Navy DD-711 Part II

Coming out of boot camp, I had been targeted with the rating (job function) named Fire Control. Before you get all excited and think, OOOooo, a fireman!... No. No. 'Fire Control' in this instance means the technicians who handle the computers that target, aim and fire the ship's weapons. This symbol is for the Fire Control rating. So, long before I ended up at Eastern Airlines at their computer division, the Navy had somehow figured out my facility for computer-work even at this early stage. I guess all those tests we were taking weren't just for fun.

But you don't get to be president of the company without having to do some work first (usually), so all the new kids went into First Division. Here were the actual sailors who did sailor-stuff on the ship, steering the boat, loading stores, chipping paint, you know... sailor-stuff. The people who worked permanently in First Division came under the rating Boatswain's Mate, pronounced Bosun's Mate. This symbol is for the Boatswain's Mate rating. Look, they're anchors!    

My immediate superior was a Boatswain's Mate Petty Office Second Class named Lennox. I should have already pointed out that no one I encountered in the Navy ever used a first name, so I have no idea what his first name was or even if he had one. But he was responsible for my performance ratings which were always high and had pivoted on one event early on. 

Often, people would take the attitude, "If you're not watching me, then you don't care and I'm not working." But BM2 Lennox had taken me high into the mainmast rigging where I had to work alone scraping and painting some equipment. There was only room for one person to hang on so he left and when he came back I was just finishing up what had been a considerable amount of work. I think he was so surprised, he nearly fell to his death.

After that, he knew he could trust me to do work unsupervised, which freed him up to drink more coffee and this pleased him. Coffee was available 24 hours a day and many of the career men were never seen without a coffee cup on their finger. Even when they were sleeping or showering.

The sleeping area for First Division was arguably the harshest on board. But at least air conditioning had been added before the ship had gone off to Vietnam. Our racks were located at the very front of the ship under the forecastle which is pronounced 'FO'ksul'. This is the part of a ship that rises and falls the most when driving through seas. It was right under that forward 5 inch 38 caliber cannon destined to become my cannon. Compare sleeping there versus the stern section nearest the fantail which remains calmer and flatter even at high speed. Yeah, well, if you want the whole experience, then have the whole experience!

Our living/sleeping/studying/entertainment/recreation area was one thin rack in a stack of three with a thin mattress and one locker just big enough for our clothes. The lockers were built-in to fit the shape of the ship so no two were the same size or shape. When someone left the ship for a new assignment, imagine what happened when he emptied his locker! Of course, I could only fit in my rack sideways or with my knees bent. Oh, and if you wanted to stand up straight and you were my height, well, good luck, buddy! 
 

Only once while I was on board did we haul those mattresses up topside to beat them with sticks and give them a little sun to air out. But this was a real, working Navy ship with a job to do and responsibilities to perform. The Greene had been part of the Cuban Missile Blockade, capsule recovery for both the Mercury and Gemini space programs and had been around and around the world. It's a thing.

Look where I was at the very top of that mainmast above the bridge and I didn't fall off and get killed or anything!