Random Thoughts and Musings

Several people (as in, 12 of the 20 that ‘wrote in’), asked whether I was really in the Navy, and what Boot Camp was like, among other things.

Yes, I was in th U.S. Navy. I enlisted in October 1994, in the Delayed Entry Program, and headed off to boot camp March 1995. I joined to remove myself from a situation that was not good for me or the other person living it, and happened to luck into a position that I would come to love.

Boot camp was … boot camp. We worked our asses off. I lost tons of weight - I wore a size 6 when I entered, came out nine weeks later with brand new uniforms in a size 1. I didn’t realize I was losing weight til I stood up and my pants fell down around my ankles. Literally.

I learned that mind games are not just played by parents, but by everyone who thinks they can control you. I learned to play the game in a manner that allowed me to be independent, without getting into trouble or causing anyone else to get in trouble. I learned to sleep with 150 other people in the same room. I learned to shower with 150 other women and zero privacy. I learned to fold clothes in a fashion that I never used once I left boot camp. I learned that my stepfather’s rules and requirements had trained me for this stage in my life.

I watched several of my shipmates deteriorate and drop out due to various reasons: personal weaknesses, medical issues, mental issues. I watched one particular shipmate deteriorate to the point that she tried to commit suicide. Thanks to a quick-acting shipmate who was standing nearby, the deteriorated shipmate remained unscathed and was sent to a hospital. I do not know what happened to her from there. I watched grown men cry like babies, and grown women throw tantrums to rival the most terrible-est two in the world. I witnessed a newly-minted US Citizen (his family had ridden a raft from Cuba) not only master the English language, but excel at everything we did. His ENTIRE US-based family was at our graduation. One of our shipmates lost his younger brother AND gradmother in the Oklahoma City bombing. I still remember that he had to be told four times before he understood what happened. The look on his face was haunting.

I ran into several people form high school - which was odd, sincce I went to boot camp 2 years after we graduated - including one of my high school crushes. He managed to pass me a note (high-school style) during a field day-type event. I tossed it, realizing I would probably not see him unless we happened to be in town on leave at the same time.

I made fast friends: my Division Commander got in my face and hollered, and I laughed. He cycled me til I thought I would die, then got in my face and yelled again. I managed to only smile. He cycled me again, until I was too weak to move. Literally. Afterwards, he pulled me aside and asked why … I told him if he’d grown up with my stepfather, he wouldn’t think he was scary either. We became friends that day, and remained friends for a number of years. I earned privileges (a few of us earned pizza Sundays, outings to the local mall, and then … for those of us who were really well-liked, a free afternoon to do whatever we wanted, off-base). I put my loud mouth to use as the 2nd in charge of our Division: I was the loudmouth you hear calling out commands *grins*.

I learned to toss a rifle: my division was somewhat unique:
1) we were a 900-Division (meaning we were one of the performance teams for graduation ceremonies); our particular division was Division 9-1-1. (That’s how we were taught to pronounce it, tho it was Division 911).
2) We were an integrated company: we had both males and females in the same company, and did everything together. We slept in separate bunk halls - their bunk hall (room) was across the hallway from ours. All activities; marching, classes, chow time, punishments, cycling, duty, etc … were all done together. In free time we were allowed to socialize together, unlike other divisions, where males and females would not meet face-to-face.

I fractured both of my ankles the 3rd day there, because those stupid boondockers are a health hazard - especially on pot-hole filled, icy ground covered by snow in March. ESPECIALLY to someone who will trip over the same bump in the carpet in her own home at least twice a week. I learned to stand up for myself and to call in favors when needed: my 7th week in, they finally discovered the stress fractures in my ankle: they didn’t show up on X-ray, only on the bone scans. Prior to the discovery of the truth, their answer to my grapefruit sized ankles (I wish I could find those pics - my ankles were hideously huge and bruised) was to prescribe ice baths 15 minutes every 4 hours, enough motrin to fry anyone’s liver, and sleeping with my feet elevated. As soon as they realized what shape my ankles were in, they declared I would have weak ankles for the forseeable future, and began the paperwork to discharge me.

After an hour of stunned silence as I packed my bags, I became angry. And vocal. I went to my Division Commander (a hardass 1st glass petty officer), who called in our brother company’s DC, (a mean and ornery female chief who had medical training), and she went with me to the medical hall. We requested the doctor’s time, we fought my discharge process together. It did no good: the doctor refused to hald proceedings. My DC then asked me if I knew of anyone who would defend my capabilities & right to be in the military. I made a call to a friend of the family, who  made a few calls of his own, which were apparently highly effective. Five hours later, I was told to unpack my shit and get my ass into gear, I was wasting time. I was put on crutches for one week, and if I failed to pass the PT at the end of that week, I would be discharged, no matter who I knew, where.

I passed my PT (although I would have sworn it was killing me at the time) with flying colors. I proudly stood at attention with the rest of my division, and was even able to perform my rifle tossing in the ceremony. I had not one member of my family in the audience.

I came out of boot camp as an E-3 (because I was a good girl and got good marks on my exams, as well as played along with the mind games of my DCs and excelling in our performances), with paperwork for my guaranteed A-school (technical tranining), meaning I would not have to go to a ship and swab decks and let someone else decide my fate.

Not sure what you expected to find out, or wanted to know … if i didn’t answer, send another email

xoxo

A question was broached a few weeks back which I have not yet answered. I decided to try to start a new group of posts. Tell It All Tuesday will be where you ask me questions in one Tuesday’s thread, and I will answer it the next week (or at least a couple of them). We’ll see if anymore questions are asked. Maybe this will be a complete fail. *L*

My friend J (who asked not to be identified) asked me about nekked Jamaica. He was curious about what happened there, who I go with, how I handle myself, and if it is as freaky as what people seem to think. First of all, nekked Jamaica is, to me, Hedo II. I LOVE the resort, the people who work there, the people who vacation there, and the freaking amazing food they serve!

A few years back, four of my friends (two married couples) discussed going. One couple is a pair of travel agents, and they had been before. The other couple had not yet been, but wanted to go … to expand on some of the other new experiences they’d had in the couple of years prior. Because I have the most amazing and wonderful friends in the world, BOTH couples wanted me to go with them. I could not afford to go at the time they were making arrangements, so the travel agent couple provided my airfare, and the other couple allowed them to bunk with them. There was, technically, a separate twin-size bed in the room … but to be completely honest, we all crashed in the king-size bed.

I do not think Hedo is as wild as some people imagine … but I also think it is just as crazy as others imagine. I realize I am a lot more open than a lot of people I know, so what seems normal to me may make some of you want to ship me off to hell before I corrupt your innocent (in comparison) minds.

The bus ride to the resort is … bumpy. And curvy. And not that comfy, unless it has working air. But yanno … once we got there, it was SO worth it. As soon as you step off, the staff says, “Welcome home.” They check you in, send you to the bar for your first drink, and take your luggage to your room for you. As soon as you want, head to your room and get nekked. Ok ok, part of the resort requires you to wear some sort of covering. The group I go with? We go nekked as often as possible. Us ladies wear wraps around the “prude” side of the resort, and then untie them once we cross the imaginary line to the “nude” side of the resort.

There are pools and hot tubs on both sides of the resort. There are rooms and beach on both sides of the resort. This makes it sound huge, but it isn’t really. However, it is large enough to include hundreds of people at once. The foilage is beautiful throughout the resort green, tropical, lush foilage. The beaches are beautiful. The food is incredible. Because this is an all-inclusive resort, you do not need money once you walk through the doors. Food and drinks are on the house. If you choose to shop or go to the spa, you need fundage. Otherwise? Cash-free baby!! (Except for the tips we all slip to our valet and barkeeps when we can do it secret-like, because they are not supposed to accept tips throughout the resort.)

There are several options provided for meals and drinks. The buffet is open every morning for a couple of hours for breakfast. It opens again at lunch and dinnertimes. MOST people eat in the dining room, snagging food from the buffet. The food itself is delicious, the fresh fruit is amazing, and the desserts are okay. I do not remember eating dessert more than once or twice in my two trips though. There is a bar in the main dining room, a bar by the beachfront pool, a bar in the piano bar, and a bar at the nude pool. The nude pool bar is always busy, as is the nude-side pool and hot tub. By busy, I mean there are a lot of people, not that there is a lot of action.

Also, for your eating pleasure, there are two grills: one nude-side, one prude-side. They serve hamburgers, fries, grilled cheese, and sometimes other snackable foods. Every day at 4pm, the NUDE SIDE GRILL serves jerk chicken. You do NOT want to let your prude-ish behavior keep you from wandering over at least once to get this delicious treat. It is grilled and seasoned to perfection, and is a favorite among all resort regulars. It does not get any better!

There are three restaurants in the resort: Jamaican-Hibachi (a hint of Jamaican, a lotta hibachi), Italian, and Reggae. You need reservations for each of them, so grab your reservations as soon as you get to the resort. We’ve eaten at all three. I do not typically like Italian food at restaurants, but this place … holy cow, amazing! The Reggae resort only comes out once or twice a week, but we managed to get reservations one night and ate there too. Had foods native to Jamaica, and they are superb. The Jamaican-Hibachi restaurant is my all-time favorite. The food is utterly amazing, and the chefs are fun and flirty and absolutely hilarious.

There is also a piano bar … and it turns into the karaoke bar later at night. The pianists are always amazing, and they encourage guests with talent to come forth and show their stuff too. Karaoke is always amazing and fun … I do not enjoy it nearly as much anywhere else as I do at nekked Jamaica!!

I will take one second to let you know: the rooms at this resort are not designed to keep you inside of them. The a/c does not always work, the shower does not always get hot for very long. The beds are not comfortable for more than getting a few hours sleep to rejuvinate yourself for another day of fun. They are clean, they are spacious, and they are there for you to dump your shit and head out to the beach.

There is a gym. I have not been inside. I *hear* the classes are great and the equipment is older, but definitely works for a vacation workout. There are tennis courts which we intend to visit but keep forgetting because … well … we’re at the damn beach! There is raquetball, which my friend LOVES. There is also shuffleboard, basketball, and volleyball. Oh, and pool. Of course there are pool tables. And a video arcade.

There are these outdoor beds throughout the resort. They have outdoor furniture cusions on them, but are as comfy as beds. Sometimes, people sleep on them … sometimes they put on a sex show. There are hammocks spread throughout the resort.

And pools. Did I mention pools? Yeah … on the prude side, there is a rather expansive pool that is … rarely used. There is also a huge waterslide that, when in use, deposits you into a smallish pool that splashes water onto the glass wall of the disco. So everytime someone comes down, the disco window wall gets splashed. It’s great - especially when the disco is open and up and running and all hot and steamy and then they turn the water slide on … oh yeah, that’s the stuff!

Speaking of disco … there is one. Not bad, either. You go in, they play music, you dance … or get freaky in the corners … or dance and get freaky on the dancefloor. There is a bar inside the disco. And a hot tub with a glass bottom above the disco. **grins**

Ok … so the hot tub above the disco is a favorite of ours when we meet up with our regular group of friends. You are probably only supposed to have four or five people in there … we sit on laps and stuff and pile in about 10. It’s great … the tub actually gets hot, there is a view of the water … it is bliss. Oh, and the bar isn’t too far away, so we don’t mind drink runs.

There is a hot tub not far away, on the other side of the prude pool. It probably holds 10-15 people. I don’t know how many people you CAN fit in it, because we rarely hit it up. If we cannot be nekked, you won’t find us there for long. Period.

We did find a hot tub on the prude side that is hidden inside some bushes… my friends love gettin freaky in it, and I love watchin. Bliss, I tell ya … bliss. (I will say we make every attempt possible to keep the waters clean … and alert them if it needs to be washed out after we’re done.)

The hot tub on the nude side is HUGE … holds 30-40 people, i think … but we of course get probably 60 people in there. Things happen. They are there to be watched. The nude pool is not as big as the prude pool, but has several advantages

1) a lagoon area that you can pull a lounger chair into if you want to be in the water but not standing

2) a waterfall-feature with a hidden cave space behind it (super for hot and heavy makeouts if you want to be visible but not full-on porno)

3) a cool jacuzzi up top, and

4) a swim-up bar.

Oh yeah … pure and total bliss. There are plenty of lopungers all the way around the pool … I rarely see anyone in them. There are a couple of bar-height tables in the pool so you can stand around them and put your drinks on them…. or for the more adventurous, so you can fuck on them. Yep, in plain sight.

Voyeur and exhibitionsit heaven, I tell ya!!

The beach is not what I am used to (yanno, white sands, emerald waters), but it is clean, and it is warm, and it is beautiful for floating in the water and sunning yourself. They provide the floats …and the atmosphere, of course, lends itself to providing the entertainment.

Oh! Entertainment!!

Every night is a different theme: pajama party, toga night, etc. Everyone dresses up, has fun. The entertainment staff comes out and puts on a show, drags all of us into it, ensures everyone has a magnificent time. Sometimes the party moves down to the beach and the disco, sometimes they let it play itself out inthe dining room.

The dining room, btw, is not enclosed - it has a roof, but is open to the outside, so there is always a view of the beautiful resort and the beach. And the people.

During the day, there is usually a DJ near the prude pool, encouraging people to have a great time with music and chatter. Sometimes, my friend gets to DJ while he’s there because he brings his laptop full of music. The DJ there loves him, and he loves having the chance to play the life of the party.

The could-be TMI stuff starts here.

The spa … holy cow the spa. I had my first-ever brazillian wax there. It is the ONLY brazilian that did not cause me to break out afterwards. The gyrl who did it was quick and effective, and I felt fabulous three minutes after we were finished. I didn’t even cry (and I am a huge pain-wimp!). I have also gotten a couple of massages there (which were blissful), had my nails done, my hair cut, and gotten a pedicure. The spa services are top-notch!

I have been to nekked Jamaica twice. I hope to go again, but I do not know when that will play out. I do know that next time i want to go for the full week and not just four nights. I also know that despite the free-flowing alcohol, I rarely find myself drinking. I am enjoying the sun, the sand, and the waters far too much. I have enjoyed many a sex-show … people love being on display, and they love making sure we all know they are there to watch.

I have also had more than a few flirtations and teasing sessions. Those are my favorites. I would have loved to go with my then-boyfriend, to see if he would be open to some of the more public displays … but he was never able to get away at the right time. I am unsure he would have been willing anyway. *L*

I have met people in Jamaica that go every year. Two couples have become friends that I keep outside of the resort. Most of the other people are resort-friends only. We go, we see them, we party together, we leave and say goodbye til next year’s welcome home. The two couples I have met and stayed friends with are amazing people. One is an older couple that lives up farther north than I, the other is a younger couple in California. When I go back, I hope they are still making their annual excursions at the same time!

Those of us that go to Hedo II tend to like a more relaxed, casual, friendly atmosphere. There is a Hedo III up north (near the waterfalls i am desperate to see, dammit!), and they tend to like nicer rooms, a younger-partying atmosphere, and do not care about a decent beach.

There are off-site things to do too, for a cost: shopping excursions, a particular bar that is popular for having the perfect spot to view a sunset, a trip to the waterfalls up north, etc. There are also water and air sports available for a cost.

If you want to completely de-stress, I suggest an all-inclusive resort. If you are open to seeing bodies of every shape and size, some sex acts, and not having ANY children around AT aLL … go to Hedo. You will not regret it. I have not yet met a single person who has been (knowing that there would be nudity) that did not enjoy it thoroughly.

I’ll tell ya … the first time I went, I did not think I could get nekked. I have had body-image issues for years (I started out super-thin and got to be rather large), and was uncomfortable being naked in front of the man I was dating. I got to Hedo II, though, and the clothes came off like I had been a nudist my entire life.

Bliss. Pure bliss.

If you decide to book your trip, my friend Hayden can tell you the best times to go, and help you match your vacation to your budget.

xoxox