40 years ago today I reported to Great Lake for Navy basic training (and no, I didn’t get to come home for Christmas). My RDCs were AD1 Sims and BM1 Cox. I can still remember the service week recruit saying “welcome to Great Lakes, you’re in a world of shit now boy” as I got off the bus. In just over 2 years I will have been out of the Navy longer than I was in it.

Sometimes I look around and wonder where it all went.

Thanks for your service!

quote:

Originally posted by SpinZone:

40 years ago today I reported to Great Lake for Navy basic training

Weird timing for that post, I was just telling my wife about Navy boot camp at Bainbridge MD. I arrived there 68 1/2 years ago, May 1956.

Welcome to my world, Shipmate!

Boot at GLAKES February 1969.

Active just shy of 22 years, retired 1990 so retired 34 years as of this past September.

After retirement, I worked briefly for a Beltway Bandit and my Boss was a retired Navy Chief. He told me "The best revenge is to retire early and live forever."

So far, so good...

Thanks to you and all who served.

I really regret not serving. I gave it a lot of thought but had bad asthma at the time, which I have now outgrown. If I had served when I graduated high school as I wanted, I never would have met my wife of now 27 years of marriage. So not serving is bitter sweet to me. I did the next best thing and got into law enforcement 10 years ago.

My parents met at Great Lakes when the man who would be my father was in boot camp and the woman who would be my mother was visiting a friend of her brother's. He introduced my mother-to-be to my father-to-be.

Thanks for your service.

quote:

Originally posted by V-Tail:

quote:

Originally posted by SpinZone:

40 years ago today I reported to Great Lake for Navy basic training

Weird timing for that post, I was just telling my wife about Navy boot camp at Bainbridge MD. I arrived there 68 1/2 years ago, May 1956.

Damn V-Tail, I think this is called perspective. Thanks.

Lots of sailors here; thank you all for your service. There are many that won't understand why you are making a big deal about decades old experience.
I'd suggest you just tell 'em you could explain it to them but you can't understand it for them.

BZ, for a decision well made and a job well done.

Understand. I retired from Army in 92. Living long and drawing retirement sort of makes up for all those years of near poverty wages. My DIL's father was retired Navy and we spent many a happy hour reminiscing about our experiences. Since I was EOD and the school was run by the Navy back then I had a lot of shared experiences with the Navy so we had a lot of lies to swap. He's gone now and damn I miss him.

Navy Boot Camp in San Diego, March of 82.
Retired in April of 05

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times LOL

Seven cruises (five on carriers and two on the USS Tarawa)

more than 12 years Sea Time, and visited more than 25 different countries

"Desert Shield/Storm (VF-2, USS Ranger) and first ship on location after USS Cole (attached to the USS Tarawa) was attacked to name a coule events.

Saw some sad stuff, saw some REALLY funny stuff. Heard/saw some "you can't be THAT stupid, can you?" from other sailors.

Most memorable time: middle of the night, 2,000 miles from land, in any direction, and looking at the stars. This is closely followed by being in the middle of the Indian Ocean and the sea flat and smooth as glass as far as the eye could see (ship was moving maybe 2 knots?)

I went to Great Lakes for Machinist Mate A school before moving to Orlando for Nuke school.

I never ate at the Great Lakes chow hall. I ate off the sandwich vending machine in school that would give you 2 sandwiches for the price of 1. I alos had my share of roach coach food.

I was there when it was starting to snow and I had to pull shore duty. We would wear double pants for warmth. We'd go from manhole to manhole where the steam was coming out. As soon as we stepped off, I felt my pants shrink.

Friday nights, we would go to Chicago loop and get drunk. Me and another guy was chased after midnight by a group of thugs. We got saved by knocking on the door of the Pacific Garden Missions where we got a cot for the night for 25 cents and free breakfast in the morning. I made that my regular routine.

I met and married the love of my life in 1972 in the USAF. After just knowing her for a very few days, the "bell rang at midnight", and less than 2 hours we were on our way to Vietnam. When I got off of the plane coming home, she was standing there waiting for me. So yes, the USAF was very good to me, even though I was deployed a lot to SEA.

My story amounts to almost. Went to MEPS twice after staying at the Palwaukee Motor Inn. I was signed up for basic in San Diego and Corpsman for A school, but my knees kept me out. They did the same in HS so I never got my Letter. Those were my two greatest regrets.
Unknown to me at the time a good friend had signed up for Corpsman about a month before I did. He stayed in for his 20. Made Chief a year or so before he retired.
Thanks for your service vets!

Boot Great Lakes Sept 1968. Machinery Repairman.

I was at Great Lakes Sept -early Dec 1971 for boot camp, then home on leave for Christmas and right back to Great Lakes for BT A school, then on orders hold for almost 5 weeks before going to Philly for BT C school for 1200PSI boilers
COLD at Great Lakes that time of yr.