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Howard’s Journal
Forgive me if I sometimes state the obvious on these pages, but the life, education, and experiences I knew, never prepared me for what was to come. A wife, a daughter, a job with a lot of responsibilities, and the house out in a beautiful suburb (all this would be later). The biggest step I made before all that other stuff, was the time I joined the United States Navy. This was the first part of the grand adventure to follow.
I want to make it clear right now, I was an eighteen year old kid with no direction. I never finished highschool, and received a GED instead. I was not dumb - I was bored. I was tired of school and wanted to get out into the ‘real world.’ I wound up with a job that paid just above minimum wage, and lived in an apartment I could barely afford. In less than two years, the ‘real world’ was kicking my ass all over the place. I had a hard time keeping up with the rent, and my mother was buying me my groceries. My father offered me a chance to get out of Arizona, and live with him in Colorado. He even offered to pay for a college education. My stupid response to that was, “if I have to do everything your way - forget the whole deal.” Boy was I dumb! He called my bluff of course, and never mentioned it again. Dad was the kind of person who offered a good deal only once.
So here I was going down the toilet financially at the tender age of twenty, and I still had no plan for what I wanted to do with my life. I would get off at work, come home and do nothing. I could not afford to go out during the weekdays. I had a car that was a gas guzzler and I wanted to safe every drop for trips to work, and the weekends. I remember family members starting to lecture me about my life, and how I really needed to do something, and be somebody. I have been down that same old road with my mother. Every time she dropped groceries off at my place, she would shake her head and start in on the lecturing. You definitely got the idea on the direction I was going. Kind of sounds like the life of a junkie, doesn’t it? Here was the funny part - I never did drugs, but I did start drinking (more on that later).
I do not remember what happened, or where the idea started. I think I was over at my friend’s apartment one Friday night. We were drinking beer and watching a little TV. I think my friend flat out broke the silence with, “ I am going to join the Navy,” or some words to that effect. I crunched a beer can and headed to his refrigerator for another, “really? Why would you want to do that?” I asked as I grabbed two more beers. I went back into the livingroom and handed him one of the beers, and I flung myself into the other easy chair. I popped the top to my beer and took a guzzle, and looked at him, “well?”
“I think I need direction, Howard,” he answered, “my brother already has over five years in the Army.” I put my beer down and put a cigarette in my mouth, “so why the Navy?”
“They offer a wider range of skills. I think I will go down to the Navy recruiting office on Monday when I get off work.” I lit my smoke and took a long drag, “what time do you get off of work?”
“I get off at five,” he sipped from his beer and looked at me, “why?”
“Why don’t you come and get me and we will both go.” I think that is the way the conversation went that night. If you actually saw us in front of a TV with beers, and talking about joining the Navy, you would have laughed. I think I was serious though.
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