From the Desert…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
A couple of little videos on the P-3, the first is about dragging em out of Davis-Monthan  and what goes into refurbishing a bird.


The second is a P-3 down playing with an LA Class boat… And you can see from the video how rough riding the P-3 is (and they are down at 200 feet).


And speaking of Submarines, and history…

I was talking to a former Submarine Commander and Sub Squadron Commander today at Pearl, and we got on the subject of the disbanding of the WWII submariner’s organization.  He told me, and actually took me in and showed me the Submarine Commander’s Wardroom in Lockwood Hall at Pearl Harbor.  

Lockwood Hall was built starting in 1934, it’s an Art Deco masterpiece/monstrosity depending on your perspective, but it’s been the BOQ for the Sub Base since it’s construction.  It played a significant part in WWII, with war gaming taking place in the Lanai under Marine Guards, and there was a special room set aside sometime around 1938-39 for only COs to have a place to relax away from the officers of their subs, and to talk freely with other COs.  During the war, apparently many a war patrol debrief took place in this space.  It is still today restricted to COs only, and the decor is still the decor in use during WWII, with those submarines emblems, mugs, and other artifacts…

Sadly, no pictures are allowed, but I’m thankful I got the chance to at least see it, and to be honest, a chill went down my spine to just be able to walk through that door… That is truly a room, that if the walls could talk, could surely tell stories of good men, great heroism and the stress of leading men in combat.

Truth for ‘Mature’ folks…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
Some old, a couple of new ones, but STILL applicable! 🙂

I think part of a best friend’s job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die. Yep…

Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you’re wrong. Ah yes, the DOH moment…

I totally take back all those times I didn’t want to nap when I was younger.

There is great need for a sarcasm font.

How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet? Wad the sumbitch up and throw it in the BACK of the drawer…

Was learning cursive really necessary?

Map Quest really needs to start their directions on # 5. I’m pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood. It’s even MORE interesting when it’s not the route you actually take (when there is ONLY one actual exit).

Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died. Or not, depends on your level of paranoia…

I can’t remember the last time I wasn’t at least kind of tired.

Bad decisions make good stories. But ONLY if you survive…

You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you know that you just aren’t going to do anything productive for the rest of the day. Usually about 0830.

Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after Blu Ray? I don’t want to have to restart my collection…again. Not gonna, hell I never bought Blu Ray…

I’m always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten-page technical report that I swear I did not make any changes to. Still better than Word Perfect!

I keep some people’s phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call. Yep, I ‘know’ a few folks are doing that… LOL

I think the freezer deserves a light as well. Never thought about that one…

I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lite than Kay. Oh yeah, they ‘might’ end up at Kay’s but they didn’t “start” there…

I wish Google Maps had an “Avoid Ghetto” routing option. Yep…

I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger. Boredom wins 3 out of 5!

How many times is it appropriate to say “What?” before you just nod and smile because you still didn’t hear or understand a word they said? Eh???

I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars team up to prevent a jerk from cutting in at the front. Stay strong, brothers and sisters! Even better when you get two Semis that are pissed at the traffic and block BOTH lanes! 🙂

Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty, and you can wear them forever. Or until the stain becomes so obvious even YOU notice it…

Sometimes I’ll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is. That means it’s time to change the battery!

Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket, finding their cell phone, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey – but I’d bet everyone can find and push the snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time, every time! I can do it from 7 feet… 🙂

The first testicular guard, the “Cup,” was used in Hockey in 1874 and the first helmet was used in 1974.That means it only took 100 years for men to realize that their brain is also important. It’s hockey, what do you expect… sigh…

Strangely compelling…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
I know we’ve been back and forth on this, but I must admit I find Madison Rising’s version of the Star Spangled Banner to be strangely compelling.  And the video clips are impressive too.


Below the break is a NOT pretty picture, so don’t go there unless you have a strong stomach…

PSA-


THIS is why they tell you NEVER to grab the roll bar when you’re in a roll over… 

This occurred offroad, but it also applies to any kind of racing.

Luckily, the docs were able to save his hand, and he ‘may’ even regain most of the use of it…

This is the xray after the fact showing all the pins, screws, etc. that had to be inserted…

REMEMBER, pull your @#^&$ hands IN if you’re in a roll over accident. DO NOT let this happen to you.

Mr. Henry…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
A couple of the stories that I can remember…

His son, “Little” Henry and I grew up together, and they lived about 2-3 miles from the rest of us growing up. They had a ‘big’ house on the hill that had been in their family since the late 1800s…

One story is one of the few times Mr. Henry ever opened up about the War. I think this was probably in the late 1975 when I was home on leave after Vietnam.  I’d gone over to catch up with Little Henry, and he wasn’t home yet, so Mr. Henry invited me into his office.  We talked about the Navy, and he was asking me about flying and how I liked it.  For some reason I managed to shift the conversation to his service, and he told me he’d gone in early in 1942, and was made a radioman, since he already knew Morse code and had built radios on his own. I never did find out why he didn’t go in as an officer, since he had a degree…

He was in the South Pacific in 43-45, both on a DE and Fletcher Class DD.  He was in the battles for Iwo Jima, Okinawa and at least another one or two. BUT he said he was a mount captain on a MkII quad (40mm Bofors gun) on the DD.  I asked him how he did that if he was a radioman, and he told me it was because they’d been on some island for R&R and they’d had some shotguns available and shot some skeet.  Now Mr. Henry had grown up hunting birds in SW Arkansas and E Texas, and I “know” he was one hellva bird hunter.

Apparently his prowess got back to the CO of the DD, and the CO was ‘less that happy’ with one particular mount’s abilities, and Mr. Henry got thrown in to it Gunner or not.  He said they were attacked multiple times by Kamikazes, and he said they ‘did alright’… And none ever hit his ship. 

He said he also had to pull duty RM duties in addition to being a gun mount captain, and didn’t get a lot of sleep during the battles.  He said he was glad he survived, but didn’t want to be ‘reminded’ of all those he watched die, so he never attended any reunions.  I think he said he was mustered out in 46 as a first class, came home and put the trunk up and “got on with life”…

Another story, this one involves local bank and Mr. Henry’s “displeasure”…

I think this was late 70’s or maybe early 80’s, again home on leave. Went by to say hello, and Mr. Henry invited me into his home office again.  But there was no place to set, so he told me to move the papers off a chair…  Well, the papers were a stack of bearer bonds!!!

He said he’d had it with a particular local bank, and was moving all his assets to another local bank; but they didn’t have a big enough safe deposit box available, so he’d brought all that stuff home!!!

I asked him if he was ‘worried’ about somebody breaking in, and his answer was to open a desk drawer and pull out a .45 cocked and locked and say, “Nope”!

I found out later from Little Henry the rest of the story…  Apparently he and Mr Henry had been out bird hunting for a couple of days, and stopped by the bank to get some money.  Now you have to understand Mr. Henry was NOT known for his sartorial elegance anyway…

So here’s an older man, not well dressed, probably unshaven, walking into the bank; they get a new teller, who didn’t know Mr. Henry, and made the mistake of talking ‘down’ to him since he didn’t have check and didn’t know his account number…  AND had the gall to ask Mr. Henry if he even had an account there!  Mr. Henry apparently replied that he’d had an account there since 1920 something and they damn well ‘should’ know who he was…

When Mr. Henry told the teller to go get “Ralph”, the president of the bank, the teller refused…

So Mr. Henry walked over to the President’s office and told him to give him a bank check right then and there, and go get the keys for the safe deposit boxes, that he was DONE with that bank!

And he took something like $4,000,000 out of the bank that day and moved it to the bank across town!!!

And I remember his ‘rules’…

Always pay cash, buy land and never sell land, always be honest in business and life, always read the fine print, and look people in the eye when you talk to them…

Not bad rules to live by!

In Memoriam…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
RIP Mr. Henry… RIP…

                          He was getting old and paunchy
                And his hair was falling fast,

                And he sat around the Legion,


                Telling stories of the past.


               Of a war that he once fought in

                And the deeds that he had done,


                In his exploits with his buddies;


                They were heroes, every one.


                And ‘tho sometimes to his neighbors

                His tales became a joke,


                All his buddies listened quietly


                For they knew whereof he spoke.


                But we’ll hear his tales no longer,

                For old Bob has passed away,


                And the world’s a little poorer


                For a Soldier died today.


      
                He won’t be mourned by many,


                Just his children and his wife.


                For he lived an ordinary,


                Very quiet sort of life.


                He held a job and raised a family,

                Going quietly on his way;


                And the world won’t note his passing,


                ‘Tho a Soldier died today.


                When politicians leave this earth,

                Their bodies lie in state,


                While thousands note their passing,


                And proclaim that they were great.


                Papers tell of their life stories

                From the time that they were young


                But the passing of a Soldier


                Goes unnoticed, and unsung.


                Is the greatest contribution

                To the welfare of our land,


                Someone who breaks his promise


                And cons his fellow man?


                Or the ordinary fellow

                Who in times of war and strife,


                Goes off to serve his country


                And offers up his life?


                The politician’s stipend

                And the style in which he lives,


                Are often disproportionate,


                To the service that he gives.


                While the ordinary Soldier,

                Who offered up his all,


                Is paid off with a medal


                And perhaps a pension, small.


                It is not the politicians

                With their compromise and ploys,


                Who won for us the freedom


                That our country now enjoys.


                Should you find yourself in danger,

                With your enemies at hand,


                Would you really want some cop-out,


                With his ever waffling stand?


                Or would you want a Soldier–

                His home, his country, his kin,


                Just a common Soldier,


                Who would fight until the end?


                He was just a common Soldier,

                And his ranks are growing thin,


                But his presence should remind us


                We may need his like again.


                For when countries are in conflict,

                We find the Soldier’s part


                Is to clean up all the troubles


                That the politicians start.


                If we cannot do him honor

                While he’s here to hear the praise,


                Then at least let’s give him homage


                At the ending of his days.


                Perhaps just a simple headline

                In the paper that might say:


                “OUR COUNTRY IS IN MOURNING, A SOLDIER DIED TODAY…
 
Mr. Henry was 94, a sailor not a soldier, a “Destroyerman” in WWII in the South Pacific.

Men’s Thoughts…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
Well, Willie’s playing my song again… A little humor until I can touch down.

Ladies, if a man says he will fix it, he will.  There’s no need to remind him every 6 months about it…

My sex life is like a Ferrari… Except I don’t have a Ferrari.

My mother-in-law is coming… I had to clear out half my closet so she could have a place to hang upside down and sleep.

NASA’s robot Curiosity landed on Mars. Early pictures show no signs of ESPN, beer or porn. This makes it very clear that men are NOT from Mars.

I once won an argument with a woman…  In this dream I had.

I’m writing a book about reverse psychology… Please don’t buy it.

I want one of those jobs where people ask, do you actually get paid for doing this?

If your wife or girlfriend ever asks, “If I was to arrange a threesome for your birthday, which of my friends would you pick to join in?” Never give two names.

If there was a way to read a woman’s mind, I’m not sure I would want to.  I hate shoes, shopping, gossip, and I already know I am annoying.

Men have feelings too.  For example, we feel hungry.
Now go ‘enjoy’ the week…

Truly Sad News…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
It’s always been in the back of our minds that the Veterans are aging out and dying of old age, but what we tend NOT to think about are those organizations they were members of…

The U.S. Submarine Veterans of World War II disbanded at the end of its convention Sept. 7 in Norfolk, Va. Local chapters now must decide whether to continue operating under another name or to dissolve as well.

Full article HERE.

A large group at one time, now the YOUNGEST member is 86, and the oldest is over 100, and they have less than 1000 members left…

Thankfully the USN is stepping up to take over the memorials at the sub bases. But the real question is what will happen to those artifacts, diaries, and memories of those men?

Hopefully they will be preserved in at least some of the museums and their memories/oral histories will become part of the Navy Memorial.

If you know a veteran, ask them to participate in the Veterans History Project being run by the Library of Congress.  Here is the LINK, we really need to capture ALL those memories, not just those of the Admirals and Generals. 

h/t- Les, TA, and other ‘boat’ people

 

American Foreign Policy…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
What ever happened to the American foreign policy of walk softly and carry a big stick?

Roosevelt x2, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Reagan, Bush x2, even Bubba… 

This administration seems to believe bowing, dissembling, and buying ‘loyalty’ is the way to go…

Peace through strength…  It’s worked for 200 years…

And cut the foreign aid!  Don’t like American/Americans, then you should not ‘like’ our money either…

h/t JP

Follow-up to the Crowne Plaza fisasco…

Posted on by March 6, 2013

Well, I lost the battle on this one, but I do have to give kudos to the IHG folks. They responded promptly, did get me in contact with the hotel management.

Email string reads from the bottom up. I ‘guess’ the rates quoted are not ‘really’ the rates according to the hotel manager.  I know I’m just a dumb ass ol’ country boy, but according to the manager the variance in rate on a daily basis is ‘normal’ for Australia…  Funny, you would think some minor ‘little’ thing like that would show up on the booking quote…

I’m done with em, and this little kefluffle will cost them at least 160 room nights from our group, and I ‘hope’ a lot more from the Aussies I work with…

Caveat Emptor with Holiday Inn/Crowne Plaza folks!

My final response:

Ms. G, thank you for the response, but as I said, the rate quoted was over $100 LESS than what I was charged.  I will not return to your hotel, nor will we book any future room nights there. As an employee, I am NOT allowed to exceed (X) rate for rooms, plain and simple.  Also your web booking practices are questionable if they quote one rate, and bill another rate, which is apparently what was done to me.
 r,
Me

Hotel manager wrote me back:
Dear Mr C
 
 As indicated by our Guest Relations team, your feedback via social media has been sent through to me today.  First and foremost, I would like to apologise for the lack in clarity you received when querying your rates during your stay.  The travel booker utilized did book a (X) rate with us for the duration of your stay and it is very unfortunate that they did not explain the variance in rate on a daily basis – this is how the (X) rate is set up in Australia and we most certainly did not alter this at our whim.  For future stays in Australia, I would recommend that you request a daily itinerary from your agent to ensure they have been transparent with the rates you will be paying.
 
Having said that, it would seem our team did not do well at dealing with your concerns and for this I apologise.  As I have been at the hotel only a few weeks, I have already identified a need for further training around problem resolution and whilst this has been scheduled, it is unfortunate that you have already had this experience in the interim.
 
Mr C, thank you again for taking the time to provide your feedback and should you have any further concerns, please feel free to contact me directly in the future.
 
Kind Regards
 
Ms G
General Manager
My email back to IHG Care:

Sir/Ma’am per  Reference # 2xxxxxx the following information is provided-
Sir/Ma’am per  Reference # 2xxxxxx the following information is provided-

 My Priority Club # is 3xxxxx and the reservation was under “ME” for world-wide (X) rate, which I ‘believe’ was quoted at A$266/night. I showed my ID at check-in as required.  Since the reservation is already used, I cannot access my account to pull up the confirmation number.

The clerk said that there was “nothing to be done, as the hotel reserved the right to change the rates” and apparently the manager was not available, or she chose not to call him.

I will tell you that I will NOT stay there again, nor will I allow any of the rest of my team to stay there, or any other Holiday Inn in Western Australia.  This behavior is unacceptable, and especially for people on government travel. I “may” be able to get reimbursed for the amount over per diem, but if I’m not I will have to pay that out of pocket.  I have also advised my points of contact with both the (organizations ) in Australia of the hotel’s conduct and recommended they utilize other hotels in WA. 
 
My contact information is:
 
From IHG

Dear Mr. C,
 
Thank you for your email regarding your experience with the Crowne Plaza Perth, Australia. We apologize for any inconvenience this situation may have caused you.
 
I have forwarded your comments to the General Manager and ownership of this hotel. We are committed to guest satisfaction and appreciate the opportunity to address your concerns.
 
As our hotels are in the best position to assist, I have requested they contact you directly to discuss the situation further. They will be contacting you directly via email within 48 hours. If you still require assistance after this time frame, please contact Guest Relations again. For your records, your comments are documented under reference number 2xxxxx.
 
Once again, we appreciate your taking the time to contact us. We value you as a Priority Club Rewards Gold member and appreciate your patience.

Sincerely,
V
eMedia Coordinator
IHGCare 
 

Blog Shoot Report…

Posted on by March 6, 2013
We came, we saw, we shot (until everybody ran out of ammo), we cleaned up, we ate, and we raised something over a THOUSAND dollars for Wounded Warriors!  Many thanks to Murphy for setting this up!

Can’t ask for a much better day!

Old blog friends, new blog friends, commenters (including one gent that, when we chatted, we determined we ‘had’ crossed paths back in the day), lurkers, and general hangers on (either Andy or Murph has the attendee list)…

I don’t know if Stretch or Per Diem wins for the oldest gun shot there today, but there were some NICE ones!  I mean how many times do you see a FOUR digit serial number Winchester double barrel???

And there was the obligitory full auto funfest, with Murphy and The Sheckel with dueling Uzis.  Of course THAT kickstarted things on the rest of the range, and at least one full auto M-16 popped up, along with a G18 (yes I said 18) and the infamous 33 round mags…

Many dollars were turned into smoke and smiles!

And I couldn’t resist this one…


MSgt B, taking a picture of yet ANOTHER table full of guns, as his wife does the hurry up and wait (but she’s really a nice lady)…LOL

And there was this young lady, not part of our group, but was eyeing the M-24. I’d watched her go 2 for 3 with the little .243 in the right of the picture, so I let her have at it.  I dunno what it is, but DAYUM, women are accurate with that rifle!!!

And thanks too to Proud Hillbilly and Bubblehead Les for the contributions to KTKC.

And a question, can you get carpal thumb???  I bout wore mine out loading mags… sigh…

Wonder if I can qualify for a work related injury? 🙂

Oh yeah, one ‘last’ comment…

Hey, Apple, yeah, YOU APPLE… YOUR iMAPS SUCK!!!  Either fix the damn things or put Google back on!  At least Google WORKS, UNLIKE THAT POS APP YOU REPLACED IT WITH!

Sheesh…