The Subsim Veterans/Active Duty Thread

[Texas Red]

Hi all,

I'm sure that I have stated this in another post somewhere, but my future choice for my career is the Navy. And I have to thank my family members who served in the military for driving my passion for the military. Why do I have to thank my military familymembers for my future career choice? Well, let me explain.

When I was 2, was when I started to really, and I mean really start to show big interest and love for boats. My parents say that 'for some inexplicable reason, you were drawn to boats.' I even told my schooling peers that I wanted to be a sailor. In fact, I remember going to air shows and the like since I was a little kid. And the first ship I was drawn to was the Titanic. Up until I was 8 or 9 (which was when I started to move on to submarines and other ships), my entire world REVOLVED around the Titanic. It was that ship that kickstarted a deeper passion for boats. Reading a document that a therapist wrote for about me when I was in the 1st grade, on the first page alone the word 'Titanic' popped up at least five times or more.
And when I got a little older I started to show more interest in different ships and started to move away from the Titanic to submarines, which was what brought me to the Silent Hunter series and the Subsim genre.

When I was 10 or 11, I really decided what I wanted to do in life, which was to serve in the Navy as an officer on board a submarine. What also made me decide to do that was hearing stories of my great-grandfathers who served in World War II. They are my heroes and I wish I could have met them, and their stories of the war and such have shaped me into who I am today.

And so, I am here to tell you about these people. Feel free to share stories of your own family folks too! Or something about yourself if you are on active duty or you have a part in something military-related. Anyone is welcome here

[Texas Red]

I think the first post here should go to the veteran of my family who inspired me to gain knowledge on WWII.

His name was Gilbert DeVries, born in Indiana in 1913, he grew up near the Kankakee River and went hunting there regularly.
He served in the US Army from 1941-1946(?) as an artilleryman for the 603rd Tank Destroyer Battalion. We (my family and I) do not know a lot about his war service since most of his war items were permanently destroyed by Gilbert's mentally ill son. Recently, my great aunt discovered some of his old war stuff in a wooden box in her attic, some of the items in there gave me a general idea of the unit he served in. Included was a Camp Hood tank destroyer patch, and his 603rd TDB patch. He also had two Marksmanship medals, one Expert Sharpshooter in the Carbine, and another regular Sharpshooter medal. The latter, however, was missing the clasp that would tell us what weapon he was a marksman in.

He also had the rank patch of a Luftwaffe Lieutenant Colonel too, something that surprised me, because I do not know how he got it, nor does my grandpa.

We also have some pictures too.

This one is a picture of Gilbert and his brother fishing together in Belgium. Gilbert is the one on the left.

https://i.postimg.cc/tCZwjf3n/IMG-0983.jpg

This one was of him probably from sometime during the war, after he had finished training maybe.

https://i.postimg.cc/sXxKJQKG/IMG-0982-Edited.jpg

The 603rd TDB's war service also matches the stories of Gilbert from the war. Gilbert said he fought in the Battle of the Bulge, and liberated Buchenwald (which my grandpa remembered, falsely, as Bergen-Belsen), he also had some pretty gnarly stories of war that I could share here if prompted, this thread is about your guy's stories mainly.

Gilbert also had some pictures taken from when he liberated Buchenwald, these were of the hundreds of dead bodies stacked on top of each other. Those, unfortunately, were destroyed by Gil's son.

Gilbert said that they forced the remaining German soldiers who were at the camp to dig graves for the corpses lying around the camp. And every once in a while they would hear the sound of a machine gun firing and a CO yelling,
"Don't shoot the Germans!" That is some pretty grisly stuff.

I have to thank Gilbert for inspiring me to learn about WWII and gain all the knowledge I have on the subject.

[Texas Red]

Reserved

[Platapus]

Rats, I could not get a reservation. :nope:

[vienna]

Ya gotta know somebody...




<O>

[derstosstrupp]

Former Marine here, 0313 LAV crewman, 2002 to 2006. Did one tour in Iraq, 2004-2005, participated in the 2nd Battle of Fallujah in November 2004.

Great idea for a thread Red! And I can’t commend you enough for doing this cadet training now, I know you will do great.

[Kaye T. Bai]

Currently in the process of joining the USN as a corpsman (specifically HMDA). Leave for training today.

[3catcircus]

Former submarine reactor operator.

[Torpex77]

1985-2005
USS BOSTON SSN 703
USS SUNFISH SSN 649
USS PASADENA SSN 752

Diving Officer Qualified on all 3
Contact Coordinator on 649 & 752

Punched holes in Every major ocean. As a Torpedoman We were a test platform on Boston, launching over 700 torpedos.

Hard life, damn well worth it. ❤️

[HW3]

Former Air Force, 42370 aircraft electrician, 1969-1976, spent 2 years in the Azores 1972-1974.

[ET2SN]

I'm pretty sure I've mentioned it in the past. :arrgh!:

[Texas Red]

Former Marine here, 0313 LAV crewman, 2002 to 2006. Did one tour in Iraq, 2004-2005, participated in the 2nd Battle of Fallujah in November 2004.

Great idea for a thread Red! And I can’t commend you enough for doing this cadet training now, I know you will do great.

Awesome, didn't know you were in a battle!
To be honest, I am surprised that no one else had thought of this idea before. I think that it is best for everyone to be remembered and their story told to keep the flame going. Also, about the cadet training, we had a Marine Staff-Sergeant come to do PT with us on Saturday last week. He was a recruiter that the CO's daughter had met while looking at the Marines. He did some tours in Iraq, I think he said.
That PT though was hard but I felt relaxed and happy for the rest of the day. I was reading the POD (Plan of the Day) earlier before I left for the drill and it said:
"1130, secure chow and change into PT gear for our motivational speech with Staff Sergeant (insert name here)"
Normally you don't change into PT gear for a motivational speech..:haha:
We did some running and ab workouts to "warm-up", and some people were already exhausted by then. Next thing we had to do was some more intense workouts in a series of 6 workouts. I will explain it here.

There were 6 cones out in the field behind the drill site, the 6th cone was probably a good 60-80 yards. We were told that our first workout for the first cone would be "low crawling (Army Crawling) and then sprint back to the start" The second workout for the second cone would be high crawling and then we would sprint back from the second cone to the start. The third workout for the third cone would be bear crawling and then sprinting back to the start. The fourth workout for the fourth cone was an inchworm up to about maybe 40 or so yards and then sprint back to the start.
By that point many people were about ready to collapse on the ground (including me, but I still came in second behind the Leading Petty Officer)

The fifth workout for the fifth cone was lunges and then sprint back to the start.

The sixth and final workout was squat jumps, which is basically you doing squats while jumping, it looks like this:
https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/a/a8/Do-Jump-Squats-Step-13-Version-3.jpg/v4-460px-Do-Jump-Squats-Step-13-Version-3.jpg

We had to do that for 80 yards and then sprint back to the beginning and wait for other people to finish. I was practically dying by that time, and yet I pushed myself further and further.
If you have ever done a squat before, like multiple of them, then you know how your legs and abs hurt like hell, but imagine doing all of the workouts I did previously and then doing this final workout. The end result was basically me trying not to puke in front of everyone.

And then we had a competition where I got buddy-dragged like this:
https://media.defense.gov/2018/Dec/24/2002075682/-1/-1/0/181221-M-XG560-141C.JPG for 10 yards or so. That wasn't bad at all. Yet I was still really fatigued and about to fall over.

Finally, I won a Marine lanyard by sprinting the 80 yards and back. I narrowly beat the other guy I was racing, in fact I had to dive to beat him. And the Staff Sergent gave me the lanyard.
After that I did puke.

Later the LPO singled me out saying I was "probably the most physically fit person in here besides the Chief Petty Officer, him, and a few other POs. Yet you still need to work out to improve yourself."

Also a few days ago, I registered for Recruit Training (RT, which is basically like boot camp for cadets) in Florida. And the COTC later approved me, as did my CO, for attending. And so I leave in June for Florida for RT.

Currently in the process of joining the USN as a corpsman (specifically HMDA). Leave for training today.

Good luck! What made you choose to be a dental assistant? I am curious as I haven't met a person who chose a job like that. There are some kids in my unit who are qualified as Corpsmen at like 16. There is some training that I can attend where the subject is "Tac Med" which, from what I have heard, is REALLY demanding physically, mentally, and academically.

Former submarine reactor operator.1985-2005
USS BOSTON SSN 703
USS SUNFISH SSN 649
USS PASADENA SSN 752

Diving Officer Qualified on all 3
Contact Coordinator on 649 & 752

Punched holes in Every major ocean. As a Torpedoman We were a test platform on Boston, launching over 700 torpedos.

Hard life, damn well worth it. ❤️


Reactor Operator? That must be a cool job operating the heart of the submarine, though it must be nerve-wracking knowing that those things can kill you if something goes wrong.
I plan on being a Weapons Officer on a submarine since I LOVE weapons and I shoot shotguns on courses with my grandparents regularly. Plus I think that it would be the job that fits my interests best.

Former Air Force, 42370 aircraft electrician, 1969-1976, spent 2 years in the Azores 1972-1974.

Aircraft electrician? What do you do as an Aircraft Electrician? You probably operate an Aircrafts Electric systems but what else do you do?

Rats, I could not get a reservation.

Since you were the first one to post, you get a free reservation! :)

I'm pretty sure I've mentioned it in the past.

Let me guess, submariner? :arrgh!:

[HW3]

Aircraft electrician? What do you do as an Aircraft Electrician? You probably operate an Aircrafts Electric systems but what else do you do?

Troubleshoot, maintain, repair, and update assigned aircrafts electrical systems.

[mapuc]

Have removed my input in the discussion, since it is a 100 % American military veteran thread.

Markus

[Aktungbby]

Currently in the process of joining the USN as a corpsman (specifically HMDA). Leave for training today.


Good luck! What made you choose to be a dental assistant? I am curious as I haven't met a person who chose a job like that. There are some kids in my unit who are qualified as Corpsmen at like 16. There is some training that I can attend where the subject is "Tac Med" which, from what I have heard, is REALLY demanding physically, mentally, and academically.
Young Lad: be advised, Rule 1 of modern warfare: "An army (and navy or airforce) travels on it's stomach"! Basically we killed all the buffalo and practised biological warfare (smallpox) and simply out-ate the natives to make good:dead: Indians:doh:!...On submarines mealtimes are considered major moral boosters. You yourself discovered this when quaranteen'd in your bedroom with Covid and mommy occasionally slipped pizza under the door...but didn't confiscate your computer!:O: A critical function of this military logistical principle is...GOOD TEETH! No one can effectively go "over the top" with an excrutiating abscessed tooth to bayonet the foe in no man's land. Hence, a dental assistant, with pliers and a bag of flossers, is essential equipment on any fighting front. They will not blow ballast for a sailor's toothach on a boomer! Even the Earps had Doc Holliday-dentist with them at the OK Corral!! :yep::arrgh!: EDIT: and take that TAKMed training; it's very useful at accidents, heart-attacks in your neighborhood/household etc. You'll be the "go-to man" holding the line until the EMT cavalry arrives; generally 10 min. on a dispatch, but essential to a victim in mortal distress. And it beats standing around gawking uselessly....

[ET2SN]

El W; I'll try to keep this as basic as I can for now, if you want to talk submarines- we can do that. But not now. :)

Figure out what you want to do and what you want to be. Keep your mind open, you don't even have to join the military at this point. :up:

Next, figure out your goals. Where do you want to wind up when it gets close to your retirement? Keep a little wiggle room in your plans but definitely start to think about long-term goals. You want to be a what? Why do you want that? What other options are out there?

If you are sold on that military career, do you want to be an officer or enlisted? Both have their plusses and minuses. Both are separated by a "glass wall", you can't really be both (there's the concept of a Warrant Officer, but this career path tends to be very tricky to navigate) but both can be rewarding in their own way.

Also, keep in mind that at its core, a job in the military is a Federal job. Some of this can be a headache, they tell you exactly what is expected and what isn't tolerated and there's very little room to innovate or experiment.

[vienna]

Not quite sure about that abscessed-tooth-as-a-liability theory; whenever I've had toothaches, I've been in moods to take out the pain anyone around me and, if given a bayonet, God help the guy on the other end when my tooth is aching... :D



<O>

[Aktungbby]

Not quite sure about that abscessed-tooth-as-a-liability theory; whenever I've had toothaches, I've been in moods to take out the pain anyone around me and, if given a bayonet, God help the guy on the other end when my tooth is aching... :D



<O> Rewind 100 years and the Battle of the Somme would have just drawn to a close, on November 18, 1916. For 141 days, soldiers had suffered the worst that modern warfare could deliver: bombardment, chemical weapons, failed advances and a level of casualties no one could have anticipated. In this centenary year, multiple articles have been published on the terrible conditions, the tactics, the tear gas. But what about the teeth?

Dentistry, granted, is not a topic that often comes up when discussing World War I. But the poor state of working-class mouths – no dental care for most of them – and the difficulties that the very basic army food presented made the all-consuming pain of acute toothache all too common. So what were the soldiers eating? Military leaders have long noted that armies “march on their stomachs”, so the 1914 British army command was well aware of the significance of rations to its men.

Difficulties in the Crimean War, where more soldiers had been admitted to the hospital at Scutari suffering from scurvy than from battle wounds, had prompted a series of army dietary reforms over the second half of the 19th century. Improvements in nutritional science had also helped to shape the provisioning of the army – although the emphasis on energy values to the exclusion of other considerations resulted in a diet that, while high in calories, was often lacking in variety, difficult to consume and somewhat indigestible. Trench rations
In the summer of 1914, the army provided the same level of feeding for all, but soon found this unsustainable and a series of adjustments followed, reserving the best rations for those in the front line. Those in reserve and in the training camps at home received considerably less.

The fighting man’s calorie quota was on a par with that of the modern British Army, although contemporary ration packs offer a level of variety unimagined by those serving a century earlier. In terms of national comparison, the British fared pretty well, the Americans had the most calories – and the French a widely envied daily wine ration. If actual rations met the official description, and the cooks were of a decent standard, all went relatively well. A relatively static war meant that the delivery of rations was usually reliable – at times of advance or retreat the long supply chains could be interrupted, but most of the time the complex set of movements from Base Supply Depots to the front was sustained.

Unfortunately, the cooks’ efforts often fell short, although they were hindered by the army’s own recipe books where, for example, the list of ingredients for “Fish Paste” contained four tins of sardines – and eight of bully (corned) beef. but the army sought to deliver the greatest number of calories in the easiest manner – and that often meant tinned (both meat and biscuit) rather than fresh food. A tin of Maconochie’s meat and vegetable stew, especially when heated up, was the acceptable face of canned food. Cold corned beef wasn’t – and biscuit was even less popular. The British working classes had grown up on a diet dominated by bread, so while a hard-baked carbohydrate substitute may have scored highly in logistical terms it was regarded by most men as an abomination. Scores of cartoonists and writers have made jokes about biscuit’s similarity to kindling, but it was no laughing matter. Many of the working and lower-middle-class soldiers had very poor teeth – the result of too much sugar and too little dentistry. The army was reluctant to pay for dentists and when the British Expeditionary Force travelled to France in 1914 not one dentist accompanied them. It was only when General Douglas Haig developed excruciating toothache at height of the Battle of Aisne in October of that year that the cost of their absence was realised. No one was able to treat Haig and he was forced to await a French dental surgeon from Paris. Haig subsequently contacted the War Office to request the recruitment of army dentists for the BEF – 12 dentists arrived in November and a further eight by the end of 1914. :o18 dentist for how
many Tommies??!!:nope:Jokes about the state of the nation’s teeth also reached the pages of Punch. In August 1914 it published a cartoon of a disgruntled man at a recruiting office protesting to the MO who’d turned him away because of his rotten teeth: “Man, ye’re making a gran’ mistake. I’m no wanting to bite the Germans, I’m wanting to shoot ‘em.”

Defective teeth were a major cause in rejecting volunteers and so patriotic dentists stepped forward. CJ McCarthy of Grimsby advertised in the local paper promising free treatment to the first 25 volunteers rejected because of their teeth that reported to his surgery.

Dentistry mattered: in the theatre of war, losing a set of false teeth effectively rendered the soldier useless because the conditions at the front didn’t allow for a soft diet for toothless men. Canon JO Coop wrote home to his wife that one man had a self-inflicted wound and “to make more certain [his escape from the front line] he had thrown away his false teeth because he knew that men who lost their teeth were sent to base”.

The army’s efforts weren’t always met with enthusiasm, but innovative Tommies knew how to make the best of what was available, often grinding the biscuits to a powder, mixing in a tin of milk and one of jam – preferably not the eternal plum and apple – and heating. Making the rations palatable was a key skill learned alongside the more distressing aspects of warfare. I rest my case! The BEF travelled on its stomach and no teeth meant no frontline trench duty...Moreover having munched hardtack biscuits in my Civil War re-enacting daze; I can easily relate to this WW I misery: https://s01.sgp1.digitaloceanspaces.com/inline/822144-image-20160912-19258-1ec7eez.JPG:salute: further reading; it was an important matter. > https://languagesandthefirstworldwar.../trench-teeth/

[Torpex77]

Awesome, didn't know you were in a battle!
To be honest, I am surprised that no one else had thought of this idea before. I think that it is best for everyone to be remembered and their story told to keep the flame going. Also, about the cadet training, we had a Marine Staff-Sergeant come to do PT with us on Saturday last week. He was a recruiter that the CO's daughter had met while looking at the Marines. He did some tours in Iraq, I think he said.
That PT though was hard but I felt relaxed and happy for the rest of the day. I was reading the POD (Plan of the Day) earlier before I left for the drill and it said:
"1130, secure chow and change into PT gear for our motivational speech with Staff Sergeant (insert name here)"
Normally you don't change into PT gear for a motivational speech..:haha:
We did some running and ab workouts to "warm-up", and some people were already exhausted by then. Next thing we had to do was some more intense workouts in a series of 6 workouts. I will explain it here.

There were 6 cones out in the field behind the drill site, the 6th cone was probably a good 60-80 yards. We were told that our first workout for the first cone would be "low crawling (Army Crawling) and then sprint back to the start" The second workout for the second cone would be high crawling and then we would sprint back from the second cone to the start. The third workout for the third cone would be bear crawling and then sprinting back to the start. The fourth workout for the fourth cone was an inchworm up to about maybe 40 or so yards and then sprint back to the start.
By that point many people were about ready to collapse on the ground (including me, but I still came in second behind the Leading Petty Officer)

The fifth workout for the fifth cone was lunges and then sprint back to the start.

The sixth and final workout was squat jumps, which is basically you doing squats while jumping, it looks like this:
https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/a/a8/Do-Jump-Squats-Step-13-Version-3.jpg/v4-460px-Do-Jump-Squats-Step-13-Version-3.jpg

We had to do that for 80 yards and then sprint back to the beginning and wait for other people to finish. I was practically dying by that time, and yet I pushed myself further and further.
If you have ever done a squat before, like multiple of them, then you know how your legs and abs hurt like hell, but imagine doing all of the workouts I did previously and then doing this final workout. The end result was basically me trying not to puke in front of everyone.

And then we had a competition where I got buddy-dragged like this:
https://media.defense.gov/2018/Dec/24/2002075682/-1/-1/0/181221-M-XG560-141C.JPG for 10 yards or so. That wasn't bad at all. Yet I was still really fatigued and about to fall over.

Finally, I won a Marine lanyard by sprinting the 80 yards and back. I narrowly beat the other guy I was racing, in fact I had to dive to beat him. And the Staff Sergent gave me the lanyard.
After that I did puke.

Later the LPO singled me out saying I was "probably the most physically fit person in here besides the Chief Petty Officer, him, and a few other POs. Yet you still need to work out to improve yourself."

Also a few days ago, I registered for Recruit Training (RT, which is basically like boot camp for cadets) in Florida. And the COTC later approved me, as did my CO, for attending. And so I leave in June for Florida for RT.



Good luck! What made you choose to be a dental assistant? I am curious as I haven't met a person who chose a job like that. There are some kids in my unit who are qualified as Corpsmen at like 16. There is some training that I can attend where the subject is "Tac Med" which, from what I have heard, is REALLY demanding physically, mentally, and academically.



Reactor Operator? That must be a cool job operating the heart of the submarine, though it must be nerve-wracking knowing that those things can kill you if something goes wrong.
I plan on being a Weapons Officer on a submarine since I LOVE weapons and I shoot shotguns on courses with my grandparents regularly. Plus I think that it would be the job that fits my interests best.



Aircraft electrician? What do you do as an Aircraft Electrician? You probably operate an Aircrafts Electric systems but what else do you do?



Since you were the first one to post, you get a free reservation! :)



Let me guess, submariner? :arrgh!:


>>>>> LOL Somehow you got me mixed up with someone else..lol No Harm :haha:
Im NOT a former Reactor Operator...lol I was a Torpedoman
1985-2005
USS BOSTON SSN 703
USS SUNFISH SSN 649
USS PASADENA SSN 752

Diving Officer Qualified on all 3
Contact Coordinator on 649 & 752

Punched holes in Every major ocean. As a Torpedoman We were a test platform on Boston, launching over 700 torpedos.

Hard life, damn well worth it. ❤️

[Texas Red]

El W; I'll try to keep this as basic as I can for now, if you want to talk submarines- we can do that. But not now. :)

Figure out what you want to do and what you want to be. Keep your mind open, you don't even have to join the military at this point. :up:

Next, figure out your goals. Where do you want to wind up when it gets close to your retirement? Keep a little wiggle room in your plans but definitely start to think about long-term goals. You want to be a what? Why do you want that? What other options are out there?

If you are sold on that military career, do you want to be an officer or enlisted? Both have their plusses and minuses. Both are separated by a "glass wall", you can't really be both (there's the concept of a Warrant Officer, but this career path tends to be very tricky to navigate) but both can be rewarding in their own way.

Also, keep in mind that at its core, a job in the military is a Federal job. Some of this can be a headache, they tell you exactly what is expected and what isn't tolerated and there's very little room to innovate or experiment.

Thanks, man, I have told my CO my goals and he said he would help me accomplish them to the fullest. I plan on being an officer on a submarine, and I hope to go to the Naval Academy later in life. Our chief had signed up like maybe two weeks ago for the academy and on Saturday he told us that he had just received an Army ROTC scholarship at Purdue, another kid in the unit before me had also made chief and signed up to the academy but he ended up going to West Point instead, lol.

Am I seeing a recurring theme here?

[Jeff-Groves]

Follow your dreams. I did.
I became a ParaTrooper in the 82nd AirbBorne.
Kind of strange for a high level modder of subsims right?
:hmmm:

[3catcircus]

I highly advise going the officer route via the quickest parh, given the chance.

If you are going as strictly a WEPS, I'm thinking nowadays you'll have to do it by enlisting into a source rate, make chief (well, board-eligible E-6) and get the nod to be commissioned as a 626x Ordnance (Submarine) LDO on an SSBN. This'll take probably 7+ years to even get your foot in the door.

If you intend to serve on a fast attack, unless you want to be a 'chop, I think now it has to generally be as an unrestricted line officer - and every submarine ULO goes to nuclear power school.

Are ya good at calculus and physics? Can you draw a single line diagram of piping or circuitry and identify the functions of all the components? Are ya good at cramming info into your head at a rapid pace? Can you handle 20-25 hrs of study outside of 8 hrs of class Monday-Friday?

Get through power school and prototype and then its off to SOBC. Only then do you get your first assignment as a DivO. You'll then spend your first assignment qualifying all your watchstations culminating in OOD and getting your gold fish. The most important part of this education is learning from the chief or LPO who is the guy who is really running your division while protecting you from yourself...

After your first sea duty, you'll alternate sea and shore duty - going to advanced schools, serving as a Dept Head, the obligatory joint and staff assignments until you get assigned as a PCO. Pass, and you'll get your own boat.

A college buddy of mine was an enlisted nuke electrician's mate. Went to captain's mast and reduced from E-4 to E-3 while still in the training pipeline. Got through training and assigned to various boats, eventually making chief before being picked up for Nuclear Enlisted Commissioning Program. He's now the CO of a west coast SSN. His second sea duty assignment after commissioning (and going through nuke school all over again as an officer) was as the WEPS on an SSN.

If you *really* want to serve as a submarine officer, just go to college first - USNA, ROTC, OCS - doesn't matter. It's *far* easier to go that route than competing for a much smaller number of officer program slots as an enlisted.

In fact, the NUPOC program will *pay you* as an E-6 or E-7 while you are going to college. They only downside is if you don't make it through and commission, they send you to boot camp for assignment as a non-designated E-3...

[ET2SN]

Thanks, man, I have told my CO my goals and he said he would help me accomplish them to the fullest. I plan on being an officer on a submarine, and I hope to go to the Naval Academy later in life. Our chief had signed up like maybe two weeks ago for the academy and on Saturday he told us that he had just received an Army ROTC scholarship at Purdue, another kid in the unit before me had also made chief and signed up to the academy but he ended up going to West Point instead, lol.

Am I seeing a recurring theme here?


OK, I think you may have some mis-conceptions.
If your unit has "career days", be a pain and try to get a submarine officer to attend. :yep:
Buy them lunch, do what you have to in order to get a one-to-one sit-down meeting. I'm not 100% certain (I left the Navy in 1993), but being an officer on a US sub means that you graduated from "Nuc School" (aka Prototype). Getting to Nuc school as an officer can be tricky. Off the top of my head, you'll want to have good grades and at least a BS in Mechanical Engineering with a heavy concentration in Physics and Thermodynamics. This is the tricky part, the Navy prefers to train their Nucs their own way. You don't have to have a BS/ME but you DO need an outstanding GPA. Understand that I'm not talking about "party on Thursday-to-Sunday" college. This is a very narrow pathway that looks a lot like a wire over a canyon. :yep:

Aside from being the Permanent Supply Officer, this is the only path I know of to getting gold Dolphins. Most of the junior (NUC trained) officers I knew didn't even want a shot at being the Captain, they wanted to be the ENG more than anything. There's some twisted logic behind this and it takes a long time to understand it. :yep:

Just a quick disclaimer. I enlisted about six months after I earned a BS/EE and AS/EET degrees. I enlisted mostly because the civilian industry went into a severe downturn and I needed to get the experience for when things got better.
I had asked about OCS when I enlisted and my recruiter said it was better (in his view) if I went enlisted first and let a CO nominate me for OCS. This turned out to be really good advice, by the time the skipper of my first boat asked me if I wanted to go, I already knew that I didn't and I was lucky there was another guy in the crew who wanted it more. It still took a lot of diplomacy to turn down "the old man" without having him go ballistic. :03:

Service Academy vs ROTC/NROTC- The Service Academies don't train future lieutenants, they train future Admirals and Generals. :yep: This will make more sense later. If your goal is WEPS on a fast attack, there are easier ways of getting there than going through Annapolis. If your goal is getting your own personal flag and staff car, then you want "the big ring".
You should also understand the difference between Line Officer and Staff Officer. To you, it could make a lot of difference. To the Navy, it makes NO difference and they will assign you where they need you to be. This is known as "needs of the government" and its a double-edged blade. You can use it to your benefit but it can just as easily knock your legs out from under you.

Just to cut it short for now, there are other folks on this forum who have old uniforms and poopie suits hanging in their closet. You want their opinions as well. :yeah: Just understand that a LOT of this comes down to being prepared plus being in the right place at the right time.

[ET2SN]

Thanks, man, I have told my CO my goals and he said he would help me accomplish them to the fullest.

BTW, this is a little early in the conversation but let me give you a little advice. :Kaleun_Cheers:

If your CO asks you, "Where would like to go in the military?". Think about this first but say "It doesn't matter. They could send me to Korea and I hate Mongolian Beef, Kimchi, and Garlic. Where ever I'm needed is what's important." :03:


There's always going to be an element of sacrifice to military service. A lot of things can happen that are outside your influence. That was why I suggested that you keep an open mind for a while. :yeah:

[3catcircus]

BTW, this is a little early in the conversation but let me give you a little advice. :Kaleun_Cheers:

If your CO asks you, "Where would like to go in the military?". Think about this first but say "It doesn't matter. They could send me to Korea and I hate Mongolian Beef, Kimchi, and Garlic. Where ever I'm needed is what's important." :03:


There's always going to be an element of sacrifice to military service. A lot of things can happen that are outside your influence. That was why I suggested that you keep an open mind for a while. :yeah:

You forgot Rule #1...

Never put down your first duty choice as your first choice or it'll be guaranteed you won't get it 😂

[ET2SN]

I thought Rule#1 was "Don't be a ****". :yeah:

I grew up in northern Maine and I knew a guy in High School who joined the Air Force and put down "Loring AFB" as his first choice, which was where he wound up.
Talk about "seeing the world". :har:

His folks could drive up for a visit every Friday afternoon and make it back home in time for dinner. :haha:

[Texas Red]

I highly advise going the officer route via the quickest parh, given the chance.

If you are going as strictly a WEPS, I'm thinking nowadays you'll have to do it by enlisting into a source rate, make chief (well, board-eligible E-6) and get the nod to be commissioned as a 626x Ordnance (Submarine) LDO on an SSBN. This'll take probably 7+ years to even get your foot in the door.

If you intend to serve on a fast attack, unless you want to be a 'chop, I think now it has to generally be as an unrestricted line officer - and every submarine ULO goes to nuclear power school.

Are ya good at calculus and physics? Can you draw a single line diagram of piping or circuitry and identify the functions of all the components? Are ya good at cramming info into your head at a rapid pace? Can you handle 20-25 hrs of study outside of 8 hrs of class Monday-Friday?

Get through power school and prototype and then its off to SOBC. Only then do you get your first assignment as a DivO. You'll then spend your first assignment qualifying all your watchstations culminating in OOD and getting your gold fish. The most important part of this education is learning from the chief or LPO who is the guy who is really running your division while protecting you from yourself...

After your first sea duty, you'll alternate sea and shore duty - going to advanced schools, serving as a Dept Head, the obligatory joint and staff assignments until you get assigned as a PCO. Pass, and you'll get your own boat.

A college buddy of mine was an enlisted nuke electrician's mate. Went to captain's mast and reduced from E-4 to E-3 while still in the training pipeline. Got through training and assigned to various boats, eventually making chief before being picked up for Nuclear Enlisted Commissioning Program. He's now the CO of a west coast SSN. His second sea duty assignment after commissioning (and going through nuke school all over again as an officer) was as the WEPS on an SSN.

If you *really* want to serve as a submarine officer, just go to college first - USNA, ROTC, OCS - doesn't matter. It's *far* easier to go that route than competing for a much smaller number of officer program slots as an enlisted.

In fact, the NUPOC program will *pay you* as an E-6 or E-7 while you are going to college. They only downside is if you don't make it through and commission, they send you to boot camp for assignment as a non-designated E-3...
First off, a little too much for me at the moment. I am still pretty young and not even close to finishing high school or even learning calculus and physics. What I do want to do is go to USNA or any other officer program you mentioned beforehand. I would definitely want to become an officer rather quickly since then I don't have to toil in pay that is barely above the minimum wage for four years in the lowest enlisted rates.

Thanks for explaining it though. I guess it isn't all that simple as I thought it to be, lol.

OK, I think you may have some mis-conceptions.
If your unit has "career days", be a pain and try to get a submarine officer to attend. :yep:
Buy them lunch, do what you have to in order to get a one-to-one sit-down meeting. I'm not 100% certain (I left the Navy in 1993), but being an officer on a US sub means that you graduated from "Nuc School" (aka Prototype). Getting to Nuc school as an officer can be tricky. Off the top of my head, you'll want to have good grades and at least a BS in Mechanical Engineering with a heavy concentration in Physics and Thermodynamics. This is the tricky part, the Navy prefers to train their Nucs their own way. You don't have to have a BS/ME but you DO need an outstanding GPA. Understand that I'm not talking about "party on Thursday-to-Sunday" college. This is a very narrow pathway that looks a lot like a wire over a canyon. :yep:

Aside from being the Permanent Supply Officer, this is the only path I know of to getting gold Dolphins. Most of the junior (NUC trained) officers I knew didn't even want a shot at being the Captain, they wanted to be the ENG more than anything. There's some twisted logic behind this and it takes a long time to understand it. :yep:

Just a quick disclaimer. I enlisted about six months after I earned a BS/EE and AS/EET degrees. I enlisted mostly because the civilian industry went into a severe downturn and I needed to get the experience for when things got better.
I had asked about OCS when I enlisted and my recruiter said it was better (in his view) if I went enlisted first and let a CO nominate me for OCS. This turned out to be really good advice, by the time the skipper of my first boat asked me if I wanted to go, I already knew that I didn't and I was lucky there was another guy in the crew who wanted it more. It still took a lot of diplomacy to turn down "the old man" without having him go ballistic. :03:

Service Academy vs ROTC/NROTC- The Service Academies don't train future lieutenants, they train future Admirals and Generals. :yep: This will make more sense later. If your goal is WEPS on a fast attack, there are easier ways of getting there than going through Annapolis. If your goal is getting your own personal flag and staff car, then you want "the big ring".
You should also understand the difference between Line Officer and Staff Officer. To you, it could make a lot of difference. To the Navy, it makes NO difference and they will assign you where they need you to be. This is known as "needs of the government" and its a double-edged blade. You can use it to your benefit but it can just as easily knock your legs out from under you.

Just to cut it short for now, there are other folks on this forum who have old uniforms and poopie suits hanging in their closet. You want their opinions as well. :yeah: Just understand that a LOT of this comes down to being prepared plus being in the right place at the right time.

BTW, this is a little early in the conversation but let me give you a little advice. :Kaleun_Cheers:

If your CO asks you, "Where would like to go in the military?". Think about this first but say "It doesn't matter. They could send me to Korea and I hate Mongolian Beef, Kimchi, and Garlic. Where ever I'm needed is what's important." :03:


There's always going to be an element of sacrifice to military service. A lot of things can happen that are outside your influence. That was why I suggested that you keep an open mind for a while. :yeah:

Great, thanks for explaining it to me. I definitely got a good idea of what lies ahead. And its screaming "WORK HARDER WHILE YOU CAN!!" lol.
I will keep my mind open for a while, there is probably something else that I will find some new interest in later.

[ET2SN]

Well, that's the other side of the coin. Don't sign up for a twenty year career that you're going to hate. :up:

I don't know if its still available, but there was the "Two Years Minimums" enlistment. Two years from bootcamp to transition back to the civilian world.

For some folks it made a lot of sense. They did the minimum time to get the post-service bennies. Or some basic job experience. Or some really basic training for free (plus the crappy pay check).

If you're really serious, let me repeat this- Knock off the "I, I, I,..." stuff. Think instead of serving your country. You'll still meet people who understand that and will look out for you. Try to make that feeling genuine. :yep:

If you want to join just to impress someone in the family or to have something to talk about during Thanksgiving, please reconsider. Those people you want to impress won't be there at 2AM on a crappy duty day when the ship is due to pull out at 9 AM but the generators keep tripping off line. They won't be there when you're stuck on the surface in state 6 seas for the next 12 hours. They won't be there when the galley runs out of everything but canned ravioli, coffee, and stale ice cream cones and you're two weeks away from a dock.

If you do it, do it for YOU and do it for your country. :yep:

[3catcircus]

Well, that's the other side of the coin. Don't sign up for a twenty year career that you're going to hate. :up:

I don't know if its still available, but there was the "Two Years Minimums" enlistment. Two years from bootcamp to transition back to the civilian world.

For some folks it made a lot of sense. They did the minimum time to get the post-service bennies. Or some basic job experience. Or some really basic training for free (plus the crappy pay check).

If you're really serious, let me repeat this- Knock off the "I, I, I,..." stuff. Think instead of serving your country. You'll still meet people who understand that and will look out for you. Try to make that feeling genuine. :yep:

If you want to join just to impress someone in the family or to have something to talk about during Thanksgiving, please reconsider. Those people you want to impress won't be there at 2AM on a crappy duty day when the ship is due to pull out at 9 AM but the generators keep tripping off line. They won't be there when you're stuck on the surface in state 6 seas for the next 12 hours. They won't be there when the galley runs out of everything but canned ravioli, coffee, and stale ice cream cones and you're two weeks away from a dock.

If you do it, do it for YOU and do it for your country. :yep:

This.

BTW, I think I'd be fine with the raviolis (midrats for the win) since it was hard to screw them up. Try butterscotch pudding for a week - for every meal. And boiling seawater for the salt. And we f'ing ran out of coffee! 2 and 3 brews on the same grounds... How the heck do you run out of coffee and then give the MS's (I think they're now called CS's) awards for maintaining crew morale?!?!

Nothing like being somewhere you can't talk about and getting extended on station over and over again...

Those 2am midwatches... Lots of heavy topics of discussion when you're bored out of your mind.

Or those 4/4/4/8/8 vulcan deathwatch ORSE workups.

Or the 3am reactor startup for an 8am underway.

Or steaming at anchor in Samoa with enough chop that the oncoming section ( who are hungover from their 18 hrs ashore) are going to be puking into trash bags for the next 6 hrs.

[ET2SN]

BTW, I think I'd be fine with the raviolis (midrats for the win) since it was hard to screw them up. Try butterscotch pudding for a week - for every meal. And boiling seawater for the salt. And we f'ing ran out of coffee! 2 and 3 brews on the same grounds... How the heck do you run out of coffee and then give the MS's (I think they're now called CS's) awards for maintaining crew morale?!?!

Or those 4/4/4/8/8 vulcan deathwatch ORSE workups.

Or steaming at anchor in Samoa with enough chop that the oncoming section ( who are hungover from their 18 hrs ashore) are going to be puking into trash bags for the next 6 hrs.

OK, I liked ravioli for mids, hot or cold, but try hot ravioli for breakfast, cold ravioli for lunch, hot ravioli and an ice cream cone (just the cone) for dinner, and cold ravioli for mids. For like 12 consecutive days. :doh: That #### got old REALLY fast. I always got along great with the cooks and I was talking to one of them one fine day and said,"Hey, what if you chucked a can of ravoili in the soup pot and added a lot of water? You know, call it "Italian Soup" or something.." "Yeah, we gotta start figuring this thing out..". "Dude, NO. I was kidding! Don't tell your Chief that or he'll do it!!!"

ORSE was one of those things that builds character. My best Navy bud was on a 594 out of San Diego and they dropped their ORSE something like 10 minutes after the team stepped off the brow. It might have been the trim pump hanging from a block and tackle or else it was wet pea green paint that got all over the khakis of the CDR who was inspecting it, but that marked the official start of FOUR WEEKS IN HELL for the crew. No kidding, the Navy didn't take that lightly. The barracks got locked and everyone got confined aboard to get ready for their make-up ORSE. The Navy even added the exclamation point of installing those yellow I beams between the hull and the pier, as if to say, "No, YOU folks are going NOWHERE!!!".

I thought ORSE was pretty cool. We nailled ours on the Bremerton after she got paroled out of the shipyard. By that time I was a referee on the DC crew and I wound up in my full fireman's suit and OBA yakking with some of the ORSE Chiefs about practical training stuff and one them asks me to light off my candle and demonstrate how to wear an OBA. "Seriously? Really light it? Are you sure..." "Yep. Do it NOW". So I go thru the drill and light off the candle, check the seals, and set the timer before calling off the light-off time to crew's mess. "Outstanding". "OK, so what do I do with it, now? Its lit and it'll keep pumping out O2 for the next half hour..". I was hoping he'd let me hang out in the bridge until the damned thing cooled off but instead we send one of the nubs to grab a plastic bucket and fill it with fresh water. I drop the hot canister into the bucket and... Those canisters go off like 8 million Alka Seltzers in water. :yeah:

And, yeah, pre-underway hangovers. :up: That was always a good time to test the O2 generator and its green pipe and shower head of goodness. :D

[Texas Red]

Well, that's the other side of the coin. Don't sign up for a twenty year career that you're going to hate. :up:

I don't know if its still available, but there was the "Two Years Minimums" enlistment. Two years from bootcamp to transition back to the civilian world.

For some folks it made a lot of sense. They did the minimum time to get the post-service bennies. Or some basic job experience. Or some really basic training for free (plus the crappy pay check).

If you're really serious, let me repeat this- Knock off the "I, I, I,..." stuff. Think instead of serving your country. You'll still meet people who understand that and will look out for you. Try to make that feeling genuine. :yep:

If you want to join just to impress someone in the family or to have something to talk about during Thanksgiving, please reconsider. Those people you want to impress won't be there at 2AM on a crappy duty day when the ship is due to pull out at 9 AM but the generators keep tripping off line. They won't be there when you're stuck on the surface in state 6 seas for the next 12 hours. They won't be there when the galley runs out of everything but canned ravioli, coffee, and stale ice cream cones and you're two weeks away from a dock.

If you do it, do it for YOU and do it for your country. :yep:

I wouldn't be getting into the Navy Cadet Corps if I wasn't serious about it and /or just want to have something to brag about when meeting ladies. I do want to serve my country to the fullest.

Quick question though:
What is the best advice you would give to someone like me who is new to the military?

[ET2SN]

I wouldn't be getting into the Navy Cadet Corps if I wasn't serious about it and /or just want to have something to brag about when meeting ladies. I do want to serve my country to the fullest.

Quick question though:
What is the best advice you would give to someone like me who is new to the military?

Yikes, that's a big question and I don't write short posts. :)

The universal Rule # 1 is "Don't be a Dick". You'll be meeting a lot of new people who are kinda like you. Don't turn it into a competition. No one likes a stranger who's constantly getting in their face and business. One of the first things the military teaches you is that you all can be different but once you start to work together, you can move mountains before you break for lunch.

That brings up something that surprised me. We sell ourselves massively short. As individuals, we think we know our limits and capabilities. The military teaches you what they really are. Wait until you figure it out, its a real eye-opener.

There's no textbook guide to learning Leadership. You'll meet folks who are really bad at it and folks who really, really good at it. Learn from both. Watch how they act and talk.

Don't be a dummy with your money. At first, you'll barely earn enough to make it to the next paycheck but that will get better as time goes on. Start saving as soon as you can. The Navy has a great deal with Navy Federal Credit Union. You won't see much that's impressive at first, but give it time.
Defiantly DON'T start out in the hole with credit cards and loans. Military bases are famous for having clip joints and rip offs just outside the main gate. If you need some wheels that bad, pull some leave and go back home to buy it. Don't try to "have it all" right from the start. "Chief has a nice apartment downtown and I was thinking.." Yeah, Chief has also been on the job for 14 more years than you. I think Chief earns a little more. Don't fall into that trap. Live within your means. If that means living in the BOQ or BEQ and eating in the chow hall, suck it up.

Time moves weird when you're in uniform. Days can feel like weeks but years can go by in what feels like a month.

Cars (and even motorcycles) don't mix well with sea tours. Think about it, the Navy is paying you to log miles underway. You're going to be gone a lot.
Fortunately, the Navy will provide long term parking if you jump through enough hoops. Usually in a parking lot three feet from the ocean. :yeah: This is great if you really like that rusty, rat rod patina and enjoy rebuilding your brakes. Its not so great on a car that's less than ten years old. There are exceptions, Norfolk and San Diego subase where you almost need a car, but for the most part parking on base is a pain in the ***. Its better to invest in a good bike (and an even better lock) or public transportation.

More than likely, you'll get to travel to other countries. See Rule # 1 again. You'll be seeing places and people you never planned for, don't screw it up.
If you wind up spending some time in another country, take the time to learn the culture and customs, try to pick up enough of the language to get by. Reading about Buddhism is one thing, sitting to talk about it over lunch with a Monk is another.

Hand in hand with Rule # 1, DON'T B****. Everyone has bad days. Griping constantly is not going to make you any friends. Think about it, you're in a group of peers who make the same money and do the same job. You think you're telling anyone something they don't know?? The food stinks, the weather stinks, the job stinks, my boss stinks, my paycheck stinks... On and on but there's never a plan to make it better. Speaking of..

Get ready to meet some of the best life-long friends you'll ever have. The military does that. Thirty years from now you'll still have friends that you'll bail out of the Pokey with no questions asked. Because you KNOW they have your back, no matter what. It sounds sappy but its true.

[3catcircus]

Yikes, that's a big question and I don't write short posts. :)

The universal Rule # 1 is "Don't be a Dick". You'll be meeting a lot of new people who are kinda like you. Don't turn it into a competition. No one likes a stranger who's constantly getting in their face and business. One of the first things the military teaches you is that you all can be different but once you start to work together, you can move mountains before you break for lunch.

That brings up something that surprised me. We sell ourselves massively short. As individuals, we think we know our limits and capabilities. The military teaches you what they really are. Wait until you figure it out, its a real eye-opener.

There's no textbook guide to learning Leadership. You'll meet folks who are really bad at it and folks who really, really good at it. Learn from both. Watch how they act and talk.

Don't be a dummy with your money. At first, you'll barely earn enough to make it to the next paycheck but that will get better as time goes on. Start saving as soon as you can. The Navy has a great deal with Navy Federal Credit Union. You won't see much that's impressive at first, but give it time.
Defiantly DON'T start out in the hole with credit cards and loans. Military bases are famous for having clip joints and rip offs just outside the main gate. If you need some wheels that bad, pull some leave and go back home to buy it. Don't try to "have it all" right from the start. "Chief has a nice apartment downtown and I was thinking.." Yeah, Chief has also been on the job for 14 more years than you. I think Chief earns a little more. Don't fall into that trap. Live within your means. If that means living in the BOQ or BEQ and eating in the chow hall, suck it up.

Time moves weird when you're in uniform. Days can feel like weeks but years can go by in what feels like a month.

Cars (and even motorcycles) don't mix well with sea tours. Think about it, the Navy is paying you to log miles underway. You're going to be gone a lot.
Fortunately, the Navy will provide long term parking if you jump through enough hoops. Usually in a parking lot three feet from the ocean. :yeah: This is great if you really like that rusty, rat rod patina and enjoy rebuilding your brakes. Its not so great on a car that's less than ten years old. There are exceptions, Norfolk and San Diego subase where you almost need a car, but for the most part parking on base is a pain in the ***. Its better to invest in a good bike (and an even better lock) or public transportation.

More than likely, you'll get to travel to other countries. See Rule # 1 again. You'll be seeing places and people you never planned for, don't screw it up.
If you wind up spending some time in another country, take the time to learn the culture and customs, try to pick up enough of the language to get by. Reading about Buddhism is one thing, sitting to talk about it over lunch with a Monk is another.

Hand in hand with Rule # 1, DON'T B****. Everyone has bad days. Griping constantly is not going to make you any friends. Think about it, you're in a group of peers who make the same money and do the same job. You think you're telling anyone something they don't know?? The food stinks, the weather stinks, the job stinks, my boss stinks, my paycheck stinks... On and on but there's never a plan to make it better. Speaking of..

Get ready to meet some of the best life-long friends you'll ever have. The military does that. Thirty years from now you'll still have friends that you'll bail out of the Pokey with no questions asked. Because you KNOW they have your back, no matter what. It sounds sappy but its true.

A couple of other things to consider (assuming you end up going enlisted)

If you enlist (and I advise against this if you have the option of getting commissioned out of college), get everything in writing and ensure you get a good A-school. Nothing is a bigger waste of your time than being Seaman Apprentice Non-Rate for your first sea duty because you'll spend that time being on the lowest rung once you get to the boat. Chipping and painting? You. Cranking for 3+ months at a time? You.

Get a decent A-School even if it means a longer enlistment. Electronics Technician, any nuclear rating, IT, Sonar Tech - they all have translatable skills when you get out. Even though I am not in the nuclear industry now, after I got out and got my degree, I was hired because the hiring manager was a former submarine officer and knew that the amount of time it would take me to get up to speed and be a contributor would be very short since, as a former nuke, he knew I would be able to quickly absorb vast amounts of complex information.

Being a nuke has financial advantages if you plan on reenlisting because of the large SRB, but the downside is it is a closed career path. You won't be getting shore duty as an admiral's aide in Sydney Australia or teaching seamanship at the Academy. Non-nuclear careers have lower SRB, but many more options for shore duty, and a wider array of sea duty options.

If you enlist, once you get to the boat, plan on being a hot runner - stay ahead of your quals to avoid having to come in on an off weekend to catch up your studies. Better to stick around after liberty on a Monday to get that additional checkout or two than have to water a few hours on Saturday...

Once you are in the duty section, one of the biggest things you can do to make the duty day go quicker is to volunteer to make a minimart run or pick up food orders for the rest of the duty section of they are ordering it rather than eating what the cooks are serving. As a non-qual, you can't support the watchbill, but you can support your duty section - and this will also make it easier to get your checkouts from guys who may otherwise be considered a hard checkout.

As to checkouts - your ability to understand everything about a particular system or evolution literally is life-and-death. If you don't know the trim and drain system, you might be the only guy in a compartment that is flooding and you won't be able to line up valves to start dewatering. So don't try and get anyone to skim your qual card. If you don't get the signature it means you don't know enough to save yourself or anyone else. Lookups are not intended to make it harder to get a signature - they are advanced levels of knowledge in disguise.

Study in your free time if you enlist out of high school. If you can get the taxpayers to foot the bill for you to get a college degree, it's worth the time. I don't know how much is available, but typically there is a tuition assistance program for distance learning - even while underway.

Lastly, although NAVY stands for Never Again Volunteer Yourself, if you are offered what seems like a pain in the butt (other than the aforementioned chipping and painting), it's probably an opportunity in disguise. You might ask for a boomer out of the west coast but if they offer a fast attack out of Guam, it might actually be better career-wise if you establish yourself as someone that detailers go to to fill difficult billets like Guam. My first boat was a 594 out of San Diego that PCSed to Pearl for decommissioning. At the end of decom I asked for a 637 out of San Diego. Instead I got a 688 in Pearl. That turned out great - I got to augment during an Eastpac and go to QA Inspector school and Electronics Technician Maintenance Supervisor school. Something I wouldn't have gotten if I were on a 637 out of San Diego. And towards the end of my time on my 2nd boat, we PCSed to the east coast to decommission - so I also ended up getting to swim in the panama canal...

As to seeing other countries - while the idea of drinking enough for a small town and chasing ladies of the evening in exotic ports of call sounds like fun for a young single guy, the days of being able to do that safely are long gone. Breathalyzers on the boat, drug-resistant STDs, and the internet all mean that bad behavior *will* haunt you. As dopey as it sounds, cultural things not partaken of will be a regret later in life. How often do you plan on climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge or Mt Fuji? Take those opportunities when they come because they will be few and far between. In homeport, don't spend your off time sleeping away the day or wasting money on consumer entertainment. Go and do things that are available and inexpensive where you are stationed - hiking, surfing, skiing, fishing, whatever. That's a lot more affordable and also stress-relieving than spending $70 on an Xbox game that you end up yelling at strangers while playing, or blowing $100/night every time you go out drinking.

I'll echo what was said - save every penny you can. I had a car when I went to nuclear prototype in Idaho - I needed it for that. After that, I sold my car before I got to the boat. Didn't need it, even in San Diego. Hawaii was even easier to get around via bus. I never had a car after prototype. If I could, I wouldn't own a car now...


Lastly - wherever you get stationed, there will be local establishments that serve adult beverages you may decide to frequent that attract a certain type of female (I suppose nowadays, males too) because they know soldiers, sailors, airmen also frequent them - and you may attract them even if not frequenting those establishments. There will be women who can smell that you are a single guy and they will be salivating and ready to fight over you like you are piece of meat. They may be single and childless, or they may have a (couple of) child(ren) of questionable sire with an ex-. She may seem really nice. She may seem very attracted to you. She may even tell you her tale of financial woe or confide in you that it was love at first time - whichever tale will seem to earn her a more sympathetic ear. For the love of your future's sake, run, don't walk, away. These are people who prey on young impressionable guys who have a steady income that they are looking to exploit for a life of ease. If you aren't careful to spot this (or take the advice of someone else on the boat who is older), you could find yourself "married" to this person who will happily look forward to the married BAQ/VHA money that she is now entitled to, even if you end up getting forcibly evicted from "your" apartment/house. Or you could be even more gullible and end up being financially responsible for children that aren't yours.

[Texas Red]

Yikes, that's a big question and I don't write short posts. :)

The universal Rule # 1 is "Don't be a Dick". You'll be meeting a lot of new people who are kinda like you. Don't turn it into a competition. No one likes a stranger who's constantly getting in their face and business. One of the first things the military teaches you is that you all can be different but once you start to work together, you can move mountains before you break for lunch.

That brings up something that surprised me. We sell ourselves massively short. As individuals, we think we know our limits and capabilities. The military teaches you what they really are. Wait until you figure it out, its a real eye-opener.

There's no textbook guide to learning Leadership. You'll meet folks who are really bad at it and folks who really, really good at it. Learn from both. Watch how they act and talk.

Don't be a dummy with your money. At first, you'll barely earn enough to make it to the next paycheck but that will get better as time goes on. Start saving as soon as you can. The Navy has a great deal with Navy Federal Credit Union. You won't see much that's impressive at first, but give it time.
Defiantly DON'T start out in the hole with credit cards and loans. Military bases are famous for having clip joints and rip offs just outside the main gate. If you need some wheels that bad, pull some leave and go back home to buy it. Don't try to "have it all" right from the start. "Chief has a nice apartment downtown and I was thinking.." Yeah, Chief has also been on the job for 14 more years than you. I think Chief earns a little more. Don't fall into that trap. Live within your means. If that means living in the BOQ or BEQ and eating in the chow hall, suck it up.

Time moves weird when you're in uniform. Days can feel like weeks but years can go by in what feels like a month.

Cars (and even motorcycles) don't mix well with sea tours. Think about it, the Navy is paying you to log miles underway. You're going to be gone a lot.
Fortunately, the Navy will provide long term parking if you jump through enough hoops. Usually in a parking lot three feet from the ocean. :yeah: This is great if you really like that rusty, rat rod patina and enjoy rebuilding your brakes. Its not so great on a car that's less than ten years old. There are exceptions, Norfolk and San Diego subase where you almost need a car, but for the most part parking on base is a pain in the ***. Its better to invest in a good bike (and an even better lock) or public transportation.

More than likely, you'll get to travel to other countries. See Rule # 1 again. You'll be seeing places and people you never planned for, don't screw it up.
If you wind up spending some time in another country, take the time to learn the culture and customs, try to pick up enough of the language to get by. Reading about Buddhism is one thing, sitting to talk about it over lunch with a Monk is another.

Hand in hand with Rule # 1, DON'T B****. Everyone has bad days. Griping constantly is not going to make you any friends. Think about it, you're in a group of peers who make the same money and do the same job. You think you're telling anyone something they don't know?? The food stinks, the weather stinks, the job stinks, my boss stinks, my paycheck stinks... On and on but there's never a plan to make it better. Speaking of..

Get ready to meet some of the best life-long friends you'll ever have. The military does that. Thirty years from now you'll still have friends that you'll bail out of the Pokey with no questions asked. Because you KNOW they have your back, no matter what. It sounds sappy but its true.

Great, I've already seen what happens when you break rule 1, and its not pretty. The CO's daughter is an instructor at our unit that is CONSTANTLY in everyone's business and being a dick, always yelling at people for the smallest things. She is going to Parris Island in June, and every cadet cannot wait for her to leave. She is hated by every cadet.
Recently though, I've been reading a lot of leadership books to try and improve myself. I have been sticking to books by John C. Maxwell, but I plan on moving on. Since I have awhile before I get too old to be in the Cadet Corps, I may be able to hit Chief by 17 if I stick to it and impress the higher ups.

A couple of other things to consider (assuming you end up going enlisted)

If you enlist (and I advise against this if you have the option of getting commissioned out of college), get everything in writing and ensure you get a good A-school. Nothing is a bigger waste of your time than being Seaman Apprentice Non-Rate for your first sea duty because you'll spend that time being on the lowest rung once you get to the boat. Chipping and painting? You. Cranking for 3+ months at a time? You.

Get a decent A-School even if it means a longer enlistment. Electronics Technician, any nuclear rating, IT, Sonar Tech - they all have translatable skills when you get out. Even though I am not in the nuclear industry now, after I got out and got my degree, I was hired because the hiring manager was a former submarine officer and knew that the amount of time it would take me to get up to speed and be a contributor would be very short since, as a former nuke, he knew I would be able to quickly absorb vast amounts of complex information.

Being a nuke has financial advantages if you plan on reenlisting because of the large SRB, but the downside is it is a closed career path. You won't be getting shore duty as an admiral's aide in Sydney Australia or teaching seamanship at the Academy. Non-nuclear careers have lower SRB, but many more options for shore duty, and a wider array of sea duty options.

If you enlist, once you get to the boat, plan on being a hot runner - stay ahead of your quals to avoid having to come in on an off weekend to catch up your studies. Better to stick around after liberty on a Monday to get that additional checkout or two than have to water a few hours on Saturday...

Once you are in the duty section, one of the biggest things you can do to make the duty day go quicker is to volunteer to make a minimart run or pick up food orders for the rest of the duty section of they are ordering it rather than eating what the cooks are serving. As a non-qual, you can't support the watchbill, but you can support your duty section - and this will also make it easier to get your checkouts from guys who may otherwise be considered a hard checkout.

As to checkouts - your ability to understand everything about a particular system or evolution literally is life-and-death. If you don't know the trim and drain system, you might be the only guy in a compartment that is flooding and you won't be able to line up valves to start dewatering. So don't try and get anyone to skim your qual card. If you don't get the signature it means you don't know enough to save yourself or anyone else. Lookups are not intended to make it harder to get a signature - they are advanced levels of knowledge in disguise.

Study in your free time if you enlist out of high school. If you can get the taxpayers to foot the bill for you to get a college degree, it's worth the time. I don't know how much is available, but typically there is a tuition assistance program for distance learning - even while underway.

Lastly, although NAVY stands for Never Again Volunteer Yourself, if you are offered what seems like a pain in the butt (other than the aforementioned chipping and painting), it's probably an opportunity in disguise. You might ask for a boomer out of the west coast but if they offer a fast attack out of Guam, it might actually be better career-wise if you establish yourself as someone that detailers go to to fill difficult billets like Guam. My first boat was a 594 out of San Diego that PCSed to Pearl for decommissioning. At the end of decom I asked for a 637 out of San Diego. Instead I got a 688 in Pearl. That turned out great - I got to augment during an Eastpac and go to QA Inspector school and Electronics Technician Maintenance Supervisor school. Something I wouldn't have gotten if I were on a 637 out of San Diego. And towards the end of my time on my 2nd boat, we PCSed to the east coast to decommission - so I also ended up getting to swim in the panama canal...

As to seeing other countries - while the idea of drinking enough for a small town and chasing ladies of the evening in exotic ports of call sounds like fun for a young single guy, the days of being able to do that safely are long gone. Breathalyzers on the boat, drug-resistant STDs, and the internet all mean that bad behavior *will* haunt you. As dopey as it sounds, cultural things not partaken of will be a regret later in life. How often do you plan on climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge or Mt Fuji? Take those opportunities when they come because they will be few and far between. In homeport, don't spend your off time sleeping away the day or wasting money on consumer entertainment. Go and do things that are available and inexpensive where you are stationed - hiking, surfing, skiing, fishing, whatever. That's a lot more affordable and also stress-relieving than spending $70 on an Xbox game that you end up yelling at strangers while playing, or blowing $100/night every time you go out drinking.

I'll echo what was said - save every penny you can. I had a car when I went to nuclear prototype in Idaho - I needed it for that. After that, I sold my car before I got to the boat. Didn't need it, even in San Diego. Hawaii was even easier to get around via bus. I never had a car after prototype. If I could, I wouldn't own a car now...


Lastly - wherever you get stationed, there will be local establishments that serve adult beverages you may decide to frequent that attract a certain type of female (I suppose nowadays, males too) because they know soldiers, sailors, airmen also frequent them - and you may attract them even if not frequenting those establishments. There will be women who can smell that you are a single guy and they will be salivating and ready to fight over you like you are piece of meat. They may be single and childless, or they may have a (couple of) child(ren) of questionable sire with an ex-. She may seem really nice. She may seem very attracted to you. She may even tell you her tale of financial woe or confide in you that it was love at first time - whichever tale will seem to earn her a more sympathetic ear. For the love of your future's sake, run, don't walk, away. These are people who prey on young impressionable guys who have a steady income that they are looking to exploit for a life of ease. If you aren't careful to spot this (or take the advice of someone else on the boat who is older), you could find yourself "married" to this person who will happily look forward to the married BAQ/VHA money that she is now entitled to, even if you end up getting forcibly evicted from "your" apartment/house. Or you could be even more gullible and end up being financially responsible for children that aren't yours.

Great, thanks for the advice. The women part hit me in the head and definitely knocked some sense into me. It kinda scares me tbh, but I should be able to handle it.

What was it like at Pearl Harbor? Was it nice and warm and beautiful as the pictures make it seem?

[ET2SN]

We should probably cover the basic differences between Enlisted and Officer.

Think of it this way (besides flight-related jobs), enlisted DO things. Officers OBSERVE. Another way to think of this, Officers are ADMIN and managers. If you see the manager of your local Walmart toting bags of fertilizer out to the parking lot or stocking the shelves, they're doing it wrong. :yep: Another way to look at it, my Nav on the Bremerton was a graduate of MIT and also had an EE degree. Both of us knew how neat the Inertial Nav system was. At one point I had to say "Nav, if I see you touching the buttons again I'll have to get a hammer and break your fingers" :yep: . The kicker was that we got along as well as an officer and petty officer could. Officers and enlisted can be friends, but they CANNOT be buddies because they can never be peers. Earlier, I called this "the glass wall".

One more submarine example- Pretty much, the only equipment an officer can operate are the handles on the periscope or a pencil sharpener. They aren't even supposed to raise and lower the scope, that's the job of the Aux Of The Watch. The prince can shoot the bird but the prince cannot pick it up and take it back to the castle. :yep:

Officers make a LOT more money and their on-boat duty rotations are more favorable but Officers are constantly in the cross hairs of the CO and XO.

This is kind of surprising, but while the enlisted crew belongs to the boat, officers belong to the Squadron. There is also a highly-defined social pecking order in the Ward Room and at the Squadron. There is a really good reason why OCS is also called "Knife and Fork School". Decorum is really important. Officers are also required to pay for their meals and berthing.

Earlier, I mentioned that I had the opportunity to go to OCS but I turned it down. I need to explain that I didn't do this because I was a Bad A** or because I hated officers or the Navy. I liked maintaining and tuning my gear and I REALLY enjoyed operating it. If I had gone to OCS, those days would be over. Also (a really BIG Also) I would have to take off my dolphins and put them on the wall. My submarine days would have been, effectively, over. One of the things that was murky was whether I might have been too old to go to the officer equivalent of NUC school (I was in my late 20's at the time) and I didn't want to take that risk.

So on one hand, I turned down a big pay raise for my goofy Gilligan hat. On the other, I knew I was effective at what I was doing and I enjoyed doing it vs going to an Admin job that I was pretty sure I wouldn't enjoy that would mostly likely be on a gray painted ship. There was no, single, "right" answer and I did think about it quite a bit.

[3catcircus]

Great, thanks for the advice. The women part hit me in the head and definitely knocked some sense into me. It kinda scares me tbh, but I should be able to handle it.

What was it like at Pearl Harbor? Was it nice and warm and beautiful as the pictures make it seem?

Sooo... PH is a great place to vacation. If you like hiking, mountain biking, snorkeling, scuba, surfing, etc., you'd probably enjoy it.

But - Honolulu is like any other big city. Go a block or two off the touristy areas and it's got slums and poverty and the crime that comes with them like any big city.

Prices are higher (you're on an island) and there is only so far you can go. To get away, you'll have to hop a flight to one of the other islands where things are at a slower pace.

The other thing to be wary of in HI is you're a haole-boy. A lot of the locals resent non-natives, so you need to know which beaches are safer than others if you are interested in exploring the less touristy ones.

[Jeff-Groves]

You want a crazy ParaTroopers point of view?

I'd say you got great advise so far!
Wish I'd have had advise like that YEARS ago!

Here's my story.
I took the test when I was joining the Army.
I finished that test WAY ahead of all the others in the room.
Before anyone else turned in their papers? A couple of Officers came in and asked for me. They took me into a separate room and nearly begged me to NOT go Infantry but go Intelligence!
I was 22 years old and thought I knew what I wanted so turned it down.
40 years later and that decision was the WORST decision I have ever made in my life!
I could have still been a ParaTrooper. I could have still jumped into all the places I did. But I would have had a skill trade that would have taken me places that just learning how to kill people never did.

So I will say once you take that final entrance test?
Keep your mind and options open! You may get offered a better course then what you planned!

[derstosstrupp]

Was the same for me with the Marines. I tested relatively high on my ASVAB, and I had a recruiter at the time who was not infantry, and was strongly encouraging me to go into something, as he put it, more in line with my score. I wanted infantry badly, and so I persisted, and then thankfully my recruiter got replaced by a guy who was combat arms, a combat engineer, who said “all of my guys are going infantry!”. Problem solved!

That’s funny about that chick going to PI, she’ll get the tables turned around on her real quick there.

[ET2SN]

What was it like at Pearl Harbor? Was it nice and warm and beautiful as the pictures make it seem?

Seventy eight degrees and sunny with an ocean breeze. Malka (mountain) showers in the early morning. Every freaking day of the year. :k_confused:
If its any help, I got to the point where I looked forward to Hurricane Season, at least the weather might change. :03:

Its tough to complain about Pearl Harbor and Honolulu, but we can. :up:

Leaving the base gets expensive very quickly. Living in Hawai'i is not cheap. Almost everything gets to the stores in a ship or an airplane.

Honolulu's economy is mostly based on tourism. That makes Honolulu expensive. Great restaurants with high bills. You get used to it. Be very careful when off-base. EVERYONE smokes Pot but you can't.
There are massive fields of pineapples on the island. Resist the temptation to just grab one. The Dole people don't like it (and they all carry Machetes). :o

Samoan dudes love to beat people up, its a hobby. They are also fiercely loyal friends once they've beaten you up enough. :D Its complicated..

To truly understand Hawai'i, go body surfing on the North shore in January. DON'T go alone. Body surfing in January is a lot like playing football where you wind at the bottom of a pig pile at the end of EVERY down. If you don't wind up with scrapes and bruises, you did it wrong. :haha:

There's a ton of history on base and on Ford Island. You'll still find damage from bullets and shells on the buildings from Dec. 7th. The Navy preserves it as a reminder to NEVER let your guard down. I found a bunch of cool stuff on Ford Island. The original sounding cannon for the harbor was still there and the launch ramp for the old China Clipper flights is right in the middle of the school complex (NAVSUBTRACINPAC?). Oh yeah, the rats on Ford Island are as large as medium sized dogs. Resist the temptation to make one a pet. :up:

[Jeff-Groves]

The enlistment to the 82nd AirBorne probably saved my life.
I'd just went through a divorce, lost everything I had, and was at such a low point in my life I didn't care if I lived or died.
I don't think I had any respect for myself or others at that time.

The Army, and specifically, the AirBorne changed all that!
But it did require me to change me. Probably the hardest part.
One may think they know themselves really well.
Until you go into a Military environment for a prolonged time?
You don't know who you are or can become!

[ET2SN]

Sooo... PH is a great place to vacation. If you like hiking, mountain biking, snorkeling, scuba, surfing, etc., you'd probably enjoy it.

But - Honolulu is like any other big city. Go a block or two off the touristy areas and it's got slums and poverty and the crime that comes with them like any big city.

Prices are higher (you're on an island) and there is only so far you can go. To get away, you'll have to hop a flight to one of the other islands where things are at a slower pace.

The other thing to be wary of in HI is you're a haole-boy. A lot of the locals resent non-natives, so you need to know which beaches are safer than others if you are interested in exploring the less touristy ones.


Did you hear that they're shutting down Aloha Stadium and the parking lot? :o

How the heck are you supposed to buy tee shirts on a Saturday?? :wah:

[ET2SN]

The enlistment to the 82nd AirBorne probably saved my life.
I'd just went through a divorce, lost everything I had, and was at such a low point in my life I didn't care if I lived or died.
I don't think I had any respect for myself or others at that time.

The Army, and specifically, the AirBorne changed all that!
But it did require me to change me. Probably the hardest part.
One may think they know themselves really well.
Until you go into a Military environment for a prolonged time?
You don't know who you are or can become!

That brings up a good point, you learn early on that you are no better or no worse than the guy in the next bunk. :up:

[Jeff-Groves]

Well. It was not called 'Band of Brothers' for nothing.
One thing that drives all service members is not the fight itself.
It's the fact you fight for all your Brothers beside you.
And they will be your Brothers for life! You do your duty to see they get home.
Cost, even if it is your life, is not a factor.
I have a Tee Shirt I wear.
On the front it reads:
Vet-er-an
The back?
[Vet-er-an] -noun
1. Person who wrote a Blank Check Payable to United States of America for an amount up to and including ones life.

[3catcircus]

Did you hear that they're shutting down Aloha Stadium and the parking lot? :o

How the heck are you supposed to buy tee shirts on a Saturday?? :wah:

Wow - that is surprising. I spent a lot of time riding around there on my way to/from the Aiea Loop Trail to go mountain biking - the gate by the COMPACFLT boathouse let's out to Kam' Hwy right there so it was quite convenient... I also found out the hard way about the barriers on the Pearl Harbor bike trail riding through at high speed at dusk...

[ET2SN]

Ever make it up to the abandoned highway in the mountains north of Honolulu? :up:

I really enjoyed hiking it but I had traded in my old mountain bike for an over-priced touring bike when I was in Japan and never got the chance to ride it.

[Jeff-Groves]

You may not know this but many abandoned places in Hawaii were used as training places for War Fighters back in the 80's.
Of course We weren't given that cool name back then.
We were just Grunts.
I did training in Hawaii before I got dropped into Alaska for Winter training.
Then next stop was Panama.

[3catcircus]

Ever make it up to the abandoned highway in the mountains north of Honolulu? :up:

I really enjoyed hiking it but I had traded in my old mountain bike for an over-priced touring bike when I was in Japan and never got the chance to ride it.

I was tempted to, but in the days before cellphones, I was leery of potentially getting stuck out there - "In other news, some idiot rode off the abandoned highway and died of exposure..."

[3catcircus]

You may not know this but many abandoned places in Hawaii were used as training places for War Fighters back in the 80's.
Of course We weren't given that cool name back then.
We were just Grunts.
I did training in Hawaii before I got dropped into Alaska for Winter training.
Then next stop was Panama.

There is a crashed B-24 visible while on the Aiea Loop Trail. Getting to it from the trail is a bit of a challenge but worth it.

Sacred Falls, unfortunately, is now closed because some people died during the rainy season due to flash flood. It was about a mile hike from the road to the falls and a nice swimming hole.

[ET2SN]

Um, trust me. There were leeches at Sacred Falls. It looked tempting but you really didn't want to drink the water. :Kaleun_Sick:

One of my buds wanted to try hiking the pig trails up near the north shore. Like a dummy, I wore my spiffy white U Maine ball cap and totally trashed it. :har:

[ET2SN]

BTW, it almost looks like we had tons of spare time for this stuff. :haha:

These stories stand out because it was so frikken hard to get the free time to do them. :03:

[Jeff-Groves]

I've got a friend that lives up on the North Shore area.
He hunts pig in that area with Air Guns and self built Bows and arrows.
He is VERY good at it!
I've seen his video of a break barrel .22 1 shot 1 kill to the head of a small hog!
:o
I keep trying to land a Contract to renovate Resorts there just to good out with him on a hunt!

[Red October1984]

Hello all, old and new:


I joined SS when I was young and now I'm a USAF 92T0 following a lifelong dream.


This is a super cool thread to have going. :Kaleun_Cheers:


Absolutely crazy to have been a member here for nearly 10 years.

[Platapus]

Congratulations


I remember you talking about it and now you have gone and done did it. :Kaleun_Salute:

[Red October1984]

Congratulations


I remember you talking about it and now you have gone and done did it. :Kaleun_Salute:
Thank you. It's definitely been quite the grind but I've met some really cool people and gotten to do some really cool things along the way. I still think about the forums here from time to time but I'm more of a lurker now than I used to be.



Cheers

[Adm_Steel]

SSBN731 2007-2012

A note to those considering submarine service:

TLDR version: YES, volunteer to go subs in the navy. The work experience will pay you back the rest of your life. The rest is just me complaining.

I was in Obama's navy. I won't try to generalize my experience, because I didn't have the same outlook as many of the other guys. I hated the navy, point blank. I hated the control, I hated the lack of connectivity (me? Addicted to Farcebook? Noooo) and I hated Baker. (I doubt he is here but if he is, ******* you).

Was it all negative? No. In fact some of the best times of my life were had in the navy. Some of the best friends I ever made were (and some still are) there. People I knew without doubt would have died for me if they knew it would save my life, and vice versa. I haven't bonded with anyone that deeply (save for my wife, post-service) since.

For those of you considering the navy, do it. ABSOLUTELY do it. The experience you will gain will put you light years ahead of anyone else your age. The work experience landed me one hell of a good job in the semiconductor industry, and I now live stable and comfortably.

Would I do it again? Yea, as much as I want to hate it, I would. It would be different now that I'm older and a little more mature. I'd have actually embraced the experience rather than wallowed in my own misery, but at the time I didn't understand what was really being asked of me. I saw the separation and stress as negative rather than things that would build my character and strengthen my resolve. I let depression get the better of me and refused to admit my own weaknesses, which is why I didn't reenlist. (Honestly, I don't think I would have anyways, the Obama administration was an awful time to be in for me - budget restrictions, overpriced supply demands and some nuke jerkoff up in comsubron nineteen who had a hard-on for in-port death by powerpoint on sensitivity training for the 'kinder, gentler navy').

I am SO much better off for having had the experience - I'm still drug free, I understand how to push my limits and have been mostly successful as a tax-paying citizen, father and a husband. I probably would have a complete loser, still living at home playing with myself because I was too afraid to talk to people.

As to the submarine navy, VOLUNTEER. Trust me, eating sub galley food kicks the tin out of the surface navy's food options. There's a reason so many submariners struggle to meet PFA standards. It's cuz we're fat on all the good food.

I can't speak for the camraderie anymore though - when I left in 2012 they were integrating females and it was a SH** SHOW. Paranoia was so bad I actually got sub disqualled a month from separation because of anxiety. That ended up working in my favor but it was added stress in a time where we were already being stretched to our limits. Maybe my limit was less than others, I admit that. For me though, the integration was a headache, sensitivity training left me bitter and angry, and it has taken me years to get over myself. I promise the current submarine culture is nothing compared to the misogynistic, overly crude social party we enjoyed as men. I'm afraid to ask what it's like now, but at the same time I have no doubt it works for the current generation. It just never would have worked for me.

SUMMARY: Yeah, I wouldn't trade it for the world. Am I bitter and angry? I was, mostly because my ego and arrogance got me into a lot of hot water with people who were trying to take care of me. I was selfish, carefree and an ass. I'd love to go back and take a tiger cruise one last time - but I've moved on from warfighting. Save that for younger men. I will still always see a submarine as a second home, even if I hated all of the conditions that made it less than bearable.

[ET2SN]

I learned to be careful saying "I was in XYZ's Navy". :yep:

Its more accurate to look at the upper links in the chain of command. The Prez runs the show, kind of. The folks who really mess you up are a little lower in the chain.

You could wind up with a crappy SECDEF or SECNAV who's constantly fighting with the DOD/Pentagon or a congress that's preaching Austerity at the top of their lungs. That stuff happens and, unfortunately, there's no way to see it coming.

:k_confused:

I guess we should also mention getting married in the Navy or joining after you tied the knot. For the most part, don't. :yep:

Navy and ,especially, submarine life are not conducive to a strong marriage. I knew couples who could do it, but that was really rare. The Navy would go out of their way to tell us what the annual divorce rate was for submarines each year and in the 80's and 90's that number tended to stay between 95%-97%. In other words, if you got married on New Year's Day, the odds were good you'd be divorced and cursing the lawyers by Thanksgiving. The Navy still has a thing about hitting some really good Liberty Ports during deployments and these Liberty Ports are REALLY good at what they do. Don't screw that up by worrying about the wife and kids. :up:

[Aktungbby]

The Navy still has a thing about hitting some really good Liberty Ports during deployments and these Liberty Ports are REALLY good at what they do. Don't screw that up by worrying about the wife and kids. :up: What goes on in Phuket stays in Phuket:Kaleun_Wink:!

[ET2SN]

What goes on in Phuket stays in Phuket:Kaleun_Wink:!

And you defiantly want save up some pay checks before you get there. :D

Yokosuka/Tokyo, Subic Bay/Manilla, Singapore, and especially Hong Kong (back in the day) were also an awful lot of fun.

:Kaleun_Cheers:

[Aktungbby]

My helmsman BBY Brother did 20 years in the Navy and told of his shore leaves in the orient!:Kaleun_Sick:

[ET2SN]

I'm guessing he and I could compare our shot records and they would look fairly similar. :O::oops::arrgh!:

[Texas Red]

Adm Steel:

I've talked to other veterans who have said the same things. One Marine told me the same thing you are saying: The Navy (or any branch of the military) taught me valuable life skills that made me better at certain jobs. That's also part of my plan, I hope that after I get out of the Navy (and if I have a great job in the Navy) I can find a civilian job that I have some experience in.

About Obama's Navy, I'm probably not the best person to chime in on this but in today's current political climate, people get agitated if you don't follow their political views. I've seen that happen on both sides, and I expect it to get worse. When I get in the military, I'm gonna try my best to stay out of politics early on (unless my job requires me to be involved in politics).

And to ETSN and Aktung: I'd imagine those places would be wild! They have changed a lot though probably.

Excellent job guys! Keep the stories coming in! :up::subsim:

[Kaye T. Bai]

Good luck! What made you choose to be a dental assistant? I am curious as I haven't met a person who chose a job like that. There are some kids in my unit who are qualified as Corpsmen at like 16. There is some training that I can attend where the subject is "Tac Med" which, from what I have heard, is REALLY demanding physically, mentally, and academically.


I had wanted regular corpsman originally, but it wasn't available when I applied, so I took HMDA since it was what was available and was close enough and I wanted to join ASAP. From what I heard they've got a nice standard of living, working in clinics and such.

Young Lad: be advised, Rule 1 of modern warfare: "An army (and navy or airforce) travels on it's stomach"! Basically we killed all the buffalo and practised biological warfare (smallpox) and simply out-ate the natives to make good:dead: Indians:doh:!...On submarines mealtimes are considered major moral boosters. You yourself discovered this when quaranteen'd in your bedroom with Covid and mommy occasionally slipped pizza under the door...but didn't confiscate your computer!:O: A critical function of this military logistical principle is...GOOD TEETH! No one can effectively go "over the top" with an excrutiating abscessed tooth to bayonet the foe in no man's land. Hence, a dental assistant, with pliers and a bag of flossers, is essential equipment on any fighting front. They will not blow ballast for a sailor's toothach on a boomer! Even the Earps had Doc Holliday-dentist with them at the OK Corral!! :yep::arrgh!: EDIT: and take that TAKMed training; it's very useful at accidents, heart-attacks in your neighborhood/household etc. You'll be the "go-to man" holding the line until the EMT cavalry arrives; generally 10 min. on a dispatch, but essential to a victim in mortal distress. And it beats standing around gawking uselessly....


Thanks for the advice! :)


Unfortunately, I had to get medically separated/discharged halfway through training for a spinal condition I didn't know I had prior to joining, so I am back home as a civilian now. Crushed since I was adjusting well and thought I'd found my calling.


I'm going to try to get back into the Navy ASAP, but that'll probably take about a year at least (if the Navy won't take me, I might try the Army as a secondary choice). Here's hoping it goes better this time. I miss it already, I had more fun in boot camp and was happier in the 6 weeks I was there than I did in the past 10 years in civilian life.

[Texas Red]

I'm going to try to get back into the Navy ASAP, but that'll probably take about a year at least (if the Navy won't take me, I might try the Army as a secondary choice). Here's hoping it goes better this time. I miss it already, I had more fun in boot camp and was happier in the 6 weeks I was there than I did in the past 10 years in civilian life.

Wow! That's something I've never heard before! You had fun there while RDC's were screaming at you and smoking you?

[Kaye T. Bai]

Wow! That's something I've never heard before! You had fun there while RDC's were screaming at you and smoking you?
Guess I was lucky, I didn't get screamed at or beat much; I just kept a low profile and tried to blend in. Now, my fellow division mates on the other hand weren't as lucky... :)

I suppose the reason I enjoyed it as much as I did was because my life before was pretty boring and dull, so the new experience was refreshing and stimulating. From what I saw those there that were miserable were those who had a good thing going back home so they missed that.

[Texas Red]

Fair enough.

Why did you decide to enlist?

[Kaye T. Bai]

Fair enough. Why did you decide to enlist?

I was getting long in the tooth and my life was stagnant, going nowhere. I had done nothing with my life and was in the same position before I left that I was in 10+ years ago. I figured it was time to do something and get things in gear before it was too late. The Navy's old recruiting slogan was "Accelerate your life" and that pretty much sums it up for me.


My division graduated today, saw the pics online and must admit I was pretty sad since I wasn't able to be there with them. Hopefully by the end of next year I'll be either a sailor or a soldier, we'll see.