STG (Sonar)

Hello Gwynhwyfar, My son is four year but has applied for six year.  He will know more when "A" school is done in about two weeks.  If he continues top of the class I am sure he will be given his request for six year.  At that point we are not sure what will happen. I think he will remain where he is for many more months for continued training.  He loves the beach and is spending a lot of time watching more than just the ocean....LOL

Sadly, I don't have any vacations left -- I teach school and we had too many snow days. Our Easter vacation is now Friday and the weekend, rather than the 5-day that we had, which might have made it possible to fly out there. If he does well and makes the switch, then I can go out after school is out for the summer, which would be awesome. I've never been it to the other side of the Mississippi river!

 

Last night, he was doing some course on NKO and talking to me in between on his laptop, from Starbucks. As weird as it feels to me to talk to him after BC's relative lack of communication, I'm sure it feels even more weird to him.

I live on the east coast, but my family lives on the west coast where I grew up.  Now my sailor gets to be with them on the weekends, and I don't know who to be more jealous of.  Them for getting to be with him or visa-versa.  If I wasn't outraged about the transportation department getting to feel up every passenger (and time and money) I'd be out there already.

Some of my especially good memories were to go to Ensenada for lunch, and then just drive back home.  I understand our sailors are NOT allowed to go into Mexico for any reason.  Hey they still have Catalina Island and Big Bear.

I called my son one weekend, and asked him what he was doing.  "We rented a car and we're going snowboarding." was his reply.  Now that's Navy fun. 

These kids are gonna need these memories when their out in the ocean!  Another mother said her son's ship didn't have enough toilet paper when it deployed.  They were all begging for care packages from home filled w/ TP.  They've go to enjoy SD while they've got it!

I just recently found out what "river city" means on deployment.  I am trying to enjoy all this communication, but now my sailor wants me to mail all his dive equipment to him.  How in the world am I going to do that, and how much will that cost?! Do you know how heavy that stuff is.  He wants weights, tanks and all.  So communication can be expensive too.  Then whats he gonna do when he gets deployed?  Boys!

I keep forgetting I can look on my profile for friends, I'm kind of new to this form of communication, so this forum is fine for me.  River City is apparently when they shut down all communication from the ship or carrier for security reasons, i.e. someone gets hurt and the family needs to be notified by the Navy, not some friend who read it on Facebook first, or special missions that can't let their location leak out for a period of time.  If you find out any more about it, I hope you will share what you know.

 

LOL-We're gonna have to help each other w/ the acronym stuff:)!

Hello all.  My son is awaiting in San Diego for A school to start.  Just wanted to join a group that knows about his rate.

 my sailorson...    My son works in the admin office. Finished A-school, awaiting ops. Starts in June.

Hope to visit him soon.

A trip to SD would be so nice!  My son just finished ATT and is waiting for orders.  He is supposed to come home in a couple of months to be the best man for his foster bother's (also a sailor) wedding.  We're just praying they will approve his chit and that he won't start his next school until after the wedding.  He likes being on hold, it gives him time to visit our family that lives in Southern CA.  I wish I was there now:)  I wonder if our sailors know each other?

It wasn't a freudian slip, I meant to spell brother. What do you expect from a woman who had a wisdom tooth extracted today?!

do... SF likes being on hold also. I wrote you a pm.

Hi, my son leaves GL on the 21st for sandiago,i am here to hopefully meet up with others who have loved ones there also.he said he could b on hold up to 2 months b/4 his clases start.

He'll probably love it.  Hold in SD can be fun.

My son was on hold for about four weeks.  Had a wonderful time.  He is now finished with "A" school and is waiting to find out if he has been approved for six year.

We looked up the school on google earth.  It was small.  I would love to hear all the details.  My sailor said they couldn't find a chaplain there.  Please tell us what you know.

My son checks pple in but his name stats with a W. He has been there since Oct. 2nd. The base across the bay is Coronado. It's where the movie Top Gun was filmed. It's a very nice island. The Naval Air Station is there.  SD has a great transportation system so you really don't need a car. My son is also a duty driver, taking pple from base to  base.  I cannot remember how many bases are there.

Hello tmsy22,  I sent you a friend request and the last name of my son (B).  So it could have been my son.  Most of my son's friends get around by bus system.  One of his friends has a car and "she" does the driving.  He has made a lot of really wonderful friends in SD and it has been really good for him.

tmsy22 - My son started class yesterday also.  He has been there 2 weeks waiting for the class to fill up.  I wonder how many it takes to "fill" a class?  Maybe they will know each other.

My sailor starts his 3rd school on Monday. Does anyone else have a sailor in this class?

Thanks tmsy22/stg sonar tech mom,  good luck to your sailor too.  Is this her A school?  My son says he's going to end up on a frigate.  He didn't seem to happy about that.  The bright side might be where he'll be stationed.  So we'll have to keep on the sunny side of this!

Thanks Deb M, that was very encouraging.  I will remind him about rank. 

I'm having a hard time w/ one decision that's been passed down.  His brother (our foster son) who is a petty officer is getting married in June. My sonar sailor's chit was denied.  He is the best man.  My sonar sailor wants to be professional about it (which makes me proud), but I wish I could do something to get him here even if it's just for the day!

d_o ,   my sailor is also on the west coast and we are in NC.  She was initially in SC so that was nice but now it's hard being on opposite sides of the country.  She is in C school now, started last Monday.  She loves the Navy...it was a good choice for her.   My son is applying to OCS and hopefully will go active next December when he graduates college.

 

teachertoo, My daughter graduates boot camp on May 26, then my youngest daughter graduates college on May 28th. I so wanted to see if my SR could make a one day detour to attend her sister's graduation before flying to San Diego. Rear Admiral Regina Benjamin, the US Surgeon General is going to be the commencement speaker. They changed the rule in March that SR's could not take overnight leave after PIR and she would have to fly from Chicago to NY. How hard was it for your son to get his liberty to attend his brother's graduation and how long has he been in the Navy? Would you call and speak to public affairs at Great Lakes or leave well enough alone?

From the peanut gallery...

Leave it alone joankf.  My younger son is graduating from Colorado School of Mines this Friday.  My sailor was denied leave.  What I have had to learn is that once my older son signed on with the military he no longer belongs to me.  He is the property of the US Government.  They call the shots, not pun intended.  And I will do nothing to draw attention, in a negative way, to my son.  Just like with any job...mommy doesn't need to be calling the boss.  So I pray.  Not only for my son but for yours too.  And I joined Molly Mom's who have supported me.  And my PIR group whom I still keep in touch with.  I will, on Friday, watch my younger son walk across the stage without my sailor at my side.  Sad, I know, but it is what it is... 

Congratulations on your son's and daughter's graduations!  What wonderful accomplishments you will be celebrating in your offspring!  I'm praying for you all too. 

Like many of you I spent my 1st Mother's Day without my "baby" (lol).  When I was getting dressed my husband said, "honey come out here."  Standing there was a beautiful young man with hair and eyes the same color as my sailor-it was one of his good friends who came over to take me to Mother's Day dinner.  I laughed @ my sailor later, on our phone conversation and said, "honey, did you send me a surrogate for the day?! He's cute, but he still can't take your place!"

It did make me feel better though.  So if the real thing can't be with you to celebrate these good things, I'll pray that God sends someone to take up some of the slack.  It's funny how we need our kids just as much as they used to need us!

Anyone here have a sailor in San Diego with the last name beginning with an H. My son"s best buds, 4 of them, all begin with H. He really enjoys them and is going to fleet with one of them. Duty station will be Mayport.

Thank you Pheobe and DebM.  Excellent advice I shall take.  I'll ask my youngest to bring her cap and gown to PIR and we can take a family photo while at GL.  At least we'll all be together there!

What a great idea!  That will probably be the most treasured photo of all. 

When we were in GL we saw a cardboard cut out of Michelle Obama @ the Navy Pier. Everybody was taking their picture next to it.  Wouldn't it be great if we had one of those of our sailors, then they would never miss another special family event. (At least in the pictures)  We'll have to come up with something that fills the hole in our hearts.

My son is in Point Loma, does any one have a loved on ther also?

Janice - my son is also at Point Loma for his A school training.  This is his 3rd? week of school and his rate is STG.  What is your son doing?

Hi Janice and mysailorson...,  My son is in his 3rd week of ATT and is also on Point Loma for STG.  He loves SD and the great beaches.  He will be in SD for the next year, training.

Janice...My son has been at Point Loma since Aug. He begins ops in Early June then on to his duty station in Mayport. 

 

Any of you have loved ones with a last name beginning with an H? It seems most of his buds and one bud-ette have last names beginning with H.

Janice, my daughter is at Point Loma for STG now.  She's in her 2nd week of C School, I think! haha.  I have trouble keeping it all straight.  She loves it there.

ProudNavyMom, I just realized in was called Point Loma, so I know what you mean.  Did she graduate boot camp 9-10-10?  That's when we were in GL.

My sailor just got Petty Officer.  Yeah!, His 1st raise.

My Sailor had her PIR in April of 2010.  She went to Goose Creek in the NUKE program but struggled through that to the point where she was dropped.  She's now in SD in sonar program.   She loves it and feels it was a good move.

I'm glad to hear she found a job that was a better fit.  That will make life more enjoyable for her.

I'm so glad that my S is in SD for Sonar.  He is doing so well and loving it.  Glad your sailor is too.  We need them to meet.

Maybe they have already!   lol.   She was working in the galley while on hold between schools.  She's about to begin her 3rd week of C School.

 

Does your son know someone that has a last name that starts with an O?  They might know each other already.  My sailor says they like to eat at a place named Oh Gee or something like that.  I think it's a sports bar.  He likes the comradery, and the TV's, but he doesn't drink.  I'm glad the Navy is strict on under age drinking. His dad didn't feel that way when he was in Vietnam.

It's Oggi's.   Here's the link to it. http://www.oggis.com/

Oggi's has the best thin crust pizza... it's seems almost good for you. Yum!

Hey thanks for that ProudNavyMom.  That just kind of made me feel a little closer to my boy.  I'm a little jealous of you all for getting to go there.  Now I'm hungry for some of that thin crust pizza.

Wish I could go there too...we're on the opposite coast!

Me too, on both accounts ProudNavyMom.  California seems far away right now.

We want to travel to SD again this June but it might have to wait until we see if S can come home between classes.

Well good luck with your sailor getting to come home while he's still in school.  I think the earlier posts talked about that.  I was born in CA.  It's actually kind of chilly in June, compared to the humidity of the south.

They call it June gloom.  It's like a cloudy overcast that isn't always smog.  Refreshing if your hot out here.

phoebe - We were planning our trip to San Diego for June also until we found out our son will come home at the time we were going to go out there.  He finishes A school around June 20th and gets to come home after that!

Talked to our son tonight.  We are waiting to see what happens.  They will not grant leave until they class up, "C" school for S.  But once they class up; class starts...  So I don't get it because they don't grant leave during class!!??  Unless he gets this one class he really wants which will be a long hold until class starts.  So at that point he could come home... But the confusion continues!  LOL

FYI:  My S and his friend (last name starts with U) had their credit card numbers stolen. They both were called at the same time by their banks (my S was USBank, (U) was from the Navy bank).  Thinking that the restaurant they were at together was the one that had the person who stole the card numbers, thinking it was Oggi's!!!!  Lucky that the bank saw/flagged "how could they charge at a restaurant in SD at the same time as a Home Depot in Montana?"  So just letting you know that the theft of card numbers is on and to give your sailors a heads up...

I recommend Life Lock for credit card security ... my daughter graduated "A" school at the end of April  and will not class up for "C" school until Nov. (yea! I live 2 hours from SD). She will travel out of state on leave in June. She is able to take a train to me when ever she does not have duty on a weekend.... they can go about 2 hours away -- (read: Los Angeles, disneyland, but not Las Vegas....) without much hassle.