rover said:
Thanks for the info Bill. Military traditions are many, proud and definitley to be honored.
Tonight, all over the US (and in some foreign nations) present and former US Marines will gather together for dinner, drinks, speechifying, and birthday cake. There are no 'ex' Marines, only former Marines, by the way. You're an ex-Marine when they throw dirt on your face and you assume room temperature in a permanent horizontal position. Don't ever call a Marine an 'ex-Marine' unless you really don't like them very much. We pride ourselves on "Once a Marine, Always a Marine."
Many toasts will be given to the Marines, our Commanders-in-Chief, our wars, our battles, our honorable enemies, and most especially to the Honored Dead, the Fallen. One seat at the head table will be left open with a dinner setting in front of it for those who cannot attend any longer.
War stories will be told - many true, some embellished, and some pure 'sea stories.' Much grog will be consumed - we call it 'splicing the main brace' and we do it with gusto.
We'll sing the Marine Corps Hymn and we'll cut the birthday cake. In Marine tradition, the cake is cut by a Mamaluke sword, held jointly by the youngest and the oldest Marine present.
"Semper Fi" for those who do not know it, is short for "Semper Fidelis" which is Latin for "Always Faithful" which is the main Marine Corps motto. We also use "First to Fight," "The President's Own," and "The Few, The Proud," because we are the smallest US fighting force and the hardest to get into and become a Marine.
Anyway, just some Jarhead trivia (we're called Jarheads because of our funny haircuts).
Semper Fi,
Bill Mattocks
