The Beginning

When I was seventeen years old I joined the Navy. I had just graduated from the Boston Public School system and knew that to do anything in the world I'd need to know how to do something. I had bagged groceries part time after school and knew that was no career.  So off I went to boot camp. I turned eighteen there in Orlando. I stuck around in the navy for almost eight years. They sent me to electrical school and taught me everything I know about tubes and transistors. An obsolete education to fit the obsolete equipment I worked on. I was in the reserve Navy. I was active duty, though we took care of the reserves on the weekends. But I'd had enough. This was the first full time job I'd ever had and now I was 25 years old. If I reenlisted it would be for four more years. I would not be able to get out of the Navy until I had 12 years in and who does that? Twenty and you get a pension. So I left thinking I could always get back in. As it turned out I never looked back.

I grew up in Boston but shortly after I enlisted my mother sold the house and moved to Falmouth with my twin brother and sister and my grandmother so after leaving the Navy in San Diego I moved into my mother's basement for what I hoped would be a short stay. Like every other guy who gets out of the service I went straight to the unemployment office. While in the Navy I had heard all the stories of not only state unemployment but federal extension that gave an ex-serviceman 52 weeks of checks. I wanted a piece of that action. So bright and early that first Monday morning home I went straight down there only to find out that my president, Ronald Reagan had passed a law only a week ago that said basically that not reenlisting meant that I had quit my job so was not eligible for any benefits. I felt betrayed. Little did I know that this was just the start of how veterans benefits would begin to erode. Today I think it is at a criminal level.

So what to do? I painted a couple of houses and did just about anything legal for cash. I still had no clue of what to do with my life. I never was what I thought of as college material. I did well enough in high school but the thought of becoming a poor student didn't appeal very much.

I just finished eight year vow of poverty and now I wanted money, cash, a good paying job. Although the unemployment office wouldn't give me money they did pass along job tips. One such tip was for a job as an electronics tech at WHOI. I submitted my resume and a week later I got a call for an interview.

So here was my situation, I'm a jeans and t-shirt kind of guy. For the last eight years the only dress up clothes I owned were my Navy uniforms. I hate to admit this but I showed up for that interview wearing a brown polyester machine washable suit from Sears. I went to the third floor of the Smith Building in Woods Hole as instructed and asked for Barrie Walden who would interview me. Barrie was wearing cut off blue jeans and T-shirt from the White Horse Tavern in Bermuda. "Nice suit." he says. "Ok, I'll leave the tie and jacket here", I think, as he sends me down to the dock where the Lulu is tied up to ask for Ralph Hollis, Alvin's chief pilot. At this point I was wondering what I was getting into. I had never heard of Alvin and why did I have to go to this ship?

When I got to the dock I discovered that these folks used the word 'ship' in a very liberal way. The Lulu was not so much a ship as someone's lifelong welding project.

Anyway, I walked up the gang way and asked for Ralph. As I waited while a crewman went in search of him I was captivated by the centerpiece on the deck, the submersible, Alvin. Holy shit! Is this what this job is about? I never imagined this!

Ralph decided to do the interview inside Alvin's sphere. I guess he was asking all these interview questions but I really don't remember. I was awestruck just by being there. It was as though Captain Nemo had brought me onto the Nautilus.

After thirty minutes or so Ralph said they would call me by that evening as there were seven candidates for the job. I collected my machine washable jacket and went home not knowing what to think.

That was a long afternoon. I had the interview in the late morning and was antsy all day. They finally called at 6:30 that evening and offered me the job at $16k/year. I accepted and was told to be at

personnel by 7AM as the ship was sailing at 1000. Wow! That night I was trying to pack... for what? I don't know.. it was an exciting time. That was in 1981.

Woods Hole reserves the right to fire you without prejudice up to 6 months. When I got to 6 months and a day, I asked Ralph what was my big qualifier at the interview. He said, "You were in the Navy for almost eight years. I know you can handle a high level of bullshit for a long period of time"... a valuable skill in this job.