Carrier (2008–…): Season 1, Episode 10 - Full Circle - full transcript

As the Nimitz makes its final transit from Hawaii to California, the sailors and Marines on board prepare to return to their homes and families. For those still on board, the "Tiger Cruise" provides a buffer, but there's no such transition for those who fly home early from Hawaii. As the Nimitz returns to her home port of San Diego, sailors and Marines reflect on the deployment and take stock of what they've achieved. Was the mission accomplished? There are tearful, joyful reunions at the pier.

This program was made possible
by the corporation for

public broadcasting and by
contributions to your PBS

station from viewers like you.

Thank you.

♪ It's a long road to paradise
and oh, I feel the pain ohh...

They tell me things are different now
but I still hurt the same mm-hmm...

Haze gray and underway
a world away from you

and miles and miles of blue ♪

Did you get it?

Well, there's Diamond Head.

Yeah, Diamond Head out there.



And then, when the buildings
start, that's Waikiki.

Last land, Matt. Next time you
see it, it'll be San Diego.

♪ Hello, hello, hello I'm glad I found
you been away a long, long time

the sun will rise and the
sun will set tomorrow

and it's been rough on this old heart
of mine coming home to California

to find a better way to
make it through today... ♪

We're transiting home from Hawaii
to San Diego over the next week.

6 days home, baby.

6 days home. And that whole 6
days home just might be worse

than the Gulf kind of thing.

'Cause the 6 days,
man, tigers on board.

Yeah, that's what
I'm talking about.

Air show.

We have tigers on board,
so, I mean, let's just say



we have 500 people leaving the
boat, you know, out of Hawaii,

you know, but we've got almost
like another thousand to 1,500

parents on board.

New faces, though.

That's gonna be nice. New faces.

Yeah, dude, all these guys'

moms are coming on board,
gonna look pretty.

This is my mom.

♪ Come home, baby come
home to California ♪

Tiger cruise is when friends and
family of crew members get to come out

and ride the boat home with us
for the 5 days that we transit.

Tiger cruise... You get
to see the sailor in his

or her environment for a solid week.
You get to go work with

'em, you get to go
see what they do.

They are your responsibility,
you know, make sure

they know where the bathrooms are at.
I mean, everything.

Chow. So you can't pawn
them off on someone else.

You invited them. You
show them a good time.

Safety review part 3. We're
gonna go down to the basics.

No sliding on rails. Keep your
hands, uh, on the rails and

climb down the stairs safely.

Next slide. Make sure when you're
walking through the hatches that you

pick your legs up and duck your head.
And don't crack your head

open. It's been done.

Stay out of reactor spaces.

You don't want to be
glowing when you leave.

Next slide.

Tiger cruise is not really
the real deal, as you'll

see. You know, in tiger cruise,
it's really all about the tigers.

Weapons department is gonna have a tour.
And if you're

participating in that in any way, be
professional, smart-looking uniform,

because remember: You're
representing not only the ship,

but the United States Navy. So be
careful how you act and what you say.

It's kind of like, uh... Make it all
look pretty so they can be wowed

when they come on board. And
it's kind of just like one big

huge cover-up to what we've been
living in for the last 6 months.

And the tigers are gonna be
like, "oh, what are you guys

complaining about? This
food is fantastic."

I was mad last deployment
because that's what they did.

We was eating lobster and steak all
the time, and I was like, "what the?"

This is not what we eat,
mom, dad, whatever.

It will be real fun for
about the first 3 days. The

last two days are kind
of "are we there yet?"

It's a classic, all right, yeah.

Good evening, welcome aboard. Welcome
to the ice cream social and karaoke.

♪ And we're rolling, rolling,
rolling on a River doo doo doo doo

doo doo doo doo ♪

♪ welcome to earth, third
rock from the sun ♪

♪ eye of the tiger, it's the
dream of the fight, rising up to

the challenge of our rivals, and
the last known survivor stalks

his prey in the night, and he's
watching us all with the eye of

the tiger ♪

This is called "Born to fly."

For the pilots out there, right.

Give it up for Maggie's mom.

Go, Maggie's mom!

♪ I've been telling my dreams to the
scarecrow 'bout the places that

I'd like to see... Like Iraq
I say, "friend, do you think

I'll ever get there? "Ah, but he just
stands there smiling back at me ♪

We found on the last tiger cruise...
And I'm sure this

one will be the same... That
it really gives us a chance to

connect and kind of rub off
some of those edges before we

get home, you know. It makes
that adjustment when we get

home much, much easier.

♪ I will grow up where I'm
wild and free ♪ thanks to you

people... we're free. ♪ And how
do you keep your feet on the

ground when you know you were born...
You were born to fly, fly, fly ♪

This is Maggie,
my hero, my hero!

When you get a tiger, it's like you
start getting back into that father

role all over again and you get used to it.
So you got like

5 days to get used to what's
gonna happen when you get home.

Watch out, kid. So
I don't kill you.

So, you're starting to get back into
your fatherly routine and everything.

And you just like going
to work and there's my

kids and everything is good.

All right, kid. Hey, I'm
gonna show you how to shoot

real quick, OK? I'm gonna see
what kind of skills you got.

Think you can do it?

Ok, let's see what you got.

Ok.

Take some tension. You can't
start giggling and stuff,

kid. You got to be a hardcore shooter.
There you go. Go

combat. Salute final. Put
that arm up, bend down.

Watch the track.

Shoot 'em.

Bam, there it is. I think you got it, kid.
You want to hit

the rack? So, you
ready to go home?

No.

You want to hang out here out to sea?
You got to be

kidding me. Do you think I'm
ready to go home? Hell, yes, OK?

I've been out to
sea a long time.

Everybody has to deal with
having that expectation of

something when you get home
and then getting back and

something's not like it was or
as you expected when you get

home. Um, that goes on a lot.

There will be people who walk off
the boat and what, what they

see and what they confront when
they get there is gonna be

a different situation than when they left.
Sometimes better,

sometimes worse. But
it's gonna be different.

Especially in the young people.
First of all, they don't

do the necessary homework before
they even start a relationship,

and they build relationships,
you know, for the wrong reason.

In some case, they don't even
know the person before the

relationship. Now you go on a 6
month deployment and now you

really don't know this person.

You're trying to figure out how
the relationship really should

be when you really didn't even
know what the relationship was

before you left.

I called Tanya and I said,
"you're with someone else, huh?"

And she said, "you could say that.
" And I said,

"ex-boyfriend, huh? " And she
said, "you could say that." And

I was like, "I don't know why
you're making this situation

harder than it already is. You
know we got a kid together and

you're out with your ex-boyfriend.
But you know

what? I've been gone 6 months and...
happens. I only hope

that, you know, when I see you
tonight, that things will change

and you'll realize, you
know, what you're doing."

Oh, my God.

Hello.

Hi. I missed you.

You all right?

Mm-hmm.

Wow.

Yeah, I know.

Are you gonna stay
with me tonight?

Yeah? Maybe?

Maybe. I don't know.

Welcome home. Thanks, sir.

You lost a little weight.

They got you running
on the flight deck?

All day.

I didn't lose weight.

I'm just taking it all in.

6 months. Yep.

You're gonna tell me if
she's kicking or something.

You could see it.

What are you talking about?

What are you talking about?

Whenever she does,
you can see it.

Really?

Yeah, really.

So she's doing jumping
Jacks in there.

She's not doing
anything right now.

I got to go look for furniture.

Yeah, I know.

So much to do.

All you can do is look.

There's so much to do, and
I don't have a phone.

I don't have the Internet.

So you're gonna have to help me.

And I don't have a car.

So yeah, you're really gonna
have to help me. And then

after that you can get rid of me. Just
let be get back on my feet. Right?

Right. That's funny.

Yeah, it is, isn't it?

I was an... when I left.

Flat out. I didn't spend a
lot of time with her. She

would try to do things for
me or with me and I am like,

"I have to go to work. I have to
get stuff prepared to leave."

And it was like a
disassociation for me because

it was tough. I come home to my
newborn son I haven't seen. Am

I'm gonna hold him right, is he
gonna love me, am I gonna love him?

He's OK.

Papa.

Time for bedtime, too.

Beautiful baby.

Look at the people.

Attention on the flight deck.

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen.
Welcome to the

U.S.S. Nimitz air wing 11, West
pack 2000 tiger cruise airpower

demonstration.

Batters up! Batters up!

Batters up at time 2-1.

And you're cleared.

Ladies and gentlemen, the
super sonic pass from the

right piloted by major
Eric Jakubowski.

The jet craft will drop 61,000
pound bombs, 12,000 pounds

of explosive ordinances.

We present the wall of water.

Nice job.

This concludes today's
airpower demonstration.

For our final event, several of
our demonstration aircraft have

rendezvoused for a fly-by
in close formation, led by

commander David Fravor, commanding
officer of strike fighter squadron 41.

Last on this cruise, last trap,
last cat shot. After it's

all done, I'll probably realize
that it was my last, but I'm not

gonna plan for it and go, "on
this day, I'm done." I am gonna

retire. Which is kind of scary.

I've been flying for 17 straight years.
I love it, I'll

miss it, I've thoroughly enjoyed the Navy.
They've given

me everything. You'll never
work with a group of people

that are like this ever again in
your life, ever. I mean, guys

that literally will, will die
for you, will do anything for

you. If I stay in anywhere past
this tour, then I'm basically

saying I'm gonna stay to make
Captain and get the Captain's

retirement, which is significantly more.
It's also

7 more years of my life,
which is at least one other

cruise, at least probably
3, possibly 4 moves,

doing something that I know I
probably won't enjoy that much.

I don't want to hang out in D.C.
I could give a... about

bureaucracy. I didn't join to
sit on the side lines, man. If

I'm not flying over the beach,
flying jets, then I don't want

to do it. It's pretty simple.

Of the United States.

Of the United States
against all enemies.

Against all enemies.

I swear.

I swear.

I am fully aware.

I am fully aware.

And fully understand.

And fully understand.

The conditions under
which I am re-enlisting.

That?

That.

Congratulations.

Thanks.

Hodges... he's the man that
would never re-enlist. Never

re-enlist, ever, ever.

Certificate of re-enlistment
stating that Hodges has, in

fact, given up 3 more years of his
life to... He re-enlisted. I had a

feeling he was gonna do that.

And last but not least, his
re-enlistment bonus check

for $9,829. First
round's on Hodges.

Yeah, it's on me.

And you got the rest.

Congratulations.

Hey, hold it down for me, man.
Don't do what I did.

Don't be me. You roll.

You do that for me. You live
freedom for the both of us.

I'm going to Italy.

What are you going to Italy for?

3 years.

Don't let them get you
like they got me.

I've never been in prison,
but life in the Navy

seems to be the closest that
you can ever think of to jail.

But to tell you the truth, if
I did have to do the Navy all

over again... or do anything all
over again, I would do it. You

know, it's just better than
what I had, you know. I started

a family and everything.

I don't think I would have had a
family if I would have stayed

where I was.

It was the first part of me growing up.
It was the first

part of me getting out there
into the world. I bought my

first car in the Navy. Um, I
got my first apartment in the

Navy, and most of the first
years of me growing up had

a lot to do with the Navy, and
I wouldn't change it 'cause it

made me who I am today.

The reason I re-enlisted was
because really I wanted to

finish college. And then it's...
You feel like you have a family

here. It might be easy for some
people to say, "get out the

Navy," but it's really hard
because you know that there's a

lot of people you met that you
probably would never have met

if you hadn't joined the Navy
and it's really hard leaving

your friends... Or family...
behind.

In less than 24 hours, I'll
be in my truck driving to San

Diego to pick up my kids. Kind of
bittersweet, if you want the truth.

Will you do me a favor?

Will you snap one?

You ever been out and, you
know, you're having a good

night, good party, whatever, and
you just kind of don't want

it to end and you stay out as
long as you can, and before you

know I you know, the sun's
gonna come up, and it's gonna

be a new day, and the party's
gonna be over. And all you got

left is memories.

Start thinking about
what you're gonna do?

I have no idea.

The plan is, we're gonna
launch all of our planes off

and send them home early
'cause the air wing has to

pack all their bags and all, all
their tools and, ah, the ship

has to get ready for pulling in.

Ok, boys, kick the tires, light the fires.
First one to the Cat's

got the lead. Our
mission is to go home.

The formation will join up
somewhere South of Lemoore, set

on in, fly over the hangar, come
in, land, and then it's, you

know, it's kind of cool.

You've got to have your
head in the ballgame. Don't

put your hook down. Everybody
behind you will have trouble.

Just looks like a normal fly day.
Except when we take

that Cat shot, we
ain't coming back.

♪ Won't you be good to yourself and
don't you feel like coming home

it'll be good it'll be like coming
home because you need a place

to stay, and I've been feeling down
since you went away you better believe

what I tell you, 'cause you got me...
Whoa, oh and won't you bring light

to my day... ♪

Go time.

♪ And won't you be... ♪

Have a safe flight, dude.

See you on the flip side, Eric.

♪ It'll be good it'll be like coming
home and tell me that you want to be

with nobody else but me it'll
be good it'll like coming home

because you need a place to
stay, and I've been... ♪

Gentlemen, it's been a pleasure.
See you tomorrow

when you get off the ship.

♪ And I think she's coming home to me,
me, me, me, yeah la la la la la la

la la la la la la la la
la la la la la la la la ♪

One last time.

What are you expecting?

I'm expecting to have unbridled sex, Pam.
What do you think I'm expecting?

♪ La la la la la la because
you need a place to stay

and I've been feeling
down since you went away

you better believe what I tell you,
'cause you're coming home-oh-ome

tell me that you're coming home
tell me that you're coming home ♪

We're gonna shoot lieutenant
commander Fields'

boots off the catapult.

Shut down...

All right, kid. Come on.
Help me walk the track.

Shooters or air bosses are
people from air department

who are like leaving or transferring.
You know, we have this ceremony.

It's traditional to shoot their
boots off, so I'm gonna have

him shoot 'em off.

All right, you ready? All
right, pay attention. Military

power, combat power, salute, all
right, here we go. Touch the deck.

Watch the track.

Watch the track.

Thank you, thanks.

All right.

Good job, kid.

Thank you.

Lieutenant commander Lonnie Fields USS
Nimitz CVN 68, div-o and shooter,

and it says September, 2003
to November, 2005. So that's

a little over two years... You
got, a couple of bonus months.

And it says at the bottom
you'll never be the chief.

So, congratulations. Thanks for
turning over the best division

on the ship.

It started a year ago.

Air wing 11 embarked Nimitz and
went to sea for almost two

straight months as part of our
training for this deployment.

So it's been now a year of time
underway or away from home

and really hard work. And to
have hard work pay off is what

really is intensely satisfying.

Intensely.

We're defending freedom. Yay,
we're defending freedom. And

we're doing the same thing day
in and day out. And I don't feel

any better about it. Not at all.
And it makes me sad to

think I'm just wasting
away on the boat.

I stay on the ship all
day, and I don't see

what gets done out there, so...
It seemed like we didn't

even come over here and do anything really.
Just sat in water for a while.

Maybe we accomplished the
mission, but I don't think

it will ever be accomplished,
to tell you the truth.

Absolutely.

The mission was accomplished.

I mean, we set out to project
power abroad, support our

country during the global war
on terrorism by supporting

Operation Iraqi Freedom and any
other contingency that popped up.

For the removal, lose the screws
and remove the tailfin assembly.

Carrier air wing 9 was
in before us, and they

dropped, I think, about 12 bombs or so.
We came in, didn't drop

any in our two months and change there.
And then carrier

air wing 8 has followed us in,
and in their 4 weeks have

dropped about 20 bombs. And
your question is, how do I feel

about CAG 8 dropping bombs? You
know, I feel about it a lot like

I felt about us not dropping.

I mean, they're there to do the mission.
They're there

supporting the guys on the
ground if they're needed.

Everything I have heard is we
have, we contributed immensely.

Operations couldn't have
happened without us being

there, right above them, ready to support.
So there were

multitudes and multitudes of
missions that happened that

actually good progress was made.
Knowing the airplanes were

above them ready to support if
things went bad. And it's hard

to put your number. How many
people's lives were saved? You

know, how many children's lives were saved?
How many soldiers'

lives were...? I don't think you
could put a metric on that and

try to calculate it. I mean, in
my mind clearly, that's, it's

a big number I think. Probably.

Some folks have asked me, you know, how
do you make the connection between

September 11th and Iraq. And,
um, that's not mine to decide.

I do know Al Qaeda were in Iraq
when I was in the Gulf and they

are the enemies of my
countrymen and so I'm prepared

to search them out. I mean, my
president is my president. You

know, in 1996, my president
was Bill Clinton. In 2005, my

president is George Bush.

I don't think it really matters
as a Navy professional what my

personal views really are.

My job is to go out and execute
the mission I'm given with the,

uh, the assets and the people and the
guidance I get from the government.

Yesterday I was just sitting
around wanting to gnaw my right

arm off. I mean, there was
nothing that sounded fun to do

while I was waiting.

I cannot believe this
is finally happening.

Me, either. You know, like,
in retrospect, it seems

to have gone so quickly but there
were days that were so long.

♪ Will you remember me as your
airplane flies over foreign seas

and breaking skies? ♪

They're finally home.

♪ Like a perfect child I
can't bear to leave... ♪

I don't think my daughter would be too
happy if she didn't get one. She'd

think that was a rotten deal.

Yeah, I'll grab it.

Thanks.

All right, let's get over there.

♪ Will you remember me?

Will you remember me on the edge
of life where time runs slow

where some can fly?

In these shuttered rooms where we say
good-bye when the sole winds break

will you remember when there's no need
to breathe will you remember me? ♪

He's giving you a balloon hug.
Hi. Daddy is home. He's

blowing a balloon up for you.

Here you go.

He has a present for you, daddy.
There you go.

Thank you. That's a balloon?

Do you think you can
give daddy a kiss?

Kiss?

Yeah.

Give kisses.

Oh, boy! Can you give him a hug?

Can I hug you?

Yeah.

Go, go go, go.

Hi, hi. Hi, little girl. Hi.

Give me a kiss.

We have signs.

You have signs?

Hi.

Daddy's home.

Daddy's home.

Daddy's home.

1-2-3-5-6-7.

1-2-3-5-6-7. 1-2-3-5-6-7.

1-3-5-7.

You're not giving me
enough time on that.

There is none.

There isn't enough time, it's 1-3.
1-2-3-5-6-7. 1-3-5.

You're missing that
count, though.

I'm not missing a count.

1-2-3-5-6-7. 1-3.

See, look?

Right here is 3.

It's a Twist of your body.

You don't take a step.

But you're, you're yanking me on...
On what?

On the next count and it's like...
It's 5.

You're basically late.

I'm not late.

Fine.

3. 1-3. Then it's 5-6-7.

Ok. Oh, God. I'm so tired.

You understand, I haven't
done this in what 6 months?

I told you to go out dancing.

Oh, I'm supposed to go out
dancing with a 3-month-old.

Well, you don't have to go every
night, but enough to give you a break.

Which you've been.

Yeah, and getting a guilt trip from mom.
Saying that

a newly-born child is supposed to be...
A mother's supposed to

be home and not dancing out and
going to clubs. I kind of tend

to agree with her.

It is a fact you
need time alone.

I know I need time alone, but you've
got to understand that Filipino

culture doesn't see it that way, either.
You know.

Rock step, this. Rock step.

Well, then welcome to America.

Yeah.

Easy for you to say.

No. Your mom's great, don't
get me wrong, but jeez.

Just 2 or 3 hours go out and relax.
That's why I'm here

now. And I'll take care
of Aden on the weekends.

Well, it will be different now
that you're here, but I'd

still want you to
come out with me.

Hell, yeah. On Fridays.

And who's gonna take
care of the baby?

Your mom will take care of the
baby on a Friday for 2 or 3 hours.

We'll see.

There is no "we'll see."

You just don't understand.

I don't.

Where I'm coming from, where
my mom's coming from.

You know they're
really old-fashioned.

I know that. Anyway. We'll do our move.
The Randy roll.

We'll do that one tonight. Ours.

Did you show her the Randy roll?

No.

I showed it.

I said, "hey, this is a move
I only do with my wife."

I didn't do it. "Because it's a
move I only do with my wife."

Are you sure about that?

Yes.

Ok.

Anyway.

Do you remember it?

Yeah. But I'd... What?

Beg to differ.

What?

Never mind.

Beg to differ what?

Nothing. Come on.

Beg to differ what?

Just do it again.

Beg to differ what?

Nothing. It's just one of those
moves I don't like you to do.

I didn't do it
with anybody else.

I know but I'm just
telling you right now.

Let's just do the flip because now
I'm like burning up inside and

I need this energy release.

Whatever.

I didn't do it
with anybody else.

Ok. I'm sorry.

I know you're sorry.

No, I just... You just don't
understand, you know.

6 months is a long time, and
I just really missed you.

I missed you, too, baby.

It's our dance weekend.

I just don't know.

I just want to go out.

It's not that I want to displace
Aidan or anything like that.

I just haven't had you for 6 months.
I don't mean to

just try to rush into things
again and pretend it's back to

normal, but I know it's not.

And then you tell me that,
oh, you're dancing with

some girl for, you know, 3 times a week.
You know, it's kind of rough.

I only tell you that because... You
know, here I am, freaking have this

huge watermelon for 9 months, and
then I have to deal with that....

It's just... I was
being honest with you.

I know, I know.

I've got to deal
with it, that's all.

It's not that you
have to deal with it.

I'm just, I'm just open.

I didn't want to hide anything
from you because there's

nothing to hide. Ok?

Yeah. I'm sorry.

I love you very much.

Me, too.

I'd do anything in the world
for you, you know that.

I'm just glad you're back.

I'm glad to be back.

I just want our family.

That's all I want. Ok.

Me, too.

I love you, OK?

I think we should go now.

We're sucking air, right?

Yeah.

I'm good. I'm home.

Happy, here at the apartment.
White's still here.

My sea papi. It was great with Tanya.
I saw her for about

4 hours, and then she said
she had to go home because

her parents wanted her home.

What do you think about that, Mr.
White?

Bull...? Yeah.

Bull...! She wouldn't even kiss me.
And I was, you know,

I was compassionate.

I was telling her I would
be there for her, whatever.

And then she said she had to go home.
I asked her to stay

with me, and she said
she had to go home.

That was totally not how I
imagined anything going. I was

like, "all right, I got a kid
on the way, you know. We're not

married. I'm gonna, you know,
be faithful to this girl. I'm

gonna commit to this,
I'm gonna do it."

Maybe she feels guilty.

That's why she doing this.

What?

Maybe it's not your kid, and
maybe she feels guilty for

pawning it off on you.

I'll lose it, man.

But who knows?

I don't even want to
think of that, dude.

I've had it in my
head for 6 months.

You know what? That makes sense.
Because you go in

my apartment. I don't have any baby...
She won't come over

here. She won't move in here.

I honestly think she doesn't
know, I don't know.

As for a DNA test, I would say, yes.
But I don't know if

you should ask her. I mean, you
should be able to trust her,

but I don't know if you
can at this point.

I can't even... can't even really
get her to come see me, dude.

Kevin missed the whole thing.

I mean, he wasn't there for any of it.
None of it.

So I went through the first 10
weeks of being pregnant and

then 9 weeks of a miscarriage without him.
I mean, it was...

It was heart wrenching. But
really, I mean, I even kind of

had to laugh that morning when
it started because of... the

logistics were unbelievable.

Like, it really couldn't have
been a worse day. I'd just

taken my car to drop it off to
have the insurance looked at.

I have the only car seat, and
it's in that car. A friend took

me over there, my neighbor.

Then on the way home, we swung
through the grocery store.

I had groceries all over the
counter, you know, when things

sort of started going awry. And
I called the hospital, I called

ob-gyn, and they said, "you
need to come right over." And I

said, "well, I can't. I mean, I don't...
I have a 2-year-old and

no way to get there. " I knew I
could have driven Kevin's car

but I didn't have a car seat in it.
And she said, "oh, well,

you can't drive, somebody needs
to bring you. And don't bring

your child because you
might be here a while,

and it is going to definitely
get a lot worse before it gets

better." You are just in a
unique situation as a spouse

that you have to lean on
people that maybe you wouldn't

normally or maybe you wouldn't
want to share something so

personal normally, but I had to
call some close friend that was

in the middle of a cross country move.
And she was huge,

you know. She stepped up big time.
I mean, was in the middle

of packing out her house and 3
children and called her husband

and had him come home from work.
And it was great all day,

but she had her own farewell
that night, so she couldn't,

she couldn't keep Declan all
night, she couldn't be with me

all night. I mean, she needed
to go to her own farewell and,

um, and so here I was, just by
myself, dealing with this with

a 2-year-old who wants to play
all the time. It was just, it

was challenging in every way.

It was really challenging.

And I know that, um, it's common
and these things happen, but

um, it was weird for Kevin not
to be there because he wasn't

there for the pregnancy either.

'Cause I didn't find out until
after he was gone. And so...

Well, hopefully, I was there
for the conception part.

I think you were there.

I'm not sure. So, yeah, we're not sure
about... That would be important.

So it was just, um, the whole
thing was very strange. He wasn't

there for any of it.

Very strange but...

What... Was that?

Yeah, he was like, "you want
to get movie tickets?" Hello.

Hello.

What have you been
doing all day?

Nothing. Sleeping.

You couldn't come
see me earlier?

Huh? You couldn't
come see me earlier?

I was sleeping.

Were you now? Can I
have a hug at least?

You all right?

Mm-hmm.

Yeah, I know. You noticed the
beer sitting there, huh?

So what have you
been doing all day?

Hanging out. Talking to my mom.

So, what were you talking
to your mom about?

What's gonna happen.

The way, I don't know,
the way I feel, I guess.

Did I do something wrong?

Was it a big mistake
from the beginning?

Is that how you feel?

No, but it shouldn't have
happened the way it happened.

This is my baby, right?

Mm-hmm.

You sure?

Yeah.

Does this guy really
mean this much to you?

Does he?

Is he gonna help take
care of this kid?

Yeah, that's what he says.

That's what he says.

That's what he says. Well,
that's good, because it sounds

like to me we're done.

I'm sorry.

When she gets old enough, you can
tell her what happened to her... dad.

♪ Some things don't work
out like they should

bang my head against your
walls but it ain't no good

'cause I'm screaming at you
while you're screaming at me

about what I think you should
do and how you wish I could be

I did the best that I could but
some things don't work out

like they should... ♪

Oh, man.

I can't do it, dude. I can't.

Yeah, you can.

I don't have anything, man.

You got a lot. You're gonna
be a third class soon. You

know you passed the test. You got...
You got everybody at work

to help you out. The
Navy will help you out.

Dude, I'm not doing this job.

I'm not doing it anymore, man.

It's this job, why I
couldn't be there for Tanya

while she was pregnant. Let me
be with Tanya for 6 months, not

gone for 6 months. You honestly think
all of this would have happened?

I've got a sister at home,
her husband beats her.

I can't go home and kick his
ass, 'cause I'm stuck here.

You think I want to... do this ...?
I hate this job, man.

No one wants to do it, man.

No one wants to do it.

You got to be strong, man.

You got to be tough.

Why's everyone so scared
to get out, dude?

♪ I did the best that I could ♪

'cause you got to be ready.

You can't just get out and say, "...
It, I'm out."

I'd rather... Work
at McDonalds, man.

No, you wouldn't.

Yeah. The overtime, the hours you put in.
I'd make the same

paycheck right now as an airman.

You got more potential
than McDonalds.

I know I do.

I'm saying at the lowest, you know,
I could still make out well at...

You take everything you
can from the Navy.

♪ ...Don't work out ♪

I don't know how much more
of this I can take, dude.

You'll do fine. Once
everybody gets back home,

you'll start to feel better.

Life on deployment just goes on and
on, and then one day, it's over.

I've been in the Navy
for 24 years, and this

deployment has been one of the
best deployments of my career.

The crew performed, I'll tell
you, it was eye watering. The

United States should be proud
that they have some men and

women that went out there and represented
the United States very well.

Stand by for words from
strike group commander.

Good morning, Nimitz and tigers.
6 months ago today, we

departed San Diego and before
we execute our return to home

port, I wanted to take a few
minutes to say thank you for

the superb deployment performance.
By any measure,

you've gotten the job
done magnificently.

The military is not for everybody.
I mean, I don't

think it will ever be for everybody.
Some people just

can't adhere to the regimen;
Some can't follow the rules.

But for those few that can
stick it out, it's an

incredible adventure. It's a
wonderful experience, and there

is nothing even comparable
to it on the civilian side.

No one ever really knows
for sure what they want

to be or what they want to do
for the rest of their life.

But with the military you're
always gonna have a paycheck.

You're always gonna have a
place to stay, you're always

gonna have the family relationship
with your shipmates or whoever.

I've loved my time in the Navy
for the most part. And I've

gotten a ridiculous amount of
opportunities. They sent me to

rehab and cleaned me up. They
gave me laser eye surgery.

They've given me experience in
the profession that I love.

They are gonna be
paying for my college.

Whereas, I'm probably gonna
be a drug addict, and I still

wear glasses. But yeah, they're
still paying for my college,

which is cool.

Every single one of you is
important to the team and the

team effort here at the Nimitz
strike group and here on board

Nimitz. It takes a team to steam
over 57,000 miles safely.

It takes a team to cook,
serve, and clean up 2.42

million meals safely and well.

Forward, march!

I went back to the recruiter.

I said, "what the hell did you
do to me?" He said, "what?"

I said, "you made it seem as
if the Navy was all fine and

dandy. I'm gonna go in here,
I'm gonna go in here and go to

work, come home, work 6, 7 hours.
"I said," I went to boot

camp and got yelled at, chest
ties, I had to do push-ups,

sit-ups. I don't even know how
to do none of them exercises."

And he was just laughing. And I
was getting mad, like, "why are

you laughing?" I really wanted
to punch him. And he was like,

"well, I told you all this before.
" He said, "I actually

helped you whether you realize it or not.
" And he was like,

"what would you be doing now if
you didn't go to boot camp?"

I said, "I'd probably be at
my friends house right now,

chilling." And I just sat there
and I said, "did I just say

that out loud?" And he just
looked at me like, "see what I

mean?" Said, "you'd probably be
smoking or something." I looked

at him and I was like, "I don't smoke.
And he said, "you'd

probably be smoking or something.
" And I thought about

it when I came back from boot
camp, went over to my friends

house and they were sitting
there smoking weed. I just had

to leave. I was like, "you know what?
You're right."

We completed our mission
in the Arabian Gulf.

We flew 1,167 sorties over 6,100 hours
in the air in support of Operation

Iraqi Freedom. Ultimately,
history will be the judge of our

efforts there. But I look
forward to the day when the

Iraqi people will enjoy freedom
and security under a democratic

system. When that happens, you
will have been a significant

part of all of it. For over
200 years, Americans have

fought and died for the
freedoms that we all enjoy.

You are now a part of that, too.

And as you return to your
friends and loved ones over the

next couple of days, count your
blessings as Americans. And we

should also count our blessings
that other Americans are now

out there standing the watch
to protect us while we're at

home with our families.

Sacrificing yourself and a
very big relationship and

a child for the sake of this
country is what America is all

about. But there comes a point
where how much sacrifice will

it take to actually stop war?

Is, uh, this war worth it?

I just still haven't seen the
purpose at all... What we're doing.

I missed my daughter the most.
It kind of hurts to be

away from her for so long.

This is time that I'm not
going to be able to rewind

and get back and replay and
say, "OK, well, you know what?

Let's start over again and this
time I'm not going out." But

it shows her that I'm willing
to sacrifice to make things

better for her, to make things
better for everybody in America.

It's tough being out here.

Part of me doesn't want to do it.
But if I don't, who will?

♪ I have seen peace I have seen pain
resting on the shoulders of your name

do you see the truth
through all their lies?

Do you see the world
through troubled eyes?

And if you want to talk about
it once again on you I depend

I cry... On your shoulder ♪

Hey, we made it back.

Not just me. A whole bunch of
others, like 5,000 people made it.

♪ You're a friend you and I have lived
through many things I hold on... ♪

That's it. Home, baby.

We're home.

♪ To your hearts I wouldn't
cry for anything ♪

Ha, ha, I've never been so
happy to see land in my life.

♪ But don't go tear your life apart
I have seen fear I have seen faith

seen the look of anger on your
face and if you want to talk about

what will be come and sit with me and
cry... On my shoulder I'm a friend

and if you want to talk about it any
more lie here on the floor and cry...

On my shoulder once again cry... ♪

Oh, my God! Oh!

♪ I'm a friend ♪

You're home!

♪ Cry... On my shoulder
I'm a friend ♪

To the Class of '96 of the
Romanian Naval Academy

© VJ Me 2010

A rainbow afro!

♪ This is a song for all
the people long ago

laid their plans with calloused
hands, that labored in the sun

and this is a song for all
the children who don't know

that they will pay the cost
and bear the cross of things

we've left undone... ♪

You're on the ship.

How stressful is that?

♪ Doesn't seem to matter how you try,
when a moment's all it takes... ♪

AI, yai, yai!

Damn, boy.

♪ For the dream to pass you by
and in the corner of your mind

do you count the twists of fate
and do you ever wonder why?

The song remains the
same all the time ♪

We're just taking a very
short breather with our

families, and then it's
right back to business.

The cycle starts all over again.
We'll start back with

work-ups, then, uh, another
deployment, you know, a few

months down the road.

Subs rip, edit, and
resnyc by © VJ Me 2010