Richard Person wrote:
First, let me apologize for sending you that message with the
complete story and no comments.
I was wondering about that. Fortunately I was too tired last night to
say anything that I might have regretted later.
Oops... Fortunately I didn't send it to the FFML as well.
Second, I just want to say I liked your story. I also liked the
earlier one as well.
I'm glad you liked it.
Third, I'm not going to give it a lot of C&C because, to be honest,
when I first read a story I tend to simply enjoy tale, the
relationships, the action. Unless the story is **Really** **Really**
bad, I would probably have to read it at least twice, maybe three
times before I could really start nitpicking it apart.
I look forward to hearing your nitpicks, because I'm sure I screwed up
somewhere big and missed it.
However, (don't you just love 'howevers'?) a couple of things did
sort
of jump out at me.
ombstone." Their escorts were the same two as the previous day.
"<Well, you've burned your first flick aboard the boat. I guess
that makes you about as qualified as a rider can be.>" The bearded one
said.
The bearded one?
Yes, the bearded one.
I was in the USN from late December 1976 thru June 1991 when they
booted me for 'Medical' reasons. From April 1983 thru August 1987 I
was at NAS Jacksonville in Florida. At some point (and no I don't
remember the exact date) during that time the Navy decided that
beards were not professional looking and had to go.
I think it was this and the fact that it is difficult to get a good
air-tight seal on gas-masks and breathing apparatus face masks with a
full beard.
Since then, at least until I was discharged, the most an enlisted man
could have was a neatly trimmed mustache, if his division officer
allowed him to have it.
So I'm just curious. Has this changed? Or are beards only allowed
for Submariners?
This is a matter of individual policy aboard submarines, subject to the
Commanding Officer's approval. I'm not terribly certain about surface
ship policy regarding beards, but since the surface force is a bit more
focused on spit-and-polish, I would hesitate to say that beards are
allowed with any regularity.
In particular the policy of USS KAMEHAMEHA and other Pacific Fleet boats
was to allow a 'no-shave chit' to be issued for a small donation to the
ship's Morale Welfare and Recreation fund. (It was $5 on KAMEHAMEHA).
Sailors were still required to keep their beards neat, and if there was
question concerning this, said sailor would be expected to demonstrate a
proper face seal on his EAB mask. The beards were to come off prior to
setting the Maneuvering Watch for coming into port, and on short term
cruises (less than a month), beards were not allowed.
I still have one of my 'no-shave chits.' it reads, and I quote:
"This card entitles MM2(SS) Wilde to be bearded, whiskered, bushy,
unshaved, fleecy, fuzzy, furry, woolly, shaggy, and even GRIZZLY ADAMS
like."
Or were you trying to convey that a crew at sea for almost 60 days
might have a relaxed attitude toward shaving? Especially for the
NCOs? I am, of course, making an 'assumption' that the escorts would
be at least E-4 (Petty Officer 3rd) or E-5 (Petty Officer 2nd).
A little of both. WWII sub crews that survived a patrol came back
looking pretty scary. This was mostly because fresh water on a diesel
sub is hard to come by, and a little bit because the crew was under
enough strain during a patrol without having to endure the draconian
grooming standards of some Martinet. As for the ranks, E-4s and E-5s
make up about 2/3rds of a modern submarine's crew. No shortage of
supposed "NCOs" here.
If the gods were willing, they would all hit their targets within
minutes of each other and overwhelm the North Korean Rocket
Forces. If not, the very raid itself might preclude the missile attack
they were trying to prevent.
"preclude"?
I'm admittedly weak in sentence structure. I don't think I could
actually point to a verb, adverb or a predicate if my next meal
depended on it.
But, according to my condensed version of Roget's II The New
Thesaurus, 1984 edition, the word "preclude" is a synonym of the
verb
"prevent"
See, I knew I was gonna screw up big-time somewhere...
Thanks for the comments!
Jamie
--
"Why are they wearing bras?"
-Rachel Wilde, age 4,
while watching the Dirty
*ahem* Lovely Angels...
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