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Health & Fitness

A Texan in Connecticut

A nice conversation started the other night when I was dining at a local Mexican restaurant.  While trying to keep my eyes open after a long shift in a retail job, I noticed a young guy sitting across the booth on his cell phone.  Some subjects were discussed after explaining my recent sleepiness and Christmas crunch hours and he started to talk about the Navy. 

He is Nick Johnson; I find out he has come across the country to Connecticut from Texas and is also looking for a quiet night to have dinner.  He is also looking to visit with his “girlfriend” Jennifer who is a waitress at the restaurant.  Well, Jennifer says, “that official status is yet to be determined however I leave that up to you Nick,” giving him the option to make the final call!  He says, “She is sweet and cool and doesn’t rush things.”  So, the debate on that developing romance will have to wait for another story.

Nick and I exchange quite a bit of small talk and I find out after I ask the typical question, “How do you like Connecticut?”  He replies, “I like it here.”  I guess I was surprised to have that enlightened response - even though I am a Connecticut native, I usually get the response from military people that, “I hate Connecticut, or it is cold here or the people are not friendly.”  So, this was as refreshing as the Mexican food.  I thought, I must find out more information. So, here is the rundown on this nice Navy guy.

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Turns out, Nick is an E—1 which is an Enlisted level 1 person in the Navy.  He loves Connecticut for the scenery and says the cold doesn’t bother him and that Texas is nice but can be really hot.  This snowfall is his first one and enabled him to make a snow angel.  Pretty good for a 20-year-old to have that youth in him and still feel good enough to enjoy the snow.  I like that! 

He chose the Navy because his father was Army, Uncle was Navy and great grandfather Nestor was in the Air Force in the Battle of the Bulge.  Not bad for a military family.  He put in for the submarine force knowing that this is a stressful deal.  Being from family some who served on subs, I know he should be proud of this admirable choice.  As a submariner, he will finish school in about eight months to a year and could even be deployed soon after that.  He is radioman training with lots of info and learning quickly.  He has to know the ins and out of all parts of the sub and finds this challenging and interesting and seems to be in the right field.  He has strict clearances and is well versed in security.  He will have Christmas in Texas this year but is enjoying his Connecticut living right now.  By January he is back in school and hopes to be promoted. 

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He believes the discipline in the service is a good thing, comes from a family of three.  His Mom, Dad, and he are the unit but he is making all kinds of new friends.  He is a social being and friendly too. 

Some past health issues in Texas didn’t stop him however.  He contracted menigoencephalitis a few years back but is fully recovered.  “It felt like a very bad cold,” he says but can be contacted through nasal cavities, his from stagnant infected water.  Further blood tests revealed the parasite.  This never stopped him from bouncing back and his pioneer-like attitude brought him across the country here. 

For him, choosing a military career over civilian life was like this, “if I was in a normal job, I wouldn’t be really doing anything…I wouldn’t have any purpose – no impact,” he says.  He chose radioman-electronic technician because he likes the ins and outs of the working of the sub.

He realizes that in a year he could be actually on a sub out in some foreign arena and has mixed emotions about the pros and cons of that.  “I would be gaining new experiences and the negative would be that I am not home with my family.”  “But, I have made many new friends and that is the best part of military life so far and the healthcare and educational training.”  He is able to have his own car, some freedom on and off base and he seems to be a good example of a great addition to the Navy. 

Asked about “duty,” Nick says that military life, the rotation and being on call is like watching over your responsibility and watching each other’s back. 

As for Connecticut, he says the negative are the drivers who don’t seem to obey the rules of the road.  His “girlfriend” Jennifer says the police are a “little lenient on speed but this allows people to hopefully use good judgment when driving out there.”  The bad drivers will always go a little crazy she says, but those who use good judgment seem to know the limits better. 

As for questions about the military’s tolerance or intolerance for drugs, Nick is in total agreement on that he says any abuse would damage the institution’s credibility of a being a good unit for the United States Government.  He believes in the image of the institution and all that that entails. 

Asked about encouraging military life, he said, “military life has enabled me to make lifelong friends, the people are nice, I get to travel, save money, and get college benefits.”

About the local community and the military – Nick doesn’t feel the local community should necessarily give special treatment to the military people but does believe that some may have a past bad feeling towards some from and incidents that have happened just like everywhere else.

“The Navy is no different from society than anywhere else.”  “They have strict policies and standards and this helps us to be professional at all times as we represent the United States.”  “We are all ambassadors,” he said.

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