The Fantail
Information
In nautical terms the fantail is the furthest aft part of the main deck of a warship, sort of the 'back porch', where Sailors off watch go to grab a cup of coffee, smoke a cigarette, tell sea stories, or share a ribald joke.
Members: 10
Latest Activity: May 12
WHAT'S THE FANTAIL?
If you look up "fantail" in your Funk and Wagnalls you'll find it defined something like "An Australian or Oriental flycatcher (genus Rhipidura) having fan-shaped tail feathers."
Funk and Wagnall's don't have a clue!
On the other hand, if you were a tin-can Sailor (prize to the first non-Sailor who correctly tells us what a "tin-can Sailor" is) you'd immediately envision a picture sorta like the one above.
In nautical terms the fantail is the furthest aft part of the main deck of a warship, sort of the 'back porch', where Sailors off watch go to grab a cup of coffee, smoke a cigarette, tell sea stories (what's the difference between a sea story and a fairy tale?), discuss the next liberty port, brag about the gal they met in the last liberty port, or tell their buddies what they're going to do about the guy who caused their girl-next-door to send them a "Dear John". It's where a snipe goes to get a breath of fresh air after a long watch in the engineroom, or where a young Ensign on his first sea cruise goes to watch God's sunset as no landlubber ever saw one and maybe be lucky enough to see the "green flash". It's where a crusty old Chief takes a wayward Seaman Deuce for a private a$$ chewing away from his mates in the workspace, and it's where the Skipper musters "all hands not actually on watch" to publicly commend the crew for all the hard work that went into their ship earning the squadron battle efficiency "E" for the 3rh consecutive year.
I think that we ought to have a "fantail" here on Navy Dads, so I've started one. It will be an informal place, free of political correctness, with maybe sometimes salty (but never crude-just-to-be-crude or offensive) language, and like the fantail of a ship, a place to "be ourselves".
Now, anyone have a spare smoke? --- I seem to be fresh out
Discussion Forum
Bastard!
Started by Hans, The Old Salt. Last reply by NavyDads Co-Admin, Jim Aug 31, 2009. 1 Reply 0 Likes
Comment Wall
Comment
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Comment by NavyDads Admin (Paul) on May 12, 2012 at 12:10pm -
for all you "bubbleheads".....
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Comment by NavyDads Admin (Paul) on March 16, 2012 at 9:17am
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not Navy but it still cracks me up:
Stayin' Alive with the Irish Army......
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Comment by NavyDads Admin (Paul) on February 10, 2012 at 11:07am
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Another touching "teacher story"!!!!
The Marine Pilot
The teacher gave her fifth grade class an assignment: Get their parents to tell them a story with a moral at the end of it. The next day, the kids came back and, one by one, began to tell their stories.
There were all the regular types of stuff: Spilled milk and pennies saved. But then the teacher realized, much to her dismay, that only Janie was left.
"Janie, do you have a story to share?"
'Yes ma'am. My daddy told me a story about my Mommy. She was a Marine pilot in Desert Storm, and her plane got hit. She had to bail out over enemy territory, and all she had was a flask of whiskey, a pistol, and a survival knife.
She drank the whiskey on the way down so the bottle wouldn't break, and then she parachuted right into the middle of 20 Iraqi troops. She shot 15 of them with the pistol, until she ran out of bullets, killed four more with the knife, till the blade broke, and then she killed the last Iraqi with her bare hands."
''Good Heavens,' said the horrified teacher. What did your Daddy tell you was the moral to this horrible story?"
"Don't MESS with Mommy when she's been drinking."
I love these touching stories!
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Comment by NavyDads Admin (Paul) on August 28, 2011 at 10:20pm
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A former Sergeant, having served his time with the Marine Corps, took a
new job as a school teacher, but just before the school year started
he injured his back.
He was required to wear a plaster cast around the upper part of his
body. Fortunately, the cast fit under his shirt and wasn't
noticeable.
On the first day of class, he found himself assigned to the toughest
students in the school. The smart ass punks, having already heard the
new teacher was a former Marine, were leery of him and decided to see
how tough he really was, before trying any pranks.
Walking confidently into the rowdy classroom, the new teacher opened
the window wide and sat down at his desk.
When a strong breeze made his tie flap, he picked up a stapler and
promptly stapled the tie to his chest.
... Dead silence...
He had no trouble with discipline all year.
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Comment by Dick on March 21, 2011 at 8:34am
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Great pictures. The aircraft look so graceful yet so lethal at the same time. What a combination. Say your prayers now cause things are about to change.
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Comment by NavyDads Admin (Paul) on March 17, 2011 at 1:18pm
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Comment by Todd J on January 1, 2011 at 10:35am -
Great stuff Paul!
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Comment by NavyDads Admin (Paul) on January 1, 2011 at 10:02am
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This may not be directly related to Navy matters, but as admins we do get a number of support questions about running NavyDads on mobile devices....in particular I thought this might address some Blackberry tech support issues:
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Comment by Todd J on November 7, 2010 at 10:24am
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Our son is officially assigned to the USS Mason DDG-87. I have Dad's Tin Can Sailor's cap ready for him when he comes home before deployment.
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Comment by Hans, The Old Salt on August 31, 2010 at 7:37pm -
Congrats, Todd. Real Sailors have the letters "DD" and a hull number in their mailing address!
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