"Labamba"
8) Charley's Job - Movies, and Ice Cream
9) Nail Polish
10) Chief Warrant Bos'n
11) The USNS NEPTUNE - Cable Layer
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8) Charley's Job - Movies, and Ice Cream
This is what
Charley's ship does. Though
neither ship is
his, they are similar. Using a
helicopter in this
instance, they are exchanging
movies, or swapping
flavors of ice cream. It's
a tough life for a
sailor at sea these days.
9) Nail Polish
The following scene takes
place on the flying ( signal ) bridge aboard the
USS ARNEB - AKA-56 in
1952/53.
"Hey Fri' ( never use the full last name ), whadda ya got
there?'
Quartermaster Signalman Chief Hollywood asks.
"Whadda ya
think it is...it's a light bulb.' I answers.
"Yeah, I can see
that, but whadda ya walkin' around up here with it for?'
Hollywood had been
my boss when I was in the signal gang, but I had gone
"down" to the
bridge to further my experience as the other half of
Quartermaster. I enjoyed
signaling, and was a hot-shot, but I wanted the
navigation experience I'd get
in the bridge gang.
"The chart desk bulb burned out, and we don't have
any more red bulbs
aboard, so...
I painted the bulb red. I
said.
"Wid regula' paint?' Hollywood asks.
"Yeah...regular
paint...what else am I gonna use.'
We had a reserve group on board, mostly
ensigns, and JGs, and as this
conversation was taking place, they were up on
the flying bridge getting
instructions in the International, and Navy set of
signal flags. We had
little cardboard flags which could be displayed to show
different "hoists".
The kits were set up on the ready boxes for the
20 mm guns. A half dozen
ensigns were within ear-shot of us, and Hollywood
knew they were listening
to us.
"Any ways, I like being up here on
nice sunny days, and amongst my old gang.
I don't want it to dry too
fast.'
"I wondered about that...you could have hung it up to dry instead
of walking
around with it between your fingers...you weasel
you.'
"Yup...that's right. Anyways Chief, where would I get anything
other than
regular red paint to paint this with?'
Looking around to make
sure all ears were tuned to him, Hollywood blurts out
in his raspy Chiefs
voice:
"Ask any of these ensigns, and JGs, they all carry nail-polish
wid them.'
10) Chief Warrant Bos'n
I'll tell you of one rating ( rank
) that "chiefs" of all designations
respected, and gave a wide
berth, and that was that of Chief Warrant
Bos'ns...at least back in the days
of the "right arm" rates" -
Boatswainsmate, Quartermaster, and
Gunnersmate.
Right out of boot camp at Bainbridge, Maryland, I report aboard
the ARNEB -
AKA-56...assigned to the "L" ( Landing ) division. I
was nineteen, but
already had a year at sea with Mobil Oil as Ordinary
Seaman. Having gone to
a Maritime Trades High School, and graduating with
"honors", I had a pretty
good handle on "Marlin-spike
seamanship" - wire splicing, knot tying, and
all that jazz. I now saw
the Navy as a chance to learn the "niceties" of
seamanship -
navigation, rules of the road, and laws. I was in the V-6
program in H.S.,
attending regularly Naval Reserve training once a week at
the old Brooklyn
Navy Yard. Though I don't ever remember learning anything
sitting in those
class rooms under the quise of "Repair Division", it did,
when the
Army wanted to draft me, come in real handy.
Yup, I got called for induction
in the Army. Imagine, a seaman being called
for the Army? Shooo! I
high-tailed it down to my reserve unit, told a Navy
Reserve Commander - Green
was his name - what was happening, and in the next
few days had me on my way
to Bainbridge Naval Boot Camp. Incidently, that
Commander Green had sailed
for Esso ( Exxon today ), and could sympathize.
Anyways, here I am now in the
"L" division, and on my first day aboard,
wire-brushing rust spots
on the LCVP davit spans. Gheeez! More of the same
old crap I was doin' in
Mobil Oil.
Anyways, here I am standing in an LCVP wire-brushing away (
electric
wire-brush ) when I spots this dapper, uniformed fiqure standing
about level
with me on the flying bridge. All spiffy like in his Chief
Quartermasters
uniform, he meanders over to see what I'm doing. I grasp the
moment, and ask
him if he needs any signalmen.
He laughs, and asks what I
know about signalling. Looking around to see if
my boatswainsmate-boss isn't
watching, I jumps the rail onto the flying
signal ) bridge, and running
across the deck to the far twelve-inch signal
light, I hollers to the Chief
to send me anything, at any speed on the light
that's next to him. He turns
on the light, and lets 'er rip. I read
everything he sent, and answered with
my light. Turning off his light he
runs over to where I am, grabbing me, and
lifting me literally off the deck
asking where the hell I came from. They
were down several men, and were
getting ready to sail.
That evening I was
in the Operations Department's - "Signal Gang".
The next day, Chief
Warrant Bos'n - Bowman...a Wallace Beery type, but
harder than a frozen
manila hawser, sees me up on the flying bridge. "Whatta
you, a seaman, a
real sailor, I know...I've seen your file...doin' with them
s k i v v y
wavers? I had plans for you...I was goin' to make you into a
real bonifide
bos'ns mate, and this would be the ship to do it on.'
He was right about
that...the Arneb was an "amphib", and aside from not
being a full
rigged sailing ship, had more rigging than anything else in the
fleet. She
was a five-hatch ship, C2 class cargo ship, but fitted out for
carrying
Marines, and landing craft.
She had eight LCM - 6s, and 14 LCVPs, one
captains gig, and one LCVR -
similar to an LCVP, but no ramp...it was the
officers boat. Her "Jumbo"
booms, one at each hatch lifted 60 tons
easily. She was a real deck-apes
dream, but not this one's.
"Bose (
short for Bos'n, or in the Navy - "boats" ), I've have a
pretty
good handle on marlin-spike seamanship, at least enough to tell me it
leads
to nowhere without Navigation, Laws, and all the other stuff I will
have to
know when I get out of this outfit, and return to the Merchant
Marine...I
want to get my Third Mate's license, and eventually my Master's
license. At
least I'll learn something in that direction on the bridge.' I
told him.
"Ahh, well...I guess you're right, if'n your not stayin' in,
but if you
change your mind, your welcome back.' he said.
I know to this
day, that he kept a weather eye lifted for me, secretly
wishing he could get
his big hands around my throat...you don't cross a
Chief Warrant Bos'n...no
way.
It turned out to be the right move for me. Coupled with USAFI courses
in
navigation, and piloting, and compass compensation, I passed my Third
Mates
license without further schooling in two, and a half days. I would have
done
it in two, but the Coast Guard inspector said I was going to fast, and
to
take one afternoon off.
I went up to Broadway and saw "Down to the
Sea in Ships" with Richard
Widmark...it had just come
out.
Aaaaagh!
Carlos
11) The USNS NEPTUNE - Cable Layer
The
USNS Neptune - cable
ship,
is one command I wouldn't
have
missed for the world.
Working out of Adak, Alaska during winter months, in 65 foot,
or
higher seas, she was one heck of a "sea boat". As viewed
from
the bow, she wasn't the prettiest, but those sheaves was what
she was all about. I forget most of the particulars, but I do
have
the pictures. At one time she was steam driven -
Skinner-uni-flow
engines, but all that, and everything else was gutted out of the
hull, and a new ship with diesel-electric ( three three-thousand
hp
General Electric Diesels driving generators ) plant, new house,
and
everything was built. Actually GE bought the plans to the old
Kooper-Bessemer Diesels, and modified them. The ship did 14
kts
in good weather. She displaced about 7400 tons, 369 feet
long,
and 47 feet of beam...if I remember right. Time sure flies,
this
was back in...oh I forget. Below is an aerosol view of the
ship.
For
more extensive information, and fabulous photos, visit
Ramon's excellent pages on this ship, and others...including links to data
on the projects engaged in.
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