So, like I said in my previous blog, I have been needing a new suit. Today I went to rectify that situation. Before going to Provo to look in person I did some shopping online and picked out a good suit. It was a three-piece suit from Men's Wearhouse, but figured that I should look everywhere else first- just to explore my options. I'm glad I did! Sear's was having a sale on ties so I picked up a couple nice ones. Then Mr. Mac had 2 suits that were both amazing. The one I finally went with is black with some subtle pin striping (here- but you have to click on black fine pin stripe). Since I drove up from Delta, they were willing to have the alterations done based on when I could pick it up. We (Mom, Dad and I) are going up on Tuesday to take Mom to the airport so that was the day we decided they should have the alterations done. I called tonight to make a small change to the way they were hemming the pants and the alterations were already done! Which is great, except that means they can't make the changes I was hoping for...
Shopping in Mr Mac was interesting though. They have two sections- the Board Room where all the really nice, expensive suits are and the other part for us normal folk. The sales associate that helped me happened to be from the board room because they were so busy everyone else was too busy. This means I picked out the suits I was interested in and took them to the rich person side of the store to try them on. People were amazed to see such a young man trying on suits worth so much money. It was fun to see the reactions, even though that was really not the case. I'm pretty excited to get the finished product
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Friday, October 22, 2010
I've been told...
...that it is time to update the blog again. I know its bad when Sheena isn't even the one telling me its been too long between posts. So, I'm going to try to give you something to read, but there's not much exciting going on in my life right now.
I have moved back home with my parents. After searching for a job for a while I called and old employer looking for a reference. Rather than a reference, he gave me a job. I am once again a bee keeper for Stephenson Honey Company. So far we have extracted a lot of honey, gone to Needles, extracted more honey (can I just say how much I hate extracting for days on end?), started melting down all the excess wax and started on a huge construction project. All of the empty comb after extracting has to be stored in an airtight room where we can burn sulfur to kill off wax moths and other things that will destroy our stuff. The business is switching the kinds of hives we use so there will now be a lot more comb to store and we don't have enough room to store it all. As a result, we are building a huge new storage room. It will be nice when it is finished, I'm pretty excited.
My suit is about shot- the pants in particular have about seen their last church meeting. It gave me at least 4 years of good solid use so I really can't complain but I was hoping it would hold out until it was time to buy mission suits. Next weekend I'm planning on going to Provo to buy a new one.
Yes, I am really talking about clothes. That is how little is really going on in my life. I might post about the trip after it happens, but other than that I can't imagine anything coming up to blog about. This means there will be quite a famine of posts for the next while. Sorry to those of you who check this blog often, there's just not anything to update you on! If anybody has ideas on what I should write about, feel free to leave a comment or shoot me a text/email/other form of contact.
Oh, and to answer a question I am frequently asked: yes, I do miss West Point- but at the same time it is nice to be away. My relationship with the Academy has always been a mixed one. I love the place, and I hate it. In much the same way I miss the Academy and yet I am glad to be rid of it. I will definitely be ready to go back in a few years though.
I have moved back home with my parents. After searching for a job for a while I called and old employer looking for a reference. Rather than a reference, he gave me a job. I am once again a bee keeper for Stephenson Honey Company. So far we have extracted a lot of honey, gone to Needles, extracted more honey (can I just say how much I hate extracting for days on end?), started melting down all the excess wax and started on a huge construction project. All of the empty comb after extracting has to be stored in an airtight room where we can burn sulfur to kill off wax moths and other things that will destroy our stuff. The business is switching the kinds of hives we use so there will now be a lot more comb to store and we don't have enough room to store it all. As a result, we are building a huge new storage room. It will be nice when it is finished, I'm pretty excited.
My suit is about shot- the pants in particular have about seen their last church meeting. It gave me at least 4 years of good solid use so I really can't complain but I was hoping it would hold out until it was time to buy mission suits. Next weekend I'm planning on going to Provo to buy a new one.
Yes, I am really talking about clothes. That is how little is really going on in my life. I might post about the trip after it happens, but other than that I can't imagine anything coming up to blog about. This means there will be quite a famine of posts for the next while. Sorry to those of you who check this blog often, there's just not anything to update you on! If anybody has ideas on what I should write about, feel free to leave a comment or shoot me a text/email/other form of contact.
Oh, and to answer a question I am frequently asked: yes, I do miss West Point- but at the same time it is nice to be away. My relationship with the Academy has always been a mixed one. I love the place, and I hate it. In much the same way I miss the Academy and yet I am glad to be rid of it. I will definitely be ready to go back in a few years though.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
9/11
Never forget. Take some time when you read this to thank those you may know who have served or are now serving to protect this great nation both at home and abroad.
If you want an example of the bravery of the men and women who responded that day look up Stephen Siller, the inspiration behind the Tunnel to Towers Run.
And please, please, please always remember. With our vast selection of channels on TV I could only find 2 channels that had anything about 9/11. The channels we normally watch for news and special event coverage were Saturday morning cartoons. I find it hard to believe that we are already more concerned about the entertainment of our children than taking a little time to remember the lives that were lost. Our house is the only one on the street with a flag flying- because I put it up. We do have to continue our lives, but never- NEVER- forget.
If you want an example of the bravery of the men and women who responded that day look up Stephen Siller, the inspiration behind the Tunnel to Towers Run.
And please, please, please always remember. With our vast selection of channels on TV I could only find 2 channels that had anything about 9/11. The channels we normally watch for news and special event coverage were Saturday morning cartoons. I find it hard to believe that we are already more concerned about the entertainment of our children than taking a little time to remember the lives that were lost. Our house is the only one on the street with a flag flying- because I put it up. We do have to continue our lives, but never- NEVER- forget.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
The Hyde Challenge
The Hyde Challenge, as I mentioned in my last real blog entry, was the name of the culminating exercise for Cadet Basic Training this year. It began by air assaulting into Camp Buckner in a CH-47 Chinook helicopter (below). The flight path took us over the terrain we would be covering and then landed in LZ Owl just outside of Buckner. Upon landing we held security on the landing zone until the bird took off and then scrambled to a safer location. For most companies this marked the beginning of the actual military operation; however, for scheduling reasons we got flown out the day before we started so we just walked to the bays (rudimentary barracks- old bunk-house style).
The next morning we started our operation in trucks leaving from LZ Owl. We had been given an operations order (OPORD) on what was supposed to be happening for the day but the entire Hyde Challenge was based on FRAGOs, fragmentation orders or last minute changes to the plan. This meant that as the squad leader, I knew virtually nothing about what was going to happen. I was given the FRAGO before we loaded the truck and had 3 minutes to brief my squad on the situation. The truck was completely covered over and the drivers were instructed to drive as they would on a normal operation so we got tossed around pretty good back there. We arrived at the first site- a rifle range with pop-up targets- and were immediately getting screamed at by site cadre. They were beating the sides of the truck and shouting while combat noises were being played over a loud-speaker. This caused a lot of confusion and stress for the new cadets who had to jump out of the truck, grab two magazines and sprint to the firing line and engage targets (all in full gear). The next range was similar but they also incorporated smoke grenades and target discrimination (there were civilians mixed in with the enemy).
The next morning we started our operation in trucks leaving from LZ Owl. We had been given an operations order (OPORD) on what was supposed to be happening for the day but the entire Hyde Challenge was based on FRAGOs, fragmentation orders or last minute changes to the plan. This meant that as the squad leader, I knew virtually nothing about what was going to happen. I was given the FRAGO before we loaded the truck and had 3 minutes to brief my squad on the situation. The truck was completely covered over and the drivers were instructed to drive as they would on a normal operation so we got tossed around pretty good back there. We arrived at the first site- a rifle range with pop-up targets- and were immediately getting screamed at by site cadre. They were beating the sides of the truck and shouting while combat noises were being played over a loud-speaker. This caused a lot of confusion and stress for the new cadets who had to jump out of the truck, grab two magazines and sprint to the firing line and engage targets (all in full gear). The next range was similar but they also incorporated smoke grenades and target discrimination (there were civilians mixed in with the enemy). After the second range I was briefed on what we were going to do next. I was told that intelligence reports gave us the location of weapons caches scattered throughout the mountains and that my squad was to go find them with the help of local nationals. I was given coordinates and told to find the location on the map and brief my driver on the route and location. My truck driver looked at me when I started to brief and said "I already know where we're going, but be ready to get dropped off in the wrong spot." Fun.
When we arrived at the wrong destination I was told to select an acting squad leader and go brief higher on the two engagements we had just encountered. I left my squad and hoped for the best. The task they had was basically land navigation and the planners were paranoid that the squad leaders would help their own squads too much so my "briefing higher" was acting as the local national accompanying- but not helping- another squad (which found none of the weapons caches and barely made it back on time).
From there, we walked to a reservoir and paddled a zodiac boat across it to reach the other side and receive coordinates to another location. The guy who told us where to go gave us bad coordinates so we spent half an hour pulling security about a click (km) to the south of where we were supposed to be while waiting for a convoy that never showed up. Turns out, we were supposed to stumble upon our convoy which had just been ambushed. There were two casualties and we had to secure the area, provide treatment and call in for a medevac (medical evacuation). The next FRAGO was that there were two more people, an Explosive Ordinance Disposal (EOD, if you don't know what I mean go watch the Hurt Locker) team, and nobody knew where they were.
When we found the team the EOD specialist was dead and the driver had minor injuries. There was a robot there and the driver had no idea how to use it but there was an IED that had to be taken care of. Neither my new cadets nor myself had ever seen this thing before so it was an interesting adventure figuring out how to make it work.
For the final section we had to go find another local national and get an intelligence update from him. He sent my squad up a hill (more of a cliff face) where we had a memorial service for 1LT Daniel Hyde who was killed in combat in Iraq in 2007. Though the climb was difficult and everyone was tired, it was the favorite event for every new cadet. It was a fitting way to end their training, reminding them of why they are where they are and the commitment they are making. It can be intimidating sometimes to think about the responsibilities and risks involved with what we choose to do, but it is vital that we never forget.
Darkness fell as we descended the cliff. Once we reached the bottom my squad moved to our patrol base where the night phase commenced. It consisted of a normal patrol base* with each squad conducting an hour long recon mission during the night. Somewhere in the woods, we were told, was an old building where a high-ranking enemy leader was staying. We were to go, find the house and report back what we found. My squad did not find the house but we encountered the enemy leader (and almost got caught by him) and found the HMMWV he was using for transportation- still a successful recon. Upon completion of the night phase (about 0600) we moved to a pick-up site and were trucked back to Buckner. Thus ended the Hyde Challenge.
*A patrol base is set up as a perimeter with the leadership in the center and people along the outside pulling security. Normally you will have no less than 50% security which means 50% of your people will be awake and watching/waiting for an enemy attack.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Pictures
I forgot to post them with that blog:
New cadets exiting the gas chamber.
Giving IVs.
Some successful...
...some not
New cadets exiting the gas chamber.
Giving IVs.
Some successful...
...some not Thanks to my friends for the pictures.
Its been a long time coming...
But here it finally is, the update.
The rest of my time at Ft. Jackson got progressively less and less stressful. I went to work at 0600 for PT (physical training- working out) and was usually done by early afternoon. Unfortunately, there isn't much to do around Ft Jackson during the day and because its a college town, there's little of interest to me at night, so there was a lot of time spent sleeping, watching tv, etc. All in all it was a pretty good experience. I saw some things to emulate in my leadership and some things to definitely avoid. Then I headed home for a few weeks of leave and wonderful relaxation.
Two weeks later it was back to work. Basic training at the academy is broken into two parts, or details. First detail consists of mostly garrison work and the administrative side of West Point- lots of issue points, placement testing, etc. Second detail, of which I was a part, consists of the field-type training of a soldier. Before the cadre of either detail can take over and be given new cadets to train the must first go through LTP which is a train-up to make sure they are qualified to teach everything.
I showed up to the Point for LTP thinking we would have little to do the first day, being Sunday. How wrong I was. We hit the ground running and ran non-stop for weeks straight. During LTP I averaged about 5 hours of sleep a night and worked long hard days. It was fun though. The field is a much better environment than garrison and we got to do things like rappelling, shooting, going through the gas chamber, more shooting, soldier first responder (SFR- first aid for combat) and did I mention shooting? We spent 5 days on the ranges with SSG Miller, a Special Forces Staff Sergeant. I learned more about rifles, how to shoot them and what to do when they won't shoot in those five days than all my previous experience combined.
Change of detail finally came. It was time for us to take over training the new cadets and none of us could wait. Exhausted, but excited, we moved our stuff from one barracks to the other while the new cadets were at sponsor homes eating ice cream and calling home. By the next morning the excitement had mostly worn off and we were all left more exhausted than before. The 5 hours of sleep a night turned into 3 hours and 45 minutes almost exact every night.
Luckily, the pace of training slowed. We began with shooting ranges- 5 days again but with us teaching this time. On day one, watching those who had never fired a weapon before made it nerve wracking to think ahead to the training after the shooting ranges, fire team live fire. This is an event where we give new cadets live ammo and have them running through the woods with their buddies, shooting at targets as they pop up. As the squad leader, it would be my job to be in the middle of the group controlling their movements. This meant two iterations of having two new cadets on either side of me with live ammo, running and shooting. Thankfully, by the end of the training before the event I had no hesitation handing every member of my squad (except one for medical reasons) a loaded magazine and having them run next to me. Needless to say there was a lot of progress made and it was quite fun to watch these novices turn into experts almost overnight.
Then for the next week we taught them to rappel, mountain climb, make rope bridges, handle a toxic environment (gas chamber), and various other skills vital to survival in combat. Then for a week we moved on to teaching them how to handle situations where things went wrong in combat (SFR). There are pictures of the gas chamber and learning how to do IV's below.
The last block of training was spent out at beautiful Camp Buckner for a culminating exercise. The Hyde Challenge truly challenged the new cadets on everything they had been taught during beast. For a little under 24 hours my squad conducted operations ranging from shooting (in highly stressful situations) to aiding those who had been ambushed to clearing IEDs. We walked somewhere around 6-8 miles, running much of it, and my squad handled the situations well. There was also a night phase during which we set up a patrol base and ran recon missions all night long. The pictures of the Hyde Challenge are amazing but I cannot show them here because they are owned by the West Point Public Affairs Office. There are some cool pictures of it and the rest of beast here. I will (hopefully) do a separate post about the Hyde Challenge soon.
After the Hyde Challenge the new cadets were given a much needed chance to recover for a couple of days. Sunday afternoon consisted of an awards ceremony (my company won 3 of the 4 awards, including best company) and a talent show. Then it was off to bed before an early (0430) wake-up and marching back to West Point.
March back is a large affair with old grads coming to walk with the new cadets, sharing their stories of the corps and congratulating these young men and women on completing beast. The planned route was 12.2 miles- we ended up going about 14. Moral of the story? Everyone needs to know the route, not just the person in front. Sometimes the person in front gets too far ahead and then nobody else knows where to go!
After march back I had 3 days of administrative work to get myself out-processed from the academy and here I sit at home, looking for a job. I figure between beast and LTP I walked/ran with a pack on my back for about 65 miles and averaged between 3 and 4 hours of sleep a night. Maybe this time without a job is a gift?
The rest of my time at Ft. Jackson got progressively less and less stressful. I went to work at 0600 for PT (physical training- working out) and was usually done by early afternoon. Unfortunately, there isn't much to do around Ft Jackson during the day and because its a college town, there's little of interest to me at night, so there was a lot of time spent sleeping, watching tv, etc. All in all it was a pretty good experience. I saw some things to emulate in my leadership and some things to definitely avoid. Then I headed home for a few weeks of leave and wonderful relaxation.
Two weeks later it was back to work. Basic training at the academy is broken into two parts, or details. First detail consists of mostly garrison work and the administrative side of West Point- lots of issue points, placement testing, etc. Second detail, of which I was a part, consists of the field-type training of a soldier. Before the cadre of either detail can take over and be given new cadets to train the must first go through LTP which is a train-up to make sure they are qualified to teach everything.
I showed up to the Point for LTP thinking we would have little to do the first day, being Sunday. How wrong I was. We hit the ground running and ran non-stop for weeks straight. During LTP I averaged about 5 hours of sleep a night and worked long hard days. It was fun though. The field is a much better environment than garrison and we got to do things like rappelling, shooting, going through the gas chamber, more shooting, soldier first responder (SFR- first aid for combat) and did I mention shooting? We spent 5 days on the ranges with SSG Miller, a Special Forces Staff Sergeant. I learned more about rifles, how to shoot them and what to do when they won't shoot in those five days than all my previous experience combined.
Change of detail finally came. It was time for us to take over training the new cadets and none of us could wait. Exhausted, but excited, we moved our stuff from one barracks to the other while the new cadets were at sponsor homes eating ice cream and calling home. By the next morning the excitement had mostly worn off and we were all left more exhausted than before. The 5 hours of sleep a night turned into 3 hours and 45 minutes almost exact every night.
Luckily, the pace of training slowed. We began with shooting ranges- 5 days again but with us teaching this time. On day one, watching those who had never fired a weapon before made it nerve wracking to think ahead to the training after the shooting ranges, fire team live fire. This is an event where we give new cadets live ammo and have them running through the woods with their buddies, shooting at targets as they pop up. As the squad leader, it would be my job to be in the middle of the group controlling their movements. This meant two iterations of having two new cadets on either side of me with live ammo, running and shooting. Thankfully, by the end of the training before the event I had no hesitation handing every member of my squad (except one for medical reasons) a loaded magazine and having them run next to me. Needless to say there was a lot of progress made and it was quite fun to watch these novices turn into experts almost overnight.
Then for the next week we taught them to rappel, mountain climb, make rope bridges, handle a toxic environment (gas chamber), and various other skills vital to survival in combat. Then for a week we moved on to teaching them how to handle situations where things went wrong in combat (SFR). There are pictures of the gas chamber and learning how to do IV's below.
The last block of training was spent out at beautiful Camp Buckner for a culminating exercise. The Hyde Challenge truly challenged the new cadets on everything they had been taught during beast. For a little under 24 hours my squad conducted operations ranging from shooting (in highly stressful situations) to aiding those who had been ambushed to clearing IEDs. We walked somewhere around 6-8 miles, running much of it, and my squad handled the situations well. There was also a night phase during which we set up a patrol base and ran recon missions all night long. The pictures of the Hyde Challenge are amazing but I cannot show them here because they are owned by the West Point Public Affairs Office. There are some cool pictures of it and the rest of beast here. I will (hopefully) do a separate post about the Hyde Challenge soon.
After the Hyde Challenge the new cadets were given a much needed chance to recover for a couple of days. Sunday afternoon consisted of an awards ceremony (my company won 3 of the 4 awards, including best company) and a talent show. Then it was off to bed before an early (0430) wake-up and marching back to West Point.
March back is a large affair with old grads coming to walk with the new cadets, sharing their stories of the corps and congratulating these young men and women on completing beast. The planned route was 12.2 miles- we ended up going about 14. Moral of the story? Everyone needs to know the route, not just the person in front. Sometimes the person in front gets too far ahead and then nobody else knows where to go!
After march back I had 3 days of administrative work to get myself out-processed from the academy and here I sit at home, looking for a job. I figure between beast and LTP I walked/ran with a pack on my back for about 65 miles and averaged between 3 and 4 hours of sleep a night. Maybe this time without a job is a gift?
Thursday, May 27, 2010
FT Jackson
Its been a busy couple of days but they're going to give me the weekend off (from Friday to Tuesday, Memorial Day is big here) so there's no harm in staying up to write a little bit, right?
The semester is over and I survived grad-week. This year's schedule gave us one morning to sleep in until 0630, an exciting change. Unfortunately, for all the cadre of Beast II (that means me) there was a 6 mile ruck march that morning. We stepped off at 0520. Joy. But the week wasn't all bad. My grades came back and I got about a 3.5 GPA. Decent. About what I was shooting for too. We'll see how that changes my class rank (or not if they don't get it out before I leave).
Graduation itself was quite disappointing. POTUS (President of the United States) was the graduation speaker and gave virtually the same speech he gave when he came before. It was just as boring this time too. What's more, he couldn't be bothered to show up on time. When I say that I don't mean he showed up 5 minutes after the ceremony started but still made it before his introduction. No. His motorcade showed up 5 minutes after his introduction and he didn't come out for 20-25 minutes after that. You know how awkward it is when you're riding in someone's car and the conversation just dies? Imagine that except that its a stadium filled to capacity with people. World's most awkward silence waiting for him to get out of his car. The announcer tried to talk to break up the silence, the band played a couple of songs, combined they both filled about 3 minutes. Dear Mr. President, I know you're not a fan of the military and it really is quite an honor for you to come speak to us but we do have lives and would appreciate not spending all of our time waiting for you (as we did this time and for 4 HOURS last time). Sincerely, Me.
I was invited to one bar-pinning ceremony that afternoon but was unable to attend. I learned afterword that it was a very formal event. LT GEN (3-star general) Franklin "Buster" Hagenbeck conducted and there was a formal meal before the actual ceremony. It would have been nice to be able to be there to give my friend a final farewell as we part ways. He will almost certainly be deployed before my next opportunity to see him (he branched infantry). Through the past couple of years he has been a strong support for me and a close friend. He'll make a wonderful officer.
My first duty for the summer is CTLT (Cadet Troop Leader Training) where we basically job shadow a lieutenant and see what we're supposed to do after we graduate. Getting here was interesting- nothing went to plan. Pretty much all I have to say about that.
Now I'm in beautiful South Carolina. FT Jackson (aka: Relaxin' Jackson) is a beautiful, thickly forested post but so hot and humid that working during the day is miserable. I got here and figured the next day was going to be a fairly relaxing one, ha! Once again while my peers slept I woke up early (0330) for a 10k (roughly, we went a bit further) ruck march. Thankfully basic training soldiers aren't in great shape. Despite my body screaming for sleep from the long night coming down here I was still able to not only complete the march but was doing laps from the front to the back of formation and then to the front again. The load was light and the pace mind numbingly slow, but somehow we still managed to almost lose half a platoon of new soldiers.
We did the night infiltration course that night. That's the one where you crawl out of a trench and across the field while drill sergeants are shooting live tracer rounds over your head. I crawled as a drill sergeant and was responsible for ensuring that nobody froze up and refused to move. Trying to get some of those privates to move out while the guns were firing was definitely a difficult experience. Imagine that, all these tough guys that aren't afraid of anything suddenly change their tune when you start shooting 7.62 rounds at them. All in all I was disappointed, not nearly as exciting as I was hoping for.
Last night I spent the night in the field with the soldiers. They have tents. And sleeping bags. So much softy gear...it could hardly be called a night in the field, more like a camping trip with an armed fire guard rather than a campfire. Still, it was good to get to know them and the drill sergeants a little better. Because they have to ensure that the privates get a certain amount of sleep every night they bedded them down at 2000 (8 pm) I went to bed at 2030-way too early. At 0230 my body was done sleeping. Ya know how much there is to do at o230? Absolutely nothing. It was a long morning.
Being called 'sir' by E-6 and E-7 drill sergeants who have been in the army for almost as long as I've been alive is quite humbling. In a staff meeting today CPT Grover (the company commander) told the cadre to give me all the courtesy and respect they would give himself or LT Holden (my sponsor). I couldn't help but wonder: Why? I'm a cadet. Someday an officer, yes, but not for a long time. Frankly, some of the more squared away privates in the company probably know as much about the army as I do. What qualifies me to be called 'sir' and have them salute? The answer is nothing, but they do it anyways. Quite unnerving really, I don't think I like it.
Now I'm just rambling like I always do when I need to get some sleep. That being said, one last topic. Memorial day is coming up. This is a very sacred day for many people. It is a very humbling experience to be here working closely with men and women who have watched their battle buddies pay the ultimate price. What's more, we're working to train those who are volunteering to lay down their lives. I would ask that regardless of your beliefs, regardless of how you feel about the war and the military, and regardless of your traditions on this day you please respect the veterans who are paying tribute to their fallen and missing comrades and pray for our soldiers both past and present. Just as a final note I want to end this with one of my favorite quotes. There are many versions of it floating around and all are good but I think the original is the most powerful:
The semester is over and I survived grad-week. This year's schedule gave us one morning to sleep in until 0630, an exciting change. Unfortunately, for all the cadre of Beast II (that means me) there was a 6 mile ruck march that morning. We stepped off at 0520. Joy. But the week wasn't all bad. My grades came back and I got about a 3.5 GPA. Decent. About what I was shooting for too. We'll see how that changes my class rank (or not if they don't get it out before I leave).
Graduation itself was quite disappointing. POTUS (President of the United States) was the graduation speaker and gave virtually the same speech he gave when he came before. It was just as boring this time too. What's more, he couldn't be bothered to show up on time. When I say that I don't mean he showed up 5 minutes after the ceremony started but still made it before his introduction. No. His motorcade showed up 5 minutes after his introduction and he didn't come out for 20-25 minutes after that. You know how awkward it is when you're riding in someone's car and the conversation just dies? Imagine that except that its a stadium filled to capacity with people. World's most awkward silence waiting for him to get out of his car. The announcer tried to talk to break up the silence, the band played a couple of songs, combined they both filled about 3 minutes. Dear Mr. President, I know you're not a fan of the military and it really is quite an honor for you to come speak to us but we do have lives and would appreciate not spending all of our time waiting for you (as we did this time and for 4 HOURS last time). Sincerely, Me.
I was invited to one bar-pinning ceremony that afternoon but was unable to attend. I learned afterword that it was a very formal event. LT GEN (3-star general) Franklin "Buster" Hagenbeck conducted and there was a formal meal before the actual ceremony. It would have been nice to be able to be there to give my friend a final farewell as we part ways. He will almost certainly be deployed before my next opportunity to see him (he branched infantry). Through the past couple of years he has been a strong support for me and a close friend. He'll make a wonderful officer.
My first duty for the summer is CTLT (Cadet Troop Leader Training) where we basically job shadow a lieutenant and see what we're supposed to do after we graduate. Getting here was interesting- nothing went to plan. Pretty much all I have to say about that.
Now I'm in beautiful South Carolina. FT Jackson (aka: Relaxin' Jackson) is a beautiful, thickly forested post but so hot and humid that working during the day is miserable. I got here and figured the next day was going to be a fairly relaxing one, ha! Once again while my peers slept I woke up early (0330) for a 10k (roughly, we went a bit further) ruck march. Thankfully basic training soldiers aren't in great shape. Despite my body screaming for sleep from the long night coming down here I was still able to not only complete the march but was doing laps from the front to the back of formation and then to the front again. The load was light and the pace mind numbingly slow, but somehow we still managed to almost lose half a platoon of new soldiers.
We did the night infiltration course that night. That's the one where you crawl out of a trench and across the field while drill sergeants are shooting live tracer rounds over your head. I crawled as a drill sergeant and was responsible for ensuring that nobody froze up and refused to move. Trying to get some of those privates to move out while the guns were firing was definitely a difficult experience. Imagine that, all these tough guys that aren't afraid of anything suddenly change their tune when you start shooting 7.62 rounds at them. All in all I was disappointed, not nearly as exciting as I was hoping for.
Last night I spent the night in the field with the soldiers. They have tents. And sleeping bags. So much softy gear...it could hardly be called a night in the field, more like a camping trip with an armed fire guard rather than a campfire. Still, it was good to get to know them and the drill sergeants a little better. Because they have to ensure that the privates get a certain amount of sleep every night they bedded them down at 2000 (8 pm) I went to bed at 2030-way too early. At 0230 my body was done sleeping. Ya know how much there is to do at o230? Absolutely nothing. It was a long morning.
Being called 'sir' by E-6 and E-7 drill sergeants who have been in the army for almost as long as I've been alive is quite humbling. In a staff meeting today CPT Grover (the company commander) told the cadre to give me all the courtesy and respect they would give himself or LT Holden (my sponsor). I couldn't help but wonder: Why? I'm a cadet. Someday an officer, yes, but not for a long time. Frankly, some of the more squared away privates in the company probably know as much about the army as I do. What qualifies me to be called 'sir' and have them salute? The answer is nothing, but they do it anyways. Quite unnerving really, I don't think I like it.
Now I'm just rambling like I always do when I need to get some sleep. That being said, one last topic. Memorial day is coming up. This is a very sacred day for many people. It is a very humbling experience to be here working closely with men and women who have watched their battle buddies pay the ultimate price. What's more, we're working to train those who are volunteering to lay down their lives. I would ask that regardless of your beliefs, regardless of how you feel about the war and the military, and regardless of your traditions on this day you please respect the veterans who are paying tribute to their fallen and missing comrades and pray for our soldiers both past and present. Just as a final note I want to end this with one of my favorite quotes. There are many versions of it floating around and all are good but I think the original is the most powerful:
"It is the soldier, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press.
It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech.
It is the soldier, not the organizer, who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.
It is the soldier, who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag,
and whose coffin is draped by the flag
who allows the protester to burn the flag."
- Father Dennis Edward O'Brian, USMC
It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech.
It is the soldier, not the organizer, who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.
It is the soldier, who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag,
and whose coffin is draped by the flag
who allows the protester to burn the flag."
- Father Dennis Edward O'Brian, USMC
Please remember to show respect for the flag and those who do serve and have served under it.
(Thanks for the pictures Josie)
(Thanks for the pictures Josie)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)