so yesterday evening im at the computer, surfing the net.
then the announcement comes over the loudspeaker there's a fire on the pier!

well i jump up and run outside, look down on the pier, and sure enough, there are FLAMES coming from some of the massive wires on the shore power connection box!!

its pretty cool. after a minute or so, here comes the fire party from the ship, all dressed out in their flash gear, with about three of them running down the pier with bottles of CO2 over their shoulders. of course all the officers on the ship come running out there too, as does the XO, who was apparently working out; he was in PT attire!

anyway, a couple guys try and secure the power with no luck, so they douse the flames with the extinguisher. after three or four blasts its out. moments later, two firetrucks, the battalion chief, three cop cars, an ambulance, a van with the COG, two jeeps with the base CDO's, and the duty base electrician all show up. there were emergency vehicle lights, sirens, and speeding cars everywhere it seemed! the whole base practically saw it!

so they all do their parts, get the wires removed, and about an hour later, everything is back to normal.

but boy was it quite a scene! ive never seem anything like that!! thankfully everyone knew what to do and did it quickly. im sure all the other ships were thinking; "what the hell happened to the Nash that they need the entire freakin' rescue force??"

it was cool; got some pictures while i was watching.

...all is calm on the eastern front now.

did it!

went to UHAUL, and got a 5,000 lbs capacity trailer hitch installed on the truck!! complete with wire hookups!!!!

now im ready for hauling anything around!!! like my '71 Duster!!!! when i actually get it....

its been done!

Jeff, Tim, and I have applied and 90% secured an apartment!

its a new (about 10 years old) 3 bed / 2 bathroom apartment, not too far from the base and other necessities (mall, beach, major stores, liquor...).
not a bad price either. its in a very nice, quiet neighborhood too.

tomorrow im picking up a mock-up lease to send to ADMIN on base so we all can get our BAH started up, and we officially sign the lease August 6th, with a move-in date of the 7th!!

nice night!

went to the Gilbert residence. Warren, Liz and I went to Oberweiss for some ice cream. very good by the way.
went back to their place, talked and joked. it was nice to see Liz again after almost a year!

later i met up with Marissa and we talked and joked and reminisced on old times. walked the River Walk before she had to leave.

all and all: a very nice night!

Operation: Victory! is almost at an end.

just some last minute visits and family time, then tomorrow morning im on the road.

back to the ship, back to the Navy, and back to long work days.
ALTHOUGH, Jeff, Tim and I are looking at apartments out in town, and so far we have found a few we like. got to just call them up, set up a visit, and hopefully within a week we'll have our own pad for awesome house parties!

anyhow, hung out with Mark on Saturday, went to the Macias house for Juve's graduation. got to see Stephanie and Becca.
Monday me and Mark went to a car show, got to see Amanda and Mel and their dad's old and new Challenger. nice rides! it was hot as all hell so we didnt hang around long, and went back to my house and installed David's new front and rear speakers in his car. that was fun, been awhile since my last install!
other than those events, ive been chillin' at home.

its been a great leave thus far!

yesterday:

attended the funeral. it was incredibly hot outside..

then i worked on the brakes on the bike. got them to function, i think...

after, visited the Gilbert's.

next, me and dave were bored, so i drove out to Garfield Road. it was creepy. then toured the west side country side.

today? DARK KNIGHT!!!

the wake was today. got everyone up there. met some relatives and friends of Rose. Uncle Don flew in too.

they had good orange juice there....

the funeral mass is tomorrow at 9:30am, and the burial at 12:15.



hung out with Molly today. just stayed at her place and ate lunch and chatted. it was nice to see her again before she headed back to the city.

sad news:
one of my Aunt's, Aunt Rose passed away the other day.

she was very sick and was in a coma for 9 days, hadnt eaten during that time either.

so the wake is today at 3pm. im driving Grandma and Grandpa up to the chapel where its held; dropping them off, then swinging down to O'Hare to pick up my Uncle Don. then heading back up to the place, and afterwards taking everyone back to the house. mother and the rest of the siblings will join us all up there, and dad after work.

right now im getting ready for lunch with Molly!

Operation: Victory! has been a success thus far!!

met up with the family at Daufuski Island, SC for the family reunion. it was pretty good. got to see most the relatives. fun times! very nice place. got a sweet sunburn!

drove home yesterday with dad (he had to be at work this morning). what a long 14 hours! no downpours of rain this time. plenty of construction traffic in IL though. not surprised.

this morn: i cleaned the truck and ran some engine cleaner through the system. hopefully ill get batter gas mileage now.

Molly stopped by on her way out. said we should get together tonight if im not busy. shes in town for today to babysit.

anyway, i got new brakes for the bike. going to install them now!

this is it!

in a couple hours, Dave and Steven will be joining me on the "Navy Experience" of their lifetime!

last few days before home!!

tomarrow we pick up the "tigers".
should be fun the ship has a lot planned!