Are you a Pollywog or a Shellback?

[MemoryLeak]

Shellback. First time was Dec 1969. We just left Singapore to return to PIRAZ duty on Yankee Station and the Captain thought it would be entertaining to take a little detour down across the equator. We crawled on our hands and knees 800 feet along the main deck while the shellbacks used pieces of firehose on us. And of course we met the Royal Baby on the fantail....which was just before the garbage tunnel.

Ah yes... fond memories...

[kfmiller41]

Shellback
USS Samuel Gompers AD-38 1991

Most humbling experience in my Navy Career[:D]

[whippleofd]

ORIGINAL: ChezDaJez

I thought it didn't count unless you went through the ceremony (of Neptune). No ceremony, no certificate...

That is true. I crossed the equator a gazillion times flying long range patrols but that didn't save me when I did my crossdeck and we crossed the equator. No certificate? Come'ere boy! Ya gots a date wid da king!!! <sigh> Do you know what happens when a chief pollywog goes before the court?[:-]

Unfortunately, just like with the CPO initiation, the ceremony has been toned down a lot in the name of political correctness. Bah, puuuey, spit....

Chez

The "Kinder, Softer, Gentler Navy" is definately not what it was when I joined. The worst was when they started letting females back into the nuclear power program again back when I was stationed af NFAS, Orlando.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for allowing females to serve their country, but there needs to be some common sense used. i.e. You don't make a MM out of someone who dosen't have the upper body strength for it.

Whipple

[mdiehl]

Shellhead, wetback, polygrog, whatever. All you fishwannabees are the same to me.

[Oldsweat]

Golden shellback, myself, plus bluenose.

[rtrapasso]

What, no Rednoses or Emerald Shellbacks?

[Kwik E Mart]

ORIGINAL: Ramjet

SHELLBACK:

1981 USS Belleau Wood LHA-3 (Pacific)
1982 USS Belleau Wood LHA-3 (Pacific)
1989 USS Hewitt DD-966 (Pacific)
1994 USS Halyburton FFG-40 (Atlantic)
1998 USS Carl Vinson CVN-70 (Pacific)

hey, shipmate! golden shellback on USS Carl Vinson in '98...separation date was halfway between pearl and sand doggy upon return home...left the nav with my first and only cat shot in a C-2 greyhound...heck of a feeling for a pilot with 1000+ pilot hours to get shot off the deck while sitting backwards...had a sh*t-eatin' grin from ear to ear on that ride though...

[mogami]

Hi, Small World. USS Halyburton FFG-40 1988-1992

[Kwik E Mart]

ok, have to admit my crust of saltiness is not as thick as i thought...had to google "blue nose"...please forgive a brown-shoe airdale...

ps - "blue nose" reminds me of the name of our officer's "lounge" in the BOQ in Misawa - the "blue balls lounge" [8|]...the air farce was not amused when we packed up and headed home after the deployment - the refrigerator was overturned, the window smashed and various unidenifiable stains were scattered on the carpet...air farce...no sense of humor whatsoever...[;)]

[crsutton]

Ten years in the International Seafarers Union. I am willing to bet that I crossed the line more than anybody here. But, we don't mess with that foolishness on merchant vessels.[;)]

[RevRick]

ORIGINAL: mbatch729

Wog, never made it south of Cuba.

ORIGINAL: RevRick
salutin' demon ensigns,

You saluted the butterbars?!?!?! We usually just had our senior chief give them a spanking...

Only if we met the on the beach, and nobody saw us. Even then, we washed our hands and our hats afterwards.

We were out catching a few rays on the fantail in the Med, when this newly hatched United States Navy Commissioned Officer came harumphing up and tried to get us all to salute. We were, of course, in shorts and shower shoes basically, with the stereo from the ship's laundery blaring out all over the place. The young man - younger than most of us by that time - and just out of Kiddie School at Newport - glared around and said something like "Don't you men salute an officer when you see him." The Old Man stuck his head up over the hatch coaming. Thought that young'un was gonna break his elbow. The Skipper then said. "Okay, men. Salutings taken care of. Resume SunEx." Crazy Dude. Great shiphandler though. The ensign eventually worked out. They assigned him to the Snipes and that's about the last we saw of him for a while.

[Wallymanowar]

ORIGINAL: rtrapasso

Actually, Mynok you can become a Shellback without joining the military. you need to know the secret first

I thought it didn't count unless you went through the ceremony (of Neptune). No ceremony, no certificate...

EDIT: Ah, i suppose you are talking about the Merchant Marine...

I know of quite a few civilian vessels that have conducted the ceremonies, and I believe some cruise lines offer it as an inducement to take their cruises. In order to qualify you do have to be presented to King Neptune and get his blessings[;)]

[Titanwarrior89]

shellback[:D] westpac cruise in 68-69[:D]

[rtrapasso]

ORIGINAL: crsutton

Ten years in the International Seafarers Union. I am willing to bet that I crossed the line more than anybody here. But, we don't mess with that foolishness on merchant vessels.[;)]

Dunno - apparently some merchants do (according to my readings on the subject). They say that the ceremonies are as rough as they used to be in the USN (with occasional fatalities.) I would suspect that US companies put an end to this in view of possible litigation. Don't know about other countries though...

[rogueusmc]

ORIGINAL: rtrapasso

What, no Rednoses or Emerald Shellbacks?

Looks like we have a brown nose though...[;)]

[ChezDaJez]

...the air farce was not amused when we packed up and headed home after the deployment - the refrigerator was overturned, the window smashed and various unidenifiable stains were scattered on the carpet...air farce...no sense of humor whatsoever...

That sounds like the Chiefs Mess in the VP quarters in Misawa! Air Force never could see humor in things like that!

Chez

[Dereck]

ORIGINAL: RevRick

ORIGINAL: mbatch729

Wog, never made it south of Cuba.

ORIGINAL: RevRick
salutin' demon ensigns,

You saluted the butterbars?!?!?! We usually just had our senior chief give them a spanking...

Only if we met the on the beach, and nobody saw us. Even then, we washed our hands and our hats afterwards.

We were out catching a few rays on the fantail in the Med, when this newly hatched United States Navy Commissioned Officer came harumphing up and tried to get us all to salute. We were, of course, in shorts and shower shoes basically, with the stereo from the ship's laundery blaring out all over the place. The young man - younger than most of us by that time - and just out of Kiddie School at Newport - glared around and said something like "Don't you men salute an officer when you see him." The Old Man stuck his head up over the hatch coaming. Thought that young'un was gonna break his elbow. The Skipper then said. "Okay, men. Salutings taken care of. Resume SunEx." Crazy Dude. Great shiphandler though. The ensign eventually worked out. They assigned him to the Snipes and that's about the last we saw of him for a while.

Reminds me of the time a fresh Ensign, after an inspection, got all his unit chief's together and said something to the effect that they did good on the inspection but maybe next time they could all have the same color of chevrons instead of some having red and others having gold ... a Master Chief took him in tow and "explained" things to him.

[mogami]

Hi, I was sweating inside my gunmount doing my preventive maintenance when a new Ensign poked his head in the back and began railing me about how greasy the gun was
"This gun should be clean enough to eat off of" he told me
"Get out of my gunmount knucklehead" was my answer. (I couldn't see him and didn't have a clue who he was till later)

[Dereck]

ORIGINAL: Mogami

Hi, I was sweating inside my gunmount doing my preventive maintenance when a new Ensign poked his head in the back and began railing me about how greasy the gun was
"This gun should be clean enough to eat off of" he told me
"Get out of my gunmount knucklehead" was my answer. (I couldn't see him and didn't have a clue who he was till later)

There was one pilot, an ENS or LTJG, who kept putting in repair reports about some switch not working in the O-F-F position.

He wasn't joking like the maintainance chief first thought either.

[Knavey]

Got an Order of the Ditch certificate or two floating around somewhere.