Questions, Queries, and Posers..

Just who defines what a holiday should be?

What makes one holiday a paid vacation, and the next one that is observed, but still a workday?

New Year's Day - Paid vacation.

Memorial Day - Paid vacation.

Labor Day - Paid vacation.

4th of July - Paid vacation.

Thanksgiving - Paid vacation.

Christmas Day - Paid vacation.

*I know there's one more for my job, I just can't for the life of me figure it out just yet!*

So all in all, I get seven paid vacation days.

Yup. Seven.

We're closed on Sundays, so Easter is out.

But now we come to this day. Veteran's Day.

I have to wonder why it is that we can have Memorial Day, and NOT work, but then turn around and have a Veteran's Day, and work our tails off.

Excuse me, but I thought that even though we don't just remember veterans on Memorial Day, isn't it basically about the same thing here?

Why take a vacation for Labor Day, and not Veteran's Day?

Who really makes these decisions??

Is it any less of a sacrifice if there has been someone who served in the armed forces, yet never saw combat?

I think just to serve is a right to be able to take a day such as this, and look back on all you did for your country.

Sure, you weren't in "active" combat duty, but it was ACTIVE duty.

If something had come up, and the country had needed you, you'd have been one of the first ones on the front lines.

So my question still stands: Where's the definition of what constitutes a vacation day?

Do we really care so little for our service men and women, that we'll dedicate a national holiday to labor, but not to our veterans?

I don't know. I really love this country, and I love the people who I've served with who fought and defended our right to a sovereign nation.

I can't stand that there are bureaucrats out there who only think of these people as pawns in their quest for glory and power.

I implore anyone who reads this to go and thank someone for being willing to sacrifice their life and family for this nation.

If not them, then who?

Would you step into their shoes?

Thank you to all who are serving, and all who have served.

Your sacrifice is a testament to us all, and should be rewarded more than this a hundred times over.

God bless, and keep you.

Two-fer Tuesday.

Yeah. I'm going to try some kind of "marketing" schtick, and see how it goes..

So Tuesdays I'm going to ramble about whatever takes me fancy, then come back later, and try something else!

Let's see what you all think about that one!

Anyway..

Back when I was in the service, I enjoyed going out on the cruises. I mean, life had this structure.

Up at 6am, Shit, Shower, Shave (now to be known as the 3S move), get to the duty station for work. Work 8 hours, duty-free until 6am the next morning!

Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner were all taken care of, there were movies and TV to watch, unless you preferred your radio or TV and video game system that you could smuggle aboard the ship.

Plus, you got to see some amazing ports and sights.

I was singularly lucky in that I got to go on two amazing world-wide cruises in my shortened time there.

First, after my schooling was done, my boat was slated to do a Caribbean run.

This isn't as posh as a normal cruise, but it's still an amazing area to see and explore when you've got the time. I'm a big fan of the whole swashbuckler era, so being around the seas where pirates once roamed free really brought some nostalgia home to me! I also got some GREAT souvenirs!

Once we got back from this cruise, we did some manatory down time, and then headed for our "sister" port over in Scotland. Once there, we did some shakedown drills, and I got a chance to find out that Scotland reminded me of my home state. Foggy, rain, and green. Made me a bit homesick for a while, but I loved the accents and scenery.

This immediately was followed by a posting for us to do a "Med Cruise".

Yup. You read right.

Mediterranean Cruise.

I got to see Italy, Greece, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey.

It was amazing.

And it was only overshadowed by one thing..

A trifle, really..

It was called...

Operation Desert Storm.

Near the end of the cruise, our battle group was activated, and we went down through the Suez Canal, and into the Indian Ocean to participate in operations in the Gulf.

Heck, I didn't mind. I was a bubblehead (aka submariner), and there wasn't much of a chance of someone being able to hit US underwater!

Being the rate and rank I was also gained me some airtime on CNN, as I was able to watch a few of my missle actions followed on TV! Sure, they tended to be a few weeks after the fact, but heck, I could still recall the entire operation! Now, my face wasn't shown, but you can still hear my calm, matter-of-fact voice repeating that litany of catchphrases during the live-fire.

The biggest let-down to all of this?

It was one man.

His name?

Bill Clinton.

Yup.

Clinton.

I was one of many servicemen who lost a job when he made his cutbacks.

Because of my age, and the time in grade for my position, I was going to basically be busted down from an E-6 position back to an E-3! And all I'd get for it was a campaign ribbon!

I politely refused to do this, and was given a partial retirement from the United States Navy.

Since then, my monthly stipend has given me some nice spending money each month, but thanks to this financial crisis we're having, I've been getting notices that even more of this partial pension of mine might be taken to help offest budgeting in the bank it's being held at!

Can you believe this? The US bank that I've got my military pension held in wants to charge me even more to keep my hard-earned service cash so that they can cover their own losses in this economic spiral we're in.

I don't know about you, but I'm really hoping for someone else to ask me to hold their money, so I can charge them more for what I'm losing!

Sensitivity Training..

Back when I was in the service, there was this small issue that happened that forever changed the way I feel about dealing with anyone else.

Operation Tailhook.

If you don't recall, a LARGE group of senior officers from the Naval Corps were at a convention, and took some serious "liberties" with the aides and staffers that were with them.

This led to quite a few court-martials, and some serious policy changes in the entire Navy establishment.

One of these directly affected me.

It was called "Sensitivity Training", and we were given the unique opportunity to sit in a small classroom for 5 days, and listen to an instructor tell us how we were supposed to react with everyone else we came into contact with.. Both male and female.

Now, I personally felt a bit insulted that I was lumped together with these strangers that I'd never met, but I did get my eyes opened a couple of times. (mostly because I tended to nap during the instructor's lectures!)

One of the most memorable times? During Non-Verbal Communication.

I was asked to give an example of something I'd seen that would demonstrate non-verbal communication. Being the smartass I am, I came up with this scenario.

"I recall one day where we were just coming back into port from a mission, and while up on the gangtower, we noticed *insert name here*'s girlfriend storming down the dock. Now, everyone knew that he'd been screwing around on the side, and everyone who saw her face just knew that he was going to be getting in some hot water once the boat was docked!"

As I related this, there was an Ensign sitting across from me. Female. Attractive. And agitated.

As my story kept going on, she kept leaning closer and closer to the edge of her seat. Once the story was done, she pointed at me, and blurted "I don't believe this! That's SO stereotypical!"

I nodded, and then said. "Maybe you're right, but watching you get ready to leap out of your seat while I was telling the story is another good example of non-verbal communication, wouldn't you say?"

After that incident, I was asked to not give my opinions anymore in the class, and I'd be given a "pass" grade.

Sometimes, being an asshole is worth it, you know?

Letters From War.

I had the chance to listen to this song after posting my last experience from being in the service, and I have to be honest, it got me a bit misty-eyed.

The artist is Mark Schultz, and it's off his album Stories and Songs. I don't have any way to embed the song on my page just yet, but once I get the chance, I'm going to do it.

But, since I can't let you hear the song, I can still write down the lyrics, and hope that you get a chance to listen to it at some point.

Here's the song:

She ran to the mailbox on that bright summer's day.
Found a letter from her son in a war far away.
He spoke of the weather, and of friends he had made
Said "I've been thinkin' 'bout Dad and the life he had and that's why I'm here today"
Then at the end he said "You know what I'm fighting for"
It was the first of his Letters From War

She started writing:
You are good, and you're brave
What a father that you'll be someday
Make it home, make it safe
She wrote every night as she prayed..

Late in December, a day she'll not forget
Oh, her tears stained the paper with every word that she read
It said "I was up on a hill, I was out there alone
When the shots all rang out, the bombs were exploding
That's when I saw him, he came back for me
And though he was captured, the man set me free
And that man was your son..
He asked me to write you, I told him I would, oh I swore."
It was the last of his Letters From War

And she prayed he was living, she kept on believing
And she wrote every night just to say

You are good, and you're brave
What a father that you'l be someday
Make it home, make it safe
And still she kept writing each day..

And then two years later, Autumn leaves all around
A car pulled in the driveway, and she fell to the ground
And out stepped a Captain where her boy used to stand
He said "Mom, I'm following orders
I got all your letters, and I've come home again"

He ran in to hold her
He dropped all his bags on the floor
Holding all of her Letters From War


I hope this touches you all as much as it hit home to me.

Hopefully one day they'll all come home!