Dead Reckoning

One more day

Thu, 17 Apr 2008 03:38:57 GMT

Tomorrow is my last day of classes. I have two. In the morning, I plan on going up to the baseball field where the Marines will be landing a couple of Super Cobras and a TH-57. Hopefully I'll get there early enough to go for a ride.

Today was the last day of ROTC. The next time I put on my navy uniform it will be for commissioning. We had our change of command ceremony today, and it was probably a record for the shortest one ever. The one in the Spring is always a big fancy affair on the parade ground of the fort, complete with a pass in review. But it was over in 32 minutes. That's nice.

I was awarded some things at the ceremony today. A medal from the National Defense Transportation Association. I'm not sure what I did to get it, but there it is. I got a letter of commendation and ribbon from the Commanding Officer of the Unit for last semester's work. And, I think most importantly, I was given the Ensign Beth Bonn Award.

Ensign Bonn graduated from here in 2004, and her younger brother is in my class. She went off to flight school and was killed last year in a crash along with several other people. Her parents sponsored this award and this is the second year it has been given.

Ladies and Gentlemen,
I give you a future President of the United States... or CEO.... or Admiral.... or something. Why do I even own a suit? And the flash obliterated the pattern on the shirt and tie, oh well.

That isn't my room, by the way. That room is a mess.

Memorials

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 22:54:15 GMT

I hope no one was expecting a proper post. Quite frequently I feel like there are things of note to record, but when I get the time to write something I never have the motivation to do so.... or I've forgotten what it was that I thought was so interesting.

The purpose of this post is to ask you all for your help in something.

Back in May, when we were three days into our training cruise, a cadet in my class died. We want to leave something at the school in his memory, but are having a tough time coming up with something that we feel is appropriate. The leading idea was to take the outdoor basketball courts (which are seldom used) and make them into a roller hockey rink in his name, as there are many hockey players and Billy was an avid one, on the school's ice hockey team. However, in talking with the various school authorities, it seems that building, placing, or renovating any part of the gym or its surroundings will probably not last as there are plans to expand and improve those facilities.

Since we don't want to just get him a bench, and time is starting to run short, we need help coming up with ideas. There are various stone markers on the campus for individuals who have died at sea or during school, but little is given on them but a name, and no one who is still here knows who they were, and there's little way to find out. We don't want that to happen to him, either.

If anyone has any thoughts, please leave a comment.

Fri, 01 Feb 2008 03:29:28 GMT

Time for a post, since I haven't in awhile. Here's the rundown on what's gone on since the last.

- Sat for license 17 DEC- 21 DEC

- Went to Charlotte for the holidays 22 DEC

- Back to Connecticut 03 JAN

- Drove to Sub Base New London for dress white jacket for commissioning and graduation 4 JAN

- Returned to school 6 JAN

- 24.5 credits for my last semester. Echo Company Commander (Regiment), Bravo Company Commander (NROTC Battalion), SGA Elections Director (SGA Cabinet) among other nonsense

- As of the moment I write this, there are 93 days, 8 hours, and 44 minutes and 20 seconds to graduation. But who's counting?

- I have finally recommenced construction of my battleship model in the new apartment.

- CAT! Pictures behind cut.

Here he is! His name is Cicero, because he is a great orator and defender of the Republic. He's very talkative. Clearly, he's not a kitten. We adopted him from a foster home where he had been for two months. He was a homeless street cat before that. He's extremely friendly and completely unafraid of anyone or anything, it seems.

Sun, 02 Dec 2007 05:50:28 GMT

The semester is nearly over, and it can't come soon enough. It's been rough from the start, but as the license exams approach, the pressure has gotten pretty intense. Last week was one of the most difficult I've yet had.

In order to be allowed to sit for license in three weeks, we all have to qualify. This semester has been geared towards "seminar" which are a collection of "classes" that basically beat us up in preparation for the qualifiers. For the deck license, there are seven coast guard tests and so there are seven qualifiers. Last week, I had five of them-Near Coastal, Chart plot, Deck Safety, Oceans, and Rules of the Road. Near Coastal is basically terrestrial navigation and piloting, the chart plot is also a terrestrial navigation/piloting practical test, deck safety covers nautical trivia in everything from medical care provider/first aid, to what code you use to signal another ship using flags, oceans is celestial navigation and the "sailings" which are a great pain in the ass, but part of voyage planning the old-school way. Both celestial and the sailings involve lots of math. Rules of the Road is what we call the international colregs or Collision Avoidance Regulations. Simply, it covers who has right-of-way and how to maneuver in as many situations as can be planned for and also lays out what kind of light and sound equipment vessels must carry, etc.

All of this stuff has been coming to a head in the last few weeks of the semester and many people are struggling. This is the semester that everyone is supposed to have nothing but seminar to worry about. A lot of us, though, have many other classes and responsibilities. ROTC certainly hasn't cut me a break, and in many areas I have more responsibility than I have ever had here. In addition to all of that crap, I'm taking 25.5 credits hours this semester.

Going into this last week I was pretty worried about making it through all of these tests. But, somehow, even though the amount of sleep I got through the whole week was what I would like to get in a single night, things went better than well. This is the first week all semester where I have not had a million things to focus on and so I was able to focus on this license stuff. All semester long my grades on the Rules of the Road practice tests and even the first three comprehensive ones have been in the 80's, which is normally fine, except that to pass the qualifiers you gotta get a 90. So, some of the professors were betting that I wasn't going to make it.

This week, I rocked their world. On all but two of those tests, I got 100. I passed all of them. Now, there are only three more tests left between me and the coast guard exams. On Monday, I will take Nav general, which is a smorgasbord of navigation and can include anything previously tested but also nautical astronomy (which is the theory behind the practice of celestial navigation), among other things like GPS, ECDIS, LORAN, and Radar operation and theory and meteorology. Also on Monday, I will take the final Rules of the Road test. Tuesday will see the last of the Deck General tests, which is all of the other trivia like rigging, maintenance, etc. I can't wait until it's over.

Also on Monday, I will have my final exam in the simulator. The "Kobayashi Maru," as it were.

This week was a good one from the momentum, but by the time I got out of the Oceans exam on Thursday night I was shot. The test was three hours long and I was in there for every minute of those three hours, crunching numbers and plotting my running fixes non-stop. It was exhausting.

Wednesday I fly to Miami for a second interview with Celebrity Cruise lines. Should be a nice break.

Saw "Enchanted" today. It was surprisingly good.

Wed, 07 Nov 2007 03:29:30 GMT

Wow. Life is crazy.

The drill meet happened back on Oct 27. It was one of the longer days of my life, but in the end it all went fine. There was definitely an "oh shit" hour or so in the morning when it appeared as though all was lost. Some of these high school unit commanders take this stuff very very seriously. Way too seriously. Like band parents on crack.

Now I just have to finish all the reports for the event and the recommendations for next year. That's almost as much fun as the planning.

License is a big pain in the ass. I haven't had a lot of time to devote to studying for it, so I've walked into four tests a week this whole semester cold. I've managed to pull passing grades in all, but they're not A's, that's for sure. Last week started the qualifiers for license, so they really count now. This week I'll have at least two more. The big battery of them will happen the week after Thanksgiving.

The Navy/Marine Corps Birthday Ball that I am working on is progressing. Tomorrow I will visit the caterers one last time to finalize the menu and other details. Tickets are selling-albeit slowly. All of the various favors (challenge coins, beer steins) have arrived and so hopefully all that remains is rehearsing the ceremony a couple of times and then it's open bar!

My computer died last week. It is beyond resurrecting, so I am now the proud owner of a Mac Pro dual core tower. It is pretty nice. I am currently writing this in Windows XP (because I am working on ROTC stuff and I needed photoshop which I don't have for OS X yet.) since this machine will run both... at the same time. Well, it will once I get Parallels. Right now I have to reboot to switch, but still, I can use either.

In the second week of October there was a job fair here. I met with several companies, but the one with which I cadet-shipped showed a big interest in me a few classmates. I had an interview and feel confident that I am at the top of the pile for candidates from the this school. When I walked up to their table, one of the RDOs, LCDR McCarthy was talking to the recruiter who was a cadet here a few years ago. Just as I walked up the recruiter had asked McCarthy to name one cadet for him that was the one they should take. As I walked up he turned and said, "There he is right here." In addition to that, the second mate from the ship I was on was there recruiting for a different company and she went over and put in a good word for me, too. The company, Overseas Shipholding Group, Inc is a good one that pays well and that is building new ships for the foreseeable future. All of which bode well for someone wishing to move up the ranks. If they were to offer me a job, I would take it and leave grad school here to my time off, which ought to allow me to complete it fairly quickly. So, we shall see.

For right now, I just have to pass license.

Wed, 10 Oct 2007 02:22:02 GMT

Boredom has led me to post. Really, there are about ten other things I should be doing right now, but whatever. List!

I should be going over my license application.

I should be preparing my room for the usual Wednesday morning room inspection festivities (I do the inspecting these days, so it's more to set the example).

I should be studying for seminar!

I should be going over the plans for ROTC tomorrow for Ball planning.

I should be going over my brief for the CO for the JROTC Drill Meet and plans.

I should be sleeping (I've been up since 0500 for PT and my eyes are bloodshot)!

Instead, I will tell you of my latest foray into the world of the elite.

Last Saturday (Oct 6) I went to the Waldorf Astoria for the 63rd Annual Columbus Citizens Foundation Gala. This is serious fancy, folks. For a mere $750 per person you and your family can enjoy the Waldorf at its best, in its biggest party of the year, every year.

But, what fun is a party without a raffle? Buy your tickets! $1000 each! What might you win? A brand spanking new Maserati. My ticket did not win, sadly.

I'm beginning to really enjoy these fancy parties. Dressing up once in awhile is fun.

There's plenty more to talk about, but my eyes really are about to fall out of my head, so I will go to bed. Perhaps there will be another post sometime.

Mon, 24 Sep 2007 03:14:19 GMT

I am free. I finished up restriction last Thursday night and was able to leave on Friday. Naturally, I left school and went to Julie's.

I saw Superbad. Funny. Painfully awkward at times. Most of my friends from high school are in it.... sometimes occupying the same roles.

I worked on my boat.

I ate frosting and batter as Julie made cupcakes. Then I ate cupcakes.

I went to the beach despite the drizzle and encountered a flock of parrots. Internet research confirmed my suspicion that they are Quaker parrots. Apparently, there is a colony that have lived in Brooklyn for some years now. I wonder if they were taking a day at the beach?

Pictures behind the cut of both the birds and the battleship.

See? A whole flock of them. In that last one there are at least 6 that I have found, though quite possibly more. They blend in well.

and now the battleship:

And a new week begins...

Tue, 31 Jul 2007 02:14:59 GMT

Since the start of the year I've been constructing a battleship. It's only a model. On the weekends I leave my prison here at school and travel to the promised land of Julie's apartment in Stamford. There, in a box and on a small table, is my project. I move this promptly and take over the entire living room table for the duration. Of course, it's at the point where it's not too far from completion that I decided to document it, so I have no beginning photos. Yesterday, though, I decided to take some so I could share my precious with the world.

As you can see, it's quite large at nearly three feet long. All of the shiny brass parts that you see are either photo-etched aftermarket parts or they are made from scratch. Some are a little of both. I have done a decent amount of research into the ship (the USS North Carolina) and have created it as she would have appeared between Sept 1944 and June 1945.

The superstructure still requires paint and most of the deck fittings have yet to be installed. The paint scheme is Measure 32/18d. This is a high contrast camouflage. Clearly, it is not meant to make the ship invisible. That would be dumb. Naval camouflage of the day was meant to make a ship difficult to target, since our foes did not use radar for the bulk of the war. This particular pattern was an anti-submarine scheme. Submarine torpedoes were all fired by eye, basically. Information such as range, bearing, course, and speed were estimated by the man at the periscope. If you could confuse him as to type of ship, direction of travel, and speed then there was little hope of a hit.

Anyway. Not that any of you care about my damned hobbies. I'm going to mount the ship in water when it's done. By water, I mean clear resin that I am going to make look like water. I could have built the ship as a waterline model, meaning that sitting on a table, only the part that you would see if the ship were really floating would be there. In the real ocean, though, you can see the bottom of a ship through the water.... so I'm crazy and want to see the bottom through the water.

Halfway through summer school.

a fair wind, and plenty of it

Sun, 08 Jul 2007 14:36:25 GMT

After getting out of the English Channel we got hit by a gale for a couple
of days. It was right on the nose and respectably strong, slowing the
ship down to a crawl-for a number of reasons. At the rate we were going,
our ETA for Ambrose light at NY harbor was late in the day on the 17th.
We're due in on the 13th. Needless to say there were a lot of unhappy
people on board at the prospect of being even a few hours late, much less
the middle of the following week.

The weather abated and we kicked it up to 12 nozzles (of the 21 we have)
to make 17 knots. We've made up the lost time and are now making a
liesurely 15.6. We'll be home on time.

I just had my final exams this morning, and I think things went just fine..
We'll see soon enough, I suppose.

homeward bound

Mon, 02 Jul 2007 16:46:09 GMT

We're making what feels like a very slow 15 knots towards home right now.
I haven't looked at the chart today, so the best I can give you is a lat
and long for a present position 57* 1.137' N by 007* 31.662'E. I'd
imagine we're at the top of the North Sea, working our way down towards
the English Channel where we'll turn west once we're clear of Land's End
and the Scilly Isles. From there we'll steer a great cirlce course to the
Grand Banks and then rhumbline the rest of the way in towards the south
shore of Long Island before making Ambrose light on the very early morning
of the 13th.

The great circle course only goes as far as it does because of the ice
conditions around the labrador coast and the area of the grand banks this
year. The ice is further south this year than it has been in some time,
so rather than pull a Titanic, we're going to add a few extra miles to the
trip. Our hull is not reinforced for ice.

In an hour I have my third of four Qualifiers or "Q's". This one is on
firefighting and the equipment we have on board for dealing with it. I
don't imagine it will take too long, maybe an hour at the most.

We have some four thousand miles to go, that's quite a lot of ocean.
We're all counting down the days until we're back at Ft. Schuyler.

Gotta clean for room inspection now

Gold

Wed, 27 Jun 2007 10:47:25 GMT

This post is pretty long.... sorry. I would put it behind a cut, except
that I don't know how to do that from the ship through email....... on
with the story.

When someone gets in trouble here, there are two types of papers that can
get filled out, depending on the severity of the offense as per the Rules
and Regulations. For a Class II Offense, or something relatively minor,
the color of the copy that the cadet receives is pink, therefore, we say,
"That asshole got pink for that."

If you are lucky enough to rate a Class I Offense (the more severe of the
two), the copy you keep is gold in color, therefore, you got "gold."

The other day, I got gold. Someone go get Andre to read this, he might
appreciate it more than some.

What had happened was..... we were in Tallinn, Estonia, which is a very
nice place, by the way, when the fateful decision was made to go to one of
the many clubs here. This is where the completely out of character stuff
starts to happen...

Me, being a big dog on the club scene went to borrow a shirt and some
shoes, some gel for the hair (what hair I have, anyway) and so forth.

My friends and I had been out earlier in the day for lunch and to see
Pirates 3, finally. So the day had already been what I would normally
consider a successful day ashore. But, this day was not normal.

We left the ship around 10 pm, which is still broad daylight up here (this
was the 22nd of June, too, so just past the longest day of the year), and
took a cab into the old town.

Once there, the club of choice, we discovered, was closed that night, so
we went into a bar next door to have a drink or two before finding another
club.

Next door to the club that we found was this bar/lounge that was all white
inside (think A Clockwork Orange) so we went in there to wait for the club
to open at 11. We had some more drinks there, and we're all feeling
pretty good. All four of us (Mackenzie, Jamie, Greg, myself) were higher
ranking officers in the Indoctrination program last year, so a bunch of
our former charges decided to buy us a couple of rounds. Now we're
feeling better.

The club opens! and we're the first people there.

Now, I've never been one to dance, even when forced, so it's not a suprise
that I wasn't out there from the get go, but this night, when pulled onto
the dance floor, I danced. And, apparently, I'm not too bad. I say apparently, because although I remember this
part of the night, I'm taking other peoples' words for it.... not sure I
believe them, either.

Greg had to be back to the ship at 0200, so he left us at about 0145 and
took a cab back. In the meantime, some other folks had come in and I was
hanging out with them.

As is usual for when I'm out with Maritime kids, the rarity of me drinking
around them makes them feel compelled to buy me drinks, so from about 0130
until I can't remember anymore, there was as drink in my hand that I
didn't buy.

At some point, I said I needed to leave (before or after I puked, I don't
know), and so the girls went to get our stuff from the coat/bag check
while another friend went to get a cab for me. He put me in and paid the
driver, who then drove off before the girls got there. So I got dropped
off at the security gate by myself and unable to walk.

The watch at the gate called for some help from the ship and I was carried
the half mile from the gate to the ship, up the gangway, and to sickbay
where I woke up the next morning around 1030ish very confused.

It is bad to wake up in sickbay. Very bad. And, because it was a late in
the day as it was and I am who I am (I'm kind of a big deal, you know)
everyone else knew what happened before I did. This meant that there was
no where to hide. At all.

This morning I had Captain's Mast (um, a hearing, basically, where you go
to hear your fate since it is pretty much already decided). I got the
standard fare, 50 demerits (my first ever) and 2 months restriction to
campus (and to the ship while on cruise). The second month will be
pending my behavior during the first, so likely I will only have 1 month
of restriction, which is really no worse than the times where I've had
four weekends in a row of work or other school crap. The demerits are
already halfway worked off (I started early), so it's not too bad, I
guess.

I had a fantastic time, at least what I remember... and I'm intact. I'm
glad I don't remember coming back aboard though, there are people, now,
who look at me like I'm ghost, and then there are the people who give me a
well-deserved hard time.

It's an entertaining story, for me, anyway, so I'm trying to look at it
like that, since otherwise the end is pretty humiliating.

And that's really it for now. Hopefully nothing else dramatic happens on
this cruise.

Mon, 18 Jun 2007 16:33:42 GMT

Today we tranisted the Kiel Canal, arriving at the western lock at
Brunsbuttel, Germany about 0500 this morning. I got up a little early so
I could watch the locking, but it wasn't anything terribly exciting. The
locks up the Niagara escarpment on the Welland Canal are much more
exciting. The lock here raised us four whole feet to the level of the
canal.

When I was heading out to the weather deck, I turned the corner towards
the door, where there is a porthole. It was a shock to see a large tree
filling the porthole where for the last month it's been rolling sea and
spray. Very disconcerting.

At this moment we are exiting the lock at the eastern end, in Kiel. There
is a tallship festival of some kind going here, as they are everywhere. I
would still be up on deck, but the weather is rainy, so it's better down
here in my room.

My division is on watch for the next couple of days and today I was lucky
enough not to be on the watch bill, which effectively gives me the day
off. However, a lot of things are coming due in the next few days so I
spent the morning finishing up my celestial days' works. I spent the
afternoon working on the voyage plan for the ship from Tallinn, Estonia to
Copenhagen, Denmark, which has to be finished and ready for the Captain to
look over in the next day.

There are 24 days and a wake-up, as we say, left for the cruise. Most of
us can't wait to be done. This, as I have said before, has been a pretty
rough time.

We left New York on 14 May and it was a perfect day for it. The weather
was absolutely calm and we were out of L.I. Sound and headed south before
the sun set.

The second night out is when Billy died. They came into our room around
0400 to get some guys up to help clear the stern for a helicopter
evacuation. That was called off and then they were told to ready the side
ports for a coast guard cutter to come alongside, but that, too, was
called off. We knew he was dead at that point.

As the Chief Navigator, I was up on the bridge and laying out the course
into Moorehead City, NC so we could drop him off.

It's been just over a month, there were services on board a couple of days
ago for it.

The trip continued as planned after that, seeing us stop in Charleston for
a couple of days. The trip to Italy started from there.

As a senior, one of the watches that I stand is CWO or Cadet Watch
Officer. Basically, under the supervision of the mate on watch, the CWO
runs the bridge and navigates the ship. There are so many 1st Class deck
cadets that the opportunity to have more than 2 of these watches is slim.
Fortunately, I have had my two, and tomorrow morning will have a third.
My first one was heading into Charleston,which was pretty boring. The
second, however, was the Straits of Gibraltar, which is full of traffic.
It was a very cool experience to take the ship through there, the Pillars
of Hercules are clearly evident, guarding the Med. My watch was 0400-0800
and so the sun rose for us, directly between Europe and Africa. This was
really sweet, but had the unfortunate side effect of being right in our
eyes.

The next day took us past Mallorca, where we had hoped to stop. Mallorca
is... wonderful. I went there on my MUG cruise two years ago and would
love to go back. It's not in the cards for this year, unfortunately.

Two days after that took us through the straits of bonafacio, between
Corsica and Sardenia and six hours later, we were at the break water at
Civitavecchia

That's enough for now, I think. It's dinnertime, here, anyway.

More Gibraltar

Mon, 11 Jun 2007 18:36:41 GMT

We started with the whole "training" evolution yesterday. Due to delays
in the bunkering process and therefore in getting underway, my division
ended up with the day off (at least the 1st Class did)so we set our selves
up on 1 Hatch with some towels, sunscreen, and music and watched everyone
else work. It was the best day on cruise ever.

Today was a work day for my division and so I was up on the bridge all
day. Again, we started the day at anchor, only this time at an anchorage
on the outside of the Bay of Gibraltar, on the other side of the rock. We
got underway this morning so that today's training section could do their
manuevers and whatnot, but we were back on the hook by early afternoon.
This time, our anchorage was about a half mile closer to shore than in the
morning, about seven cables or seven tenths of a nautical mile.

There are beaches on this side of Gibraltar, and those of us on the bridge
with binoculars found ourselves looking that way. We have on board a huge
telescope that has mounts on the bridge wings. The captain suggested that
I get this thing out and so we had a pretty darn close up view of the
beaches. It was lovely. Needless to day, the ladies don't wear much on
the beaches in the Med. The ship's Chaplain, Father Mike, was the first
to look through it.

Anyway, we're here for two more days before we get underway for Estonia.
Tomorrow is basically a day off for me because starting at midnight
tonight I am the Master at Arms until 0800 in the morning. I hope the day
off is worth being up all night.

If anyone feels like writing, my email on the ship is gerin@seawave.net.

Gibraltar

Sat, 09 Jun 2007 21:06:48 GMT

We just came to anchor in Gibraltar about an hour ago. We're still
keeping time at GMT+2, so the sun just went down even though my watch says
it's 22:20.

We're here for bunkering, which should take about 12 hours, but then the
Captain decided we'd stay and do some anchor, lifeboat, and man overboard
drills here for three days, so starting tomorrow, we'll be doing lots of
exercises. We'll also get the Damage Control trainer going and do some of
that (one reason we decided to this here instead of the Baltic is that you
get very wet with the DC trainer and the water here is MUCH warmer)as well
as some search and rescue from smoke filled spaces. I'm not terribly
excited.

It seems, too, that it's just a bad year for Maritime schools in the U.S.
The T.S. Golden Bear, the training ship for California Maritime, also
suffered a cadet death this summer. It was from an accident in one of
their ports of call, involving a big fall. The T.S. State of Maine from
Maine Maritime had their Captain suffer some kind of stroke, requiring an
airlift off. At least he has survived.

I'm not sure what else to include in this post, and I'm not willing to
elaborate on any particular thing right now. I'm kinda tired, so I'm
going to bed.

Fri, 08 Jun 2007 16:45:17 GMT

Hello all,

This is an attempt to use my ship email to post to LJ. I have no idea if
it's going to work, for several reasons. This is the third time I've
started this post, the system here keeps crashing. We're using Pentium
IIIs with Windows 98, so things aren't great.

Since it's been awhile since I last posted, there's tons of stuff to talk
about. Right now we're in the Med, heading for Gibraltar after leaving
Civitavecchia and Rome. We'll bunker in Gibraltar before heading north
for Estonia (we were going to Russia, but Bush botched that one for us).
After that we'll head down to Copenhagen before heading home.

I think most people right now, myself included, just want to come home.
This cruise has been rough for everyone. There was a death on board while
we were still off the East Coast, a classmate of mine in my division. We
put in to Morehead City, NC to drop off his body before continuing on our
way.

Two of the guys I live with on board got kicked off the other day for
being involved in a fight they didn't start with a guy who *didn't* get
kicked off the ship, or punished in any way. I suppose you could look at
the bright side and say I have more space in my hold now, but everyone in
there is pretty depressed.

Being at sea on a regular ship with a regular crew it a totally different
experience than this. I just heard today that some of the 3rd Class
cadets have fleas or lice or something. Thank God I don't live down there
with them.

Anyway, I need to get my celestial done for today and I'm going to go to
the gym first. If this works, it'll happen more. So someone who reads
this who has my email address here, let me know.

Thu, 08 Mar 2007 03:25:57 GMT

Last week was the Ring Dance for the junior class. It's a tradition that I know is observed at military schools, whether or not in more normal places, I don't know. It consists of a formal dinner, ceremony, and dance.

The ceremony is a tradition that is, I believe, unique to this institution, as I see it's significance to say, the Military Academy at West Point to be somewhat limited. It required nearly a year of preparation this time.

On cruise last summer, water was collected from each of the countries that the ship visited. Water was also taken from the boiler on board. Alumni from ships around the world sent in small samples of the waters from the various oceans, we had them all.

Until the actual ceremony, your date wears your ring around his/her neck. When it's time to get on with the show, the school's Chaplain blesses the water and those with rings wait to have their ring dipped in the water. The Admiral's wife cuts the ribbon holding the ring around your date's neck and dips the ring, handing it back to your date. She then puts it on your finger and gives you a kiss. All of this is done under the supervision of the Admiral himself, who congratulates everyone as they finish the process.

That's about the only new and interesting thing to happen around here. Oh, there was a plague here. There was an article on CNN.com about some stupid college in NJ having 100 students get sick with the norovirus crap that cruise ships always get. The story they missed was how here, at SUNY Maritime, we had nearly 200 people struck down by this awful thing. Fortunately, I was spared. But I did get a cold. Oh well.

Here is a picture from ring dance:

The day from hell

Tue, 20 Feb 2007 22:37:17 GMT

So this last weekend was three days. They gave us Monday off. Short weeks, however, always do something to kick my ass.

Tuesday, my normally hellish day (due to a schedule that starts at 0500 and goes until 2100 straight), has been cut out of the schedule. Today's schedule is Monday's, which normally isn't bad at all. So what on earth could be the problem?

Today still started at 0500 because ROTC PT doesn't care what schedule the rest of the school is following. This was supposed to be my big shrugging of responsibility day with the integration of my company into the rest of the battalion. This happened flawlessly. Now, snugly enveloped in my new platoon we began today's little routine. Here's where things get unpleasant. When I woke up this morning I wasn't feeling well, but having been awake for an hour or so at this point, I'm feeling ok. PT starts, we do our daily 16 and then split to go do other, more fun things. While we're getting our little brief, I start feeling sick. So, immediately after everyone dispersed, I went to the head and threw up... there was nothing in my stomach, so it was really just some painful convulsions and a resultant sore throat. I suppose my abs got a good workout, too. Yay for dry heaves.

After PT, I went to the meeting that I hold with my staff, assuming that they would realize that because we've had a meeting every Tuesday morning from the beginning of the fall semester until now, today would be no exception. I was the only one there.

My 0800 class (electronic navigation systems lecture) was supposed to be a test. I was prepared for a test. There was none (this might be good, you say. It'll just be tomorrow, and I was ready to knock it out today)

My 1000 class was OMG boring. We went over the different fire scenarios we'll be given at fire school next month. It took 2 hours.

Next comes lunch, which wasn't horrid. However, while I was there, LCDR Gok came by to tell me I had to organize a special liberty pass with the names of a bunch of people for a trip he was planning and on which I am not going! What the fuck? I realize that I just might be one of three reliable people here, but I can't do everything.

Right, so I went by the mailroom after lunch and had three packages! hooray. One from the Navy Exchange, one from another uniform company, and one from Barnes and Noble. The ones from the Navy Exchange and the uniform company are the various components for my dinner dress uniform. I opened the box to check everything out. When I tried on the jacket, it was much too large. So, I looked at the tag to see if the size was what I had ordered. It was a 50L. Folks, if I gained a hundred pounds my chest would not be 50 inches around. I ordered a 42L, says so on the invoice. I need this wearable by next Thursday and it has to be striped and the sleeves tailored.

I called the company and they are sending out a correct one today. I will have a huge credit card bill until I can return the incorrect one for a credit. This probably won't happen until this Thursday.

Anyway, in the other box were the pants, shirt studs and cuff links. The shirt was backordered! Bah. That was taken care of last night when I called the exchange and they are sending me a slightly different size. It had better work well enough.

At 1300 I went to Naut Ops Safety lecture (same professor as E. Nav this morning) and walked right into a test for which I was wholly unprepared. The degree to which I was unprepared has not happened before in my college career. I'll be lucky if I get a 50 on this thing. Fortunately (or not, I guess), we'll be having a test every other week for the rest of the semester, so I should have plenty of opportunity to fix it, if it's not too bad....

Now, back to the room and the uniform disaster. At least the pants fit, but they need to be hemmed. So, I took them down to the tailor here at school. He's on vacation until Monday.

Next, I needed a haircut, so while I was over there, I figured I'd swing by. Out to lunch. Come back at 1430.

I returned the pants to my room, and returned to the barber at precisely 1430. There were 6 people in line ahead of me. I waited the hour and change for the haircut and returned to my room.

Oh yeah, AIM hasn't worked since Friday.

I hate Tuesdays.

Tuesdays are the enemy

Wed, 24 Jan 2007 03:40:50 GMT

I have survived another one. I have a whole week to recover before the next one, but I don't know if that's enough, honestly.

India Company is running smoothly. I am grateful for an intelligent, efficient staff. This is a fantastic relief. They make me look good. Er, better. Perhaps I will earn my sword yet. I want my sword. That's the real reason I joined ROTC, not for the money or the career benefits, but for the sword that I am going to get on graduation. Not really... well, maybe a little.

The IDO program is as smooth as it's ever going to be, which is to say, as smooth as a good 30 grit sanding belt. The show must go on.

I can't wait for cruise. It's going to be great.

when you're dancing her dance, you don't stand a chance!

Fri, 12 Jan 2007 01:48:04 GMT

Right, so I've been forced by my lady friends here at school to take a ballroom dancing class. The first one was today, at the end of this incredibly painful and stressful week. I don't have to tell anyone who might read this that I don't dance. But today, I did. I managed to tango myself around the gym and even cha-cha. I had a blast. Of course, this kind of dancing won't really come in handy at any of the events where dancing is involved at this school, but we'll take it one step at a time.

I have nothing else of substance to report..... Naut Ops Legal is going to be an absolutely brutal class. Oh my god, so boring. And two hours of it to suffer through, to boot. But Ballroom dancing is awesome.

Here's to brutal efficiency.

Thu, 11 Jan 2007 03:58:11 GMT

So today was the first drill session for NROTC this semester. For me, this meant having the ulcer that's been developing in my stomach lining start bleeding. I was pleasantly surprised, though, that the group of people who make up my company staff are made of vastly different stuff than those who make up my regimental staff.

When it comes to entering the military, even if you're only here for a test drive at the start of a ROTC career, there is a seemingly insurmountable ream of paper that you must sign, date, and otherwise fill out. This day is traditionally the day when things are best described as a charlie foxtrot, or clusterfuck. The office staff who manages the paperwork are never on the same page as the LTs in charge of the various training who are never on the same page as the India Company command staff.

Well, ladies and gents, we pulled this off without a hitch. Whether or not I get chewed out by some irate Lieutenant remains to be seen, as the new kids must still successfully sign up for initial counseling, and then properly report themselves to the officer. This is something which we can teach them, but not something that we can ensure will happen. However, their failure results in me getting reamed. So the ulcer hasn't gone away yet.

As to the rest of the operation, my staff is made up of a mix of active duty sailors and marines as well as midshipmen. The active duty folks are already so familiar with this kind of stuff, that I merely have to say what I want and someone, who is both motivated and capable, simply goes and does it! This is such a wonderful feeling. You have no idea, compared to the regiment. My God.

Anyway, it's time for bed. I have a staff meeting at 0600. Wheee.

All settled in

Sun, 07 Jan 2007 21:16:07 GMT

I'm back in da bronx. I got back in yesterday afternoon and I'm not the least bit excited to be back. My room is almost back in order, most of the stuff is out of the car and I've been to the grocery store and now have a stocked fridge and shelf.

Things are soon going to be in full-swing and I'm going to need some serious re-adjusting. Being home was nice, getting real sleep was nice, having free time was nice. Still, the sooner it gets rolling again, the sooner I'm done with it all. This year is going to be a big one. Next fall will be seminar and then USCG License exams. This time next year I'll have my unlimited tonnage merchant marine officer's license. It's too bad the degree part of things won't be over at the same time.

It was nice seeing everyone over the holidays.

Mon, 04 Dec 2006 22:31:57 GMT

I've been annoyed a lot, lately. Of course, the end of the semester brings with it all sorts of fun things like exams and project due dates, so stress is to be expected. Things keep getting heaped up on my plate. Next semester has 26.5 credits looming over my head. My responsibilities as Chief IDO will continue, with training ramping up to prepare the MUGs for cruise. Additionally, in the ROTC Battalion, I have been appointed as a Company Commander for India Company, or Idoc Company. Essentially, I have the same job in both the Maritime Regiment and the NROTC Battalion. To indoctrinate the newbies, it would seem, is something that someone important thinks is a task to which I am well suited. I wish they wouldn't see it that way. It is a headache. Oh, and paperwork.

This past Friday, my body decided it would be a fine time to catch up on sleep that I haven't had in, oh, about a year. I crashed by 7 pm and didn't wake up until 11 Saturday morning. I think I could do that for several days, but I won't get to find out for a few more weeks. Tomorrow promises to be another 0530 day. And that's sleeping-in for a Tuesday.

We're off to the USS Intrepid again, so that we might actually get her out and over to the shipyard in New Jersey. Hopefully this time you will read of our success. In any case, it will be fun, and a chance to miss some school. Woo.

A few weeks ago was the Marine Corps/Navy Birthday Ball that my NROTC Battalion hosted. I took photographs of couples and made quite a pocketful of cash. They came out well. I am pleased with them.

Here is Julie and me:

That is a hand-tied bow-tie, for your information.

That is all.

Wed, 22 Nov 2006 03:07:12 GMT

Put some new pics up on this thing. Under Userinfo

Fri, 17 Nov 2006 03:42:58 GMT

It's about time, right?

There was what my management professor would call a 'radical reactive' change in the structure of the particular part of the regiment of which I am a managing part. The Chief IDO, my immediate boss, decided to combine copious amounts of alcohol with his job one night a few weeks ago and made quite a scene.

Of course, he couldn't just do the right thing and resign. Instead, he dropped off the face of the earth and the rest of us were left to run things. So, we discussed what should happen and came up with a recommendation to present to the officer in charge of us. This is when things became drawn out, slow, and damaging to the program.

The guy should have been removed right away. Instead, it took two weeks of meetings and other crap before he went to Mast and was relieved of his position. I was appointed CIDO in his place and now I am top dog. However, because prior to this I was running the training program for the deck license MUGs, I can't just jump out and leave my replacement hanging, so I'm still muddling through with some of my old responsiblities. The transition should be over soon, but for the next little bit work has gotten harder.

On top of that, the semester is winding down and I'm dealing with my 21 credits worth of projects and exams all coming due together. Busy, busy.

Made my schedule for next semester. 23.5 credits. Fun, Fun, Fun.

We went on that little aircraft carrier adventure. You may or may not have read that we didn't get very far. The tugs nearly tripped themselves (pulled themselves under the water) pulling on the Intrepid. It moved 15 feet and dug her four screws right into the mud. So the Navy is coming to dredge and they'll try again with the tugs in the first week of December. It was still a fun day. We got to poke around an old Essex class carrier and I also got to get in the cockpit of a concorde. I have photographic proof.

That's the story, I think. I might have left something out here and there.... but it's enough for now, anyway.

Thu, 02 Nov 2006 01:47:43 GMT

A lot has been going on the last two weeks. Stuff I would even like to write about. But not knowing who from school reads this I can't post anything till things settle out. So, stay tuned. Maybe someday I'll have a post with drama and conflict and people gone crazy. Maybe.