I value the local Publix for many reasons – from fried chicken to fresh baguettes. However, it would not be my first choice as the place for an epiphany. But that’s what happened. Living in a college town, not far from The Swamp, the grocery checkers and baggers will almost always be college students. And … Continue reading Major Mumbling: An English Epiphany
Achieving a richer, more meaningful life is possible through personal and intellectual growth. The advanced life-long learner and seeker who applies critical thinking rigorously and at times unflinchingly in the face of dangers and pitfalls, will earn the ultimate boon, advanced competence in finding and embracing Truth, understanding our world as it really is. “Roaring” … Continue reading Meaningful Lives from Learning
Recently, a classmate sadly compared the era during which we were raised and the coarseness of today’s national rhetoric. He contrasted the civility at home, school, and public life discourse at that time, with the torrent of coarse, defamatory, and divisive discourse we endure today. I certainly agreed with basics of his comparison. Today’s national … Continue reading The most uncivil outcome of all
Our Korean War Veterans saved a nation from a future of unimaginable bleakness, restored an Ally, and stopped Communist aggression. They did so not for glory or national grandeur. They defended Freedom, protected Freedom, and preserved Freedom in Korea because the United States of America, asked these “Greatest Generation” young men to do so. That … Continue reading An Opportunity to Bring Wayne and Ron Home
Captain Elliot Dean Ayer, USAF, was a decorated fighter pilot of WWII and the Korean War. A Pearl Harbor Veteran as a 17-year old gunner, he earned his AAF wings, personal decorations and a Captaincy by the end of the war. Rather than leave the rapidly demobilizing Air Force, he served as a Master Sergeant, … Continue reading Remembering a Korean War Hero: Captain Elliot Dean Ayer, USAF
The Navy has announced it is reestablishing the Second Fleet. A lot of us who served proudly in that Fleet, are thinking “told you so.” A more fundamental question is where are leaders like Burke, Rickover, and Metcalf (21st Century Navy) to speak up, call out, and decry strategic decisions that undermine or threaten our … Continue reading Navy Gives Second Fleet Second Chance
Before relieving the Officer of the Deck Underway (OOD u/w), the on-coming OOD was required to prepare himself thoroughly. Reading and initialing the Captain’s Night Orders was an important step in the relieving process. They were read and initialed before every watch between 2100 – 0800. In other words, periods when the Captain might be … Continue reading Carrier Captain’s Night Orders: “Call Me…”
The national Board of Directors of the Boy Scouts of America recently announced that girls will be welcomed into all programs sponsored by that organization. Previously the Sea Scouts and Venturing programs allowed young women 14 years of age or older to participate. The new decision will allow girls to participate in all programs of … Continue reading Eagle Scout: End of a brand that took a century to build?
“We do it all!” (USS Saipan LHA-2 motto) These Log Entries will highlight the USS SAIPAN (LHA-2) during the early 1980’s during which this Watch Stander spent many months aboard–from the waters off Norfolk and Little Creek, to New York’s exciting harbor, and to the frigid, but beautiful and strategically important waters of the … Continue reading USS Saipan (LHA 2)
When Navy friends and ship mates get together to relax, invariably the topic gets around to “sea stories.” All of us who have served in the Navy have acquired such stories–funny, surprising, comical, humorous, tragic, poignant–and memorable, always memorable. Sea Stories are as varied as the person reliving them–interesting, exciting, provocative, stimulating, appealing, heartwarming, lively … Continue reading In Dire Straits of Gibraltar