(Power) Forgiving
adjective
- ready and willing to forgive.
verb
gerund or present participle: resenting
- feel bitterness or indignation at (a circumstance, action, or person).
*********
From before, I believe I wrote:
Rest and relaxation today with heat and ice.
"And that is where my story begins. My last 45 day restriction to the ship for taking beer "off of" a navel vessel."
The beginning of my advancement.
My age time line for that period:
Age 18 to 22. Mostly Pre-marriage.
The above quote came from an Ultra Light Hiking and Long Distance Survival Manual:
"Your mama ain't watching out for you. Don't be an idiot."
At this point of my life I've been in 2 ambulance rides to hospitals.
One from a Sled Riding ordeal and my back and One from a Major Truck Crash that made the local county news paper front page.
Yes, Two major automobile accidents. The Truck crash as a passenger at age 15 and another one that is off the books that I was driving as the State Police and investigators could not locate the vehicle.
Not sure what happened there cuz I woke up in the hospital.
Thank you Dad. You were a master for sure.
Family damage control, my Dad was a pipe fitter before they were named Hull Technicians which included welders and pipe fitters.
That is why he understood fires and heat. I respect him for that.
He also knew how to not be someplace he was. I learned that too.
********
Teams of Sailors on a ship "get to" work as Damage Control Specialists during drills and during actual catastrophic conditions that arise at sea. Assigned to teams in areas and zones throughout the weapon. (What else do you call an US Navy vessel?)
Hull technicians were generally the "LEAD" in times of chaos.
Have you (the reader) ever been a part of a team that it was their job to fix EVERYTHING? No matter what the issue?
Then and there and during sparks, flames, twisted metal and the sort? Welcome to DC & DC Central on a Naval Ship.
Granted my time and sea duty was on vessels that are either still in service, awaiting to become scrap metal or already have been chopped up for the needs of the NAVY. Also, my time served on shore duty was mostly during overhaul conditions. A lot of twisted, scorched 1" (and more) metal plates and beams was seen by my eyes. Much fire watch & fire drill time spent making sure fires never start to be put out in the first place, safely.
I was a DC specialist for the E-Div.
Cleaned and maintained a lot of spaces assigned.
And to be assigned was not the challenge, understanding ALL within my zone and areas was important and timed.
In training, zanny orders were spoken as to what the perceived trouble is and was (sometimes real in scope). Within seconds, the Electrician within earshot would need to respond to "KILL" power "BEFORE" showers of water fill the compartment or equipment that was in trouble.
Knowing the entire ships circuit breakers (and fuses) was something I specialized in. It was a requirement I took seriously.
Not knowing where "One" 240v 3 phase circuit was once almost took my life. More on that later.
But I took it seriously enough to become the lead electrician at a rank of E-4. My Superiors did not understand the ship as well as I did. A few times I was called into meetings in the Chief Engineers Office (where ALL the recent updated prints resided) to help troubleshoot other things of ships importance. If the ship cannot perform, we might not get back home. We did all we could.
From E-1 to O-6.
It was my job to learn it ALL so I tried my best.
After all of my escapades, I earned Four or Five "45 days" each of "Restrictions to the Ship" which helped in my learning too. I was young and a learning sponge. A disturbing element where ever I went. lol Fixing things that were on the workshop list to tackle.
I just had an issue with liking to smoke weed and not drink.
Drinking got me in bigger trouble. Weed just was looked down upon but most of the country boys I knew from both the USN and USMC liked to smoke wild wood weed. I met so many great country boys from across the land and I met a bunch of great ghetto boys too that smoked weed. Most had 'tudes against the Navy.
I still enjoyed fixing things and could "act" accordingly when I needed to. BCD was not in my vocabulary.
Here was the difference. I was valuable to the ship. I did not have a bad attitude when I got caught doing something that I had already calculated the cost of doing the act. I accepted my punishment.
I would then spit polish my navy life and do the right things and perform the extra duty and restriction honorably. That was looked upon as being odd.
Why? Because I watched so many guys purposely get caught smoking weed (some I was around with that got me in trouble) and then they would let their attitudes and uniforms go to shit.
Soon, they were watched and sure enough would get caught again doing anything semi wrong and soon would then get a "Big Chicken Dinner" or BCD (Bad Conduct Discharge).
I figured that if I didn't have bad conduct, just a desire to smoke weed instead of drinking hooch, then I might make it longer in the service and continue to learn stuff. That tactic worked for me.
I was watched, tailed and then not watched as close and then tailed by NIS and then falsely accused and I also was allowed to see the transcripts of "HOW" they tailed me cuz I had a civilian lawyer who shared with his client what was pertinent to the harassment case. (Young Naval Officers follow guidelines text book like).
I was just an odd, innocent trouble maker I guess.
I also learned when "they" were getting tired of my antics and then "tried" (unsuccessfully) to frame me and deface my name. That's when "they" lost.
I'll pause here to say: I did need my Mothers help with the LAST one. I was caught and charged with "sale" and "distribution" of an amphetamine. The pills I was freely giving to a tired shipmate were 100% Caffeine. I was not allowed to defend myself and get an independent lab test done on the product that was stolen from me by the master at arms when he did an illegal locker search and seizure of my possessions.
I'm not sure who they are in the family or friend tree but my Mother knew someone to call because I was quickly contacted and represented by high council.
(which is not to be confused by having High Friends in Places). :)
A Captain whom I respected as a Father Figure, was removed from command. I was re-instated to E-3 and on a future remarkable day I met and had coffee with that same Captain at Ground Zero in Washington, DC hours before Hurricane Gloria's Eye wall passed over DC and chased me and a friend up the coast to Groton, CT where I slept soundly as the eye wall passed calmly overhead.
By the time of our meeting, I was an E-5 with a pay record that took 4 years to be corrected due to that event with the caffeine pills. Several years had passed but the Universe (and NIS) placed the Captain and I in the same line at the Navy Federal Credit Union branch in the Pentagon because of the Hurricane.
Congress DOES work for the people and they pay the Atlantic Fleets Bills. God does work for us all and answers prayers.
Somehow Source Energy decided to allow me to be used to stop some corruption at higher levels within the USN and kept out of the papers. That is ok. It's not a big story. The story is having coffee at Ground Zero. And to have it with a Father Figure that I had to have removed from command. That was a dream fulfilled and he forgave me for my actions that worked out for his good.
No harm and only good came from the event those many years ago.
I will continue to live a life of understanding that EVERYONE puts their pants on one leg at a time unless they do not have legs. No one is above the law.
O-10 or E-1 on the pay scale. It does not matter.
God is no respecter of persons. We all are treated exactly the same.
And are protected the same. Divinely.
Also, corporate HR tends to follow similar rules when they tail someone as for a case in firing an employee occurs. Not sure how I would know that. I guess I was not there or paid attention during either one of the last times I was fired for not being allowed to do my job. lol.
Back to the ship and restriction: (one day)
If I was bored and needed to be there anyway, I might as well learn something. Out came the Tech manuals in the shop at all hours of the day and inside the machines were print outs and drawings of how they came from the factory BEFORE they were modified for shipboard use. That "BEFORE" is very important as it almost killed me one evening I was bored and working alone, after hours on an industrial dry cleaning machine. 240 volt: 1 of 3 phase AC from right pinky to left wrist thru the heart.
I must have been white in the face when I woke up because by the time I hoisted myself up 3 sets of vertical ladders in a manhole shaft and looked in the mirror when I reached the closest Head, (Ships Bathroom), I was white there and shaking. I woke the Duty Corpsman who then listened to my heart and said it was beating ok.
Can't say I died cuz I'm here. It was just another one of the close calls that perks ones attention. I now play with live circuits, when required, with one hand in my back pocket while probing.
All of this before I was married and had kids, and it seemed I was always in the running for the Darwin Award that year and again, I declined the invitation. Apparently the Universe had other plans for my life to bring me to today.
I'll need to save more of this for later as it is lengthy and can actually be broken up into several chapters for my interest.
I didn't need traumatic experiences, I was a traumatic experience.
I'm learning how to form my forgiveness for my self.
Till then, still moving forward.
~ Kindle.
