High as a Horse

If we give the horses blinders
They won't see the approaching ledge
Too much time and effort spent on just another bridge

We trust the local doctor
We trust the medicine
Our child gets a scratch
We give our child a brand new head
We eat what's on our plate
We drink what's in our cup
We like the shiny tv screen
It spits we lap it up

And so they push this product
And they know we'll buy it
They sing a song
We hum along
We sing
But we don't understand the words to the song

And they fill our heads
With sugar coated shit
Cause there's no need to talk
When we have medicine

There's a pill for every fucked up thought
And a cure for every fucked up child

When the mind starts running
Be sure it won't cross the finish line
And if it wanders
Bring it back and cage it for some time
And if it stretches
It will only one day rip
To prevent excessive thought
Just keep it up on the shelf

And when the shelves are full
And supplies are short
And quickly running out
You've got a thousand mindless zombies
And terrified horses on your hands

It was a damn good plan
It was a damn good plan

    I feel like life is racing by me like staring at race cars in the center of a race track. Wanting to jump out and grab onto one and hold on but getting run over like a turtle.
    I have completed my first phase of Advanced Technical Training! Throughout the whole time there I have learned so much more than I thought I would have. Looking back at the experience it wasn't as bad as I thought it was. I can't really compare it to other schools because I really haven't taken any other schools here yet. Waking up at 11 doesn't sound bad at all right? I didn't really like it I guess. I hate waking up late. When you have a whole day you should fill it with something great instead of wasting half of it in your rack. I think that was the toughest part for me because I like to eat Breakfast, I like watching the sun rise, I like to smell fresh morning dewy air. I felt like I was in a coma for the past two months when I got out of the school. I get to see daylight and play outside with the other kids! My days were filled with awesome events like muster at 1330 or Heritage every Tuesday, oh and don't forget watch which would wake you up at 0330 and make you stay up until 0600. I am really proud I have completed that part of my career in the navy. I am starting to realize what it means to be in the world's most powerful navy. It didn't mean as much to me before I realized how much I like being able to do what I want on weekends, or seeing other people doing what they want whenever they want. I really enjoy the fact that because of the Navy we have what we have today. I know that's saying a lot and there are other branches of the military that sure put in their time but I've been going all America on everyone's asses lately. Watching old war films on World War II about how badass the United States Navy is. If we didn't do our part we wouldn't even have marines on the beaches of Normandy, or the ass-kicking of the Japanese fighter pilots in the Marianas Turkey Shoot. The Japanese lost 300 planes to our 30. 300 planes! Without those events in time we wouldn't have great jobs like Americorps or Peacecorps. I will gladly put in my time to be able to supply other people with the opportunity to better themselves and others with love and care. We are all one big family, there is too much separatism in this culture. I just want people thinking about why we have what we have. It's all good.

      I received a couple of college credits by completing phase 1 ATT. I am deciding what I want to do with them...If I would like to use them and get a electrical engineering degree or wait. If I wait I have the chance to get my own college credits in something other than elec. eng. and possibly something with a natural science flavor to it. I have always been fascinated with organic farming, I think that's why in my Organic Farming class I took at Keene State I actually tried. Why is My Morning Jacket's 'Z' album so good?
      I ran a 5k the other day! It went around the base and showed me a great path to take so I can stop running on the boring track. I saw our Commanding Officer in front of me, I believe she is like sixty years old but I'm not sure. She was booking it! I was impressed. I passed her.

      Played some drums today, got my groove on. My roommate Smith and I jammed out for a bit but his amp wasn't able to be adjusted and was too low for me to hear. I miss my kit back home. If I am ever able to get a house off base I am totally throwing a kit together and playing on liberty! Maybe find a local band or band members and start something fun. I miss playing out in front of people. I miss the smell of everyone on stage stinkin' up the place.

I just got this album in the beginning of ATT and it's helped me get through the tough and great times here.

Gorillaz - Plastic Beach
Superfast Jellyfish Ft. Gruff Rhys & De La Soul

This morning you've got time for a hot, home-cooked breakfast
Delicious and piping hot in only 3 microwave minutes.

Yo, pretty packages of frosted delights
Look, it comes with a toy hehe, I like that.
I wanna number 4, a number 6, and throw in a plastic doughnut
Just enjoy the gritty crunch, it tastes just like chicken.
Wrappers of many bite sizes
Man, are you freakin' blind? That's a rock.
All mixed in the pot for momma's homemade from scratch, well, not quite.
Toasted over flames, they be tasting quite right.

All hail king Neptune and his water breathers
No snail thing too quick for his water feeders
Don't waste time with your net, our net worth is Set, Ready, go.
Many know others, but
we be the colors of the mad and the wicked
we be bad, we be brickit with the 24 hour sign
shower my habits while you dine like rabbits
with the crunchy, crunchy carrots (that's chicken)
Gotta have it Superfast!

(A whole lot of breakfast you got time for!)

Superfast Superfast, I come in last, but just in time for breakfast
Keep it through, Keep it through, forever blue
Tonight's the night for action (?)
Aluminum I crush your fun, aluminum
The sea is radioactive
The sea is radioactive

All hail king Neptune and his water breathers
No snail thing to quick for his water feeders
Don't waste time with your net, our net worth is Set, Ready, go.
Many know others, but
we be the colors of the mad and the wicked
we be bad, we be brickit with the 24 hour sign
shower my habits while you dine like rabbits
with the crunchy, crunchy carrots (that's chicken)
Gotta have it Superfast!

Superfast Superfast, I come in last, but just in time for breakfast
Keep it through, Keep it through, forever blue
Tonight’s the night for action (?)
Aluminum I crush your f.u.n aluminum
The sea is radioactive
The sea is radioactive
    

Computers

         I started Apprentice Technical Training school last week! Finally! I am starting to gain electronic skills in the field I am in. It was pretty frustrating being here and not knowing when you would start classes. I was left out in the rain for about a month and a half without knowing really anything. Just relying on people who had already completed the school to get my information which sucked.
         So I start school at about 1600 which isn't bad, my days are changing every month so I feel like whatever my schedule is...it will probably change next month. So I wake up at about 0900 and have liberty for the morning until about 1400 when we muster in the lounge. I go to school at 16 and then get out at about 0030. I didn't think I would mind this schedule too much, and I don't...It's just harder to wake up in the morning because I have had so much mandatory study time in the AM. And when you flip schedules immediately like that you have to adjust all over again. It is comparable to jet lag, it takes a few days to where you have enough energy to go work out at like 10am where at the other schedule I'd be working out at 5pm. Everything is complicated here because if you want to work out you can't work out when the only time you have to eat is from 1145-1230 because you have events on your schedule that force you. I know those times aren't bad at all I'm just being lazy pretty much.

          I haven't shaved at all this weekend and have pretty much been a bum all weekend. It has been amazing. Very Nice!
So next week I will try and get my OOD(Officer Of The Deck) quals so that I can stand an effective watch. The OOD's job is basically the manager of the quarterdeck. The quarterdeck is the entrance to the ship that everyone walks through in order to come aboard. Some of the jobs I will be performing will be to yell at people when things are getting too loud, answering incoming phone calls, and making announcements over the 1MC. Also, playing AC/DC's Highway to hell on Fridays when Liberty is called!
          School is going pretty good so far. I like going to bed at about 1am. Surprisingly enough the body adjusts to everything you do. I have noticed that over the three-four months I've been in here. No matter how much you love sleep, your body WILL function on less than 8 hours of sleep. I think I grew up different because I needed 8 hours of sleep. Everyone in high school always wanted to stay up later and come to school all dead and tired. I just wanted to get my 8 hours and wake up to bike to school energized and ready to go. Here is crazy, I am up crazy hours and stay up. And when you wake up you better be awake or you get disciplined. DISCIPLINED! It's not bad, just gives you good character. Right.
          Oh, our entire curriculum is on a computer. I stare at a computer screen for about 8 hours when I'm there. That is pretty tough. We get to play with our dorky electronic instruments and test devices. I almost feel like a doctor trying to diagnose a patient. I have a positive and negative lead and I find problems. The point of my school is to find problems and solve them. I've enjoyed my time so far, the rest can't be that bad right.
         Besides this weekend, the temperature has been slowly rising and the running shorts are slowly shaking the dust off themselves. My raggedy old blue hat and I will slowly shake the winter pounds off one day at a time soon. Sooner rather than later.

Some days it sneaks up with me that I can't leave here until I'm finished. A few seconds ago I thought about leaving for a road trip for a weekend. I can go on one of those, but I can't go longer than a duty-free weekend. Or else I get in trouble. Who thought it was a good idea to join something that takes away all of your freedoms. Places you in close quarters with people you don't know. Get fed shitty food, pay too much for fun activities. Who's idea was this? Some dumb ass I guess.

Songs
My morning Jacket - What a Wonderful Man

Hectic, Hectic, Hectic

I have finally reached my new base! It is time to get started on my way to a great education!

     Just across the street is where I spent my time in Recruit Training, or a little place I like to call 'Hell'. I guess looking back it wasn't that bad. I woke up, I ate, I had activities, I ate some more, and then I went to bed. Silly how simple life was back then. I would love to keep life simple. I wake up usually every day now at about 05:30 trying to get to breakfast before we muster. 

    Speaking of mustering, we just mustered in the lounge of the ship twice in one hour for no reason at all. It's 2200 right now, and the first muster was at about 2130 so I came back up and got back into my sweats. Lets this be a lesson to myself in that you should always be on your toes. I was thinking about going down in my sweats but then I thought to myself, 'What if they actually care like they have EVERY other time I've done this kind of muster' So I got back into uniform of the day. Excellent! 

    I am growing accustomed to the late night musters and the getting dressed in under 2 minutes because that's what I do now. I get paid to play dress up. I am O. K. with that. If that's what you want me to do Uncle Sam, I will do it.

I should probably tell you the fun I've been having here lately that precede today's regularities. 

         After I left 'Boot' I went to a ship called the 'Enterprise' and I don't know if I wrote it down yet but I had just come from another ship called the 'Enterprise' which was a blast! So I figured this ship would be a total blast as well. I come to find out how great this ship is when they say muster is at 0530 and chow opens at 0500. I am waking up at 0430. Kaboom! What a blast. We stand in formation at 0545 for a hour listening to our Petty Officer basically yell at us about something we haven't done since it's our first day there. He quits his blabbering and we go on to our indoc classes. This cycle repeats for about a week and I receive information that I might be moving. I hear great things about moving; refrigerators, kitchen areas, internet, private shower! CARPET@!#%%*% So I get pretty excited about moving. My friends also said they didn't even have to take a test to get to phase 2, meaning they can have a beer, wear civilian clothes, stay out overnight, and not have to muster at crazy hours at night! I get my hopes up a whole bunch before the Enterprise gives me a job in the Supply Office. I am to manage the Supply Office now. Not move off the ship. . . Fear not! I can take a test for phase 2 here at the Enterprise! I study a whole bunch reading up on my new chain of command, new rules to follow for hits on my room(trash left out, laptop left out, cell phone left out) and I study hard. Tests are usually taken at night so I schedule to have a test on Tuesday because there is a holiday on Monday and i can't take it because no Petty Officer will be here. Tuesday rolls around and I find out I am finally moving to another ship for real. I am all excited to leave the ship because I won't have to wake up so early every day. I move to the Bonhomme Richard. This ship is brand new. Carpet! Internet! Cable! Bathtub! Door blocking bathtub/toilet area from population! I'm impressed! But still no phase 2. Maybe phase 2 is just not for me. Maybe I will never be able to achieve such great things. I do have a great job now which was given to me by surprise. I like to think of myself as a pretty good worker, I certainly have a lot to learn when it comes to work ethic I think. I like to impress people when I display my work, weather it be constructing something, playing something, or whatever the case. I don't really like to boast or brag and try to keep to myself with certain things. I guess something I did just caught the attention of staff here. They gave me a job as a secretary working directly with three 2nd class, one 1st class, and one Chief. I couldn't really believe that people wanted me to represent the ship somewhere. It made me happy. I don't have to deal with being on hold anymore. Being on hold is boring and redundant, our skills can be used better rather than just having fifteen people sweeping one floor of a small building. Anyways, I'm saying that while I was at the Enterprise, or while I was on hold I never really complained about having to clean constantly or waking up super early to muster, and even when I clean here I never really try to complain. It's very easy to complain. It might sound like I just complained for a couple of paragraphs, but I like to believe that great things will happen to those who are great, and those who can wait. I can't stress enough about how important it is to have patience in the military. You could get worked up and stressed a lot about certain things like cleaning or waking up or mustering early. Jus' Don' Do It! Don't be the guy who wants to join another branch of service because he thinks they might run things differently and there won't be as many idiots. 

The grass is always greener on the other side. 

Gahhhh I need to play some musical instruments soon or I am going to explode.

On the more current events I am now taking a class Tuesday called 'Prevent' I guess it's basically a class where we can say whatever we want and not have any repercussions. Sounds like Al-Anon to me. Uncle Sam, you dog! How'd you know!

 

music in my head

Drive-By Truckers: Two Daughters And A Beautiful Wife

Liberty Call! Liberty Call!

I have now become a United States Sailor in the United States Navy!
I'm looking around at all of my shipmates as we begin walking into the graduation hall with our big smiles showing. I have never seen the other side of the gates and Friday was the day I was free to do so.
Graduation went smooth, everyone marched fairly well and knew what they were supposed to do in the ceremony, I'm just glad it is over. I guess it was two and a half hours long, but it only felt like I was standing for a half hour.
I got out into the car and we went down to the Navy Pier and saw the new Avatar movie. That was an Awesome movie, everything going on made my head spin in circles trying to catch up. I could see tiny bugs fifteen feet away from me. It was amazing! I was the skeptical guy thinking it would just be another stupid Juno movie and it turned out to be a blast to watch. I can't wait to see what happens with the next generation of films in 3-D. Is 3-D new? Why does it seem like we are just getting into this third dimension crap when it's been out for forever ago!
Enough about movies, I have been locked up inside a room for the past nine weeks I guess I should probably fill you all in on what it was like.
A typical day for me was waking up early, let's say 6am was the latest I woke up. I guess we would wake up earlier if we had important things to do, usually important things were firing weapons or fire fighting. Those were the most fun as well. I will gladly wake up early to get paid to fire a gun! The things we did after we woke up usually were brushing our teeth/shaving, then going downstairs to eat(chow). After that we'd usually do some sort of studying, physical Training, or if we were lucky, a cool interactive course like Line Handling, or Fire Fighting, Weapons Training, Gas Chamber, Studying, Drill Marching for graduation(Practice), studying, oh yeah and more studying. I know the entire history of the United States Navy front and back which is pretty cool. After all of that we would usually go back to our ship(Building) and eat chow. Soon after that I was off to do ship's staff which means I was about to take part in a team effort to get the ship on 'spot'(clean). I was a janitor! YAY! I would clean the ship every night at around 1800-2000 and that usually was my boring/crappy part of the day. After that we usually studied or went over anything that we needed to know for the next day and usually hit the racks at about 2200. Sometimes we'd go to sleep earlier if we had to wake up at 4 the next day, sometimes.
We always had to stand watch and there was always someone standing watch in two places; the Compartment(my room) or the quarterdeck where everyone boarded the ship. I know i have a ton of new terms for everyone to understand, so bear with me. When standing watch you can't go anywhere, you have to stand there and wait for people to enter and challenge them with a salute and a sound off. Souding off is usually something like...Seaman Recruit Camillucci Division 074 USS. Enterprise(my ship) Ship 10 Junior Officer Of The Deck Respectfully Requesting Permission To See Your Military Identification
It's not a lot to say but it's usually pretty tough when someone of high importance walks in and is in a hurry so you have to sound off quickly. It was pretty fun getting to do that because we were able to get used to challenging officers and chiefs and regular civilian employees. It will help me when I go to my A-school because only a few people were chosen to become Ship's Staff and now I can skip a week of learning.
The days would go by sooo slow in the beginning. I don't think i stepped outside for anything until week two when we had to go to another building thirty feet away. That wasn't my favorite part too much. I think they really drive home the dehumanizing part when they only let you eat, sleep, shit, and study when they want you to. That is one of the hardest things to deal with, especially when you get out into the civilian world and have to come back to the compartment and do everything when they want you to again. I leave for my school Tuesday and today is Sunday so I only have two days left of the bullshit I guess.

I miss my personal freedoms, I can't explain how fun it was for me to sit on my deck and stare up at the stars smoking a cigarette and enjoying the night sky. Now I only get to go outside to take out the trash and I'm fully dressed with a ski mask, scarf, gloves, knit cap and giant parka. What a crazy contrast to what I was doing two years ago. Helping homeless people with all of the freedoms in the world to do great thinngs for people and friends around me. Now the hardest thing for me is not being able to go outside when I want to. I know my school will be a lot like college without any of the on campus partying but I would just like it to come right now instead of later.
I have learned some great skills such as; sowing buttons, ironing, and learning how to fold various items of clothing, also how to shine my shoes. I cant believe I've been alive this long and haven't taken my time to make everything neat and clean. Taking the time to prepare your shit and clean up immidately or fold and stow your clothes directly after you get them is my new goal in life.
I would like to be an organized sailor.
I need to get going back to the base now, we have to leave the hotel by 1300 and it's drawing ever so close.
I miss my friends, I miss my family and I miss Lyn a whole lot.
I know everything will work out for the best regardless whatever happens. I just need to stay on top of my studying and stay at the top of my class and I should be squared away.
I will probably get more time to update in the coming weeks with an address as well.
miss you guys
Chris

music in my head
Grizzley Bear - Southern Point