My last Coast Guard duty while being put back together was as medical driver in the bay area. We were always begging supplies from the big Navy Hospital. One day I get read the riot act from this CPO African American lady for our constant begging. I returned to base and had to explain the situation to my CPO, a skinny Georgia Cracker with the complexion of the banjo playing kid in Deliverance. He immediately had a bouquet of flowers sent to her with an apology. After that I could have walked out with the whole pharmacy. Problem was, she asked about my CPO and I described him in glowing terms as being Mohammed Ali , Lou Rawls and Sidney Poittier rolled up in one. Like the mythical Lt Kinje in Russian classical music I had to kill him off one day. I think I said he was eaten by a great white shark off Hawaii during a SAR or something. But it was a good lesson in diplomacy <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />