{"id":3469,"date":"2021-02-23T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-02-23T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/azadkinsiii.com\/blog\/?p=3469"},"modified":"2021-10-05T11:06:41","modified_gmt":"2021-10-05T15:06:41","slug":"71-the-swear-jar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/azadkinsiii.com\/blog\/71-the-swear-jar\/","title":{"rendered":"#71\u2014The Swear Jar"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Trivia Questions (Answers @ end)<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. Who said, \u201cThe problem with doing nothing is that you never know when you\u2019re finished.\u201d<\/em>?<\/li>
  2. In what movie (and who said it) did we hear, \u201cMy momma always said, \u2018Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you\u2019re gonna get.’\u201d<\/em>?<\/li>
  3. In what song (and who sang it) did we hear the following:
    But there’s one thing I know<\/em>
    The blues they send to meet me<\/em>
    Won’t defeat me, it won’t be long<\/em>
    Till happiness steps up to greet me<\/em><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n
    <\/div>
    Blog #71 (Audio)<\/div><\/div>
    <\/div>

    Listen to the audio of this blog, read by Andy Adkins. Click the \u201cAudio<\/strong><\/em>\u201d button below.<\/p>\n<\/div>

    Published: <\/span>October 5, 2021<\/span><\/div>
    <\/div>Audio by Andy Adkins<\/a><\/div><\/form><\/span>0<\/span> Downloads<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div>
    <\/div>\n\n\n
    \n\n\n\n

    Last week, I wrote about \u201cacquiring\u201d a new language when I first joined the Navy in 1973 (Orlando RTC<\/strong>): \u201c#70\u2014Chit, Bird Farm, Scuttlebutt\u2026 What?<\/a><\/em><\/strong>\u201d Boy, did I receive a ton of comments. Many of you let me know your \u201cfavorite\u201d Navy terms & phrases and a few of my Army & Marine friends even added to the \u201cflavor\u201d of the military lingo. That was a fun one to write, especially since I learned a few more terms.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"\"<\/a>
    The Swear Jar
    (Click to enlarge)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

    That got me to thinking about what we used to call in the old days, \u201cThe Swear Jar<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Anybody remember those? You know\u2026 you utter a cuss word and if caught, put a quarter in the jar. Or perhaps your Baptist or Methodist upbringing required you to deposit more<\/em> than a quarter. Regardless, I think most everyone has heard the term, \u201cswear jar\u201d in one form or another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    For the life of me, though, I don\u2019t understand why sailors<\/em><\/strong> aren\u2019t gazillionaires.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I swear\u2026 the things that we say and some of the language we sometimes use. But then, that\u2019s what makes us sailors and veterans, right? (swear jar term<\/em>)]-ing<\/em> \u201cA,\u201d I\u2019m right!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    And before I forget, anyone ever hear the phrase, \u201cSwear like a sailor?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Before the Navy<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    I think it was junior high school (they call it \u201cmiddle school\u201d now) when I picked up and began to utter certain one-syllable cuss words\u2014no phrases back then, just the basics. It was \u201ccool\u201d or so I thought.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"\"<\/a>
    GHS Class of ’72<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

    \u201cThe older kids are saying it, dad. Why can\u2019t I?\u201d Whew boy\u2026 I only said that once<\/em> to my dad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Like most teenagers, I learned several swear words while growing up. Perhaps I started a little later than others, but I don\u2019t remember my mom or dad using anything other than \u201cdamn\u201d until I was in high school. That was okay, though, because I\u2019d already learned the \u201cbasics\u201d in junior high school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    You remember high school? In terms of cussing, the bar was significantly lowered. Besides cliques and where kids become independent, well let\u2019s just say the language AND the attitude changed dramatically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Am I the only one here?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Then Came the Navy<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    This really doesn\u2019t count, does it? I mean, everybody<\/em> in the military swears, don\u2019t they? Perhaps that\u2019s why there\u2019s always a lot of beer around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Okay, maybe it does count a little.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    But the Navy\u2026 well, that\u2019s where I learned not only how to apply <\/em>the swear word, but how to incorporate <\/em>certain swear words appropriately that made it look like I was an intellectual: my Navy language taught me meaningful phrases, some of which I continue using today. Anyone else?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    You know, SNAFU, FUBAR, IETSU, BTSOOM, and a whole host of (swear jar term<\/em>) others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    After the Navy \u2013 Married with Kids<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    I left the Navy in 1977 after my four year commitment. I met my sweetheart a couple of years later in a karate class. \u201cShe threw me and I fell for her,\u201d is our stock story. Back then, I taught my young wife a few \u201cchoice\u201d Navy terms\u2014some of which we still use today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

    Despite the new found lingo I shared with her, we married in 1981 and had two kids in 1984 & 1986.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I learned early on you want to be careful what you say around young kids until you realize they won\u2019t understand what you say\u2026 or can they? I\u2019m (swear jar term<\/em>)-ed<\/em>!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    When your kids are babies and tots, you get to use some of the same phrases your own<\/em> parents used. You know: \u201cHere, pull my finger\u201d type humor. That was fun, but got old fairly quickly, especially when the dog got up and left the room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    But then, when you have grandkids, you get to start that fun all over again. But I digress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    When your own kids hit that magic age where they\u2019re off to school and you finally<\/em> get a much-needed break, you find they come back home after a day\/morning at school. And sometimes\u2014depending on which school, which teacher, and a whole slew of other \u201csocio-economic\u201d dependent factors\u2014they \u201cutter\u201d a word that you or your spouse hadn\u2019t said; at least, around them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \u201cWhere did you hear that?\u201d or \u201cWho told you that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Yeah, I\u2019m sure I\u2019m not the only one to have had that type of conversation with my son or daughter. But then, it goes back to that same conversation I had with my own father\u2026 who probably had it with his father.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    But that\u2019s the magical school age where they pick up and repeat everything, both at home and<\/em> at school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Then, one day you get that<\/em> phone call from school\u2026 \u201cDo you know what your child said to me today?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \u201cNo, and I don\u2019t give a rat\u2019s (swear jar term<\/em>).\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    After the Navy<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    When I was discharged from the Navy after my brief, \u201cThree Years, Eleven Months, & 29 Days\u2014But Who\u2019s Counting<\/em><\/strong><\/a>,\u201d I began my next short 2\u00bd year career as a firefighter with the City of Gainesville<\/a><\/strong>. I also attended the local community college full-time, which worked out well since I worked one day on and two days off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I wrote about that transition From Sailor to Civilian<\/a><\/strong> earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"Gainesville<\/a>
    City of Gainesville Fire Station
    (Click to enlarge)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

    The fire department wasn\u2019t that much different (swear word-wise) than the Navy, though there were more Baptists down here than I realized, hence I quickly learned when & where to use my sailor-speak. Sometimes the remark was spot on and funny. But most of the time… meh! And many times all I got was a \u201cstink eye\u201d glare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    If memory serves, out of the six fire stations in the City of Gainesville at the time I worked there (1977-80), Fire Station #3 had a swear jar. That\u2019s because, IMHO, the Fire Station Captain (the HMFIC of F.S.#3) was a strictly raised Baptist. He was a good guy, though, and a great (swear jar term<\/em>) firefighter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    When I finally graduated from the University of Florida<\/strong> as an electronics engineer (BSEE \u201982), I took my first engineering job in the beautiful state of Washington. I worked for Weyerhaeuser Company<\/strong> in Federal Way (somewhere between Seattle and Tacoma). Great company, and since it was my first job as a graduate in the \u201cwhite collar work force,\u201d it was also a learning process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    And before you ask, yes, I did visit Bremerton<\/a><\/strong> a few times during my year-long stay in Washington before I was transferred to a Weyerhaeuser Company pulp & paper mill in Oklahoma. I musta stepped on somebody\u2019s (swear jar term<\/em>)-ing<\/em> toes. The P&P mill was located in the knickerbocker section of metropolitan Valliant, Oklahoma; population: 350.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I learned several things (outside of being an engineer). Hence, the following three lessons:<\/p>\n\n\n\n