Haze Grey & Underway

Re-enlistment Day!

Today is the day that I raise my right hand for the last time and “swear to uphold and defend the constitution of the United States of America.” What a momentous day.

After months of planning and coordinating with different commands and individuals it all came down to this one day. We started off to the USS Arizona memorial in Pearl Harbor at around 0615 and of course got lost on the way. After placing a call to Lt. he agreed to meet us at the exchange and guide us the rest of the way to the memorial. The fine mist of rain that was coming down was not going to hamper my spirits or make this day any less important for me, it just succeeded in making my uniform a bit moist and uncomfortable.

When we arrived at the memorial we took an inventory of needed items for the ceremony and realized that we had FORGOTTEN THE CAMERA! In all my nervousness and haste I had neglected to put the camera in the bag. OH NO! My heart sank to the depths of my stomach in panic and despair. Lt. maintained a calm attitude and suggested that if anything we would be able to purchase a disposable camera in the memorial gift shop. Yes, we could I thought, but it just isn’t the same. We reached the main gates to the visitors center and there waiting for us were some old friends of mine whom I had invited to be there, and new friends that were invited by friends of mine. THANKFULLY, one of these smart shipmates had the foresight to bring his camera! He really saved the day and was my personal hero.

at 0715 with the rain still falling around us, we were let into the visitors center and made our way to the boat launch, which would take us over to the memorial. It is just a quick 10 minute trip to the USS Arizona from the visitors center, so I did not have very much time to enjoy the wonderful views of the double rainbows in the distance.

Upon arrival at the memorial we took a few minutes to soak in the history and holiness of this place. This place, this burial ground, to me signifies to me everything good that the Navy and her sailors have ever been, and will continue to be. The Honor, Courage, and Dedication of all those who served aboard the Arizona during her and her countries time of crisis really makes a person sit back and think. I walked to the back and looked at the wall. This wall has the names of each and every one of the over 900 Sailors and Marines who died on December 7th, 1941. It really choked me up to be quite honest. I quietly said thank you to each and every one of them, thank you for their service, thank you for their bravery, and thank you for their lasting legacy which has helped make this Navy the strongest in the world.

The ceremony itself went off without a hitch. The certificates were presented, the oaths were sworn, and the pictures were taken. It is quite honestly the most memorable day in my life, because I was able to share it with my best friend and partner in life , my friends, and an officer whom I truly respect and admire. The culmination of the event was me raising my own personal flag up the mast of the Arizona. I can never truly put into words or thoughts what this single day meant to me but hopefully I have done just one bit of justice here.

Thank you to all who were involved with this evolution. Thank you to Lt. T , who has been an inspiration to me for the last 2 years, thank you to my shipmates who made the journey out to share this with me, and thank you to my entire family who has given me nothing but love and support for the entire 14 years that this journey has so far progressed. Most importantly, thank you to my wife, whose love, understanding, and superhuman patience have helped to make me and my career the success that it is. Thank you honey.

~ Fair winds and following seas Shipmates, and to my Marine friends, Semper Fi.

~Jaybob

MLK Day and other adventures in paradise…

Aloha shipmates!

After a lovely nights sleep in our room, we awoke at the bright and early time of around 10am -ish and decided that we would step outside and watch the Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade that was going on right outside, then go and get some breakfast.

The parade was interesting, with some nice tributes, and of course many people using it as a political statement, but the overall sentiment to the Honorable Dr. King’s legacy was there. I took some picture and will see if I can include them in the post here.

We went to breakfast on the beach at one of the other Outrigger hotels. They served a very nice breakfast buffet right there only 2 feet away from the beach. It was very peaceful and nice, even though we had to fend off the birds from our plates a couple of times.

One thing to note… even though it should really go without saying is that Hawaii is expensive. ESPECIALLY over on the Waikiki side, so paying $12-$18 a piece for breakfast is the norm, but this is the price you pay for being in paradise.

The rest of the day we spent walking around Waikiki. We took a drive over to Pearl Harbor to try and find the Navy Exchange so that we could pick up some necessities such as booze and soda, and of course some snazzy Hawaiian shirts for me to wear! The sheer size of that NEX was amazing! It is bigger than any single one that I have been in around the world! You should check it out the next time you are on base there!

We got back to the room around dinner time and decided to walk the other way down the strip to a little place that caught my attention called “Cheeseburger Waikiki” .. The decor was delightfully tacky, with all kinds of knickknacks, tchotchkes, doo dads, or whatever you want to call them all over the walls. But the burgers… ohh my the burgers were HUGE and juicy!

Mrs. Jaybob ( not being big on burgers..)decided to go with the Grilled Cheese on Hawaiian sweet bread. While this sounds like a boring choice, it was a work of art in and of it self and tasted so good! I of course had a cheeseburger. We shared an order of onion rings, which were just like fried little bits of manna from heaven!

With dinner weighing heavily in our bellies we walked back to the hotel to prepare for the big Re-enlistment very early the next morning.

Until then shipmates!

~Jaybob

Aloha!

So we are in Hawaii, and it is absolutely gorgeous! (Of course!)

After the standard juke and jive of getting out of the airport and to the car rental place we were finally on our way to the hotel. ( The Outrigger Luana Waikiki! ) Thanks to my Garmin GPS, I was able to successfully navigate the roads right to the lobby. (Man if I didn’t have that thing I would most likely still wondering around Waikiki looking for the place!

Our room is a nice studio style with a little mini kitchen. I really don’t plan on being in the room too much though, there is too much to do and too much to see! We are on the first floor and we face the strip, so no ocean view, but I still find it fascinating to watch the hustle and bustle of the other tourists walking along Kalakaua Avenue.

Today we pretty much just rested up after the hellish 6 hour flight from L.A. Screaming children should be jettisoned from any aircraft after a majority vote from other passengers.

We walked down the strip to Planet Hollywood to get a very nice meal… mmm the first of many.
Aloha and Mahalo

~Jaybob

Leaving on a jet plane

Well today Mrs. Jaybob and myself embark on our grand trip to Hawaii! There is going to be sooo much to do and see while we are there! Here is a short list of stuff for us to do..

1. I will be re-enlisting at the USS Arizona memorial for the last time. (thats right, this one puts me to retirement baby!)
2. The trip will be serving as a Honeymoon for Mrs. Jaybob and myself. This is our 4th year of marrige!
3. I will need to muster up on the 19th so that I can take my advancement exam! YIKES!

A lot of things have come together to hopefully make this one of the best vacations that we have ever taken.

Mom & Dad Jaybob have graciously donated the use of a timeshare for the week in Waikiki. That is AWESOME! Lodging is one of the most expensive things there, so it is nice to have that taken care of. THANKS MOM& DAD!

Mom-in-Law has awesomly paid for our rental car and a trip to SeaLife Park to swim with the dolphins! WOW! That is going to be amazing!

The Navy (or my command rather) is allowing me to take the whole trip in a TAD (Temporary assigned Duty) status. They pay for nothing but I just don’t get charged any leave (vacation) days. That is great!

To say that we are excited is really understating it. Hopefully you follow along with our adventure and have a good time too.