The EMO's 4-8 Watch makes the coffee!

My very first duty day on the USS Saratoga CV-60 was a long one. I worked all day and had the last watch of the duty section. We were at sea on Yankee Station off the coast of North Vietnam.

The evening before the PPO for the division, ET1 Roy Hoppmeyer, ensured that I knew that my main job on that watch was to make sure the big coffee pot was full of fresh hot coffee. He gave me specific instructions on how to make the coffee. How not to wash out the pot, it was seasoned. He showed me the deep sink room down the passageway so I would know where to get the water.

At nearly 0520 I realized that I hadn't started the coffee. I rushed down the passage way with the pot to get the water. Inside the deepsink room we had blue and red spigots. I was late so I decided to get hot water for the coffee so it would perk quicker. I got the pot back into the office and plugged it in, just a few minutes later the aroma of fresh coffee permeated the office.

Almost exactly at 0600 the red light lit on the pot. At the same moment ET1 showed up for his coffee. He seemed pleased that I had gotten the coffee done on time. He got his cup filled it, took a sip and spit it on the deck!

ET1: SON!!!! Where did you get this water?

ME: The deepsink room ET1, why?

ET1: What spigot did you use?

ME: The red one, I was a little late and used the hot water.

ET1: SON!!! That isn't hot water, it's salt water for swabbing the deck!!!!!

I never stood that watch again, I also never made that mistake again.

RED = Salt water
Blue = Fresh water

Pretty standard stuff on a ship!
 
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