"Father of the Year" or "Now You're Obligated to Care for me When I'm Old"

"No greater love hath mortal man than for a friend to die". The second greatest testament of love is to undertake a 3 day, 1,000 mile trek that involves land, sea and air, all for the happiness of a 4 year old who may or may not remember the whole thing 10 years from now.

The whole thing started innocently enough, as adventures of this nature tend to do. Poppa Duncan called with a "once in a lifetime opportunity" to attend a Blue Angels show from aboard a Coast Guard Cutter (Buoy Tender, the USCGS Cypress) just off of Pensacola Beach. Sounded innocent. Sounded fun. Sounded worthwhile...

Given the ABSOLUTE NECESSITY that we attend such an event, it should be assumed that complications would arise. they did.
Complication # 1 - The air show was scheduled to take place on 7/12/08, the day after the launch of the new iPhone
Complication # 2 - iPhone's launch prevented Jeremy from taking any vacation on Friday or the following week

After many hours of considering these obstacles, the ultimate decision we reached was for Jeremy to take Spencer to Fairhope for the show Friday evening leaving Marsha, Aidyn and Preston at home so they would not have to endure the rigors of a 7 hour drive Friday, an air show Saturday and a 7 hour return voyage on Sunday.
we had a plan. I love it when a plan comes together.
too bad this one didn't...

July 11 came and iPhone launched with all the fanfare and excitement we could have expected. Jeremy was able to fulfill his role in the market's "War Room" and get away from the office at 3:00 to start the journey. Swinging home for just enough time to change clothes and toss Spencer into the car, Jeremy and Spencer got away before 4:00 and all was well...

Then disaster #1 occurred at approximately 4:30.
While picking up the cell phone to call his boss and answer a question, Jeremy felt the unmistakable, tell tale sign of a flat tire. The rear, driver's side tire had blown out before the trip even fully left Nashville.

As Spencer sat comfortably in the back seat watching Aladdin, Jeremy and Marsha exchanged phone calls and emails (how did people survive before PDA's and cell phones?) to find a place to replace the tire and wait for AAA to come put on the spare. Eventually, Jeremy & Spencer were able to get back on the road and make a thoroughly unscheduled stop at the "Mall" (term used loosely) in Columbia, TN where a new tire was put on at Sears. While this was taking place, Jeremy and Spencer had supper at the only restaurant in the mall, a "Ryan's" style cafeteria.

It was 7:00 PM by the time the van was ready and only 6.5 hours left to go! Jeremy and Spencer arrived in Fairhope at 1:15 AM Saturday morning after 1 stop in Pelham for gas. Spencer slept for approximately 52 minutes and 37 seconds during this time.

At 6:30 the following morning, DeeDee Duncan awoke Jeremy and Spencer to head to the Pensacola Naval Air Station where they would board the ship and get on their way. By 8:30, everyone was aboard. The ship was huge, and is crewed under normal circumstances by < 60 people. There were over 375 on board on 7/12. After Spencer and Jeremy saw about a dozen sting rays and at least 7 billion jellyfish off the side of the ship, the boat set sail and made its way to its position for the show.
As you will see in the photos below, at the very top of the ship there is an uncovered area for observation. this area is accessible via a single ladder and it was here that the majority of the 375 + people on board set up for the show. As 2:00 neared, the deck became VERY crowded.

It was time for the show. The first plane, an old sea plane right out of an Indiana Jones movie, began to fly around, but we couldn't help noticing that it looked like a storm was blowing in from the west. It did, and that is when disaster # 2 took place.

As the rain began, all the spectators crowded atop the USCGS Cypress pressed together beneath a tent that had been erected on the deck and strapped down for stability. What we thought was going to be a brief summer shower, however, ended up being a minature hurricane. we shall call it, Hurricane Spencer.

Winds almost 60 mph made the rain blow sideways and bent the support rods of the tent. Jeremy and 3 other men found themselves in the role of replacing the support rods and holding the tent up while everyone else surrounded the children in the center of the enclosure. Then there was lightening. Apparently 10 people were struck on shore (all were okay) and the ship's crew rushed up to get everyone into the belly of the boat. As there was a single ladder, this took a while.

We might as well have swam to shore, everyone was soaked to the bone. The group was so wet, Jeremy's PDA was destroyed and outside, the "brief summer shower" stormed for almost 4 hours, cancelling the show.

The Cypress returned to the dock a little before 7:00 PM and all aboard were told that they were welcome to come "try again" the next day.

This presented a dillemma. obviously, the plan was NEVER to attend a show Sunday, then drive to Nashville. However, having already endured so much, it seemed a shame to return to TN without having seen the show. Reluctantly, the decision was made to go BACK to Pensacola the following day, see the show, and accept that Sunday, like the Friday before, would be a late night.

Sunday came, the boat was ready and less than 1/3 the passengers crammed aboard, making the day much more comfortable. The weather held and the show took place. Spencer was enraptured. he saw every plane, commented on every trick and asked if he could be a Blue Angel pilot when he grew up. The day went completely as planned.

Immediately following the end of the show, the Cypress turned about and headed for shore. needless to say, this was the perfect time for disaster # 3. ANOTHER storm. Another 4 hour delay.

The good news? We stayed dry and didn't destroy any more electronic equipment.
The bad news? 4 hours added to the departure time from the Florida panhandle.
It was nearly 8:00 PM when Spencer and Jeremy got underway to return to Nashville. Spencer watched one movie then slept...for roughly 37 minutes and 10 seconds. Jeremy and Spencer stopped once in Prattville around 10:30 for gas, a new movie for Spencer and a LARGE Red Bull for daddy. They stopped again at the TN border for a new movie for Spencer, a pit stop and a stretch at around 12:45. They stopped AGAIN just outside Nashville on the side of I-65 where the nice state trooper asked Jeremy if he knew he'd been driving 87 mph. This doesn't qualify as disaster # 4 because the trooper felt sorry for Jeremy after hearing about Jeremy's weekend.
Spencer and Jeremy arrived home at 2:15. Spencer was ready to play. Jeremy was ready for hospitalization.
4 hours later, Jeremy was up and getting ready for work. Spencer was still asleep.
Let this document attest to Jeremy's dedication as a Father and let all those who read it commit to reminding Spencer for the rest of his life that he is now obligated to care for Jeremy in Jeremy's old age.
Amen