Blogs
A trip across the pond (Week 9)
OSC Joel Wifler
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Day 57: Nothing Significant To Report. Just another relaxing Sunday at sea.
Day 58: All hands awoken at 0240 something this morning for one fearful expression over the loud hailer, thankfully, all hands were accounted for. Tracked down some good ole’ fashion messaging this morning and afternoon, I actually felt a little like a Radioman again.
Day 59: The word and environment of the day is “Rain”. I swear we must have steered through every single cumulus cloud formation for a natural “fresh water wash down”. I consider myself lucky for the ten odd minutes of sunshine I stood under this afternoon.
Day 60: Last full day for Andy, Bridget, and Don. As to their spirits, Andy is acting normal, Bridget seems to be on a short fuse, Don fidgety. A practical joker has sprung up in the midst of these three Chief’s departures. I have an idea of who it is, but how to repay them will take immense thought. It’s 2130 and time for my nightly bowl of cereal, yet a dilemma has presented itself. No Spoons! So I resorted to eating it with a fork. This wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be, but I guess that has something to do with rice crispies. If it was raisin bran or apple jacks, bites would have been smaller.
Day 61: Welcome to Dakar, Senegal. Duty on the first day for a change. Safari trip planned for tomorrow, but I’ve chosen not to go. I can go to a zoo back home. The nose piece on my glasses broke off during my watch tonight and my spares are uncomfortable.
Day 62: Tired from all my time in the sun and watchman gear yesterday. Only four hours of sleep between watches. Liberty plans will take me to a resort-style hotel today, plenty of time to make up relaxation for last night. With the lack of liberty vans, the group and I walked into the city in search of a taxi. After being accosted by a Senegalese, he gathered us into a van and we were on our way. 12000.00 CEFA’s for each person was not what we were expecting, but paid anyway. 10000.00 more for entry into the hotel. Twas an expensive, but really relaxing and peaceful day by the pool.
Day 63: Slept most of the day due to sitting in the sun for a majority of the afternoon yesterday. Care packages arrived for every member of the crew from a very generous town of St. George, SC. A huge thank you for your support and a special thanks to Mrs. Wimberly for organizing this feat. The Mess is cooking pizza and wings for the crew tonight (morale Saturday). Afterwards, a slow but interesting trivia night was held on the mess deck by the morale committee. I’m told “team car ramrod” took the honors by the end.
SN Jason Evans
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Sea Struck
The nature of a ship
As well as the sea
Can never quite be predicted
Swells rise and fall
Drills come into life
Only to later die away
Clouds Roam
The moon
Gestures a silky road
The ship
She rocks
Drifting to where she is bidden
In the morning light
Tiny blue workers
Scramble to mend her rusted wounds
To some
The journey
Is most fortuitous
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Though to others destiny
The days and weather change
As strangers become friends
Moreover sorrow
Into meditation
As longing
Turns into Love
Then back again
Port to starboard
She rocks
Poseidon breathes deep
Drawing her near
Towards the gentle squall
A sweet sigh of tears
Breaks from the silver lining
The tears
They are gone now
But never to be forgotten
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PA1 Tasha Tully
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July 26, 2008
Each Dallas crewmember received a care package today from Mrs. Stephanie Mae Wimberly (MK1 Rex Wimberly’s wife) and Mrs. Marcie Hardy (MK1 Michael Hardy’s wife) and the congregations of the Reevesville Baptist Church and Mount Tabor Baptist Church, in Reevesville, S.C., and St. George Methodist Church and Old Mount Zion Baptist Church, in St. George, S.C. The packages came literally minutes before we left port in Dakar, Senegal…six boxes full of boxes!
MK1 Wimberly delivered several of the crewmember’s boxes to their rack…and boy were they surprised! Most of us haven’t received mail since we left the states, so it was an extra treat to have a special package waiting for us on our racks.
In trying to get a photo to send back to the churches, it was quite a chore for me to find any of my shipmates who hadn’t completely devoured everything inside their box! Luckily, I was able to snap a few shots when a few of our guys returned from liberty before theirs too were empty.
A care package for each crewmember
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Each box contained a variety of snack foods including candy, popcorn, cookies and potato chips, along with a magazine, notepad and pen, and a toothbrush and toothpaste. It was like Christmas in July aboard Dallas that night! Everyone was noticeably happier and in high spirits…I’m not sure if it was the sugar high or the kindness of strangers that elated the crew, but it was probably a little bit of both.
On behalf of the entire crew, we’d like to thank Mrs. Wimberly, Mrs. Hardy, the congregations at Reevesville Baptist Church, Mount Tabor Methodist Church, St. George Methodist Church and Old Mount Zion Baptist Church for their thoughtfulness and consideration in putting together the packages for us. They were truly appreciated and cherished…at least while they lasted…but the thought and sentiment will stay long in our hearts. Thank you.
Photos
Chief Barry Insley, Chief Carla Clark and Chief Aaron Small are ready to serve the masses!
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Chief Joel Wifler readies his pizza slicer during a morale event where the Chief’s Mess made pizza and wings for all hands.
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Senior Chief Ira Weed presents an American flag to FS1 Tamara Riley in honor of her retirement during an awards ceremony held on the ship’s flight deck.
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SN Kevin Ziegler, SN Timothy Ford and SN Gil Timmons show us their gifts before digging in!
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Dolphins chase one of Dallas’ small boats.
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MK1 Rex Wimberly delivers several boxes to starboard deck berthing.
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Dallas’ Sailor of the Quarter, Seaman Timothy Ford
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FS2 Jeff Mahar gets some simulated medical attention from FS2 Dannette Jones, FS3 Megan Sweeney and SN Brannon Woodruff during basic first-aid training on the mess deck.
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MK3 Kristen Esters removes a fire hose from a P100 pump during Damage Control training in a rainstorm on the ship’s fantail.
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ET3 Brandon Bryant fixes one of the ship’s security cameras on the fantail.
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FN Richard Rivera prepares the starboard deck fuel intake for the onload of fuel.
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