Two For Two...And A Bonus

I had a great trip! I just got word this morning that my offer was accepted on a house. It's a cute little house in Prince Georges County, not far from the Metro's Green Line. One of the best things about the house for me is that the yard is nice and sunny...lots of room for good garden beds. I've already started planting blueberries, strawberries, tomatoes, rhubarb, eggplant, figs and a ton of other yummy edibles in my head. Gotta look into the local ordinances on keeping backyard chickens.


And I bought a motorcycle. It's *exactly* what I wanted. A 2007 HD Nightster. Just over 9000 miles on it, still under warranty for another two years, some nice customizations including Vance & Hines pipes, skull covers, forward controls and smoked signals. Gonna get a couple saddlebags and a luggage rack on it and I'll be ready to go!


It was kinda kismet the day I went out looking at bikes. I was at my last dealer for the day, HD of Anaheim/Fullerton, and hadn't really seen anything I wanted. There were some nice bikes, but nothing that really grabbed me. I was a little bummed as I got in my rental and started to drive away. I was turning out of the parking lot, waiting for traffic to clear when Jim, the very nice salesman who had been helping me, whistled to get my attention. He waved me back, and when I got out of the car, told me that his manager had just told him about a bike that had come in late the night before. As soon as I sat on the bike, I knew. I told them I'd have to think about it overnight, just to make sure I wasn't being overly impulsive...but I called back about 10 minutes after they opened the next day to tell them, yes, I definitely wanted it. And I got it.

My sister went with me to settle the paperwork. She's standing very patiently in the background in the picture. She was very sweet about sharing my enthusiasm and delight when I realized the significance of buying my first Harley. She didn't even laugh at me when I danced a little dance in the parking lot.

The bonus was my visit to the School of Public Policy at University of Maryland. One of the graduate students, Evan Papp, showed me around, answered my questions and introduced me to a couple of people there. And I walked away so excited about starting school this fall. I think I've been a little nervous about my interest level in this program. Public Policy, especially the financial aspect of how government runs...really? Sounds dull, and maybe a bit intimidating. I'm just a simple sailor; what do I know about keeping up with smart, savvy policy discussions?

I've been meaning to post the Statement of Purpose I submitted as part of my application (the one my sister did such a wonderful job helping me to edit so I didn't sound like a dolt). I think this is as good as any a place to put it. I do fully admit it's a little overblown.

"From its beginning as the Lifesaving Service and the Revenue Cutter Service, the Coast Guard is the best known of the five military branches for humanitarian missions. We save lives through our search and rescue missions, we respond to environmental crises both man-made and natural, and we work to prevent catastrophic maritime accidents through regulation and inspections. We train on a daily basis to that we can safely assist people in distress in the worst environmental and weather conditions. I joined the Coast Guard because of the organization's dedication to helping people in need, protecting the environment, and keeping the water safe. I write this essay from a unique position: the fantail of my ship, the Cutter KISKA, on a beautiful Hawaiian New Year's Day. We are providing offshore security awareness and presence for the President of the United States as he and his family enjoy a holiday on the island of Oahu. I am very aware of my role in supporting today's greater organizational goals: ensuring the President's safety. I cannot think of a better way to celebrate the New Year underway than to contribute to the peace and prosperity of this nation.

I have been on active duty in the US Coast Guard for just over ten years, enlisting as a Seaman in August 1999. I have served on five ships and at two shore units, holding the responsibilities of Deck Watch Officer, Search and Rescue Coordinator, Operations Officer, Executive Officer, and since May 2008, Commanding Officer. In these assignments, I was and am an integral part of teams which were and are directly responsible for executing missions: performing surface searches during search and rescue cases, conducting boardings for fisheries and counter-narcotics law enforcement, and participating in coalition activities for security zone enforcement of critical national infrastructure in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Each position has given me both greater responsibility and a deeper understanding of how the Coast Guard executes and manages its mandated missions. As an Ensign and Deck Watch Officer, I learned the rudiments of shipdriving, collision avoidance, and managing a 10-person watch section. As Executive Officer, I directed the daily schedule for a crew of 18 and took part in planning and executing the responses of the crew to the mission at hand. As a Search and Rescue Coordinator, I analyzed incoming information and made recommendations that coordinated the response of multiple units over a 12.2 million square mile area of the Central Pacific Ocean. My responsibilities as Operations Officer required me to directly supervise nearly 40 people and consider larger goals, including international bilateral agreements and interagency Memoranda of Understanding. Finally, as Commanding Officer, I am completely and unquestionably responsible for what happens onboard my ship, for her crew of 20 and maintenance, and for planning, executing and reporting mission accomplishment.

While I understand, champion, and cherish the Coast Guard’s goals and missions, my experiences have shown me that there are areas in which the Coast Guard can improve our effectiveness and efficiency. The KISKA recently spent six months in a drydock maintenance availability, four months longer than planned, with the majority of the time required to replace over 430 square feet of hull plating; this wasa significant portion of a 110-foot long ship. My crew spent this time away from home making an old ship new again. Before going into drydock, KISKA was considered to be in the best material condition of the four Coast Guard patrol boats in the Central and Western Pacific region. These ships were designed and built in the late 1980s and early 1990s, with an expected useful life of 15 years -- they have far exceeded this time. The urgency of the daily missions distracted from the need to plan for replacements or for extensive repairs to these, and other, critical Coast Guard assets. Beyond my personal experience on KISKA, I have seen that budget shortfalls, increased operational tempo, and mission creep (continually taking on new jobs without giving up old ones or getting increases in personnel and/or funding), have put the burden of continued Coast Guard operations squarely on the shoulders of the cutter, small boat, air station and support crews. The river construction tenders that maintain critical aids to navigation along major inland waterways are desperate for rehabilitative maintenance. Our shoreside facilities critically need attention to address structural issues to ensure that our cutters and small boats have safe places upon which to moor.

"Modernization," the Coast Guard's current reorganization process, is a critical effort designed to improve the organization’s responsiveness in our changing global environment. I completely support Modernization’s plan to reduce institutional inefficiencies and cultural short-sightedness that hamper the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard is exceptionally good at responding to urgent crises, but we cannot use constant crisis management for long term planning. We need to take a much longer view, considering mission sustainability, to continue our tradition of trusted public service.

I have the operational experiences to provide solid recommendations for making process improvements at the micro, or local, level. However, I need to broaden my understanding of how the Coast Guard "gets things done" on a macro, or national, level. With pursuit of a graduate degree in Public Administration, I hope to understand the organization in the broader context of the federal government and to educate myself in the bureaucratic and administrative processes by which decisions are made and change is wrought. I have come to realize that money is a primary catalyst, especially in an organization like the Coast Guard that is funded by the public and is therefore completely accountable to the public trust. By educating myself on how money is allocated and program effectiveness is analyzed, I will be able to build budgets that promote effective programs and encourage development of innovative solutions in our politically and globally dynamic operating environment.

Along with funds, and even more important than funds, people are the most necessary resource for the Coast Guard. If our workforce is not enthusiastic and dedicated to the organization, our effectiveness is decimated, regardless of the generosity of our budget. I am interested in studying leadership and management practices, learning how to encourage and motivate the individuals that perform the daily activities of the Coast Guard, supporting them to provide fresh insights and ideas that will continue to improve our organization as a whole. I would like to explore management techniques and reward systems that sustain a motivated workforce in the face of challenging circumstances like constant change and aging equipment that are the realities of today’s Coast Guard.

Your Public Management – Policy Track program is a superb fit for me. The school’s proximity to Washington, DC, provides unique opportunities and access to the federal system. The Leadership and Management specialty would permit me to focus on developing a knowledge base that can be universally applied in or out of the Coast Guard. My next job assignment after graduate school will be at Coast Guard Headquarters, so my graduate studies will be put immediately to use in a very practical manner. With my military and civilian backgrounds, I will bring a diverse viewpoint to the program. I have struggled through the difficulties of keeping people motivated when it feels like nothing is going right; I have celebrated personal and professional successes with my crews; I have had to communicate with families and other support functions when needs are not being met; and I have faced the challenges of being a female officer leading an all-male crew in a traditionally patriarchal organization.

I am frequently asked how I became a Coast Guard officer and shipdriver, since my educational background is in agriculture and horticulture. I came into the Coast Guard a little later than most entrants, having already earned Bachelor and Masters of Science degrees and worked for a couple of years before joining the service. I had wanted to farm since I was in high school, working on a fruit and vegetable farm to help pay for college. (I am excited by the resurgence of farmers’ markets and recent focus on local foods and sustainable food production, and I hope to be able to use my skills to strengthen our local communities’ food systems once I retire from the Coast Guard.) I did not have the money to enter farming, so I sought a means to support myself while saving. The Coast Guard offered stable income and benefits, lots of opportunities to do many things that I had never done before, and a strong humanitarian and environmental mission. Ten years ago, I planned to stay with the Coast Guard for just long enough to save money to buy land, and maybe store up a few good sea stories.

But I have found that I truly enjoy the Coast Guard. I work with amazing people, in an incredible environment, performing a humanitarian mission to which I am fully committed. I have developed technical shipdriving skills that test my understanding of multiple forces working on the ship, and leadership skills that push me to continually evaluate the impact of my interactions with superiors, peers and subordinates. As for sea stories -- there is nothing quite like the feeling of approaching a vessel at dawn, on flat calm seas, 1500 nautical miles west of the Galapagos Islands, and realizing that the blocks stacked to the gun'les are 200 bales of uncut cocaine, totaling five tons that will never make it to the US. One day, I will buy my farm knowing that the money was well earned through perseverance, sacrifice, hard work, and service. After nearly a decade of a fast-paced, chaotic operational execution, I am looking forward to the opportunity that a graduate program in Public Management will afford me to reflect on my experiences, put my mistakes and successes into context, and become a better Guardian, leader, and citizen."

I guess I realized during my visit to the school, that maybe, just maybe I really do have something to offer.

Change She Is A-Comin'

I'm in the Maui airport right now, headed to the mainland for a few days. First to DC to look for a place to live and visit the U of MD campus, then to outside of LA to see my sister and brother-in-law and buy a motorcycle for my cross-country trip later this summer.

When I get back, things are gonna be different, and they're not gonna stop being different until I get settled into my new place on the East Coast. At the end of August. It kinda hit me yesterday that change is coming, and coming soon.

The last time I felt something close to this was 13 January 2006. Yes, I remember the date. It was kinda the last time things were even close to settled and normal for me. I had just moved into a great new house in a wonderful neighborhood in Waialua on the North Shore of Oahu. I was enjoying my job at the D14 Command Center as a SAR Controller. And then the phone rang.

It was my mom with some scary news about a health issue she was having. Within the week, I was in Virginia helping her to recover from surgery. Two days after I got back from that trip, I got a mid-morning call from the Afloat Detailer congratulating me on my orders to HAMILTON as OPS (whole 'nother story about why I got *that* call). I was off to POPS school two weeks later, then another month or so of work, some leave, and away to San Diego I went.

The in-between three years have been a blur. With good and happy memories, rough times and tough challenges. But a blur of schedules and trips and patrols and schools and training and flights and coming and going.

If there ever is one constant in the Coast Guard, it's change. That and the fact that nothing is really certain in life in the Coast Guard until it actually happens.

When I get back to Hawaii after this trip, it'll be the beginning of transfer season. It already sort of started this morning, with XO's promotion to LT. MKC Tarker and EMC Peltier stapled Frank's LT bars on, while I fumbled with the pin on his cover. Congratulations, XO!

I know he's excited to send out the CO's leave message with, "LT Frank M. Reed III, Acting."

About transfer season: EMC Peltier is the first to leave...the day I get back. The next day, the new XO shows up, and the day after, the new MKC. Which means that Frank and Greg will be headed out. By the time BM1 O'Brien and MK3 Collado leave in mid-June, I'll have just over a month left onboard...I've been underway straight for more days than that.

So, ready or not, change she is a-coming.

CG Cuttermen's Association

I almost forgot...posts don't have to be convoluted and long-winded.

I got forwarded a link a few days ago for the newly established Coast Guard Cuttermen's Organization, and wanted to help get the word out. I'll be sending in my membership dues shortly, though I am disappointed to miss the Cuttermen's Call by just a few days. I'll be in DC for a while...I should be able to make one or two others.

If I was more tech-savvy, I'll put a picture of a cutterman's pin in the post too.

Daily Lessons in Thankful Humility

I wasn't sure what I was going to write about next.

Dockside is going along fairly well; I think there may be mention of the "E" word this week (=extension), which isn't really happy news, but also isn't totally unexpected. The status of the family stuff hasn't really changed. I've got my class schedule for fall all figured out. I'm looking at houses online, waiting for my trip to the mainland later this month to actually put eyes on some places. The work-out is going well, though I can't get the stupid flat tire on my bike fixed; I'll probably take the rim and tire to the bike shop later this week to have them fix it for me.

Maybe something about upcoming transfer seasons; maybe another photo essay, this one on the collective crew's tattoos; maybe...oh, who knows. I just didn't know what to write about next.

But I've taken up a new hobby recently. I learned to ride a motorcycle. I bought a 1997 Honda Shadow 600. And oh. my. god. is it fun! I can't believe I didn't do it 10 years ago.

The guys on the boat have been so kind with listening to me maunder on about riding and bikes and gear and oh yeah, the cross country trip I've got planned for this summer's transfer to DC. They've given me tips, helped teach me about some of the maintenance and even went with me to check out the used motorcycle before buying it. Oh yeah and did a couple iterations of loading and unloading the bike from the fantail for the trip back to the Big Island from Oahu during the last few battles with the shaft vibration gremlin. "Now set the bike loading detail." And they didn't even laugh at me when I wrapped the thing in two rolls of saran wrap to protect it from the inevitable channel-crossing salt spray (well, maybe they did, but they didn't let me see them laugh).

So I've been enjoying the heck out of my new toy. Side note: Mom, now that you've picked your jaw up off the ground from when I told you about the motorcycle and trip plans this weekend, let me reassure you that I have taken all possible precautions to stay safe when riding. I took a riding safety course (the "traffic safety" course at Schofield in February...sorry, I wasn't ready to tell you yet); I wear a full face helmet, heavy leather jacket, gloves, over the ankle boots and long pants in accordance with CG safety standards; I do my best to not ride above my skill level; and I can't ride after dark or carry passengers yet because I'm still on my learner's permit. I know I can't control what other drivers do out there, and they are who I am most concerned about, but I have to cross the street while walking sometimes too.

Not gonna lie: I kinda feel like a bad-ass on the bike (XO: no comments from the peanut gallery about pink tassels!! None!). But I know there are mistakes to be made on the motorcycle that have the potential to damage my pride more than anything else. I've already dropped the bike once. A few weeks ago, I was trying to turn it around in my driveway which has a slight slope downhill, and got unbalanced, and whooop, there she went, down hard on the port side. Luckily I had watched a video about how to pick a bike up by yourself, and it worked, though it probably wasn't very graceful. Only the neighbor kid saw me, so a little pride bruised.Then last weekend, I went for a great ride down to Punalu'u, the black sand beach a few miles past Pahala. It's about a 60 mile ride. Just out for a Sunday afternoon ride.I got there and parked, and was standing on the port side of the motorcycle taking off my gear getting ready to enjoy some quiet time on the beach with my book. My keys slid off the seat to the other side of the bike. I leaned over to pick them up and let my forearm rest lightly on the HOLY SHIT REALLY F***ING HOT EXHAUST PIPE!!!

Note to self...don't do that again.

So for the last week, I've been babying a silver dollar-sized burn on my right arm. It's not pretty, but doesn't really hurt too badly, unless I hit it on something. Which seems to happen...a lot. Still, nothing seriously hurt other than my pride.

This afternoon was what got me thinking about all these lessons learned though. I was driving home from work, after a nearly hour-long Insanity workout. A little tired, wondering what on earth I was gonna have for dinner. Doing the same thing I'd done a bunch of times before.

I got home and was getting ready to take my backpack off the sissy bar when my mp3 player fell out of the pocket. Umm, that shouldn't have happened if the pocket was zipped. Which it wasn't. The only other thing missing was my wallet. Damn and blast. Hustled into the house, picked up the car keys (safer to be looking at the street around me in the car than on the bike) and retraced my route. I got less than two blocks from the house when I saw a woman on the sidewalk paused with something in her hands. Maybe? I flipped around in the nearest parking lot and drove back.

It was my wallet. She was looking through it trying to find a phone number. The cash was gone. She said she had seen a man take the cash and drop the wallet.

Now, I'm a flaming idiot for riding around on my motorcycle with my bag undone...kinda like driving off from the gas station with my wallet on the roof of the car (done that too). And I'm damn lucky to have found the wallet so easily, never mind *at all.*

Whoever picked up the cash, I hope it brings you some comfort. And thank you, thank you, thank you for leaving the rest of it. Good heavens, thank you that I don't have to figure out how to get a new: military ID card, driver's license, motorcycle learner's permit, TWIC card, or cancel the four credit cards that were still in the wallet. Thank you.

Lesson to me: be thankful. Thankful that the outcomes of all of these foibles were mostly harmless. And be humble. I might be a bad-ass motorcycle rider, CO of a great ship and crew, and prospective graduate student with full expenses covered, but I can still forget to zip up my bag. Or I can drop my bike in the driveway. Or I can singe my arm on a hot pipe.

Welcome to Dockside

It's time for another photo essay. Welcome to KISKA's 2010 Dockside Availability. The ship is in our homeport of Hilo, HI, which is awesome! I made kinda a stink about not wanting to go to Honolulu for it, and the maintenance folks put in a lot of effort to make it work in Hilo. Thanks, SFLC PBPL APM!
This is the ship at our regular moorings, in Radio Bay. The small boat is on the trailer so we can use it if we need to. And there's tons of work going on everywhere.
The contractors set up a work area for themselves on the pier. The tarp is a necessity in Hilo, given how much it rains. They've also got a shipping container for storage and more work space.
SN Aaron Pasoquen is PPPing (prepping, priming and painting) the small boat crane. We've got a bunch of work PPPing stuff on the exterior of the ship, which is complicated in Hilo by the regular rain. Make paint dust while the sun shines!
These guys are making paint dust too (and dutifully sucking it away so it doesn't get into the water). SN Ryan Andres is manning the paint float for SN Mike McKinstry (seated) and BM2 Neal Bueno, while they PPP the hull. We took a beating on the paint job while we were at the state pier at the beginning of March, and they're trying to recover from some of the damage. SN Andres and SN McKinstry are our newest law enforcement ninjas onboard, just back from the Maritime Law Enforcement Academy's (MLEA) Boarding Team Member (BTM) school.
Up to the foc'sle now. Jeez, what a mess! But all that stuff's got a working purpose, so it's there for the duration.
This is, well, what's left of the hatch from the foc'sle into forward berthing. We're getting a bunch of hatches and quick-acting water-tight doors (QAWTDs) renewed or replaced. The ones that are being replaced have to be cut out, and this is what that looks like.
Other work being done includes having our bridge windshield wipers replaced. YAY! Yippeee! Whoopeee! I've been cussing those things for a while, and at the end of the last patrol, the one right in front of my chair on the port side of the bridge just stopped working. The ninjaneers didn't have the right belt onboard to fix it, and we were getting them replaced in dockside anyway...so, well, visibility wasn't so great from the port side of the bridge. Also in this photo, you can see where the portholes in the electronics space are being blanked out (the black plastic with a taped X just above the barrel of the gun).
The bridge didn't escape the work. The insulation from the overhead was removed for renewal. All the black plastic is taped up to protect "interferences," that is, anything that we don't want messed up while the contractors are working.
Moving inside, now. The QAWTD between the messdeck and CPO passageway (up forward) is also being renewed. I'm standing in the passageway, looking aft towards the messdeck. They had to remove the false bulkhead on the left that divides the passageway from Chief's stateroom.
And this is what the messdeck looks like right now. Yes, the messdeck. Ugh. The tables and benches are usually on the right, now piled on top of each other so the contractors can get into the forward sound locker to work on fixing the holes in the fuel tanks.
The top has been removed from the fuel tanks. Careful where you step! There's normally bulkheads enclosing this space. The one cool thing about major availabilities is that you really do get to see the framework, the bones of the ship. One more note in this space...just underneath the ladderwell in the left of the photo, the contractors took some UT shots designed to measure the thickness of the metal. Well, there's some bad metal just above the deckline that will have to be replaced. Bummer. Lots of interferences to be removed, and just a big pain in the butt in general. But that's what availabilities are for.On to the engine room now. The insulation blankets have been removed from the exhaust pipes. We found cracks that have to be repaired.
Two fine young engineers getting ready to do something that they need respirators for. FA Brian Callahan and FN Nolan Ryan.I like all the red danger tags hanging so cheerfully from the switchboard, kinda like Christmas ornaments.
MK3 Tony Collado is checking out what's going on in aft berthing. More fuel tanks are open back here to fix more holes.
Looking into aft steering, you can see a couple of contractors working diligently at needlegunning the bulkheads in the space, preparing the metal for PPPing, and checking for more weak spots.
These are the holes in the watertight bulkhead between the battery space and aft steering. Not so watertight right now.

But, with all the work going on, at least we're not dealing with this...
Gawd, what a disaster. This is a photo from 1996 (the ship was only 6 years old then!), and shows diesel fuel spraying from a hole the forward centerline fuel tank into the sewage tank. In the age-old tradition of pranksters, our temp PE sent this photo to his replacement right before he left Hilo, saying, have fun with this mess. Mean, so mean...but funny. Don't worry, Chris, this really isn't your hassle.

Happy Earth Day!

I woke up this morning to drenching rain. It stopped in time for me to go for a walk around the neighborhood. I didn't have a planned route in mind, but rambled with purpose instead. As I was on my last leg back towards the house, the skies off to mauka (inland) were dark with menacing rain clouds...but in the true Hilo tradition, the makai (towards the ocean) side was clear with the sun shining brightly. There was a beautiful, full-arcing rainbow sitting right over my house.

Since I knew we were going to be in dockside for Earth Day, I've been working on some projects to improve KISKA's environmental impact. XO recommended we get reusable grocery bags. FS2 goes to the grocery store every two to three days, and when he packs in for a patrol, we usually have about 200 thousand-million plastic bags floating around the mess deck...ok, that's an exaggeration, but, I swear, those damn things breed and get everywhere! So before we're out of dockside, we'll have 50 brand-new, KISKA-logo'd cloth grocery bags that can be thrown in the wash and reused again and again. I had the thought of putting them on property as "highly-pilferable," but then realized that it was probably just me that would want to pilfer.

The next idea was to tackle energy usage at home. The Coast Guard owns five houses for crewmembers in Hilo, and since energy costs are about 30% more on the Big Island than Oahu, there's usually a good amount of visibility on the electric bills at these properties. One way we've been working with the members to reduce monthly kilowatt usage is to have them take HELCO's energy-usage survey. They can log into the survey, answer some questions, and then the system takes information from their utility bill to recommend changes they can make to improve efficiency.

I took the survey for my own use a couple of weeks ago. Now, I don't have air-conditioning (and everything in the house has a fine sheen of mold on it, especially stuff in the closets...kinda gross, I know, but that's the price for living in Paradise) and it's just me in the house, so my energy use is already pretty low. But the survey recommended that I change all my lightbulbs to CFLs and upgrade my refrigerator to a more efficient model. Well, I'm willing to do one of those...but the fridge is gonna be the fridge until I leave.

I'm expecting to see something of the same results for the folks in housing. Some things they can do, and some things that are more the Housing Office's responsibility. Once we get some good data, we'll forward up those recommendations...all we can do is ask.

Next on the list was the hazmat shed. It's been in poor shape for a while now, and since I'll be leaving this summer, I didn't want to just pass the problem on to my relief. I took some pictures, labeled the most egregious discrepancies and asked for help. And we got the money to replace it. Thanks, CEU Honolulu! (There is a little more to this story; I don't think CEU is in the business of just giving away money whenever someone asks, lest anyone get the wrong idea.)

And my last green initiative was to breathe new life into our recycling program. We have a program, sort of. I give it about 60% effectiveness. We do a decent job with bottles and cans (Hawaii has a redemption program, $.05/bottle or can), a reasonable job with paper, a poor job with non HI-5 glass/aluminum/plastic, and a pathetic job with cardboard.

The first step was awareness: announcements at quarters and gentle reminders when someone heads to the trash can with something that can be recycled. These are good guys, and I do truly believe they want to do the right thing.

The next step is practical logistics. And for some reason, this is where it gets sticky. My working theory is that people are more likely to recycle if it's easy. As good as these guys are, we're all basically lazy. If there's a trash can right next to the desk, that's where the paper/bottles/cans are going to go. I'm leaning towards putting a recycle bin underneath each desk in the office. My department heads are of the mind that people can be persuaded, possibly forcibly persuaded, into compliance. They want one or two centralized stations. I think it's a difference in basic theories and opinions about human behavior and motivations. I'm focusing on the ends, they're focusing on the means; both are important, especially in the larger scheme of things.

There is at least one other factor to consider. The people that do our contracted office cleaning may not understand our system, whatever it is. I don't want us to get stuff in the right container, just to have the cleaning crew pile it all into the rubbish bin.

I still haven't come up with a good option for how to compile and store recycle-able cardboard.

Have a Happy Earth Day, all!

Gnawing on the Kool-Aid

I usually stick to blogging about my direct experiences, whether onboard the ship, as a professional, or just on life in general. It's nice and comfortable that way. No one can argue that I'm right or wrong...it's my experience after all. But I'm gonna stretch a little on this post, and talk about A Big Coast Guard Issue. Consider it my practice for grad school. I'll try to keep it as relevant to KISKA as possible, so you guys don't all pass out asleep from boredom.

There's been a lot, A LOT, of discussion about modernization over the last few years in the Coast Guard. I never did quite understand why LANT and PAC were so different, whether it was from the AREA (operations/policy) or MLC (maintenance/logistics) side of things. Some folks have heard me whinge about the vagaries of geographic disparity especially as it related to treatment of habitability considerations for cutters in drydock away from homeport. I admit to being extremely pissed off when I found out that, not only did another (LANT) cutter (in drydock, away from their island homeport) have kitchens in their hotel rooms, they also had a messing contract at five local restaurants, despite being closely located to some government dining facilities, while KISKA's (PAC) crew was living with mini-fridges and microwaves in Waikiki, the land of expensive tourist-fleecing, high-calorie, oversized meals. All because two different offices were in charge of the contracts. I don't want to make this my signature issue, but it so clearly demonstrates to me the inconsistencies that (I think) modernization was designed to fix that I can't help using it in proving my point.

And the new construct can definitely take advantage of some economies of scale. OPCOM v. two AREA Command Centers; consolidation of training center oversight into FORCECOM; parts availability from a single source...there's lots and lots of information available about how modernization will make us more responsive and adaptable.

I have drunk the kool-aid known as Modernization, and I like it. Change is necessary for our dynamic times.

But I think the kool-aid might need stirring some more. There are some chunks that haven't quite dissolved enough to be totally palatable yet. I find myself chewing the kool-aid sometimes, and it sticks in my teeth a little (I think it's orange-flavored).

One of the (many, many) reasons I like working with my XO and MKC is that we have plenty of theoretical and ideological discussions, usually about CG topics (though sometimes to the detriment of worklist completion...after all, those logs will still be there tomorrow; right, XO?). Drawing from our collective and individual experiences, we ponder how the big picture issues (modernization, budget cuts and workforce management, environmental philosophies and carbon footprints) impact us in our little KISKA world. So we've been talking about what modernization means to us for a while.

I think the first discussion that I can really point back to being a light-bulb moment for me was while we were still in drydock, during all our shaft alignment problems. It was a discussion about the prices paid for restoring our materiel condition, long-term maintenance decision-making and operational impacts, and ultimately, who was responsible and accountable for the deteriorating condition of our ships and the increasing costs (people, money, time) for keeping them working. That was back in August or September.

Since then, we've gone a few more rounds, heard ADM Allen speak about a cultural shift required by modernization, and read LT Ben Goff's treatise (posted on COMDT's blog on 24 Mar 2010) about the surface sub-culture's endemic resistance to change, which is extremely well-written and to the point (I have to admit to reading it with a dictionary sitting next to me; "heuristic" may be my new favorite word).

As I understand the new construct, engineering and materiel condition are of equal importance as operational mission requirements, and are why we're moving towards the aviation model for preventive maintenance for ships and boats. If a critical preventative maintenance card is not completed, the vessel goes into a maintenance status. Maintenance for individual ships is managed heavily from a centralized point (Surface Forces Logistic Command, SFLC; Patrol Boat Product Line, PBPL for KISKA and other patrol boats), and becomes very black/white, go/no go.

We used to think that 85% PMS (preventative maintenance system, my least favorite CG acronym) completion rates for ships were pretty darn good. The first CO of my recent WHEC tour used to presciently say that there was no way that aviators would accept anything less than 100% PMS (I think it's called something else in the aviation world) completion rates for their aircraft, so why were ships allowed to run with 70% or less of their PMS done? PMS completion rates also used to fall on the shoulders of the Commanding Officer. If anything went wrong engineering-wise with the ship, one of the first questions asked was, why weren't these PMS cards done? Never mind that the CO had just brought the ship back from an operational patrol, packed with law enforcement missions, training, administrative reports and personnel issues (all managed with underway connectivity), the crew might only be home for the same amount of time that they had just been out to sea, and the local shoreside maintenance support was over-tasked with limited availability to assist because now there was another cutter inport. There's only so much time in the day, and operations always takes precedence over maintenance...I think because maintenance can be deferred, while operations are usually fairly time-sensitive.

So I totally agree that the old way is not the best way. But it's still a tough mental shift for me as a CO. The Coast Guard Regulations say, "The responsibility of the commanding officer...is absolute..." I take that pretty close to heart, and it's tough to define where that absolute responsibility ends.

I know that I'm not responsible for the fact that my ship is 10 years past her designed service life. I know that I'm not responsible for the nearly four-month drydock extension "enjoyed" by KISKA that royally screwed up the patrol boat schedule for Sector Honolulu last summer. I know that I'm not responsible for the holes found in watertight bulkheads yesterday...on day 3 of our dockside.

I know that I am responsible for documenting the materiel condition and machinery and casualty status for the ship, including CASREPing stuff that doesn't work, ensuring the EPO (Engineering Petty Officer) documents Corrective Maintenance Actions (CMAs) in CMPLUS (MKC and I just had a mind-boggling acronym-fest that left us both a little dazed) and CSMPs for the LRMP (see what I mean?) that gets discussed with the APM during the A-TM MTGS (now I'm just being silly). I know that I am responsible for training the crew so that they are able to combat casualties when they do occur in order to minimize damage and bring the ship back to an operational status. And I know that I am responsible for operating the ship in a manner that minimizes risk exposure when there is no commensurate potential reward (i.e., removing the ship from the pool of assets available for flight ops training while we were fighting the shaft vibration gremlin...'cause you know, just know, that little punk would have started the shaft vibrating with the helo right overhead with Murphy-perfect timing...bad for the ship, bad for the helo).

But where is that line drawn? Is responsibility for maintenance kinda like the 1964 definition of obscenity from Supreme Court Justice Potter Steward, "I know it when I see it."?

I don't know what the answer is here.

On a less lofty, more prosaic level, I'm concerned about the "people price" associated with the newly established product lines. I have not had any conversations on this subject with the individuals currently in the positions mentioned...please do *not* assume I'm speaking for them. These are my thoughts, my concerns and my observations.

In the patrol boat (PB) world, WPB 110s have two guys that do a fantastic job of responding to frantic phone calls 24x7x365 from nearly 40 different ships with sometimes mission-crippling casualties, all around the world, at all hours of their day. Every ship thinks their situation is the most critical of all, and the CASREP guys have to prioritize and talk down squeaky wheels. And they're supposed to do all this for four years straight. And if either of them takes any of the 30 days of leave they earn for the year, the other guy takes *all* the calls. That's the casualty response guys.

The Port Engineers (PEs) on the Availability Project Management (APM) side travel to be onsite for a ship's drydock or dockside availability so they can be the Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR), working with the ship, contractors and CG Contracting Officer. While this sounds okay when the availability is scheduled for two months, the reality can be extended periods away from home with no hope of leave for the duration of the availability period. Of the three recent WPB 110 drydocks with which I'm familiar, all three were extended, two of them up to five-plus months. Five months away from home...that's more than most WHEC 378s, and chances are good that the PE has another availability back to back, especially if the first one gets extended.

And it's not the supervisors' fault either. They're doing the best they can with what they've got. I recently received an email about Port Engineer duties...my head hurt after the first three sentences trying to keep track of who was going where for what boat...three PEs trying to cover five availabilities all over the place. Yeeik!

Pretty soon, we're gonna run out of the good, dedicated people who are currently in those jobs. They're going to get burned out.

The difficulty with these positions is that they are single points of failure for maintaining operational cutters. If an individual fails in this position due to burn-out, lack of knowledge or experience, or just plain ol' nogivashittedness, cutters will not be able to get underway and operations will suffer.

Of course, bringing in more people levies different challenges, like the need for thorough and clear pass-downs between members so that details don't get missed, or the boats aren't answering the same questions over and over again. I'm not sure what the answer is here either.

I got this bit of advice from a good friend (she gave me fantastic feedback on the first draft of this post...thanks, Friend!): "Basically,...any problems that seem new to us only seem that way because we are new. There is nothing new under the sun and there aren't really any new CG problems-they come packaged with different labels and in different boxes but at some level we have been dealing with the same issues since our inception." Somehow, that just really speaks to me, and gives me hope that our leaders will find the answers to the questions that I'm flailing with.

So that's my take on some of modernization, at least for right now. Do you want cookies with your kool-aid? Oh, wait, that's not very healthy, and weigh-ins are this month...how about some pita and hummus?