What is a guideon?.....

I have three questions that I can only speculate toward the meanings of.

First, to what does "guideon" refer to?

Second, who or what is a "kill hat"?

And last but not least, when requesting permission to board a vessel, what is the "liberty" you salute prior to the captain?

I am sure these are silly questions to seasoned Marines who read this, but I'm not letting assumption be my mother this time around. ;)

Also, against my better judgment I would like to ask; what is a "blanket party",
or should I just "wait and see" for myself?

Guidon. The official pennant of a platoon or company. At battalion or squadron level or above the unit has official colors and they parade in relation to the national flag.
Kill hat- one of the junior Drill Instructors..the enforcer!

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U.S. Naval Vessel Etiquette:If the flag is displayed when the anthem is played, you face the flag and stand at attention. If in uniform and covered, render the hand salute; if in civilian clothes or if in uniform and uncovered, you place your right hand over your heart. Persons in formation stand at attention, and those in charge of the formation salute.Outdoors With some exceptions, saluting procedures when the anthem is played outdoors (with or without the flag displayed) are the same as when indoors. Marching formations are halted at attention, and the person in charge faces and salutes the flag or music, as appropriate. Personnel in boats, whether in uniform or in civilian clothes, do not salute during the playing of the anthem. Only the boat officer (or coxswain if there is no boat officer) stands and salutes; all other personnel remain seated at attention. You are not likely to hear “The Star Spangled Banner” played in a parade, but most marching units do carry the national ensign. The rules for saluting the flag passing in a parade are simple: come to attention, face the flag, and salute. (If you are in a vehicle, remain seated at attention.) The musical selection “Hail to the Chief” is performed to honor the President of the United States. When “Hail to the Chief” is played, stand at attention and salute.BOARDING AND LEAVING A NAVALVESSEL You cannot just walk on and off a ship as you would enter and leave your home. You must follow certain procedures. When you are in uniform and boarding any ship and the national ensign is flying, you halt at the gangway, face aft, and salute the ensign. You then turn to the OOD and salute. If you are returning to your own ship, you say, “I request permission to come aboard, sir/ma’am.” The OOD returns both salutes and says, “Come aboard” or a similar expression. When you salute the OOD in boarding a ship other than your own, you say, “I request permission to come aboard, sir/ma’am.” You should then add the purpose of your visit: “to visit a friend” or “to go to small stores.” When you leave a ship, the order of saluting is reversed. You salute the OOD first and say, “I request permission to leave the ship, sir/ma’am.” After receiving permission, you then face and salute the ensign (if it is flying) and depart. If you are not in the liberty uniform, state your reason for wanting to leave the ship: “I request permission to go on the pier to check the mooring lines, sir/ma’am.” When boarding a ship in civilian attire and the national ensign is flying, you will halt at the gangway, at attention, and face aft. You then turn to the OOD at attention. If you are returning to your own ship, you say, “I request permission to come aboard, sir/ma’am.” The OOD salutes and says, “Very well” or a similar expression. When you board a ship other than your own, you say, “I request permission to come aboard, sir/ma’am.” You should then add the purpose of your visit. The OOD will then say, “Permission granted” or “Permission not granted.” When you are leaving a ship in civilian attire, the procedure is reversed. You stand at attention in front of the OOD first and say, “I request permission to leave the ship, sir/ma’am.” After receiving permission, you then stand at attention facing the ensign (if it is flying) and depart. Sometimes it is necessary for destroyers, submarines, and other ships to tie up in nests alongside a repair ship, tender, or pier. In this case, you may have to cross several ships to go ashore or return to your own ship. When you have to cross one or more ships to reach the pier, to reach another ship or to return to your own ship, you should use the following procedure: Upon boarding a ship that you must cross, salute the colors (if flying), then turn toward and salute the OOD, and request permission to cross. After receiving permission, proceed to cross without delay. When you depart that ship, it is not necessary to salute the colors or OOD again. Repeat this crossing procedure until you reach your destination.

A blanket party is NOT something you want - I can tell you that. It's where you've made so many other recruits mad at you for some reason (you could be the whiner in the bunch, the tattletale, the one that the DIs say "until HE gets it the rest of you pay" and the rest of the platoon gets IPTd for your not getting something that's trying to be taught to you) and they throw a blanket accross your rack (with you in it) and they hit you with bars of soap that they've wrapped in their Tshirts. Have you ever seen Full Metal Jacket? There's one in there - rent it - watch it.

Thanks Kim..I didn't even see the last question..must be the bifocals!:banana:

Guidon - Something that you should strive to earn the right to bear it
Kill Hat - The Drill Instructor that you wish would get hit by a car during training, but by the end you would gladly walk in front of a car for...
Blanket Party - No Bueno... watch Full Metal Jacket as was stated earlier...

Alright! Thanks everyone. I think I got it.
Thank you very much,
Tiamat13