Side Note...

I would just like to make a side note here. I want to extend my gratitude to everyone who has been sending me kind well wishes on this site and letting me know what is going on back home (well, back at all my homes). It has really helped me feel like the lives I left behind to pursue this adventure are really not all that far away in the big picture of life. The normalcy of it all really is grounding and comforting in ways that anyone who has traveled away from home can understand. I also want to send a special thank you to a very special kindred spirit who has had so much impact on my young life and worldviews. Mary Ellen your soul is a light that I have so often turned to in dark and joyful times in my days since I've known you. I'm sure all who have read her passionate and coloured words can understand why she is such a role model to me. Also, thank you to Ellen. What a warm fuzzy it was to see a message from a familiar face. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. But of course, thank you to the ones who struggle through all my struggles with me and put up with all my imperfections so gracefully. Kevin you are my rock and my soft place. Mom you ARE my biggest fan and strongest ally. Dad and Kathy, you both continue to ensure I feel loved, needed and will always have some place to "crash" should I ever need to veer off the road of life for a spell. Thank you everyone. Each one of you who writes a bit of encouragement has been my favorite at that moment. Your words are so needed and so appreciated.

"I'm Going to Disneyland!"

I GOT ADVANCE PROMOTED TO LEADING SEAMAN YESTERDAY!!! There, I couldn't wait to tell everyone and have been trying to have the whole event sink in this past day. Yesterday was HMCS Ottawa's 10th birthday and the morning began with the officers singing her "Happy Birthday" (quite off key) over the PA system. We continued the festivities with a banyan, which is basically a sailor's excuse to have a bbq and drink beer in the middle of a working day. We also get to wear "pirate rig" during the banyan, with an emphasis on the Hawaiian theme. Pirate rig is basically civilian clothing or even just untucking you uniform and working on your tan. The bbq was hauled out onto the flight deck (otherwise known as the 'steel beach') and all kinds of lawn chairs came out of their hiding places. We started the party around 11:00 in the morning and things wrapped up around 2:00. We had hotdogs and hamburgers, an assortment of cold salads, all kinds of pop, and of course birthday cake. We also partook in an old navy tradition called "Up Spirits." This dates back to the days when sailors were sailors. Ships never carried much fresh water and so to keep their crew going every day and to improve morale, sailors would be issued 2 oz of rum everyday. On special occasions or after heavy labour (like splicing the main mast), captains could authorize the issue of 2 extra oz of rum to each sailor. To ensure no 'sharing' or hoarding was going on, each sailor had to drink his rum ration in front of the captain. Now this tradition is still on the books of the Canadian Navy. Our Commanding Officer (CO) decided that in lieu of Ottawa's birthday we would carry out the Up Spirits tradition and each be issued 4 oz of navy rum. I'm sure you can all picture some of the 'rum' faces we shared with each other as we all tried our best to stomach the tradition. Since the ship's company was all together celebrating the banyan, the CO also decided to do an informal 'hands fall in." A hands fall in is a navy version of a military parade - in the sense of us all forming up in ranks and coming to attention, standing easy, and giving out awards, promotions, hearing orders, or about commands priorities on the mission, etc. This particular hands fall in was unique in that we were all in pirate rig and simply huddled around our CO, who was sporting a Hawaiian shirt and comical bbq-ing apron, I might add. One of our guys was receiving his Cert 2E certificate and he handed me his camera asking if I would take his picture when he went up to receive it (Kevin Albert). I was thrilled to help him out and was getting instructions on how to operate the damn thing when the Coxswain called out, "Able Seaman Hipfner." Now the proper response to having your name called out on parade is, "Sir" in a proud, military voice. My reaction was one of surprise so it isn't too surprising that what came out of my mouth (standing right next to the Coxswain and CO) was, "Oh, shit!" I was on the receiving end of a swift elbow from AB Orlowski (fellow stoker), yelling, "Say 'sir.' Say 'sir.'" "Sir," was what I eventually called out, but it sounded more like a question - thank god the mood was informal. While everyone was giggling at me for my verbal slip up, I jogged up in front of the CO and saluted him, the whole time beaming. The Coxswain read out that I was being advance promoted from Able Seaman to Leading Seaman, while I mimed out a double fisted, "YES!!" and the CO leaned in while everyone laughed and said, "it's very well deserved." The my Chief came to my side and the CO and him replaced my epilates with Leading Seaman ones, I yelled out, "I'm going to Disneyland!" and everyone laughed again. I saluted the CO one more time (as parade protocol dictates), then took off around the circle of people giving everyone I came in contact with a high-five. I definitely got the most laughs that afternoon and many well wishes. What can I say, I'm still a ham! The best part is, I was told that one of the guys got the whole thing on film... I haven't seen it yet. I just tell everyone who comes up to my smiling and saying that, "your promotion was definitely the best one," that if they had of let me make a speech, I would have and it would have started with, "I'd like to thank the Academy..." I gave Kevin a call shortly after to tell him the good news. I have to admit, I didn't expect such a surprised and excited response... it made me feel even higher than I already was (thanks, Fuzzy!). Kevin was quick to point out that I am now making more than him. :) So, Kev. Me and the boys have been talking and they're going to help me draft up a budget, complete with your allotted weekly allowance, now that I'm the 'sugar momma,' as they so eloquently put it. Love you cutie. I do have some rather crappy news though, although perhaps it is a blessing in disguise. I found out that I won't get to participate in this Cross Pole, cause they already had enough volunteers. Not to worry though, the promotion made up for it (it was a whole year early) and the bosses have been educating me on the lifestyle of an American sailor. It's really not as glamorous as you would first think. Turns out they consider visiting our ships to be the equivalent of going to the Hotel Ritz, and all there food comes out of a can. Maybe I can live without the experience. I'm sure I'll have more to write about soon. Tomorrow we're having another banyan, although their calling it a "picnic on the steel beach" - but we all know what it really is. I think it's to celebrate October 1st... not that it is a significant date to the ship in any way, shape or form. But tonight at midnight we are having a time change of great proportions. We are skipping September 30th altogether and moving right on to October 1st. A few of us were wondering if your birthday is on the 30th, does this mean this year is a gimme, and you don't age? Sounds great, except for those guys whose birthday falls on the day we come back. Two birthdays in two days... I'm getting a little worried, as mine is on the 12th of February and we're due back in March sometime. Cutting it a little bit close... can we say, "Tick Tock?"

The Lava flowed....

First and foremost, my apologies for the lack of posts lately, but I have been a rather busy sailor. I was placed back on rounds last week, which means I juggle my regular duties as the Engineering Officer's Writer as well as the duties of a roundsman standing 1 in 4 watches. This means we work 4 hours then have 12 hours off... except we were also "turning two" which means when we are finished our 4 hour watch we work for the next for hours doing maintenance and fixing broken machinery. So it makes for a very busy and sleepless week. This past weekend I was fortunate enough to discover the beauty and relaxation of Hawaii. We pulled into Pearl Harbor, passing the Arizona Memorial (ship sunk during the bombing, and now there is a saddle shaped monument over its resting place) and parallel parking amoungst the intimidating American Fleet along Destroyer Row. Our ship seemed even dwarfed and less armed then the American Coast Guard ship we birthed next to. We are definitely amoungst giants! The first day in was a busy one for the engineering department. The moment we came alongside, the wrenches and greasy rags were being passed around. We had several major pieces of machinery that required minor repairs... and just like any minor repair, it quickly took on a life of its own. Four hours into the wench turning, the rest of the ship's company was secured and allowed to leave the ship and start their R&R in port. Us Stokers however, continued to toil in the heat with only the occasional beer to quench our un-yielding thirst. Nine hours into our repairs... the last fitting was tightened and the last beer can was crushed... and Corrina was itching to get off the boat to see Hawaii! The boys, like true brothers, insisted I see the nightlife of the Island and took me to try my first Mai Tai. Unfortunately, all the hype didn't hold much water and I was quickly trying to pawn the over rum tasting drink off to one of the boys. But not to fret because now we were going to head off downtown to Waikiki Beach to a much-loved navy stop, Duke's Canoe House. Duke’s has to be located in one of the most beautiful settings on Waikiki. Perhaps I am simply partial to it because this was the location of my first encounter with THE OCEAN. Now I know I have just spent over 2 weeks floating around in the big blue, but there is something to be said about walking through a narrow path with two large buildings towering up on either side of you (long boards stowed along the walls) and catching your first glimpse of white sand and glistening postcard - blue water breaking on the shore. I couldn't contain my excitement and practically managed to reach the water in a couple of jumping steps. I just had to touch the water. I think the best way to describe what happened next is that the water touched me. True to form, the one rogue wave out there came hunting for me and no sooner was I ankle deep in the surf... was I splashed with salt water to my upper thighs. Thank God it was both warm water and a warm night. I eventually tore myself away from the lapping waves to wander up to the bar were I was promptly handed my first Lava Flow. A Lava Flow is a wonderful Hawaii treat. It is the consistency of a slush and has pineapple juice, coconut juice and rum with a splash of strawberry puree... I'm telling ya, one sip and you're hooked - which wasn't a problem because the lava continued to flow for the rest of the evening. We spent most of our time reclined on the patio listening to the waves breaking and watching the night through the glow of teaky torches. What a way to relax and finally have some down time after such a hectic sailing routine! The following day I was on the Duty Watch - which meant that I had to remain onboard the ship for 24 hours and make sure nothing went wrong with the machinery and to check people's IDs as they returned to the ship after a night of heavy drinking and carrying on (very entertaining!). Well that morning as I stood on the flight deck of the ship in the merciless sun, I came to learn another wonderful quality of the Lava Flow. I was perhaps one of the few who was not suffering a hang over. Despite the fact that I got to watch and giggle at all the drunk Canadian sailors and American marines returning to the ship in the wee hours of the morning, it was a very quiet day filled with laundry and reading. Sunday was our final day in port and my first real chance to take in all the island of Hawaii had to offer. Two of the boys and myself rented a car for the day, which ended up being a Sebring convertible - I think this may have been my first experience touring around in a convertible. I'd just like to say that I should have splurged on a 'Thelma & Louise scarf' so my hair didn't get so tangled! But the day was still well worth the tangles. We picked up a map and started heading north along the eastern coast of the island. What a beautiful place once you get a bit of distance between you and the concrete tourist trap of Honolulu… and gaining that distance in a convertible is all the more sweeter. We stopped at a Park Beach with sparsely populated white sand beaches, and spent the next few hours floating in the warm, rhythmic waves. What a gorgeous location. The drive afterwards continued to reward us with views of jagged mountains covered in lush greenery and exotic flowers. We wrapped up the day of sightseeing, sand and surf with a dinner at Ruby Tuesday’s… where it was steaks all around. The rejuvenating qualities of one good day in Hawaii, was completely unexpected on my part. Who knew that so much beauty could be found just beyond the flashy, overpowering tourism of Honolulu? I think it is only fair to admit (despite the almost certain reproach of a certain mother who did not receive a phone call from her wayward daughter that day), that the phone conversation I shared with Kevin, for the first time since our tearful good bye (ok, maybe it was just me), that helped lift my spirits from their funk. Regardless, I left Hawaii feeling recharged for the next leg of the journey across the big blue sea. I look forward to filling you all in to the many adventures and discoveries of the next port we get to encounter, but as we talked about before, I can’t really be giving that information out over the internet. But as soon as I can, I’ll share the details. So, to make up for leaving you all hanging with that one, I have another tidbit to share. I just volunteered, as in about 10 minutes ago, to participate in a cross-pole with one of the American ships. What this entails is sending a couple of our sailors over to the other ships so we can see what life is like over there. I can already hear my Mother getting excited and Kevin getting jealous over this one. Well each department onboard is allowed to submit 3 names of individuals they feel are deserving of this experience, along with the ship of their choice. I chose the aircraft carrier. The people who get to participate will be onboard their respective vessels for one day and one night and returned to their home ship the next day. Here is the first bit of excitement about the whole process: I’m thinking that getting to the host ship would include a Sea King (helicopter) ride! Secondly, how exciting it would be to wander around an aircraft carrier that is essentially a floating city with 5,800 inhabitants. Ok… time to calm down a bit. The ship in question is not an aircraft carrier exactly. This one carries all the light armored vehicles and vertical launching aircraft, etc, etc. Just do a Google search (I know Mom will) on the USS Boxer LHD and you’ll get the picture. Wish me luck that the paperwork will go through and I’ll be packing an overnight bag and boarding a Sea King!

Tickle Me Elmo!

There is a factory in Northern Minnesota which makes the 'Tickle Me

Elmo' toys. The toy laughs when you tickle it under the arms.

Well, Lena is hired at The Tickle Me Elmo factory and she reports for

her first day promptly at 8:00 AM. The next day at 8:45 AM there is a knock

at the Personnel Manager's door. The Foreman throws open the door and

begins to rant about the new employee. He complains that she is incredibly

slow and the whole line is backing up, putting the entire production line

behind schedule.

The Personnel Manager decides he should see this for himself, so the

two men march down to the factory floor.

When they get there the line is so backed up that there are Tickle Me

Elmo's all over the factory floor and they're really beginning to pile up.

At the end of the line stands Lena surrounded by mountains of Tickle Me

Elmo's.

She has a roll of plush red fabric and a huge bag of small marbles.

The two men watch in amazement as she cuts a little piece of fabric, wraps

it around two marbles and begins to carefully sew the little package between

Elmo's legs.

The Personnel Manager bursts into laughter.

After several minutes of hysterics he pulls himself together and

approaches Lena.

"I'm sorry," he says to her, barely able to keep a straight face, "but

I think you misunderstood the instructions I gave you yesterday..."

"Your job is to give Elmo two test tickles."

Article Printed... thought you might enjoy.

Canadian warship sets sail for Persian Gulf Rob Shaw, CanWest News Service; Victoria Times Colonist Published: Monday, September 11, 2006 VICTORIA - The first Canadian warship to patrol the Middle East in about a year left the West Coast port of Esquimalt, B.C., Sunday and is expected to join with United States naval strike groups in early November. The HMCS Ottawa and its crew of 225 officers and sailors will continue Canada's campaign against terrorism in the Persian Gulf, called Operation ALTAIR. It is the third ship to deploy since 2004. The last, HMCS Winnipeg, returned to Esquimalt last September. ''Every bit of time we are out there is making a difference,'' said Rear Admiral Roger Girouard, Commander Maritime Forces Pacific. ''Right now it is about working towards stability. There are nasty things going on in the world out there ... And the difference it makes is that we send signals that say we're concerned, we're ready to do things that might arise, and we're on the world scene ready to pay our dues as a global player.'' Girouard called the HMCS Ottawa's six-month tour of duty a ''comparatively routine'' mission that could also see it work with the Indian navy and the European Union task force patrolling the unstable Persian Gulf region near combat zones in Iraq and Afghanistan. About 2,200 Canadian troops are deployed in Afghanistan and 32 army soldiers have been killed since 2002. ''We all sort of wear a bit of the sense of hurt the army's going through right now,'' said Girouard. Much of HMCS Ottawa's time will be spent sailing with a U.S. Navy expeditionary strike group led by the USS Boxer, a 36,000-tonne amphibious-assault ship that is one of the largest of its kind in the world and dwarfs the 4,700-tonne Canadian Halifax-class frigate. Still, the Canadian Navy's strength is in its ability to lead escorts, and to conduct maritime-security operations, surveillance and search missions, said HMCS Ottawa Cmdr. Darren Hawco. The frigate will also carry a Sea King helicopter which provides specialized airlift capabilities the Americans don't have, said Hawco. Before the Ottawa pulled out of CFB Esquimalt's harbour Sunday, families and friends of the sailors were given a chance to say goodbye. ''I'm actually pretty excited,'' said Able Seaman Steve Camorosi, a 27-year-old from Victoria. ''I'm not worried at all. Why be worried? If you are worried you wouldn't go. ''There are risks with it, and I was aware of the risks when I signed up.'' On-board the ship, Kristina Ducas watched as five-year-old Tyler and two-year-old Zackery wrapped their tiny arms tightly around father Marc Ducas's neck and squeezed a last hug. ''He's got to go,'' Kristina said simply. She also works for the navy and said the two boys will plot dad's progress on a map while he's away. Leading Seaman Clint Mack's seven-year-old daughter Zoea is never far from his thoughts - her name runs up his left forearm in a tattoo. He took pictures of his daughter, and two-year-old son Tyson, before boarding the ship. ''I'm a little anxious, a little sad, a bit of both,'' said the gunner and intelligence officer. ''I just told them I'm going away for a bit.'' The family of chief petty officer and ship coxswain Dennis McMillan stood on the dock and said they were proud he was serving his country. ''We're going to miss him badly, but we know he's on a mission that's important,'' said wife Jeanette, with sons Inar and Andrew. B.C. Lt.-Gov. Iona Campagnolo spoke to the sailors in a ceremony before the boat launched and said Canada was ''grateful to you beyond measure.'' ''The great freedoms and privileges that we all enjoy in this idyllic part of the world turn out to be not free after all, and demand a high price in responsibility in return,'' she said. ''On your return, we will be here to salute you for having carried the values we hold dear as a people into today's ominous world.'' Victoria Times Colonist © CanWest News Service 2006

The Computer Ate My Homework!

Let me start with my apologies to all who searched high and low for my pictures of the Farewell Ceremony and decided they must be computer illiterate. It turns out the internet connection out here in the Pacific isn't the greatest. And the pictures I attempt to load are floating somewhere out in cyber space. Don't fret yet. I will periodically try to download the pictures, and with a bit of sailor's luck it just might work for me. Besides, the pictures weren't that exciting anyway (I wasn't in any of them). Day 3 and the boat is still a rockin' and a rollin'. And I am happy to report that I have yet to see the contents of my stomach displayed before my eyes in splatter patterns. Unfortunately, the rest of the ship's company hasn't been as lucky. And my smiling face bobbing up and down the flats (hallways) only meets glares of jealousy. So far we have been attacked by various aircraft and torpedos, sustained major damages, and suffered several casualties (relax Mom, I'm talk make-believe). But the Sea Trainers insist that we are winning the fake 'War' and so we fight on. I actually quite enjoy the training process onboard. It gets you heart racing a mile a minute and your mind going even faster, as we attempt to fight fires and stop floods from stealing valuable ship's realestate. The only draw back is that fires, floods and enemy attacks don't stick to the 8 to 4 work day. More often than not, you're trying roll out of your rack at 2 in the morning and get fully dressed while the sailors above you are jumping down from their racks onto your head. It gets pretty hairy, pretty fast, but somehow no one gets injured. Oh, my favorite time of the evening has just arrived. It is time for me to scrub toilets and make the Chief's heads (washroom) sparkle and shine. I used to complain about cleaning the bathrooms at home when my brothers had used them, now I realize that experience was to steel me to this one. Time to go, myrubber gloves await me!

One Day Closer To Home (& Haiwaii)

The first full day of sailing is now behind us… and we are one day closer to coming home. The seas have been kind to the majority of us so far, although some have sworn they’ve seen their shoelaces come up. We had a ceremonious send off complete with the military band and several high-ranking guests making farewell speeches to the ship and her crew. Kevin and I did the smart thing and tried not to drag out the good byes. He managed to leave before the ceremony and tears kicked off… which really allowed us to leave each other with some form of dignity still intact. They tell us that the send off is a process more for the families and the children; this way they can say good-bye and see the ship leave. In most of our (the sailors) opinions it acts more as a process akin to slowly removing a Band-Aid off a hairy extremity! The faster you can get the farewells over with, the better for everyone.

As it turns out, there is a possibility that the man in my life was actually RIGHT… Sunday may in fact be an unlucky day to sail. We had quite a few engine troubles on our departure. For example, we couldn’t even get our Cruise Engine to start. This isn’t too much of a problem as we have two other engines, except these engines aren’t exactly economical on their fuel consumption – and we all know fuel isn’t getting any cheaper. We are hoping to have the problem rectified sometime today.

The first week or two at sea is mostly about finding your own personal rhythm and the crew finding the ship’s personal rhythm. So our time is spent trying to get settled into life on board again. We spend time trying to get all of our pictures stuck just so in our bunks and try to get used to sleeping on a hard mattress that wasn’t good enough for the inmates in Canadian prisons (true story!). So far, all of my pictures are hung and I have a sore lower back.

Time to indulge in one of the Navy’s greatest pass times… soup time. Everyday at 10:00 we pause in our workday for a 15 minute break to enjoy homemade soup. It doesn’t always taste all that appealing, but normally it’s nothing that a little Frank’s Hot Sauce can’t rectify.

The pictures are of the farewell ceremony. Once Kevin left I tried to make myself busy and hide behind the digital camera for a while.

Sailors Beware!!

Canadian Naval Personnel have been plagued by the Middle Eastern's terrorists employing new tactics to combat Canada's peace efforts. Thank God I'm a red wine drinker, huh?

Picture Time

Well, this is the only way that I can figure out how to get my photo on here... and it isn't all that recent - actually it's just about a year old now. This one was taken at my cousin Cheryl's and Andrew's Wedding. Hopefully I will be able to post photos on here while I'm at sea too. Who doesn't like stories with pictures?

Sleepless Nights

Well, thank you Mom, Irene & Jeff for your comments! I actually have to admit that I would have been quite upset if there were no comments when I checked this morning. I do find it interesting that you are all about to be in Holland too. Now I claim that I've gone international :) Yesterday I was Duty onboard ship - which means I stay onboard for a 24 hour period and respond to any mechanical or physical emergencies that might occur. On top of just being there ready to pounce in the face of danger, I also have to sit before a machinery monitoring console for 2, 4 hour shifts. I had the Afternoon/Mids shift (11:30 - 15:30 & 22:30 - 03:30) which didn't allow for much sleep. But I did manage to watch 2 fantastic films... 'chick flicks.' That is one great part about having a Duty Watch, that I just managed to tap into. I can indulge in watching movies that otherwise I wouldn't want to watch in Kevin's company (I don't like watching him suffer through anything)... don't worry, he does the same thing while he's at home. I watched Being Julia with Annette Benning. What a satisfying movie! If you haven't seen it, do. Especially you Mom - you'll howl... I know I did. It really touched on the true power a stage actor holds over the audience and of course there is always a shared sweetness in witnessing a beautifully choreographed revenge. The other was what some people call a 'classic,' a movie that most women seem shocked I had not yet seen (especially now that there is already a sequel out for rent). I watched Bridget Jones' Diary. I couldn't stop myself from laughing out loud while the two love interests duked it out in the street. There is something innately hilarious about watching two grown, professional men trying to kung-fu kick each other. And Bridget's 3 friends - my gawd, we all need friends like that! Ok, time to start the day or shower or something. Enjoy your mornings! Corrina

You are invited... to a Blog Christening!

Good Morning! This is the first attempt at posting my wild and crazy adventures in an online format so everyone can keep up to date with the excitement. I don't want to leave anyone out of my story telling, so this seemed like the most logical way to communicate with everyone without suffering carpal tunnel syndrome. As pretty much all of you know by now, I will be sailing to the Persian Gulf in the next little bit. And will be lucky enough to be exploring some beautiful places along the way. As this is a first for me, and not a common experience, I figured you all might enjoy 'tagging along' with me for the journey. Please be forewarned that the entries in here won't always be Rated G, nor will they always be sunny or entertaining. This site will act most closely like a personal journal - that you just don't have to sneak a peek at, cause I'm baring it all, honey! There is also the ability for anyone who wants to send me messages to do so through the comments option on this Blog. Just be aware that everyone else will also be able to see what you have to say to me too - so try not to incriminate us too much :) Feel free to share this link with as many people as you like - this is meant mostly for my Mom, because well, let's face it, she's a mom and that's what mom's do. But also remember that since this is such a public way to communicate, I will not be able to give you specific dates or timings of places I'm going to... To use the old (and sometimes over used) saying, "Loose lips, sink ships." As fun and exciting as this trip is, it is not a 'trip.' I am going to a hostile place with a strike group, so too much information can cause a lot of lives grief. Well, I have very high hopes for this site... especially since I can actually access it while on ship - unlike my Yahoo Blog. So yes, we will no longer be using that site as it has become too much of a headache. So, I suppose the only thing left to say now is, "Welcome" and I hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoy writing!