Holidays at sea

She went from making pies to handling torpedoes on board one of the largest warships in the U.S. Navy.
Megan Alascia was happy doing both.
Her long-term goals include returning to the kitchen and possibly opening a restaurant, but she needed to complete something else first. She had been itching to enlist in the military at 18. By the time she turned 20, she knew she couldn't put it off any longer.
"There was stuff going on and I wanted to do something about it," Alascia said.
She spoke with Hernando Today on a satellite phone on board the USS Nimitz, an aircraft carrier immortalized in books, film and television.
Alascia's life has undergone a sea of change during the last 12 months.
At one point she was hanging with her family watching baseball games and nowadays she is visiting cities 7,000 miles from home.
She celebrated her 21st birthday on board the warship. A few weeks later, she pulled into port in Japan.
"It was an experience to remember, that's for sure," Alascia said.
She was struck by the straight-and-narrow lifestyle in Singapore when she visited there several months ago. She later would be awed by the sounds and images at the world's largest mall in Dubai.
For Christmas, she's stuck in the Gulf of Oman. She'd rather be in Spring Hill.
"It's going to be difficult being away from home," Alascia said, "but we're doing a good thing here and I try to keep that in mind."
It seems likely she will serve her four years, return to school and resume her civilian life, she said. She does, however, have her sights set on Afghanistan. She joined the Navy to make a difference, not just for the adventure.
Her mother isn't wishing for her daughter to be sent to a war zone, but she knows how headstrong she can be.
"She's very smart," said Susan Alascia, who owns and manages a hair salon in Brooksville. "She needs adventure. She wants to be motivated. She wants to experience it all."
Megan Alascia is the oldest of four daughters. She was a solid student at Central High, but didn't take part in many extracurricular activities, her mother said. She liked watching baseball and hanging out with friends, but mostly her life centered on her family and her love of cooking.
Her mother noticed a change when she joined Genesis Health and Fitness last year and took part in the fitness boot camp.
She took to it quickly. Her personality won over her trainers and eventually she took a part-time job there.
That might have helped Megan Alascia get ready for a life in the U.S. Navy, or at least the rigors of the orientation, her mother said.
As for her plans to go to Afghanistan, her mother approaches it the way she did when she was told she wanted to enlist in the first place.
At 18, she and her husband tried to "sway her" and convince her to try something else. As she got older and as her enthusiasm for the military grew, they knew they couldn't influence her decision any longer.
"When she turned 20 and still wanted to do it, I didn't really have a say," Susan Alascia said. "I'm happy she chose the Navy. They definitely keep her busy."
The two correspond via e-mail most nights. They speak over the phone every other week or so, Megan Alascia said.
Alascia keeps in touch with her siblings through e-mail. Her 15-year-old cousin is at Central and takes part in the Navy Junior ROTC program.
The demands of her military life meant she couldn't call him on his birthday.
"I felt really bad about that," she said. "He's like my brother.
Her closeness to her mother was palpable over the phone. The two of them have talked a lot about her life in the military and her future choices.
Susan Alascia might not have agreed with every decision, but she has never been disappointed.
"They were really overwhelmed when I told them," Megan Alascia said about telling her parents she would join the Navy. "They were really proud of me ... It makes me proud that they're proud and I like that."