The Big Day: WINGING

Winging kicked my butt.

Late nights, early mornings, but so much fun!

Uncle Dan arrived in Pensacola on Wednesday evening. We took him down to Pensacola and ate awesome seafood. Uncle Dan converted us to raw oyster lovers. They were so good! I think whenever Blake and I had tried them, they were just bad oysters. These ones, though, were AWESOME. Great meal and great stories from Uncle Dan.

The next day we got up early and headed off for the Naval Aviation Museum. Uncle Dan is a retired aviation maintenance duty officer who now works for Pratt & Whitney. So, as you can imagine, it was mind blowing to go through the museum. Between Blake and Uncle Dan, it was like going through the museum for the first time ever and I learned so many interesting things. Plus, I love that museum. They always have new exhibits, the staff is so friendly and nice, and the Cubi Bar makes good food.

We didn't stay the whole day (though we could have) because we had to get back for the soft patch ceremony. Blake went ahead of us to base because he had some paperwork to finish up. And here's where the messy confusion starts. Blake got orders to report to Mayport on July 26th, as in a week and three days from when he got his orders. Meaning we would have to find a place to live, set up the move, get all our stuff in order in basically five days because of weekends. It was an almost impossible task. So that kind of put a downer on the day. Anyway, on to the soft patch we went.

Lots of funny stories (and frankly, some not funny ones), but it was fun and I finally got to see some of the instructors I'd heard so much about.



After the soft patch we went to Texas Roadhouse because it's awesome to eat there.

The next day was busy. SO busy, it went by in a blur. Most people got to have a leisurely breakfast and maybe the church service. Not us. We had things to do, paperwork to fill out, and things to be stressed over.

First, though, the most fun thing ever in my life. The Sim. Blake has spent many hours in the helo sims (in fact, he's in one as I'm typing this, observing for someone). I've asked many questions about the hydraulics and how realistic it is. Well, I finally got to sit in one. Let me tell you... it is REAL. I sat in the student seat and Blake sat in the instructor seat and it was just like looking out at Whiting. It was weird. The guy running the sim had turned off the hydraulics, which I must say, was not a nice thing to do because I was flying around and my body wasn't moving, but my eyes were saying I was and I got a little nauseous. I didn't feel bad, though, because Blake said he was too.

I took off, flew around Whiting. I tried to hover, which, needless to say did not go well. I didn't crash! And it was super super fun. I could have sat in that thing for hours. Best. Video. Game. Ever.

Then, it was Uncle Dan's turn. The guy running the sim put them on a carrier. Man, was I glad I had the nice solid ground for mine. All that blue water and blue sky was seriously disorienting.

I sat behind them, near the control panel and the guy running it saw my curious looks at the panels and started showing me everything he could do. It was amazing! He was like, "look I can put them in a snowstorm!" And he pressed a button and all of a sudden, there it was, a huge snowstorm and they couldn't see anything. haha. He put it back to moderate snow so they could actually see where they were landing. They did go belly-up once in the ocean and got the red screen of death. They got reset and Uncle Dan successfully landed on the carrier. Yay!

The fun part over, we headed to the moving office to see if it was possible to move our stuff on such short notice. It was. So we did all that paperwork, went home, had lunch, changed into respectable clothes for the winging!

It went by so fast. It was a huge winging class, but it was all a blur. When I pinned Blake's wings on (ever-so crooked), it was the proudest moment ever. Also, the Rear Admiral who was the guest speaker, was SO unbelievably nice.



We did the picture thing and headed to the after party. Speeches, toasts and chick-fil-a ensued. Everyone jokes about how newly winged aviators spend all their time in front of mirrors and can't stop looking at their wings. Well, I was the one who couldn't stop looking. It was unbelievable that the day was finally here. Plus, they're very shiny and I'm like a magpie.

For dinner we went to Frank and Lola Love Pensacola in the new Margaritaville Hotel. The food was really, really good, but it was so loud in the place that I would never consider going back. By the end of the meal, I was a little hoarse from trying to talk/having to ask Blake and Uncle Dan to repeat what they'd said.

It was a beautiful view, though, and a nice place.

The winging party was right next door at the Land Shark Bar. That place rocks. The bar itself is normal, but they have a huge open space behind it with Adirondack chairs and hammocks and palm trees and fire pits. They have a volleyball net and ping pong. It's just a really relaxing place. We stayed there until about 2. Then, I drove Blake, Evan and Uncle Dan home. Everyone (except me, the DD) took advantage of the open bar.

As an aside, Blake met the other two guys and their wives, who are also going to Mayport. They said their orders had gotten changed to a later report date and Blake's was too, but no one could find him during the winging to tell him because everything was so busy.

We got back, Uncle Dan went to bed, and we headed over to a friend's house where there was supposed to be another party, but instead, we sat outside of his house for 45 minutes because he'd locked his house key inside the house. Good times.

We all slept in Saturday. Uncle Dan's plane didn't leave until later so we headed downtown for lunch at McGuire's, which is always delicious. I'm seriously going to miss that place. Just like I miss McGillicuddy's in Montpelier. I'm sensing a trend in my life.

We dropped Uncle Dan off at the airport, dropped Evan at his truck down at the beach and commenced to vegging out because Blake and I were completely worn out.

The story has a happy ending. Monday morning, bright and early, Blake went to base to see if his orders had changed and indeed (after phone calls and much confusion), they were. In fact, we were already on our way to Jacksonville to look for a place to live when we got the call that his report date had been changed to a more reasonable one.

We went anyway, though, and have found a very nice 3br house with a medium-sized commute. But that is another story...

Great Day

Had more Thai today. Met four other ladies from the CinC boards (three of us had met before). So nice! I love how our little group is growing. Except I forgot to take a picture, grrrr! I had my camera and everything. FYI: The Siam Thai lunch buffet is only $8.55, including tax. Unfortunately, I could only eat one plate of food (and a side of 5 pieces of sushi rolls). Tasty indeed.

It's nice to have some women to commiserate with sometimes. Mostly, my husband is my sounding board. *Cliche alert* My husband is my best friend. It's true because it said so on our wedding invitations. He's a great listener. He lets me complain and then smirks and says, "you're such a whiner." I know that should make me feel worse, but it makes me laugh every single time. He's good at breaking tension. It's one of the reasons we never fight. One of us inevitably says something funny and neither of us can resist a good laugh. Hope it's always like that.

The girls and I laughed a lot today. Which feels better than sitting home eating a 9X13" pan of brownies alone and watching "Legally Blonde" one and two.

A complete Fourth

Fireworks, food, huge crowds... and the obligatory drunk.

Yup, our bases were all covered last night. Blake and I were, um, lucky, enough to have a live play-by-play, running commentary on last night's fireworks over Pensacola Bay courtesy of Mr. Harmonica-blowing, Coors-light-holding, slurred-words-saying, 4th celebrator. The fireworks were beautiful and very well synced with the radio. We had a good view from Bayfront Pkwy and sat next to a lovely family here visiting on vacation. The father was a serious Chatty Cathy and he talked Blake's ear off before the fireworks while I fell asleep. Don't worry, though, I was up in time for the fireworks courtesy of Elvis Presley, who looked surprisingly fit, trim and well, alive, as he walked his "singing telegram" bike down the road singing "It's Now or Never." Of course, some slightly intoxicated woman burst out into song with him, changing the tune to "Hound Dog." She was surprisingly on key, but unsurprisingly, every lyric was about two seconds shy of correct.

Our commentator for the night had a lot to say. Some fireworks were "$5 firecrackers," while he wasn't sure how much others cost, he felt sure someone else in the crowd did and repeatedly asked, "How much do you think that one cost." He was positive, though, that the state of Florida and the city had plenty of money to spend on fireworks. He also took offense to the occassional car that passed by. He expressed this by stepping closer to the car as it inched its way by the crowds, as if he wanted to fight the actual, physical car.

He was also a history buff. As he weaved his way down the street near the end of the fireworks, his commentary started to die out. It was kind of sad. Until, he shouted, "Down with the Redcoats! Down with the Redcoats!" Yeah, man, down with the redcoats.

Back home, in Upstate New York, we have an annual celebration called "Fourth on the Third." Don't ask me why, but our town's fireworks are always on the third instead of the fourth. Quirky small town life, what can I say. I love that celebration. It's been going on for many, many years. When I was little, we could see the fireworks from my house. No, my parents never took me. They're not into crowds and never felt like driving (sad, I know). I went occassionally with my cousins, but when I started dating Blake, I went every year because his family did. It was awesome. Cookout food, music, every single person in town comes out for this thing. That's not saying much. I mean, it's a town with a population of just over 2,000. We all sit in Wiles Park. The fireworks are set up close by (so close you can see the table where they're set off from. Is that dangerous, do you think?). The fireworks explode directly overhead. That's my favorite part. I love to feel that sound in my chest. I love how it looks like every single firework is going to rain down on the crowd. I love how everyone "oohs" and "aahs" the entire time.

Small-town fireworks are better. They're not as technically impressive, but they've got a lot more heart.

I like it.

Today was made good by one thing... the library. I have a deep, abiding love for public libraries. Some of my first memories are of story time back home, before kindergarten. The books. The painting. The pasta necklaces. All good memories.

I love walking the shelves, no particular book or author in mind, just reading titles and jackets. It can be a bit daunting in fiction, but in non-fiction, it's just... nice. I picked up a couple of WWII books today along with my usual assortment of fiction. I've learned the hard way that when it comes to checking out history books, best not to mix your wars. One at a time.

Also, I got groceries sans husband. He stayed home to study (thanks, Primary).

The rest of my day? Video games. Books. Finishing Airline. Have you seen it? Airline was a series that aired for one season on A&E. FASCINATING. I'm not a frequent flier, but seeing as how I married a military guy, I will be intimately acquainted with airlines through the years. This show dealt with Southwest and let me tell you, there is some serious crazy running around in airports across tthe nation. Yes, there is your normal array of unreasonably disgruntled customers who take out their frustration on the wrong people, but there is also a guy in a tiger costume, a guy in a velour mini-skirt who goes commando, a woman separated from her life-saving medication, an irate and curse-spewing grandma, lots of drunk people and a wedding dress with tire marks down its front. Yikes. The narration is boring, but the meat of the show is extremely interesting.

Unlike most reality TV shows, it's kind of informational. You get to see how an airline works. More importantly, though, I hope those crazy-angry customers see themselves on TV and realize how dumb they look.

Red (like a) Lobster

Long time, no post. Last week was busy, though. Blake's cousin, Travis, came down to visit. His plane left before the sun came up today.

It was a lot of fun, and just the break Blake needed before Primary. He was anticipating having at least a couple of weeks between API and Primary... of course, the Navy threw a curveball and gave him one week. Luckily, Travis was already booked on a flight.

So, it rained the first three days... pouring, deluge, flash-flood rain. The thunder and lightening alone woke me up every one of those mornings. So, we sat around, played COD: World at War, had a lot of laughs.

Then, Saturday, it cleared. Oh boy, did it clear up. Beautiful, perfect, sunshine weather. We got to Pensacola Beach about one-thirty or so. I didn't bring any sunscreen, because, you know, I'm a big idiot. I thought we'd stay maybe two hours. Which, would've been fine and dandy. Except we stayed for about five hours... and at first, everything was fine and dandy. Then, Travis started saying his back was sunburned. So, I reevaluated my body and lo and behold... my entire front was stinging.

The next day, it hurt to stand. My lower legs, stomach and forearms hurt the most. Now, three days later, the pain is subsiding. My husband and I can once again spoon ourselves to sleep.

My mother told me to put vinegar on my burns to take the sting away and stop peeling... I told her I had no interest in smelling like a pickle.

The peeling has started. It looks like someone threw sawdust on my face. It's that disgusting. I'm gross. I'm not fit for respectable company.

A Guest!... or show a civi to work day (sort of)

So, as previously mentioned, Blake's cousin is coming down to visit. Very fun guy. We've had to reschedule his trip twice because of... well... what else? The Navy. Anyway, he's coming tomorrow, and the Navy can't stop him.

As part of the military, there are SO many opportunities. Lots of free or cheap things to do to entertain out-of-towners. True, every day won't be Mardi Gras, but we've got some fun things lined up.

As with Blake's sister's visit, we have a list of awesome, free things to do. Luckily, it's nice weather out and warm enough to visit the beaches on base. I could spend entire days lounging in the sand. Of course, the Aviation Museum at NAS Pensacola is not to be missed. I mean, it's fascinating and 100% free! Also, the Blue Angels are once again practicing. On certain mornings, free of charge, you can sit in the bleachers and watch. There's also an autograph session after.

As for things we'll have to pay for, we're going canoeing at NAS Whiting Field, courtesy of the MWR over there. There's a small fee for that, but it's less than renting from other companies along the Blackwater river.

Pensacola beach, which is $1 (to get across the bridge). I'd never even seen a picture of it before we moved here. I'd heard the sand was white, but I never expected it to be so pristine and the water is the most beautiful, tropical blue color.

The annual Elberta German Sausage Festival is free to attend, but they charge for food. It's kind of like a town fair. It will also allow my husband and his cousin a few day's worth of sausage-related humor. As you can imagine, that is the part I'm most looking forward to....

It's nice to have company, just another person to chill out with, sit on the sun porch and have a beer.