It's a fact. I was on the Constellation (CV64) and often hated being stuck on that boat. Now those memories are some of my most cherished and I would pay to be able to take a tiger cruise. Of course that's impossible because they towed her off to scrap. I live within sight of PSN and could see her tied up over there. Watching her get towed off was pretty tough.
Hahaha...so it has been, so it will always be!
I was a young petty officer, full of snot, and thought I knew more than anyone else. I was mouthing off one day about the stupidity of the service, etc. (and it is true, all services and large institutions DO have a degree of inbred stupidity in them, that’s jus the way it is!) and a lifer 1st Class said to me (not unkindly, but...firmly): “Look. You think all of this is stupid and it sucks right now, but...you signed up for it. Nobody twisted your arm. Someday, you will look back on this as one of the most important and valuable times of your life...”
There are many times since then I wished I could have eaten my words, found that man AD1 Ingram, and shook his hand to tell him how right he was.
The Constellation was the first carrier I ever saw close up. As a kid, living on Navy bases, I used to go down to the docks to try to get a sailor to give me a tour of whatever ship was there. I remember standing on the dock, looking straight up at this huge ship, the tails of Phantoms and Vigilantes hanging out in the air all around the edge of the deck.
That was in Yokosuka...:)