Saw my first battleship the other day, so time to check that off the bucket list. I love checking things off any kind of list, so here goes — battleship, check! Man, I never quite realized how mammoth those things are, like a couple of floating football fields supported by tons and tons of armor, iron, and steel. How in the world does that thing actually float?! Then again I never was very good at Physics…
We were on the way back from Wrightsville Beach, NC, and it was right there in Wilmington- the USS North Carolina, the most decorated battleship of World War II with 15 stars. With a five-year-old boy in the back seat, how could I just drive on by?
Actually Sam couldn’t have cared less at the time — until he got onto it and exclaimed, “Look at those GUNS!” Ah, gender stereotypes have evolved for a very good reason. He was mighty impressed all right for good reason. In fact, the real live alligator alongside the ship in the river got no reaction whatsoever, barely a glance. Something tells me we’ll be back to pay homage to this fierce lady again sometime soon! In the meantime, USS Carolina, enjoy your well-deserved rest. Hope the alligators treat you with some respect and don’t be afraid to break out the big guns and show ’em who’s boss.
