So after the 29 days, I decided to return to the ship on the 30th day morning.  I walked up the brow of the ship and onto the quarter deck, presented my ID and asked permission to come aboard.  Without hesitation the Officer of the Deck gave me permission to come aboard.

I was stunned because the officer of the deck did not know I was U.A.  I said to him, “Wait.  Don’t you know that I am U.A.?”  He looked at me for a second and with an embarrassed look on his face he said, “Oh!  Hold on!”  So he called downstairs to the Master at Arms and informed him that I was returning from being absent without authorization.

So after a couple minutes the Master at arms took me and began processing me.  He told me I was on restriction and not allowed to leave the ship.  I also had to report to the Chief’s Mess in the morning for a board meeting.

When you commit a violation of the Uniform Code of Military Justice you basically receive an informal trial first.  Then if necessary you must have a meeting with the Executive Officer.  Finally if the charges are serious enough then you have a Captain’s Mass.

Cheifs Review Board – The meeting with the Chief’s were my first order of business.  You enter into their mess hall, and they will be sitting around a table and you must stand at parade rest.  Then they will read out what you are being charged with and after they will let you explain your reasons for your actions.

At the time I went to see the Chiefs I still had a really poor attitude.  I didn’t care about what happened and expected to be kicked out of the Navy.  So the morning of the review board I dressed in a wrinkled and painted up uniform.  I had lost all military bearing and was already a civilian in my mind.

As soon as I walked in and stood at parade rest they made me stand at attention.  They could feel my attitude right away.  These were hard core sailors.  They were the salty dogs and I was disgracing their Navy.  They shouted at me to stand at attention, then they read the charges.

“You are being charged with 29 days of Unauthorized Absence and 3 accounts of missing ships movement.”, the Senior Chief said.  “What do you have to say about this?”.  I don’t remember the exact words I used but they were not positive.  I basically told them that I had did it on purpse and wanted out of the Navy.

They, of course, did not like that answer and began pouring on the scare tactics.  One of them told me, “Do you realize how fast this ship can suddenly go to war??”.  I said no and he snapped his fingers and with an angry look on his face he said, “Just like that!”.  He said that if I would of left while at war it was possibly punishable by death.

So they kept asking me questions but I kept answering with the words “no and “yeah”, instead of “Yes Cheif” or “No Cheif”, etc.  This is considered disrespectful and it really pissed them off.  They got so mad that they told me to get the hell out of there.  They were very disgusted at my attitude. 

The Master at Arms took me a side and counciled me a bit.  I thought about the conversation I had with my dad while I was U.A.  I told him that

Whatever he said got to me because I remember suddenly changing my attitude and wanting to do things right.  In other words they were going to let me back in the talk to them if I showed respect.  They mentioned that the charges against me could be resolved right there and I may not have to talk to the XO or Captain.

I agreed to show respect this time and try to act more mature.  So I went back in and this time they told me that because the charges were so serious they had no choice but to send me to the XO.

So the rest fo the day I began to do some serious brainstorming.  I felt kind of ashamed of myself after the meeting with the Cheifs like as if I was better than that.  I thought a lot about what my father had said about me quitting and I began to change my attitude.  I talked more with the Master At Arms and decided I was going to make a change.  I decided I did not really want to quit and I wanted to see this thing through.

XOI – So the next day I got prepared to see the XO.  I took the time to make sure my uniform was squared away.  When I met the executive officers it was a much more formal ceremony.  I had to stand at attention at one of a table and he stood there and read the charges to me.  This time when he asked me what I had to say about the charges I said, “Sir, I made a huge mistake.  I am sorry for what I have done and I have a lot of growing up to do.”  He was shocked at what I said.  I could tell he saw right away that I was not trying to make excuses and he said, “Well….um…unfortunately these are serious charges and I have no choice but to send you to see the Captain.”  Just like the Cheifs told me.

Captain’s Mass – So I ended up going to Captain’s Mass that same day.  Again, I made sure my uniform was squared away and I went up to see the Captain.  This time there were quite a few people present.  There was the Captain, Master At Arms, the BM1, a couple other people from my division, two other officers, plus the XO.  So again he read the charges and asked me what I thought about them.  I said the same thing I told the XO.  He responded differently than the XO however.  He told me that he had faith in me and said he knows I will turn this around.

He also asked the other officers and shipmates their opinion of me and if they thought I was worth salvaging.  They said, I was a hard worker and was worth keeping in Navy.  So the Captain did not kick me out, instead he issued the following punishments:

45 Days restriction – This meant I could not leave the ship for 45 days unless special authorization was granted.  Sometimes they let restricted people go to the exchange to get items they needed.

45 Days Extra Duty - Each of the 45 days I had to do two hours of extra work at night.  This was on top of my regular 8 hours of work during the day.  Whatever division had some extra work they could use me to do it for them.  Very often it was some sort of cleaning task.

1/2 Months Pay For 2 Months – I had my pay cut in half for two months.  This sucked.

Reduction in Rank From E-2 to E-1 – Restricted Bust - He gave me a restricted bust on this charge.  This meant that for the next 6 months if I didn’t get into any trouble, the reduction in rank would not occur.  But if I did it would take effect right away.

So there it was.  I was busted but not kicked out.  I wasn’t too down about the punishments though.  I had become a new person right then and there.  I knew I was going to turn things around and I was going to change my reputation.  Many people did not like me at that time because I showed lack of respect for the Navy and had a bad attitude.  I had an uphill battle, but I had pride and ego on my side.

Being On Restriction – As you would imagine being on restriction was pretty boring.  Same routine day in and out.  We did go out to sea though during that time to the Virgin Islands.  It sucked because we went to St. Croix and I was not able to go on liberty there.  I just got to hear how nice it was.  I do regret seeing that place.  I don’t remember going anywhere else though.

Conclusion – Eventually I released from restriction and my pay went back to normal.  I didn’t get into any trouble so my rank stayed the same.  I was on my way to becoming E-3 and then had to work on becoming a Boatswainsmate.  Throughout the restriction I began building new relationships and showing that I was serious about the job.  People started to notice and began respecting me more.  I eventually would go on to turning things completely around.  Stay tuned for more.

As an 18 year old punk, you often think you have all the answers.  You think you know what you are doing.   However, you are usually mistaken, because you don’t realize that you are still growing, there is so many things you don’t know and your mind is going to probably change.  This truth created some big problems for me in my first years in the Navy.

Back in the introduction I talked about why I wanted to join the Navy.  I said I wanted to become a SEAL and be the best of the best.  Well, that all changed when it came down to ACTUALLY doing it.

In boot camp I had a one track mind.  All I cared about was being a SEAL.  I was in great shape, afraid of no challenge and was on my way.  I had already passed the preliminary physical test and was about to go to dive school.   Then something suddenly changed.

I started thinking about what life would be like if I were actually a SEAL.  What if I did go all the way through the training and make it.  I thought about  how that lifestyle would be.  I already had a good idea of how it would be and I began to doubt myself.

I started asking myself if this is what I really wanted to be.  In a matter of minutes I had changed my mind and decided against becoming a SEAL.  Why I made that decision, I am still not quite sure.  I think all along I just wanted to become a SEAL just so I could show off to my brother and father.

It is obvious it wasn’t really what I wanted to do.  I don’t think I really knew WHAT I wanted to do, so it confused me.  I lost sight of the goal and this is where it began to go downhill.

So after announcing that I was no longer interested to my division leader I told him I just wanted to go to my duty station and perform the job I picked initially at MEPS.  I really wish I would of given more thought to the job selection process.  I chose Seaman Apprenticeship which if you were in the Navy you know what that job really entails.

Seaman Apprenticeship is basically a nice way of saying deck ape.  Your job is basically shipboard preservation.  The ship is mostly metal and metal in salt water is not a good combo.  So the ship rusts easily and quickly.  Someone must keep the rust under control or the ship will fall apart in no time.

This is the job of the deck division.  As an E-1 in the seaman apprenticeship program you will be in deck division and you be spending many hours per day chipping and sanding rust, priming and painting and cleaning.  Then you will do more sanding and more painting and cleaning.

As you would imagine I didn’t enjoy doing this job.  It was tedious work that never ended and I hated it.  This along with other aspects of the Navy, such as watches and authority started to make me not want to be there.  I starting thinking that this was not for me and I wanted to get out.

One day I was spending the night over at a friends house.  We were partying and having a great time like usual and I ended up spending the night.  I remember setting the alarm to wake me up in time to get back to the ship and be on time for quarters.  So, I fell asleep and when I woke up it was around 11 o’ clock.  It turns out I accidentally set the alarm for 11PM instead of 11AM.  Quarters usually starts at 8AM.  I was late!  In the military when you are late it is a big deal.  It doesn’t matter if you are late one minute or ten days.  It is still a major offense.

This was the beginning of a life changing experience for me.  Things went seriously downhill from this point.  Stay tuned…and don’t forget to subscribe to get the next story sent to you automatically.

Life experiences usually have a lot to do with the people involved.  A crappy job can be alright if you work with great people.  This is why I feel it is important to talk about some of the people I experienced Navy life with.

I will introduce you to some of the distinct characters that really made a difference in my life.  There is no doubt that each and every person on my ship and over seas were unique but I will only talk about the ones that made the most significant impact for now.  You know?  The ones I can never forget.

Like I stated before I did essentially two different tours in the Navy.  The first part was on board a ship and the second was spent in Kuwait.  They are two different stories all together.  I will first talk about the characters on the ship and introduce the characters from Kuwait in a later episode.

For their protection I will not use their real names.  I will just use fictional names that may or may not mean anything at all.

The Characters

Shultz – A white guy from Michigan.  This guy was one of the most unique people I have ever met.  He was not the brightest star in the sky but had tremendous heart and passion.  I first met him in Jacksonville.  He was part of the group of us who were all waiting for the ship to come back off of that cruise so we could check in.  Shultz’s antics made for some of the most amazing and interesting stories on the O Bannon.

E – A Sicilian dude from Florida.  This guy was a real class act.  We became friends right off the bat and ended up being like brothers for the next 3 years.  We had many great times together.  We were both heavy drinkers so we were constantly getting ourselves into trouble.

Kay – A a black girl from Philly.  This girl was one tough cookie.  She had a real hard core attitude.  She was intimidating and wild.  Still, under neath all that harden exterior was a beautiful, compassionate and REAL person.

Beamer – A mixed race guy.  Don’t remember where he was from.  This guy at one point was in charge of our division.  He was your average officer but there was a unique incident that happened involving me and him that I will reveal later on.

ED – A black guy from Mississippi.  He was a real tough boatswains mate which we regularly got into scuffles with.  We always had this tradition in deck division where the the Seamen (Rank E1- E3) fight against the Petty Officers (Rank E4-6).  When we got into these wrestling/play fighting matches, whoever faced Ed usually lost.

Web – A black guy from Mississippi.  Web was also a boatswains mate who I got along with really well.  We had a unique relationship. We used to find great entertainment in talking about what it would be like to have sex with the different women on the ship.  We used to talk about the things we would want to do with them, and about what they would be like in bed.  As if we actually knew how every type of women was in the sack.  I am quite sure we were wrong but it was hilarious to us.

Wilz – A white guy from Indiana.  Kind of arrogant and snobby at times but overall a pretty cool guy.

JJ – A black girl from New York.  She had a crush on me for some reason.  She was very open about it too.

Alpha – A pretty cool guy from New York who cut everyone’s hair on the ship.  He didn’t like me at first because JJ had a crush on me and he was jealous.  I can tell that he liked her and they may have had relations in the past.

The Enemy – A white guy, don’t remember where he was from.  This is another guy who didn’t like me because of a girl.  This guy became my sworn enemy throughout the 3 years and we almost fought a few times.

The Enemy’s Girl – A Latino girl from Texas.  She is the girl mentioned above.

The Girlfriend – A half breed like me from Texas.  She was my girl friend for about a month.  I learned a very good lesson from her why you shouldn’t date people you work with.  Especially in a military environment.

That is enough for now.

Again, these are a few of the most memorable people that made a significant impact on my life.  I learned a lot from them and had some really great times and even shed tears with them.  I hope I made some positive impact in their lives as well.  You will hear more about these characters as this Navy life story progresses.

I am just focusing on the people that were stationed with me on the O’ Bannon for now.  There were people from other ships, civilians, friends of shipmates and many others who I remember which I am sure to will mention later on.

One thing I noticed is that I don’t keep in touch with any of these people.  Mainly because they all live in different states.  I am sure I may come across one or more of them later on in life.  This has become more and more likely with the new age of social media we live in.  I have spoken to some of them in the past but on a very basic level.

There will be many posts to come just talking about the few people mentioned here.  In the next episode I will tell you about how the enemy came to be.

Military Veterans Suffer from Service Related Asbestos Illnesses

The use of asbestos in industrial applications can be traced back to the Greeks, who used the mineral because of its heat and flame resistant qualities. Derived from the Greek word, meaning inextinguishable, asbestos popularity reached its climax in the 20th century among industries and manufacturers.

The United States government and asbestos manufactures have been heavily criticized for concealing and not acting enough to inform the public of the dangers associated with asbestos exposure. Asbestos exposure has affected various industries including the military, real estate, power generation and shipyards.

It’s fire resistant, versatile and durable qualities paved the way for its uses as insulation in aircraft, vehicles and buildings. Asbestos appeared on most vessels used by the Navy and in shipyards. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs stated that out of the 25 million military veterans living today in the country, hundreds of thousands were exposed to asbestos while on service. As many as four million service men and women worked in shipyards repairing and building giant vessels. Thousands of tons of asbestos were used as piping and boiler insulation aboard navigation rooms, sleeping quarters and mess halls in ships.

Frequent exposure to airborne asbestos fibers can increase the chances of developing asbestos-related illness such as malignant mesothelioma, a fatal lung ailment. Mesothelioma survival rate varies from patient to patient for many reasons. These include age of diagnosis, latency period and cigarette smoking.

Miscellaneous Exposure Settings

The potential remains for another generation of veteran and civilian asbestos exposure. Military personnel and citizens should be aware of the hazards involved with this obsolete substance and take the proper initiatives to avoid exposure.

The World Trade Center attacks of September 11th, 2001 set about 2,000 tons of asbestos in the air and resulted in 62 percent of those caught in the dust cloud coping with respiratory problems. Natural disasters are also potential exposure settings. Hurricane Katrina damaged thousands of older asbestos containing homes. Almost three years after the storm, states of the Gulf coast region are still struggling to restore buildings and prevent asbestos exposure.

United States combat troops have been stationed in Iraq and face many extreme dangers on a daily basis. Aside from performing military operations, there is the potential threat of asbestos exposure. Over $194,000 worth of asbestos was imported into Iraq in 2003, documents reveal.

This presents a significant hazard for all soldiers stationed in the country because intense winds and desert sands can carry asbestos dust for long distances.

Military veterans and civilians who have developed an asbestos-related disease find themselves in a tough situation when attempting to receive assistance and benefits for their wrongful illness. Currently, mesothelioma is not readily recognized as a service-related medical ailment. However, veterans can apply for Veteran Affairs (VA) benefits for asbestos-related illness and must provide proof that their exposure occurred at the time of their military service.

Click here for previous posts in this series. The U.S. Navy boot camp is run out of Great Lakes, Illinois.  It is a place with square shaped concrete buildings that look kind of like an old school grounds.  When you first get there you go through an initial processing phase that last about days.  I thought MEP’s was pretty horrible standing in lines for 12 hours.  When you arrive at Great Lakes you do this for 3 days straight with almost zero sleep!

The Arrival

I remember getting off of the bus when we arrived, and gett yelled at to go straight into a line.  There was constant yelling from drill instructors and senior recruits to shut up and not speak until asked a question.  There were many lines of recruits at different stations for different things.  Below is a list of things that you must do before you are processed into boot camp:

• Fill out a zillion forms to create your first service records
• Get a hair cut
• Send back all your civilian stuff
• Get your first uniform (Sweatsuit called SMURF’s)
• Take a urinalysis
• Get yelled at a lot
• A lot more things

The first thing you do is fill out tons of forms to create this detailed service record.  I remember hating this the most.  After creating the records they send you over to a new station where you get to pick up your first uniform.

The Smurfs

This is the first military uniform you will wear.  They had about 80 of us in one room and they told us all to strip down completely naked and change clothes.  This was our first lesson in changing in front of other people.   Most of you who played sports in high school will probably be used to this.

The reason it is called smurfs is because its an all blue uniform which makes you look like a smurf.  It is just sweat pants and a sweater and a hat that says recruit on it.  When you walk around the base wearing this uniform you stick out like a paris hilton video sitting on a church pew. All of the other senior recruits will make fun of you and laugh as you march around the base with 80 other guys you never met, trying your hardest to march in line.  I remember watching in awe at the senior divisions marching around in a super tight, flawless group.  Everyone in the division moved so smoothly like one solid entity.  The RDC would tell us that if we listened, we would be like them one day also.

The First Hair Cut

I remember getting my hair cut.  For guys they just shave your whole head with one small clip.  For girls they trim their hair very carelessly to the bottom of the collar.  I distinctly remember most of the girls crying after their hair was cut.  Many guys laughed at them.

The Piss Test

Also, when they gave you a urinalysis they had to see it come out of the source.  At the same time they were watching me, they were insulting me, saying lots of smart ass remarks, and all kinds of uncomforting things that had to do with sexuality, manliness, being gay, size, etc.

No sleep

The very first day you should get 1-2 hours of sleep if you are lucky.  The second night you may get 3-4 and the third night it depends.  When I was there I remember getting maybe 1-2 hours of sleep when I was suddenly woke up to get my stuff ready to start the next day.

Assignment

Once you complete all the records and get all of your stuff you will be assigned to an RDC.  RDC is short for Recruit Division Commander.  Your division will have between 1-3 of these guys in charge of you at all times.  Once you get assigned an RDC they will assign you to your bunk where you will sleep(BARELY) for the next 8 weeks.

After it’s all done

Short and sweet.  There isn’t much to it the first three days but a lot of standing in lines and being in fear of everything.  These days go by like a blur and before you know it you are marching around this base wondering what you are doing there. Stay tuned for the next episode of Navy Stories.  In the upcoming posts I will talk about each week of boot camp and what we did.

Read the next episode about the first week of boot camp.

Important:  The stories you are about to read are non-fiction.  They are real events that actually happened in my life.  I will try to keep as close to the actual events as my memory will permit.   Also, the statement and opinions expressed in these writings are that of my own and in no way reflect the opinions of or the policies of the U.S. Navy.

What I am writing?

I am in no way a professional writer.  I am writing this simply because I enjoy writing about Navy life and because I get to kind of re-live my experiences.  I have also found that people enjoy hearing stories about military experience.  I spent 3 years and 8 months in active duty in the U.S. Navy.  I first did a 3 year tour on a ship and then got activated from the reserves to do 6 months of duty in Kuwait.

I got out at the end of 2004 so it has been some time and a lot of partying since my Navy days.  Let us hope my memories still remain in tact.  So without further ado, I give you Navy Stories.  My first non-fiction writing project.  I hope you enjoy it.

The Decision To Join

For as long as I can remember I wanted to be a Navy SEAL.  I think it is because of a combination of reasons.  Both my father and brother were in the Army and they both are really into sports.  My father always talked to me about being somebody big and being my own man.   I wanted to to do something to top them and to impress them so, I joined the Navy to become a S.E.A.L.

I remember thinking that Navy SEALs are the best of the best and that is what I want to be.

Notes: SEAL is an acronym for SEa. Air and Land.  Which means they can run operations and attack the enemy from any geographical area or terrain.  Navy SEALs are the most elite military special forces unit in the world.  They have the most difficult training known to man.  The SEALs are trained to never quit no matter what.  This philosophy of strength in the individual makes them virtually unstoppable as a team.

I don’t remember the exact date I told my parents about joining the Navy but I know It was sometime during my junior year of high school.  My mom was not too happy about it but she wouldn’t tell me not to go.  My sisters were concerned but it was peace time at the time.  My brother was always a little tough on me and I remember my brother saying, “So you want to be a bad ass huh?  When you get back I am just going to kick your ass.  Just to show you how bad ass you aren’t.  Hahaha!”

I remember telling my dad that I wanted to go to the Navy to become a SEAL.  He gave me a lecture about the military and agreed that I should go if that is what I really wanted to do.  My father was drafted into the Army for 2 years during the Vietnam era.  He explained to me the difference between wanting to go, and being drafted, but I was very determined at that time to become the best so I did not care.

One day the recruiters came to my school and gave some speeches and walked around talking to the students and went ahead I enlisted during my junior year of high school.  I joined the early enlistment program so I would be ready to go as soon as I graduated.

The Recruiter’s

Those recruiters really sock it to you with the motivational speeches and bullshit, but when you are young they are very impressive people.  They will pretty much tell you anything to get you in.

When I went to the recruiter’s office he showed me various videos of Navy SEAL training to show me how hard it was.  The videos showed them holding boats over their heads and running ridiculous distances.  They did tons of different calisthenics and really tough training procedures.  They showed them infiltrating and taking over buildings, etc.   I was not deterred by the training.  I felt like I would be able to handle it.  The recruiter was surprised at how determined I was to be a SEAL.  He said that most of the people he shows the videos change their mind right away.

I had been approached by other recruiters from different branches before but I chose the Navy instead.  It was entertaining watching the recruiters argue that their branch of service was the best.  The Navy recruiters used Bo Jackson to help sell the idea saying, “Did you know Bo Jackson flew for the Blue Angels?!”.  They had posters of him on the wall in their office.

After the initial paper work I received a little white id. card saying that I was in the early enlistment program.  I was showing it off at school thinking I was all bad because I was going to the Navy.

Stay tuned for the next episode where I explain the grueling process of joining the Navy and going to boot camp.