I was inspired by @
Marine91 posting his love story and felt the need to share my own..
It was 1982 and I had been living in the Phillipines with my dad, an alcoholic U.S. Navy chief boatswain's mate, since early adolescence. Hoping to put my life on a different path I signed up for the Navy’s Aviation Officer Candidates School to become a Navy pilot.I was immediately “welcomed” by my Marine Gunnery Sgt. drill instructor Foley, an ornery old cus who made it clear the program is designed to eliminate any officer candidates who are not suitable. I hit it off with a fellow candidate named Sid. We met two local girls - factory workers - at a Navy-hosted dance and I began a romantic relationship with Paula. Sid started a relationship with Lynette. My drill Instructor, Foley, rode me mercilessly, believing that I lacked motivation and I was not a team player. When my side business of selling pre-shined shoes and belt buckles was discovered, Foley hazed me for an entire weekend in an attempt to make me DOR ("Drop on Request", a term for requesting termination of one's training), but I refused to give in. He then told me that he will have me thrown out and I broke down telling him I had nowhere else to go and I want to fly Jets! It was then he let up on me. Meanwhile, Lynette had been dropping hints to Sid that she may be pregnant. During a high-altitude simulation in a pressure chamber, Sid had a sudden anxiety attack. Realizing that he joined up out of a sense of obligation to his family, Sid resigned and left the base without saying goodbye, so me and Paula went out to look for him. It turned out Sid went to Lynette's house and proposed marriage to her. She turned him down, but not before confessing she wasn't pregnant. She wanted him to graduate in order to fulfill her dream of marrying a Navy pilot, and all but cursed him for dropping out. Sid, in his despair, went to a local motel and committed suicide. I was absolutely consumed with grief and broke up with Lynette believing she was just like the local town girls who would do anything just to marry a fighter pilot. I decided to resign from the Navy myself but Foley wouldn’t allow me to so close to graduation. I actually fought him in an unofficial martial arts bout with the platoon looking on. Although I dominated for most of the fight (mostly fueled by my anger at Foley, who I believed played a part in Sid's suicide by not stopping him from leaving), Foley managed to win and told me I can quit if I wanted to. I did show up for graduation, and was sworn into the Navy with my class. After graduating I was now an Ensign with orders to flight training. I relaized how much Paula loved me and I went in full uniform, marching through the factory where she worked to seek out Paula. My heart was filled with the most amazing feelings of love as I picked her up and walked out with her in my arms to the applause and cheers of her co-workers, including Lynette who was shouting “you go Paula!”. I could hear the music playing in my head: Love lift us up where we belong. Where the eagles Cry on a mountain high! Love lift us up where we belong! Far from the world we know up where the clear winds blow!View attachment 55696And that my friends is my love story. They should really make a movie about it.[/QUOTE [MENTION=7260]Chumley[/MENTION] [MENTION=6717]pdolphin27[/MENTION]Jim, that was one of the most admireable stories I've vere read about you, and back about 1982 starting my Senior year of High school, you were my Hero..... I wanted to grow up and be just like you. Man oh Man, The way you handled yourself in that story, Dang I was so proud of you, I think every Red Blooded American Man alive wanted to be exactly like you!! But then we have to Fassst Foreword into the early 90's, Back in my early days of my Law Enforcement Career, I remember that morning clear as Day, and will Never forget it as long as I live. I remember listening to the radio that morning, Classic Rock station, playing some great tunes, like Boston, Humble Pie, Styx, Lynard Skynnerd, you know really great music, and about the time I was listening to an Awesome song, this old woody station wagon passed by me while I was on patroll, You remember the old Woody's right?? This joker was traveling a 97 mph in a 55 mph zone, what was this clown thinking, that's what I was wondering anyway. Quite a long pursuit started to catch that old Woody, and after catching up to him, and getting him stopped, I approached the driver of that car, which had every window in the station wagon rolled down, I know this because a St. Bernard was in the back seat Barking at me as I approached it, I politely asked the driver to step out of his car, and around to the rear of said Woody, and he did, very respectfully, I noticed immediately, his face was this amazing Red color, and I asked him for his drivers license, and registration, (Insurance wasn't a requirement then) all the while, the gentleman saying, officer, officer, please let me explain, and as he was digging out his license and registration, he told me this story, of how he'd been on this long drive 8-10, and eating bean burrito's and Taco's and feeding some to his St. Bernard, and how his Saint Bernard developed Gas, as he put it "Massive Amounts of Gas" not having a vehicle with Air Conditioning, he opted to roll all his windows down and air the car out before he puked inside the car, thinking he was outrunning the foul odor of the Saint Bernard in the back seat, as his efforts were useless!! I took his story into careful consideration, as you knooow, I love pets, always have been a pet lover, and understanding, maybe he just made a bad decision, on a bad day, was at the wrong place at the wrong time, So I ask him to wait behind his car, as I walk back to my cruiser, now definitely over heating from the long pursuit, and I call his drivers license in, registration, the whole nine yards through NCIC, making sure his story checked out, and he didn't have a record of doing this all the time, ya know how that goes, check and verify, rather than be made a fool of!! As I'm waiting on my dispatcher to come back with his record, on the radio was this !! NEWS BREAK !! and this is what the radio news broadcaster put out all over the FM Radio.......Richard Gere and the gerbilThis Morning, Jim B. (Stage name Richard Gere) was admitted into the emergency room of a Los Angeles hospital with a foreign object lodged in his rectum. Some hospital staff say Jim was alone when he arrived, others say he was accompanied by a friend (pdolphin27). In any case, an x-ray was taken and it was determined that the foreign object was a gerbil (either alive or dead, depending on which staff member you talk to). Mr. Jim B. was rushed to surgery, where it took an entire team of doctors to extract the animal from his behind. Some of the team staff say the gerbil was found to have been shaven and declawed; others stated the animal had been placed in a special plastic pouch. Still others insist the poor creature was Jim B's own beloved pet (appropriately named "Tibet" in this variant). In any event, when the gerbilectomy was done the medical team was sworn to secrecy — unsuccessfully, we must conclude — and Jim B went on his merry way, suffering no permanent harm other than to his reputation.Now after this News Cast, that early morning in the early 90's, you can only imagine my fustration with Pet Owners, and their said pets..... Well, NCIC came back clean on the driver and his car, But in all of it's glory, Because of that breaking news story, He was cited for speeding, wreckless driving, and inhumane treatment to his pet. Now Jim, we've been friends for a while, but because of you my friend, That St. Bernards owner was cited for his actions, and i'm sure ultimately, next time, he will make a better decision, and stop his vehicle, and allow his pet to relieve himself of "Massive Gas". And going a step beyond, I'm sure that the St. Bernard probably didn't get any toys for the following month, as he was paying for his citation, knowing, He surely doesn't like you, and I'm really leary of the events that happened that morning, probably leaving my brain scared for life, thinking about that poor Gerbal, And since you brought yourself into the lime light of your screen personality, Would you be willing to eleborate on whether it was a Gerbal or a Hamster?????? Or is this going to be like another "iPad" and the "Kindle" story?????? Please feel free to coloberate your story with Phil before making any statements or asking any questions, and always remember, you have the right to remain Silent, which in this case deeply incriminates you both !! Yep...... My dreams of being just like you shattered that early morning....... But the silver lining to the dark cloud is, The Gerbal/Hamster was as relieved to be as free as the Saint Bernard.
And to this day, Jim B (Richard Gere) still has not addressed the events of that early morning publicly.
