Before I Go (aka Pre-Deployment 101) July 10, 2009
Posted by imfb in Deployment.3 comments
Before deploying, there is a mad dash of things to get together. When you deploy on short notice, it’s even worse. I spent most of the last few weeks before this deployment getting things ready to go. There are a million tasks that need to get done. All the paperwork for your life needs to be in order, bills need to be autopaid, you need to get everything ready so you can go (The next deployment, which I found out about today, will be a bit different from a shipboard one, though I will be talking about soon).
There are, of course, the multitude of uniform items you don’t need when off the ship (like the Navy Working Uniform, if I’m in the mood to complain). However, there are also the random things you don’t think about when you’ll be living on a ship for the next four months:
Things I bought (either at the NEX, or during a massive walmart run):
- A sleeping bag. I had heard it was cold in the berthing spaces, though I’ve ended up using it as extra padding on the tiny thing that passes as a matress.
- A pillow. Most of the pillows onboard the ship seem to be older than I am, so I got a new one.
- Bug repellant/sunscreen. I bought more than I needed, as I don’t get off the ship as much as I had hoped to.
- A lot of books of all types and genres. I’ve made my way through a good amount of them (though, as noted below, I didn’t necessarily make the best choices).
- My daily supply of anti-malarial meds, which make me prone to sunburns.
Things I had to order, or have sent to me, because I didn’t get them, or didn’t get enough, and needed them:
- More soap/deodorant. Working in tropical climates leads you to really underestimate the amount of times you will need to shower.
- A portable hard drive. It makes it a lot easier to swap movies/music with friends, and also allows you to send pictures home (thumb drives having been banned).
- Snacks. The food, as mentioned, hasn’t been great.
Things I should have brought with me:
- Another thin towel. I brought one normal bath towel and one towel that I guess you would call a beach towel. The normal one just doesn’t dry, probably because of the moisture in the air. So I end up washing the other one twice a week because I use it exclusively.
- DVD’s. I can’t believe I overlooked this when I was packing. Since you can’t go anywhere at night, one of the best things to do is watch a movie with your friends (if you have free time).
- A bit more light reading. I brought a few novels, but went heavy on the military history. Normally I love to read that, but when you spend 15 hours pouring through somewhat dense work, you need something a bit easier
- Better civilian clothes. I threw a few in a bag as a last minute thing, and as it turns out on the few times we get liberty what I have is not what I want.
- A second pair of sunglasses. Because I’m clumsy and now I have zero pairs here.
I guess after a while this will become a bit of a science, but as of yet I’m still trying to learn. I have a lot to talk about over the next few days, with news of my next adventure coming as I wind down this one.
Happy Independence Day! July 5, 2009
Posted by imfb in Military Life.4 comments
On this day in 1776, the Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence. In doing so, they set in motion a chain of events that gave rise to a new nation.
It’s worth remembering the time that the Continental Congress met during. The British Empire was the most powerful in the world, with a strong army and navy, as well as considerable support in the colonies. They would be met in battle by a ragtag group of revolutionaries from 13 colonies who debated at length as to whether they should even declare independence.
Yet still, in July of 1776, they voted to declare their independence from the British Crown. In doing so, they wrote words that we still remember today, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
Happy Independence Day, everyone.
Talk to me now I’m older July 4, 2009
Posted by imfb in Deployment.5 comments
This week, along with the shipment of fresh fruits (finally), came the mail that has been a month in coming. As my birthday fell during the earlier part of the month without mail there were quite a few birthday gifts and cards mixed in with the batch (I’m actually impressed by people who managed to get cards to me before the mail was turned off because it evidences some real forward thinking, I’m looking at you, by the way).
And my birthday? Was a lot of fun. I spent it with some great friends, saw some amazing sites, and generally enjoyed myself. It was a relaxed day on the ship, which gave free time to take in the scenery, wander around, and generally enjoy myself.
It struck me the other day though, that as I spent this birthday deployed, I’ll be spending my next one deployed too. The years will mirror each other in odd ways. I’ll spend 6-7 months of this year and 6-7 months of next year deployed, far from home, off enjoying new places.
I miss things about home though. I miss decent food, a comfortable bed, beer, watching the Red Sox, and spending time with MD and MG (misfit dog and misfit girl, respectively). A good friend mentioned the other day that it feels like it should still be April at home, as if things should have paused when we pulled away from the pier. This is certainly true. It seems like I should be able to return home and have nothing changed.
This is really a competing impulse though. The other night I stood out on the side of the ship and watched a magnificent thunderstorm light up the skies over a gorgeous tropical landscape. Right then, watching the spectacular site unfold in front of me, I realized how much I love what I do, despite any sacrifices involved.
I hope everyone enjoys the holiday!
You have got to be kidding me June 30, 2009
Posted by imfb in Military Life.2 comments
I love debating issues with people. I love hearing people debate issues. In the normal mix of websites I traffic every day there is a mix of political sites, some very conservative, some very liberal. I think it’s great to read what well-educated people have to say on an issue, even if I disagree with them.
When military issues are being discussed and debated, I tend to pay attention. This weekend I stumbled across two very different articles on the controversial “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” Policy. The New York Times ran a piece that had a collection of various scholars and professionals from across the political spectrum discussing the policy (unfortunately, I’m currently unable to find the link). It was well written and informative, exactly the kind of thing I enjoy reading.
The other I found was linked to off the front page at salon.com, and written by a Kent Pitman. His article expertly mixes ridiculous conclusions and offensive comments.
However, before I go into the article, a bit about myself: I’ve always described myself as a “conservative democrat,” (though minus the connotations I’m told the term carries in some parts of the US). I’m in the military. I also don’t care about people’s sexual orientation. We have rules against sexual harassment and sexual assault and we enforce them. If someone wants to serve in uniform, I couldn’t care less who they go home to at night.
At the same time, the military has a history of being the punching bag for people who don’t know much about it. I went to an extremely liberal school and actually had the administration actively try to prevent me from being able to join the military. No kidding. I’m not saying that the military has never messed up or that everyone who serves is an angel, that’s certainly not true. But I take offense to the crap from the far-left (I apologize for the generalization, as I have many extremely liberal friends who are very supportive of the military and/or also serve, but this is sadly where this particular kind of crazy tends to come from) that treats us like a bunch of uneducated bigots.
So back to the venerable Mr. Pitman, who likes to talk about things he doesn’t know a lot about. His bit of writing is framed around Lieutenant Dan Choi and his upcoming hearing about “the crime of being gay.” He opens by talking about how the military could “educate its way” out of this issue. He talks throughout about how easy it would be for the military simply to change this policy. He then wraps things up with a ridiculous parallel to the Nazi’s. I’m not kidding and please note: if you draw a parallel between the US Military and Nazism, and then say that obviously there are differences, you still said it. Much like saying ‘No offense but’ before you say something offensive, it doesn’t make it less offensive.
The comments to the article? Were even worse. The author continues to waltz in and out of the discussion with quips about how the military could just wave its hands and make this issue go away. Military members are called hypocrites. At one point a comment talks about the “poorly educated” “farm hands” that make up the enlisted ranks, and how we need to brain wash them to get them to serve their country (by “hitchhiking on emerging sexual feelings” no less). The military’s policy is blamed for September 11th (really), the author talks about how gays will be forced out of the military with a “dishonorable discharge,” and no one ever bothers to bring up the truth about the matter.
So here are some facts: Lieutenant Choi may be administratively separated from the US military. This is because the military currently has a policy prohibiting homosexuals from openly serving in the military (a policy that as previously stated, I personally do not agree with) and he chose to go on a television show to talk about his sexual orientation. An administrative separation is not a criminal trial, it’s how someone is fired from the military. Believe it or not, Lieutenant Choi has not been charged with a crime, he will not be charged with a crime, and he will not receive a dishonorable discharge (Because you can only receive a dishonorable discharge if you are charged with and convicted of a crime! Which he hasn’t been!).
Moreover, the military cannot change this rule. It’s pretty simple, but seems lost on everyone mentioned above. This is a federal regulation that we are bound by. The President could set it aside with a stroke of the pen by ordering the military no longer to make the determination of whether someone is homosexual or not. It would be that simple. Congress could pass a law repealing the policy. The military cannot just decide not to follow it. This was a political policy, it remains so. Since the dawn of the republic we have had a system where civilians control the military, and that system has worked pretty damn well.
Mr. Pitman (and aforementioned commenters): I am an officer in the US Navy. I’m educated, not responsible for September 11th (that was actually a terrorist attack, you may have seen something about it on the news), and have never been brainwashed. I’m the third generation of my family to proudly serve my country in uniform. I may not like this policy, but I am bound to follow a code that involves following the orders of those appointed over me. In my time in the military, I have met some of the most wonderful people you could ever hope to come across. They didn’t need to be brainwashed to serve their country, they wanted to. They signed up for it.
I hate to sit here on my soapbox and complain, and my next post will most likely be back to my normal happy self, but very fine people (much better than myself or Mr. Pitman) have laid down their lives to protect his right to freely say the first dumb thought that enters his mind. The least he could do is 10 minutes of research before maligning the people and institutions that have provided him with so much.
Friday nights have been lonely June 27, 2009
Posted by imfb in Deployment, Military Life.4 comments
It’s Friday night here on the ship, though Friday night is a bit of a foreign concept here.
Life is slowly reverting to normal, or at least deployment normal. The comforts that have been missing so much over the last few weeks are trickling back in. Peanut butter, bread, fresh fruits and vegetables. Yesterday we got mail for the first time in a month, bringing packages and letters from home.
The temperature here is sweltering. In walking past a door to the outside of the ship, even when shut, you feel the radiating heat from outside. I haven’t been outside during “daylight” hours in three days, ever since the heat index crept into the triple digits. It keeps going up, each day bringing it a little higher. In 3 days, the heat index will top 150 degrees, which is something that I personally don’t enjoy.
Still, even here, with Friday night being a foreign concept (see me, in my office, at midnight), you still have time for some fun. Watching the sunset with a close friend, huddling 4 people onto two beds to watch a movie on a laptop, you have fun, you forget about the constant work for a few hours.
In a funny way though, I wish everyone had these hours. Everywhere. It’s annoying when you have to work round the clock, but you know that from Friday evening until Monday morning, the emails you need answers from will not be replied to. It’s agonizing in a way, knowing that you’ll continue working and playing the waiting game. I remember Fridays back in port, which were a few meetings, PT, and a long lunch. You normally went home early, you couldn’t wait to be out the door. Here it’s a matter of necessity. We work 7 days a week, so it’s aggravating to end up waiting on someone for something as nonexistent as a weekend?
But when I get home? Don’t bother shooting me an email after 1500 on Friday, I won’t see it until Monday morning anyway.
In the Long Run June 25, 2009
Posted by imfb in Deployment.2 comments
Three days ago I awoke to find myself off the coast of the most beautiful landscape I think I’ve ever seen. It is gorgeous here, and I feel peaceful just looking out on the sight before me.
Of course, this was also the time that things hit the fan at work.
It’s the little interesting parallels that keep things interesting. The balance of the universe, if you will.
To date, things professionally have been going well. I feel like this deployment has afforded me some real chances professionally. I love the work, I love the challenges of deployed life, I’ve really felt like an integral part of the team.
Things at home, however, have been rough. The deployment has caused a lot of issues on the homefront. The distance, the issues with communications when you’re in the middle of the ocean four time zones away, these all combined into a pretty nasty cauldron. The issues started early, and reached a bit of a fevered pitch that cast everything into doubt.
But now, things are calmer. We’re moving in a much better direction, and for the first time in a while I get the feeling that we’ll be able to overcome the issues between us.
However, as previously mentioned, work is crazy now. To date, it has been enough to do my job well and everyone got along and all was well. The other day though, I found myself actively being screwed by someone. It’s a unique experience, to have a conversation with someone where they smile to your face, only to confirm a few hours later that you they decided to screw you in front of your boss.
So when things were well professionally, they were poor personally. Now that things are better personally, things are bad professionally. At least momentarily, out here, in this wonderful part of the world, literally anything seems possible.
More tomorrow, when I am not so tired. One thing I have still not gotten used to is the absolute lack of sleep, and the long nights since the beginning of our latest operation are starting to wear on me. A good night’s sleep, and tomorrow is a new day.
A Few Interesting Stories June 23, 2009
Posted by imfb in Potent Potables.add a comment
I’m always reading good things online, so I’m going to keep sharing:
Daredevil- A great piece written by a friend of the late William Buckley. Regardless of what you think of him politically, he was an incredibly interesting man and this offers a great look at him.
The Secret History- A look at the new head of the CIA, Leon Panetta, and the challenges he is faced with while trying to change the direction of the agency after the last eight years.
The Palestinian Terrorist and Me: A story about one reporter’s dealings with a famous Palestinian terrorist living in exhile, and the various efforts to bring him to justice years after his crimes.
Life At Sea June 21, 2009
Posted by imfb in Deployment, Military Life.4 comments
Another day underway, but already you feel the gentle uptick in the energy as we get ready for the next country we’ll be operating in. Planning meetings are in full swing, gear is being staged, and everyone is doing the little things needed to get ready to work.
Some relief came yesterday with a badly needed peanut butter shipment via UNREP. As I write these words, though, I realize that shipboard life is a foreign concept to many of you reading, so I’ll do my best to guide you through a bit of it.
First, there is no gmail (sorry if you’ve been emailing me), or any web based email. All the sites are blocked, so if you didn’t set up your email to forward before you left (See: Me), you don’t get it. Internet is ridiculously slow and unreliable. Sometimes you will lose all communications (email, internet access, phones) for a day. For a while there we lost them for parts of most days.
The living conditions are tight, and I don’t know the worst of it. The berthing spaces have 100 beds or “racks”, two or three high. I’m in a (relatively spacious) 8 man stateroom, which is common for the junior officers onboard. 8 people in bunkbed like setups. We share a table, a sink, and lockers for our clothes and personal effects. It’s small and dark, but it could be a lot worse.
Supplying a ship is a constant issue. In the middle of the ocean, it’s impossible to run out to buy things that you’re running low on. We’ve had no mail in a month, though it should start arriving shortly. We run out of things (as previously mentioned), Diet Pepsi (which apparently we will NOT be getting resupplied with), peanut butter, cheese.
An UNREP is one way to replenish supplies, as we did yesterday. An UNREP is an underway replenishment. A supply ship pulls up 150 feet away from your ship, and they sail ahead parallel to each other (note: 150 feet is an extremely small space, especially when you’re dealing with ships upwards of 900 feet long). Lines are run from ship to ship to provide fuel, and helicopters take pallets of goods from ship to ship.
Food onboard the ship isn’t great. Large amounts of it are items that can be frozen and then made later. Saturday nights are often pizza and wings night, which is a treat.
The days are long. While operating, the radio calls for personnel start at 0500. If you can sleep through it, reveille is at 0600 (the call over the radio to wake up). My first meeting is at 0800, so if I can sleep through the early calls I can generally rest until about 0700 when the people in my stateroom start to wake up.
The rest of the day goes like this: meeting, work, lunch, work, meeting, work, dinner, work, meeting, work, sleep. I try to work out, either between lunch and dinner or after the meetings have ended for the day, and rarely get to bed near midnight.
So the days are long, but you get into a rhythm. On quieter nights you watch movies with friends and hang out. On busy nights you look up and realize that any chance of calling home and not waking anyone has passed.
Life on the sea is exciting and romantic, but the daily grind can be grueling and exhausting. That’s the best summary I can manage.
Behold, the Sea itself June 18, 2009
Posted by imfb in Deployment, Military Life.3 comments
Things dragged a bit recently. Work pulls at you, personal issues pull at you, and before you know it you’re feeling exhausted and depressed. You don’t realize the toll it has exacted until you get pulled aside by friends asking if you feel ok, if there is anything they can do.
I had hoped getting underway would invigorate me, and it has. It’s more than that though. Two of my dearest friends took it upon themselves to cheer me up. So we hung out, watched movies, told stories, worked out. Over the last two nights they went out of their way to cheer me up
Last night I found myself on the flight deck in the middle of the ocean. The sky was clear and the night sky was gorgeous, the stars shining away without any light to dim the sight. As I stood there I realized that I had a great day, for the first time in a while.
Today will be another.
The Gravities of Terrestrial Life June 17, 2009
Posted by imfb in Deep Thoughts, Deployment, Military Life.4 comments
I’ve hit a wall on this deployment, and I don’t seem to be the only one. People seem drained, fuses are a little shorter, simple decisions involve half an hour of time wasted, intermixed with some yelling for good measure.
You get to a point, with just over a month until you’ll be home, and you’re no longer quite so fixated at the task at hand. The job isn’t quite as exciting and new, and many of the problems have come up before. You feel like you’re walking through the motions, answering this question, firing off this email, making sure this project doesn’t get messed up. I wrote about how every day here feels like Groundhog Day, and it’s remarkably true.
Sadly, this is also the time that the little things begin to go wrong onboard. The little details that provide comfort when you’re far from home. Mail hasn’t been delivered in nearly 3 weeks, and won’t be for probably another week. We’ve run out of Diet Pepsi, Cheese, and Peanut Butter (unless you’re a senior officer, which I am not), those little comfort items that make it easier to be away.
I’m drained. We’ve been at this for too long a stretch without a break, and I’m ready to go home. Yet home, however fanciful a concept, is not without its issues now either. Things have been rough on the relationship, and instead of returning home to a marriage I might return to nothing. The deployment schedule I’m on has caused big issues, and I’m unsure as to what the future will bring.
So for now I sit out here, far from home wishing I were somewhere else. Soon we’ll be off to a new place, bringing me a little closer to all the things I’m unsure of, still wishing I was off on another adventure.
We’re done with the most recent country project though, and off to the next. I hope that will shake things up. At the very least we’ll be underway, which always lifts my spirits.
