Hey y'all! Woah, it's been a while! This will mark the first blog in a month, methinks. You guys know what that means, right? That means I'm most likely underway, and up in Radio right now.
If you can imagine, I've got 4 computer screens spread out in front of me. There's a TV screen, phones, and radio equipment all around me. There's a medium level of light; about the normal amount you'd expect from a soft-glowing fluorescent bulb, and the steady thrum of a fan can be heard in the back of the room. On my laptop in front of me, I've got a copy of "The Iliad" open, and I'm slowly making my way through the text on the screen. I'm listening to This is the sort of normal day I'm accustomed to while being out to sea. Twelve hour days are the norm, and when I'm done, it's time to hit the sack!
Life's been pretty good recently. Not that it wasn't good before, but I've got more of a reason to be happy as of late. My wonderful girlfriend, Erin, will be coming to visit on the 16th of October (10 days!) and I'll be leaving to visit her on the 3rd of November for 12 days! Yeah! I can't really describe how great it is to talk to this girl. It really is pretty cool. :)
So, I'm out to sea for another 7 days. I guess I can reveal a little bit about why we're out here. It's pretty much a pre-deployment exercise. We need to make sure we can operate with a group of ships, and do it well. That's pretty much it. :)
I'm not going to update this blog every night, but you can probably expect another 2 or 3 blogs before I pull back in to home.
I'll be seein' all y'all later! :-p
Monday, October 5, 2009
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Azure Haze
Hello!
Today's another weekend duty day. I suppose it's not all that bad, seeing as I had nothing really planned and don't have any crazy watches or anything.
Last week was absolutely fantastic. I traveled up to Ohio to see Erin, and had a blast doing so. The road along the way was relatively smooth, and I had plenty of time to reflect and listen to great music. Tons of "me" time. The most I've ever had, in fact. Upon arrival, I met with Erin in the parking lot of her workplace. She ran to greet me, and then we walked into the newsroom. :)
Over the course of the weekend, I met many of her friends (which are all awesome, by the way) and met her mother and sister. A few parties were had, a few grand conversations, and of course, a few movies were watched. :)
Look at all them bees!
All in all, I have to say that I'm missing that place. Everything was so picturesque, and there was so much history behind everything. One of the places Erin and I visited on-campus was the McGuffey Readers museum. I must say, that was pretty cool to see! :) Over the period of 5 days, I was able to see every available outdoor part of the campus. The formal gardens were neat too. :)
In other news, our ship is gearing up for this next deployment. We've had to bring our passports, write our wills and power of attorneys, and be generally prepared. I guess it kinda sucks, because I've pretty much written this all off until now. And until a month ago, I really didn't care much about leaving, if that makes sense...
Our ship will be leaving in early october for a short inspection cycle, and then it will be back to Norfolk again. Right after we get back, we will be starting up our Pre-deployment leave cycle. Good stuff! Here's to hoping we pass the inspections...
That's all I have for now. Gonna finish up this watch in an hour, and then make a phone call. :)
See all y'all later!
Today's another weekend duty day. I suppose it's not all that bad, seeing as I had nothing really planned and don't have any crazy watches or anything.
Last week was absolutely fantastic. I traveled up to Ohio to see Erin, and had a blast doing so. The road along the way was relatively smooth, and I had plenty of time to reflect and listen to great music. Tons of "me" time. The most I've ever had, in fact. Upon arrival, I met with Erin in the parking lot of her workplace. She ran to greet me, and then we walked into the newsroom. :)
Over the course of the weekend, I met many of her friends (which are all awesome, by the way) and met her mother and sister. A few parties were had, a few grand conversations, and of course, a few movies were watched. :)
Look at all them bees!
All in all, I have to say that I'm missing that place. Everything was so picturesque, and there was so much history behind everything. One of the places Erin and I visited on-campus was the McGuffey Readers museum. I must say, that was pretty cool to see! :) Over the period of 5 days, I was able to see every available outdoor part of the campus. The formal gardens were neat too. :)
In other news, our ship is gearing up for this next deployment. We've had to bring our passports, write our wills and power of attorneys, and be generally prepared. I guess it kinda sucks, because I've pretty much written this all off until now. And until a month ago, I really didn't care much about leaving, if that makes sense...
Our ship will be leaving in early october for a short inspection cycle, and then it will be back to Norfolk again. Right after we get back, we will be starting up our Pre-deployment leave cycle. Good stuff! Here's to hoping we pass the inspections...
That's all I have for now. Gonna finish up this watch in an hour, and then make a phone call. :)
See all y'all later!
Monday, August 24, 2009
Out of the Silent Planet
I'm happy! :)
Last week was downright awesome, and this week will be like 10 times better! I get to go see my girlfriend up in Ohio in three days. :) I get to hear her laugh again!
It's been a long time indeed since my last post. This one will be explanatory in nature.
Work has been stressful. Two of our coworkers have been on baby leave, so I've had to pick up a few collateral duties in their stead. On top of those extra collaterals, I've been a DCPO (Damage Control Petty Officer) for a while. It's tough to answer to two sets of authority. It's kind of like double jeopardy, I suppose. When one manager says, "Okay man, go ahead and leave", the other says, "Woah woah, hold on! We've got more work to do!" I suppose this is a bit draining. But anyways, I'm not one to complain too much! Onward!
Last weekend was a great stress-reliever. I had 3 days to mellow out, put some energy out on the track, and relax with a freakin' awesome friend. I suppose Xavier and I have become pretty good friends over the years, and I think he's a pretty swell guy! Many fun times were had, the cops were called, and traffic weaving had never been so enjoyable!
So, at the moment, I'm hitting up google maps for a bit of map-planning. I hadn't realized how close my route will take me to my Aunt and Uncle's house in Roanoke. Maybe after I leave on monday morning, I'll stop by very briefly and say hello. T'would be an excellent opportunity!
Good news! I'm taking the second leave period, so that means I automatically will be able to stay for the College Formal! YEAH! I'll be taking leave for 14 days. Plenty-o-time, eh? Let's get the kinks worked out on that, shall we?
Okay, so I've got the mid-watch tonight. 915-215. There's usually absolutely nothing going on, so I'm going to struggle as usual to stay awake. I am hoping beyond hope that I'll get to talk to Erin.
On a belated side-note, I'm kinda miffed that I wasn't able to see Stephanie yesterday. I hope it's not going to be another 2 year absence in-between visits again. It was fun reminiscing about good and bad times at the World's Best Pet Store. Hah.
Intergalactic planetary planetary intergalactic. Thanks Emmers!
Last week was downright awesome, and this week will be like 10 times better! I get to go see my girlfriend up in Ohio in three days. :) I get to hear her laugh again!
It's been a long time indeed since my last post. This one will be explanatory in nature.
Work has been stressful. Two of our coworkers have been on baby leave, so I've had to pick up a few collateral duties in their stead. On top of those extra collaterals, I've been a DCPO (Damage Control Petty Officer) for a while. It's tough to answer to two sets of authority. It's kind of like double jeopardy, I suppose. When one manager says, "Okay man, go ahead and leave", the other says, "Woah woah, hold on! We've got more work to do!" I suppose this is a bit draining. But anyways, I'm not one to complain too much! Onward!
Last weekend was a great stress-reliever. I had 3 days to mellow out, put some energy out on the track, and relax with a freakin' awesome friend. I suppose Xavier and I have become pretty good friends over the years, and I think he's a pretty swell guy! Many fun times were had, the cops were called, and traffic weaving had never been so enjoyable!
So, at the moment, I'm hitting up google maps for a bit of map-planning. I hadn't realized how close my route will take me to my Aunt and Uncle's house in Roanoke. Maybe after I leave on monday morning, I'll stop by very briefly and say hello. T'would be an excellent opportunity!
Good news! I'm taking the second leave period, so that means I automatically will be able to stay for the College Formal! YEAH! I'll be taking leave for 14 days. Plenty-o-time, eh? Let's get the kinks worked out on that, shall we?
Okay, so I've got the mid-watch tonight. 915-215. There's usually absolutely nothing going on, so I'm going to struggle as usual to stay awake. I am hoping beyond hope that I'll get to talk to Erin.
On a belated side-note, I'm kinda miffed that I wasn't able to see Stephanie yesterday. I hope it's not going to be another 2 year absence in-between visits again. It was fun reminiscing about good and bad times at the World's Best Pet Store. Hah.
Intergalactic planetary planetary intergalactic. Thanks Emmers!
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Made of Storm
It's rainy outside today. This is rather unfortunate because it's that time of year again. The Perseids Meteor shower is at it's peak today and tomorrow. I read an article on Wikipedia this morning about it's predictability and patterns. It seems that this Formation comes the same time yearly, and has done so for around 2000 years. I guess that's a pretty long time, eh? It's hard to imagine something that occurs regularly for so long. I guess that when I read the article, I imagined the solar system as kind of a giant Metronome. The pendulum of time is always swaying back and forth, and this whole thing is like one huge clockwork machine. God is awesome, yes?
Another occurrence that goes off without a hitch every two years is our Change of Command. We're getting a new Commanding Officer tomorrow, and the events of the past 6 months have led up to this day. Tomorrow will be his first day on the ship, and you can expect that the floors and walls will be spotless. Immaculate. I suppose tomorrow will be a long day. I hope I can grab some sleep after watch tonight.
Meanwhile, things are going well! I'm still pressuring my Chief to pass up my leave Chit, and then I'll be on my way to Ohio! I'm stoked. It should be a great drive, and I should have a great time once I get there. :-p So many things to do!
Right now, I'm sitting here trying to find things to do. Watch is boring as usual, but thankfully I have my iPod. I've had it on random, but it never seems to be random, you know? Predictable is the word I would use to describe the playlist.... I've had some pleasant surprises though! The Fratellis, "Creepin' up the Backstairs" is pretty good. :)
My parents being out of town this long is pretty cool. I've had my time to myself (For the most part), and I've been cut a bit of slack. That doesn't necessarily mean that I've slacked off on chores or cleaning up after myself. It's just nice that there isn't a higher authority there to tell me what to do. A vacation from the ordinary, if you will.
Running is my new thing, apparently. It's great to get off work, go running, take a nice cool shower, and relax. I think I'm in better shape now than I was when I got out of Boot Camp. Good stuff. I'm at 170 right now, which means I've gotten rid of 8 pounds somewhere along the way. Hrmmm....
Alrighty! I'd say that it's about time for me to cut y'all loose. :) I'm still on track for that Midnight call, so stay tuned.
Another occurrence that goes off without a hitch every two years is our Change of Command. We're getting a new Commanding Officer tomorrow, and the events of the past 6 months have led up to this day. Tomorrow will be his first day on the ship, and you can expect that the floors and walls will be spotless. Immaculate. I suppose tomorrow will be a long day. I hope I can grab some sleep after watch tonight.
Meanwhile, things are going well! I'm still pressuring my Chief to pass up my leave Chit, and then I'll be on my way to Ohio! I'm stoked. It should be a great drive, and I should have a great time once I get there. :-p So many things to do!
Right now, I'm sitting here trying to find things to do. Watch is boring as usual, but thankfully I have my iPod. I've had it on random, but it never seems to be random, you know? Predictable is the word I would use to describe the playlist.... I've had some pleasant surprises though! The Fratellis, "Creepin' up the Backstairs" is pretty good. :)
My parents being out of town this long is pretty cool. I've had my time to myself (For the most part), and I've been cut a bit of slack. That doesn't necessarily mean that I've slacked off on chores or cleaning up after myself. It's just nice that there isn't a higher authority there to tell me what to do. A vacation from the ordinary, if you will.
Running is my new thing, apparently. It's great to get off work, go running, take a nice cool shower, and relax. I think I'm in better shape now than I was when I got out of Boot Camp. Good stuff. I'm at 170 right now, which means I've gotten rid of 8 pounds somewhere along the way. Hrmmm....
Alrighty! I'd say that it's about time for me to cut y'all loose. :) I'm still on track for that Midnight call, so stay tuned.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Ruination
Hey! You asked if I'd post a blog soon, and I replied with a "probably soon". This is it! :)
Today was a good day. As much as I'd like to say, "Work sucked" and "I'm tired", that wouldn't be true. Work was fun today.
Today, I counseled someone for the first time. He was aware that he messed up. I know this. The main reason why I pulled him aside and verbally counseled him was because he really needed to learn a lesson. Safety and all that. I don't want to do it again, but it was a great learning experience.
Afterwards, I completed a handful of trouble calls. One of them was installing a new printer/fax machine on the network. That was neat, because I was able to learn how to utilize our phone lines in a way I was unable to before. Neat, I guess.
After work, I got home and plopped down on the couch. This "Augusty" weather is starting to take a toll on me at the end of the day. I regathered my thoughts and sanity, and braved into the heat again. This time, my mission was to remove the battery from the Integra. See, it hasn't been able to start in several weeks now, and I'm becoming a bit tired of it sitting around. It needs to move. To perform an action. To drive!! It's so fun to drive. :)
So I successfully removed the battery, right? Now, I bring the battery to Advance Auto. They charge it, test it, and then tell me that the battery is more than dead. It's DONE. Good thing though! It's under warranty! But oh, wait... we don't have a record of you buying it from here... you'll have to talk to the manager. I guess that's fine with me, but I have duty tomorrow and friday, and the manager will be there tomorrow... and friday. Boo...
Okay, so it's back to the drawing board. At least now I know exactly why my Integra wasn't turning on, or even attempting to turn on.
Afterwards, Tony came over, and we were able to finally watch Fight Club. This night has been a long time coming, indeed. That movie ROCKED! Let me say, the ending was quite unexpected. During the flick, Tony and myself sampled some beer that we got at Farm Fresh. It was a locally brewed ale, and was actually pretty decent. I guess I like trying new things. :)
Okay, well that's pretty much what went on today. I hope y'all have a great night, and I'll see you/ talk to you tomorrow! :)
Today was a good day. As much as I'd like to say, "Work sucked" and "I'm tired", that wouldn't be true. Work was fun today.
Today, I counseled someone for the first time. He was aware that he messed up. I know this. The main reason why I pulled him aside and verbally counseled him was because he really needed to learn a lesson. Safety and all that. I don't want to do it again, but it was a great learning experience.
Afterwards, I completed a handful of trouble calls. One of them was installing a new printer/fax machine on the network. That was neat, because I was able to learn how to utilize our phone lines in a way I was unable to before. Neat, I guess.
After work, I got home and plopped down on the couch. This "Augusty" weather is starting to take a toll on me at the end of the day. I regathered my thoughts and sanity, and braved into the heat again. This time, my mission was to remove the battery from the Integra. See, it hasn't been able to start in several weeks now, and I'm becoming a bit tired of it sitting around. It needs to move. To perform an action. To drive!! It's so fun to drive. :)
So I successfully removed the battery, right? Now, I bring the battery to Advance Auto. They charge it, test it, and then tell me that the battery is more than dead. It's DONE. Good thing though! It's under warranty! But oh, wait... we don't have a record of you buying it from here... you'll have to talk to the manager. I guess that's fine with me, but I have duty tomorrow and friday, and the manager will be there tomorrow... and friday. Boo...
Okay, so it's back to the drawing board. At least now I know exactly why my Integra wasn't turning on, or even attempting to turn on.
Afterwards, Tony came over, and we were able to finally watch Fight Club. This night has been a long time coming, indeed. That movie ROCKED! Let me say, the ending was quite unexpected. During the flick, Tony and myself sampled some beer that we got at Farm Fresh. It was a locally brewed ale, and was actually pretty decent. I guess I like trying new things. :)
Okay, well that's pretty much what went on today. I hope y'all have a great night, and I'll see you/ talk to you tomorrow! :)
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Random Analysis
Blog blog blog. It's 12:07. Beep... beep...beep...beep...beep...beep. Time's ticking away, and there's nothing I can do about it. I'm going to go with this font for a while.
My parents are gone for the week. Well, not quite gone yet, but they will be gone starting tomorrow morning. I actually think I'm going to host something. I know I always say this, but I think I actually will.
Tomorrow will be a good day. I'm going to Keagans pub at 1030, and hopefully have a great time with some great friends. Acceptance is washing over me right now. It's refreshing. Back to reality. I'll be running off of little to no sleep tomorrow. If i can grab a few hours tonight, maybe I'll feel well enough to take a run tomorrow.
I'm stuck on watch again with my nemesis. I really can't tolerate this guy. I've never had this much of a problem with anybody I've worked with, and that bothers me. I'm really an accepting person. Maybe it's the fact that he calls me "Mr. Green" all the time, or the fact that his voice is about 25 decibels louder than a normal person's speech. I don't know.
My random analysis is that people need forgiveness. I'm willing to supply it, people just need to accept it. End.
My parents are gone for the week. Well, not quite gone yet, but they will be gone starting tomorrow morning. I actually think I'm going to host something. I know I always say this, but I think I actually will.
Tomorrow will be a good day. I'm going to Keagans pub at 1030, and hopefully have a great time with some great friends. Acceptance is washing over me right now. It's refreshing. Back to reality. I'll be running off of little to no sleep tomorrow. If i can grab a few hours tonight, maybe I'll feel well enough to take a run tomorrow.
I'm stuck on watch again with my nemesis. I really can't tolerate this guy. I've never had this much of a problem with anybody I've worked with, and that bothers me. I'm really an accepting person. Maybe it's the fact that he calls me "Mr. Green" all the time, or the fact that his voice is about 25 decibels louder than a normal person's speech. I don't know.
My random analysis is that people need forgiveness. I'm willing to supply it, people just need to accept it. End.
Friday, August 7, 2009
Haikus are easy!
Liquid metal ocean
Lightning dances reflection
Pale moon.
Do you think I have a future in this?
Confucius say, "It is a wise weasel who uses bean paste to catch a cobra!"
Lightning dances reflection
Pale moon.
Do you think I have a future in this?
Confucius say, "It is a wise weasel who uses bean paste to catch a cobra!"
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