Not an Epic Road Trip, but Decent

So, last Monday, I had to go to San Diego for business. It was a tough assignment. I had to attend a conference at the Marriott Marquis at the waterfront, spend time in the harbor area and visit many tough assignment sites (like hot tub, margarita bar, whiskey bar, micro brews, etc.,). So I decided to drive the P-car down so that I could kill some birds with a single stone. I drove the Angeles Crest Highway down (everything else was jammed and Waze said it was the fastest - good start). The new motor & tranny mounts along with the new rubber (Sumitomos) felt just terrific. There was traffic even on the Angeles, so we couldn't get crazy, but the drive was soothing and calming in any case. Some good music, open windows and running through the gears is therapy. I head down to Newport Beach to see my Indy (Singh) as he has set me up to do a precise alignment of the C4S. This will top off the new mounts and rubber. I have had a horrible time trying to get somebody to do this right. I go through tires and it makes my wife crazy. Singh takes his time (he uses somebody who has the alignment equipment, but he brings his P-car special tools), and the car is perfect. I have had it up well above 100 and it is a rock. While I wait, Singh drops me off at the South Coast Plaza so I can do some work on my tablet and visit some of the shops. I immediately put my wife on the Security "do not shop list". I realize that she has credit cards (that she can never use up here in the desert) for all these places (Saks, Macy's, Nordstrom, and a bunch of other places that I've seen the name but then my eyes popped out with some of the $$$$ price tages). Some place called Courtier or something. I know she has plastic for this place and there were bobbles that could buy two 2003 TT's. So off I go to San Diego. Pull up and let the valet park the P-car. They put it down stairs in it's own area. As someone already said, "priceless". Make it down there in time for a early evening visit to Morton's (closed at the time) near the harbor. No worries, there are two young Naval Aviators (just back from "over there") and I take them around the block to a new "whiskey bar". Well, this place (The Whiskey House) is as dangerous as place as that South Coast Plaza thing. 3 Naval Aviators in a whiskey bar at 1700 with nothing to do, what could go wrong?? Well, the first toast of the evening was in water to "fallen comrades" as is traditional. The next toast (15 yr old Glenn Livet French Oak) was to the 3 young Americans that were on the Paris train who kicked the pooh out of some turd that meant to shoot up the train. It sorta went down hill from there. In any case, I got my two young "Wings of Gold" on their way for a night on the town on a good note. After the assignment on Wed, I ended up waiting for one of my young charges who is at Qual Com. He is also a Naval Aviator from the Boat School who I mentored back early in the last decade. He's still a reserve but I am happy that he's no longer doing back to back to back overseas pumps. I know it's not normally how we think but I am old now, and I worry about all these kids. I promised this kids mom that he would be not in harms way the last tour and he ended up dodging IEDs in some pooh place while serving as a liaison for visiting VIPs. The last straw was that he had to host Nancy Pelosi on a boondoggle and I was pretty hostile on that one. He had me chill for a couple of hours and I visited the Midway (I noted that there were 6 aircraft on the deck that I had flown in - that's what happens when you get old), I went up to MCAS Mirmar (which I will never get over, MCAS El Torro is what I remember, the Navy belonged in Mirmar), and then a wonderful brew pub called Ballast Point Scripps Ranch. Once again, I discovered a very dangerous place. They have a food truck that comes up and serves fresh fish tacos and ceviche. The Little League World Series was on and I just was able to chill and enjoy life. The P-car looked exceptionally good parked in front of the place (although I didn't get the photo, just me and the very nice bar lady). Last was dinner at another great place in Leucadia. All in all, not an epic road trip, but certainly one that will do. - Fast Frank

All my favorite Ballast Point beers on tap! You lucky son of a gun you.....

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You are living the P-life!! Kudos...T

This is why I come back to this forum over and over again Stories like this one Btw thanks for your service

Agree that it's tough to accept "MCAS" Miramar. I spent many Wednesday nights at the O Club there.

Was the "A" Team or "B" Team your favorite? Fast Frank - VMO-2, MAG-39 Hostage 05

Thank you for your service and for sharing your road-trip adventures. Bars, booze, nice roads and a Porsche 911! Isn't life wonderful?

I was a VS guy (flew S-3 Vikings), so we would come over from NAS North Island wearing civvies. We would laugh at the F-14 guys that we knew who spent all day in khakis, then changed into freshly pressed flight suits (yes, they actually ironed their flight suits) to head to the O Club for the Wednesday night madness. I guess some local news babe went undercover as a local bimbo and did an expos� on how the security guards would let any woman on base without any ID whatsoever on Wednesday nights. That pretty much killed it. That was back when the new hit songs were "Funky Ko Medina" and "Bust A Move". Were you at the last real "Tailhook" in Vegas? We had just gotten back from Desert Storm less than a week before - but still made it there.

ahoy, shipmates (HMCM here, 28 years and counting) currently in Camp Pendleton.

Awesome! Didn't realize you were a Master Chief or I wouldn't have ribbed you so much over the tip/cab combo. OK, well, I'm still gonna do that, but now with newfound respect! Besides, I found out over the years that you always wanna be nice to the HMs because if not, somehow your medical record can "get misplaced" and you get to have all of your shots all over again. Oh, and thank you for your continuing service. (I retired back in 2009 after 23 years 6 active, 17 reserve, although not a helluva a lot of difference for the post-2001 years)

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I will neither confirm nor deny that such shenanigans have ever been committed. Have to admit that my fellow pecker checkers (aka ***** machinists, meat gazers, et al) can be a nefarious bunch. Thanks right back at you for your service, sir. GO NAVY, BEAT ARMY! (hope this does not open a can o' worms). P.S. Wife insisted a cab-tip or NO WEEKEND TOY.......happy wife, happy life. Besides, I rotate between 3 bikes for my daily 80-mile roundtrip commute so I already get my max dose of shifting gears.

I can positively deny that I was any place close to where ever that place was that they had that thing that they said caused all those problems. I don't know anybody who was there and nobody can prove anything. I will however admit to having one of the Lockheed water bottles that conveniently held 24 ounces of margaritas, the kind that was wrapped in the soft yellow plastic that had a viking S-3 and a bunch of other aircraft one it. Something about margarita machines on the 2nd floor or something, I can't remember.