Snow Bunny and I have left you a personal Christmas message, and you can see and hear it by clicking on the little red bells below. There is a short wave file; please let it load fully, and then click on the little *on* arrow at the left on the dial below our photo. Hope you have a wonderful day today!

Good morning!

Welcome to the Canteen! Here we go a'caroling. :^)

I feel like being mischievous today. This should start some "debate".

Creation of Services

In the beginning was the word, and the word was God.
In the beginning was God, and all else was darkness and void, and without form.
So God created the heavens and the Earth. He created the sun, and the moon, and the stars, so that light might pierce the darkness. The Earth, God divided between the land and the sea, and these he filled with many assorted creatures.

And the dark, salty, slimy creatures that inhabited the murky depths of the oceans, God called sailors. And he dressed them accordingly. They had little trousers that looked like bells at the bottom. And their shirts had cute little flaps on them to hide the hickeys on their necks. He also gave them long sideburns and shabby looking beards. God nicknamed them "squids" and banished them to a lifetime at sea, so those normal folks would not have to associate with them. To further identify these unloved creatures, he called them "petty" and "commodore" instead of titles worthy of red-blooded men.

And the flaky creatures of the land, God called soldiers.
And with a twinkle in his eye, and a sense of humor that only he could have, God made their trousers too short and their covers too large. He also made their pockets oversized, so that they may warm their hands. And to adorn their uniforms, God gave them badges in quantities that only a dime store owner could appreciate. And he gave them emblems and crests.... and all sorts of shiny things that glittered.... and devices that dangled. (When you are God you tend to get carried away)

On the 6th day, he thought about creating some air creatures for which he designed a Greyhound bus driver's uniform, especially for Air Force flyboys. But he discarded the idea during the first week, and it was not until years later that some apostles resurrected this theme and established what we now know as the "wild blue yonder wonders".

And on the 7th day, as you know, God rested.
But on the 8th day, at 0730, God looked down upon the earth and was not happy.
God was not happy! So he thought about his labors, and in his divine wisdom God created a divine creature. And this he called Marine

And these Marines, who God had created in his own image, were to be of the air, and of the land, and of the sea. And these he gave many wonderful uniforms. Some were green; some were blue with red trim. And in the early days, some were even a beautiful tan. He gave them practical fighting uniforms, so that they could wage war against the forces of Satan and evil. He gave them service uniforms for their daily work and training. And he gave them evening and dress uniforms.......sharp and stylish, handsome things, so that they might promenade with their ladies on Saturday night and impress the shit out of everybody! He even gave them swords, so that people who were not impressed, could be dealt with accordingly.

And at the end of the 8th day, God looked down upon the Earth and saw that it was good. But was God happy? NO! God was still not happy! Because in the course of his labors, he had forgotten one thing. He did not have a Marine uniform for himself. But he thought about it, and thought about it, and finally satisfied himself in knowing that,
well.........

Not Everybody Can Be A Marine

Good morning, NorCo - thank you for watching for us - I just got here, but I bet we can find some coffee or hot chocolate already! Maybe some cinnamon rolls. :^)

CORPSMAN UP!
MSgt Tom Bartlett
in LEATHERNECK, probably in the late '60s'.

Up at the front and filled with fear,
He pleads with God, "Don't leave me here!"
Wounded and bleeding, and hunched with pain,
Thrown on his back in the mud and rain.
Others went down, some hit; all scared.
No one moved; no one dared!
We'd moved swiftly through the paddy mire,
And then it happened; enemy fire!

It's "Corpsman Up!" when things get hot.
The nearest thing to God we got.
"Corpsman Up!" to save a breath;
"Corpsman up!" in the face of death.
Stop the bleeding; treat for shock.
No time for hesitation, "Doc."
Patch him up and get him back;
Back to the rear; call a medevac.

Operating room well lit and clean;
Doctors waiting, dressin green.
Operate with speed and skill;
Experts with determined will.
Save lives or limbs to save dreams
No matter how impossible it seems,
Work on in sweat and mud and grime;
To save a life...there's not much time!

You joined the Navy to learn your trade,
And went to school, and made the grade.
It's "Corpsman up!" when rounds are flyin;
"Corpsman up!" when men are dying.
You're one of us, a grunt or grit;
Like it or not, you just can't quit.
"Corpsman up!" Step out of ranks!
"Corpsman up!"-and accept our thanks.

I happen to like my shiny dangly things, thank you very much!
Honestly, I'm glad God took time to make the Marines...
He gave us someone to compete with!

Ohhhhh.......I simply cannot sing this early in the day! I'll fix the apple cider.

I will be posting throughout the day Christmas Cards of many of our pets, so be sure and watch for them. :^) Once again, a special one for one special Angel Dog, just to keep you coming back for more......

> I happen to like my shiny dangly things

Your WHATS?? They SHINE?!?

I was U.S. Army too. I loved those "oversize" pockets, I could carry "extra" ammo in them.

Uh-oh, Sam -You've done it now! Watch for repercussions from a few of our other good men and women! :^)

Ok, you've redeemed yourself with the Navy. (I think) :^)Keep going! :^)

Ohhhhh.......I simply cannot sing this early in the day! I'll fix the apple cider.

And I'll hay-elp. (with the cider)

DiverDave will be along with a bucket soon anyway to help you carry it. (the tune) :^)

I am so excited about "Pet Day". I am sure many of our troops reading these posts, either by email or snail mail, will be delighted and many will have smiles on their faces as they think of their pets, both past and present. Thanks Billie.

Here is something I just found out about so I will post it here.

President George W. Bush December 18, 2001 signed legislation designating Sept. 11 as 'Patriot Day,' a holiday to honor the victims of the attacks on that day."

And speaking of 9/11, (and we will never forget and certainly do not need a National Holiday to remind us) here is a neat flag that was signed by the People of New York thanking our Marines and wishing them well and sent to Kandahar where it will fly for l day and then be returned to New York.

A large American flag flies over the Kandahar International Airport in Kandahar, Afghanistan December 18, 2001. The flag flew near the World Trade Center in New York and is signed by scores of people wishing the Marines well. The flag was given to a Marine in New York and will fly over the airport for a day before being returned to New York.

The U.S. warned any country considering giving refuge to Osama bin Laden to think again as U.S. special forces hunted the remnants of his al Qaeda organization in the barren Afghan mountains.

special Angel Dog

Love that *Angel Dog* graphic.

Thanks, and good morning, Billie.

Hopefully my *pups* will be on their best behavior today.

Just like their 'papa'. : )

Here's the buckets so you can carry a tune.

The come in all sizes and shapes. Shiny brass ones, galvanized steel, plastic and copper.

There's also a large box filled with 1/16th, 1/8th, 1/4, 1/2, and whole notes. Bass and Treble clefs for yours selection too.

We're going to have a great choir tonight so warm up those vocal chords for Caroling with the Bush and Cheney families.

I am so excited about "Pet Day". I am sure many of our troops reading these posts, either by email or snail mail, will be delighted and many will have smiles on their faces as they think of their pets, both past and present. Thanks Billie

Then let's get started with the first one.....but first, I wanted to say how adorable that little Christmas picture you posted is! I love our animals!

Left to right from top: SassyMom & Kneezle's four little critters, Addie, Wally, Zoe, and Sassy.
Bottom row: Archy's Greta (spatzie and imacatfish - he wanted me to ping you for Greta); Aquamarine's Daisy Mae (we helped name her!); CIApilot's Zachery; and deadhead's Lucy!

Hi Louie. Good to see you.

I'll be singing in the bass section and I promise to not throw you off key.