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This session was over, the skipper had us hit our bunks and we would continue this training another day. I watched as everyone walked away talking and many adjusting themselves again. JR was just sitting there, I walked over to him to see if he was ok. He said he was, and he wondered if his mom and sister would be upset with him telling everyone so much. I told him I wouldn’t know, but it sounds like they are very open and honest with each other, so they may think it’s kinky. He thanked me and was off to bed.
In the morning, I had the crew hard at work, even though our ship was in top notch shape, each morning the Skipper would tour the ship just to find something that needs attention. The YN was writing as fast as the skipper talked. Within an hour we would all have a list of things to complete that day. It was a great challenge for the crew to see if they could be the division with the least hits, Skipper never made it easy on anyone. Being Deck, we always seemed to be the worse in hits. But you don’t want to hear about my problems.
Seamen JR was busy working and the Skipper came down to see me. He told me he was impressed with the seamen’s story and how it captivated the crew’s attention. He would like to make it a Wednesday event, because we had no movies on board. It was important to keep crew moral up. The situation with our mail is becoming a problem, yet this Seamen’s story is wild enough to keep them entertained. Also, if for any reason moral sinks, we may have to do two sessions. I saluted him and told him I will make it happen. He turns to me and tells me he is impressed with our work, and he is hard on me because I keep the ship in top notch shape, he never compliments, I was flying high. Be prepared for the days ahead it should be interesting.
Unfortunately, we went several weeks without a story, war is hell. Our ship took a few hits and we had to pull into port in the Philippines. Which turned out to be the best morale booster ever, our mail was found, and it took two days for it to be sorted and delivered. The skipper gave everyone the day off to read mail and have fun.
Repairs were completed ahead of time; Skipper has the Command Master Chief do All-Hands Inspection. Dress Whites. When it was time the skipper joined us and told us this was a surprise award ceremony. The Admiral would be on board any minute and will be handing out awards to the crew for our magnificent work so far. So, we waited at Parade Rest for an hour, then the Admirals boat came aside. What an impressive man. Stood 6’6”, thin, he was a marathon runner also. Crew came to attention.
Dozens of awards were handed out from the Skipper down, field advancements were handed out. I was one of them. I was advanced from Second Class to Chief. Shock of all shocks, but the Admiral was very impressed with the condition of our ship, and the skipper gave me all the credit for it. I of course had already turned in evaluations on my men weeks ago and was excited to see 7 of my men get field advancements also, one of which was Seamen JR. Because of his dedication to crew moral, the Admiral advanced him to First Class. This brought applause and many Congratulations. The admiral invited JR to stand next to him, as he was awarded a few other awards also. Then the Admiral bent down said a few things which made JR turn bright red, which is cool when you are a red head already. He saluted the Admiral and the Admiral left. Oh, did I mention, our Skipper was advance to full bird. He was being prepared for his first duty as an Admiral, only he knew when. The XO was also advanced to Commander. Our Skipper was very proud of this crew.