#149—Short? “Five Days and a Wake-up”

Andy Adkins

Trivia Questions (Answers @ end)

  1. Who said, “The two most important days in your life are the day you were born and the day you found out why.”?
  2. In what movie (and who said it) did we hear, “You lost today, kid. But that doesn’t mean you have to like it.”?
  3. This one’s easy… In what song (and who sang it) did we hear:
    War, huh, yeah
    What is it good for
    Absolutely nothing
Blog #149 (audio)
Published: July 24, 2023
Audio by Andy Adkins
2 Downloads

In my last post I wrote two weeks ago was my “Anniversary” of joining Uncle Sam’s Canoe Club 50 years ago. That post got me to thinking about those last few days aboard USS Kitty Hawk, CV-63, before leaving for the last time.

I’d spend four years (actually, Three Years, Eleven Months, & 29 Days… But Who’s Counting) in the Navy. I was so ready to get out.

The Beginning

After Orlando RTC (Boot Camp) and Lakehurst, NJ (ABH “A” School), my first duty station was NAS Agana, Guam (’73-75). I worked in Crash & Rescue… one day on, one day off for 15 straight months. Great duty, and to be honest, I very much enjoyed my time in Guam. I was a scuba diver (one reason I joined the Navy. I figured there would be more diving opportunities in the Navy than in the Army), and the diving was stupendous.

Andy Adkins with Unit #5, NAS Agana, Guam
Andy Adkins, NAS Agana, Guam (1974)

The water was so clear and so blue, I remember seeing a swaying octopus about 50 feet away. I don’t know why that memory just popped up. Maybe it’s because we just returned from a week in the US Virgin Islands with our son and grandsons.

Besides diving, I also learned to fly and received my Private Pilot license, signed by Capt. John Brandenburg, who was, at one time, the CO of NAS Agana, Guam. Even though Guam is only 32 miles top to bottom and 4-8 miles wide, there were plenty of opportunities to fly around the island… well, except for those “no-fly zones” around the ammo dumps, the comm stations, and of course, Anderson AFB.

Flight Deck

After Guam, I transferred to Kitty Hawk, an aircraft carrier, reporting aboard in March 1975. We sailed for Westpac ’75 in May 1975. I was in V-1 Division / Crash & Salvage. It was my one and only cruise. After that, we spent a year in Bremerton Shipyards, steaming out in April 1977. The shipyards were “so-so,” but they gave me several opportunities to explore the Pacific Northwest. And as a kid from Florida, this was the first time I’d been in snow.

We departed Bremerton on April 1, 1977, for our home port of San Diego. For the next few months, we’d be in “shakedown” mode, testing and retesting all the modifications made. This included welcoming two new aircraft aboard: the F-14 Tomcat fighters, which replaced the F-4 Phantoms, and the S-3 Vikings anti-submarine aircraft, which replaced the S-2 prop-driven Trackers.

This was also the time I transferred from Crash to Yellow Shirt Director (Fly3, Director #36). That was something I’d wanted to do during the cruise, but because we were so short staffed in Crash (a total of 14 of us), it just wasn’t meant to be.

My original Yellow Shirt Director #36
Still got my Yellow Shirt. A bit faded, like me, but like my socks, it still fits.

DD-214

Back in the day, we didn’t have computers and the Personnel Department used typewriters. When you’re discharged, there’s a lot of paperwork to complete, forms to fill out and sign. But the most important of them all, your discharge papers. The DD-214.

Many veterans brag about the fact that instead of a Ph.D., they have a DD-214. I’m one of them. While I went back to school (I’d flunked out of Florida State University in 1973; one reason I joined the Navy), I received a Bachelor’s Degree (Electronics Engineering) in 1982 and a Master’s in Engineering in 1989, both from the University of Florida (Go Gators!). I’m proud of those, too. But for me, the DD-214 is the “big one.”

Short-Timer

When I was a “short-timer”—that is, I had limited time left in the service, I always greeted the day with a “30 Days and a Wake-up” or whatever time I had left before my discharge. There are so many “short” jokes out there, I’ll share only a few:

“I’m so short that…”

  • I won’t write another letter, because I’ll beat it home!
  • I’m too short for long conversations.
  • I could jump off the edge of a quarter and scream “AAAHHH” all the way down.
  • I have to jump up to look down.
  • I have to use a ladder to scratch a snake’s belly.”

I’m sure there’s more, but that’s enough for now.

Back then, it was a Navy tradition to have someone carry your seabag off the ship for you one last time. I thought about it, but I didn’t ask anyone, mainly because I was ready to leave. Besides… I’d already said my goodbyes.

Kitty Hawk had been a great ship to me—and my home for 2½ years. And most of the crew that I worked with I considered family.

The Last Salute

It didn’t hit me until much later, but after I walked off the Kitty Hawk Afterbrow, I realized I was leaving my home. Unlike Guam, I wasn’t transferring to another duty station… I was leaving to go back home to my family in Gainesville, Florida.

After I emptied my lockers in both Crash and in the V-1 Division berthing compartment, I stuffed my seabag with all my Navy uniforms as well as the few civies I owned. The Navy let us keep our uniforms.

I’d dressed in civvies—blue jeans, a pull over T-shirt, and my laced up Keds sneakers. As I’d done for the past 2½ years, I saluted the petty officer of the watch at the Afterbrow and asked one more time, “Permission to go ashore, sir.” He saluted back and wished me well. I also saluted the flag one last time (old habits die hard), even in my civvies.

There was no band, no fanfare, nobody waiting for me on the pier. There were no tears or sorrowful looks. At the time, I was ready to leave Kitty Hawk and the Navy, and put it far behind me. It was, as I’d later learn, just another chapter in the journey of life. An important one, nonetheless. It was time to move forward with my life, though I had no friggin’ clue where that path would lead me.

And here I am, 46 years later, reminiscing about some of the best times in my life.

Until we meet again,
Andy

Answers

  1. Mark Twain.
  2. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), Fedora (Richard Young).
  3. War (1968), The Temptations; written by Barrett Strong & Norman Whitfield. Most of us remember the Edwin Starr version from 1970.

Previous blogs mentioned in this post:

Get your FREE copy of my novel, NEVER FORGET (see below).
No obligations, nothing to fill out.

NEVER FORGET Book Cover with "New" Label

Andy Adkins is a US Navy veteran (’73-77) and the author of several books. His newest novel, NEVER FORGET, is the story of A Vietnam Veteran’s Journey for Redemption & Forgiveness. NEVER FORGET is FREE (eBook, PDF) for all veterans and their families. Download your FREE copy HERE.

2 thoughts on “#149—Short? “Five Days and a Wake-up””

  1. Another short timers joke. I am so short l can swing my legs when I sit on a dime.

Comments are closed.