USN59-79

Beautiful day here, blue skies and in the mid 70s.  Feels like Summer is here.  I did a little yard work this morning and Sara said she wanted to go to a couple of Asian markets just South of Seattle to buy some fish that was on sale and some Asian vegetables.  Was a nice drive and we got 7 golden pompanos and some other things that are not available around here like pickled bamboo shoots.  Might have to add some gas to the car as it has been about four months since we did that.

I agree about hydration for kidney stones.  My last three years in the Navy I was stationed at Wahiawa, on Oahu.  I decided that it would be a good idea to quit drinking beer.  In about three weeks I came down with kidney stones.  So hydration doesn't necessarily mean water.

Ray

We have a VCR/DVD combination that unfortunately will not copy a VCR to DVD.  It is about 20 years old and will connect to the small TV we have in our computer room, but not to our large TV.  Last week I sorted thru two boxes of tapes that were above a book shelf to see if they were worth keeping.  Found one of me teaching a class or giving a lecture on how we automated the publishing of Navy technical manuals about 30 years ago and had just saved the Navy 2.6 million dollars.  Didn't know I had that and suspect my kids might enjoy seeing it some day.  Ended up with a box of movies I haven't seen and a box of how to tapes, like tiling a bathroom or building a new house which I will keep.

Ray

2 minutes ago, Heartgrove said:

 

I think it was the Army not being very thorough with records post-war. I know my father was very, very reluctant to talk about his War experiences (PTSD before it was recognized?) and may have let it go until then to keep from remembering. I was working in '70-'71with a man whose hobby was Award and Service Decorations of the Armed Forces. He had provided me with information for my father on who to contact. 

 

My father did not want my brother and I to join the Army which is why we both enlisted in the Coast Guard. I remember one time talking with my brother about Basic Training. I mentioned that he didn't warn me how hard it had been. He said that if he had told me - I wouldn't have gone! 

Thanks for the explanation.  My father was more fortunate.  He was in the Army in WW1.  Got on a ship for transport to France and on the way the war ended.  The ship turned around and came back before they got to Europe.  Both my brother and I joined the Navy.  I only got two weeks of Boot Camp as I joined the Reserves while in high school.  When I was promoted to Warrant Officer I was supposed to go to what we called "Knife and Fork School" for officers.  They changed the orders and said I was needed in Vietnam so didn't get that either.

Ray

53 minutes ago, Heartgrove said:

Thank you Rich, thank you Debbie, thank you Vanessa, thank you Ann, and thank you Dixie for all your work.  And thank you everyone for being here!

 

I have attached my memorabilia of my father's participation on D-Day. He was not in the first wave (Thank God!) but went in after the beach had been secured. He fought across Europe until being wounded during the Battle of the Bulge. That ended his frontline participation and finished the War in support roles. The doctor actually saved for him the piece of shrapnel that he was wounded with from a German artillery round. It entered the middle of his back and lodged in his left shoulder. I remember that he received a disability check from the Government monthly because of it.

 

Back in the early Seventies I had a plaque made for him to display his medals that he had received. He also had the "clicker" that was issued for identification purposes on the battlefield. Many a time I paged through the book that was compiled to show the history of his 3rd Armored Division.

 

I still miss him 32 years later!

 

Stay Safe, and prayers for those in need.

 

- Jack

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That is an awful looking souvenir your father brought back from France.  I know that the government acts slowly, but why did they wait until 1971 to award him his certificate for the Purple Heart Medal?

Ray

Seeing the weather in Texas I can't help thinking about my neighbor across the street.  When we returned from our last cruise I noticed his house was for sale.  Sad to see it as he was really a great neighbor.  I asked him why he was leaving his beautiful house that he had done so much to improve and he said that he couldn't stand the weather here in Washington and he and his wife wanted to move back to Texas.  He was originally from Dallas and only lived here for five years.  Sold his house after two days on the market and bought a new one in Dallas.  

Luckily, Dallas hasn't had the worst of the recent Texas weather, but I worry about him.

Ray

I have used a big internet TA located in Texas for years.  I look at it this way:  The TA is working for me and a PCC is working for HAL.  Which one is going to be on my side when something goes wrong?

Ray

Sorry, lost the description.  Our log house was  built in 1931 on a glacial erratic.  For some reason it was decided just to build over it rather than remove it.

Ray

Kind of a cool, damp day here in the PNW.  I was involved yesterday sorting out about 40 VHS tapes I had stored above a book shelf.  Most were made in the mid 1990s.  Found an old VHS player, but found that its outputs were not compatible with the inputs on my main tv, so finally hooked it up to a smaller one in the library.  Played a couple of them, but it will take a lot of time to look at them all and decide whether to keep them.

Yesterday we were talking about sunscreen and its benefits.  It reminded me about something I had read about the difference between sunscreen in the U.S. and the rest of the world.  I looked it up this morning and found this:  Our sunscreen is much less effective than that in the EU.  The reason is that in the U.S. sunscreen is classified as a drug and must be tested on animals before it can be approved for distribution.  As a result, no new sunscreen has been approved by the FDA since 1999.  I never use sunscreen and luckily have never had a skin cancer.

Message from @Copper10-8 GIVE ME A BEER

Ray

Actually, at 84 I am hopelessly outdated also, but it doesn't bother me.  I have a small Panasonic CD player on my desk and a large number of cds that I converted from LPs a few years ago and they are all I need when I need to have some background music.

Today was a good day.  A little over a week ago I decided to get an eye exam and new glasses as it has been about three years.  Went to the Costco eye clinic and made an appointment for 11 June to have the eyes examined.  The next day I received an email from VA stating that they would cover both the exam and glasses for disabled vets.  Finally contacted them and got an appointment for sometime in September at a local eye clinic.  Went to see them this morning and got it changed to 10 June.  Then went to Costco to cancel the existing one.  Talked to the lady there and she said that the clinic I am using is a very good one.  Of course I can't leave Costco without buying something, and tried a sample of their spiral ham.  It was $15. off the marked price.  So I bought a $21. one and paid $6. for it.  Talked to the checkout person and she said some people were buying 5 or 6 of them.  Got home, thought about it, and went back and bought three more for about $12, or $4. each.  As I said, it was a good day.

Ray

We have docked at Cobh and taken the train to Cork.  However, I didn't really understand how to pronounce Cobh.  I know about ch and dh and sh and th and wh but never knew of a word with bh as part of it.  Was wondering if Cobh was actually pronounced Cork, but realized that they are two different cities, but close together.  Finally took the time to research it and found that Cobh, for non Irish people is pronounced the same as Cove.  Am I right @VMax1700?

Ray

It is interesting and enjoyable to read a blog by one who is on their first HAL cruise, but is an experienced cruiser.  About the lack of name tags:  For many years the majority of the crew other than ship's officers were from either Indonesia or the Philippines.  Because many of the Indonesians were Muslim, and religion forbids alcohol; usually the bar persons were from the Philippines and the stateroom and dining room persons were from Indonesia.  Pre-Pandemic we had our wine poured by wine stewards in the dining rooms.  I think that has changed.  On my last cruise on the Westerdam, I just had my wine bottle delivered to my table and I served myself.

Ray

I have to admit that I never knew that there was a day in May for those named Ray.  It is something that I will try to forget after today.  

Often people have thought that my name was short for Raymond.  However, my mother was named Rachel so she decided to call her son Ray.

Ray

It is a 1949 Packard.

Ray

2 hours ago, dfish said:

Oh, my!  I am beat!  But, the patio furniture is all put together and so is the fire table.  The only thing lacking is a propane tank.  That's for tomorrow.  So, here are the pictures.

 

First is the deck we stained.  It was red.  This is right off the dining room.  

 

 

Next is the patio paver which is in back of the dining room and off the deck above.  This is where the new furniture went.  

 

 

 

The box still doesn't have a bottom, but it is fine for now.  We'll deal with it when we feel like it.  Which may be never.  Anyways, we didn't have furniture for this patio.  The fire table is to replace the ring below.

 

 

I'm sure you can understand why.   Sue will plant something there.  

 

 

 

Looks like a very comfortable place to relax with a glass of wine and some snacks.  I have never had something like that because I am not sure what I would do when it rains or when winter comes.  What is your plan?

Ray

A cool, somewhat damp day here in the Pacific Northwest.  As was previously mentioned, the third Saturday in May is Armed Forces Day in the U.S.  

For us living in this area, May 18 was the day in 1980 that Mt St. Helens erupted and is well remembered by those living here at that time.  

Ray

6 hours ago, Mary229 said:

If you wait until the very last minute to pay for a cruise you alleviate all of these issues.  I do not pay a bill until it is due.  I assume 60 days out I have visibility and I am willing to lose a little money.  I live differently than most people so I would not expect others to do as I do. Hey, I went 30 years with no health insurance and sleep well every night.  

We have cruised about 1300 days over the last 20 years and finally, on our last cruise on Seabourn we bought cruise insurance.  Luckily, we didn't have to use it.

Ray

One thing I really love about this website is when people like John @Copper10-8 go the extra mile to do research like this.  The story of Ann and her family's adventure would make a great movie or TV series.

Ray

If we can mention "Haze Grey and Underway", I spent some time on three ships before HAL.  In 1959 I boarded the USS Pine Island (AV-12), a seaplane tender in San Diego.  As a Seaman Recruit, I was assigned to the deck force.  One day they asked at quarters "Who can type?"  My hand went up and I left the ship in 1960 as a clerk.  Next ship was a Destroyer Tender, USS Frontier (AD-25) out of Long Beach, from 1966-1968.  By then I decided to stay in the Navy and got a lot of electronics training.  Left her as a first class electronics technician.  Got some more training and taught at a Navy electronics school and joined my last ship, USS Hector (AR-7) in Vietnam as a Warrant Officer serving as her Electronics Repair Officer.  She was also out of Long Beach.  Like most in the Seattle area, took my first cruise to Alaska in 1998 on the old Noordam.

Ray

Thought I might mention what kangaroo care actually means.  It is a method of holding infants, particularly low birth weight or premature ones, close to their mother's chest for periods of time.  It has been shown to be helpful to their well being and health.

Ray

Nice, cool day here in the Pacific NW.  Went to the Costco Optical Center to get an appointment for an eye exam.  I enjoy hummus with chips as a snack.  I have different feelings about the convicts that were sent to Botany Bay.  Suspect it was their lucky day.  Think of the alternatives in England at that time.  You could be hanged for what would be a misdemeanor today and imagine trying to survive in their prisons for a few years.

Ray 

33 minutes ago, terrydtx said:

I am sure your favorite bartender would give you a couple of rum shots on you drinks package to take back and keep in your cabin. On one of our cruises last year we ordered a bottle of Gin for our cabin and only ended up drinking less than half the bottle, so shots would have saved us a lot. We couldn't take the unused bottle home as we were flying internationally.

Not sure there is a problem with flying home internationally with a liter or less of liquor.  In March we left our Seabourn ship with an almost full liter of Jack Daniels in Keelung.  Packed it in my large suitcase, flew to Korea and then on to Seattle.  At SEA the customs person asked if I had any alcohol and I told him most of a liter of Jack Daniels.  He said "No problem" and waived us on.

Ray

5 hours ago, Heartgrove said:

Thank to all who organize the Daily and Fleet report. Today we have been in Montego Bay, Jamaica with an overnite sailing to Georgetown tonight. 
 

The cruise has been without any incident and one of our best. Yesterday at sea we had the Senior staff make an appearance to have a toast. Huge kudos to MSC Seashore for also holding a Veteran’s Celebration yesterday that recognized the five Armed Forces. I was the only Coastie. I always said that the Coast Guard were very selective! Also was a few veterans from other country’s veterans.

 

An indication of the size of the ship is that I am averaging 10,000 steps per day, and as I write this I am at 14,400 steps for today!

 

@USN59-79  Ray, I wonder if you would have come across my ship and it’s sisters that were handed over to the Vietnamese Navy? We decommissioned in May 1972 in Apra Harbor, Guam along with two others. Knowing the condition of these WWII ships it is possible. 
 

Stay safe, and prayers for all in need.

 

- Jack

Jack - In June and July 1972 the Vietnamese Navy received three Coast Guard Cutters; the Absecon, Chincoteague, and McCulloch.  The Absecon was captured by North Vietnam; the Chincoteague and McCulloch escaped to the Philippines and may still be there.

Ray

32 minutes ago, 57redbird said:

I got one of those calls a couple of months ago....didn't sound like my grandson so I asked him what his dog's name was.....no answer so I hung up.

Might have been the same guy.  He was calling from Skykomish, here in Washington State.

Ray