My alarm when off at 7:AM this morning, like it always does these days. The dog and the indoor cat need to go out; the outdoor cat needs to be let in. Its brisk outside. The cool Fall air fills my lungs, sweeping the last of the cobwebs from my eyes. November 11th is here again, crisp and fresh as always, bright and full of promise. Veterans Day. MY Day. Im a youngest son, so mom & dad invariably made a big stink about my birthdays when I was little. My father even went so far as to convince me the parade was in my honor, until I was 6. That of course was back in the Sixties, when Renos Veterans Day Parade rivaled Carson Citys Nevada Day Parade. Sharing my birthday with a national holiday celebrating the service and sacrifice of our armed forces, lead me to a deep appreciation and connection to the military, early on. I joined in my 18th summer, fully expecting to do 20 years. Gung-Ho and Squared Away. Dont tell them, but I even enjoyed boot-camp. My years in the Coast Guard were educational, sometimes dangerous, and never boring. Ive been in fog so thick you couldnt see one end of the ship from the other; Ive crossed both the Equator and the 180th Meridian; Ive barbecued on an abandoned WW2 Japanese navy base in the Aleutians and gone swimming 200 miles off the tip of Baja. I also witnessed a massive cargo ship sink in 5000 feet of water off the coast of Alaska, while her freshly rescued crew of 30 mourned and shivered in our galley. There were also night raids with the DEA on drug smuggling ships, 70 miles out of San Francisco. Those left me with dark dreams about dark faces wearing red halos which still sometimes wake me unexpectedly. Not ever job was fun and games, but they all needed to get done. Im 51 as of today; fat and thoughtful with decades yet ahead of me. Nothing like the razor-sharp Bosn who had all those adventures. I recommend a hitch in the Coast Guard to every teen who asks. It is a small service compared to the other four, about the same number of people as the NY Police Department. Consequently, they cross-train their people in everyone’s job. You never know when youll need to know how to pilot a sailboat, field-strip a 50 cal or rescue a drowning tourist (or cook/clean/paint/weld/subdue and fight a fire.) Have an excellent day, my friends. Rest and recreate, knowing there are rough, sharp, well armed and well trained people in various American uniforms, keeping vigil around the world.
Posted on: Tue, 11 Nov 2014 16:46:46 +0000
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