Phosphorescence and Flying Fish

Shipboard life, on the carrier, in the early 1960's, didn't have many of the modern gadgets to occupy one's free time. No computers or Emails. Contact from the States was a letter or package fro home. It usually took three days for a letter from home t be delivered on the "COD", or Carrier OnBoard Delivery. The COD was T2F Trader from VR-6 out of Italy. Right after Thanksgiving, at sea, we on the Flight Deck noticed one of VR-6's planes had a rather unusual paint scheme. They had painted Santa Claus straddling the planes nose cone, as if the plane had hit Santa. Arms and legs straddling the radar cone. It was funny, but we knew Sana would visit us in Naples, on Christmas Day. We had been good all cruise. Well maybe our liberty in Cannes, France may be a mark against us. But that was during the Cuban Missile Crisis, and all bets were off.
Often, after Flight Quarters secured, I liked to go down and stand on the sponsons and weather decks off the Hangar Deck. I found watching the ship's wake to be relaxing. Often, flying fish, could be seen flying into the ship's waves from the bow. Sometimes at dusk, we would sail into phosphorescence. It was something to see, flying fish jumping into the shimmering, glowing sea. Once, I saw a rather large mammal porpoising. I'm guessing it was a porpoise.