countin' 'em down

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SHUTTL E the USS Enterprise (CVN 65)- Wednesday June 15, 2011 Photo Illustration by MC2 Brooks B. Patton Countin’ ‘em down

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Big ‘E’ Sailors and Families do “The Deployment Countdown”

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Page 1: Countin' 'Em Down

SHUTTLEtheUSS Enterprise (CVN 65)- Wednesday June 15, 2011

Photo Illustration by MC2 Brooks B. Patton

Countin’‘em

down

Page 2: Countin' 'Em Down

the Page 3Wednesday June 15, 2011

Enterprise NewsSHUTTLE

By MC2 Brooks B. PattonUSS Enterprise Public Affairs

USS ENTERPRISE, At sea – As kids, most people learned to count as a game taught by parents right about the time we start watching Sesame Street. As adults, we count all the time. We count birthdays, anniversaries, game scores, calories, the moons of Jupiter…anything really. It’s human nature, and it helps us keep our world in order. As the deployed aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CVN 65) gets closer to heading home, Sailors and Marines on board are finding unique was of counting down the days. Some use Excel spreadsheets that auto-populate the days, hours, minutes and seconds left, while others simply cross out days on their calendars. The manner in which each person counts is a window into their personality and how they view time. Although everyone knows that the method of counting doesn’t actually change how long it takes, the personal ways invented to pass the time are as varied as the number of personalities aboard the largest warship in the world. Some Sailors started counting the day they left their home port. Others would plug their ears when one of their shipmates announced a milestone because they thought it was

too early to begin counting. Some divisions count together as small daily victories, while others count to themselves and try to go about their day without thinking of the seconds passing by. “We have a white board with the remaining days on it, each day we try to make predictions on what might happen next, always ending with us returning on time,” said Interior Communications Electrician 1st Class (SW/AW) Jessica A. Douglas, a veteran of multiple deployments. Counting down the days to Big ‘E’s return helps pass the days and helps many Enterprise families awaiting their loved ones return. “My wife and kids made a construction paper chain before I left,” said Aviation Electronics Technician 1st Class (AW/SW) Michael L. Kohan. “It has one link for each day of deployment, and every night they take one link off the chain and write what they did that day. So when I get home and tell them all my stories from cruise, they can tell me their stories.” Sailors are not the only ones watching their calendars closely. Marines aboard Enterprise also have there unique ways of checking off the days. “Counting down days for me is like hanging on a bar for the flexed-arm hang. Counting down how much longer I have left helps

me to hang on longer.” said Cpl. Courtney White, a Jet Stream Staff Writer attached to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 251. “I set small dates to reach, like every 10 percent, until each port. My mom also made a chain for how many days I have left and sends me pictures of different people tearing links off.” The ship’s captain often counts during his daily announcements to the crew, reminding them of how many days they have left

Big ‘E’ Sailors and Families do “The Deployment Countdown”

Photo courtesy of Cpl. Courtney C. White

to the next milestone. It’s a way for him to break up large goals into much smaller, more mentally manageable morsels which are easier for his crew to swallow. A majority of the crew has not deployed before. As Enterprise Sailors each find their own way to visualize the time left before home port, they know that the most important thing is that they stay focused on the goal of coming home safely, which will make every day counted worth the wait.

Mary McNealy, mother of Cpl. Courtney C. White, a Marine deployed aboard USS Enterprise (CVN 65), tears a link off a paper chain from her home in Paxton, Ill. The chain represents how many days White has left at sea. McNealy sends photos to White with different friends and family members tearing links to remind her how many people are eagerly awaiting her return home.

Page 3: Countin' 'Em Down

the Wednesday June 15, 2011Page 4 SHUTTLE

FUN ZONE!

26 California resort lake29 Time-honored31 Cupid, to the Greeks32 One ___ time33 Start on the links36 Carpenter’s tool37 Self-confident39 ___ de Cologne40 Savvy42 Mom’s partner43 Firearms44 Turns in46 Amalgamate

Down11 Movie star Pitt2 General helper3 Exploding star4 Sound systems5 Roadside lodging6 Aussie bird7 Friendly8 Singer Easton9 Daydream10 Pained utterance11 Cheapskate12 Pod contents15 Taken into custody18 Africa’s longest river22 Checked before a heist24 Isn’t idle26 Hardy heroine27 Composer Khachaturian28 Author of “Spartacus”30 Magna cum __32 Helped34 Wolf’s tooth 35 Electrical safeguard37 Storage area38 Tabula ___41 Opposite43 “Scram!”45 Land, as a fish46 Coin factory47 “The game is ___”49 Old gold coin50 Tennis great Arthur51 6/6/4453 Art Deco artist54 Any time now55 Police-jacket letters58 Small digit

Across1 Prohibits5 Kittens’ cries9 The Mounties: Abbr.13 Public ruckus14 Nebraska city16 Cleveland’s lake17 Soldier of fortune19 Travel permit20 Vocalist Blossom21 Auto on the autobahn23 Singer Fitzgerald25 Less remote

47 Counsel48 Mine entrance50 Pretentious52 Ultimatum word56 Fly high57 “Ragtime” author59 “Bonanza” brother60 Popular princess61 Classical colonnade62 Diminutive ending63 No, in Moscow64 Camp shelter

Photos by MCSN Jesse L. Gonzalez and MC2 Michael L. Croft

It’s RAS Day

The fast combat supply ship USNS Arctic (T-AOE 8) conducted a much-need vertical and underway

replenishment with both USS Enterprise (CVN 65) and the guided missile destroyer USS Roosevelt

(DDG 80). Enterprise crew had to be extra vigilant to ensure this simultaneous replenishment got off

without a hitch.