It’s Official … a Last Day on a Last Day

Monday, 31 December
Pelican Roost RV Park — NS Mayport, Florida
Temps: Lo 46F / Hi 60F (8C / 16C)

Today was Mui’s last day with DHS — more accurately, it was the last day of his terminal vacation from DHS.  As of today, Mui is officially retired — woo hoo!

When I asked that there be no retirement party for me at DCS, my request was honored.  A quiet dinner with the two people with whom I worked closely marked the occasion of my retirement.

When Mui asked for the same at DHS, he was told — “You don’t have to come; but we’re having a retirement luncheon for you anyway.”  The luncheon was well-attended; Mui received the roasting he was expecting — and some very nice memorabilia.

Saying his goodbyes to Secretary Napolitano.
Amongst the memorabilia he received is a service award, a letter signed
by President Obama, and a flag flown over the US Capitol in his name.

Receiving his service award from Nick Nayak, Chief Procurement Officer.

Receiving the Obama letter from Rafael Borras, Undersecretary DHS; and …

… a few more scenes from the luncheon.

That was all back in November; now fast-forward to the present …

We were going to go sightseeing today to celebrate this auspicious day, but plans didn’t quite work out as expected.  A phone call from Starlight necessitated some work on Mui’s part to remove the broken exterior door light so that he could ship it back to them before our departure from here tomorrow.

Not a problem; postponing our plans for the early part of the day to a time when we next find ourselves in the area, we simply moved on to our plans for the latter part of the day — catching the sunset over the Saint Johns River and dinner in Atlantic Beach.  We succeeded in accomplishing both.

We didn’t have a specific restaurant in mind when we headed to Atlantic Beach, about 6 miles (9.5 km) from NS Mayport.  The town center was crowded, and though the restaurant we picked was filled with early revelers like ourselves, the hostess at Ragtime Tavern Seafood & Grill was able to accommodate us.  (Click the logo for the restaurant’s website.)

Neither one of us took a camera to dinner, so I have no food photos to share with you.  Suffice to say that we enjoyed our meal.  Mui ordered a cup of the Ragtime Seafood Gumbo to precede his main course, Ragtime Shrimp (fresh local shrimp, rolled in flaked coconut & fried, giving it a crunchy sweet flavor; served with the restaurant’s signature honey mustard sauce and steamed vegetables).  I opted for the Skewered Seafood (fresh fish and shrimp marinated in soy, pineapple and ginger, grilled to perfection; served with grilled vegetables).  Both dishes came with a side of red beans & rice.  We washed our food down with a couple of cold Dolphin’s Breath Lager, one of the restaurant’s handcrafted beers. 

I may not have food pictures to regale you with, but I have plenty of photos from our before-dinner stop at the beach in Mayport Village.  What better way to close out the year than with images of the sun setting on this last day of 2012.

No words necessary … the photos speak for themselves.

 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!