Military Definitions - C

A to Z Blogging Challenge.  My topic is MILITARY DEFINITIONS.

C – Charlie

morse code – dash dot dash dot

Camo – camouflage.  Disguising military personnel, equipment, and buildings so they blend in with the environment.  Used to confuse or evade the enemy. 

Cannibalize – taking workable parts of one item and using them in another. 

Captain's mast – non-judicial punishment. 

Chaplain – a member of the clergy [any religion] attached to a secular organization such as a military battalion.  They are normally officers, and provide pastoral, spiritual and emotional support for service personnel, including conducting religious services at sea, on bases, or in the field. 

Charlie Foxtrot – commonly used expression stands for clusterf***. 

Chest Candy – slang for ribbons and medals worn on a uniform. 

Coast Guard – established in January 1915.  Unique among the U.S. military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission (in both domestic and international waters) and a federal regulatory agency mission. It operates under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security during peacetime, and can be transferred to the U.S. Department of the Navy by the U.S. President at any time, or by the U.S. Congress during times of war.   Responsible for maritime safety and security.  Performs search and rescue operations. 

Constructionman – Navy personnel like my son who have construction jobs and are part of construction battalions [Seabees – CBs], are not called sailors but are called constructionmen. 

Cover – any military head gear.

Military Definitions - B

A to Z Blogging Challenge.  My topic is MILITARY DEFINITIONS.

B – Bravo

morse code – dash dot dot dot

Barracks – a building or group of buildings used to house soldiers or other military personnel.  My son's job as a Seabee [electrician] has been primarily refurbishing and repairing various barracks in several locations throughout the world.

Battalion – a military unit consisting of several companies, each of which contains many soldiers or “troops”.  My son is assigned to a Navy “construction battalion”, meaning he is a Seabee [CB]. 

BFO - blinding flash of the obvious. 

Bivouac – a temporary camp with little or no cover. 

Boat – a submarine.  Not to be confused with ship, which is an above-water vessel. 

Boot camp - basic military training required for all new enlistees.  Initial active duty training is 12 weeks.  My son's boot camp was mid-January thru March at the Great Lakes Naval Facility north of Chicago.  Boot camp near Chicago in winter.   Brrrrrrr! 

Brig – a military prison or jail on a ship or Navy base. 

Buddy-aid – First aid provided by a non-medical Service member to another person. 

Bulkhead - the interior structural divider of a ship. 

Bull$h!t bomb – slang for a device which distributes propaganda leaflets.

Military Definitions - A

A to Z Blogging Challenge.  My topic is MILITARY DEFINITIONS.

A – Alfa [or Alpha]

Morse code - dot dash

Active duty — full-time duty in active military service of the United States, including members of the Reserve Components serving on active duty or full-time training duty. Does not include full-time National Guard duty.  My son is active duty in the US Navy.

Admiral – the highest ranking officer of the US Navy and the US Coast Guard. 

Air Force - the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces. Initially part of the United States Army, it became a separate branch in September 1947. The U.S. Air Force provides air support for surface forces and aids in the recovery of troops in the field. The stated mission of the USAF today is to "fly, fight, and win in air, space, and cyberspace." Yes, I noticed cyberspace also. That was a big surprise to me. My son, with true Navy solidarity, calls this branch of service the "Chair Force."  The guest speaker at his high school graduation was retired Air Force.  After the ceremony, my son asked him about his job.  He replied "I flew a desk."

Alpha Charlie – slang for a$$ chewing, a verbal reprimand. 

Amphibious vehicle – a vehicle that can be used as transport on both land and water. 

Army - the largest and senior branch of the United States Armed Forces. Performs land-based military operations. Authorized in the United States Constitution. After the Revolutionary War, the Congress of the Confederation created the United States Army in June 1784, to replace the disbanded Continental Army. The mission of the U.S. Army is "to fight and win our Nation's wars, by providing prompt, sustained, land dominance, across the full range of military operations and the spectrum of conflict, in support of combatant commanders." 

ASVAB - the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery is a multiple choice test, administered by the United States Military Entrance Processing Command [MEPS]. The test is used to determine qualification for enlistment in the United States Armed Forces. The highest score is 99. Scores are normalized and are not straight percentages. For example, a score of 75 does not mean the test-taker answered 75% of the questions correctly. It means the test-taker scored better than 75% of all examinees. My #1 son took this test at age 18. He scored 99. 

As you were - return to what you were doing. 

 

THIS JOURNAL BELONGS TO RATCHET - Nancy J. Cavanaugh [Book recommendation]

Book obtained from: Library, e-book [2013]

Description: This is a middle grade book, formatted as the language arts journal of a homeschooled 11yo girl, Rachel. Her mother is deceased. She lives with her hippie father who works on cars and is an environmental activist. Because she helps her father fix cars, and she's good at it, he calls her Ratchet. 

Plot: The book tells the story of Ratchet's 6^th grade year. She wants to learn more about her mother. She wants to have a friend. She wants to belong and have a “normal” life, which is difficult because her father embarrasses her with his activism. The main goal of the book is Ratchet learning about her mother, making friends, and becoming her own person. 

Characterization: Rachel/Ratchet and her father are well-developed, quirky but realistic. The secondary characters are not as well-developed, but they did have their own personalities. 

Setting: A regular neighborhood, which includes a park. I don't recall any specific mention of a city/state name, but the author is from Florida so perhaps that's where the book is set. 

Other: My husband and I homeschool our children, and I get tired of reading about the “solution” to kids having friends is to enroll them in a traditional school environment. So I was a little apprehensive about how the author would handle this. It starts with Rachel as 11yo and having no friends. I was disappointed in this aspect, because when my kids were 11yo they all had a boatload of friends, because they participated in lots of activities like church, scouts, sports, etc. However, I was very impressed that the author had Rachel becoming her own person and making friends without the requirement of enrolling in a traditional school setting. 

Overall: Good book. With the exception of the beginning when Ratchet doesn't have friends, it shows homeschooling in a reasonably positive light, which I appreciated. 

Grade: B+

A to Z Blogging Challenge 2016 Theme Reveal

This year for A to Z Challenge,

My theme is MILITARY DEFINITIONS, hopefully with a little humor.  So each day in the month of April [except Sundays], check here for a post on the letter of the day. 

Background: My #1 son is almost 22yo and enlisted in the Navy when he was 18. He has 1-1/2 years left of his 5 year commitment. As of today, he plans to re-enlist for another 5 years. He is a Seabee, a Construction Electrician. He has been deployed overseas twice. His current rank is E-4, a Petty Officer Third Class. 

Disclaimer: I'm a Navy Mom. I've never been in the military. All I know I learned on the internet and from my son. So although I've tried to give accurate definitions, I don't guarantee these are perfect. But I learned a lot and had fun writing these 26 posts, and I hope you do too.

I cruised around the internet to find an appropriate and fun site to include on this Theme Reveal post, and found this one. 

Surprise Military Homecomings 

Enjoy

AtoZ Themes

2015 - Legal Definitions

2016 - Military Definitions

THE SOUND AND THE FURRY - Spencer Quinn [Book recommendation]

Book obtained from: Library, Audio book [2014]

Description: Chet and Bernie investigate a missing person in Louisiana. Book is narrated by Chet the dog.

Plot: Chet and Bernie travel to New Orleans to find Frenchie's brother, a reclusive inventor who has gone missing, along with his houseboat and dog. Along the way they discover a family feud reminiscent of the Hatfields and McCoys, and find a shady oil company.

Characterization: Chet is a really funny narrator, going off on tangents and getting distracted by the things that would be important to a dog. Bernie is a good detective altho not good with money management. All of the secondary characters were well-developed.

Setting: Louisiana. The descriptions were good, I was able to picture every scene.

Other: This is the sixth book in the series. Chet tends to notice all of the same types of things, but it is sufficiently humorous and varied that it didn't get boring. Bernie really needs to learn money management.

Overall: A fun story.

Grade: B+

DEVOTED IN DEATH - JD Robb [Book recommendation}

Book obtained from: Library, new audio books shelf, Audio book

Description: This is the 41^st book in the series, which is set in the year 2061. New York police lieutenant Eve Dallas investigates a torture-murder, the latest in a long line of torture-murders. This book is mostly a police procedural, with several interesting inventions not known to those of us here in 2016. Also, the reader knows who the murderers are, because chapter 1 begins in their POV. 

Plot: Eve and her team investigate the torture-murder of a young man who plays in an orchestra. Along the way, they learn this is at least the 20^th victim of two sadistic, psychopathic killers. The reader knows who these killers are, and it's interesting to learn how the police put all the clues together. 

Characterization: Eve Dallas is the protagonist. Her husband Roarke and her partner Peabody are the main secondary characters. There are several other police characters, and a few side stories including one officer who is preparing to take the detective exam. Quite a few of the reviews I've read, indicate the character development isn't as good in this book as in the previous books, but I was able to get a feel for the individual personalities of each character, even though this is only the second book in the series I've read.

Setting: New York City. The descriptions were good, I was able to picture every scene.
 

Other: I've only read one of the previous 40 books in this series, but this book did well as a stand-alone. About half-way thru it, I did some research online to get more of the backstory, and I do believe it helped me with the enjoyment of the story, but I think I would have enjoyed it anyway. 

Overall: One note of caution: There is a LOT of torture in this book. In most places, it's not too gory, but from the dialogue and other information you're given, some of it seems over-the-top. Apparently, JD Robb [aka Nora Roberts] had some serious nightmares that she obviously needed to get out of her head and onto the page. Don't read this book if you don't like reading that sort of violence. It was almost too heavy for me.
 

Grade: B+