tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post5063256117361119639..comments2024-03-28T02:27:45.688-07:00Comments on Chant du Départ: Shipping Up to BostonOldAFSargehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comBlogger46125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-45124197481244221102016-07-14T13:52:26.008-07:002016-07-14T13:52:26.008-07:00Absolutely correct Comrade! A denizen of that regi...Absolutely correct Comrade! A denizen of that region explained that very same bit of information to me over on the Book of Face. I meant to relay that information to the readers here, and, as I am wont to do, completely forgot. Many thanks!OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-52845307752488348222016-07-14T12:06:52.536-07:002016-07-14T12:06:52.536-07:00No, there's a short stretch where I-93 North a...No, there's a short stretch where I-93 North and 128 South are the same. I-95 and 128 are the same road from Norwood/Canton up to Peabody. Comrade Misfithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15404477636451308763noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-25759495122482959422016-07-14T08:07:36.545-07:002016-07-14T08:07:36.545-07:00I miss his writing. The new "Spencer" n...I miss his writing. The new "Spencer" novels are missing something intangible. OTOH, the "Jesse Stone" ones are pretty good.<br /><br />Though, to be fair, a number of his books from the `80s and early `90s probably should not have seen the light of day.....Comrade Misfithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15404477636451308763noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-70293174246226295092016-07-14T08:04:19.197-07:002016-07-14T08:04:19.197-07:00Most people have forgotten that 18th Century Bosto...Most people have forgotten that 18th Century Boston was, effectively, an island connected by a natural causeway. Dorchester Heights, where Frank Knox's guns were placed, overlooked the town. Faneuil Hall was on the waterfront. <br /><br />They tore down the Heights and filled in around Boston and created the Back Bay area in the 19th Century. So the streets of the newer areas are (mostly) laid out in a grid pattern, while the streets of the older areas, as you say, just sort of happened. Comrade Misfithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15404477636451308763noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-50319497189649091592016-07-14T07:30:22.436-07:002016-07-14T07:30:22.436-07:00Indeed! A most excellent version.Indeed! A most excellent version.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-38684915322116742042016-07-14T05:57:56.674-07:002016-07-14T05:57:56.674-07:00I like Robert B. Parker's version of Boston.I like Robert B. Parker's version of Boston.PrairieAdventurehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06466447251827774900noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-81623843542501916692016-07-13T19:59:22.459-07:002016-07-13T19:59:22.459-07:00I think the streets in Boston weren't exactly ...I think the streets in Boston weren't exactly "laid out," they just happened.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-41219300604320512882016-07-13T19:57:34.169-07:002016-07-13T19:57:34.169-07:00Oh dear, rotaries. Hates them we do.Oh dear, rotaries. Hates them we do.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-66752467880907563112016-07-13T19:56:06.398-07:002016-07-13T19:56:06.398-07:00Don't know who laid out the streets in Boston ...Don't know who laid out the streets in Boston but Seattle and Portland, OR streets were created by a bunch of drunken (but I repeat myself) Scandihoovian loggers. Since 50% of the population are California transplants it is hard to place blame or bad driving.Well Seasoned Foolhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16670165728759453075noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-79994600908787840702016-07-13T18:33:25.962-07:002016-07-13T18:33:25.962-07:00I lived outside of 128 for awhile. I had to drive...I lived outside of 128 for awhile. I had to drive up the VFW Pkwy though some nasty rotary at JP, which was still better than the Central Artery. I left soon after the Big Dig began.<br /><br />Anyway, I went into the Navy when the requirements for going to OCS were a college degree and a steady pulse. I'll bet they're a lot more selective, now.Comrade Misfithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15404477636451308763noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-12433822579105101842016-07-13T17:43:52.773-07:002016-07-13T17:43:52.773-07:00On that front, I fell in love with The Missus Hers...On that front, I fell in love with <em>The Missus Herself</em> the very first moment I saw her. It was the lightning bolt for sure. I struck while the iron was hot. It was a long siege but she eventually yielded to my charm. Perhaps she was just tired of trying to get rid of me.<br /><br />I can be tenacious when it's a good cause.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-610000729677056012016-07-13T17:41:23.442-07:002016-07-13T17:41:23.442-07:00I knew a guy in Germany who was selected for regul...I knew a guy in Germany who was selected for regular at O-3. That would have been around '95 I think. He was a shoe clerk. Totally. Though not a bad guy, just not a fighter pilot, you know the type.<br /><br />OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-61974728352698447862016-07-13T17:39:40.173-07:002016-07-13T17:39:40.173-07:00Yeah, it's easy to "woulda, coulda, shoul...Yeah, it's easy to "woulda, coulda, shoulda" yourself into the grave. The only thing I regret is not asking my wife out a lot sooner than I did.juvathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09096708575138552532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-4359962473935440482016-07-13T17:38:05.408-07:002016-07-13T17:38:05.408-07:00I was selected for regular when I made O-3, which ...I was selected for regular when I made O-3, which I think was when most reservists get selected. I find it amazing that the "Perfumed Princes" allowed that to happen. I suspect Goldwater-Nichols had something to do with it.juvathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09096708575138552532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-52426668695368334402016-07-13T15:54:16.596-07:002016-07-13T15:54:16.596-07:00There are many times in life where we must choose ...There are many times in life where we must choose a path, or perhaps be denied selecting a certain path. The end result is where we're at. There are times I ponder my choices. In the end though, I'm glad that I did what I did. Would I change anything, not knowing how it would affect me in the long run? No, I am content with where I'm at.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-80182203573288656122016-07-13T15:52:01.206-07:002016-07-13T15:52:01.206-07:00Not sure when that happened, I just know that it w...Not sure when that happened, I just know that it was in effect (and still may be) when my kids were commissioned. Back then in order to get a regular commission you had to "compete" for it sometime before putting on O-4. Not sure of the why of it.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-19281504040501792352016-07-13T13:55:59.821-07:002016-07-13T13:55:59.821-07:00Thank you for the honor of a reply. Your son'...Thank you for the honor of a reply. Your son's points make good sense. I tried for the Navy after college, but they decided that they could do without my services. Perhaps a loss for both sides, perhaps not. At any rate, life went on and my two children and wife would not have happened had the Navy taken me.<br /><br />Paul Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-22027468595786860632016-07-13T13:35:35.347-07:002016-07-13T13:35:35.347-07:00Academy graduates only get a reserve commission? ...Academy graduates only get a reserve commission? When did that happen? and why?juvathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09096708575138552532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-6729051590208793852016-07-13T12:55:24.221-07:002016-07-13T12:55:24.221-07:00Ah yes, I DO have a reason to visit Portland.
You...Ah yes, I DO have a reason to visit Portland.<br /><br />You had me at "beverage of choice."<br /><br />Uber is good, use it all the time in the DC area.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-16998154789677098682016-07-13T12:52:03.271-07:002016-07-13T12:52:03.271-07:00Paul - My son, who had in hand three ROTC scholars...Paul - My son, who had in hand three ROTC scholarships (Army, Navy, and Air Force) for college, AND acceptance at the Trade School on the Severn, came to me, the Old Man, and asked "So Dad, should I go Air Force? What do you think I should do?"<br /><br />First off we discarded the idea of Army ROTC right away. They only offered a three year scholarship, I saw the logic in their stance but not to the point of ponying up thousands of dollars for <em>The Naviguesser's</em> freshman year. As to the Air Force, we had this conversation -<br /><br />"Son, you wear glasses right?"<br /><br />"Yes Dad, obviously."<br /><br />"Who do you think runs the Air Force?"<br /><br />"Pilots?"<br /><br />"Yes, sometimes navigators. But yes pilots, quite rightly, run the Air Force. I mean it's right there, in the name, <b>Air</b> Force. Can you be a military pilot?"<br /><br />"Well no, because I wear glasses." (At the time corrective surgery to improve vision was taboo.)<br /><br />"So, just how far do you think you could rise in the Air Force? As a non-pilot."<br /><br />"Not far?"<br /><br />"Indeed, not far. Oh, you could make a contribution but..."<br /><br />"Yeah, I see. So I should probably go Navy."<br /><br />"That's my advice son. Go Navy. So, the Academy is pretty prestigious and..."<br /><br />"Dad, I'm not going to the Academy."<br /><br />"You're not?"<br /><br />"No. After four years of Navy ROTC I get a reserve commission. Same thing if I do four years at the Academy. Big difference is, in Navy ROTC I can have a life for those four years. At the Academy..."<br /><br />"Point taken son. Navy ROTC it is."<br /><br />So that's why all three kids became Officers in the Naval Service.<br /><br />That and the fact that they are way smarter than me.<br /><br />But don't tell them that. Especially <em>The WSO</em>, she would never let me forget that.<br /><br />Oh wait, they read the blog...OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-74024574437497353412016-07-13T12:39:01.001-07:002016-07-13T12:39:01.001-07:00Juvat - behave. (Truth hurts...)Juvat - behave. (Truth hurts...)OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-11257423033368844072016-07-13T12:25:44.593-07:002016-07-13T12:25:44.593-07:00I was wondering what it is about the USAF that all...I was wondering what it is about the USAF that all your offspring choose the USN; then I decided that perhaps it was that they wanted to be in a military organization. <br /><br />I am allowed to say that, having served 16 years as an USAF brat, almost three and half years on active duty USAF, and some number of years in the USAF ( RES ). I earned both of my national defense ribbons in the USAF, Viet-Nam and Gulf I.<br /><br />Paul L. QuandtAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-79686731601885366262016-07-13T12:10:34.298-07:002016-07-13T12:10:34.298-07:00(And Blog Posts!)(And Blog Posts!)juvathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09096708575138552532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-57233826946656325352016-07-13T12:08:03.123-07:002016-07-13T12:08:03.123-07:00Also, OAFS, remember that I have invited you to RO...Also, OAFS, remember that I have invited you to RON at my casa, with a beverage of your choice. I live just outside Portland, OR. And yes, the drivers here are as bad as you have heard. I go by way of Uber.<br /><br />Paul L. QuandtAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-78545194401488467732016-07-13T11:34:27.526-07:002016-07-13T11:34:27.526-07:00The Missus Herself deserves special door to door s...<em>The Missus Herself</em> deserves special door to door service for her raising of the progeny (all of whom grew up to be Officers in the Naval Service) and for her care and feeding of <em>Your Humble Scribe</em>.<br /><br />I will drive my wife to Logan as that's where <em>The WSO</em> decided she would fly out of. As it was <em>The WSO</em> who paid for the trip I didn't really get a vote.<br /><br />But I do get to bitch about it and hey, I got a blog post out of it.<br /><br />The things I do for love...OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.com