Originally Posted by HowlerKarma
Oh-- and same day, the Navy recruiter called her about service academy/ROTC. She could have just mentioned that she was only 14... but took a different approach by politely informing the recruiter that she is "ineligible to join any branch of the armed forces due to a disqualifying medical condition." There was clear disappointment on the other end of the line, and DD had a moment of no small amount of schadenfreude, I could see, because she regards that list of automatic medical DQ's as being the most ridiculous thing ever.

If I recall correctly, your DD has some life-threatening food allergies, and while I don't know what other medical DQ's the two of you might find amusing, I can promise you that, with the way they prepare foods, the Navy is almost guaranteed to kill her. Space is at a premium, and therefore cross-contamination is nearly guaranteed.

There was a meal offered just before midnight for those on late watches. It consisted of the reheated leftovers of food nobody wanted to eat at lunch or dinner. The only other option was every food allergist's worst nightmare: peanut butter.

Heck, I have no food issues, and they took a toll on my health, just from poor quality. I was already underweight to begin with, and I dropped 15 pounds in a 3-month cruise. The next time I went out for 6 months, I dropped another 15 pounds, and this despite advance planning... we hit Costco the night before and stored a ton of non-perishable food in our work space.