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I'm feeling:
I'm doing okay, I swear - it's been uber-busy.
It's hot here.
We're going underway...again.
I've been getting supplies ready for deployment.
My RADAR is broked. Yes, I said bro-ked.
It's still hot.
I've been up since 1:45 this morning.
I'm still getting underway today.
I can't wait to see my parents at the end of the month.
I'm really hot, tired, and I want a cigarette.
I'll be back later!
Skate - Noun: A person who habitually gets out of or avoids work of any kind, i.e. skater Verb: To get out or avoid work.
Ricky - A new recruit
In the Navy since Breakfast - You know, a new guy. (the term is usually used when said new guy is a know-it-all)
Crank - Someone who works on the messdecks, but is not a cook. In the more recent PC times, cranks are referred to as FSA (Food Service Attendants)
Gundeck - Basically, not actually doing the job, but saying you did. Or worse, signing your name saying you did. Falsifying a record.
Sweepers - A twice-daily ritual of basic cleaning.
Rape for Parts - When you take a piece of equipment that is already inoperable and use its parts to fix another.
Lay Below - To go below the weather deck, or a lower deck
Snot Locker - Nose
Hit the Beach - Go out of liberty, get off the ship
BOSNIA - Big Old Standard Navy Issue Ass
WestPac Widow - Women whose husbands are out to sea (West Coast)
Birdfarm - An aircraft carrier (birds = planes)
Non-skid - a rough coating on the weather decks (outside) that keeps you from sliding. Not good to fall on.
Coffin Locker - The space beneath a rack to store personal items (you actually lift your rack up and tada!)
So, here I am back in the big blue wet thing for a three day underway. Okay, two-and-a-half days. I've been rather blah today. I have so much to do before deployment and it seems I have so little time to do it in. Every time I turn around, we're underway. How can I get anything done when I'm never home? I'm just sayin'.
I just found out one of my Flickr photos got included in the fifith edition of the Schmap San Diego Guide. It's one of my "Driving through San Diego" pics.
Seriously!
Well, at least back pierside Norfolk. I'm on duty, so I can't leave until tomorrow morning, and I have no idea where my car is. They had a deployment homecoming at the pier I was parked at and the rumor is that they towed all the cars parked there away. So, yay.
I really am exhausted. I hope that deployment isn't going to be this rough. If I have to be in a 3 section watch rotation for seven months, I will go postal. There will be no way my body or my mind will be able to handle five and dimes for that long. I am so ready to go home and veg. Take a shower barefoot. Sleep in my own bed. Not get woken up by the 1MC. Peace and quiet. That is the best part.
Anyway. I'm headed off to my rack and dream sweet dreams about going home tomorrow.
I've been sleeping on and off for two days. I was infected with what we like to call the Ventilation Crud. It sucked really bad. But luckily, I did get the chance to sleep and recharge my body. I'm not back to 100% yet, but I am definitely getting there.
We didn't get those rough seas that were promised, only because we ran away from Bertha. Yay. Doing that might extend our underway time. Boo.
Now the ship is going in all sorts of wonky directions because they are letting the new Ensigns drive the ship. At. Full. Power. What are they thinking?
Holy crap. I'm running behind. A few days of River City and I have about 211 posts to read on bloglines. That's usually why I never make comments, I get so tired of reading.
Today we did an UNREP, or Underway Replenishment. We pull alongside an Oiler and they send over a big hose and we refuel while going between 8-12 knots in the middle of the ocean. It is really cool the first couple of times you see it, but after 17 years, I just get annoyed because I can't smoke for a few hours. UNREP looks like this:
The ship on the right is a DDG, like what I'm on. If you look in the distance, you can see another ship approaching.
We're heading into some bumpy weather. The Captain is telling us that it's going to get bad for the next 24-48 hours. I get to laugh at people getting seasick. Unless of course it gets really, really bad, then it will be my turn to get all vomity. Yay.
So, we have this thing called River City, right? There are levels of the RC shit that allow/disallow things such as internet access, email, blah blah blah either outgoing, incoming, or for certain ranks of personnel. Needless to say, I haven't been able to get on the internet since my last post. Fuckers! And I had some pretty good things to say and now I can't remember them. Shit.
Still doing circles in the big blue wet thing. I really don't want to do anything. I have lost my motivation. Have you seen it? If this underway is any indication, it is going to be a rough deployment. I need to find a hidey-hole. A sort of physical happy place where I don't have to deal with my Chief. *sigh*
If anyone wants my ship's address, email me and I'll send it to you. I don't want to post it in public for good reason. If someone could send a constant supply of Red Bull, that'd be great. LOL! It might be a while before I can answer. I can't check my gmail account on the ship, and I have yet to forward it to my ship account.
I'm wearing my hair down today. Every now and then they sell these chits through our Morale thingy where the guys don't have to shave and the girls don't have to put our hair up. It's kinda cool and out of the norm. I constantly get comments about how long my hair is getting, as well as some psuedo-pervvy ones from some of my male friends.
Ah...just another day in the Navy.
And this will be the final installment for now...
Pucker Factor - Tension casued by a stressful situation or dangerous evolution. Refers to the involuntary tightening of the sphincter.
Bilge Rat - Someone who works in the most lowerdecks of the ship
Shipwreck - Derogatory term for a fellow sailor; a shitbag
Vitamin M - Motrin. The cure-all of the Navy.
Salty - A Sailor with lots of experience.
Polish a Turd - Making the most of a bad situation.
Oscar - The dummy used as a prop for man overboard drill, named so after the flag denoting man overboard.
Nominated for an Oscar - The sailor picked to be respresented by Oscar to see if anyone notices and marks him/her missing.
Pecker-Checker - A Hospital Corpsman, the ship's doc.
Vampire Liberty - Getting the day off because you donated blood.
PFM - Pure Fucking Magic. A term that applies to when things work, but you have no idea how.
Two Digit Midget - Someone with 99 days or less either on their current tour, or in the Navy.
Gerbil Alley - Otherwise known as Jebal Ali in the UAE.
Float Test - To toss something overboard.
Topsider - Anyone that doesn't work in Engineering. Refers to the fact that engineers are always down below the waterline.
Canoe Club - The US Navy
I hope that helps the next time I start typing some random shit. Maybe.
