Bedbugs? Gross!
September 29th, 2010 | Life at Sea Morale | Posted by Phil Ewing
It'd be nice if GM3 Andrey Murry's M203 grenade round, launched during a live-fire exercise on the amphibious assault ship Iwo Jima, killed a whole bunch of bedbugs. // MC2 Zane Ecklund / Navy
This whole bedbug thing… blargh… it’s disgusting. Everywhere you turn these days, it’s bedbugs this, bedbugs that, bedbugs here, bedbugs there — I thought I’d find refuge this morning here in the Cubicle of Excellence, but what did I discover instead? A bedbug awareness and mitigation campaign announced this week by Navy Region Southeast, launched “to ensure a large knowledge base about a little pest that has become more prevalent throughout the United States:”
The small, brown, nocturnal insects survive on the blood of their hosts, which are usually sleeping humans. “Bed” bug is something of a misnomer as they can live just about anywhere, including clothing, carpets, cracks, and crevices. While they are not known to carry diseases like mosquitoes or ticks, they can be difficult to eliminate and can make life miserable for anyone who experiences an infestation. These unpleasant characteristics have made the bed bug an object of fear for many, including military members and their families …
Sailors and their families can take a number of steps to keep bed bugs out of their homes. Travelers can treat luggage with a commercially available, EPA-labeled pesticide developed specifically for these insects. Check hotel rooms for bed bugs and inform the management if any are detected. Keep luggage and personal items off of the floor and hang clothing that is not being worn. When returning home, avoid bringing bed bugs into the home by checking belongings for bugs or eggs, which are both readily visible. Wash affected clothing in hot water followed by drying in a hot dryer, which will kill bed bugs in all states of development. Vacuum bed bugs from box springs and mattresses with a high energy particulate air (HEPA) filtered vacuum. Seal any openings where they have access to the home. Enclose mattresses and box springs in commercially available plastic covers, which will prevent bed bugs from entering and entomb any bugs that are already present.
Yeah, entombing them, I like the sound of that — or, preferably, incinerating them all with a flamethrower. I know it’s an important public health matter, especially for sailors living in close quarters at sea, for example, but still… yechhh.
Auto dog
September 20th, 2010 | Carriers Chow Life at Sea Morale Photos Ships | Posted by Sheila
Navy Times writer Phil Ewing and I learned a nickname for a popular machine on board the carrier Enterprise recently — the “Auto Dog,” aka the soft-serve ice cream machine. The term has been in the fleet for years, but it was new to me, and it took me almost a full 24 hours to realize exactly why the machine got this nickname. Ewing got it right away, and enjoyed a swirly dish of apple pie “dog.”
Virtual neglect
August 20th, 2010 | Morale The deckplates | Posted by Phil Ewing
What this world needs is a video game in which you play as the captain of an Aegis cruiser such as the Chosin. Perhaps it could include fighting pirates. // MC2 Daniel Edgington / Navy
Sailors in San Diego engaged in the purest and, I would argue, greatest form of competition as a part of Surface Line Week on Thursday — their first-ever video game tournament, which included 65 teams facing off in today’s top violence title, “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.” Sounds fun, but America’s video game industry should be ashamed of itself: Why isn’t there an awesome Navy game that sailors could’ve played instead?
I’ve been reviewing video games for the Military Times newspapers for three years, and with the exception of two very underwhelming World War II submarine titles, I’ve seen no naval games worth playing on today’s consoles. (PC titles are another matter.) Instead you’re always a Special Forces guy, a Marine infantryman or a Blackwater Xe-style mercenary private security consultant. But never a sailor — unless you’re a SEAL. What gives?
Who wouldn’t want to play a game in which you were the captain of an Aegis cruiser, fighting the Soviets in World War III in the North Atlantic? Or how about an updated console version of the DOS-era classic SSN-21 Seawolf? If it has to be a first-person shooter, all right — you’d be part of a boarding team fighting against pirate hijackers. Or you could have a game called “Weapons Onload,” in which you schlepped box after box of machine gun ammunition at Naval Weapons Station Yorktown, Va. Well, maybe not that.
There is one glimmer of hope: A new “Top Gun” air combat game download was released on Tuesday for PlayStation 3 owners, but that’s no good for a bunch of surface sailors. Don’t they deserve a great video game of their own?
Enjoy the Fourth
July 2nd, 2010 | Morale | Posted by Phil Ewing
Navy
Your friends here at the Center of Excellence are getting ready to secure for the holiday weekend, and we hope you can get in some good relaxation if you’ll be off for Independence Day. If you won’t — if you’re at sea or you’ll be enjoying the summer breezes in Djibouti, Iraq, Afghanistan or elsewhere — stay safe.
Shake a leg
June 25th, 2010 | Gator Navy Life at Sea Morale | Posted by Gidget Fuentes
Amphibious assault ship Peleliu's mascot entertains schoolkids in Dili, Timor-Leste on a break during "Crocodilo" exercises.//MC3 Ian Campbell/Navy
This photograph – of amphibious assault ship Peleliu’s mascot showing off some of his (or her?) latest dance moves to the amazement of school children in Timor-Leste – arrived in Scoop Deck’s inbox this week. For the scores of high-res photos that jam our mail servers, this one provided a sunny break from all things haze gray and underway.
The Peleliu Gator, as the mascot is called, has entertained crowds at college football games and homecomings, but on this deployment it reached out to young children at schools and orphanages in community service projects.
Peleliu and her San Diego-based crew took some breaks during “Crocodilo,” a bilateral training with Timor-Leste and Australia military forces, to reach out to local students. It was a blue-green effort, as a foursome of Marines with California-based 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, which is deployed as part of the Peleliu Amphibious Ready Group, serenaded the schoolkids.
Toddler-flage
June 18th, 2010 | Chow Life at Sea Morale Navy Photos | Posted by Susan Schept
A child looks at his father, CS2 Rowin Lameque, during a Father's Day celebration lunch June 18 aboard the amphibious command ship Blue Ridge. // MC1 Josh Huebner/Navy
Who knew the Navy Working Uniform came in this size? The Blue Ridge’s service staff invited sailors and their families to the enlisted galley for a Father’s Day luncheon. They served up a photo of the day.
As hard core as they come
June 17th, 2010 | leadership Morale NECC Officers | Posted by Lance Bacon
Meet Lt. John Pucillo. This EOD leader lost his left leg above the knee when an IED exploded outside his vehicle in May 2006, in Baghdad. But he didn’t let that hold him back.
Pucillo endured nine grueling months of rehab at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, then returned to active EOD service. He made the U.S. Paralympics Sailing National Team and earned his master’s degree in national security and strategic studies from the Naval War College in Newport, R.I.
Now, the Bronze Star recipient has added another decoration to crown his fruit salad: Jump wings.
Seven in Seven
April 30th, 2010 | Aviation Coast Guard Congress Environment Foreign navies Maritime operations Morale Navy Officers Personnel Pirates Royal Navy Ships Submarines The Pacific Washington | Posted by Lance Bacon
Photo by MCSN Joshua Martin
The Navy nabbed a lot of headlines again this week. Leading the way is news that subs are now officially open to women. In other career news, the active duty master chiefs list was released. The Coast Guard is holding its ground in the oil spill – and against critics. and the Army cancelled the Non-Line of Sight Launch System, which will likely have significant ramifications for the Littoral Combat Ship.
Here’s seven stories in seven minutes from the past seven days that you may not have seen, but are worthy of notice:
The chow’s already great, and it’s about to improve
April 21st, 2010 | Chow Life at Sea Military Sealift Command Morale | Posted by Phil Ewing
The dry cargo and ammunition ship Sacagawea was one of three MSC ships to win a prize -- and a visit from an "executive chief" -- for its food service. // MC1 Hendrick Dickson / Navy
The civil-service mariners of Military Sealift Command handle millions of pounds of food every year resupplying Navy warships at sea, so they know about chow. But three ships in particular stand out in terms of excellent food service, according to an announcement this week.
The dry cargo and ammunition ship Sacagawea, the oiler Guadalupe and the oceangoing tug Catawba all have received this year’s David M. Cook Food Service Excellence Awards, the Navy said. Not only do the prizes reflect chow that’s already good, they almost guarantee it’ll get better:
“Contributing food service personnel aboard each winning ship will receive a performance award and a one-week shipboard culinary training session provided by a certified executive chef to further recognize each of the winning food service organizations for their contributions in providing quality meals and service.”
Imagine that: You just zipped 500 pallets of cargo over to an aircraft carrier, you take the elevator (that’s right) up to the mess and there’s Giada De Laurentiis back in the galley, ladling out bisque. Yeah, these civmars really know how to live.
CNO wraps up Middle East tour
April 2nd, 2010 | individual augmentees leadership Morale Navy The Middle East | Posted by Lance Bacon
Adm. Gary Roughead, left, and Cmdr. Ed Devinney, commanding officer of the destroyer Cole, thank sailors for their hard work while deployed. (Photo by MC1 (SW/AW) Tiffini Jones Vanderwyst)
Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead recently visited Africa and the Middle East to strengthen maritime partnerships and spend time with sailors in the region.
During his visit to the destroyer Cole, Roughead described the ship as symbol of strength. “Remember the special heritage that this ship has,” he said. “It represents the resiliency of our Navy, and it represents the spirit of our Navy – in ways that other ships simply do not.”
In Djibouti, he toured Camp Lemonnier, telling IAs / GSAs that “this is a different way for us to use our Navy.” The Navy has about 12,000 sailors on the ground.
Roughead also visited troops stationed at United States Military Training Mission in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and the amphibious transpodt dock Mesa Verde. “I believe that there is no more flexible, no more powerful, and no more effective source than the Navy and Marine Corps team,” he said.