cadet blogs

A Great Getaway

(Just for Fun, Class of 2012) Permanent link All Posts

This past weekend I took a little vacation from the Academy, they are called “longs” around here. A long is when you can spend two nights away from the Academy; a “short” is when you get one night away. I had leave from Friday after my last afternoon class until Monday at 1800 because of MLK Jr. Day. I spent the weekend with my girlfriend at her aunt and uncle’s house on Long Island, and we spent Saturday in NYC where we saw The Lion King on Broadway. It was a great time, and a great getaway. I take every opportunity to get away from the Academy for some rest and relaxation; it’s a great stress reliever. I passed on one opportunity last semester and regretted it. It can be as simple as going to your sponsor families house one night or getting a hotel with a bunch of friends and spending two or three days in Boston or NYC, or even flying home to see the family, but getting away is certainly healthy and I think makes time spent here a little more bearable in the long run.

This month, I thought I would write about something surprising I encountered during my first semester here; the opportunities I have had to go out into the “real” Coast Guard as a cadet. During Swab Summer I sailed on Eagle from Los Angeles to San Diego and just last semester I traveled to Coast Guard stations in Cape Cod and Boston. I drove to Air Station Cape Cod with three other cadets and spent Saturday and Sunday on base with officers and enlisted, with real pilots and rescue swimmers, learning about the operational Coast Guard firsthand. Unfortunately, due to weather, I was not able to go on a helicopter flight to do a search and rescue demo on the Hudson River near to the Statue of Liberty. I did, however, get to ride in the Guardian (a small jet) on a fisheries patrol in the bay and around the coast of the Cape. It was a great time, circling low around boats, checking to see if they were allowed in certain fishing areas, seeing seals on the beach and doing a fly by over a small Coast Guard boat we encountered near the Cape.

I went to Boston with my economics teacher and the International Council. I am not in the club, but my teacher invited her students to come along, so I accepted. There we toured Sector Boston, the “911 center” of the Coast Guard in the area, toured a couple cutters and small boats and had liberty in the city. It was another great time. Take every opportunity to learn about the job in which you are interested, because there is always something new and exciting to learn.

More about Mick.

Posted by Leann Strickland at 2/10/2012 12:21 PM