Wordless Wednesday - Miewon Orphanage

Loud Cruzers

Having a little fun with the noise meter outside of our apartment in Busan, Korea:

The New Breakdancing Capital of the World is...

...Seoul, Korea of course.  Check out the article:

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Global-News/2011/1011/US-cedes-status-as-breakdancing-capital-to-South-Korea

We got to see some serious breakdancing during our time in Korea.  Here's a quick video of a group performing by our apartment during the big Global Gathering event in Busan, Korea:



They're probably a little bit better than the Fil-Am Rockers of Virginia Beach, circa 1984.

Flashback Friday - Fleet Week in Busan

Here's a Navy flashback for you.  Right about two years ago to the day, while stationed in Busan, Korea, my command, Military Sealift Command Korea, had the great pleasure of participating in the Republic of Korea Navy International Fleet Review - better known as Fleet Week.  This event is held once every ten years.  It encompassed over 30 different Navies throughout the world and over 50 ships.  It was a lot of fun but also a very busy week.

This international event commemorated the 60th founding anniversary of Korea's armed forces.  Thousands of people, including domestic and foreign dignitaries attended the event to witness the massive gathering of navy ships and aircraft from around the world.

The ships were lined up for as far as you could see.  A fleet review is a naval event in which the head of state reviews the country's fleet as a show of strength or before a major engagement.  This British naval tradition dates back more than 600 years.

The beautiful city of Busan in the background.

Lieutenant Colonel Kim and Colonel Lee are in the middle from the ROK Army Port Operations Group.  Colonel Lee is the Commander of the ROKPOG.  On the right is my partner in crime, LTC Tripp Blanton, 837th Transportation Battalion Commander.  The incredible work relationships and personal friendships forged between our three units is something I'll always look back on with fondness.  It was only through these strong bonds that we were able to accomplish some good things on the Korean peninsula.  These guys were simply awesome.

This is aboard the Australian ship, HMAS Toowoomba during a Fleet Week reception.  Tough duty, but someone had to do it.

Of course you have to eat kangaroo while aboard an Australian ship.  Ate some emu too.

Another difference between US ships and Aussie ships - they have a bar!  The crew was kind enough to host an "after hours" event in their wardroom.

The premiere US ship participating in Fleet Week was one of my old ships, the aircraft carrier, USS GEORGE WASHINGTON.  My longtime friend, VMI classmate and squadron-mate, Steve "Whip" Blasch was serving as the Mini-Boss aboard the GW.  It was great catching up and tossing back a beer with one of my closest friends.  The Navy is always good for adventures and mini-reunions.

MSCO Korea hosted a Fleet Week Social in my building.  With so many stuffy events happening throughout the week, I think this informal event was a nice change.  The party was well attended by folks from various ships.  There were officers from the US, Korea, Australia, Canada, Great Britain and others.  And yes, with a crowd of about 150 foreigners, we managed to disturb the peace and ended up getting kicked out.  Of course we had a back up plan - Gwangalli Beach.  Somehow, I managed to catch my shoe on fire at the party.

Some of the crew from the Busan Foreign School.  They definitely enhanced the international flavor of the event.

So this whole week reminded me of one of my favorite things about the US Navy - the opportunity to meet new friends, whether they live next door or halfway around the world.  That's good stuff there.  I also got the bonus reminder that shoes are flammable.  Have a great Columbus Day weekend.

Flashback Friday - Guest Writer: CJ!

Hello internet!  It's CJ and I'm the guest writer for this week's Flashback Friday.

It's been awhile since we've lived in Korea.  It's hard to recognize that short, buck-toothed kid on the left with the shaved head and glasses surrounded by Asians.  Living in Korea was a blast and I'm so glad to have made such great friends there.

In this picture, I'm standing with my fourth grade class inside the hangar bay of the USS GEORGE WASHINGTON aircraft carrier.  Awesomest field trip ever!  Guess who set it up?  The dude on the far left.  Next to my Dad is my teacher, Ms. Taylor.  She was fun, despite the two to five hours of homework.  She was an Olympic swimmer and even knew Michael Phelps.  Pretty cool.  The teacher in the back that's taller than my Dad is Ms. Keenan.  She was my science teacher and was equally as awesome as Ms. Taylor.

Chilling with the boys.  From left to right is Koyo, Daniel, Sam, Kevin, the Ceej, Dong Whi, Terry and Ricky.  We were a pretty tight group of dudes.

This is my Dad's close friend, Uncle Whip.  Whip is his nickname, or as my Dad says, his callsign.  He and my Dad flew together for a long time.  They were squadron-mates and went out to sea together.  Here he is giving an impressive speech about something.  At the time, he was the Mini-Boss on the George Washington.  If my Dad had the same job, I think he'd be called the Mini-Mini Boss.  Uncle Whip is really cool.  He even gave me a Darth Vader action figure from the original toy collection!!!  I'm talking about the big 12 inch figure.  The guy in the ball cap is Mr. Walt.  He ran the Seamen's Center by my Dad's work.  I always liked going to his restaurant to eat real American food -  like pizza and tacos.

 Me chilling with the brown man on an aircraft carrier.  It was an epic day.

Father's Day

With Father's Day upon his, here's a look back to last June in Busan.  Last year in Korea, I was invited to be part of a panel interview to help commemorate Father's Day on the English radio channel in Busan, eFM 90.5.  It was fun talking about the boys, parenthood and being a military dad.  The radio show is called "Let's Talk Busan" and is hosted by Jeff Lebow.  Jeff, who had read my blog of the family's exploits in Korea, caught me off guard and asked me about "the pose" and about "Thong Man."  You can read more about Thong Man by clicking on this link:

Thong Man

As far as "the pose", it's simply a fun thing the boys and I do to capture good memories.  We have pictures of us doing the pose in Hong Kong, Australia, Thailand, Seoul and many other places.  And so Jeff suggested that we all do the pose to remember our Father's Day radio interview:

The pose in St. Louis

The first documented account of the pose.  Here are the Cruz boys with my Dad in Norfolk, Virginia.  I'm maybe 6 years old.

This is the most recent pose picture, taken immediately after I introduced Ceej to the manly art of grass cutting.  Although there was a lot of sweating and I chopped the heck out of a PVC cap in the front yard, we didn't  lose a single toe.

And so Happy Father's Day to all you Dads out there - in Korea, in Tennessee, or wherever the heck you might be.  Hug on them kids and enjoy this classic gem of a video.  This is definitely how I roll...

Dad Life Video

Graduation - One Year Ago...

Congratulations to my nephew Brandon who recently graduated from high school and was sworn into the US Army Reserves.  As the youth of America don caps and gowns all over the country and seniors rake in the graduation gifts of cold hard cash from friends and family, I'm reminded of one year ago, when the family was in Busan, Korea at the Busan Foreign School Graduation Ceremony.

The Principal (and good friend), Mr. Scott Jolly with opening remarks.

CJ and his friend, Tevin, trotting to the stage to accept their leadership awards for the 5th grade.  These guys were pretty tight.

Here's Jake receiving the Student of the Year award for Pre-Kindergarten.  Umm, I think he was a little happy.  Now that's a smile.

Jake is in the middle of the picture high-fiving his teacher, Ms. Amber Newton.  Couldn't have asked for a better teacher.

Carol presented some awards from the PTA to some deserving students.  She also received a plaque of appreciation from the school for her efforts throughout the year.  I was proud to say that I was the husband of the PTA President.

I was very honored to give the commencement speech.  As with most things, Carol gave me some good advice on the content of the speech.  Here's the speech itself:


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Mr. and Mrs. Haddon, Principal Jolly, faculty and staff, parents, students, and most importantly, the 2010 graduating class of Busan Foreign School, I am very honored to be speaking to you on this special occasion.

I have to admit that when I was in your seat during my own high school graduation 23 years ago, I really wasn’t paying attention to the guest speaker.  I honestly don’t even remember who the speaker was.  Like many of you, my mind was somewhere else – the future, college, what do I want to do with my life? – those kind of heavy thoughts.

Well, in an effort to stay somewhat current, I’d like to share with you some of the heavy thoughts that are on people’s minds right now.  Please raise your hands if you have a Facebook account.

So here are some of the different status comments from some of my own Facebook friends from the last couple of days.  Maybe you can relate to some of these comments:

So... am I the only one that has absolutely no idea what to do now that we're done with school...?

dude i woke up this morning all happy alone in my house, and now im like, now what?


Only 6 days of school left and then I leave BFS forever...sad

Trying to find a job is the hardest thing I have EVER done in my life! I think getting the degree was the easy part...they don't tell you about the "REAL WORLD"... PRAYERS ARE NEEDED

So some of you might be feeling this same apprehension, excitement and anxiety.  And that’s normal.  The future can be a very daunting thing.

With the future in mind, I’d like to pass on to you one thing that I think is extremely important as you begin your new adventure of college, a new job or even living in a new country.  And that thing is FOCUS.  Focus is one of the key things that will get you to where you want to be.

Being a Navy brat and growing up next to a military jet base, I knew in high school what I wanted to do with my life – I wanted to fly jets for the Navy.  There were many days in high school where I would doze off in class, only to be woken up by the thundering sound of the Navy jets flying overhead.

And so I worked real hard in college and was commissioned as a Naval Officer after graduation from the Virginia Military Institute.  I was also fortunate enough to earn an aviation slot and so off to Navy flight school I went.  Flight school was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done in my life.  Unfortunately, a lot of my buddies didn’t make it through flight training.  Some of them were hitting the nightclubs a little too much and not studying nearly enough.  Some were distracted by personal issues, money issues and other things.  Many people simply weren’t cut out for the training – whether it was the grueling physical demands, the academics or putting it all together in the airplane.  A lot of good people didn’t make it through.  And I was almost one of those people.  But if there’s one thing that I can point to that helped me to make it through this challenge – it was my FOCUS.  I always had my eye on the prize and I wasn’t gonna let anything get in the way of reaching my goal.  Instead of hitting the beach, I spent extra hours in the flight simulator.  Instead of watching TV, I was memorizing my emergency procedures and rehearsing my flights.  I was gonna do whatever it took to reach my goal.

I learned about focus early on from various role models, including my boxing coach in college.  When I was boxing, it was only when I was truly focused that I was able to achieve the highest levels in my sport. 

I’d like to share a story with you about focus.  My current boss grew up in Hawaii.  He tells me about a guy he knew in high school in Hawaii by the name of Barry.  Now, Barry loved to play basketball.  And he was pretty good too.  He worked hard at his game and had aspirations to be a professional basketball player.  The thing is, he was a decent player compared to the small crowd in Hawaii, but when he had tougher competition in college, he came to the realization that professional basketball was not in his future.  As much as Barry focused on his game, he knew it wasn’t gonna be a long term thing.

But that focus and determination that Barry had – it was an impressive thing.  You see, with the proper focus, you can do anything you set your mind to.  Nothing will get in your way.  Without focus, well, that’s where you can lose your way.

The reality is many of you will finish up college and go on to be presidents of companies, community leaders, raise families, make lots of money and do great things.  This will happen.  I have no doubt.  And your focus on your goals will be one of the common themes behind your success. 

The thing is, there will be distractions along the way – temptations that sidetrack you away from your goals – partying, girls (I should know, I married one), video games, TV shows, downright laziness and even homesickness – while none of these things are necessarily bad, if you allow them to become major distractions and you lose focus, then they become terrible things.  These are some of the same distractions that are the downfall of many professionals – famous actors with drug problems, professional athletes with domestic abuse issues, politicians with extra-marital affairs or corruption…pick up any newspaper and it’s on the front page - many high profile people losing focus.

With a strong focus on your goals though, nothing will stand in the way of what you want.  Let me get back to the story about Barry.

You see, as hard as Barry worked on basketball, it just wasn’t in his future.  But Barry was a focused person.  And after basketball didn’t work out for him, he used that incredible focus in another part of his life.  He got into politics.  And he did real well at that – and I mean really well.  Now, Barry wasn’t his real name.  That’s what people called him in high school.  But now, most people know him as Barack.  President Barack Obama.

Let me point out one other thing about focus.  You shouldn’t set your focus on small, easy goals.  You don’t need a lot of focus to achieve small things.  Don’t limit yourself.  Set your sights high and go for it.  Earlier, I mentioned my desire to fly.  I didn’t say I wanted to fly just propeller airplanes or helicopters.  I wanted to fly the best.  I wanted to fly jets.  And that’s what I went for and that’s what I got. 

During my boxing days, I didn’t compete for second or third place.  I aspired to be the very best – to be the national boxing champion for the entire country, and that’s what I achieved. 

I challenge each and every one of you to not settle for mediocrity.  Aspire to be the very best and use that focus of yours to get there.  Don’t settle for just “good enough.”  Go for it.  Knock the bottom out of everything that you do. 

That average stuff – that’s for the other schools.  That’s for the ISB graduates.  You come from the Busan Foreign School.  This is the place where students score perfect on the SAT.  This is the place where the students get accepted to the most elite colleges and universities in the world.  This is where the teachers challenge their students to do their very best.  I can’t tell you how proud I am to have my boys going to the Busan Foreign School.  As a Navy family, we move around a lot and have experience with many different schools.  Busan Foreign School is by far, the very best.

And so, Graduates of the class of 2010 – I’ll close by saying that you should be beaming with pride over this great school that’s now a part of your history.  Like Barry did, I challenge you to represent your school well.  Congratulations to each and every one of you on achieving this major milestone of graduation.  I wish you tremendous success in your personal and professional lives.  Stay focused and do great things.  Thank you so much for your time today.

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All in all, it was a very memorable day for the family.  The graduation ceremony capped off an outstanding school year.  We really can't say enough great things about Busan Foreign School.  For those new graduates and their families - congratulations to you all.  Enjoy this special occasion.  For the BFS faculty, students and family that are moving on to new adventures, to include the Jolly's, Allen's and other friends we've had the pleasure of spending time with, we wish you the very best on the future.  You've got friends in the Cruz's.

Choose Cruz!

It was quite the transition for CJ, leaving the academically challenging yet cozy and comfortable environment of Busan Foreign School for the relatively massive southern school in Tennessee where "fitting in" far outweighed the reading, writing and 'rithmetic on many occasions.  There were definitely bumps in the road for our sixth grader this past year.

Part of that I'm sure was because the Busan Foreign School that the boys attended for the last two years in Korea was so dang awesome.  The teachers were incredible, CJ had many like-minded friends and the social aspect was nothing to fret about.  It was much more innocent and carefree than what you see in the US.  At BFS, a male student could wear a Tom and Jerry cartoon shirt, orange pants and carry around a notebook with unicorns on it and no one would care.  He could wear these same clothes three days in a row and no one would care.  That would get you beat up in Tennessee, or at least ostracized from the cool inner circle of popular kids.

Don't get me wrong.  Arlington Middle School is a high quality school.  Their screening process for the gifted program is thorough, the teachers are caring and conscientious about students' learning and the facilities are very nice.  Lots to like and one of the reasons why we moved into our neighborhood.  But with any move, there's always transition.  Being the new kid can be tough.

So my chest was puffed out when CJ was recently voted by the school body to be next year's Student Council Vice President.  Proud Dad moment!  Carol and I knew it would just take a little time to adjust.  And adjust he did.

He ran a great campaign - cool posters and buttons, a really nice speech, help from his buddies and neighbors and even some online ground swell that might've impacted his campaign.  And of course a catchy slogan - CHOOSE CRUZ!

All of the campaign posters had to be approved by the school before going up.  CJ had no problem with any of his posters except for this controversial gem:

I haven't been keeping up with Charlie Sheen's verbal diarrhea and the whole "winning" comments he made.  I do understand why the school didn't approve this poster though.  Charlie Sheen probably isn't the role model you want the future of America to emulate.

A funny thing happened though.  The kids on the bus liked the poster and took pictures of it with their phones.  And they started spreading it out - emails, text and Facebook.  Isn't that how Obama got elected?  Well, maybe replace Charlie with Oprah and it would be more accurate.

Anyway, I'm very proud of my skinny, Filipino kid.  CJ actually used skinny, Filipino kid in his speech and got some laughs.  Now that he's elected, he'll make all of your dreams come true. If you don't know what that means, you need to Netflix Napoleon Dynamite today.  Hope you have a "winning" day!

Spring in Busan, Korea

It's officially Spring.  In Busan, Korea, that means Thong Man is back out on Haeundae Beach:

Thong Man is the one with the hat on backwards.  Here he is with a church friend of ours.  I really do miss Korea.

Actually, Thong Man is out there during the middle of winter as well.  He doesn't give a poop.  Enjoy the nice weather.

Christmas Letter

First off, my apologies for those that we missed mailing this letter to.  Our address book wasn't as updated as it needed to be.  At any rate, better late than never.  Here you go:

December 2010

Friends and Family,

A light dusting of snow on the ground, colorful lights around the neighborhood, “A Christmas Story” showing at the local playhouse and our new dog humping a dinner guest’s leg underneath the dining room table.  December is here and that means it’s time for the annual Cruz Christmas letter!   

First off, let me apologize for skipping last year’s letter.  The family was in sad shape this time last year when Fred, our dog of 16 years passed away just a few days before Christmas.  It was heartbreaking for us.  It just wasn’t in me to do a letter.  But rather than dwell on good old Fred not being with us anymore, I choose to remember his vivaciousness and spirit – that even though he was testicle-challenged, he’d still hump his favorite pillow with reckless abandon.  I imagine what he would’ve been like if he actually had a pair.  We’d be doing really well for ourselves if we could muster that same dogged determination.

Two paragraphs into the letter and I’ve already got two mentions of dog humping.  Classy.  Disclaimer for you first time recipients of our letter:  you won’t catch me writing about wonderful vacations, the boys’ sports and honor roll accomplishments.  That’s because I don’t want to make you puke.  So here goes with my wrap up of the last two years on less than two pages:  Command tour in Korea – awesome!  Leaving incredible friends in the Land of the Morning Calm – tough.  Dog died.  Very tough.  Got another dog recently.  Cool.  Teenage angst coming early for CJ.  Sigh.  Settling into the new job here in Tennessee.  Another sigh.  It was like getting a pine cone shoved up my butt backwards.  I go from the big office with the water view to the Dilbert cubicle.  The job’s gotten a lot better though for those that care about my nether regions.  Jake was student of the year and CJ won the leadership award for his grade at the Busan Foreign School.  Carol received some well-deserved volunteer awards from the Navy, Army and the Busan community.  Some proud family moments there.  Had some spectacular family trips to Hong Kong, Philippines, Thailand, Australia and trekking all over Korea.  Okay.  So I did write about vacations and family accomplishments.  Hope you didn’t puke.  Maybe just a little vomit in your mouth.  Forgive me.

Definitely more bathroom time for CJ now as he works the hair and pops the zits.  He’s looking to work out now and put some muscle on that slim frame of his that already boasts the body fat percentage of a DVD.  Carol told him that he can even work out without any weights.  For example, he can clench his butt cheeks to strengthen his glutes.  CJ didn’t understand so Carol told him he could just squeeze his butt cheeks together over and over again.  CJ responded with, “Squeeze ‘em?  What, with my hands?”  So the latest teenage trends, roller coaster emotions and quest for popularity have set up permanent residence in the Cruz household.  Carol and I try to empathize.  I think back to my teenage years when I would get the embarrassing BFNR in class (boner for no reason).  I totally see Carol trying to edit that part out.

Jake is doing great.  He’s quite the independent little guy – almost too independent.  After doing a number two, he insists on wiping his own bottom even though he’s horrible at it.  He will literally use only 1 or 2 squares of toilet paper to wipe his butt.  Now I appreciate the whole earth-friendly piece of that, but dang.  At least he’ll let us do the quality assurance check afterwards.  The visual inspection of his backside usually ends with Carol and I gagging over the substantial DNA remaining on his balloon knot, lower back, fingers, toilet seat, mirror, etc.  For those that didn’t get the balloon knot reference, give it a second to sink in.  I’ve observed him wipe his balloon knot a couple of times just so I can decipher what the heck is going on down there.  He’ll take maybe half a millisecond to do one fell swoop of a wipe, as if he’s a finalist in a quick-draw contest to determine the fastest butt wiper in the west.  I think this is how that flesh eating bacteria epidemic was started.

I joke but both of the boys are awesome.  My pride and joy.  They’re both really bright with CJ getting straight A’s again and Jake doing advanced math.  He’s so advanced he already knows who he will marry - little Hannah Allen who was in his class in Korea.  Being in Korea with the Allens was such a blessing.  I’m sure our entire experience would’ve been different had they not been there.  Tyler, Jen and the kids – we love you guys. 

So where does Carol’s expertise with the glutes come in you might ask?  Listen, we’ve been happily married 17 years now.  I can still bounce quarters off Carol’s plump rump roast as if it was our wedding day back in 1993.  My lovely bride is doing fantastic.  She really left a lot of sad people in Korea.  I’m so proud of her selfless work with the Sung Ae Won Orphanage and Busan International Women’s Association.  We’ll always look back at our time in Korea with fondness but once again, it was time for another move.  Carol was an amazing trooper even after seeing a good bit of our “express” move items (dishes, computer stuff, picture frames) shattered into pieces.  Can’t shatter Carol’s spirit though.  I’ve said before that one of my best qualities is my ability to pick a wife.  Thanks for everything Carol.  Please don’t edit this letter too much.

Speaking of Korea, we appreciate the concern everyone showed us while we were there, but honestly, Busan was by far the safest place we’ve ever lived.  After suffering through three burglaries in Miami, we joke that we had to live near a DMZ to get some true safety.  When Kim Jung-Il in North Korea was making headlines, we’d receive the “Are you guys okay?” emails.  We didn’t bat an eyelash when the headlines came.  And it seemed like neither did the entire country of South Korea.  Heck, Brett Favre sending his junk mail caused more of a stir than some of the North Korea stuff.  You could set your watch according to when Kim Jung-Il would pull his next stunt.  It was as regular as him changing his pants.  I could visualize him in his bedroom closet pondering which pair of pants he would don that day, factoring in what crazy headline grabbing antic was on his calendar.  Hmm, should I put on my “sink a ship sweatpants?”  How about I go with my “American journalist capturing jeans?”  Looks like he went retro recently and put on his “bomb an island bellbottoms.”  I should point out that even with the drama, our time in Korea was so enjoyable that both of the boys have asked us, “When are we going back to Korea?” 

Now please allow me to share a recent epiphany with you.  This past Thanksgiving was incredible.  We went down to Alabama to be with Carol’s family.  Did some fishing, got to shoot some guns with CJ (his very first time), watched a tough Alabama-Auburn football game, ate lots of country cooking and rode in the back of a pickup truck.  It was a lot of fun.  I’m eyeballing getting a pickup truck myself.  Must be the Tennessee influence.  Anyway, many of you know that I love fishing.  So after two years of no fishing in Korea, there I am, pulled off the side of a Tennessee highway at a local pond, trying to recover my shoe that got swallowed up by a foot of heavy mud while I was trying to navigate my way through muck to get to a good fishing spot.  Fishing, shooting guns, pickup trucks... My epiphany?  I’m a dang Filipino Redneck! 

So after this Redneck skipped writing last year’s letter, it got me thinking about something.  In high school, you see your friends every day.  In college, you’ll see your friends during Christmas break and over the summer.  Then you graduate and you might hear from friends every couple of months.  Later on, the frequency might be once a year.  With some of you, the only contact we have is this annual letter.  It’s just the way it is.  We’ve got our own families, jobs and lives now. 

What’s my point?  I recently found out that my good friend, Ann Beard (Gutshall) passed away almost two years ago after a tough fight with cancer.  I hadn’t seen her in years and I regret not being a better friend and keeping in touch with her.  Just in the last year, there was Ann’s passing, Mark’s heart attack, some weddings, some divorces, children being born, graduations, promotions and other significant things happening in our lives.  I can’t promise that I won’t miss another Christmas letter but I can tell you that I’ll do my best not to skip the really important stuff.  And that stuff is you.  Here’s to a blessed 2011 for you and your family!

All the best,

Chris, Carol, CJ, Jake and Flannigan               

4467 Coltwood Drive, Lakeland TN 38002

901-592-6765 / cnccruz@hotmail.com

www.ubacruzer.blogspot.com (family blog)

Super Bowl!

Super Bowl!  Or should I say, Hair Bowl?

Clay Matthews

Troy Polamalu

It was announced today that Troy Polamalu, safety extraordinaire of the Pittsburgh Steelers, was awarded the Defensive Player of the Year Award.  He received 17 first place votes.  Clay Matthews, linebacker for the Green Bay Packers, came in second, receiving 15 first place votes.  He lost out by a hair.

One of the greatest pleasures I've had since returning to the US from overseas is sitting in the comfort of my own living room on Sundays and watching football.  In Korea, I was watching games at 2am on a computer screen through the internet.  Now I'm watching in high definition with surround sound after church.  Wooh!  Life is good.

Here's to a great football game on Sunday.

South Korean SEALs

You go South Korea!  Republic of Korea (ROK) SEALs/Commandos kicked butt against Somali pirates during a recent rescue operation.

Here's a link to the story:  South Korean Raid Frees Hostage Crew From Pirates

Lee's Commissioning Ceremony

On 7 Jan 2011, my brother Lee graduated from the Interservice Physician Assistant Program (IPAP).  He received his Master's degree and was also commissioned as a First Lieutenant.  I had the great honor of swearing him in as a new officer in the US Army.

As previously mentioned on Facebook, this is Lee and I about to smack each other in the face with the awesomeness of the occasion.  Darn, I meant to wear my large ring that day.

Here's a 7 minute video from the ceremony:

Link to the video:  Lee's Commissioning Video

After the ceremony, I had a couple of folks tell me how much they appreciated my remarks and how they had relatives and friends that served in the military in the 60s and 70s that experienced the lack of diverse career opportunities.  A Command Sergeant Major (CSM) even gave me his command coin to present to my father the next time I see him.  I was very touched and I know Dad will appreciate the gesture.

BTW, a CSM is the senior enlisted soldier in a command.  CSMs work hand in hand with the Commanding Officer of the unit to get things done.  Lee was a senior NCO, or non-commissioned officer before being commissioned on this day.  Rising to the rank of Master Sergeant, there's no doubt that Lee would've been a Command Sergeant Major himself had he stayed in the enlisted ranks.  Heck, if Lee was an employee in a toothpick factory, it would only be a matter of time before he'd be running the place.

Alan, Danita, Joel and Jena were able to make the ceremony as well as some of Cathy's friends and family.  Because Joel is contemplating joining the military after college, I think attending the ceremony was a good experience for him.  Little does he know, there is a lot of pressure on him to continue the tradition of TCD - Total Cruz Domination.

Cathy and the other spouses of the graduates received a bouquet of roses.  Nice touch.  You don't have success in challenging programs like these without great support.  Way to go Cathy!

What a great location for this event.  It was held at the Airborne and Special Operations Museum in Fayette-Nam, I mean Fayetteville, North Carolina outside of Fort Bragg.  Since Lee was a Green Beret (Special Forces) before becoming a Physician's Assistant, the location was very appropriate.  Guests were able to tour the museum after the ceremony.  There were airplanes, helicopters and many awesome displays and videos in the museum.  BTW, the four guys on the left are contemplating how they will mount a huge cheesehead on top of the big statue's helmet on Superbowl Sunday.

As an aviation guy, I find it just a bit unnerving to see dudes jumping out of airplanes.  For me, seeing a parachute means something has gone horribly wrong.  For Lee, it's a periodic qualification he has to maintain.

The museum is outstanding and it's free.  I highly recommend it.  After my time in Korea, I especially liked this display.  BTW, did you hear about the South Korean SEALs that recently kicked some Somali pirates' butts?  Very cool.  Google it.

I really liked this Afghanistan display.  Might have something to do with the guy in the middle who looks remarkably like my nephew Joel.  Uncanny resemblance.

Congratulations to the Army's newest PAs.  Well done boys.  These are the guys that will take care of America's soldiers for the next couple of years.  Off to the 82nd Airborne for Lee. By the way Doc, my elbow hurts when I do this...

After meeting some of his Special Forces buddies, I know Lee will miss life as a Green Beret.  You could just sense the great camaraderie they share.  Those bonds are hard to come by and unfortunately, are sometimes paved by the fact that not everyone gets to come home.  Here's Lee with his team in Afghanistan.  Not surprisingly, the Cruz is the one that's challenged to grow facial hair.

Lee was the medic on his team.  Here he is with a long line of Afghan locals waiting to be treated for various ailments.  By the way Doc, my elbow hurts when I do this... 

Needless to say, the Cruz family is incredibly proud of Lee's accomplishments.  Not everyone could make it in person but we were all there in spirit.  We all know it's been a tough road to plow.  The deployments, personal hardships, rigorous studies and long nights at the hospital.  The attrition rate for this challenging program was extremely high.  We know it's been a grind but you did it bro.  Congratulations.  You're gonna be a great officer and a great PA.

Now that you're an O, you just need to make sure you stick your pinky out when you drink...

25 Years Ago

Let's start with one year ago:

A year ago, Carol and I were at a function hosted by the Korean American Busan Association or KABA.  That's Mr. Cho, the KABA President and his wife.  

On that night, KABA made me an honorary member of their organization.  It was an incredibly kind gesture of friendship.  I really enjoyed our relationship.

Five years ago, we were enjoying the snow of Newport, Rhode Island.  I was at the Naval War College.

Carol and Jake - the Great Big Ball of Baby Goodness!  Jake was born in Newport.

Ten years ago, we were stationed in San Diego.  I was a Flight Instructor at VS-41, the Fleet Replacement Squadron for the S-3B Viking.  Here's the wardroom at the I-Bar at Naval Air Station North Island.

I had the great pleasure of volunteering with Balboa Elementary School while stationed with VS-41.  These are the kids from my class during a field trip at the squadron.

So now we're talking fifteen years ago.  Here's me and Steve "Whip" Blasch as young Lieutenants with the Scouts of VS-24.  This is in Puerto Rico right before our flight where we shot a Harpoon missile.  It was an awesome shot too.

It's not all work with a squadron.  Here are the Scouts during a port call at Saint Martin.  We named the Greek statue, "Freeballicus."  Epic port call.

Rewinding even further, twenty years ago, I was the Alpha Company Commander at the Virginia Military Institute.  That's me leading the company during a parade.  I'm fairly certain I was the shortest guy in the entire company.  Didn't bother me one bit.

Carol and I are making plans now for the 20th college reunion.  My turn to be a spectator at the VMI parades instead of a participant.

And last but not least (well maybe least as far as weight), this picture is from 25 years ago.  As a senior, I was wrestling in the 105 pound weight class for Kellam High School in Virginia Beach.

While I enjoyed the competition and challenge of wrestling, the cutting weight part was no fun.  At least I got this cheerful picture out of it.

Thanks for flipping through the photo album with me.  Time flies.  Wonder what the next 25 years will bring?