NAVY BOOT CAMP – NOT AT HOME ON THE RANGE
NOT AT HOME ON THE RANGE or WHY I (HAPPILY) DIDN'T QUALIFY FOR A MARKSMANSHIP RIBBON Amidst the daily drudge of PT (Physical Training), marching on “the Grinder,” learning to tie knots, and basically scrubbing and polishing anything that held still long enough, there were few...
Navy Mess: Chicken Salad Sunday
There is a particular day in boot camp that stands out for me, and not in a good way: Chicken Salad Sunday.* I arrived at US Naval Training Center Orlando for Boot Camp in June of 1977. Florida was hot and muggy, very buggy, and a...
My Top Ten Navy Boot Camp Lessons (Good, Bad & Ugly…Smelling)
My Top Ten Navy Boot Camp Lessons (Good, Bad & Ugly...
US Navy Boot Camp-Day One: Welcome to RTC Orlando
Boot Camp Send-off? I really don’t recall the first leg of travel to Navy Boot Camp. A lot of things fade after 40+ years. I was twenty years old and already out of the house when I joined. I had also signed up a month or...
US Naval Station Great Lakes: Petty Officer Tennis Shoe
In 1977, despite the best efforts of some, the US Navy was not an Equal Opportunity Employer. Sexism was a huge issue. Mid-level Petty Officers expected lower ranking females to sit in their laps and stand under the mistletoe at the holiday party. Some even obliged. It was a difficult environment to navigate through.
Add to that a misuse of authority that cropped up in many places and you have the perfect recipe for a hostile work environment.