Coolest thing you've seen.

[longshot]

We see awesome video clips, and lots of pre-paged media constantly..

Yet, I was wondering. What's the coolest thing you've seen or witnessed with your own eyes?

VIDEO DOES NOT COUNT

It has to be with your own eyes.

CHILDBIRTH DOES NOT COUNT.

I don't want to hear about your cooch exploding to the point that anyone other than John Holmes can't touch the sides, okay? Leave the "miracle of life" out of this please.

With that out of the way, what was truly amazing?

Last week, I went to a steel mill. It was not a normal mill that melts iron ore into molten steel, but a "mini-mill" that uses scrap steel and other elements to make steel. They are burninated with carbon rods by electricity to insane temperatures to produce molten steel.

There was this huge fire that was "pre heating" the elements. Then, these three ginormous carbon rods that were heated white hot were lowered by this machine arm into the pit. There were Frankenstein-like lightning bolts connecting the rods, and sparks and flames shooting out.

Just an amazing day to see gigantic ladels of molten steel being swung around in buckets the size of three-car garages.

What's some cool stuff that you've witnessed?

It can be historical in context, or just amazing, or just amazing to you personally...


Edited for poor punctuation

[Edited on 7-1-2005 by longshot]

[Valthissa]

In order to qualify a jet engine for military use, the OEM has to show that the loss of one blade at full thrust will not penetrate the engine case. They build and test a 'blade-off' rig to validate the design (for some reason fancy analysis and simulations don't seem to impress the government).

My company usually designs and builds these rigs. They have high speed cameras to record a test that costs about 20 million dollars and lasts less than a second.

I was in Derby on business with Rolls-Royce a few years back when the last rig we built was tested and I got to be in the control room and then view the video.

With the rotor turning around 12,000 rpm they detonate a charge that fails one of the blades. All you see in real time is a ball of fire, but in the video the The titanium case that we machined (this one was about 40" in diameter, 3 feet long, and an 1 1/2" thick) looks like a bowl of jelly as it is deformed by the blade. I think I still have the .avi from the test at work.

The other thing I got to witness was the canopy ejection test of the F22. The government doesn't want the pilot to be killed by contact with the airplane when he ejects - pretty reasonable I think. The problem is that it's impossible to prove that through any kind of analysis.

The way they demonstrate it is to build a mockup of the front half of the aircraft, attach a couple of rockets, mount the setup on a rail, fire the model down a range and eject a dummy. They use high speed video to see if the dummy hits the canopy or the fuselage. For the F22 we built a multi-axis seat ejection mockup using the live ejection system. Lockheed then tested the rig over and over at different positions to show that the system worked.

I was the PM for our company so I got to be at the commisioning of the model. All I can say about that part is I was not impressed by Holloman AFB (it's really brown) but watching that sled take off with those rockets was quite a sight.

I agree with longshot that watching steel get made is an awesome sight.

C/Valth

[drigore]

Working for a chemical company, I saw some great stuff, but I think the topper was purifing gold. Taking the gold bars, sludge, wipes, anything with gold in or on it, was put into a flask. Aqua Reiga (sp) was poured over it, which is a combination of nitric acid and hyrochloric acid. The entire thing turned red, then the liquid was boiled off. The leftover was put into a smelter and turned into a liquid mess. It was then poured into bar shaped molds. When it was done cooling, the slag was all the impurities, and you were left with a 99.999% pure gold bar.

Now that I work building Submarines for the Navy, I've seen a lot of other things.

[Back]

A sunrise over a field in Israel where I worked with the Palestinians picking cabbage. We had a good time. They all wanted my Camels and insisted I drove the tractor.

That sunrise, and the human camaraderie, I will keep with me until I die.

[pennywise]

Val, you got the coolest job.

-G

[Edaarin]

It was sometime in early May. I was done with finals, and was driving back from the school bookstore with a friend of mine.

We stopped at an access gate on one of the main streets, and in front of us is a faded red pickup truck with license plates that read "BUBBAONE." There were a few bumper stickers for Bush as well. And in the rear window was the crowning glory, a Confederate flag.

The passenger side door opened, and first came legs in work jeans and faded Timberlands. You haven't lived until you've seen a black guy with a lunch box stepping out of a redneck truck in the South.

[Keller]

I witnessed Manatee Stew in the Gulf of Mexico. Let me explain.

At the end of my freshman year I helped my roommate drive back to Sarasota where his parents lived. His parents didn't want him driving back alone and paid for my return airfare. For me it was a free vacation.

A couple highschool friends of his that went to UF invited us up to Tampa to watch them perform in a "battle of the bands" type competition. It was a decent show and they ended up getting third place. Being college kids we took their prize money and bought a bunch of booze. We ended up hanging out on a sea-wall on Siesta Key. I wasn't a big drinker then but didn't really mind something to get us out of his parents house.

Around 1:30 in the morning one of the guys we were with spots a manatee floating 15-17 feet out from the sea wall. It was pretty neat because I had never seen a sea-cow in person. One kid who had drank a wee too much bourbon informs us all that he wants to ride the manatee. Egged on by our disbelief he got up and walked a ways back from the edge of the wall.

Before we could stop him he was sprinting forward at a perfect angle to hit his mark. He took a good leap from the edge of the wall and with the grace of god landed directly on top of the manatee. He then proceeded directly through the manatee into the warm gulf water.

You see -- the manatee had been dead for weeks. The beating sun had turned the inside of the manatee into a rotten goo held together by the thick hide.

After we realized he was ok we had a good laugh about it. He had to walk back home as no one dared let him into their car. It was most definately the coolest thing I have ever seen.

[Apotheosis]

There have been soooo many sights in life that I think have been excellent, not any one particularily strikes out at me, but here are a few sights that I enjoy, and always try to get a good view of:


Lighting storms (or thunderstorms) along with all the wind. (nature's power gets me hard.)

Sunrises and Sunsets.. And living in a northern climate, they're different in the seasons. In the summer, lots of reds, oranges, some blues and purples, in the winter the colors tend to be umm, on the "cooler" side, aqua, light purple, light orange.

"Lookout Hill" I am sure alot of cities have this, but there's a town in Michigan called Grand Rapids. There's this excellent hill on the outskirts of the city which allows you to park and look at the city (at night it was pretty spectacular). I spent a summer there when I was a teen, and it was probably my favorite place in the city.

[Buggy]

I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the sholder of Orion. I watched sea beams glitter in the darkness at Tan Hauser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time like tears in rain. Time to die.

[Apotheosis]

Originally posted by Buggy
I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the sholder of Orion. I watched sea beams glitter in the darkness at Tan Hauser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time like tears in rain. Time to die.

I bet you have also seen everything in Sting's closet.

[Skirmisher]

Driving into Cuzco from a much smaller town very late one night we stopped as one of the guys had to go to the bathroom.

We stopped on the top of a rise and everyone got out to stretch their legs as it is about a 5 hour ride.

When i got out and looked up, i saw a sky more full of stars than ever before in my life.

It seems the southern hemisphere is better for star watching in general, and we were so high in the mountains already and so far between towns the light pollution was non existent.

You could clearly see hundreds if not thousands of stars and it just made me stand and stare. amazed both at the beauty and also at the reminder of how much is out there.

[longshot]

Originally posted by Keller
I witnessed Manatee Stew in the Gulf of Mexico. Let me explain.



There is no word to describe how awesome that story is...

Wow.

[4a6c1]

Ok, this probably dosnt qualify as extravagant to anyone else but for me the most amazing thing I've ever seen with my own eyes was the earths surface from 32,000 feet. My first flight to Heathrow. 12 hour flight. I was breathless for 12 hours, with my forehead on the window and my eyes about as wide as they could go.

I think I'll post my runnersup in a bit. :)

[Arqueto]

I dunno if anyone else will really appreciate this, except maybe Arkans or Dave. But when I was at CAX last year a CH-53 was lifting a HMMWV up to the top of this hill to set up a Re-Trans site for our radios, but the wind got too rough and the chopper was about to go down so they dropped the cable. It was funny as hell to watch a HMMWV fall from that high straight onto the ground. I think it took them over 48 hours to find all the pieces that flew everywhere.

Heh, it certainly made for an interesting smoke break.

Did it bounce?

Only in the military do you police call all the pieces... (and they will use them to put it back together)

[Edited on 7-1-2005 by Dave]

[Drew2]

The coolest thing I've gotten to see/do to date is control the camera's outside the space station.

It's one thing to see pictures of earth from space. It's another thing entirely to have a live feed and be able to zoom in/change direction at will. You are also wearing a headset that let's you hear astronauts in space.

Has anyone ever spoken to someone in space? I have. I got to say hello. Neener.

[longshot]

Originally posted by Arqueto
I dunno if anyone else will really appreciate this, except maybe Arkans or Dave. But when I was at CAX last year a CH-53 was lifting a HMMWV up to the top of this hill to set up a Re-Trans site for our radios, but the wind got too rough and the chopper was about to go down so they dropped the cable. It was funny as hell to watch a HMMWV fall from that high straight onto the ground. I think it took them over 48 hours to find all the pieces that flew everywhere.

Heh, it certainly made for an interesting smoke break.

I might have appreciated it if you had the foresight to explain what the hell you were talking about rather than use a bunch of acronyms.

Congratulations... nobody can understand you. I bet you feel special...

[hectomaner]

i would have to say seeing metallica, hole, and veruca salt, play in a tent for about 600 people at the 'polar beach party' in a little eskimo camp which is the last camp before the north pole, in the arctic circle, Tuktoyaktuk. the neat thing was seeing the aurora borealis going on during the concert. one of the most spectacular things i've ever seen. the eskimo's huffing gasoline throughout the night was pretty damn funny too

[Keller]

Originally posted by hectomaner
i would have to say seeing metallica, hole, and veruca salt, play in a tent for about 600 people at the 'polar beach party' in a little eskimo camp which is the last camp before the north pole, in the arctic circle, Tuktoyaktuk. the neat thing was seeing the aurora borealis going on during the concert. one of the most spectacular things i've ever seen. the eskimo's huffing gasoline throughout the night was pretty damn funny too

:lol:

Seether.

:lol:

[Drew2]

Originally posted by longshot
I might have appreciated it if you had the foresight to explain what the hell you were talking about rather than use a bunch of acronyms.

Congratulations... nobody can understand you. I bet you feel special...

Dave and Arkans get it though, which makes them omfgwtfpwn!


Anyway, from what I understood, someone dropped a vehicle and it shattered and they had to pick up the pieces.

Which definitely qualifies as something way cool!!!!

[hectomaner]

Originally posted by Keller

Originally posted by hectomaner
i would have to say seeing metallica, hole, and veruca salt, play in a tent for about 600 people at the 'polar beach party' in a little eskimo camp which is the last camp before the north pole, in the arctic circle, Tuktoyaktuk. the neat thing was seeing the aurora borealis going on during the concert. one of the most spectacular things i've ever seen. the eskimo's huffing gasoline throughout the night was pretty damn funny too

:lol:

Seether.

:lol:

meh, VS is pretty lame

[Arqueto]

Which reminds me why I usually don't bother to open my my mouth around here. Please forgive me for most of my recent experiences being centered around a subject most people don't have much knowledge of.

And honestly, I would've figured most of you had the brain capacity to equate "HMMWV" to "Humvee". It's honestly not that far of a leap, is it?

And by the way, it has nothing to do with feeling special. It has to do with the fact that half of you feel the need to bash on people to get your E-Penis rocks off. Kudos to you.

[Keller]

Originally posted by Arqueto
Which reminds me why I usually don't bother to open my my mouth around here. Please forgive me for most of my recent experiences being centered around a subject most people don't have much knowledge of.

And honestly, I would've figured most of you had the brain capacity to equate "HMMWV" to "Humvee". It's honestly not that far of a leap, is it?

And by the way, it has nothing to do with feeling special. It has to do with the fact that half of you feel the need to bash on people to get your E-Penis rocks off. Kudos to you.

So let me get this right....

You decided to mask the word Humvee with HMMVWV -- told us none but Arkans and Dave would understand -- and weren't being intentionally exclussive?

Isn't the army at least taking high school graduates these days? Give me a break.

[Arqueto]

Originally posted by Keller
So let me get this right....

You decided to mask the word Humvee with HMMVWV -- told us none but Arkans and Dave would understand -- and weren't being intentionally exclussive?

Isn't the army at least taking high school graduates these days? Give me a break.
Umm... I wasn't masking the word "Humvee" with HMMWV. Humvee is just how the acronym is usually said. As far as the reference to Dave and Arkans goes, the only reason it was mentioned is because they're the only two posters I know of that are in the military and might find it somewhat humorous. Please forgive me that.

In regards to the comment about the Army taking high school graduates, I'm not in the Army, and the word is spelled "exclusive".

Personally, I would be sure to proofread a post in which I was slamming someone's educational level.

[peam]

Play nice, wankers.

[SpunGirl]

The one thing that comes to mind is that once I was driving to SanFran from LA, north on the 5. There was a jeep cherokee totally engulfed in flames in the southbound lanes. The flames were so ferocious and so high that I actually pulled all the way into the lefthand lane, slowed down, and took a picture.

Sadly I lost the camera with which I took the picture on that trip. I'm sure I can think of something better later on.

-K

[Skirmisher]

I'm not in the army, never was and doubt i ever will be, but I didn't have any trouble reading the post.

[Arqueto]

Originally posted by Dave
Did it bounce?

Only in the military do you police call all the pieces... (and they will use them to put it back together)

[Edited on 7-1-2005 by Dave]
Nah, it didn't bounce. It hit the ground, and the entire frame pretty much snapped. The tires buckled outwards and started rolling across the desert.

And yes, they were even picking up nuts and bolts in the dirt, which undoubtedly got used to put the piece-of-shit back together.

[Artha]

The only thing that really leaps to mind is when Hurricane Isabel, a class 5 (highest omg!!) hurricane came more or less right over my house. It was really dark, and it actually wasn't raining that hard. I went outside and just looked up, and the clouds were moving fast enough and chaotically enough that I was simply floored.

[Nieninque]

Coolest: Seeing frogs 6 hours drive into the Sahara Desert

Most moving: Visiting Auschwitz Birkenau

(although the most sickening part of that visit was the American Tourist asking his partner to take a photo of him next to the gas chambers)

[Edited on 1-7-05 by Nieninque]

[TheRoseLady]

Coming up over a ridge on the way to Laughlin Nevada and there was a rainbow that was so huge it seemed like it was "right there". We were in such awe that we pulled over, I got out of the car to take a picture and promptly dropped the camera. I was with my Mom, a day I'll never forget.

[Asha]

Iron Maiden, live at Donnington 03.

My hair after my neice had brushed it and sorted it into pigtails.

Watching a girl getting dressed the morning after a party, while listening to the lead riff solo on Metallica's Unforgiven.
That made me fall in love with her for 11 years.

[Miss X]

The last time I went to Belguim/France I saw some of the war cemeteries in Ypres. Tyne Cot was amazing as was the german cemetary in Vladslo (just north of Ypres.)

Seeing the thousands and thousands of head stones as far as the eye could see was a very humbling experience. It just struck me that every one of those lives was as important as mine, and they had been lost for us. I can't put into words how it feels to see it.

I also went to the Menin Gate, which is in Ypres. Its a memorial of the British and Commonwealth soldiers who died in WW1. It lists every name. There are just so many. The fire department of Ypres play the Last Post every single night at the gate in memory of the lost ones. I mean every night since the end of ww1 they are out there playing it. I've never cried more in my life, than I did the night I was there.

[Tisket]

Great topic. For me probably the night we camped near Denali National park and saw the northern lights. It was like rippling curtains of lights across the entire sky. Really amazing. Thank you for reminding me.

[Warriorbird]

Lightning striking one of the "Cribs"(used to purify water) in the middle of Lake Michigan, lightning it up brightly, then another bolt striking our sailing school boat, running down the mast and stopping before it did anything dangerous. It was five seconds of "Oh shit, I'm gonna die!" then just a pause and "Woah."

[Skeeter]

Originally posted by Tayre
The coolest thing I've gotten to see/do to date is control the camera's outside the space station.

It's one thing to see pictures of earth from space. It's another thing entirely to have a live feed and be able to zoom in/change direction at will. You are also wearing a headset that let's you hear astronauts in space.

Has anyone ever spoken to someone in space? I have. I got to say hello. Neener.


Yet you couldn't figure out how to get the Vintrillo mic to work last night. :lol:

[Skeeter]

Watching the moon rise far out at sea. clear October night and the moon came up like the freaking death star.

Was very Joe Vs. the Volcano-ish

[AnticorRifling]

I understood every word that Arqueto said. And CAX sucks. I'll have to think on this topic and get back to you for the coolest thing I've ever seen.

[StrayRogue]

Originally posted by Drayal
Iron Maiden, live at Donnington 03.



Fucking yeah man! That certainly ranks up there with me too. Ozzfest 01: one of the best days of my life. Download 03 was one of the best weekends of my life. This years was OK, though not the best. Sabbath owned like no other band has owned before tho.

The Cirque du Soliel (I've forgotten how to spell it now), and one of the most moving for me was seeing Star Wars, the original trilogy for the first time at the cinema.

[Jazuela]

Mine's pretty mundane compared to some I've read here..

I went on a whale watch with my dad one summer during my college years, and we watched the whales play around and come up to touching distance to our boat.

I also watched the surgeon remove the steel plates from my arm a couple of years after they had to put them in when I had my car accident. I was doped up at the time, but I managed to stay awake long enough to watch the first plate removed. I nodded off for the second one and didn't wake up for another hour. YAY for "twilight" anasthaesia!

[Suppa Hobbit Mage]

I gave CPR to a dying kid hit in a drive bye in Ogden Utah. I could feel his ribs breaking as I was doing the compressions. I could also tell that he was dead, which stays with you a long, long time.

I saw a Tsunami in Japan knock over a big tree in our yard (big like, 45 feet or so) and crush my Mom's car, that she'd gotten out of about 2 minutes prior to come give me a toy when I was 8.

I've seen fireworks over the Washington Monument (corny, I know, but it gave me goosebumps).

I had a 220 lb bull mastiff attack my face (have a scar on the lip under my mustache that's still pretty red) when I was 28.

I saw a car that was speeding, in the far lane on the highway swerve 3 lanes over to try and make an exit... over compensate and then flip 3 times in front of me, and the guy walked away from it.

I scored four touchdowns at Polk highsch... wait, that wasn't me.

I'm not sure if it qualifies as coolest, but I do recall the first time I dropped my nephew off at pre-school... and he cried and cried and didn't want to go. Then I drove around the corner and watched from above as he went into the playground and sat by himself (broke my heart -- I wanted to go back and get him). That memory has stuck with me too.

I could go on forever it feels like, I have many special memories of things I've seen, and I've been very fortunate with most of them.

[Suppa Hobbit Mage]

Hmmm, I guess most of mine aren't really the "coolest", more like, ones that stuck with me. :x

[Vestarr]

(((Iron Maiden, live at Donnington 03.))) Drayal yeps that was a great show ..one of my favorites.

To date the most craziest/awsome things ive ever seen is a pod/school of bottlenosed dolphins team up and kill a shark ...was on Vacation in Florida on the gulf side ..was an awsome sight to see.

---Vest

[Myshel]

This is the coolest and scariest thing I"ve ever seen. I grew up on this little island off the coast of florida and the end of every summer before school started we used to have a party with a bon fire on the beach. There were about 20 people there, adults kids and about 10 at night, all gathered around eating marshmellows and stuff, just laying back. One kid says "hey what is that?" We all look out and on the horizon was this glowing ball hopping around, we all stand up and watch as it zips up to the north end of the island and then back straight in front of us, except now its right off shore. It was not huge and it wasn't really bright, it seemed its glow was contained around its self, it was changing colors from blue to bright yellow (or gold). It sat right off shore for I don't know it seemed a long time as we all stood mesmerized and then it popped out to the horizon, to the south end and was gone. Some one said holy shit and we waited the rest of the night to see if it would come back, keeping the fire going. We called the next day, (I don't know who the adults called, air force near by so probably them) The official response was a "weather balloon" from the near by base in St. Pete. In the local papers it was seen all up and down the coast of Florida. This was in the late 60's.

[hectomaner]

Originally posted by Suppa Hobbit Mage

I scored four touchdowns at Polk highsch... wait, that wasn't me.



:lol2:

[Asha]

After Iron maiden played I lost my voice for the rest of the night. Also I couldn't make the devil sign with my hands for about a week.

:D

[Latrinsorm]

The face of the woman I love.

Seeing my dad walk (shuffle) around after quad bypass surgery.

[Asha]

Originally posted by Latrinsorm
Seeing my dad walk (shuffle) around after quad bypass surgery.

Awesome!
That sounds like the greatest thing in the world.
:)

Originally posted by Keller

So let me get this right....

You decided to mask the word Humvee with HMMVWV -- told us none but Arkans and Dave would understand -- and weren't being intentionally exclussive?

Isn't the army at least taking high school graduates these days? Give me a break.
He did not mask anything. The acronym stands for "High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle" which is the original name for what is now referred to in the civilian world as a Humvee since Arnold got his hands on one by coaxing AMG.
If he wanted to get more "military about it" he could have referred to it as a M998 and I would have understood exactly what he meant...(not sure if the marines call them by the same identifier).

So instead of making yourself out to be a asshole, use your head. Its kinda obvious what the acronym means since it is so close to HUMVEE and talking about military vehicles.

[Back]

I think that should really be directed at Longshot because he was the first to try and rain on that parade.

The funniest part though was someone saying they collected all the bolts so they could put the thing back together or use them for something else.

[Vitruvian]

Once , Driving down the highway on I-95, I had to slam on my breaks due to the fact that the cars in front of me did as well. It was raining and something was obstructing our lane. Anyway, the car behind me was coming like a frieght train, a truck actually, I knew it wouldnt have time to stop b4 hitting me , so I braced for the impact. At the last moment, it veered into the middle of the highway where all the dirt and waht not was, it turned to the side slamming on its breaks and I suppose the tires dug ino the wet dirt and caused the truck to flip over and over, it was like out of a movie. Craziest shit I ever saw. Maybe it was my fault. I kept driving....

[Warriorbird]

Hmm... other cool moments.

Swimming near a manta in the Virgin Islands.

Seeing coyotes bouncing through the dry grassland near my cousin's house, trying to catch mice.

[Back]

Mantas, you just reminded me of seeing mantas swimming off the Channel Islands off the coast of Cali. To illustrate, the Channel Islands are like an island in the sea, not too far off the coast, but straight cliffs from the top. There is a whole town up there.

You have a whole view of the ocean and in the clear waters below you can see the huge manta swimming.

Awesome.

[Keller]

Originally posted by Dave

Originally posted by Keller

So let me get this right....

You decided to mask the word Humvee with HMMVWV -- told us none but Arkans and Dave would understand -- and weren't being intentionally exclussive?

Isn't the army at least taking high school graduates these days? Give me a break.
He did not mask anything. The acronym stands for "High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle" which is the original name for what is now referred to in the civilian world as a Humvee since Arnold got his hands on one by coaxing AMG.
If he wanted to get more "military about it" he could have referred to it as a M998 and I would have understood exactly what he meant...(not sure if the marines call them by the same identifier).

So instead of making yourself out to be a asshole, use your head. Its kinda obvious what the acronym means since it is so close to HUMVEE and talking about military vehicles.

Jesus Fucking CHRIST!

The point is that he was advertising he was in the special military club. Longshot called him out. He denied it. I pointed out he most definately was.

Neither of you have addressed the complaint longshot brough. I don't give a shit if the chicken or the egg came first. Rhett and Tamral have been pointing out I can't spell and don't spell-check my posts for the last year. I've yet to see him address why he chose to mask the content of his story with military jargon on a non-military board.

okay sorry, direct the post at Longshot then.


Its military, we talk military. I do it with Anticor and arkans all the time on the boards. it is mostly amusing to us mainly because the first visual that came to mind was doing a police call for all the parts and knowing EXACTLY what was going to be done with the parts afterwords.

I'm sure you would not have been to impressed to hear that a crane dropped a for escort on the ground.

And FYI a HMMWV is a totally different vehicle than a Humvee, so he was being accurate with his post rather than speaking in military jargon.

[Edited on 7-1-2005 by Dave]

[Arqueto]

Originally posted by Keller
Jesus Fucking CHRIST!

The point is that he was advertising he was in the special military club. Longshot called him out. He denied it. I pointed out he most definately was.

Neither of you have addressed the complaint longshot brough. I don't give a shit if the chicken or the egg came first. Rhett and Tamral have been pointing out I can't spell and don't spell-check my posts for the last year. I've yet to see him address why he chose to mask the content of his story with military jargon on a non-military board.
Okay, Keller. I'll explain this slowly since you've apparently decided to stop taking your medication for some reason. I completely fail to see how I was "advertising" that I'm in a "special military club". I'm really sorry that I've gotten used to talking to people who understand things like that, and am in no way used to having to spell things out for those that aren't. Shit, even when I'm talking to friends back home and say something they don't understand, they usually have the tact to just ask what it means instead of being a prick about it.

If using the correct name for something is "masking" it, I think you're somewhat confused. If I had intended to mask what I was really talking about, the story would have read something more like this:

"Big helicopter was carrying truck. Got too windy, truck went boom on ground."

Fuck, I don't think that would've been understood either, now that I think about it. For some reason I think it's the military thing that's really irking you. If a stockbroker came on here and started referring to IPOs would you slam him for being in the "uber-elite-I'm a stockbroker" club? I highly doubt it.

[SpunGirl]

I can't believe I forgot this.

I went to Portugal in 2001 with my mom, grandma, and my aunt. We took a day tour to the (now government-owned) castle that the royal family used to summer in. On the way back, we stopped at this cliff that is the western-most point in all of Europe. It's a huge cliff, maybe 200 feet above the sea, and you can stand just about at the edge of it. Before they started heavily exploring, it was like the edge of the world.

Now I'm not religious at all, but at the tip of this cliff there's a very simple wooden cross. Considering the religious fervor of that entire country, I thought it was very beautiful - the info there said it had been erected as kind of a protection for the explorers that was extending out across the seas. It was a bit moving.

-K

[Keller]

The first time I read your story it sounded to me like a crane and not a helicopter was carrying the humvee.

Thanks for clearing that up. Please remember in the future that 90% of us here have never been in the military and will understand your stories better if you take the time to explain.

Post Script - Initial Public Offering is a civilian term I read frequently. When Tamral was throwing around chemistry jargon and acting "special" I remember him getting the exact same treatment. It has nothing to do with your profession -- only your means of communication.

The coolest thing I've ever seen is the United States after having spent 8 months in a war torn country.

[Skeeter]

I think I speak for almost everyone when I say. WTF is police calling parts??

[Arqueto]

Originally posted by Skeeter
I think I speak for almost everyone when I say. WTF is police calling parts??
Haha. Well, basically they put you in a big ass line shoulder to shoulder like the riot police and you walk together and pick up anything you see on the ground. The really, really annoying phrase often used is "If it doesn't grow, it goes".

The real reason behind it is to eliminate anything that could be left behind at a camp that the enemy could use to track you. Cigarette butts, MRE's, stuff like that.

[Kainen]

When I was 13 I spent the summer in the mountains where my aunt and uncle lived. One day after they had gone to cut some firewood I was goofing around outside and some movement caught my eye. I turned to look and a mountain lion was staring at me from across the 200ft ravine on the side of my aunt's house. I froze and it just walked away.

Also the first time I saw a bear up here in Tahoe.

Originally posted by Arqueto

Originally posted by Skeeter
I think I speak for almost everyone when I say. WTF is police calling parts??
Haha. Well, basically they put you in a big ass line shoulder to shoulder like the riot police and you walk together and pick up anything you see on the ground. The really, really annoying phrase often used is "If it doesn't grow, it goes".

The real reason behind it is to eliminate anything that could be left behind at a camp that the enemy could use to track you. Cigarette butts, MRE's, stuff like that.


Yea right. You've been in the military how long? There is no tactical reason for police calling.

When you're up and getting ready to move is the wrong time to start implementing litter discipline.

[KymberlynX]

I was driving from Las Vegas to California/Arizona border and I got lost and wound up on highway 93, a two lane stretch of road that drives through the desert in Arizona. I left after 11:00 PM and as I hit this one area, the sun was starting to rise behind a stretch of mountains that was a backdrop to a desert plateau...it was absolutely breathtaking. I didn't have a camera with me, but I doubt a picture would have done it justice anyway.

[SpunGirl]

Oooh, Kymberlyn .... 93 is usually a really nice drive that time of night. Especially south of Kingman, which is an ooky town.

-K

[Jorddyn]

My mom, grandma, cousin, and I were in Ireland the summer I turned 21. We had already driven across the country from Dublin to the Atlantic, and had seen some absolutely breathtaking views.

We found a hotel near the tip of St. John's Point, which is this extremely narrow peninsula, where you can often see the water on both sides at once. Directly across from our hotel, on the ocean, was this cow pasture. There were ruins of some building. I decided to venture over and get a closer look.

It must have been a fort at some point. The partial wall that remained standing appeared to be made of limestone, and had several very narrow windows. Right on the edge of the cliff were steps leading down into... I don't even know what you'd call it. It was a small space, again made of the same stone/limestone blocks, and was maybe 6 x 6 x 6. Down inside was a narrow window that ran lengthwise on the side facing the ocean. It wasn't necessarily beautiful, but standing down in there, staring out at the ocean was one of the most unique experiences of my life.

Jorddyn

[KymberlynX]

Originally posted by SpunGirl
Oooh, Kymberlyn .... 93 is usually a really nice drive that time of night. Especially south of Kingman, which is an ooky town.

-K

The whole drive was very relaxing, especially after being a tad freaked out that I got lost and wasn't sure where the fuck the highway was going to take me :lol:

The part that sticks out in my mind is the sunrise...it was right at the spot where there is a diner and some trailers, then nothing else for miles before/after. Amazing.

[OreoElf]

Originally posted by Buggy
I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the sholder of Orion. I watched sea beams glitter in the darkness at Tan Hauser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time like tears in rain. Time to die.

Nice Blade Runner Quote...

[OreoElf]

One of coolest things I've seen was my name in print, when my first short story or poem was printed :).

Seeing the sunrise on one side of Maui, and the sun set on the other side of the island in the same day. (On the beach) One of the beaches had black sand... it was amazing as well as the seven sacred pool... going scuba diving... the colors were so amazingly vivid and the water was warm and soothing. I was ten years old.

Seeing Haley's comet with the naked eye, a solar eclipse and a lunar eclipse. Astronomy club going to look through one of the largest telescopes in the US available to the public. (We came up with the money together to "rent" it. The stars were so amazing... getting to see things we couldn't with the college's telescope was amazing... as was learning how things in the universe seemed to work.

Seeing the grand canyon in winter... it was so cold that even all my 10 layers of clothes didn't keep my warm... the incredible beauty of the snow-capped desert was... amazing.

Sorry for rambling... kinda outta it today.

[Edited on 7-1-2005 by OreoElf]

[Back]

I actually got a shot to show. I forget which bridge I was on, but as I walked across, the clouds just covered the sun. Luckily I had the wherewithall to take a pic.

http://www.zendada.com/images/paris.jpg

[Edited on 7-1-2005 by Backlash]

[HarmNone]

One incident that sticks in my mind is walking out our backdoor in Indonesia and seeing an Atlas moth resting on a leaf of our papaya tree.

The Atlas is the largest moth in the world, having a wingspan of 12 inches. The thing was freaking huge! I managed to get out a squeak to call my mother and we both stood, dumbfounded, until the creature flew away. It looked like a bird in flight. Truly amazing. :)

[Praefection]

I don't even remember the comet's name, but it was around maybe... eight or nine years ago? Gods I feel old.

Anyway, some friends and I went up into the mountains at night with a telescope to look at it. Nothing around for miles and miles but stars and that comet. It was amazing.

[Brattt8525]

When I went to London 7 years ago everything was "cool" I particularly enjoyed an area I went to that had people who you would swear were statues.

This picture I took is by far the coolest to me, I went back at night to grab this photo.

[longshot]

Very interesting stuff. Thanks to all that participated so far.



Originally posted by Arqueto

I'm really sorry that I've gotten used to talking to people who understand things like that, and am in no way used to having to spell things out for those that aren't.


Your fault.

Not mine. Not Keller's. Not anyone else's.



Originally posted by Arqueto
Shit, even when I'm talking to friends back home and say something they don't understand, they usually have the tact to just ask what it means instead of being a prick about it.



This is my fucking point. This "Q&A" session with Aqueto is EXACTLY what I wanted to avoid, and why you were called out in the first place.

It was COMPLETELY unnecessary for you to spew a bunch of useless jargon.

I started this thread so people could post experiences that they valued as unique, and that other people might understand them.

I specificially did not want this to become some kind of bullshit thread that only military people can understand.

Like this--


Originally posted by Skeeter
I think I speak for almost everyone when I say. WTF is police calling parts??

So, this isn't drawing attention to yourself?

Truck being cut away from a chopper would have been sufficient, and all would have understood.

Sorry you have to put up with us stupid civilians. I know, I know... we'll just never get it, will we?

If you need to be around people that can understand you, or call anyone else's intelligence into question, do it in your own goddamn thread.

I hope this gets through your very thick skull.

This is all I have to say about this, and I hope this can be put to rest.

[Killer Kitten]

Mike and I got stranded in Las Vegas in November 2002 when our airline went out of business in the middle of our vacation. Rather than screw up our vacation with a red-eye, overcrowded flight back that included three changes of plane (lots of people stranded that week), we decided to take an extra week off, rent a car and drive home.

The result was one of the best vacations we ever had. We stopped at every tourist trap and dumb souvenir stand in the country, and had a ball driving, listening to books on tape, and just talking.

We snuck in a couple of days at Lake Powell, rented a boat, and went up to see Rainbow Bridge. For nearly an hour, we had it all to ourselves. I've never been that close to anything so purely beautiful, and being able to enjoy it alone with the husband made the experience just perfect.

For extraordinary things in the everyday, I just walk into the tree room at the shelter where i work. Few things in the world are as utterly cool as a three story cat tree with upwards of 40 cats playing, lounging and just enjoying themselves in the branches.

[Back]

Originally posted by Brattt8525
This picture I took is by far the coolest to me, I went back at night to grab this photo.

That pic is amazing. I’ve been there, but you made me jealous.

[4a6c1]

Ok...Ok....

Why is everything double. Double.

Why is everything double. Double.

Members viewing this page: JihnasSpirit, JihnasSpirit

Also. People keep posting twice. Twice.

Also. People keep posting twice. Twice.

[Wezas]

Nowhere near the "coolest" but definately a step up:

http://members.cox.net/legendwezas/bettertie.jpg

"What is 'A better tie', Alex"

[Brattt8525]

Originally posted by JihnasSpirit
Ok...Ok....

Why is everything double. Double.

Why is everything double. Double.

Members viewing this page: JihnasSpirit, JihnasSpirit

Also. People keep posting twice. Twice.

Also. People keep posting twice. Twice.

It's just you
Just you

Get some sleep
Get some sleep :P

[Back]

Originally posted by JihnasSpirit
Members viewing this page: JihnasSpirit, JihnasSpirit


A true sign of the apocalypse. The world is just not ready.

[Edited on 7-2-2005 by Backlash]

Longshot, Personally half the time I only know things by their acronyms, and don't even know what the acronym stands for. That just how it is. He wasn't trying to be exclusive, just doing what has come naturally after years of being in the military.

[Arqueto]

Originally posted by RangerD1
Yea right. You've been in the military how long? There is no tactical reason for police calling.

When you're up and getting ready to move is the wrong time to start implementing litter discipline.
Umm... in a perfect world, you would be right. But no matter what you say, people are still going to smoke and leave trash around. Cigarette butts and food products are one of the easiest ways for an enemy to track you - unfortunately, we Americans (mainly because of the things we eat, drink, smoke, etc.) have a distinct scent that isn't all that hard to trace if someone were to try hard enough.

[Kyra]

Originally posted by Arqueto
I dunno if anyone else will really appreciate this, except maybe Arkans or Dave.

Starting your post with that line then continuing with a few other jargons BEFORE you got to the initials for Humvee made me skim the rest of your post...as a civilian why the hell do I even NEED to know what those initials/abbreviations are for?

Of course the fact that someone not in the military doesn't know them makes us retards from what you've said though. :blah:

On topic: One of the more amazing things I've seen was my first rehab bird, less than a day old, no feathers, eyes sealed & weighed in at about 1.4 grams making it all the way to maturity in 21 days. Being so tiny & fragile & he fell over 25 feet to the ground I never would have thought he would make it.

Watching him grow each day, every few hours something changed. It was pretty awesome IMHO.

K.

[Arqueto]

Okay, okay, okay. I AM SORRY FOR BRINGING IT UP. Jesus. I had no idea it was going to ruffle this many feathers. I apologize for being "exclusive" and all those other things you all have said. Can we just drop it, please?

[KymberlynX]

Originally posted by Arqueto
Okay, okay, okay. I AM SORRY FOR BRINGING IT UP. Jesus. I had no idea it was going to ruffle this many feathers. I apologize for being "exclusive" and all those other things you all have said. Can we just drop it, please?

In the future, doing something as simple as putting (HUMVEE) in parenthesis next to the acronym would have saved a lot headaches. ;) Helps all of us civilians understand what you're talking about. :yes: ...Just a suggestion :smilegrin:

[Edited on 7-2-2005 by KymberlynX]

[Skirmisher]

Originally posted by Arqueto
Okay, okay, okay. I AM SORRY FOR BRINGING IT UP. Jesus. I had no idea it was going to ruffle this many feathers. I apologize for being "exclusive" and all those other things you all have said. Can we just drop it, please?

Take all the criticism witrh a grain of salt.

I understood it and I'm pretty sure i'm a civilian.

Have you seen that video clip of all the botched rapid drop(not sure of the official term) of vehicles using parachutes and sleds? It's really funny to see some of them where the vehicle in question breaks free and just goes tearing off at like 80 mph. I think it's on college humor.

[HarmNone]

Heh. I understood it, as well, Skirmisher. I got a perfect picture of what happened from Arqueto's description. I imagine it was quite a thing to see!

HarmNone, definitely civilian

[Arqueto]

I know this is really random and probably not on topic, but did you know there's an actual job where you get paid to shoot chickens at glass used on airplanes? I guess they simulate what it would be like for a bird to hit a windshield at such a high rate of speed. What a sweet, sweet job. :lol:

[Valthissa]

Originally posted by Arqueto
I know this is really random and probably not on topic, but did you know there's an actual job where you get paid to shoot chickens at glass used on airplanes? I guess they simulate what it would be like for a bird to hit a windshield at such a high rate of speed. What a sweet, sweet job. :lol:

That reminds me of another kind of engine rig we make called a birdstrike rig. They shoot frozen turkeys in the engine from different angles and at different speeds. The military likes it's engines to keep working after ingesting relatively large birds. I've never seen the test rig running, so this post isn't exactly on topic either. The oddest thing about birdstrike testing is the specifications for the birds - the military specs the size, wieght, and density of the turkeys. But then, there's a mil-spec for everything.

C/Valth

[Skirmisher]

Ha!, found the video.

Be glad you didn't have to clean these up instead. :yes:



US Air Force: Air Drop Mishaps.-<----College Humor Link (http://www.collegehumor.com/?movie_id=63890)

[Arqueto]

:lol:

Thanks for posting that link. I'm sure some of my buddies will get a good laugh out of it.

[SpunGirl]

That cat tree is freaking awesome. Plz post more pictures of cool stuff like that... with cats on it. Meow.

-K

[HarmNone]

Yeah, that cat tree is pretty amazing. My cats would love something like that! They enjoy my ceiling-high cat condo, but three stories?!? They'd go bonkers!

Of course, the fat ones would need stairs to get to the really fun parts......... :lol:

Originally posted by Arqueto

Originally posted by RangerD1
Yea right. You've been in the military how long? There is no tactical reason for police calling.

When you're up and getting ready to move is the wrong time to start implementing litter discipline.
Umm... in a perfect world, you would be right. But no matter what you say, people are still going to smoke and leave trash around. Cigarette butts and food products are one of the easiest ways for an enemy to track you - unfortunately, we Americans (mainly because of the things we eat, drink, smoke, etc.) have a distinct scent that isn't all that hard to trace if someone were to try hard enough.


You just completely missed the point. The point was: Police calls are not based upon tactical considerations.

It would be kind of hard for a scout to miss abunch of dumbasses walking on line picking up trash.

[Gigantuous]

Coolest thing:
My pops was a torpedoman in the USN, and the last boat he served on was the USS Finback (SSN 670). I got to go on the sub for a day and go "on patrol" during a Tigercruise, which is simply when the family of the crew gets to go out in the sub for a day. It was cool shit seeing how everything but the nuclear section of the boat works and runs and whatnot, and being able to personally drive it for a bit (also, I was the only one that had the Captain come over the intercom system and chastise the dive officer (my dad) for allowing the sub to go into too steep of an upbubble (incline). Go me! I have YET to live that down, nine years later). We got to watch the torpedomen shoot a dud torpedo (that's some LOUD shit, I should've taken dad's advice and used ear plugs), eat some of the best food in the Navy, and just had a blast hanging out with my dad while he was at work, and learning exactly what he did. Also, my friends, let me tell ya: you've never been seasick until you've felt what a submarine feels like when it's on the surface. Ugh. That was the only downside. I found my dad's bunk and crashed into it, hoping to catch a quick nap and feel better once the boat was under the water...but no luck. Pop kicked me out of his bunk so HE could take a nap before his watch! Ain't that some shit.


Most moving: Sunrise/sunset in Bozeman, MT. Just the most beautiful scenery I've ever seen, mountains and trees and rivers and oh man. Just gorgeous. Easily half of my version of paradise. (Although, admittedly, I always saw the sunrise/sunset in reverse of what they're supposed to be seen: I got up shortly before sunset, and went to bed shortly after sunrise. Damn, what a fun year.)

[Drinin]

For a co-op/intern position this summer I am handling the ordering and managing of inventory for frozen food/fresh meat/seafood/etc departments in a few stores in a large grocery store chain. Friday afternoon I was finishing up my ordering and was heading back to the freezer to finish up my inventory for the day. I went back there and found smoke billowing out of the door. I grabbed the frozen food manager and we opened the door and half the freezer was engulfed in flames. It sucked that I lost a shitload of money worth of inventory, but it was awesome to see. Boxes and plastic crates were melted into the floor of the freezer. Electrical fires+cardboard=bad. We had to evacuate the store for about an hour while the fire department put it out.

[Arqueto]

Originally posted by RangerD1

Originally posted by Arqueto

Originally posted by RangerD1
Yea right. You've been in the military how long? There is no tactical reason for police calling.

When you're up and getting ready to move is the wrong time to start implementing litter discipline.
Umm... in a perfect world, you would be right. But no matter what you say, people are still going to smoke and leave trash around. Cigarette butts and food products are one of the easiest ways for an enemy to track you - unfortunately, we Americans (mainly because of the things we eat, drink, smoke, etc.) have a distinct scent that isn't all that hard to trace if someone were to try hard enough.


You just completely missed the point. The point was: Police calls are not based upon tactical considerations.

It would be kind of hard for a scout to miss abunch of dumbasses walking on line picking up trash.
I didn't miss the point at all. I think you were trying to make a different statement than the one you made, though. Of course it would be impossible for a spotter to miss a bunch of "dumbasses" walking in line picking up trash. That's not even the issue, though.

We have always been taught that picking up trash before movement has definite tactical considerations. If there's no trace that a camp was there in the first place, it certainly makes it a lot harder to follow a trail, doesn't it?

[HarmNone]

Let's take the military arguments out of this thread, eh? It's about cool things you've seen.

[Arqueto]

Good call. I give up.

Okay. I obviously see I have to break this down.


Police call=! Litter discipline.

The purpose of a "police call" is to keep an area clean, not to avoid detection from enemy forces.

[Parkbandit]

I've seen a few:

1) My Dad in the hospital smiling.. after we all thought he was going to die.

2) A tornado behind our house. I yell "hurricane" and tell the family to get into the bathroom. It didn't move our plastic patio furnature on our back yard.. but ripped the roof and siding off a house 4 houses away. I watched the whole thing from our sliding glass door.

3) My first blow job.

[Artha]

3) My first blow job.
How'd it taste?

j/k!!!1!1

[Parkbandit]

Originally posted by Artha

3) My first blow job.
How'd it taste?

j/k!!!1!1

LMAO..

Fucker.

I was the receiver and now I hate you.

[Kyra]

Originally posted by Artha

3) My first blow job.
How'd it taste?

j/k!!!1!1

:rofl: I still have tears running down my face from laughing too hard...classic :D

[Killer Kitten]

Thanks for the positive feedback on our extra large cat tree. For the whole story, visit here:

http://www.angelsforanimals.org/aptreeofmarie.asp


Another miracle in the everyday is the kitten I rescued a couple of weeks ago. He's growing like a weed and insists upon gnawing my nose every time I pick him up.

[Edited on 7-3-2005 by Killer Kitten]

[Killer Kitten]

Originally posted by Artha

3) My first blow job.
How'd it taste?

j/k!!!1!1

Like chicken, of course. Everything always tastes like chicken.

[HarmNone]

Aww. The kitten's little eyes are still blue! How old is he? He's too cute! :)

[Killer Kitten]

He was about 3 to 4 weeks old in that picture. He's 7 to 8 weeks old now. He has bad corneal scarring in both eyes, and is blind in his right eye. This doesn't seem to slow him down much.

I had him at the vets Friday and got the ok for him to come out of isolation. Next week I plan to introduce him to the rest of my cats. Should be fun.

[HarmNone]

Poor little guy. It's a shame he's had so much difficulty at such a young age. Yet, they seem to have a way of overcoming obstacles and getting on with being a cat. They're amazingly resilient. :)

[Killer Kitten]

He was dumped at the shelter, motherless and sick. The verdict was to give him the pink juice, but he was yelling so loud and I'd had more than my fill of animals being put down for the week. Somehow he ended up in my pocket.

One of the better moves I've made in my life. I just wish there was a way to save them all.

At least this one was spared, and whenever I look at him I think, 'Yeah, you're among the coolest things I've ever seen.'

[peam]

Watching fireworks over the James in Richmond last night with my two best friends was up there.

[Wezas]

Originally posted by peam
Watching fireworks over the James in Richmond last night with my two best friends was up there.

Jack Daniels & Jim Beam?

[Praefection]

Eesh I'm late adding in but I love the cat tree. Mine would love it.

I don't remember who posted (I'm too lazy to double check) about the sunrise/sunset in Bozeman, you're right. Montana does have some amazing views if you catch it at the right time. I'm so used to seeing them that I often forget how beautiful nature can be.

[SpunGirl]

Wow, Kitten. I give you a lot of credit for what you do - I could never work in an animal shelter, I'd be a total wreck every day. That baby kitten is just adorable. Yay for rescuers!

-K

[Killer Kitten]

Thanks!
Some days it's very hard. I just try to focus on the goal, which is to not need animal shelters anymore.

He's a massively cute lil guy, tho. We really love him.

On topic, we gave our neighbor a big fireworks package and he put on a show tonight from our dock. It was pretty awesome, I love fireworks.

[Jolena]

Hmm, I have a few. :ducks:

1) The first time I looked into each of my children's eyes.

2) The first time I got to hold my youngest boy, PJ. If you know anything about his background, you know that we didn't expect him to make it and I didn't get to hold/touch/talk to him for 6 weeks after he was born due to his medical problems. Holding him for the first time was amazing.

3) The sunset that James and I watched from the front porch of my old house before I moved to Florida with him. It was an amazingly clear night and the colors of the sky were so vibrant.

4) The feeling of standing on my front porch tonight, watching fireworks with my oldest boy, and he walked up and just wrapped his arm into mine, leaned close while resting his head on my shoulder and whispered "Mom, I love you..". :)

[theotherjohn]

Originally posted by longshot

Yet, I was wondering. What's the coolest thing you've seen or witnessed with your own eyes?



My bride say I do