A Veteran's Journey

Trivia Questions (Answers @ end)

1. Who said, “Ninety-nine percent of the failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses.”?
2. In what movie (and who said it) did we hear, “You must unlearn what you have learned.”?
3. In what song (and who sang it) did we hear the following?
   I kicked the habit of smoking back some time ago
   And I tried the hard stuff, but I had to let all that go
   But the toughest thing I ever gave up was today
   ‘Cause old habits like you are hard to break.

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“Old Habits Die Hard.” From Dr. Google… “Said to mean that people are often reluctant to change their way of doing something, especially something which they have been doing for a long time.”

“Old Habits Die Hard.” Based on America’s Popular Proverbs and Sayings, by Gregory Titleman, the saying was first used in 1450. However, the exact reference is yet to be verified.

“Old Habits Die Hard.” The idiom was also first cited in the USA in 1758 by Benjamin Franklin, printed in the London Chronical.

Old habits die hard, old soldiers just fade away.
Old habits die hard, hard enough to feel the pain.
“Old Habits Die Hard” (2004), written by Mick Jagger, Dave Stewart

Boot Camp Beginnings

Orlando RTC (“Boot camp”). Back in July 1973, it didn’t take me long to learn how to fold and stow my newly issued uniforms the “Navy way.” If I didn’t do it properly, the Company Commander would “invite” me and 79 of my newest closest friends in our company (Company #163; CC ADJ1 Louis Wright) for what we often called a “Deck Party.”

“Push up position. Now, ladies, give me twenty-five of your finest.” These are easy, I thought to myself. I was a young, spry, 18 years old.

“On your backs. Let’s do some ‘Hello Dollys.’” Oh, shit. I hate these. “Lift your legs straight up six inches off the floor. Hold it. Lift them another six inches. Hold it… hold it. Lift them another six inches. Now spread them as wide as you can… Hello Dolly!”

When you’re in the military—it doesn’t matter if you’re Navy, Army, Marine, Air Force, or Coast Guard—you typically have limited space to store your personal belongings. I wrote earlier about the Seabag, and just how much I carried from one duty station to another. For me, reporting to a new duty station in the mid 70s with nothing but the clothes I wore, and a Seabag carried over my shoulder, was a new tradition.

Still a Habit

Even today, when my wife and I travel, we often cram a backpack (for us, Osprey backpacks) with almost everything we’ll need. We’ll carry another, smaller backpack for personal items. When travelling overseas, sometimes a roller suitcase doesn’t bode well with stairs and brick-laid streets.

Funny thing is, even though I left the Navy in July 1977 after a short 4-year enlistment, I still fold some of my clothes the same way. Fortunately, these days I don’t need to iron as many shirts as I did back then.

And I still have “fond” memories of making my bed. In boot camp, we had to tuck in the corners with a 45-degree angle with the sheets tucked under tight enough to bounce a quarter off the bed. If it didn’t bounce high enough for the CC… “Deck Party.” I still make my bed almost every morning and yes, still fold the corners… maybe not at a 45-degree angle, but for me, close enough for government work. And no, I don’t bother checking to see if I can bounce a quarter off it.

NAS Agana, Guam

My rating (i.e., my job) was an Aviation Boatswain’s Mate-Handler. We had two primary duties, both involved working with aircraft. One was a Crash firefighter; the other, a Yellow Shirt Director. I had the privilege of working both jobs and loved them equally.

After six weeks ABH training in “A School” in Lakehurst, NJ learning my trade, I transferred to my first duty station, NAS Agana, Guam.

Crash & Rescue had two shifts, Port and Starboard (I was Port). We worked 24 hours on and 24 hours off for my entire 15 months on Guam. Only during the last few months, the Division Officer (CWO2 Bos’n Joye) allowed us a “Kelly Day.” Since we “hot-racked” with the other shift, we’d change out our own sheets. And while I tried to keep a somewhat neat rack, I finally realized it didn’t matter if my bed-making ability was sloppy or not.

USS Kitty Hawk

After Guam, I transferred to an aircraft carrier, USS Kitty Hawk, CV-63 and assigned to V-1 Division / Crash & Salvage. Instead of a luxurious room with five Crash crew members like we had in Guam, I bunked with 80 other sailors in the V-1 berthing compartment. There were three racks stacked (mine was the middle), spaced about four feet apart between stacks. It was tight, but since we spent most of our time on the flight deck while at sea, that cozy little space was heaven to me, especially after a 16-to-18-hour shift.

We never had to worry about using too much water while stationed in Guam. However, when you’re aboard an aircraft carrier at sea with 5,500 other sailors, the ship makes its own fresh water from the ocean via desalination.

Keep in mind that an aircraft carrier launches aircraft throughout the day and well into the night… sometimes around-the-clock flight operations. Back then, aircraft were launched using a steam catapult. Most carriers have four cats, though most of the time, we’d launch aircraft using only two at a time. Each catapult launch requires steam from fresh water—the same fresh water source used for drinking water, taking showers, and the most important… making coffee.

“There goes another 200 showers,” we’d often repeat after launching an F-14 Tomcat, or any aircraft.

After a couple of days at sea, we often went on “water hours.” That basically meant the ship’s engineering turned off the fresh water to the berthing compartments. We tried to conserve water whenever possible but that wasn’t always possible.

Our head (bathroom) in the V-1 Division berthing compartment had 4 shower stalls. There were 80 of us in V-1. So, I learned quickly how to take a “3-minute Navy shower.”

Water on for 60 seconds; soap up for 60 seconds; rinse off for 60 seconds.

Still a Habit

These days, I don’t time myself, but since water bills in Florida can get a little high, especially during the summer, I’ll often turn the water off between “cycles” – rinse, soap, rinse.

And, when a hurricane comes through and we lose power for several days, the “3-minute shower” comes in handy. Our house was re-piped before we bought it. That means the water pipes run through the attic. After a hurricane, the sun is out, warming up the day (and the attic), and that means we have hot water, even though the power is off (we’re on city water).

Yeah, that 3-minute shower routine works just fine.

Veteran Respect

I was Navy. I sometimes worked with Marines, though it was usually only when nuclear weapons were nearby.

Never with the Army or Air Force, though my dad and my father-in-law were Army veterans who fought the Germans during World War II.

There was that one time, though, when a Marine guard didn’t like my response to his request.

We were on liberty in the Philippines (“PI” – Kitty Hawk’s forward deployment base). PI had midnight curfew, meaning you were to be off the streets by midnight, or you could be arrested, or worse… shot. And, while in PI, I often took advantage of the low-cost food and drink.

One night I’d had a little too much to drink. The Marines guarded the gates of the Navy base and checked everyone’s ID cards as they entered. You can imagine a thunderous herd of hundreds of sailors and Marines crowding through the gates at one time.

I held my ID card out for inspection. The Marine guard asked nicely, “Sir, could you please flip your ID card?”

My flippant reply was, “What… they don’t teach Marines how to read upside down.”

Wrong thing to say to a Marine guard. Within two seconds, the Marine corporal on duty stepped over, along with two of the biggest Marines I’d ever encountered, and kindly escorted me over to the guard shack.

“Hands against the wall. Spread your feet shoulder width apart.” They began a pat down. Of course, they found nothing (I was an “AJ-squared away” sailor… fortunately, at least that night). The Corporal walked me back to the line after his standard Marine-issue lecture about security and that I should follow the rules.

I was never a problem after that incident.

But I digress.

Back during my time (‘73-77), I’d like to think we all had a mutual respect for each other. I mean, we all served and while some were drafted, many of us enlisted.

Now—45+ years after I walked off Kitty Hawk’s Afterbrow for the last time—we often tease each other. The internet has certainly provided an opportunity for memes, videos, and whatnot as fuel for egging each other’s military branches.

But when it comes down to it, I respect each and every service member, young and old. If I see another veteran (usually spotted by a military ball cap), I always try to acknowledge them. If it’s a sailor, I may try to connect with them, especially if they’re wearing a ball cap with a Navy carrier patch. “When did you serve? What was your rank?”

Like I said, “Old Habits Die Hard.”

Until we meet again,
Andy

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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. Download your FREE copy HERE.

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Answers

1. George Washington Carver.
2. The Empire Stikes Back (1980), Yoda (voice of Frank Oz).
3. Old Habits (1980), Hank Williams, Jr.; written by Hank Williams, Jr.

Previous blogs mentioned in this post:

• #4—From Civilian to US Navy
• #150—The Seabag
• #35—US Navy “A” School (ABH)
• #53—You Always Remember Your First
• #67—A Day in the Life of Crash & Salvage
• #19—The 3-Minute Navy Shower: A Luxury, Compared to…