NAVY BOOT CAMP

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Comment by Gingerman357 on December 20, 2009 at 7:19pm

I'm watching "Meet the Natives," on TV. Five guys from the Island of Tanna in the S. Pacific. They are on a peace mission to the U.S. Many years ago, they were a people at war, until a man they call "Tom Navy," came to the island and showed them how to live in peace. It was the end of WWII, and the Navy had driven the Japanese off. He taught them a bit about the U.S., and gave them food and cargo. Tom Navy told them to live in peace, and left money and a promise to come back.

They heard that America was fighting a war, and so they're looking for Tom Navy to help spread the word of peace that he gave them; if they can't find Tom Navy, they are to tell the President that peace is the most important thing.

Comment by Gingerman357 on December 20, 2009 at 7:18pm

Mark, I haven't played that piece. Usually I played the Sousaphone, but Tuba in orchestra and concert band. 40 years ago, three of us decided we'd tease the Salvation Army lady at the open mall, and so we took our instruments, Tuba, Trombone and Sax, and stood off to one side and played Christmas Carols. thought it was a big laugh, until she started crying in gratitude. He felt 2 inches tall, and went up there every afternoon and played for her while she rang the bell.

I played in the band at the National Soldiers Home in Wash. D.C. We mainly played funerals, wearing a WWI Blue dress uniform and marching behind the casson. The first funeral I played, I found this nice small horn, easy to march with, thinks I. It sounded horrible. I couldn't make a good note the whole way. The conductor said," You know that's an E flat horn, right? Anyway, looking good is more important, they're mainly deaf." It was a great gig.

Comment by Jim Butler on December 20, 2009 at 4:34pm

We had a great call with Chris yesterday, about 45mins. His mom and me are both still amazed at the change in our son after only 3wks. He is much more articulate and seems to actually think before he speaks now :)
He is no longer MAA...said he got fired...lol...also said it was a sucky job because a few people who don't "get it" made his life hell. He also said he was the 3rd MAA since they started, and that was just 2wks ago.
He sounded great, his head is on straight.
One thing that was hilariously funny...when he processed through MEPS Boston, they checked his BMI...21%. Chris is 6'1", and ran the Boston Marathon for the first time this year, finished in 4:25. When he got to GL, they checked his BMI again, and told him it was 28%, then sent him to a nutrionist (the kid eats almost nothing but salads and fresh fruits), and put him on a "heart healthy" program. After a week, they checked his BMI again, this time he was at 21%. They congratulated him on an amazing turnaround for converting all that fat to muscle in just 1wk!!!...we laughed pretty hard over that one.
He also said he thinks they're going to get another chance to call, either Christmas Day or Christmas Eve, unless the division really screws up.
Also said that their division seemed to be having a rough time coming together as a team...said that a lot of kids don't seem to want to be there.

Comment by MarkM on December 20, 2009 at 3:27pm

Steve, have you ever played with Merry Tuba Christmas?

Comment by MarkM on December 20, 2009 at 3:25pm

Steve, my son is a tuba player and will be performing at PIRs as part of the 900 division. His high school marching band won the national championships 2 years in a row and he marched with a DCI Drum and Bugle Corps, Jersey Surf (even though we live in Maryland). So he has lots of marching experience. He is playing a Sousaphone at BC, which is a first for him.

Comment by MarkM on December 20, 2009 at 3:23pm

Ahh, the racks. I remember when they installed those on my ship. The mattresses are 2.5" thick and lay on a board...no springs. Once you get used to them, its hard to sleep on a regular mattress. They are great for the back, too.

Glad she is doing well. The joint punishment is part of the team building that is being done. If one screws up, they all pay.

Comment by Bob Kline on December 20, 2009 at 12:50pm

Oh, and P.S., she really hates what they did to her hair!

Comment by Bob Kline on December 20, 2009 at 12:46pm

Merry Christmas! We finally got a letter from Rosie yesterday. It looks like things got off to a so-so start. She made a mistake stenciling her uniform right in front of the Chief and got yelled at for that. Somebody screwed up and the whole division had to do punishment PT. Their Chief gets mad at them if they smile and probably the worst of all she had to clean the head without gloves as the only pair (!) had been destroyed because they had been used to clean up blood from someone's cut earlier.

On the other hand she said the E-2 exam was a breeze and the RDCs aren't so bad for people who have to be mean all the time. The food is OK (although not as good as Dad's home cooking) and she really enjoys marching (double !). She gets on well with her rack-mate and, as uncomfortable as the racks might be, she especially likes the chances she gets to sleep.

All in all, I suspect her experience so far is fairly typical of most new recruits. They say that the first three weeks are the hardest. I can hardly wait to see her in February at PIR once its all over.

Comment by Gingerman357 on December 20, 2009 at 12:28pm

I saw someone out there said that their son is a Tuba Player. Me too. Hate seeing 'em used for decoration in restaurants, when I could be oom-paahing away on it.

Comment by Gingerman357 on December 20, 2009 at 12:26pm

Anyone out there with Sailor in Ship 12/Div 083?
Just wondering

PIR scheduled for 2/12/10

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