Man it was a late day

So things are getting busy at work. I keep working later and later. There are structural cracks that seem to appear on an hourly basis. There are CASREPs out the wazoo. I'm managing a maintenance availability with multiple time sensitive repair jobs that MUST get completed prior to getting underway. Oh...and there's that big 'D' looming: deployment.

So I lamented the muggy hot ship. I loathed my full afternoon of admin and meetings and topside preservation. I walked to my car disgusted at the time: 1723. Then I heard my mentor and FARRAGUT CO's warning: "Dan, what type of hours are you working over there? You're not working OLD FARRAGUT hours are you?" an obvious reference to the psychotic hours that were routine on my last tour. Where I was up before 5am daily, actually dressed, shaved, and sitting at my desk working by 0545, and if I left before 2000, then it was a PTL day. Oh, and there was that whole 5 months leading up to INSURV when worked 7 days a week and lost my soul.

My point? Life is good. I'm missing my Engineers, my fellow Department Heads and close friends in FARRAGUT, but I'm grateful and loving the change of scenery...and pace of HUE CITY. A new ship. A new set of colleagues. A new Engineering Dept that is mine to lead, mold and serve.

I'm getting ready to deploy. I've barely seen my family since the New Year. I'll soon miss them for well into 2013. But I'm the damn Chief Engineer in the most formidable damn warship in the whole damn Navy. I'm about to take 70 Sailors down range. It's an honor..I love it.

I'm the luckiest man in the world.

Oh, and it's pretty nice getting home while it's still light and tucking all three kids in bed EVERY night, even if it's but a brief pause before deployment.

Like I said...life is good.

Oh yeah...comments are welcome!!!