Yep, there are many more like calling someone a ''tack line''. That is six feet of ''empty line'' '' without a flag'' used between some of the flags on the signal bridge or ''six feet of nothing''....... and we use to call them ''fudging airdales''. This was a generally accepted term. And lets not forget the famous ''Short Arm Inspections'' and I will not say what that term means cause we got ''ladies present''........lol.....
I can not say for sure but I think my father was a Golden Shellback. He was Navy, WW2, South Pacific theater, combat veteran and he would tell me that he got so far from home that he started to get ''closer to home'' the further he went. He crossed the equator and the IDL but I am not sure if it was the same day. I have his certificate somewhere, I think.
''Big Eyes'' were the post mounted 300X binoculars one the Signal Bridge. and ''$8!t can'' was generally accepted term for '' trash can'' and ''bitch box'' was our P.A. system. I was lucky when I went aboard the Norton because my father had taught me a lot of the Navy jargon. It was kinda of a hoot to see some ''Boot'' come aboard ''fresh'' out of boot camp and watch him try to follow the old salts conversation.
Note to Wayne the Marine. I went for another series of tests where they put ''radio active stuff'' in my blood and then take x ray pix of my chest while it is ''pumped thru'' my gizzard . I go back to the ''saw bones'' on the eighth of this month for final decision as to whether it will be a ''Defibrillator'' or a Pace Maker or just give me a 9 volt battery to chew on occasionally. Either way, I aint worried about it and if I ''punch out'' you can bet your sweet ''ace'' that this old salt has lived more life and been more places and seen more things and done more things and ''laid more pipe'' than most any three people you know. ''Nuff Said'' on that ......lol...
The nurse said if I got a ''pace'' or a ''defib'' that I would have about a month of down time where I cant lift anything over 10 pounds. Whatever they decide, is what I will do cause I want to live long enough to ''piss some folks off real bad''......lol.... I will let you know my schedule and maybe we can get together in Maine or somewhere and swap some sea stories. I think that would be fun.
God keep our troops safe and bring them home soon....
God bless our vets .....ALL GAVE SOME .... SOME GAVE ALL.....
Seajay the sailor man.......
Sunday, August 21, 2011
YOU CAN ''TELL A MARINE''
You can always ''tell a Marine''.........
But you usually cant tell them much.....lol...
Wayne my friend. What would My Navy do without our Marines? Us sailors would be lost. Whom would guard our gangways while we are in port? Everyone knows that there are ''Gangway Gangs'' going around stealing gangways to keep Sailors from going ashore to steal their ladies.
Who would ''watch the gate'' to the bases. I personally know of several incidences where the Main Gate at N.O.B. Norfolk was actually stolen because we didnt have our Marines on guard. And never in the history of the Navy has a ''chow line'' came up missing when we had a Marine guarding it. And you know there is a black market group that will pay dearly for good ''chow line''.......
Seriously my brother. Our Marines are an essential part of My Navy. You, as a Marine, are a part of the finest, best trained, best equipped, fighting force the world has ever known. I say this not to demean any of the other branches of military of any stripe or color or service to this great nation because I know that each and every service person thinks their branch is the best and I honor their opinion. My opinion is of course ''slanted'' because I am second generation Navy and I deem it an honor to have served the U.S. NAVY and this great nation.
It is not generally known but I actually was going to join the Marine Corps. I went up to the Marine recruiter and when the Marine recruiter found out I could read big words and do complicated math and that I knew the alphabet all the way through and could feed myself with a fork he handed me over to the Navy recruiter cause I are ''snart''... ''PING''..gotcha.
Be safe my Marine brother and God bless your for your service to this great nation .....
FYI .... Looks like our Alaska trip is off this year. A couple of weeks ago I had some chest pains and Willa had me hauled up to the hospital for tests. (that was the third time so far) They did a heart ''cath'' and said they wanted to do further tests the first of June to determine if I needed a Pace Maker or a ''Defib'' thingie stuck in my chest to keep the old ''ticker'' humming. Time will tell on this but it could be four to six weeks before I can lift anything over ten pounds and that means I cant unload my boat and I will have to squat to ''peee'' for a while ...(lol)... Anyhow, me and Willa discussed it and we decided to cancel Alaska and just goof around in the lower 48 this summer. Probably do a lot of fishin' at the coast after my slack time. Maybe ride up to Maine and ''eat a Big Red Bug''.
Seajay the sailor man ......
God bless our troops and bring them home safe and very soon
God bless our vets for their service to this great nation .....
But you usually cant tell them much.....lol...
Wayne my friend. What would My Navy do without our Marines? Us sailors would be lost. Whom would guard our gangways while we are in port? Everyone knows that there are ''Gangway Gangs'' going around stealing gangways to keep Sailors from going ashore to steal their ladies.
Who would ''watch the gate'' to the bases. I personally know of several incidences where the Main Gate at N.O.B. Norfolk was actually stolen because we didnt have our Marines on guard. And never in the history of the Navy has a ''chow line'' came up missing when we had a Marine guarding it. And you know there is a black market group that will pay dearly for good ''chow line''.......
Seriously my brother. Our Marines are an essential part of My Navy. You, as a Marine, are a part of the finest, best trained, best equipped, fighting force the world has ever known. I say this not to demean any of the other branches of military of any stripe or color or service to this great nation because I know that each and every service person thinks their branch is the best and I honor their opinion. My opinion is of course ''slanted'' because I am second generation Navy and I deem it an honor to have served the U.S. NAVY and this great nation.
It is not generally known but I actually was going to join the Marine Corps. I went up to the Marine recruiter and when the Marine recruiter found out I could read big words and do complicated math and that I knew the alphabet all the way through and could feed myself with a fork he handed me over to the Navy recruiter cause I are ''snart''... ''PING''..gotcha.
Be safe my Marine brother and God bless your for your service to this great nation .....
FYI .... Looks like our Alaska trip is off this year. A couple of weeks ago I had some chest pains and Willa had me hauled up to the hospital for tests. (that was the third time so far) They did a heart ''cath'' and said they wanted to do further tests the first of June to determine if I needed a Pace Maker or a ''Defib'' thingie stuck in my chest to keep the old ''ticker'' humming. Time will tell on this but it could be four to six weeks before I can lift anything over ten pounds and that means I cant unload my boat and I will have to squat to ''peee'' for a while ...(lol)... Anyhow, me and Willa discussed it and we decided to cancel Alaska and just goof around in the lower 48 this summer. Probably do a lot of fishin' at the coast after my slack time. Maybe ride up to Maine and ''eat a Big Red Bug''.
Seajay the sailor man ......
God bless our troops and bring them home safe and very soon
God bless our vets for their service to this great nation .....
SMALL OVERHAULS
We pulled into the ''yard'' in Portsmouth Naval Ship Yard for some repairs. They parked the Norton under the ''hammer head'' crane and yanked the barrels out of the five inch thirty eights for exchange and or repair as necessary. Since they were going to be doing a lot of welding on the Norton we had to remove all ordnance from the Norton. This included about a gillion 3 inch 70 ''fixed'' ammo shells. Now for you civies ...''Fixed ammunition'' is ammo that is all one piece in that the ''bullets'' look just like regular ''bullets'' except a lot bigger. In fact, these ''bullets'' looked pretty much like 30/30 ammunition you use for deer hunting except they were about 3 feet long as I recall and they were a variety of types. Some were AP.... ''armor piercing'' Some were ''star shells'' .. The type that exploded in the air and they had a parachute and glowing core that floated down and illuminated targets etc. Some were AA..''anti aircraft'' … These were the ones with a ''timer'' on the tip that is adjusted as the shell comes up the ''chain hoist'' and is loaded in the gun and it will travel so far after being fired and then explode. These shells had a ''rubber tip covering'' over the ''timer''.. We were instructed to carry the shells like a baby. One hand on the ''tip'' and your other hand over the ''butt'' of the shell and ''NEVER EVER TO DROP THEM OR BANG THE END OF THEM AGAINST ANYTHING'' because they could explode and mess up your white hat and your day for that matter.
Anyhow. We were unloading the shells as they were passed to us from the back of the gun tub below deck. The shells would come up in the ''shell hoist'' and be handed out thru a hatch way and we would carry them back to the fantail where they were loaded into protective cases and lifted off the ship for stowage. All was going well until they handed me a ''anti aircraft'' shell. As I stepped thru the hatch and out on to the main deck my hand sorta slid down from the tip of the shell and I kinda bumped the rubber tip ''thingie'' against the side of the hatch and sorta knocked the rubber thingie off the end of the shell. I froze for just a second and then decided that it would be best to ''chuck the thing over the side'' and that is just what I did. It made a nice splash into the bay as I stood gawking over the side. A big burlie gunners mate roared up to me and politely told me that I was a ''Stupid S^$ )% ! @ B*^(* '' and he would see that I was court marshaled for deliberate destruction of Navy property. I tried to explain to him what had happened but he would not take a breath so I could talk.. He ranted and raved and stormed around like a rooster cursing and threatening me with death and dismemberment and being ''keel hauled'', drawn and quartered, shot at sunrise and castrated. In his tirade he accidentally stepped on the rubber tip off the end of the shell and did a ''full twist with belly flop'' fall on the deck. Everyone standing around watching burst out laughing as he wallowed around on the deck... he finally re gained his composure long enough to comment ''Why the F&$*ing H@$$ I didnt warn him about the rubber tip on the deck. I finally stopped laughing long enough to explain that he would never take a breath so I could warn him about the danger of the rubber tip...'' What the pluck is your name sailor''? He shouted. I remembered that my work shirt did not have my ''name'' stenciled over the pocket so I thought quickly and shouted ''Peters, I.C. Sir''... He mumbled the name and assured me that he would find me and ''write me up'' as soon as he got out of sick bay after having his foot x rayed. I quickly scooped up the rubber tip as I ducked out of line and went below and shaved off my mustache that I was so proud of and put on another work shirt with ''Cecil C. R.'' over the pocket and joined another work party in another part of the ship.
Luckily, we were in Portsmouth shipyard and we were taking our meals over at the mess hall on the base and there were literally jillions of sailors in chow lines over there. I saw this Gunners Mate guarding the chow lines and looking for ''Peters, I.C.'' on work shirts. He actually looked me directly in the face once, grabbed me and said ''Peters, I.C...... Is that you''? ''Nope Gunnie. If you see Peters you should look at faces instead of crotches''...... everyone laughed and he turned me lose. I bet he is still looking for me
I kept the rubber tip hanging in my locker for my duration on the Norton….
So it went on the Norton in Portsmouth Naval Shipyard …...
Seajay the sailor man
Anyhow. We were unloading the shells as they were passed to us from the back of the gun tub below deck. The shells would come up in the ''shell hoist'' and be handed out thru a hatch way and we would carry them back to the fantail where they were loaded into protective cases and lifted off the ship for stowage. All was going well until they handed me a ''anti aircraft'' shell. As I stepped thru the hatch and out on to the main deck my hand sorta slid down from the tip of the shell and I kinda bumped the rubber tip ''thingie'' against the side of the hatch and sorta knocked the rubber thingie off the end of the shell. I froze for just a second and then decided that it would be best to ''chuck the thing over the side'' and that is just what I did. It made a nice splash into the bay as I stood gawking over the side. A big burlie gunners mate roared up to me and politely told me that I was a ''Stupid S^$ )% ! @ B*^(* '' and he would see that I was court marshaled for deliberate destruction of Navy property. I tried to explain to him what had happened but he would not take a breath so I could talk.. He ranted and raved and stormed around like a rooster cursing and threatening me with death and dismemberment and being ''keel hauled'', drawn and quartered, shot at sunrise and castrated. In his tirade he accidentally stepped on the rubber tip off the end of the shell and did a ''full twist with belly flop'' fall on the deck. Everyone standing around watching burst out laughing as he wallowed around on the deck... he finally re gained his composure long enough to comment ''Why the F&$*ing H@$$ I didnt warn him about the rubber tip on the deck. I finally stopped laughing long enough to explain that he would never take a breath so I could warn him about the danger of the rubber tip...'' What the pluck is your name sailor''? He shouted. I remembered that my work shirt did not have my ''name'' stenciled over the pocket so I thought quickly and shouted ''Peters, I.C. Sir''... He mumbled the name and assured me that he would find me and ''write me up'' as soon as he got out of sick bay after having his foot x rayed. I quickly scooped up the rubber tip as I ducked out of line and went below and shaved off my mustache that I was so proud of and put on another work shirt with ''Cecil C. R.'' over the pocket and joined another work party in another part of the ship.
Luckily, we were in Portsmouth shipyard and we were taking our meals over at the mess hall on the base and there were literally jillions of sailors in chow lines over there. I saw this Gunners Mate guarding the chow lines and looking for ''Peters, I.C.'' on work shirts. He actually looked me directly in the face once, grabbed me and said ''Peters, I.C...... Is that you''? ''Nope Gunnie. If you see Peters you should look at faces instead of crotches''...... everyone laughed and he turned me lose. I bet he is still looking for me
I kept the rubber tip hanging in my locker for my duration on the Norton….
So it went on the Norton in Portsmouth Naval Shipyard …...
Seajay the sailor man
MILITARY INFORMATON ...''TOP SECRET''
I see a lot of folks are visiting this web sight and its a good bet that a lot of you nice people are not sailors or military personnel. With that in mind I have decided to post some Sailor Terminologies to help you better understand exactly what we think we are talking about when we make a post and we use ''Navy Talk'' to describe certain things.
Keep in mind that I was stationed aboard a Combat Light Cruiser which is a cruiser class ship that does not have the armor or armament (guns) of a ''Heavy Cruiser''. We were a flag ship and our biggest guns were five inch / thirty eights. We had four of them. Anyhow, here for your reference, are some Navy terms you may find handy as you read the Sea Stories.............
Sailor. ''Swob Jockey'', Anchor Clank-er, Stinkin Squid
Marine.... Jar Head, Leather Neck, Sea going Bell Hop
Air Force. Fly boys, Mommas Boys, Bus Drivers, Panty waists …
Coast Guard ….. Puddle Jumpers, Shallow Water Sailors
soldiers...... Ground pounder, Dough foot, dog face......
Reservists and National Guard people, all branches... Mommas boys, cutie pie, draft dodgers, weekend warriors
I want it understood right now that NONE OF THE ABOVE ''NAMES'' ARE A DEROGITORY STATEMENT AND ARE NOT MEANT TO DEMEAN ANY PERSON OF ANY STRIPE OR COLOR. These are simply ''Reference Names'' given to all services of this great nation and its fighting personnel that keep this country safe from all comers and are a part of the greatest armed forces this world has ever seen. (of course, the Navy is of course the Best of all, but that is just my opinion)
Anyhow........ here goes …
Aft. Toward the back of the ship
Forward. Toward the front of the ship
Port side. The left side of the ship facing forward
Starboard the right side of the ship facing forward
Topside.... usually anywhere you can see sunlight
Below deck Usually anywhere you can not see sunlight.
Forcastle …. uppermost deck on the front of the ship
Fantail. The back section of the ship
Tin Can Usually a Destroyer or a Destroyer escort
Small buoy... Same as above
Boat.... any vessel that can be lifted from the water easily
Ship......any vessel that can not be lifted from the water easily
Shot line. A line that is passed between two ships in preparation for transferring item
Mess Hall. Where we eat...
Mess Deck.... the level on the ship where the Mess Hall is located.
Chow line. A line of sailors waiting to eat. Usually guarded by one or two Marines to be sure none of the Sailors are abducted.
Chow Hound. A sailor or group that is usually first in the chow line
Bilge the bottom most portion of the ship
Snipe. Person with dirty face, speaking strange language that works the boilers and makes the ship go.
Boatsons Mate. Usually a really ugly guy with lots of ''hash marks'' and a bad additude.
Skivvie waver. A signal man associated with the flags and flashing lites used in ship to ship communications.
Hash marks. Stripes showing how long you have been in the Navy. On your skivvies, its a different story..
Skivvies. Underwear
Bunk. Where you sleep.
Rack. Another word for Bunk
Bunk Mate.... The guys that sleep in your area with you.
Fart Sack..... The removable covering on your mattress
Barf Bag.... Your pillow case.
Sea Story..... Any tall tail related to you that may or may not be true or simply a fantastic or someones imagination.
Pogie Bait. Candy, Gum, Sweets, etc ….
Gee Dunk …... A place to buy Pogie Bait...
Sea Stores....... Usually tax free ciggies sold at sea......
Ships Store....... A place to buy writing pads, stamps, pen and pencil, shoe laces etc etc etc ….
Mail Buoy A fictitious devise that supposed ''mail'' is left in at sea …..
Mail Buoy Watch. A new guy on the front of the ship watching for the Mail Buoy....
Wild Cat....... A capt son for retrieving the anchor or tightening the secure lines that hold the ship to the dock;
Single Up. Preparation to leave the dock but still secured to same by one rope fore and aft
Sea Bat...... An unreal animal that can not be photographed and is seldom seen except by ''New Guys''
''The Golden rivet'' Supposedly the last ''rivet'' hammered into the hull of the ship.... Not Real....ships are welded together now.
Boot. Any new guy on the ship below the rank of E3
Old Salt..... Any guy that has been on the ship for more than a year
Sea Dog. Any guy that has had more than three years of sea duty.
$8*t on a Shingle. Chip beef gravy on toast
Horse cock and cabbage …. Cold cuts, cheese and slaw Usually served on Sunday afternoon.
Lifer. A guy that has been in the Navy for more than 20 years
Ship over. Re enlisting in the Navy
Mustang..... A guy that came in as an enlisted man and became an officer.
Brown Bager.... A married guy that lives off the ship while in port.
AWOL Bag...... A small satchel that you carry your extra clothes in for a weekend pass
Weekend pass. Usually 2 or three days off from duty.
Field Day........ Cleaning up the ship
PPO...... Police Petty Officer. Usually in charge of the compartment clean up.
OOD ….. Officer of the Deck. In charge of the gangway on the bow of the ship
Gangway. A ladder like devise to provide access to the ship …. Usually guarded by a Marine. Seldom stolen.
Colors Old Glory, our flag.....
Master at Arms. Kinda like the police force but on a ship.
Hatch. A doorway on a ship
Bulkhead..... Wall
Deck. Floor
Overhead. The ceiling
Dusch Bag..... The case that you carry all your shaving gear in and your soap and ''smellie good''
Itchie Scratch. Usually VD or Crotch Crickets
Crotch Crickets ….... pubic lice
Shell Back …... A sailor that has crossed the Equator on a ship
Blue Nose …. a sailor that has crossed the artic circle on a ship....
A Swob...... Mop
A Foxtail.... A dusting devise
Holly Stone. A stone for sanding the wooden deck of a ship …. Not used anymore....
Here is a list of useful words with abstract meanings known only by Sailors and used in conjunction with other abstract words or phrases to make abstract sentences that can be decoded by Sailors but usually no one else. The list follows with commas between each word. Note these are random order and are not suppose to make a sentence.
Thing a ma Dooge, Watch um a call It, Doo Dad, Doo foppie, a Whirliegig, a gadget, a Gizmo, A Doo funnie, a Gyree, a Whimmie Diddle, a Lob Woggle, a Rolickin Rod, a Little Bittie Thingie Wingie, and of course a Floppie Woggle.......
These are but a few of the many Navy terms used by Sailors and some Marines in our everyday conversation aboard a fighting Man of War. There are actually many more but time and space dictate that I should stop with two pages or some will lose interest. I want everyone to feel free to use these Sailor terms in their everyday conversations and try to make others think that you may have been a Sailor in the greatest Navy in the world. …......... (or maybe a Marine guarding our chow line)''ping''
Seajay the sailor man....
God bless our troops and bring them home soon and safe
Hug a Vet this memorial day weekend and remember the ones that didnt get to come home …
Keep in mind that I was stationed aboard a Combat Light Cruiser which is a cruiser class ship that does not have the armor or armament (guns) of a ''Heavy Cruiser''. We were a flag ship and our biggest guns were five inch / thirty eights. We had four of them. Anyhow, here for your reference, are some Navy terms you may find handy as you read the Sea Stories.............
Sailor. ''Swob Jockey'', Anchor Clank-er, Stinkin Squid
Marine.... Jar Head, Leather Neck, Sea going Bell Hop
Air Force. Fly boys, Mommas Boys, Bus Drivers, Panty waists …
Coast Guard ….. Puddle Jumpers, Shallow Water Sailors
soldiers...... Ground pounder, Dough foot, dog face......
Reservists and National Guard people, all branches... Mommas boys, cutie pie, draft dodgers, weekend warriors
I want it understood right now that NONE OF THE ABOVE ''NAMES'' ARE A DEROGITORY STATEMENT AND ARE NOT MEANT TO DEMEAN ANY PERSON OF ANY STRIPE OR COLOR. These are simply ''Reference Names'' given to all services of this great nation and its fighting personnel that keep this country safe from all comers and are a part of the greatest armed forces this world has ever seen. (of course, the Navy is of course the Best of all, but that is just my opinion)
Anyhow........ here goes …
Aft. Toward the back of the ship
Forward. Toward the front of the ship
Port side. The left side of the ship facing forward
Starboard the right side of the ship facing forward
Topside.... usually anywhere you can see sunlight
Below deck Usually anywhere you can not see sunlight.
Forcastle …. uppermost deck on the front of the ship
Fantail. The back section of the ship
Tin Can Usually a Destroyer or a Destroyer escort
Small buoy... Same as above
Boat.... any vessel that can be lifted from the water easily
Ship......any vessel that can not be lifted from the water easily
Shot line. A line that is passed between two ships in preparation for transferring item
Mess Hall. Where we eat...
Mess Deck.... the level on the ship where the Mess Hall is located.
Chow line. A line of sailors waiting to eat. Usually guarded by one or two Marines to be sure none of the Sailors are abducted.
Chow Hound. A sailor or group that is usually first in the chow line
Bilge the bottom most portion of the ship
Snipe. Person with dirty face, speaking strange language that works the boilers and makes the ship go.
Boatsons Mate. Usually a really ugly guy with lots of ''hash marks'' and a bad additude.
Skivvie waver. A signal man associated with the flags and flashing lites used in ship to ship communications.
Hash marks. Stripes showing how long you have been in the Navy. On your skivvies, its a different story..
Skivvies. Underwear
Bunk. Where you sleep.
Rack. Another word for Bunk
Bunk Mate.... The guys that sleep in your area with you.
Fart Sack..... The removable covering on your mattress
Barf Bag.... Your pillow case.
Sea Story..... Any tall tail related to you that may or may not be true or simply a fantastic or someones imagination.
Pogie Bait. Candy, Gum, Sweets, etc ….
Gee Dunk …... A place to buy Pogie Bait...
Sea Stores....... Usually tax free ciggies sold at sea......
Ships Store....... A place to buy writing pads, stamps, pen and pencil, shoe laces etc etc etc ….
Mail Buoy A fictitious devise that supposed ''mail'' is left in at sea …..
Mail Buoy Watch. A new guy on the front of the ship watching for the Mail Buoy....
Wild Cat....... A capt son for retrieving the anchor or tightening the secure lines that hold the ship to the dock;
Single Up. Preparation to leave the dock but still secured to same by one rope fore and aft
Sea Bat...... An unreal animal that can not be photographed and is seldom seen except by ''New Guys''
''The Golden rivet'' Supposedly the last ''rivet'' hammered into the hull of the ship.... Not Real....ships are welded together now.
Boot. Any new guy on the ship below the rank of E3
Old Salt..... Any guy that has been on the ship for more than a year
Sea Dog. Any guy that has had more than three years of sea duty.
$8*t on a Shingle. Chip beef gravy on toast
Horse cock and cabbage …. Cold cuts, cheese and slaw Usually served on Sunday afternoon.
Lifer. A guy that has been in the Navy for more than 20 years
Ship over. Re enlisting in the Navy
Mustang..... A guy that came in as an enlisted man and became an officer.
Brown Bager.... A married guy that lives off the ship while in port.
AWOL Bag...... A small satchel that you carry your extra clothes in for a weekend pass
Weekend pass. Usually 2 or three days off from duty.
Field Day........ Cleaning up the ship
PPO...... Police Petty Officer. Usually in charge of the compartment clean up.
OOD ….. Officer of the Deck. In charge of the gangway on the bow of the ship
Gangway. A ladder like devise to provide access to the ship …. Usually guarded by a Marine. Seldom stolen.
Colors Old Glory, our flag.....
Master at Arms. Kinda like the police force but on a ship.
Hatch. A doorway on a ship
Bulkhead..... Wall
Deck. Floor
Overhead. The ceiling
Dusch Bag..... The case that you carry all your shaving gear in and your soap and ''smellie good''
Itchie Scratch. Usually VD or Crotch Crickets
Crotch Crickets ….... pubic lice
Shell Back …... A sailor that has crossed the Equator on a ship
Blue Nose …. a sailor that has crossed the artic circle on a ship....
A Swob...... Mop
A Foxtail.... A dusting devise
Holly Stone. A stone for sanding the wooden deck of a ship …. Not used anymore....
Here is a list of useful words with abstract meanings known only by Sailors and used in conjunction with other abstract words or phrases to make abstract sentences that can be decoded by Sailors but usually no one else. The list follows with commas between each word. Note these are random order and are not suppose to make a sentence.
Thing a ma Dooge, Watch um a call It, Doo Dad, Doo foppie, a Whirliegig, a gadget, a Gizmo, A Doo funnie, a Gyree, a Whimmie Diddle, a Lob Woggle, a Rolickin Rod, a Little Bittie Thingie Wingie, and of course a Floppie Woggle.......
These are but a few of the many Navy terms used by Sailors and some Marines in our everyday conversation aboard a fighting Man of War. There are actually many more but time and space dictate that I should stop with two pages or some will lose interest. I want everyone to feel free to use these Sailor terms in their everyday conversations and try to make others think that you may have been a Sailor in the greatest Navy in the world. …......... (or maybe a Marine guarding our chow line)''ping''
Seajay the sailor man....
God bless our troops and bring them home soon and safe
Hug a Vet this memorial day weekend and remember the ones that didnt get to come home …
STRAWBERRY SHORT CAKE
On the Noton we would occasionally get straw berry short cake with what tasted like ''fresh strawberries'' and it was a real treat to be guarded with your life.
With that in mind here is my sea story.......
we were somewhere down in the Carib. Steaming in a circle. I was on ''mess cook'' duty and I was ''captain of the head''. Now, before you laugh, ''Captain of the Head'' was an honorable job during mess cook duty and much envied job. Simply put, I made friends with all the right people and was owed favors by most of them but that is another story for another time.
I went to ''early chow'' because they were having Strawberry Short Cake for desert and I wanted to be dang sure I got my ration.
The number one mess hall was almost full when they sounded ''MAN OVER BOARD, PORT SIDE. FALL IN FOR MUSTER''.... This emptied the mess hall and the mess line very quickly because we were obligated to fall in for muster so they could figuare out who was ''in the water''. I mustered in with my PPO. (police petty officer) and went topside to see what was going on.
On the fantail stood two or three prisoners and one very worried Marine. He was standing there with a haggered look on his face and was pacing about. About a mile back the utility boat was chugging toward a life ring with a smoke flair and a prisoner hanging on to it for dear life. I asked the Marine what the hay was going on. Here is his story.
He said he ordered the prisoners to drop their chipping irons and come to attention. His intent was to take them to supper chow and then back to the brig. He said they all stood up and one prisoner looked at him, looked at the ocean, looked back at him and did the DEEP SIX over the side of the Norton. Yep, he dove overboard............... The Marine yelled ''Man over board, Port side'' and the life ring guy dropped the life ring and set off the smoke flair. They turned the Norton to port to keep from eating the prisoner with the props and fortunately we were going dead slow and he didnt get ''Sucked thru the props'' and minced up into shark bait. They dropped the utility boat and were on the way to pick him up. The ''skivvie wavers'' (signalmen) had one of the ''big eyes'' (large signal lights) on him. When the ''U'' boat got to him he literally jumped into the boat.
I asked the Marine why he was so worried about this prisoner. Was this guy his brother or something? He said he was just a prisoner but if he should drown or get eaten by sharks or sink and never be found that , he, the Marine would have to serve the rest of his time in the brig. HOLLY CAT STUFF......
As I pondered the situation it occurred to me that my tray was still sitting in the mess hall with a good portion of Strawberry Short Cake on the tray. I immediately went back to the mess hall and reclaimed my prize. As I sat there enjoying my prize it occurred to me that there were trays on tables with no one in front of them and the Strawberry Short Cakes were getting soggy. I did my shipmates a large favor by eating too many of the Short Cakes off the abandoned trays. Sometime after supper chow I was one ''sick puppy'' ….. I swore to never again eat that many short cakes. For a while after that when we would have Strawberry Short Cake I would simply slide mine off on someone elses tray and say ''Enjoy''...........
So it went on the Norton, steaming in a circle somewhere in the Carib.....
Seajay the sailor man ...
With that in mind here is my sea story.......
we were somewhere down in the Carib. Steaming in a circle. I was on ''mess cook'' duty and I was ''captain of the head''. Now, before you laugh, ''Captain of the Head'' was an honorable job during mess cook duty and much envied job. Simply put, I made friends with all the right people and was owed favors by most of them but that is another story for another time.
I went to ''early chow'' because they were having Strawberry Short Cake for desert and I wanted to be dang sure I got my ration.
The number one mess hall was almost full when they sounded ''MAN OVER BOARD, PORT SIDE. FALL IN FOR MUSTER''.... This emptied the mess hall and the mess line very quickly because we were obligated to fall in for muster so they could figuare out who was ''in the water''. I mustered in with my PPO. (police petty officer) and went topside to see what was going on.
On the fantail stood two or three prisoners and one very worried Marine. He was standing there with a haggered look on his face and was pacing about. About a mile back the utility boat was chugging toward a life ring with a smoke flair and a prisoner hanging on to it for dear life. I asked the Marine what the hay was going on. Here is his story.
He said he ordered the prisoners to drop their chipping irons and come to attention. His intent was to take them to supper chow and then back to the brig. He said they all stood up and one prisoner looked at him, looked at the ocean, looked back at him and did the DEEP SIX over the side of the Norton. Yep, he dove overboard............... The Marine yelled ''Man over board, Port side'' and the life ring guy dropped the life ring and set off the smoke flair. They turned the Norton to port to keep from eating the prisoner with the props and fortunately we were going dead slow and he didnt get ''Sucked thru the props'' and minced up into shark bait. They dropped the utility boat and were on the way to pick him up. The ''skivvie wavers'' (signalmen) had one of the ''big eyes'' (large signal lights) on him. When the ''U'' boat got to him he literally jumped into the boat.
I asked the Marine why he was so worried about this prisoner. Was this guy his brother or something? He said he was just a prisoner but if he should drown or get eaten by sharks or sink and never be found that , he, the Marine would have to serve the rest of his time in the brig. HOLLY CAT STUFF......
As I pondered the situation it occurred to me that my tray was still sitting in the mess hall with a good portion of Strawberry Short Cake on the tray. I immediately went back to the mess hall and reclaimed my prize. As I sat there enjoying my prize it occurred to me that there were trays on tables with no one in front of them and the Strawberry Short Cakes were getting soggy. I did my shipmates a large favor by eating too many of the Short Cakes off the abandoned trays. Sometime after supper chow I was one ''sick puppy'' ….. I swore to never again eat that many short cakes. For a while after that when we would have Strawberry Short Cake I would simply slide mine off on someone elses tray and say ''Enjoy''...........
So it went on the Norton, steaming in a circle somewhere in the Carib.....
Seajay the sailor man ...
SEA DUTY
Sea duty was a real shocker for me. I graduated from Radio School in Norfolk and was assigned sea duty on the USS North Hampton, CLC1. This transition in my life was a real ''shocker'' to say the least.
On sea duty and at sea you learn to really appreciate the little things that you would not even notice on shore duty.
Here is the ''short list'' of really important things when you are at sea.
One..... a really good mattress on your bunk. One that is thicker than a waffle and softer than plywood.
Two A pillow on your bunk. Not everone had a pillow and you sorta had to stand in line to get one when someone got transferred from the ship.
Three. A big locker that was within half a mile of your bunk...
Four. Not being close to some joker that shored like a saw mill and passed gass like a steam engine.
Some of the other little things were these...
Being able to go swimmin over the side of the ship. They would stop the Norton down in the Carib. And have swim call. They would drop a couple of Jackobs Latters over the side and swing out a ''boat boom''. They would launch a utility boat with Marines, granades and machine guns for a shark patrol and let us go swimming for an hour or so.
Sometimes on Sunday afternoon they would have ''Sunbathing on the fan tail'' this meant you could take your blanket and pillow and go topside and just ''Lay in the sun and do nothing''..... It was wonderful...
If you knew a cook or a baker so you could get a cheese sandwich or a dough nut or a slice of pie when the mess hall was closed you had a piece of heaven.
At sea there was no such thing as television and we had a very difficult time getting a decent radio signal from shore. With this in mind, you learned to appreciate Quiet Time. Usually after supper chow you could go top side and find a place on the fantail and sit and smoke and think and watch the ocean slide under the Norton as you went from nowhere to nowhere. You could sit there on a '''bolard'' and listen to the heartbeat of the Norton. You could hear the ''hummmmm'' of the engines and feel the thump thump of the props as they ate the ocean. (note.... the Norton was turbine steam powered as I remember)
Another great joy was to lay forward to the Foksell and peek over the bow of the Norton and watch the porpoises play. These guys would ride the bow wave and have a ball. They could run for hours on our pressure wave in front of the ship. They would laugh and play, dip and dive and leap from the water with a loud splash and play tag with each other for hours.
At sea, money didnt mean nothing. There was very little to ''buy''... Ciggies were a dollar a carton, ''pogie bait'' (candy and cookies) was in limited supply in choice and quantity at the ships store. There was no ''Geedunk'' (a place to buy sandwiches,etc)on the Norton. You could have a thousand dollars and not be able to get a ''Gyro'' or a slab of pizza.
It was nice to have a Marine buddy that owed you a favor because the Marines had their own ''steam pressing machine'' … Yep, they could press your blues for you if they want to or you could sip them a dollar and they would ''press your canvas for you''..
The transition from shore duty to sea duty was a real shocker for me. Some guys would fight it and never won. I learned to roll with the punches and to appreciate the little things. I learned that the Navy ran on ''favors''.... You do a shipmate a ''favor'' like standing a couple hours of his watch so he can get some rack time and he owes you a ''favor''. You did ''favors'' for shipmates like arranging for them to talk to their pregnant wife via the ''ratt circuit'' down in teletype on the mid watch. This was a ''big favor'' and you could ask that person to kill someone and they would probably have done it .(Im teasing about this of course). You kept a mental count of ''favors owed'' to you and ''favors owed'' by you to others and you could ''swop a favor'' if necessary.........''Hay man, I got a guy in supply that owes me a favor and I will swap you that favor if you will swap me a favor that is owed to you by one of the cooks or bakers so I can get some do-nuts''......
''Favors'' worked something like this as I remember. There was ''small favors'', ''regular favors'', ''big favors'' and ''really big favors''....... A regular favor was equal to about two ''small favors'' in value It would take two or three ''regular favors'' to repay a ''big favor'' and a ''really big favor'' was about equal to four ''small favors'', ''three regular favors'', at least two ''big favors'' and a ''cut in'' in the chow line when we were having fresh eggs at sea.
It would get very complicated but it seemed to work most of the time... The worst thing to happen was when a shipmate would not ''hold true'' to ''favors owed''. This was a real breach in protocol and could get you ''Black Balled'' double quick. No one would do you a ''favor'' of any kind and you were ''on your own sailor''.. You were real careful not to fall overboard during the ''Black Ball time'' because someone would whisper ''Man overboard, port side'' and you would never be seen again …..........
Letters from home was a real treat. We got our mail from the USS Forestall via helo. You would find your letters laying on your bunk after mail call. Sometimes you would read a letter over and over and smell the paper knowing that ''she'' had touched it while she wrote to you......
The longest we were ''at sea'' was a little over one month. I believe this was the longest month in my life. We worked two section watches and I lost count of the days and what ''day it was''. No matter, tomorrow will be the same as today and yesterday. Most of the fresh food went south after ten days and you ''zombied'' along due to lack of sleep.
This is getting long and I gotta go tinkle......
Seajay the sailor man
On sea duty and at sea you learn to really appreciate the little things that you would not even notice on shore duty.
Here is the ''short list'' of really important things when you are at sea.
One..... a really good mattress on your bunk. One that is thicker than a waffle and softer than plywood.
Two A pillow on your bunk. Not everone had a pillow and you sorta had to stand in line to get one when someone got transferred from the ship.
Three. A big locker that was within half a mile of your bunk...
Four. Not being close to some joker that shored like a saw mill and passed gass like a steam engine.
Some of the other little things were these...
Being able to go swimmin over the side of the ship. They would stop the Norton down in the Carib. And have swim call. They would drop a couple of Jackobs Latters over the side and swing out a ''boat boom''. They would launch a utility boat with Marines, granades and machine guns for a shark patrol and let us go swimming for an hour or so.
Sometimes on Sunday afternoon they would have ''Sunbathing on the fan tail'' this meant you could take your blanket and pillow and go topside and just ''Lay in the sun and do nothing''..... It was wonderful...
If you knew a cook or a baker so you could get a cheese sandwich or a dough nut or a slice of pie when the mess hall was closed you had a piece of heaven.
At sea there was no such thing as television and we had a very difficult time getting a decent radio signal from shore. With this in mind, you learned to appreciate Quiet Time. Usually after supper chow you could go top side and find a place on the fantail and sit and smoke and think and watch the ocean slide under the Norton as you went from nowhere to nowhere. You could sit there on a '''bolard'' and listen to the heartbeat of the Norton. You could hear the ''hummmmm'' of the engines and feel the thump thump of the props as they ate the ocean. (note.... the Norton was turbine steam powered as I remember)
Another great joy was to lay forward to the Foksell and peek over the bow of the Norton and watch the porpoises play. These guys would ride the bow wave and have a ball. They could run for hours on our pressure wave in front of the ship. They would laugh and play, dip and dive and leap from the water with a loud splash and play tag with each other for hours.
At sea, money didnt mean nothing. There was very little to ''buy''... Ciggies were a dollar a carton, ''pogie bait'' (candy and cookies) was in limited supply in choice and quantity at the ships store. There was no ''Geedunk'' (a place to buy sandwiches,etc)on the Norton. You could have a thousand dollars and not be able to get a ''Gyro'' or a slab of pizza.
It was nice to have a Marine buddy that owed you a favor because the Marines had their own ''steam pressing machine'' … Yep, they could press your blues for you if they want to or you could sip them a dollar and they would ''press your canvas for you''..
The transition from shore duty to sea duty was a real shocker for me. Some guys would fight it and never won. I learned to roll with the punches and to appreciate the little things. I learned that the Navy ran on ''favors''.... You do a shipmate a ''favor'' like standing a couple hours of his watch so he can get some rack time and he owes you a ''favor''. You did ''favors'' for shipmates like arranging for them to talk to their pregnant wife via the ''ratt circuit'' down in teletype on the mid watch. This was a ''big favor'' and you could ask that person to kill someone and they would probably have done it .(Im teasing about this of course). You kept a mental count of ''favors owed'' to you and ''favors owed'' by you to others and you could ''swop a favor'' if necessary.........''Hay man, I got a guy in supply that owes me a favor and I will swap you that favor if you will swap me a favor that is owed to you by one of the cooks or bakers so I can get some do-nuts''......
''Favors'' worked something like this as I remember. There was ''small favors'', ''regular favors'', ''big favors'' and ''really big favors''....... A regular favor was equal to about two ''small favors'' in value It would take two or three ''regular favors'' to repay a ''big favor'' and a ''really big favor'' was about equal to four ''small favors'', ''three regular favors'', at least two ''big favors'' and a ''cut in'' in the chow line when we were having fresh eggs at sea.
It would get very complicated but it seemed to work most of the time... The worst thing to happen was when a shipmate would not ''hold true'' to ''favors owed''. This was a real breach in protocol and could get you ''Black Balled'' double quick. No one would do you a ''favor'' of any kind and you were ''on your own sailor''.. You were real careful not to fall overboard during the ''Black Ball time'' because someone would whisper ''Man overboard, port side'' and you would never be seen again …..........
Letters from home was a real treat. We got our mail from the USS Forestall via helo. You would find your letters laying on your bunk after mail call. Sometimes you would read a letter over and over and smell the paper knowing that ''she'' had touched it while she wrote to you......
The longest we were ''at sea'' was a little over one month. I believe this was the longest month in my life. We worked two section watches and I lost count of the days and what ''day it was''. No matter, tomorrow will be the same as today and yesterday. Most of the fresh food went south after ten days and you ''zombied'' along due to lack of sleep.
This is getting long and I gotta go tinkle......
Seajay the sailor man
SUN SET.... MOON RISE
We was down in the Caribbean sea somewhere between nothing and the edge of the world doing ''maneuvers'' and playing war games.It was supper chow and I walked out of the hatch and across the fan tale flight deck to the very stern of the Norton for a smoke and ''contemplation'' ….... It was just about sundown and the sea was a mirror. I truly mean this guys. The ocean was dead calm, no ripples, no waves, nothing, just the wake of the Norton doing maybe five knots. In my ''sea time'' I saw the ocean like this maybe three times at most. It is caused by a very high pressure system pushing the water flat and it only works if there is zero wind. This is what I was told by a ''weather bird'' friend of mine. Anyhow........
I lit me a coffin nail and leaned against a set of ''horns'' that are used to tie the ship when we are in port. Jim Price, a buddy of mine, ambled over and leaned on the other ''horn'' and asked for a light for his ''Lucky Strike'' ciggie. He took the Pall Mall from my lips and lit his Lucky and pitched my ciggie over the fan tail into the ocean. He laughed as I shook out another and he would not give me his ciggie to light mine. Back then ''sea stores'' ciggies were ninety cents a carton. Cheap as dirt......
We were making idol chat when I asked Jim if he ever seen the ocean this smooth. ''Nope, cant say as I have. Sure is pretty aint it''?
There is occasion when at sea during a sun set with the weather just right the Sun will turn into a ball of fire as big as a mountain. She will be gold and red and orange all at the same time and She will cast a streak of gold and orange across a still ocean as wide as a house. That is what happened that evening but it gets better. It is not generally accepted but when you look at a ''sunset'' you are not actually looking at the Sun. The actual Sun is behind the horizon and what you are seeing is the reflection of the suns rays thru the atmosphere being refracted (bent) as the sun goes down. This is why you can watch a beautiful sun set without going blind from looking directly at the sun. (I be snart dont I)....... Anyhow........ The sun was setting to our port side and there was a harvest moon rising on our starboard side. A harvest moon is a '''moon'' you can actually harvest crops by because of the bright light it cast on the ground. The moon was bigger than a barn and the same color as the setting sun. It created the same orange and red path across the dead calm sea that the sun was doing because the moon light is the reflection of the suns rays. (I'm showin off now because I know this and two other pieces of worthless information) I have seen ''harvest moons'' where you could actually set outside and read a book by the lite when we were running ''dark ship'' (no outside lights at all)...... Me and Jim stood there spell bound and watch the transition from daylight to dark and the complete process took maybe three minutes. Five at most.
The ocean ate the sun and gave birth to the moon and we stood there smokin ciggies and slowly killing ourselves and watch the complete process while the Norton steamed north at about five knots.
''I aint never seen nothin' like that in all my Navy days'' Jim said.
''Me neither, wish we would have had a camera to record it''
''You goin to the movie tonite''?
''Yep''...
''What is the name of the movie''
''Aint sure but it stars Jack Dempsey, Marilyn Monroe and Hoot Gibson''
''Oh yeah, I seen that in Norfolk. Its called ''FIGHT, MAKE LOVE ( I cleaned that up for the general public), or GO FOR YOUR GUN''....
So it went on the Norton a thousand miles from nothing between nothin and nothin heading north on a mirrored ocean ….
Seajay the sailor man
ps. a few days later we were in the Vacapes Opp area in waves 15 to 20 feet high in a blinding rain storm.....
I lit me a coffin nail and leaned against a set of ''horns'' that are used to tie the ship when we are in port. Jim Price, a buddy of mine, ambled over and leaned on the other ''horn'' and asked for a light for his ''Lucky Strike'' ciggie. He took the Pall Mall from my lips and lit his Lucky and pitched my ciggie over the fan tail into the ocean. He laughed as I shook out another and he would not give me his ciggie to light mine. Back then ''sea stores'' ciggies were ninety cents a carton. Cheap as dirt......
We were making idol chat when I asked Jim if he ever seen the ocean this smooth. ''Nope, cant say as I have. Sure is pretty aint it''?
There is occasion when at sea during a sun set with the weather just right the Sun will turn into a ball of fire as big as a mountain. She will be gold and red and orange all at the same time and She will cast a streak of gold and orange across a still ocean as wide as a house. That is what happened that evening but it gets better. It is not generally accepted but when you look at a ''sunset'' you are not actually looking at the Sun. The actual Sun is behind the horizon and what you are seeing is the reflection of the suns rays thru the atmosphere being refracted (bent) as the sun goes down. This is why you can watch a beautiful sun set without going blind from looking directly at the sun. (I be snart dont I)....... Anyhow........ The sun was setting to our port side and there was a harvest moon rising on our starboard side. A harvest moon is a '''moon'' you can actually harvest crops by because of the bright light it cast on the ground. The moon was bigger than a barn and the same color as the setting sun. It created the same orange and red path across the dead calm sea that the sun was doing because the moon light is the reflection of the suns rays. (I'm showin off now because I know this and two other pieces of worthless information) I have seen ''harvest moons'' where you could actually set outside and read a book by the lite when we were running ''dark ship'' (no outside lights at all)...... Me and Jim stood there spell bound and watch the transition from daylight to dark and the complete process took maybe three minutes. Five at most.
The ocean ate the sun and gave birth to the moon and we stood there smokin ciggies and slowly killing ourselves and watch the complete process while the Norton steamed north at about five knots.
''I aint never seen nothin' like that in all my Navy days'' Jim said.
''Me neither, wish we would have had a camera to record it''
''You goin to the movie tonite''?
''Yep''...
''What is the name of the movie''
''Aint sure but it stars Jack Dempsey, Marilyn Monroe and Hoot Gibson''
''Oh yeah, I seen that in Norfolk. Its called ''FIGHT, MAKE LOVE ( I cleaned that up for the general public), or GO FOR YOUR GUN''....
So it went on the Norton a thousand miles from nothing between nothin and nothin heading north on a mirrored ocean ….
Seajay the sailor man
ps. a few days later we were in the Vacapes Opp area in waves 15 to 20 feet high in a blinding rain storm.....
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