Ciao!
I must say that the past several weeks have been very different than my weeks when I first arrived in La Maddalena. First of all the weather has changed drastically...Gone are the mid-90's temperature, humidity so high you can't breathe. We are now experiencing cool winds coming across the Med with temperatures reaching only the mid-70's. We also seem to get thundershowers during the late-evening/early morning time. So often that we are forced to wear jackets...I guess I better start buying winter clothing before I start to freeze....But all in all the workdays aren't to bad here. Every so often we experience our share of emergent repairs, mind you the ship is realllllly old and has been negleted for decades. So although we may stay late from time to time, we are quite lucky to be able to hit the beach early and still have our weekends off.
I have found a 3-bedroom apartment that I'll be moving into soon. Mostly paid by the Navy but unfurnished. That's okay cause I plan in turning it into CLUB DEVIATE every Friday and Saturday and charge everyone $25 to get in and have all you can drink....I'm gonna make me some moola! ! !
A few friends are planning on doing some sightseeing, weather permitting. Not sure where cause I'm not the one driving, but some expressed going to the Acshun Mall and eating McDonald's and maybe some bowling....Doesn't matter to me as long as we do something.
Word was released that the ship will be headed stateside (Washington State) in late 2007. How cool is that? I know Roy's excited. We plan on transitting across the Atlantic Ocean with stops in Florida and Virginia before going thru the Panama Canal to head up the coast. We should be in Bremerton before the holidays.
Baby Christian is doing well. I have heard that he weighs close to 10lbs and has been smiling a lot. I recently bought him his first pair of Nike shoes, he'll be sporting those in a month or two. Eydee and I are hoping to have a christening in mid-December so clear your calenders for a party afterwards.
Anyway it's Friday night and we just got paid (party's jumpin', feelin' righhhht) and me and the boys are planning on finding a party somewhere in La Madd.
Until next post...take care y'all
I'M BACK!
After a loooong hiatus, I am glad to say that I am back to post my neverending adventures of life in Europe.
First off, I want to welcome Christian Jacob Matamis Purog who was born August 10th at 3:37pm at Sharp Chula Vista. He weighed 6lbs 15oz and was measured at 20 in. long. I am happy to say I was granted leave to be present at the delivery. I flew out of Sicily, Italy on the morning of Aug 8th and arrived at LAX later that evening. Since Eydee was dialated at about 2.5cm, I decided not to waste any of my leave time and promptly walked around San Diego. After two days of walking, she waas ready to drop. It was a relatively short delivery, 6 hrs, with only a little bit of drugs...
Presently, mother and son are doing fine. And at his last doctor's visit (Sept 12th), Christian now weighs 9+lbs.
During my leave I also had a chance to attend my 20th High School Reunion at the Sheraton Harbor Island. It was some what of a last minute decision to attend since the baby was born the week before. But I decided to go and show off Christian at the gathering. The reunion Committee did an exceptional job in organizing the event. And for the most part it was a go turn out. Between 50 and 75 alumni showed up. Michelle Supnet, Delilah Celi, Carolyn Raising, Xuan Nguyen, Ronnie, Ferdie and Emirose Oales all looked exactly the same. Robert Abad and Emily Hizon both looked great as well. Ted Guinto lost a few pounds. Evangeline and Joselyn gained a few pound. And Eireen gained a few more than they did. Some people had some work done (I wont name names). And others looked like they needed work done....Everyone gasped as they looked at me. Maybe because I was missing my trademark hair-do...But all in all they said I looked good and that made me feel great inside. Christian was the hit at the party. No one could beliebe how well behaved we was...in fact we was asleep through most of the night despite the loud music playing in the background. After several Kodak-moments and exchange of email addresses/cell #'s , we decided to call it a night and retire for the evening. The rest of the week I spent bonding Christian knowing I would have to leave soon.
The (San Diego) Dugans got together the following Monday night for dinner. Teo and John enjoyed an all-you-can-eat at a Bonita sushi bar while Mariettte, Lisa, Eydee and myself ordered Bento dishes. Christian, once again slept throughout the entire dinner. After 2 1/2 hrs Teo and John finally stopped eatting. I actually think we stopped getting served.
As for me, I flew back to catch my ship in Rota, Spain on Aug 26th. We would then transit back through the Mediterranean with a port visit in Sicily before returning to our homeport of La Madalena.
The weather is A LOT different now than when we left in mid-July. It has cooled down quite considerably. I guess it's the start of the rainy season. Nonetheless we make due with what we got. I was still able to catch the Chargers whooping up on those awful Raiders. Although I caught the Monday Night game at 4am Tuesday morning, it was very satisfying to see how well Merriman and LT and Rivers did. Padres continue on their playoff hopes. Hoffman only 5 saves away from becoming baseball's all-time saves leader. Good Luck! !
Well that's all for now...until next week
Caio ! !
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