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I had the honor to travel with my Son on a Tiger cruise starting from Pearl Harbor to San Dieago  this year.

If anyone who is going on a Tiger cruise has questions about what to expect, please feel free to contact me.

Sailor's Christmas

Twas the night before Christmas, the ship was out steaming,
Sailors stood watch while others were dreaming.
They lived in a crowd with racks tight and small,
In a 80-man berthing, cramped one and all.

I had come down the stack with presents to give,
And to see inside just who might perhaps live.
I looked all about, a strange sight did I see,
No tinsel, no presents, not even a tree.

No stockings were hung, shined boots close at hand,
On the bulkhead hung pictures of a far distant land.
They had medals and badges and awards of all kind,
And a sober thought came into my mind.

For this place was different, so dark and so dreary,
I had found the house of a Sailor, once I saw clearly.
A Sailor lay sleeping, silent and alone,
Curled up in a rack and dreaming of home.

The face was so gentle, the room squared away,
This was the United States Sailor today.
This was the hero I saw on TV,
Defending our country so we could be free.

I realized the families that I would visit this night,
Owed their lives to these Sailors lay willing to fight.
Soon round the world, the children would play,
And grownups would celebrate on Christmas Day.

They all enjoyed freedom each day of the year,
Because of the Sailor, like the one lying here.
I couldn't help wonder how many lay alone,
On a cold Christmas Eve on a sea, far from home.

The very thought brought a tear to my eye,
I dropped to my knees and started to cry.
The Sailor awakened and I heard a calm voice,
"Santa, don't cry, this life is my choice."

"Defending the seas all days of the year,
So others may live and be free with no fear."
I thought for a moment, what a difficult road,
To live a life guided by honor and code.

After all it's Christmas Eve and the ship's underway!
But freedom isn't free and it's sailors who pay.
The Sailor say's to our country "be free and sleep tight,
No harm will come, not on my watch and not on this night.

The Sailor rolled over and drifted to sleep,
I couldn't control it, I continued to weep.
I kept watch for hours, so silent, so still,
I watched as the Sailor shivered from the night's cold chill.

I didn't want to leave on that cold dark night,
This guardian of honor so willing to fight.
The Sailor rolled over and with a voice strong and sure,
Commanded, "Carry on Santa, It's Christmas, and All is Secure!"

by the Navy Dads Admins. Thanks, guys.  As an Instructor in the Navy Sea Cadets for the last 5 years, I feel I have a leg up on a lot of the "newbie" things.  Ratings, Lingo, history, etc. are taught to our cadets and at the National trainings our unit hosts.  There is no having a leg up on the emotional roller coaster, however.  One day last week I would just well up with pride and tears for no apparent reason.  I told a friend whose daughter is in the Army that it is just part of the "being in the 30-day range" and I better get used to it.  Sure, no problem.

Received a short phone call from my sailor yesterday to inform us that she has been promoted to E3 effective immediately. She went in as an E2 due to her having 2 years of college. We are very proud of our daughter and expect to see future promotions based on her abilities and commitment.

I have no doubt she will prove to be a great asset to the Navy and our country and I haven't stopped smiling since hearing this. lol

One year ago today my son started boot camp. There have been times when the clock stood still and times that have flown by. I have learn so much and I know I have much more to learn.

Thank you Navy Dads for your understanding, support and your willingness to share knowledge.

Anyone with a son or daughter in this unit? It would be great to hook up and compare notes. Fair winds and following seas.

Anyone with a recruit in this Div?

Our sons cell phone broke and we have not been in contact with him in 2 weeks. He is in navy nuke school in S. Carolina.What is a good way to get in contact with him?

Boot camp is over. The experience we had in post PIR liberty was priceless and quite comforting.  There have been differences during this period even at a far. The muted communication gave a synthetic stress like no other. Differences did occur and have only become partially resolved, mostly by concession. We are in love. Are we in love with the idea of being in love or is it the real deal?

I figured I would not end the relationship or permanently engage during this artificially stressful time. Sailorette wants to commit to a eternal bond through this tough time, which is hard to ignore,yet still hard to acknowledge. Ultimately I am totally game. But, there are still differences yet to be worked out. Is such urgency brought on by youth? I don’t know.  To permanently commit with small differences in the rafters is obviously of some concern. The element of utmost concern is the fact that we want to commit and haven’t been together completely in 10 weeks. I worry this love is just an idea, or only manageable because of distance.

Our love is hot right now, and she wants to strike while the emotions are strong. Is it best for me? And, is it best for her? Should we act on these feelings? What if I delay? Will she not feel I am committed? Having a girlfriend in the service is stressful . You hear one thing but see another. I cant help but wonder if the person serving is so helplessly in it if they can see the same thing.

I am not sure it is right to feel your relationship is only healthy when there has been two and a half months of separation. She tells me she is committed to me and not the service, but the reality is my bed is half empty every night.

18 November 2011 Graduation Day (a.k.a. PIR) - We shuttled in and arrived at the main gate drop-off area roughly around 0700. As we made our way to entering the base, we were warmly greeted by courteous heavily armed MAs who checked our photo IDs. From there we walked a short distance to the graduation hall and at the door we were handed the graduation programs. They asked for our names, our sailor’s name and division number.

Our names were validated and checked off of the access list and we were hand-stamped. We then made our way to the bleachers. You have the option to sit anywhere in the bleachers but in front on the ground floor; they had signs for every division. The idea is to sit directly in front of that specific area as that’s where the designated division will be in formation throughout the whole ceremony.

I couldn’t help but notice the happiness in the air. Everyone had nothing but smiles and excitement. You have the opportunity to purchase a souvenir sailor hat imprinted with RTC as well.

The start of the ceremony was kicked off by the color guard and band division which in our case was DIV 901. I believe every training group has one. Their performance was nothing short of fantastic!

Now for the best part… When the rolling doors opened, I cried like a baby inside but was quiet as a rock. I managed to hold back the majority of my tears though a few snuck out. This was the moment we’ve all waited for. Each division was introduced as they marched in order and took up their formations. I was filled with silent joy and emotions no words can possibly express.

After all was said and done it was Liberty Call!

Again I want to thank all of our new Sailors for serving our country most especially during this time of war. I also want to extend my gratitude to all of our friends and loved ones for showing their unconditional support throughout the entire boot camp experience…

It’s been almost eight weeks since our son entered the doors of the U.S. Navy RTC. Since day one, I’ve done nothing short of worrying non-stop about him all the time…

I just wanted to express my gratitude to his recruiter S. Sargent from the Navy Recruiting Station, Fairfield, CA and the entire team at RTC for giving him the opportunity to serve our country in the most awesome Navy in the world.

Bravo Zulu to all of the Sailors for a job well done Hoo-Yah!

Last but not least, a “Special Thanks” to all of the Admins and Members of NavyDads.Com for all of the information, resources, support and helpful advice which got me through my own emotional boot camp of sorts.

We are packed and ready to rock and roll for PIR this Friday!
Thank You Lord and God Bless You All…

The Boyfriend of a Girlfriend in the Navy:  PIR, Getting Through 67 Hours of Emotion on 6 Hours of Sleep.

*Spoiler alert! If you read all the way to the end you will find a happy ending.

Wednsday

0430 Woke up for work

1130 Get the sailor call. Nice to talk to Sailorette, but we all knew she would make it, no surprise there.

1730 Left work early to head to airport. There are only 2 Nathans hot dogs in Phoenix. I’m so looking forward to a Philly and lemonade at the airport.

1830 Denied by Nathans. Out of Phillys and they only have that Country Time garbage.

2015 A flight on a 737 with 16 passengers !

Thursday

0030 Arrived at Midway Airport, Chicago.

0045 Get rental car off airport site 15 minutes before closing

0130 Settled in my room.  Pacing until the anxiety wears off

0300 Finally able to lay down and SLEEP.

0500 Woke up, bathed, ironed, got coffee. Red Carpet Inn does not serve their horrid doughnuts until 0600 (doughnuts aside I do very much so recommend the Red Carpet Inn). You are actually far better off to go to the quickie mart down the street for coffee and edibles. Put rose pedals in the  Jacuzzi tub. Made hotel bed with sheets and blankets from home. Set up lamp and stuffed bear from night stand at home.

0615 Left for base. Great advice going early Kurt (yes Kurt I really do mean it, the earlier the better if you want a good seat). Sit in traffic until the gates open.

0700 doors open sit front and center for Sailorette. If your worried about smoking there is a HUGE smoking section outside the gate.

0845 We get to rewatch all the videos of the Navy, that we watched on YouTube wondering  what our loved ones got themselves into.

0900 I hope you like the sound of horns and drums this goes on for about 2 ½ hours.

0930 We get to watch 561 people stand at attention for 2 hours while RDCs walk between them making sure they don’t pass out.

1045. “With out further ado! Hip Hip Horah! Hip Hip Horah! Hip Hip Horah!  Now this is where you and your sailor need a predetermined plan. Look each other in the eyes. Look at the nearest exit and make a run for it!

1100 Make it to the room Lay in bed stare at the ceiling and talk about every very personal moment we had apart. I will warn you my friends neither of you will be tearless.

It is now time to make up for lost time.

1500 Sailorette and I are hungry . We cant make up our minds on what she is craving. Finally we want food like she makes, when she makes a nice dinner for the two of us. Since I don’t care for steak we agreed on a place that specialized in it. We discover The Tavern does not open till 1700

So we decide to make up for more lost time.

1700 We go to The Tavern. I encourage you to make reservations, or it is likely you will not get in.  We agreed to finish dinner in under 2 hours so they lets us have a table before the next  guests showed up. Also if your shirt does not button completely up the front and/or it is not tucked in don’t go.

I want to take the time to specially note there steak with the truffle butter sauce was amazing. I thought it was good and Sailorette enjoyed not eating the feral geese from the base for a change. THE TAVERN (http://www.tavernlibertyville.com/index.php/tavern-dining) treated us VERY VERY well. I encourage you to strongly consider the dining experience there. Check the reviews on yelp(http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-tavern-libertyville).

1830 returned to  the room. And said our good byes. Meanwhile making up for lost tim. (Did I mention we were apart for 8 weeks?)

2100 Dropped her off at the chapel.

2130 Back in the room

2200 already missing her

Now. The ceremony I could take or leave. I don’t recommend the DVD but I probably would have enjoyed it more than the ceremony.

The irreplaceable feeling I experienced was the complete and deep happiness I saw inside Sailorette. I have never seen any one so happy in my 38 years. I didn’t see it in her large glowing eyes. It wasn’t even in her smile. Neither of us smiled much at all. I could see it inside her. I have never been able to look inside someone in such a way before. And her happiness was contagious. I felt all the joy she had. It was a complete exchange of emotion without speaking or the facial queues we depend on. I saw inside her and It was amazing

2230 Going to bed

0230 getting up to make my 0600 flight. Which is good because I had to turn around to get my cell phone charger and I got lost returning my car to a site not at, but near the airport.

*0900 Land in Phoenix talk to Sailorette. Her and 3 other girls were giving hi five in the showers last night for the afternoon they spent with their boyfriends.

1000 back to work till 1800

So let this be a lesson. Sending letters, actual tiny flowers, sweaty hockey equipment, pictures, poems, origami love boxes, and going out of the way to make sure they feel at home after PIR pays off. Sailorette and I have discussed it Neither of us love each other anymore or less than ever before. And we are not proud of having to go through this to learn how much we truly do love each other. (As for the Navy, to me its just a second boyfriend).

A footnote to those with short sailors. The Navy likes uniformity in every thing including the size of their sailors. They stick the short ones in the middle. If your sailor is short you will not see them, and they will not see you.

Posted in the Navy Times.....

Seabee killed checking road in Afghanistan

A Seabee working with a provincial reconstruction team in Paktika province, Afghanistan, was killed Wednesday while assessing a route, according to a Defense Department release.

Chief Builder (SCW) Raymond J. Border, 31, of West Lafayette, Ohio, was assigned Navy Mobile Construction Battalion 74 in Gulfport, Miss. His parents told the Sun Herald newspaper of Gulfport that Border was inspecting a road for a convoy to pass and had stepped out of his vehicle when a bomb went off.

Border enlisted in September 1999, and made chief in 2009, personnel records show. His awards include a Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal and three Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals.

I’m happy to have received yet another letter from my son. As we all know with boot camp schedules, there’s no telling when you’ll get a letter or a phone call from your SR.

He is doing well and continues to focus and work hard to remain in the top ten percent. At this stage the “welcome to boot camp” culture shock is pretty much over. He’s passed the PFAs required to-date and told me that they were awarded the Athletic Flag. Though I really have no idea what this means, I do know getting an award for something good is always a great thing…

Bravo Zulu Div 002 I’m so proud of you all. Keep up the good work Hoo-Yah!
See you soon my son…

We’ve all read the bumper sticker, “If you can read this thank a teacher. If you can read it in English thank a soldier.” This idea and common belief probably deserves a closer look.

What do soldiers protect? A language? Religion? “Freedom?” Oil? The list goes on and on. This statement speaks to a popular form of “American values.” And, is probably worthy of further thought.

Preserving culture and language is an interesting discussion. Arguments could be made either way. In a world that values tradition, preservation of language is necessary.  In a utilitarian world functioning in a multi-lingual environment is inefficient, and divisive.

What is my position? Manners. My parents had a mediocre grasp on manners in society. My grand parents were experts on the subject. I am glad to have been taught it is impolite to whisper to someone in front of others. It is also, impolite in a room full of people for a few to speak a different language in front of them.

We have all walked into a room in the workplace and then two people immediately lower their voices to a whisper. It likely has nothing to do with the person that just walked in. The conversation could range from discussions about Dr appointments to birthday presents. The conversation is clearly none of our business in the first place, but the behavior however warranted still instills some level discomfort to the adjacent audience.

When people start using all the “speak English or go home rhetoric,” in some cases they maybe racists or bigots. The majority are probably just people unable to articulate their cultural value of manners and its necessity. Another one of our sentiments is, the belief that soldiers are here to preserve our values. I dont see the problem with reminding others manners is one of our "American values."

With exactly three weeks left to go and a day for PIR, I’m feeling ever so anxious. I’m so anxious that I haven’t slept straight for weeks ever since my son left for boot camp.

I’d wake up in the middle of the night wondering how he’s doing, how he’s feeling and I still constantly worry but I always just hope for the best. I wish I had a Time Machine... Usually, I’ll have one of my “If I can only turn back time” moments, but in this case I wanna go full-throttle at warp speed ahead to 11/18/11.

To date I’ve received a couple of letters and one missed phone call - that’s my bad.

I continue to send him letters daily or every other day whenever possible. Even though I’ve probably repeated myself a hundred times over in context, I feel good that he’s got my letters to read instead of possibly none.

I take it that no news is good news most especially with regards to boot camp.

It can’t happen soon enough, but Great Lakes, here we come!...

Sailorette called Things are going well. The service isnt what she expected and she maintains a couple weeks could be shaved off of boot camp. She says there is ample "study time" I think that means time with nothing to do. 

She said getting lots of letters is awesome. Some people get a fistful every day. Some get little to none. One girl has gotten 1 letter from her boyfriend in 5 weeks (I think we know where this is going). Sailorettes grandmother and myself are the only two writing her regularly. I am writing every day. A division member said she was going to start writing to Sailoretes boyfriend (me) so she can start getting letters too. I thought it was funny so I am including a letter for her in the next letter to Sailorette. 

What to send? I send pics. Im not much of a picture guy but have discovered Walgreens lets you upload pics from your digital camera or phone, and develop them for 20 cents each. Another thing dont send all your pics at once. Spread em out over the weeks. I mail her all kinds of things poems, folded paper objects, random small items. and smells that remind her of home. You dont want the envelope to catch the attention of the base, so dont douse it. But remember, smell has different connection to the brain and memories than any of our other senses (FACT). I clipped one letter above the BBQ so she could smell grilled chicken. She has been asking for a back rub so the last letter has Icey Hot on it.

I send her occasional news articles. She is also a hockey fan. Every Friday I send her the standings. I will talk up all the big games coming up that weekend but wont tell her the scores till the following Friday. That  has got to drive her nuts. 

Sailorette is not different than any of the other boys and girls in boot camp. Every one of em Likes getting letters. I sent a big envelope full of paper, envelopes, and stamps. It is so weird to get her writing back on paper that was in the bottom draw of my desk a few weeks ago.

It is discouraging to write every day and get sporadic responses. It feels like you are writing to your self. This feels even more like you are writing to your self when some of your letters get returned (they are sticklers for correct postage). A few times I got very close to going on letter writing strike. I am glad I didnt when I hear about the reactions of people not getting letters

So if you go see a movie this weekend, pick up a pen and write about it. If their favorite team makes the play offs, send them updates from the paper. If their brother has a birthday that week get a picture on your phone and get it printed at the local pharmacy. These are simple things to do and if your recruit is special to you all those little 3X6 care packages will tell them so in a big way.

Thanks for the kind welcome. My daughter is in 7/371 with a PIR of 11/10/11. We have gotten 3 letters so far. It seems we get them on every Tuesday. I have 2 questions; Has anyone tried to bring any additional people to graduation beside the allowed 4 people, and did they get in? and, In "A" school, how much down time do they have? and, do they have access/privileges to phones and computers?Any info you can provide would be great. Thank you

i can only speak for me but the sight of a flag draped coffin as dad that just sent his son off to boot camp is a far to real reminder of what could be the outcome most of us are already on edge not that you did anything wrong i have talked to you i think you are a good guy something like that is just to soon for some of us