I went over to The Front Page, as advertised, at four pm, sharp. The weather was teetering on the edge of being cold, and I was wearing just a t-shirt with the words “Drinks well with others” emblazoned on the front of the emerald green cotton fabric. I did not want to wear a jacket- […]

I am planning on walking to The Front Page this afternoon. It is only prudent. I am, above all things, a man of calculation. I tend not to go out on New Year’s Eve in my personal vehicle, for the obvious reason. The amateurs are out, too, and it is the best personal defense from […]

I watched a brief summary of the primary election results when I got back from The Front Page last night. The place is getting as comfortable as an old shoe, like the battered deck shoes that I wear now that came fromDad. The leather is now molded to my feet, and socks or no socks, […]

(Chief of Naval Operations ADM John Richardson, USN, provided the WEST Keynote Address). I have been putting my oar back in the water lately, and attempting to demonstrate that there is some creativity left in the old fingers. I don’t have the corporate resources to actually travel to San Diego as I used to, so […]

19 November 1989. This is a business day. Woke up at six, got down to the office to get ready for business. I read the message boards and discovered there was a major meeting in the Mission Planning space at 1030, and had a chance to sit in on Captain Tim Thomassy’s Pre-Sail meeting, since […]

  Annus Horribilis I have been thinking a lot about bygone days, as my weary readers are well aware. It seems safer back there, though when one actually looks at it objectively, there have been a few rough spots in our national life. 1968 was one of them. One correction to Marlow’s magnificent essay “Crossings” […]

Editor’s note: The veil between the worlds is very thin this morning, and my pal Marlow hit me right between the running lights this morning. We both can feel it; something in the air, or maybe the vibrations of the earth beneath our feet. I have felt this way before- a sense of foreboding that […]

17 NOV, 1989 I ate lunch down in Wardroom Two, clear mistake. It was fried formerly frozen fish, wax beans and possibly the worst macaroni and cheese I have ever tasted. I sat with Skipper Dussman and a couple VF-31 Tomcatters, and listened to tales of Figther Squadron liberty. One of them featured the Skipper […]

16 NOV 1989: There is a Big Time hangover to greet the new day. The French beer is apparently powerful stuff, particularly effective against the defenseless and recently detoxed system. On FID, the Air Wing Six Staff simulates constructive effort in the morning, pretending to read the boards and discussing the remaining action agenda ashore. […]

The TRANSLANT is over. The deployment begins. TOULON, 15-19 November 1989 I make a couple tactical errors leaving the boat. One: I go ashore with the Grownups. That means that the first liberty boat is out of the question. CAG and DCAG have many decisions to make; we have a detachment of people and airplanes […]