Gods and Generals

Apparently having beers with Colonels on Thursday night wasn't enough for God, who decided to mix things up on me last night. Myself and two friends decided to go the Globe & Laurel restaurant, owned and operated by a retired Marine Corps Officer. Major Rick Spooner, the owner, served active duty for 30 years (starting in 1942) before retiring and starting the business.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_T._Spooner

One of the attractions to the restaurant is Major Spooner himself, who takes the opportunity to walk around to every table during the evening, introducing himself and telling war stories. During our meal he stopped by once and chatted briefly, before moving on. After the delicious meal (I had the "Semper Fi Steak"), we were sitting at the table talking, waiting for our checks when the Major stopped back. He asked us if we were at TBS (a good catch by the Major) and then proceeded to ask us if we would join him down in the Wardroom for a beer after dinner. Well having heard the stories of this place, this was not an opportunity to pass up, so we went back to the Wardroom. This place was awesome; it was a small room with a full bar on one side and couches and a recliner on the other side. The Major poured us a drink and we proceeded to the couches, him in the chair, where we listened to the old Marine tell us about his career and ask us about ours. After the Major had made us all feel like less of a man (having cable and internet in our rooms is a huge step up from the dirt-floored huts they lived in when he went through TBS), one of the waitresses stopped in and told the Major (the staff all refer to him as "The Major" as well) that "the General was leaving". All of our ears naturally perked up at this and everyone's back got a little straighter. The Major tells her that the General should stop down for a drink or he would half to yell at him. She says that she thinks he may have left. Wrong. Three minutes later, in walks our Commanding General for MCCDC, the same man I spent 30 minutes hiding from in the PX last time I was there. I am immediately kicking myself for not being dressed better, and immensely relieved that I decided to shave before we went out. Introductions are passed within the two groups and we settle back in to talk. Obviously, I was sitting on the couch closest to the Major before, with my two friends to my left, so where does the General sit? You betya, right next to me. We talked for a good while, probably about an hour. We listened to their stories of TBS and the Marine Corps, and we told them about ourselves and our limited experiences. The only trip-up came when the General stopped us and goes "Ok, quiz time". "Oh great" we all think, and he proceeds to ask us in what battle did Lt Hawkins (the man the bar in our barracks is named after) get his Medal of Honor. The quiet was so deep I could hear conversations in the main part of the restaurant. I can see Hawkins' face in my mind so after a couple wrong guesses I throw out this gem "I remember that he had a sweet mustache, sir." Apparently not as funny as I thought it would be, but we moved on and the General didn't seem to hold it against me. Finally the evening wrapped up and we said good night to everyone, with promises that we would return soon.

I still can't stop hoping that I didn't look like a jackass in front of the General; hopefully he's more forgiving than I am. Looking at the natural progression in chain of command from Field Grade to General Officers in a 2-day span, I wouldn't be surprised if I somehow knocked back shots with the Secretary of Defense tomorrow night. All together, it was an awesome evening, and a once-in-a-lifetime experience. If you're ever in the Quantico area, I definitely recommend you stop in to the Globe & Laurel and talk to the Major. You won't be disappointed.