to, for better or worse…
And this doesn’t count the bars (legal and otherwise) that were run on bases all over the world. The Brass Nut in Kef, The Fly Trap in Sig, fun times…
$.50 a drink, and you could run a tab…
I’m surprised any of us has a liver left…LOL