Why

I suppose it's time I address the age old question that may or may not be sitting in the back of your mind. Now that I've had some time to contemplate it myself, I shall attempt to answer that.


First off, I've always had this fascination with ships. I'm talking older ships, not these floating resorts people take cruises on. Yes, there's one particular ship that sparked this interest, but that's a bit irrelevant. And though I've never been on one, or been out to sea, I've always imagined it to be a rather freeing experience, like being on a motorcycle. This appeals to me. And so somehow my interests brought me to, at a rather young age, wanting to join the Navy some day, so I could satisfy the desire to, well, go out to sea. Tied into this is the fact that military service seems to quite literally run in the family. My grandpa was in the Army, an uncle served in the Air Force, and I've been told that my ancestors on my grandmother's side fought in the Revolutionary War. How true that is I don't know.

Second, I'm finding it difficult to advance where I work. After nearly 2 years of working there, and after all the things I've learned since being hired, all that has gotten me is a position in which I find no satisfaction, nor is there a career path I could follow. Of course, it doesn't help that I'm not on management's "Favorites" list, either. I know I am capable of much more than I am doing, and it frustrates me that I am not able to see just how far I can run with it. Also, things just aren't the same around the place, and I don't like the direction things are headed. Sure, I could look for a different job, but the situation is always the same: Everybody wants experience, but nobody wants to train. I don't even know how good the chances are of getting a full-time position that pays at least what I make now. Given the state of the economy, it looks as if I've gotten as far as I can go, and that is sad.

Thirdly, I want to be able to say I did something with my life. I want to do something to make myself and my family proud.

Lastly, I would be lying if I told you that 9/11 didn't play a part in my decision. I love my country. I love what we stand for. For a terrorist group to attack that, for me, was unacceptable and almost offensive. By doing this, hopefully I can help make the world a little bit safer, not for me, but for who I care about.

"We will not fail."

Say what you will about the man, but I certainly don't see any quotes from Obama hanging off our ships.

HOOYAH

Navy Arts And Crafts

Today's DEP meeting went a lot better than last month's. No one pissed hot, no one was rude, so YAY NO LECTURE! :D We discussed some of the first aid training we'd receive at recruit training, military time, and the phonetic alphabet.

Petty Officer Williams also assigned us a lovely arts and crafts project to do. Each of us was assigned an officer rank, and we have to draw the relevant insignia onto this huge piece of paper, and bring it with us at next month's DEP meeting. I was assigned the rank of Captain, and figured I'd got fairly lucky...until I saw the collar device.

However, as a future ET, I took this challenge head on, intending to dominate like a boss.

About an hour and a half later, after cussing whoever designed the collar device for this rank, I had a rough sketch of my insignia. I am no artist by any means, and although my eagle may look..."special," I'm actually quite pleased with myself.

Ship Porn

Keep Your Hands Off My Thunder

Why does it have to be labeled an "obsession?" Why can't it be called what it is? Calling my dedication to the Navy an obsession makes me feel like I'm 13 again, having my enthusiasm for subjects downplayed and degraded as a phase. Quite honestly it makes me sound like a loon, or like all I do in my free time is watch JAG all day, and I don't appreciate it.

Perhaps my little "obsession" would be more socially acceptable if my energy was directed at fantasy football, or making 10,000th Prestige in Call of Duty, or running marathons. But no, it's the military, which one's desire to join is verbally commended but rarely understood, as if a person couldn't possibly want to join other than to get a free ride to college.

But whether you believe this or not, this interest, dare I say love, for the Navy started at 12. Yes, it has faded in and out throughout my life, but it has always been there. This is very important to me. Do I take it seriously? Of course. Do I constantly think about it? No. But the fact is that right now, not much else matters to me. Prepping for recruit training is where my focus is right now, and my random posts of ships and whatnot on my Facebook page that are my own personal motivation are so offensive to your eyeballs, imagine how I feel when you flood my newsfeed with all your "likes" of kids with cancer to "prove" you're not a heartless, cold, wretch of a human being.

I'm sorry you don't have anything in your life that doesn't interest you beyond a "like" on Facebook, or that doesn't give your life a bit of enrichment, but don't fucking go raining on my parade. This is all I've wanted in life. I am not ashamed to say I shed some tears after taking the oath of enlistment. To date, that's the proudest day of my life, and fuck if I'm going to let you steal my thunder.