RobbieTunes

I forget my birthday.
I forget my wife's birthday.
I forget my anniversary.

I never forget this one.
I have had "the birthday meal" in some godawful places.
With some of the best people, and some "not so."
Doesn't matter, we were all better for it.
If we lived.

03 until they moved me to recon, then snooping and pooping.

If you've got a Marine saying, and it's forum-safe, send it.

"lower than a whale turd, and that's on the bottom of the ocean."
"messier than a soup sandwich"
"Russian ropes"
"did you polish those boots with a brick?"

I was standing inspection at the Naval Academy, and there was a Marine officer conducting the inspection. There should be a vertical line running down your shirt front, in line with your belt buckle, and down the flap of the trouser fly. The Marines call this "military alignment." The Navy calls this "the gig line." The inspector got to me, noted whatever he noted, and moved to the sailor next to me. He said "fix your military alignment." The sailor adjusted his stance, moved his feet a little bit. The officer said, "it's still off, fix it." The sailor brought his chin in, chest out, was at perfect attention. The officer said "your military alignment is off." The sailor had no idea what he was talking about, was trying to figure it out like a deer in the headlights. He moved back about 1/2" and remained at attention. I'm trying not to laugh, biting my cheeks. The poor sailor's turning 10 shades of red. The officer is really doing a good job at acting tough, goes into full in-your-face mode, chews the sailor up one side, down the other, and still, the sailor has no clue. By this time, an upperclass midshipman, former corporal, shouts "request permission to guffaw!" and the officer gives it up, claps the sailor on the back, and tells him the deal. Sailor looks right at him and says "you are a son of a ..--.., Sir!" That night, CBS was interviewing a certain female midshipman of the first graduating class of women. The double standard then was tremendous, as politics are as much a part of the Naval officer corps as discipline. Anyway, this interview was to be on 60 Minutes, or so we were told, and to take place in the rotunda of Bancroft Hall (worlds largest dormitory). Somehow, a 10-lb sack of flour fell from the balcony of the upper reaches of the rotunda just as the interview was to take place, onto Navy dress blues, so the interview was nixed. As one of the watch guards that night, it amazes me that it was done and no one was caught. Simply amazing. Must have been ghosts.