10 things I cannot live without (Part 1)

1.) My phone. Living in Japan, my phone is my connection to family through skype, heytell, textplus, and sometimes magic jack. Family is so important to me. I cannot even describe in words, how hard it is going to be for me to go on my first deployment. God help me. Hopefully through cards, packages, and prayers I'll make it. As much as I miss home, I know my family is excited and very supportive. I'm so blessed to have a positive family that is thrilled with the decisions I make for myself. So many of my friends have issues back home. It's nice not to have to worry about any of that. Sometimes I walk around base and think, "Oh my gosh, I really did it. I'm in Japan." Heytell is one of my favorites. I feel like I m actually in the conversation when I'm heytelling with my brother. During Christmastime, everyone in my family sent me messages.  It really helped me make it through.

2.) Music. There is never a quiet moment in my life where I'm not listening or singing something in my head. I love music. I was raised to love it. From beach music to blues, gospel, bluegrass, rock and roll and everything in between. Music surrounds me. Right now, I'm on pandora listening to The Embers. Random, I know but sometimes beach music brings happiness to my soul. I cannot work out without music. If I forget my headphones I might as well not even work out. Some of my motivation songs when I'm running are: "save a horse ride a cowboy," "space Jam," and even Adele's, "Set fire to the rain."

3.) Thomas. Haha, she wanted me to put her on my list. Honestly, I believe she has earned her spot. From California to here, we have had some hilarious times together. I remember getting off of the bus and walking into the building to check in. I could care less about anything they were asking me to do. I just wanted to see Thomas, because coming to a new command, let alone in a new country can be terrifying. She gave me the biggest hug when I first got here. We talk about relationships, and bitch to each other about everything in Japan. I even bring her chocolate hollow bunnies. Granted, they don't always make it back to her in one piece because I get hungry, but its the thought that counts, right? As soon as we checked in on the ship and met everyone in our division I wasn't worried about having to please any of the girls in my division because I already had Thomas by my side. We call ourselves the A team, because when we work together, we get shit done. Unfortunately, we are cranking on opposite shifts so all the days I work, she has off and vice versa. Its kind of funny actually, because now every time we see each other, it takes us like thirty minutes to an hour to catch each other up on our lives. I feel like as soon as I see her, I don't take a breath before spilling out the last couple of days to her. And of course, we blow up each other's facebook page now because we never see each other. But all in all, she makes Japan much more enjoyable. I'm looking forward to many more ridiculous memories with her.

4.) My journal. You guys already know I post a lot and write many thoughts for all of you to read here on my blog, but more importantly, I love writing thoughts in my journal for my eyes only. I can't even successfully fall asleep before I write in my journal. Call me crazy, but its kind of like my release at the end of the day. Recently, Mama Harkins and Caro sent me a beautiful journal in the mail. I love writing in it because before opening it, it looks just like me. Its small and fits in my purse. So if you ever see me out and about writing while listening to music, I am not bored. I am simply in my element writing down all my memories, complaining about all the shitty things on the ship and reminiscing days at home with family. I've kept a journal since I was a young teenager. I have probably 8 or 9 completed journals at home. Sometimes, when I was dating past boyfriends I would read some of my feelings to them when we first started dating. They always seemed to enjoy hearing what I thought about them, unedited. Its always interesting to go back and see what I think. Most of the time, they are hysterically funny. But I will tell you, whenever I die, I'm gonna need someone to burn or bury them with me, because they are my thoughts and not anyone else's.


5.) Food. OK, so duh, everyone needs food to survive, but I have always been kind of an odd child in that, I LIVE for the next meal, every single day. We could be sitting down for breakfast and I'll be wondering what's for lunch. I don't know what my parents fed me as a kid, but I've always had a strong appetite for any kind of food. My favorite part about Japan, is eating ridiculously crazy foods. Even though the food sucks on the ship, I still make do. The other morning I was laying in my rack and I could have sworn I could smell my mom's beef stew simmering in the crock pot. I called her immediately and told her my stomach would kill for two big bowlfuls of her beef stew. I majored in nutrition, and I know all of the rules but even in college, I never followed them. I believe that every meal needs dessert, coffee comes in multiple servings, most fruits go best with chocolate, and chicken fried will never go out of style. So maybe when I grow up, I'll be the best dietitian there is out there, or maybe I'll be the worst, but I continue to make the best part of my day dinner.

OK, I promise part two is coming! I have to get to work right now, but let me know what you think. And here's an Ember's song. Have a fabulous Friday. I'll be at work all weekend, with bad food. :(

Gone Cranking

Cranking? You may be wondering what exactly this terminology means... The appropriate navy term is temporary duty assignment, also known as, TAD. The slang for this used by sailors, is "cranking." Going "cranking" is a tradition in the navy that has been upheld for many years. Basically you go to work for three months in a different division of the ship.

You could go to security and get OC sprayed or land tiger team and be covered in dust and paint from head to toe. Deck department, tile team, vent team and cable team aren't really better options. Yet, chief's galley, officer's wardroom and cleaning the estate rooms are the way to go. My lucky self landed the enlisted mess decks. Woot woot!! Oh no... When I say lucky... believe me, I'm being sarcastic. Don't let my humor fool you. I try to see the best in everything, but to be honest there are very few hidden gems when working the enlisted mess decks.

The schedule is on three days, get the next two off, but by two days, I really mean one and a half by the time we get off work... So everyday I have to be in the mess decks by 0400 or 0430 depending on the days schedule of events. 0430.... you know where I want to be at 0430? Still sleeping! Its really kind of funny. I don't have to be there until 0600 tomorrow morning and I'm excited because I get to sleep until 0530. Oh, military life and how my life has changed.

So some of the duties in the mess decks include washing dishes in the scullery, taking out trash, wiping down tables, etc, etc. I was put in charge of the first class mess decks. Its a small room with about 20 tables and I take care of all of the petty officers that eat in there. All the good cereal options rest in the first class mess decks. So pro #1: so far all the 1st class petty officers know me! Its good to have connections. I smile a lot! Not only when cranking but most often you'll always see me with a smile on my face. And honestly, I believe people remember that. If I have made even one person's shitty day a little better, my day will have been fulfilled. Whether its stealing the good cereal for sailors, finding ketchup for the restriction table when there is none or simply giving out paper cups after the mess decks are secured so sailors can have coffee. Its definitely worth it. I would want someone to do the same for me.

Pro #2: I get coffee whenever the hell I want. The espresso button and I have become very close friends these days. I live for that espresso button. I take it upon myself to make sure the coffee machine is always working. For if the coffee machine is not working, neither am I.

Pro #3 or could possibly be con #1: Everyone thinks they know me now because they see my face all the time. The con comes in when obnoxious males hit on me by the trash cans. I've had one male decide to ask me out four times. And you know what happened? He got denied four times. But honestly, everyone saying hello is nice even if I don't have a clue as to who they are.

But "cranking" does make me wonder. Who are all of these sailor's moms? And why weren't they raised like I was? If I spill something, I clean it up. I re cap the hot sauce after using it. If I spill noodles on the floor I pick them up. You'd be surprised how many individuals feel its OK TO ALLOW others to pick up after them. I know its my job, but come on! They leave trays, cups, and used napkins all over the place. If I ever left my tray out at home, I'd be in deep waters. I don't know how others live with themselves.

Normally the galley puts out packages of peanut butter, but they must have ran out this week because two days in a row there was peanut butter in a trey for sailors to ration out on their treys. Now, most wouldn't think anything of this but, if you work in the scullery....all hell just broke loose because of one simple condiment. Peanut butter.

 I made it my job on Wednesday to kindly ask all sailors to scrape their treys really well so the boys in the scullery would have an easier time rinsing off the peanut butter before the treys go in the dragon (the dishwasher). Problem: not everyone was so kind to scrape. A lot of the treys had to go through the dragon a second time and that backed everything up. I found myself getting worked up over peanut butter. I even told a female sailor to stop bitching and scrape her trey. Umm, were probably not ever gonna be friends but really? How hard is it to abide by one tasked that was posed in a very nice way?

Clearly, some sailors need more lessons in manners.

Taste of Childhood

What do you remember about growing up? What does your childhood taste like? If you could go back, where would you find yourself? If I went back, I would find myself on Rainbow Forrest Dr, in the cul-de-sac with my brother, most definitely, and my childhood friends, Kyle and Cameron Barton.

I guess my childhood would have the taste of an ice cream, but only when we crossed our fingers and prayed really hard. The ice cream truck was a special treat and did not come often because we lived far back in the neighborhood. Daddy would give me and my brother a dollar and we would race up the hill as fast as we could. We were greeted by Kyle and Cameron. Our bellies were happily filled with Flintstones push up pops, vanilla snoopy's and power rangers popsicles.

My neighborhood tasted of block parties with hot dogs and hamburgers, homemade brownies, and  the smell of sweet watermelons in the summertime. White shirts were soaked with pink stains and mouths spit black seeds as far as they could. My dad told me when I was younger that if I swallowed a black watermelon seed, I would grow a watermelon inside my belly. What an awful thing to tell an 8 year old! So, my brother and I carefully, spit out only the black seeds and ate the white ones. Watermelon juice pooled in circles on the back porch, but it was ok, because our dog charlie licked it up. I learned at an early age that my dad was in the living room watching tv when the house smelled of home grown N.C. peanuts, or popcorn. With these snacks, pepsi always accompanied him to the living room. Sausage biscuits or sizzling bacon filled the house early in the morning. Biscuits were served with mustard smiles, ready for the sausage to smush its face in.

My childhood tasted of sweet tea...and lots of it. That's right, keep it coming. My childhood tasted of pimento cheese sandwiches, cut in triangles, shared in the middle of the Chowan river. We ate lots of salt and vinegar chips out there on that water. (Thanks Aunt Denise.) Homemade ice cream was a must. We ate loads of fried white perch and cat fish caught fresh. My childhood was filled with ice cream from the Tastee Freeze up the road. When I was a kid, there was nothing better than double bubble, bubble gum out of the goodie bags my Grandad packed for me. I'd keep poppin' them in my mouth because the flavor went away so quick. By the end of the day, I'd have a wad bigger than a ping pong ball packed in the side of my cheek like tobacco. And I thought I was cool, just like my Granddad, when I did this. I remember long car rides, filled with jelly belly jelly bean roulette. Jonathan and I would try all sorts of different jelly belly jelly beans. Buttered popcorn, coconut, and peanut butter and jelly were the worst flavors, ever. We hated eating those and tried to pawn them off to our Mom. She was far too smart for this game. We loved sour green apple, watermelon and marshmellow.



Similar to how songs bring you back to certain times and places, foods do that too. I can't eat watermelon without thinking of my brother and I freaking out over the watermelons growing inside of us. I don't ever make a sausage biscuit without a mustard smiley face. And while I do not think having a wad of bubble gum in the side of my cheek is attractive, I still think about those goodie bags filled with bubble gum.Everyone looks back on their childhood, and remembers what they see and hear. But often forget one of the most important senses...Taste! Don't forget the tastes of your childhood. Remember them. Cherish them, while you can.

Moments

Moments. What's in a moment? I believe it's those fleeting seconds where you're heart is racing so fast your head can't keep up. And then after the moment is gone words can never truly explain the meaning of all the emotions behind those feelings occurring. Moments. They happen everyday. True, some are more trivial than others, but who would we be without each defining moment in our everyday life.

I may be contradicting myself. You may be thinking, "Danielle, what does it matter whether I get a bagel or a donut? That cannot possibly be a defining moment" Well, maybe its not your defining moment but have you ever stopped to wonder that maybe you are shaping someone else's defining moment. All I'm saying is, do you remember that day when there was one strawberry donut left waiting for you. You eyes open with wonder and amazement because you are on this shitty ship. There are no frosted flakes left. The eggs are overcooked. The hash browns are soggy but there right in front of you lies one strawberry donut. All of those sailors in front of you must have helped to define your moment of bliss, and may very well have turned your whole day around, just by making the simple decision of not eating the strawberry donut.

I believe that if you give yourself the opportunity, moments can bring miracles to your life. Some of the best moments I've had in my life come out of love, sharing car rides with my brother listening to music and not talking for hours. In these hours, we aren't uncomfortable or awkward but rather drifting through life in happiness and the simplicity of being. The simplicity of a great song coming on the radio. Or the simplicity of the day being beautiful with the windows rolled down. So many people take the little things for granted.

People say I'm ditsy and/or easy to please, always smiling and so positive, well no shit Sherlock, I am. If not for the little things in life, I wouldn't be able to set myself apart from all of you. Go ahead and make fun of my excitement over coffee, or my wonder in exploring the ship, I guarantee, my day will be essentially better and filled with more life and experience than yours.

So many individuals wake up on the wrong side of the rack, in a horrible mood, whining about how shitty the day is going to be. It's 5:30 in the morning, what has possibly occurred to make  you be in a bad mood. You are setting yourself up for failure, my friend, you aren't even giving yourself the opportunity to be happy. Seriously, how hard is it to wake up and make a conscious decision to be happy. Just wake up happy. And if you wake up unhappy, change your mind.

But back to moments, there is a specialness of re living them in your head. This alone, is why I keep a journal and write everything down. Who doesn't want to re-live that magical moment of your first kiss together on the couch, waiting for the movie to end in hopes that he too has been thinking about everything but the movie playing. Even if, years later, things didn't work out and your are 10,000 miles away from each other. I re live that moment quite frequently. I can remember how happy I was. I couldn't even contain my smile in a kiss. There's a beauty to that, you know?

Sometimes I have a hard time writing down my moments. I'll either underplay them in my journal because I cannot find the words to explain the magic or I'll upstage the moment and write it to how I wanted it to happen. But I am the author to my own life, so this is not a crime, it will just change the way I look at things.  Writing these moments down helps me to discover myself and my true feelings. Keeping opinions locked inside is easy. It's when you write them down do you truly identify hidden motives and meanings. Admitting to yourself on how you feel by writing it down is far more dangerous than just thinking about things. . Its there in black and white, and no matter what you do, you can't escape it.

Moments. You can't control how they affect you. You can't control how you feel. But you can control whether you want that moment forever. You can decide if you want it to live on. You can decide to transform it into a memory. I transform many of my moments into memories by writing them down. And the one's I don't write down, well they're there too.

DG

Burning Fiasco

Most of my memories from college I owe to Caroline Harkins and Meagan Galarde. Hours upon hours were spent snuggling in bed, driving in circles, drinking coffee and catching up on our boy issues. One night, me and Galarde helped Caro with her art project. Read below... it's an oldie but a goodie.

Dedicated to you Caro and Galarde.

Today Galarde and I helped Caroline with her art project. The assignment was to make a 3D city out of paper. Most students in Caro's class do something simple just to get the assignment out of the way, but Caro is a genius when it comes to being creative. Caro created a 3D city using paper and cardboard. After painting the base and gluing all of the 3D buildings down, Caro, Galarde and I walked outside the Phi Mu with a lighter in hand. If everyone in the class had the same assignment, Caro's work of art had to have an edge to it. The idea was to burn some of the edges of the buildings to make the city look smoldered and burnt.

Now, one should always be careful when playing with fire; this I have discovered. All was going as planned as we lit leaves on fire and blew them out to create a charcoaled look around the base of the buildings. It took a really long time for fire to ignite. We blazed the tops of the buildings making the paper buildings sizzle in uneven edges. It began to look very professional! As soon as Caro lit the tops of the buildings with the lighter, Galarde's job was to blow the fire out. I also, helped with this job. It was a tedious task because we only blew the fire out when the artist, Caroline, told us it was appropriately burnt in her eyes. This was the fun part!

As Caro is lighting and we are blowing the blaze out, all of a sudden the fire got big. Like huge! All at once Caro's art project began blazing to the ground before our eyes. Laughter began. Have you ever tried to blow something out while laughing? Yeah, its ridiculously hard. Especially with Galarde on the opposite side trying to blow and laugh at the same time. She is literally rocking back and forth in peels of laughter as Caro is frantically trying to blow out the flames. Like, Caro is freaking out. The project she spent all night on is burning to a crisp. Have you ever accidentally deleted your 8 page paper and had to start over again? Yeah, that's probably what was going through Caro's mind. She continues to blow but the fire is not going out only spreading to the other 3D paper buildings.

Dana runs out of the house frenzied over the small fire. She sees the flames and thinks the Phi Mu house is burning. As the fire finally goes out the city is gone. All that's left are the ashes from the paper buildings.

Caroline's response: "Should we go to Wal Mart and get a little fire truck for the city?"

My response: "I think it's a little late for that."

DG

Hey, it's ok...

Eghh, so I didn't do the best last week about keeping my blog up. It's so hard to get to a computer sometimes especially when all I wanna do when I get off work is curl up on a bean bag chair. You guys must forgive me when we go on deployment. There will be very few blog updates. I promise to keep writing in my journal daily so I'll post stories after we get back/

Anyways, I don't really feel like writing too much today. It's cold, wet and rainy outside. I see a cheeseburger in my near future so I'm gonna make this quick because I hear the french fries calling me.

One of my dear friends in college and also my big sister in Phi Mu posted a "Hey, it's OK" blog and I think its a super cute idea. So, 1, 2, 3 here we go.

Hey, it's OK...

If I'm 10,000 miles away from home and still call Mom with questions about laundry, cooking, and basically anything I don't know the answer to.

If I get super excited about using power tools at work. I know, I know I'm in the Navy but don't crush my dreams even though you think grinding and hammering sucks. I may go home with blisters but don't kill my excitement.

If a good night for me is bottomless coffee and Top Gun at the USO.

If I'd rather wear sweats and a hoodie everywhere and my idea of dressing up is adding cowboy boots to jeans or a cute top with my green chucks.

If I took a long time to figure out what I wanted to do with my life.
and it's OK that I'm still not quite sure where its headed.

If I am not married, pregnant, engaged or anywhere close to settling down.

If I cry every afternoon during the Ellen DeGeneres's show, and look forward to it.

If I eat 4 plus pieces of chocolate on the way to the gym. I mean, I am going to the gym, right?

If forgetting my headphones is a natural disaster in my book.

If I assume that dinner isn't over until we get dessert.

If I eat 3 times slower than all my other friends because I cannot seem to comprehend how chopsticks are suppose to work.

If I'm not interested in anyone who doesn't like country music.

Listen, Eric Church, Springsteen. Enjoy.

DG