I was standing at a “khaki call” which we have everyday around lunch time with the XO, officers, and chiefs. A chief I didn’t know approached me and said “ENS Morton!” I was worried I did something wrong! But then he said, “Is your dad John Morton?” And I’m thinking, ok great, where is he going with this….and then he showed me his watch which says STAR WARS. He is an avid fan. This was yesterday. Now, every corner I turn and every time I check my e-mail, there is someone asking me if it’s true that my dad was Luke Skywalker’s gunner and stood in for Boba Fett. It's like high school all over again. I guess they haven’t found out about the book and the family yet, but I'm sure someone will while stalking my dad on the internet. haha
Life is good, I’m really enjoying my job, but I’m getting really busy. By busy, I mean yesterday I stood watch starting at 0630 and then wondered why I was exhausted by 6 pm from the work I did the rest of the day. And then I stood watch again from 2-7 am. There is something to be said for living in your workspace, you never get away! It's awesome. And now I can't sleep because I have so much to do, but instead of doing it, I'm painting my toe nails and updating my blog! I have been in nail polish with drawl. Last weekend in Korea, I was hanging out with a Korean girl who was a friend of a guy on the ship. I was trying to explain to her how annoying it is sometimes to have so few women on a ship, just becuase of things like not being able to find nail polish remover when you really need it. So right before we left, she went out and bought me lavender scent nail polish remover, pink polish, and even cotton pads! (I apologize to all the men reading this, but the women understand.) Now I can wear my rainbows and have my feet feel pretty again!
Since I am happy with pretty pink toes, I'm going to try and get some work done now. And by the way, today is crazy hat Friday so I am wearing this obnoxiously pink hat that I bought in Korea. I think everyone is figuring out my personality because they say the hat seems to fit. (I'll put up pictures soon!) And my mom was worried the military would stifle my creative spirit. But I think every job needs some color once in a while.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Where Do I Begin?
So I'm already failing at the blog thing, but here's another shot. I can attempt to pick up where i left off, but since it's been a few weeks, there is obviously a lot in between.
I arrived in Japan early in the morning after an interesting flight with mostly enlisted Marines. As the only non-dependent girl on the flight, I got plenty of comments about why I was carrying a pink carry on bag that clashed with the green seabag. As I was boarding the plane though, I found another guy that graduated with me on the same flight! It was reassuring to see a familiar face. We arrived and easily found our bus to the Navy base. During the 3 hour ride, we got all the good information about what life was like living in Japan. The ever-changing ship schedules, the famous chu-hi drink, and the fact that most single men will eventually marry a Japanese woman. When I arrived, MUSTIN wasn't there yet, but luckily Jaime Howe found me and we hung out until the ship pulled in. It was cool to watch the ship pull in, I hadn't seen it since the Commissioning in San Diego and the expereince was very surreal. I walked up to check in, knowing nothing other than I was looking for ENS DePooter, my sponsor. Checking in didn't take long, and soon Jaime and I were off to her house in Zushi, a small city south of Yokosuka, right on the beach. I can't even explain how nice it was to have somewhere to go, to put my stuff down, and relax after such a long two days of traveling.
It took me the whole weekend to feel normal and adjust to the time difference. Jaime took care of me, introducing me to here friends from her ship. I was totally spoiled with American food, it felt like I was just visiting friends for the weekend. I did have some sushi though from one of those places where they have the conveyer belt and you can pick whatever you want! The Japanese also have this great drink called Chu-hi, which I mentioned before. It tastes like a fruity soda, you would never know it has alcohol. (It's the perfect drink for Stephen!) I bought a phone, it's solar powered, just for Maddie! I can charge it simply by letting it lie in the sun for a few hours. It's sad though, I don't have many people to call yet, but the good news is you can e-mail me on it at m.v.morton.12@ezweb.ne.jp
Jaime has the cutest house ever, the thought of decorating my on house is compeletely overwhelming, but she has done a fanstastic job. And I love where she lives, I'm tempted to move in next door! I'm still waiting for Ellyn to get here so we can plan! I haven't had the chance to get settled, I'm probably going to stay with Jaime for awhile until I have the time to find the perfect place. On 4th of July, I went to the beach all day, we then watched the fireworks from a friend's apartment, but the show wasn't the same as being in Annapolis. I actually heard the fireworks through Stephen's phone though when I called to say hi! Monday the 5th I had off too, and then Tuesday I reported back to the ship to go underway. We were out for the whole week, came back for the following weekend and we have been out ever since! Which is why I have yet to be settled in Japan. We return in August for most of the fall so I will have plenty of time then.
So now to ship life. I live in a stateroom with two other girls. Katie graduated from the Academy last year, and Wei graduated with me. Wei is great, she has been dating her boyfriend for as long as Stephen and I have been, literally their anniversary is a day before ours and even weirder is the fact that the to guys are together in the same platoon at TBS! I think she laughs more than I do too, which is saying a lot. So we are the two new clueless Ensigns together, it's great. I am the Assistant Navigator and the Admin Officer. I share the responsibilities with another guy who is teaching me everything he knows. So far, I like the job and I'm learning a lot, but I was serious how I should have paid attention in Navigation class. I mean, the last time I worked on a chart was frantically this Spring, imagine my group of 4 people huddled over a navigation chart with blue pens and highlighters trying to figure out where the shoal water is and how to lay a track to follow. You learn all that stuff plebe year and soon forget it. Jason, the navigator, has been really patient with me and it's all done on computer now anyway. The people that work for me are really cool too, I worry every time I walk in the door to the officer that I might get caught in the cross fire of a nerf gun shooting. Good thing I'm used to that stuff thanks to hanging out with AJ and Will and Stephen and Kyle!
Day to day life becomes pretty routine. We wake up at 6, eat breakfast, meet with my division in the morning, and continue on with the day, lunch around 12, dinner at 5, sleep whenever you get a chance. People stand watch all night long, I don't think my body knows what schedule I'm on, or whether it's night or day. There are meetings for every little think you can think of, so they fill up a lot of the time. In between working, we stand watch. I stand on the bridge of the ship, giving orders for how to drive. For right now, I'm more of a parrot, repeating orders, but I'm getting better. It's just, again surreal picturing myself out here in the middle of the ocean. If you try to imagine what it's like being in the Navy, it's probably not quite that romantic, but just picture me standing outside looking over the ocean in my coveralls, my ball cap, with my binoculars. I actually do that. The stars are unbelievable at night, and when the weather is good, it is so quiet and peaceful. I love watching the sun rise and set, Lisa knows what I mean because we witnessed some beautiful sunsets together in Santorini and I'm not sure any rival that yet, but they really are amazing.
I could go into so many details, but I hope to put up some pictures that explain what I mean. I know there are some good ones of me handling lines the other day when we pulled into Korea. I'm in Korea by the way. Really all I've done is eat and shop, but even that was great just to be off the ship for awhile. We tried out some Korean bbq and plenty of street food. I'm so glad I lived in China, because I pretty much can try anything now. I just hate not being able to communicate. The married junior officers guys and I went shopping, for purses specifically. We went to the International Market in Pusan, which is streets and streets of things crammed into every corner. You can bargain for everything too. One of the guys apparently was an expert purse shopper, he would go into places only if there was potentially a back door leading to a room of the "good stuff" meaning really good knock off Chanel, Prade, and Gucci bags. So he talked to one guy who lead us around a corner and up a dark staircase and into a well locked room. I thought we might get shot, but luckily we walked into a nice room full of expesive looking bags. Too bad I'm not into labels, I thought about buying one for Emily though. So that was my shopping experience in Korea. Me shopping with the married men and giving them my little shopping advice.
Now, I'm on duty sitting in my little stateroom with Wei, listening to Jack Johnson. I'm not even sure if it's light outside still, I'm slowly getting used to having no windows. I'm happy so far, missing everyone at home and summer in Annapolis, but in general as I get to know people better and as I come to understand more about what's going on, I feel more comfortable everyday. And it's nice to have the Mustin family pictures on board and Doug's painting hanging in the wardroom.
I miss you all and love you so much! Stand by for pictures!
I arrived in Japan early in the morning after an interesting flight with mostly enlisted Marines. As the only non-dependent girl on the flight, I got plenty of comments about why I was carrying a pink carry on bag that clashed with the green seabag. As I was boarding the plane though, I found another guy that graduated with me on the same flight! It was reassuring to see a familiar face. We arrived and easily found our bus to the Navy base. During the 3 hour ride, we got all the good information about what life was like living in Japan. The ever-changing ship schedules, the famous chu-hi drink, and the fact that most single men will eventually marry a Japanese woman. When I arrived, MUSTIN wasn't there yet, but luckily Jaime Howe found me and we hung out until the ship pulled in. It was cool to watch the ship pull in, I hadn't seen it since the Commissioning in San Diego and the expereince was very surreal. I walked up to check in, knowing nothing other than I was looking for ENS DePooter, my sponsor. Checking in didn't take long, and soon Jaime and I were off to her house in Zushi, a small city south of Yokosuka, right on the beach. I can't even explain how nice it was to have somewhere to go, to put my stuff down, and relax after such a long two days of traveling.
It took me the whole weekend to feel normal and adjust to the time difference. Jaime took care of me, introducing me to here friends from her ship. I was totally spoiled with American food, it felt like I was just visiting friends for the weekend. I did have some sushi though from one of those places where they have the conveyer belt and you can pick whatever you want! The Japanese also have this great drink called Chu-hi, which I mentioned before. It tastes like a fruity soda, you would never know it has alcohol. (It's the perfect drink for Stephen!) I bought a phone, it's solar powered, just for Maddie! I can charge it simply by letting it lie in the sun for a few hours. It's sad though, I don't have many people to call yet, but the good news is you can e-mail me on it at m.v.morton.12@ezweb.ne.jp
Jaime has the cutest house ever, the thought of decorating my on house is compeletely overwhelming, but she has done a fanstastic job. And I love where she lives, I'm tempted to move in next door! I'm still waiting for Ellyn to get here so we can plan! I haven't had the chance to get settled, I'm probably going to stay with Jaime for awhile until I have the time to find the perfect place. On 4th of July, I went to the beach all day, we then watched the fireworks from a friend's apartment, but the show wasn't the same as being in Annapolis. I actually heard the fireworks through Stephen's phone though when I called to say hi! Monday the 5th I had off too, and then Tuesday I reported back to the ship to go underway. We were out for the whole week, came back for the following weekend and we have been out ever since! Which is why I have yet to be settled in Japan. We return in August for most of the fall so I will have plenty of time then.
So now to ship life. I live in a stateroom with two other girls. Katie graduated from the Academy last year, and Wei graduated with me. Wei is great, she has been dating her boyfriend for as long as Stephen and I have been, literally their anniversary is a day before ours and even weirder is the fact that the to guys are together in the same platoon at TBS! I think she laughs more than I do too, which is saying a lot. So we are the two new clueless Ensigns together, it's great. I am the Assistant Navigator and the Admin Officer. I share the responsibilities with another guy who is teaching me everything he knows. So far, I like the job and I'm learning a lot, but I was serious how I should have paid attention in Navigation class. I mean, the last time I worked on a chart was frantically this Spring, imagine my group of 4 people huddled over a navigation chart with blue pens and highlighters trying to figure out where the shoal water is and how to lay a track to follow. You learn all that stuff plebe year and soon forget it. Jason, the navigator, has been really patient with me and it's all done on computer now anyway. The people that work for me are really cool too, I worry every time I walk in the door to the officer that I might get caught in the cross fire of a nerf gun shooting. Good thing I'm used to that stuff thanks to hanging out with AJ and Will and Stephen and Kyle!
Day to day life becomes pretty routine. We wake up at 6, eat breakfast, meet with my division in the morning, and continue on with the day, lunch around 12, dinner at 5, sleep whenever you get a chance. People stand watch all night long, I don't think my body knows what schedule I'm on, or whether it's night or day. There are meetings for every little think you can think of, so they fill up a lot of the time. In between working, we stand watch. I stand on the bridge of the ship, giving orders for how to drive. For right now, I'm more of a parrot, repeating orders, but I'm getting better. It's just, again surreal picturing myself out here in the middle of the ocean. If you try to imagine what it's like being in the Navy, it's probably not quite that romantic, but just picture me standing outside looking over the ocean in my coveralls, my ball cap, with my binoculars. I actually do that. The stars are unbelievable at night, and when the weather is good, it is so quiet and peaceful. I love watching the sun rise and set, Lisa knows what I mean because we witnessed some beautiful sunsets together in Santorini and I'm not sure any rival that yet, but they really are amazing.
I could go into so many details, but I hope to put up some pictures that explain what I mean. I know there are some good ones of me handling lines the other day when we pulled into Korea. I'm in Korea by the way. Really all I've done is eat and shop, but even that was great just to be off the ship for awhile. We tried out some Korean bbq and plenty of street food. I'm so glad I lived in China, because I pretty much can try anything now. I just hate not being able to communicate. The married junior officers guys and I went shopping, for purses specifically. We went to the International Market in Pusan, which is streets and streets of things crammed into every corner. You can bargain for everything too. One of the guys apparently was an expert purse shopper, he would go into places only if there was potentially a back door leading to a room of the "good stuff" meaning really good knock off Chanel, Prade, and Gucci bags. So he talked to one guy who lead us around a corner and up a dark staircase and into a well locked room. I thought we might get shot, but luckily we walked into a nice room full of expesive looking bags. Too bad I'm not into labels, I thought about buying one for Emily though. So that was my shopping experience in Korea. Me shopping with the married men and giving them my little shopping advice.
Now, I'm on duty sitting in my little stateroom with Wei, listening to Jack Johnson. I'm not even sure if it's light outside still, I'm slowly getting used to having no windows. I'm happy so far, missing everyone at home and summer in Annapolis, but in general as I get to know people better and as I come to understand more about what's going on, I feel more comfortable everyday. And it's nice to have the Mustin family pictures on board and Doug's painting hanging in the wardroom.
I miss you all and love you so much! Stand by for pictures!
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