A Field Trip

 Recently, in the company of a friend and her mom, Em and I had the opportunity to tour the U.S. Coast Guard station in Newport, OR.
It's a working station, so you have to call ahead, but it's definitely worth it!

To your left is what I believe to be (if my memory serves me correctly) a 25' RB-S (Response Boat-Small, also (I think) called a Defender-Class boat that was having some repairs done on it.

Our tour guide was a young gal who had just gotten out of boot camp two months before and had been at this station one month. She told us about 90% (according to her) of her knowledge and kept the tour from being the typical dry, quiet, even awkward ordeal such tours are apt to be by filling in the gaps with funny stories from her own experience and the kind of informational chit-chat most girls use with friends.

 We got to board two boats, the 47' MLB Victory (Motor Life Boat, see pic below) and what I think (don't quote me on this) was a 52' MLB.

I know, I'm so observant and the absolute model tourist.

  We got to see almost all there was to see on the 52', from the engine room to the "secret" compartment under the floor that holds that holds a plastic tub of expired MREs.

 I always thought I had sea legs I "inherited" from Dad, but just for a moment while we were below I felt nauseous. I think it was the smell of rubber combined with looking out the porthole and seeing everything outside bobbing up and down.

 It felt just a little awkward, like we were intruding on these peoples' work.
That little comment, "Ah, tours!" made me cringe.
I hate being seen as a tourist.
Imagine how it feels to be sitting in the station "living room" watching the tour video while behind you, separated by glass double doors, are a bunch of seamen (I guess that's what they're called there) are  eating lunch.
Whatever it was they were eating, it smelled sooooooo good!

And above is picture of our very dignified tour guide. I can't imagine many tour guides being that laid-back and easy going to demonstrate the delight of swinging on the apparatus (whatever it was).
But of course, she isn't the only one who has done it.
She did tell us about this one petty officer...
Got his hand caught in the cookie jar.