Explanation of My Thoughts...

At Sea…

Going to sea is an experience that is very unique and exciting for the Navyman. Even after going to sea for around 24 years the same feel of the ship leaving the dock and gliding through the sea exists after a time in port. There was always a feeling of adventure when getting underway, but within an hour after getting underway the movement of the ship would bring drowsiness to the typical Navyman, and if he was not on watch and other things made it possible he would take a little nap somewhere.

Entering your homeport after a long sea cruise was a very thrilling event. Even if the Navyman had no one to meet him when his ship came back to her homeport it was still exciting for others and that excitement was very contagious. There is nothing that can match the feel of leaving the ship down a long gangway and first placing your feet on land. As one tried to walk it was almost impossible to walk in a straight line after being onboard a ship which was pitching and rolling almost all of the time. Even in relatively calm seas there was movement of the ship that the Navyman had to compensate for. Once a Navyman acquired his sea legs he could not walk a straight line on dry land for a considerable time after he left his ship.

Thoughts of other shipmates and other ships always confronted the Navyman. It has been over 25 years since I last served on a Navy ship but I find that in sleep at night, I still dream of going to sea on ships that I know, and on occasion in these dreams I see shipmates that I would rather not see at all. I also see many individuals who I know and appreciate. It really seems strange to me after all this time that these thoughts are still embedded in my mind. I expect this is the price that the Navyman has to pay for spending a career going to sea. And as I said in "Once I Was A Navyman"; "Some thoughts are good, some are not so good but all are etched in the mind of the Navyman, and most will be there forever."

When the sea is tranquil and the conditions are appropriate it is hard to match the visual experience that the sunset at sea presents in the Pacific Ocean. Many Navymen that have been away from the sea for many years still remember the sunsets in the South Pacific Ocean, the South China Sea or the Formosa Straits. The exquisite sunsets through out the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean, and other oceans and seas bordering her is brought about by the volcanic activity associated with the ring-of-fire. This phenomenon occurs due to tectonic plates of the earth moving and allowing volcanic activity to occur. The entire undersea strata of the Pacific Ocean is rotating and allowing volcanic activity to take place on the perimeter of this plate. The resulting volcanic ash that is propelled into the atmosphere by volcanic eruptions is responsible for the crimson sunsets in the Pacific Ocean and adjacent oceans. I realize that this does not provide a total understanding of what has occurred to make the sunsets so vivid in that portion of the world. But it is as close to the facts that this Navyman can present.


The Mediterranean Sea also provides some very nice sunsets on occasion for the same reason but due to different tectonic plates and the active volcanoes of Italy and the adjacent area, such as Etna, Vesuvius and Stromboli.

Most Navymen spent a considerable amount of their free time looking at the sea as their ship moved through that sea, they would be transfixed by the motion of the ship, the movement of the sea and the wake of the ship as it was churned up by the ships propellers. This could take them away from the troubles they might have with infractions of the naval justice system that each young Navyman could find himself involved in. Or the "Dear John" that he received because he has been on a West Pac cruise for nearly 7 months and waiting has become very difficult for one that swore she would wait forever. The typical Navyman carried on and performed his duties to the best of his abilities. The Navy always made sure that they had plenty of duties for the Navyman to keep him from having too much spare time at sea. The Navy would normally try to break up weekends at sea by scheduling refueling, replenishing supplies and taking on ammunition during the weekend, all of us Bluejackets understood that to be a fact of life at sea and the reason for that was to keep a Navyman busy and he is less apt to get in trouble. One should be made to realize that the average Navyman on a ship was probably only 20 years old or younger. And having been there when I was 20 and when I was 40 I fully agree with the philosophy of the Navy.

Watch Standing…

Standing watch was the primary duty of all Navy personnel. The entire purpose of the Navy is supported by watch standers that are depended on to report such things as, other ships in the sight of the watchstander, changing sea states and weather conditions, fuel levels of the ship, water levels in bilges and radar or sonar contacts which might be navigational hazards or an enemy intent on inflicting damage to the Navyman's ship. In the Engineering spaces on the ship constant watch was held on vital temperatures and pressures for a multitude of equipment necessary for ships propulsion and for many other pieces of equipment that provided electrical power, air conditioning, fresh water, salt water and anything else that the ship and Her crew needed to subsist. This is what the Navy is really all about, being aware of what is taking place in your area of responsibility, and reporting what is happening. When a Navyman was standing the mid-watch, the time was from midnight till 4 am, there would be occasions that he might question some of the things that seemed to be happening. Noises that he might hear and investigate only to find nothing, figures that he thought he may have seen but could not substantiate. And even voices that the Navyman heard or thought he had heard. These were the ghosts of the mid-watch and when they appeared they could not be understood in many cases. Many such incidents were reported but were generally never confirmed by another individual. The ghosts of the mid-watch were old Sailors from the past still on watch and seemed to be real enough for many Navymen. I only personally experienced this type of thing on a couple of occasions. But I believe all the individuals that felt this same sensation are truthful in their explanation of what they thought was taking place Navy heroes existed for most Navymen because they were told that these folks were heroes. "Don't give up the ship", "Fire when ready, Gridley", "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead" and "I have not yet begun to fight" were all quotes by famous admirals that commanded Navy ships or fleets. I as a Navyman felt these individuals were all heroes but I also had other heroes in mind that never had a quote attributed to them, but contributed much to their country by their deeds and not by their words.