{"id":7134,"date":"2024-03-26T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-03-26T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/azadkinsiii.com\/blog\/?p=7134"},"modified":"2024-03-24T20:45:44","modified_gmt":"2024-03-25T00:45:44","slug":"164-its-just-a-number","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/azadkinsiii.com\/blog\/164-its-just-a-number\/","title":{"rendered":"#164\u2014It\u2019s Just a Number"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

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

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  1. <\/em>Who said, \u201cIf you live to be a hundred, I hope I live to be a hundred minus one day, so that I never have to live a day without you.<\/em>\u201d?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. <\/em>Who said, \u201cThe things that make me different are the things that make me, me.\u201d<\/em>?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Who said, \u201cAny day spent with you is my favorite day. So, today is my new favorite day.\u201d<\/em>?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
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    <\/div>
    Blog #164 (audio)<\/div><\/div>
    <\/div>
    <\/div>
    Published: <\/span>March 23, 2024<\/span><\/div>
    <\/div>Audio by Andy Adkins<\/a><\/div><\/form><\/span>3<\/span> Downloads<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div>
    <\/div>\n\n\n
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    The conversation started with, \u201cIt\u2019s just a number\u2026<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Birthdays & Anniversaries<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    I\u2019ll be 70 years old later this year. Like many of my \u201cseasoned\u201d colleagues and shipmates, birthdays are sometimes just another day in the year. One that I\u2019ll celebrate, of course, but not like I did when I was a kid. Instead of crayons (no, I\u2019m not<\/em> a Marine) and coloring books, or balloons and presents, or toys to play with, I\u2019m now more into \u201cconsumable\u201d gifts, like chocolate and booze.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    My dad died too young at the age of 68 (five days before his 69th birthday). I passed that \u201cmilestone\u201d this past year. My mom passed away a few years later at 72. That’s my next birthday milestone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Yeah, 70 is up there for sure, but it\u2019s just<\/em> a number.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    My \u201cplan\u201d is to live long enough to attend my daughter\u2019s third child\u2019s high school graduation. Her first child was born just this past year. So, I\u2019ve got some time; that is, if we follow my plan<\/em>. Of course, I know God may have other<\/em> plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    My wife & I celebrated our 43rd wedding anniversary this past week: another important <\/em>number. <\/p>\n\n\n

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    \"\"
    Miami, 1981.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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    \"\"
    Scotland, 2023.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

    It was March 21, 1981, the first day of spring. Gorgeous time in Gainesville, Florida with blooming azaleas and dogwoods, cool & clear weather – the kind of day my mom would call, “a champagne day.” You don\u2019t forget anniversaries and they\u2019re equally important. It may just be a number, but I always ask myself\u2026 is it?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This year\u2019s anniversary was a little<\/em> different and I hesitate to even mention it in this post. But last year at this time\u2014the day after<\/em> we celebrated our 42nd anniversary, my wife was diagnosed with a cancerous mass in her abdomen. She\u2019s fine now, thanks to modern robot-assisted surgery, a phenomenal group of doctors and nurses, a very talented surgeon, and our wonderful supportive family and friends. I blogged about the event<\/a> last year, but what stands out to me is Becky left the hospital a day after <\/em>major surgery. Let me repeat that\u2026 she walked out of the hospital the day after surgery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    But boy… those few months (March through May) remain a blur. Someone wise once said, “Life isn’t measured by the number of breaths we take, but the moments that take our breath away<\/em>.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    We embrace each day, celebrating life and love.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Dates & Numbers<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    There are also certain dates\u2014numbers<\/em>\u2014that remain etched in my mind. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    December 7 (\u201cA date which will live in infamy<\/em>\u201d) and June 6 (D-Day). While I obviously didn\u2019t participate in World War II, my dad did. He was attending The Citadel<\/strong> in Charleston, SC when he first heard the news of the Pearl Harbor attack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    From my book, \u201cYou Can\u2019t Get Much Closer Than This: Combat with the 80th \u2018Blue Ridge\u2019 Division in World War II Europe<\/strong>\u201d<\/a> (2005): <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I think I first learned of the attack on Pearl Harbor late in the afternoon. Most cadets were sleeping or listening to music on the radio when the reports started coming in. \u201cPearl Harbor bombed\u201d and \u201cJapanese attack the Philippines.\u201d Word traveled fast through The Citadel. At first, we thought the stories were rumors or somebody\u2019s idea of a joke. Soon, our worst fears proved to be true: Japan had attacked Pearl Harbor. Thousands of innocent men and women lost their lives protecting our country. That night we marched to supper chanting \u201cBeat Japan\u201d to the rhythm of the old Bulldog cadence.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Another date that sticks in my mind is 9\/11. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Again, an unprovoked attack on our country. I was in Saint Paul, Minnesota, at a legal technology conference, slated for a panel discussion first thing on that fateful Tuesday morning. I woke up to the news that one of the World Trade Center towers was hit by an aircraft. At first, I thought it might have been a sight-seeing plane flying in fog. But then, like so many others, I watched in horror as another aircraft plunged into the second tower. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Needless to say, we were all shocked. The conference continued\u2014there was nothing any of us could do. I vaguely remember beginning my presentation with a moment of silence\u2014I couldn\u2019t think of anything else. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Because the airports were closed, I waited several days before I could fly home. I finally climbed aboard an aircraft and sat next to a Delta pilot in uniform who caught the flight home. He fell asleep shortly after takeoff. I figured if he wasn\u2019t worried, I wouldn\u2019t be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    That\u2019s a number I\u2019ll never forget.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Navy Numbers<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    While the number 163 may not mean much to others, it means a lot to me and 79 of my newest Navy brothers. That was my boot camp (Orlando RTC<\/a><\/strong>) company number. At the tender age of 18, I enlisted for four years, July 1973 through July 1977. ADJ1 Louis Wright<\/strong> was our Company Commander. At that time, there was only one CC for 80 new recruits in a company. Now, I believe there are two or three CCs for a training company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    During my time in the Navy, I had two duty stations (three, if you count the shipyards). My first was NAS Agana, Guam<\/a><\/strong>. I worked in the Crash & Rescue<\/strong> Division. I was in Guam for 15 months and we worked 24-hour shifts: Port & Starboard. I was in the Port section. I learned a lot about my rating (Aviation Boatswains Mate-Handler<\/strong>) as well as living in the barracks\u2014renovated World War II barracks. Four of us shared one room. That would change at my next duty station as I shared the same berthing compartment with 80 others. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Another number close to my heart is 63.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"USS
    USS Kitty Hawk CV-63 underway Western Pacific 29 November 1970.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    My second duty station was aboard an aircraft carrier, USS Kitty Hawk<\/em> (CV-63)<\/strong>. I made the \u201975 Westpac<\/a><\/strong> cruise with her, working in V-1 Division<\/strong> \/ Crash on the flight deck<\/a><\/strong>. After the cruise, we spent a year in the Bremerton Shipyards<\/a><\/strong>. When we returned to North Island (San Diego), I transferred from Crash to Fly 3 as a Yellow Shirt <\/a><\/strong>director. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I loved both my jobs (Crash & Aircraft Director). Those were exciting times and working on the flight deck during flight ops\u2026 well, let\u2019s just say I only experienced the same adrenaline rush<\/a> a few times while working as a firefighter with the City of Gainesville<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I\u2019ve said this before, and I\u2019ll say it again. Kitty Hawk<\/em> was not <\/em>just a ship. She was my home for 2 1\/2 years. I made a lot of friends over those few years. We\u2019ve lost a few, but such is life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Kitty Hawk<\/em> was decommissioned on January 31, 2009 in Bremerton, Washington. Over 2,000 former shipmates, crew members, guests, and distinguished visitors attended the ceremony. I wasn\u2019t going to miss that opportunity. It was the first time I had seen Kitty Hawk<\/em> in over thirty years. It was quite an emotional experience for this <\/em>sailor as I climbed the after brow, onto the aircraft elevator, then into the huge hangar bay. Lots of memories came flooding back to me, both the good and the not-so-good.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    So yeah, 63 is more <\/em>than just a number to me and Kitty Hawk <\/em>is more than just a ship. It was a time in my life where I had a sense of purpose<\/em>, as we veterans often call it. It was the major building block that shaped my life. I know I\u2019m not the only one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Winding Down<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    My Marine Vietnam Veteran friend, Ernie, always says, \u201cI\u2019m in a footrace with the Lord<\/em>.\u201d I certainly understand his meaning\u2014I have more aches and pains these days, even though I practice Yoga, exercise regularly, and try to eat healthy. I don’t drink as much as I did back in my Navy days… that’s a good thing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The older I get, I find I want to do more things like spend time with family, travel, and continue my volunteer efforts. I don\u2019t know what will happen tomorrow, but I do know what I can do today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Live, love, and enjoy life!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Until we meet again,
    Andy<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    Get your FREE <\/strong>copy of my novel, NEVER FORGET<\/strong> (see below).
    No obligations, nothing to fill out.<\/h3>\n\n\n
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    \"NEVER<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

    Andy Adkins is a US Navy veteran (\u201973-77) and the author of several books. His novel, NEVER FORGET<\/strong>, is the story of A Vietnam Veteran\u2019s Journey for Redemption & Forgiveness<\/em>. NEVER FORGET is FREE <\/strong>(eBook, PDF) for all veterans. Download your FREE copy HERE<\/u><\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Answers<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    1. Winnie the Pooh.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    2. Winnie the Pooh.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    3. Winnie the Pooh.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      Previous blogs mentioned in this post:<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n