First off, the pride of the Memphis Zoo. Only a handful of zoos around the country are able to afford the costs of “rental” and up-keep of these beautiful animals, we are very lucky that Memphis Zoo is one of them.

Panda relaxing at the Memphis Zoo

Now, I wanna side track you a second before I show you more of the animals. Right outside of the Panda exhibit, there is this Chinese symbol embedded into the ground;

Chinese symbol at Memphis Zoo

I have no idea what the symbol means, but when I turn the picture on its side, it appears the Chinese may be playing games with profanity!

SH...??

Aaa, who knows – I more than likely am seeing things – my Mom sees faces in clouds, I guess it’s hereditary. Back to some animals!

Meerkats at Memphis Zoo

Bongos at the Memphis Zoo

And here is one that I think makes a GREAT background for your computers monitor

One of the Newest Members - A REAL Memphis Grizzly!

Two thirsty warthogs

6ft 3in tall baby giraffe - only one month old.

Memphis Zoo has lions, tigers, bears, and oh yea - cheetahs too!

And lastly, one of our favorites – the polar bears.

One of the three polar bears at the zoo.

Well, I hope you enjoyed them – I have a ton of other Memphis zoo pics I have taken over the past few years, if you liked these then check them out too. The zoo is world class and a must see – when you come, make sure you too bring a camera

2010 Military Pay Chart
2011 Military Pay Chart

Domestic Violence is incompatible with military service and contrary to the Navy’s core values. If you have been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, you are ineligible for enlistment; however, there are exceptions to the rule, which are discussed below.

If you have a conviction for domestic violence, as defined in Title 18 U.S. Code Sections 921 and 922 as discussed below, you are ineligible for all military service – not just the Navy. Domestic violence offenses may also include, but are not limited to, assault, assault and battery, and disorderly conduct convictions in which the perpetrator and victim meet the conditions of the domestic violence rule. The domestic violence rule must be applied regardless of whether or not you were charged with domestic violence.

Rule: The crime of domestic violence means any crime which includes the attempt or use of physical force or the threat of use of a deadly weapon, where you (the perpetrator) are the:

1. current or former spouse, parent or guardian of the victim; or
2. you and victim are parents of a child; or
3. you cohabitated with the victim as a spouse, parent or guardian; or
4. you were serving in a role similar to spouse, parent or guardian of the victim.

This rule does not apply to deferred prosecutions, pretrial diversions, or similar alternative dispositions in a domestic violence case. These are not considered convictions for purposes of this rule, but will otherwise require waiver processing. Deferred prosecutions are not the same as deferred or suspended sentences, which are the result of a conviction. All questionable cases will be forwarded to Navy Recruiting Command’s legal department by recruiting personnel.

Waivers for domestic violence convictions (misdemeanor or felony) are not authorized, per the Lautenburg Amendment to the Federal Gun Control Act of 1968.

2010 Military Pay Chart
2011 Military Pay Chart

Information Systems Technician (IT)
Nuclear Field
Aircrew Rescue Swimmer Program
Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD)
Navy Diver (ND)
Special Warfare Boat Operator (SB)
Special Warfare Operator – SEAL (SO)

The maximum benefit is $65,000, and it is taxed as income. Loan repayments can be made to qualifying loans like Stafford, Perkins, Ford, and other loans that typically are described as “Title 4″ loans.

LRP participants may utilize the GI-Bill; however, to qualify, you must re-enlist for a second term (and have served a minimum of 24 months of that second term).

Currently, all active programs, with the exception of the Full Time Support (FTS) and the New Accession Training Programs (NAT), are eligible for the LRP in rates that ship to boot camp in FY-2011. See your Recruiter for complete details and updates.

2010 Military Pay Chart
2011 Military Pay Chart

2010 Military Pay Chart
2011 Military Pay Chart

The list of events and dates:
Where-What-When
MOBILE, AL-USS INDEPENDENCE (LCS 2) COMMISSIONING-JAN 16
LOS ANGELES, CA-USS LOS ANGELES (SSN 688) DECOMMISSIONING-JAN 23
BALTIMORE, MD-BLACK ENGINEER OF THE YEAR AWARDS (BEYA)-FEB 18-20
NEWPORT NEWS, VA-USS NEW MEXICO (SSN 779) COMMISSIONING-TBD
SEAL BEACH, CA-USS DEWEY (DDG 105) COMMISSIONING-MAR 6
NAF EL CENTRO, CA-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-MAR 13
TAMPA, FL-NAVY WEEK-MAR 13-21
MACDILL AFB, FL-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-MAR 20-21
PHOENIX, AZ-NAVY WEEK-MAR 22-29
PENSACOLA, FL-MEDAL OF HONOR DAY COMMEMORATION-MAR 25
KINGSVILLE,TX-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-MAR 27-28
TORONTO, ONTARIO-NATIONAL SOCIETY OF BLACK ENGINEERS (NSBE)-MAR 31 thru APR 4
WASHINGTON DC-MILBLOG CONFERENCE-APR 9-10
KEY WEST, FL-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-APR 10-11
CHARLESTON, SC-NAVY WEEK-APR 12-18
SAN ANTONIO, TX-NAVY WEEK-APR 15-25
CHARLESTON, SC-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-APR 17
DES MOINES, IA-NAVY WEEK-APR 19-24
FT. WORTH-AIR POWER EXPO & CONCERT-APR 23-25
VIDALIA, GA-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-APR 24-25
PT EVERGLADES, FL-FLEET WEEK-APR 26-May 3
KANSAS CITY, MO-NAVY WEEK-APR 26-MAY 2
ST. JOSEPH, MO-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-MAY 1-2
BIRMINGHAM, AL-NAVY WEEK-MAY 2-9
NAT’L HARBOR, MD-FEDERAL ASIAN/PACIFIC AMERICAN COUNCIL (FAPAC)-MAY 3-7
NCBC GULFPORT-SEABEE DAY-MAY 8
TUSCALOOSA, AL-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-MAY 8-9
TORRANCE, CA-ARMED FORCES DAY CELEBRATION-MAY 14-16
SPOKANE, WA-NAVY WEEK-MAY 8-16
ANDREWS AFB, MD-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-MAY 15-16
CHERRY PT, NC-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-MAY 22-23
LITTLE ROCK, AR-NAVY WEEK-MAY 24-30
USNA-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-MAY 26
NEW YORK, NY-FLEET WEEK-MAY 26-JUN 2
PORTLAND, OR-ROSE FESTIVAL-MAY 28-JUN 12
JONES BEACH, NY-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-MAY 29-30
PASCAGOULA, MS-USNS HOWARD O. LORENZEN (T-AGM 25) COMMISSIONING-JUN TBD
WASHINGTON, DC-SEA SERVICES LEADERSHIP ASSOCIATION (SSLA)-JUN 2-3
EAU CLAIRE, WI-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW -JUN 5-6
MILWAUKEE, WI-NAVY WEEK-JUN 7-13
MILWAUKEE, WI-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-JUN 12-13
CP GIRARDEAU, MO-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-JUN 19-20
PEARL HARBOR, HI-RIMPAC 2010-JUN 23-AUG 2
ST. CLOUD, MN-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-JUN 26-27
BOSTON, MA-NAVY WEEK-JUN 30-JUL 4
BATH, ME-USS DUNHAM (DDG 109) COMMISSIONING-JUL TBD
TRAVERSE CITY, MI-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-JUL 3-4
PENSACOLA, FL-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-JUL 10
DAYTON, OH-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-JUL 17-18
MINNEAPOLIS, MN-NAVY WEEK-JUL 17-25
IDAHO FALLS, ID-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-JUL 24-25
GROTON, CT-USS MISSOURI (SSN 780) COMMISSIONING-JUL 24
PORTSMOUTH, VA-NATIONAL NAVAL OFFICERS ASSOCIATION (NNOA)-JUL 26-30
PORTSMOUTH, VA-ASSOCIATION OF NAVAL SERVICES OFFICERS (ANSO)-JUL 26-30
SEATTLE, WA-SEAFAIR-JUL 31-AUG 8
ANCHORAGE, AK-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-JUL 31?AUG 1
WASHINGTON, DC-HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES & UNIVERSITIES WHITE HOUSE INITIATIVE-AUG-SEP TBD
SAN DIEGO, CA-FLEET WEEK-AUG 1-OCT 31
SEATTLE, WA-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-AUG 7-8
CHICAGO, IL-NAVY WEEK-AUG 7-15
CHICAGO, IL-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-AUG 14-15
BOISE, ID-NAVY WEEK-AUG 20-29
PORTSMOUTH, NH-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-AUG 28-29
BALTIMORE, MD-NAVY WEEK-AUG 28-SEP 6
PASCAGOULA, MS-USS GRAVELY (DDG 107) COMMISSIONING-SEP TBD
CLEVELAND, OH-NAVY WEEK-AUG 30-SEP 6
NCBC GULFPORT-VOLKSLAUF SEABEE MUD RUN-SEP 4
CLEVELAND, OH-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW -SEP 4-6
ST LOUIS, MO-NAVY WEEK-SEP 6-12
SALT LK CITY, UT-NAVY WEEK-SEP 9-19
SCOTT AFB, IL-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-SEP 11-12
SAN DIEGO, CA-FLEET WEEK-SEP 17-OCT 3
NAS OCEANA, VA-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-SEP 18-19
MCAS KANEOHE BAY, HI-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-SEP 25-26
EDINBURG, TX-HISPANIC ENGINEERING SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY WEEK (HESTEC)-SEP 26-Oct 2
ANAHEIM, CA-SOCIETY OF MEXICAN AMERICAN ENGINEERS AND SCIENTISTS (MAES)-SEP 29-OCT 3
MCAS MIRAMAR, CA-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-OCT 1-3
ORLANDO, FL-HISPANIC ENGINEER NATIONAL ACHIEVEMENTS AWARDS CORPORATION (HENAAC)-OCT 8-10
SAN FRANCISCO-FLEET WEEK-OCT 7-12
HAMPTON ROADS, VA-FLEET WEEK-OCT 7-17
SAN FRANCISCO-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-OCT 9-10
ATLANTA, GA-NAVY WEEK-OCT 11-17
NCBC GULFPORT-SALUTE TO THE MILITARY-OCT 12
NAS JACKSONVILLE-NAS JAX 70TH ANNIVERSARY-OCT 15
DOBBINS AFB, GA-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-OCT 16-17
JACKSONVILLE, FL-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-OCT 23-24
DALLAS, TX-NAVY WEEK-OCT 25-31
CINCINNATI, OH-SOCIETY OF HISPANIC PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERS (SHPE)-OCT 27-31
DALLAS, TX-NATIONAL WOMEN OF COLOR (NWOC)-OCT 28-30
FT. WORTH, TX-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-OCT 30-31
LOCAL VOTING BOOTH-ELECTION DAY, VOTE!-NOV 2
ORLANDO, FL-SOCIETY OF WOMEN ENGINEERS (SWE)-NOV 4-6
ALBUQUERQUE, NM-AMERICAN INDIAN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING SOCIETY(AISES)-NOV 4-6
TBD-ASIAN & PACIFIC ISLANDER AMERICAN SCHOLARSHIP FUND (APIASF)-NOV TBD
HOMESTEAD, FL-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-NOV 6-7
NAS PENSACOLA-BLUE ANGELS AIR SHOW-NOV 13

2010 Military Pay Chart
2011 Military Pay Chart

Bonnie and I jumped on the Florida resident ticket offer that allows the freedom of entry into all the parks as many times as we want for the next 15 months. It is usually a 12 month offer, but if you get them before 31 December 2009, you get an additional 3 months. For as often as we go it will pay itself off in no time.

We visited Animal Kingdom during this trip; I made a crappy video of the Expedition Everest ride, in Disney’s Animal Kingdom, taken with my really crappy and old camera, but you get some idea of how fast the ride is and how long it lasts. To juice it up a little I added some Guns ‘N Roses music; enjoy.

2010 Military Pay Chart
2011 Military Pay Chart

Holiday stand-downs have been part of CNRC’s operating procedure since RADM Voelker implemented it back during the holiday season of 2000, his first year as Commander, Navy Recruiting Command.

2010 Military Pay Chart
2011 Military Pay Chart

Serving in the Navy, I wore a uniform and a pair of hard soled, patent leather shoes to work. The shoes were ok for walking around office spaces, but didn’t offer much traction or stability when traversing the great outdoors. I normally left for work early in the morning, it was always dark, and occasionally the morning frost would make the pavement slick. During the months we lived in the house, I fell to the ground more times than I can count tearing holes in at least a dozen pairs of pants. Heck, one fall morning, I slipped to the ground and dropped my cell phone. I could hear the phone skip down the driveway, across the road, and into the deep brush. Not a great way to start the day.

One snowy afternoon, my wife and sons returned from a trip to the grocery store. Her SUV was unable to climb the snow covered rise on this day making it necessary to hand carry everything up the hill. I was in the house and received a phone call from her to come and assist in the transportation of the newly bought vittles to the house. I walked out the front door and looked down the hill to see my family looking back up at me. Between us was the hill covered with a foot of snow that had fallen the night before, but what I didn’t know about the terrain before me would provide for a family story, which even to this day, brings wide smiles, well, for everyone but me that is. During the time my family had been at the store, the temperature warmed just enough to melt the surface of the snow, and then quickly froze again producing a dangerous coating of ice. The first couple of steps I took should have been a warning. When I walked, my feet would break through the icy layer with a crunch indicative of a frosty, potentially hazardous surface. The layer of ice became thicker the further I moved away from the ambient heat produced by the house. I stopped walking when I realized my steps no longer penetrated the ice layer. I am now to the crest of the decline and I am standing on the ice. My feet slowly start to move without any prodding from me. I was starting to fall. I reached for the decorative railing that lined the driveway only to find it too had been coated with ice. As you may be aware, ice does not a good handle make. I hit the ground, the small of my back landing on a 4”x4” piece of wood. I screamed out in pain. I could hear my wife yell up to me, “You alright?” I groaned, “We had cans of tuna; you could have waited until tomorrow!” I could hear my boys laughing. Bill Cosby had it right, if you bring them into this world you should be able to take them out… Anyway, I worked myself back up and with each step, stomped the ground to break the ice to make me a foothold, I repeated that until about half way down the hill, and it was then I hit a piece of ice that would not give. My foot flew outward, followed quickly by the rest of my body. When my upper-back hit the ice-covered snow, it made an indentation large enough for my body to lay without sliding further down the hill. The next thing I remember was looking up into the sky and hearing my kids laughing. I slowly and carefully stood up; I was in pain from head to toe. I looked to my wife for moral support only to find her working very hard at holding back tears, those tears would have been a comfort to me had they not been motivated by the shear pleasure of my discomfort. I muttered to myself, “Dang it.” Then I yelled for all to hear, “I hate this hill!” As before, I attempted to stomp the ground to create a foothold. For some reason, as my body was making its way back to the ground, I recalled something Einstein had said, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results.” This time I hit the ground with enough force to knock my breath away, but not hard enough to break through the ice. My body started to slide the rest of the way down the hill. I was heading right for my wife’s SUV and there was absolutely nothing I could do about it. Thank goodness I had picked up enough speed to hit the SUV with enough force to make a resounding “thud” that knocked off some of the remaining snow from the roof and made me cry out like a woman in labor; otherwise, I don’t think my wife and kids would have got so much enjoyment from the whole episode.

Our sons have always had a great relationship with their grandparents; as a matter of fact, each summer they would spend a majority of their vacation time visiting them. During one summer they were away, my wife and I decided to buy a car for one of them. We shopped around and located an older four-wheel drive truck. The truck required a lot of engine work, but I had the time, tools, and the knowledge so we made the purchase. I drove the truck to our house and up the steep driveway, all the while heavy smoke bellowing from the hood with the distinct smell of oil burning. Backed the truck into the garage and got straight to work; I had three weeks to get the job done. If I wasn’t at work, I was spending the time completely rebuilding the engine, and two days before my sons were to return home I completed the job. We took the truck for a test drive and all went well. The look on my son’s face when I handed him the keys made all the hard work worth it. We piled into the truck and he drove us around town. After driving around for a while, we returned home and we parked the truck at the top of the driveway. I stood near the front of the truck with my son beside me. My son looked at me, and I could see he was trying to formulate the right words to express his gratitude for the unexpected gift when we both heard a “POP” followed by a clicking noise. The truck was starting to slowly move down the driveway. “Click, click, click.” It was starting to pick up some speed. I jumped for the passenger-side door and open it. With all my might, I was trying to hold the truck back from careening down the driveway. My son ran to the rear of the vehicle and started to push, but gravity would prove to be to powerful a force. I told my son to get away from the truck, he argued. I insisted. Once he was safely away and with no other options, I let the truck go. It was just a handful of seconds that had passed from when my son was attempting to express his thankfulness to the destruction of his new, prized possession. By the time the truck had reached the largest tree at the bottom of the hill it must have reached a speed of nearly 40 miles per hour because when it hit, the roof crumpled, all the windows blew out and the driver’s side seat actually broke away from the tracks it was secured on. Needless to say, my son was just as crushed as the truck.

That driveway, we in the family refer to as the cliff, provided us with, now that most of the wounds are healed, many humorous stories regaled at just about every get-together. At the time, I truly hated living there because of the inconvenience it caused me. But, even with all the physical pain the hill inflicted on me, I now look back on it with a certain amount of fondness because it has provided family stories I am sure my great great grandchildren will hear.

2010 Military Pay Chart
2011 Military Pay Chart

The lions startled us by moving ever closer to our position. We take a step back, and, in doing so, push a small rock over the edge of the cliff. For a brief moment, we follow with our eyes the path of the rock as it tumbles toward the bottom of the abyss. The rock hits the bottom, but, due to the distance, we did not actually hear it hit, but our mind replaced the brief gap of silence with its own crashing sound timed with the visual of the rock exploding into a million pieces. One step closer to the edge and we would have met the same fate as the rock! Time slows down, our senses intensify, and we feel like all the blood is starting to drain from our extremities. Just then, we can hear a growling that sounded as if it was produced by the devil himself. Unlike the cliff, the lions provide us with a very different and more immediate threat. We don’t turn to face them straight away; maybe in a hope that they might just go away and leave us alone, but, as the seconds pass, we realize that is clearly not going to be the case. We slowly turn to face the lions while trying not to make any sudden moves that may trigger an attack. Now, our attention has fully returned to the lions. We are so overcome with fear we cannot even count how many there are. We have fixed our eyes on the largest and closest feline. Even with his mouth closed we can see large teeth, but those are not what grab our attention. We fixate on the pupils of his eyes, they seem as big around as quarters, and, when we look deep into them, we realize we are the only thing that lion has on his mind; we are his prey, and he is hungrily sizing us up for the kill. Tears are now starting to well up, making everything a bit blurry, and we are too afraid to blink. Oh God, what do we do?

Launching ourselves off the cliff would be taking our own life; we may suffer less, but how would it affect our after-life? Most religions frown upon people taking their own life. Besides, if we jumped, our bodies would quickly reach terminal velocity, we would be gasping for air, as it would be like trying to breathe with your head poked out a car window at about 120 miles per hour. The sudden stop against the hard, uneven ground would break every bone in our body, and death would be instantaneous. On the other hand, the lions would each bite and rip into our flesh, tearing the organs from our body as we watch in horror. We may even stay conscious long enough to hear the popping sound our leg would make as it separates from our torso. Are we having fun yet?

The bodily pain from jumping of the cliff will be very short lived. With any luck, we may lose consciousness before we even hit the ground, but the pain which will hurt the most will be the mental anguish we will experience from the fact we will not be able to say goodbye to those left behind, and the pain brought on by the wondering of whether or not we made the right choice. Conversely, the pain we will experience at the claws and jaws of the lions will be mostly physical in nature. The trauma of having our flesh ripped open by the multiple predators will generate unbelievable amounts of physical pain that our only thoughts will be in its relief. Death is moving ever closer, and as the pain becomes more than we can bare, we will ultimately embrace the concept of our death and wish it to hurry along.

We are ultimately defined by what we do with the things we can control and how we react to the things we cannot. Even in our no win scenario involving the cliff and the lions, we had only two real choices to make; admittedly, each leading to a closed casket funeral, but provided tons of information to reflect upon. In life, we are confronted with various challenges, and a majority of those choices will not have to deal with life or death, but know that each decision we make is an example that others may use to help guide their future actions.

2010 Military Pay Chart
2011 Military Pay Chart

At about noon, the ship stopped all engines and went dead in the water; the “Steel Beach Picnic” was now underway. The picnic was an event that would make any outdoor party fanatic proud. It was our first day off in a month. We were blessed with a perfect, cloudless day with a light breeze that made the mid-summer heat bearable. Eight grills were laid out end to end, covering about 25 yards of the flight deck. Each one loaded with hot coals at the ready, and seemingly begging for the juices that would be produced from the searing cuts of beef. The coals appeared to be just as hungry as those they were giving their all for. The steaks hit the grated cooking surface with a sizzle and sent the smell of freshly grill steak in my direction. A freshly grilled steak smell has many medicinal properties I won’t get into for now, but I can assure you that it cured any amount of depression I may have felt up to that point. Oh, and what is a party without good music? There were six different bands consisting of talented crewmen, playing various genres of music, and strategically placed around the remaining 90,000 square feet of the ship’s runway. I ate until I could hardly move while soaking up the festivities; this day was shaping up to be a truly memorable day.

As the clean up from the day’s festivities came to a conclusion, you could see the other ships in our battle group start to position themselves closer to us. Each ship maintained a couple of miles separation from the others, and maneuvered themselves until the entire group formed a large circle. Then, as if on cue, the sun appeared to extinguish itself in the sea. If you haven’t seen a sunset while in the middle of the ocean, I suggest you put that on your “bucket list.” It is an amazing sight. Once the sun had completed its journey beyond the horizon, a loud cheer from the ships crew numbering about 5000 seemed to summon the stars to our celebration. I promise you, they showed up to provide a most excellent backdrop for what was going to happen next.

Strategically placed along the perimeter of our ship were mounted .50 caliber machine guns, four along the starboard side, to be used for protection during our planned transit of the Suez Canal, but this night they would serve another purpose. With military precision and timing, each of the four machine guns began to fire producing flame from their barrels accompanied by an obstreperous din. Every fifth round from the guns was a tracer round that produced a red stream into the night air. It was then the other ships joined in the action. The other ships, frigates, destroyers, and cruisers were equipped with 5-inch deck guns and other weaponry they used to fire star-burst rounds that would make it appear as if the sun had returned. America and its power were on full display that night, and I had a front row seat.

On that glorious day, we celebrated our nations birthday nearly half way around the world from home. Remembering those who came before me, I stood consumed with national pride, a since of purpose, and deep emotion. Every concussion from the various explosions sending chills down my spine. It was the first Independence Day in my life I felt I understood what it meant to be an American. Every July Fourth since that day I look up into the night sky and become so overcome with pride that tears fall down my cheeks. Not the kind of tears you might try and hide when you watched Ol’ Yeller meet his demise, I am talking pride tears and they are cool.

2010 Military Pay Chart
2011 Military Pay Chart