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But I said French, and California
by Jean d'Isle
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efore continuing the story of my assignment to language school in Washington D.C., I have a few words to say about how assignments are made in the navy.

The officer "detailing" process is indeed strange and wondrous. Everyone subject to this process is required to have on file a "duty preference" card on which they must express, in descending order of desire, where they would like to go and what type of job they would like to do. The card is designed to ensure that by the time you've worked your way down to the lowest priority box, you've listed almost all conceivable geographic areas and billets, allowing the detailer (who probably didn't look at the card until after completing your assignment anyway) the widest latitude in finding some sort of match with something you listed on your card.

"Needs of the Service," and/or "Career enhancement" are almost always the overriding reasons given to rationalize your assignment. "Sorry we couldn't get you on that aircraft carrier out of San Diego, but you'll love the tugboat billet out of Newport, and we really need you there"; or "This assignment as Laundry Officer in Adak is a real career-enhancer. Do a good job and you'll be on your way in this man's navy." We all swore that officers ordered to duty as Detailers were routed via Bethesda Naval Hospital to have their tongues split.

My first duty choice out of Officer Candidate School was for assignment to a "large combatant" (aircraft carrier or cruiser), almost guaranteeing me an assignment to something small and amphibious. Thus, I was launched on my naval career aboard an LST -- built in WWII to go one way and deliver its load on the beach. Twenty years later we were still driving it around the Pacific, with deck plating so worn it could no longer be sandblasted, and armed with 40mm guns and a fire control system optimized against propeller-driven (300 knot) aircraft -- not exactly what I had in mind when I filled out my preference card.

So, how could I have been surprised when my request for assignment to study French at the language school in Monterey, California (300 miles up the coast), resulted in orders to study Russian, 2500 miles across the U.S. at the navy's language school in Anacostia, Maryland? Didn't they understand that I was already in California and could be in Monterey in half a day? Didn't they realize I was a warm weather person and it was December? And what's this Russian crap? It did not bode well for my Embassy duty in Paris.

Next week:
Zdrast-vwee-tyeh!

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Jean d'Isle is a retired naval officer living in Hawaii.During his military career he served in a number of overseas assignments, including Germany, England, Spain, Viet Nam and Puerto Rico. Following his retirement, he was an adjunct faculty member of Hawaii Pacific University and is currently under contract with the U.S. Navy at the submarine base in Pearl Harbor.

Jean's column, View From d'Isle, is a regular feature of VegSource On-Line Magazine.