Bath Day Tales

Bath day for the ol' coot today.  And is often the case an opportunity to hear some fascinating stories from days of yore.  Today we sailed the ocean blue on the U.S.S. Princeton Hall - a 65 or so foot boat that was brand spanking new in 1941.  It was built for Presbyterian missionaries in Sitka, commandeered by the U.S. Navy at the outbreak of WWII, and today is a charter boat here in Juneau.  Here's a link to a great pic of the Princeton Hall on the current owner's Facebook page:  http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/photo.php?pid=30551653&op=1&o=global&view=global&subj=538303212&id=1360096667

Dad ran the Princeton Hall for the U.S.Navy as a patrol boat out of Sitka.  They had a 20mm canon on the bow, machine guns, and a rack of depth charges.  Dad previously pointed-out that if they had ever had to drop a depth charge - that would have been the end of them - they never would have got out of the way in time...

But I digress from today's tale...

My father was not particularly fond of the navy.  Dad is famously thrifty - and the navy - not so much.  I think the waste associated with the war seriously offended his sensibilities.

Dad's nemesis while he served on the Princeton Hall was a lieutenant whose sole naval experience up until the time he received his commission was sailing on a houseboat on the Mississippi.  The nicest thing dad can say about him is that he was a real asshole.  Also a stinking drunk.

One day the Princeton Hall got back from Sitka from a patrol and dad discovered a bunch of deer, including fawns and does, hanging in the warehouse by the dock.  Trophies of the aforementioned asshole.  I take it that it was not deer season and this absolutely infuriated dad who marched up to the HQ to give the lieutenant the what for...  Fortunately for dad, an old Chief intercepted him and talked him out of doing anything rash - that would likely result in legal proceedings.

Some time later dad was hauling the lieutenant and some other officers somewhere on the Princeton Hall and the lieutenant decided it would be a great idea to harvest a nice looking brown bear they spotted on the beach - using the 20 mm cannon as the harvesting tool. 

THIS

 

PLUS THIS

EQUALS THIS 

Dad refused to shoot the bear with the cannon.  Again, I suspect it offended his sense of frugality - minced brown bear tartare was not a menu item in his mind.  Another close call with a court martial.

Ultimately the lieutenant got what he deserved when he got drunk and had a run-in with a regular naval officer - he was court martialed and discharged.  An outcome that causes dad to chuckle to this very day.

 Well think I'll take a drive out to Fish Creek and see if anybody's tweetin'.  And then a workout.