When teenagers become Naval Academy midshipmen

Colleges and Universities A-Z Naval Academy - Annapolis
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<p><a href="http://www.hometownannapolis.com/cgi-bin/read/2007/08_11-04/NAV%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.hometownannapolis.com/cgi-bin/read/2007/08_11-04/NAV&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

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Amidst a lot of giggling, hugging and kissing and teasing, the Naval Academy's freshmen, or plebes, yesterday greeted their parents and siblings for the first time since Induction Day on June 27.</p>

<p>"He looks great! And his voice sounds really different - it's deeper, it's a lot lower. And he's actually standing different!" Leah Travers, 13, of Severn, said upon seeing her brother, Midshipman 4th Class Joseph Travers. </p>

<p>Midshipman Travers described Plebe Summer as "fun."...

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<p>Now, the Brigade returns and it begins in ernest ... ;o}</p>

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<p>08 son's already practice what he's going to say to the plebes on Hell-o night</p>

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<p>hundreds of years ago, during Plebe Summer, we couldn't wait to get out of our rooms; when the Brigade returned, all we could think of was getting back to our rooms ... hopefully unseen ... and hiding.</p>

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<p>So the question is.....how long does it take for a "youngster" to feel like they are no longer "plebes?" </p>

<p>What stuck me at dinner last night (as we awaited the 44's into Freeport) was that these "youngsters" now suddenly have first names!!!!</p>

6

<p>The first time I actually felt like a youngster was when my group of mids finished our cruise and arrived back on the Yard from Norfolk. As we were walking back to the mid store parking lot to get our seabags, a company of plebers marched around the corner. Upon seeing them, I think there was a mixture of feeling overjoyed that we weren't with them, but a feeling of nausea at the thought of plebe summer.</p>

7

<p>tradition says when you see the chapel dome upon return from Youngster cruise [a classmate/friend and I climbed the radar mast on the heavy cruiser Macon to speed the inevitable ... and got stranded for 45 minutes by a "black squall after accomplishing our main purpose]; however, in reality, I truly felt like a "Youngster" when I got "spooned" by the Firsties in our company [for the most part after their last final exam] and definitely when the "Segundos" did [maybe a day or two later].</p>

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<p>????spooned????</p>

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<p>the act of shaking hands with and being given permission to call an upperclassman by their first name ... reciprocal ... they begin calling you by your first name [which by this time you had almost forgotten you had] instead of HEY, YOU ! or MISTER [usually followed immediately by COME AROUND ... assuming they still do] or several things not fit for a family blog ... ;0} ... usually occurs during what used to be called June Week ... but could be earlier or later</p>

10

<p>I felt like a youngster coming back to the Academy during plebe summer.</p>