Category: Military

Hattiesburg Mississippi

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date November 18, 2021

#TravelThursday continues, and in this edition we visit “The Hub City” of Hattiesburg Mississippi.

It got its nickname “The Hub City” because it was a hub – a central point – of several railroad lines at the time (1910s) with a thriving lumber industry. Nowadays it’s known as “The Hub City” because it’s where old U.S. Routes 49 and 98 meet at the south end of the city. U.S. Route 11 also passes through the core of the city. It extends southward to near the Gulf Of Mexico, and northward to the Canadian border with New York. I-59 bypasses much of the city to the west. It is definitely “The Hub City” in the southeastern part of Mississippi. It’s a little less than 100 miles northwestward from Mobile Alabama, and it’s a little more than 100 miles north-northeastward from New Orleans Louisiana.

I’ve driven through Hattiesburg several times en route to and from North Texas. I’ve even spent a couple of hotel nights in Hattiesburg. On one of those hotel nights I had driven 657 miles from Wichita Falls Texas. I checked-in to my hotel room, and I looked at my iPhone. I had a voice mail from my Pastor. He told me to call him. I did. He asked me if I wanted to preach on Sunday. (That was a Thursday night.) An exhausted me gladly accepted. On that Sunday (October 02ND 2016) I preached my very first sermon to my church family. I was ready for that day. I had plenty of time on the road to think about and to pray about that first sermon.

I really want to spend more than a hotel night in and around the Hattiesburg area. There are lots of places to see and things to do there. The Hattiesburg Zoo and the Mississippi Armed Forces Museum would be on that list. #VisitHattiesburg.

Hattiesburg is a young college and military town with about 45,000 residents within the city limits and about 170,000 residents within the metro area. It is the home of the University Of Southern Mississippi and the black and gold Golden Eagles.

Join me next #TravelThursday as we visit another location on the face of this earth.

They keep you safe on your way, and your feet will not stumble. You can go to bed without fear. You will lie down and sleep soundly. You need not be afraid of sudden disaster or the destruction that comes upon the wicked, for the LORD is your security. He will keep your foot from being caught in a trap. (Proverbs 3:23-26 NLT)

Tags Hattiesburg, Mississippi, Travel

1980s Blogging Career Holidays Military Music Radio Travel

Honoring My Fellow Veterans

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date November 11, 2021

It’s Veterans Day here in the U.S.A.

This week marks the 36TH anniversary that the United States Air Force shipped me off to a foreign country solo for the first time in my life. As an 18½-year-old I flew from Washington Dulles Airport nonstop to London Heathrow Airport. It was an overnight flight from November 09TH into November 10TH of 1985. From there I took British Rail westward to Swindon in Wiltshire, and then from there I hired a cab to take me up to RAF Fairford in the Cotswolds of Gloucestershire – my home for the next 2 years. (It was my first permanent duty station.)

I remember “Road To Nowhere” from The Talking Heads playing on my cab driver’s radio, and I certainly felt like I was on a road to nowhere, but I was really on a road to somewhere – the official start of my lifelong career.

I’ve been a member of the United States Air Force for the past 37 years now – going back to when I first signed on the dotted line of the delayed enlistment program near the start of my senior year in high school. I was hesitant in joining the military way back then, but it all turned out just right, and it’s become my career. I’d do it all over again.

To my fellow Veterans – this is our day. From one Veteran to all of you – I thank you for serving your nation so that we may be free indeed.

Tags Military, Veterans

Blogging Driving History Military Photography Scripture Travel

Mobile Alabama

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date November 4, 2021

#TravelThursday continues, and in this edition we visit “The Port City” of Mobile Alabama.

I’ve driven through Mobile a bunch of times since the mid-1990s. It’s a very unique drive along I-10 over Mobile Bay, under the Mobile River, and through the downtown area. It can also be a scary drive through the 3,000-foot tunnel, as it has a reduced speed limit of 50 MPH, but everyone is driving much faster than that. I’ve been severely tailgated through that tunnel, and it was not a pleasant experience. And then of course once you reemerge out of the tunnel you are instantly hit with blinding daylight.

A little over 5 years ago on a 3,008-mile road-trip to and from the Wichita Falls Texas area I enjoyed a scheduled pitstop in downtown Mobile to check-out some of the sights for a few hours. It was too short of a visit, and there’s plenty to see and do downtown over the course of several days or a long weekend. I talked to two women who were serving at their downtown tourist bureau (co-located with a museum), and they gave me great ideas for sightseeing for a few hours, and for a few days. I told them that I only had a few hours, but I vowed to return sometime in the future to spend more time in their city that they clearly love. Their friendliness and excitement actually inspired me to possibly pursue post-retirement service in the tourism welcome industry.

Before I talked to them I actually visited Fort Charlotte (Fort Condé de la Mobille). It’s a partially-reconstructed 18TH-Century fort that guarded Mobile during wartime. It was demolished about 100 years later (because it was no longer needed). The current replica fort was opened on America’s Bicentennial on July 04TH 1976 directly above the western-end of the aforementioned I-10 tunnel.

Join me next #TravelThursday as we visit another location on the face of this earth.

Tags Alabama, Mobile, Travel

Blogging Career Military Music Photography Scripture Sports Travel

Tampa Florida

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date October 21, 2021

#TravelThursday continues, and in this edition we visit Tampa Florida.

Tampa is the actual big city – approaching 400,000 residents. It’s the 3RD biggest city in Florida after Jacksonville and Miami. Tampa Bay is the body of water adjacent to Tampa. The Greater Tampa Bay area is the metro area surrounding Tampa and Tampa Bay. Over 3 million residents live in the area, and that number surges past 4 million when outlying areas are included.

The Greater Tampa Bay area is home to the Super Bowl Champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the repeating Stanley Cup Champion Tampa Bay Lightning, and the World Series Runner-Up (last year) Tampa Bay Rays. #TitleTown

I like Tampa a lot. It’s my favorite big city in Florida. I like the way it looks (the downtown skyline), and I like all of the activities that can be done in and around Tampa – at both land and sea.

Last #TravelThursday I revealed that I embarked on the Carnival Miracle for a fun 7-day cruise out of Port Tampa Bay exactly 15 years ago. It’ll likely be my future port-of-choice after I retire and move closer to the Tampa Bay area.

I once lived in Tampa – for about 7 months from August 1993 to March 1994 – when I worked at MacDill Air Force Base. That was after Hurricane Andrew destroyed my previous workplace at Homestead Air Force Base as well as much of the surrounding region. For a few months at the beginning of that time-frame it appeared that I’d be living and working in Tampa for years to come, but then political decisions were made to rebuild and reopen the airbase at Homestead, and in March 1994 I moved back. I’ve been here ever since. I like to say that I’ve been here in Homestead for almost 34 years – except for those 19 months right after Hurricane Andrew.

Had the airbase at Homestead not been rebuilt and reopened I wonder how long I would have stayed living and working in Tampa, and would I still be there today. What would I be doing ?

I actually haven’t visited Tampa too many times since I left 27½ years ago. I mostly visit nowadays to attend music concerts and sporting events at the downtown arena (now known as the Amalie Arena). Very near the arena is The Florida Aquarium – the 8TH largest aquarium in the U.S. You can spend all day there enjoying that impressive facility. I was last there in May 2019.

On March 21ST and 22ND of 2003 me and my little brother stumbled onto (OK maybe it was a little bit intentional) the Spring Break scene on Clearwater Beach where we had a hotel room overlooking the Gulf Of Mexico. That was a couple of days after the Iraq War began. College kids were blaring the Outkast song “B.O.B. (Bombs Over Baghdad)” up and down South Gulfview Boulevard. Those 2 fun nights on the beach were part of a 5-day / 4-night vacation in the Tampa Bay area.

Join me next #TravelThursday as we remain in Tampa, and then venture southward along the Tamiami Trail.