Catalina HO!

Well the past few days have been good under way. Monday morning we passed under what I am told was the Golden Gate Bridge, hard to tell for sure however considering we could barely see it from the helo-deck on top of the ship. The PJ exercise went from being an awesome C-130 HALO Boat drop from high altitude, to the boring task of raising a black Zodiak in and out of the water with our crane. Currently we are off of Santa Catalina Island do maneuvering drills. I have to say it is a pretty odd feeling being so close to Catalina, yet knowing that it isn't our destination. So after we do circles around Catalina for a day or so we'll be off on our way back down southward towards Panama.

Things I've learned so far:
1.) I would've been an engineer if I wasn't a Global Studies major. (they get to fix stuff (deckies break stuff alot))
2.) You can always find fun even in the most annoying jobs.
3.) Never tell a bunch of meat heads and work-out junkies the gym won't be set up for 3 weeks, because then they'll put it together in one night just to spite you...
4.) Getting lost is the best way to figure out and remember how to get places.

Mission 1: Successful:- retrieved 2 bags of Costco Trail Mix (hopefully will laugh)
Mission 2: Come up with third mission...

with all due respect,

MDPN* 3/c Schiesser
sschiesser@csum.edu

(*MDPN- acronym for Midshipperson, for Midshipman was found to be not politically correct)