The joy continues... Sunday 0400: Alarm goes off. Hurry up and get dressed and put my hair back in a bun. Perhaps the gate guard will confuse me with a man again (it happened, I reamed him for it and his lack of attention to detail; plus, what man drives a Prius while listening to the Christian music station?). By 0430 I am out the door. 0545ish: Arrive at Ellington Field and have a quick debate in my head about if I want to run by Starbucks for a delectable Caramel Apple...read more

• Post Comment

As much as the Army frustrates me, I love it. To be more accurate, I love the people in it. In honor of Veteran's Day this year, I'm going to take the time to thank some of the Soldiers in my life. I encourage you to do the same. Thank you do my dad, The Sarg, for showing me from such an early age what it means choose the hard right over the easy wrong, to live a life of integrity and to take pride in what you accomplish. Thank you for showing Taylor...read more

• 4 Comments

So I knew going into NOV battle assembly that it was going to suck the life blood out of me. No joke. I tried to make the best of it though, but it's now Monday morning and my eyelids keep closing on me. I will preface this by noting that I emailed my team leader telling him I did not receive the monthly newsletter nor the new OPORD. He never emailed me back before the weekend. Saturday, 05 NOV 0215: Yes, you read that right. 0 freakin' 215 in the...read more

• 1 Comment

As many of you already know, Steve Jobs (the genius of a man behind Apple) passed away yesterday. I won't wax on about how much I love my iPhone (when it doesn't lie to me). Instead I want to touch on Steve's incredibly poignant commencement speech at Stanford in 2005. “You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in...read more

• 4 Comments

I said I would post this yesterday but for some reason this site kept logging me out and wouldn't save my work. Seeing as I only get a small reprieve from the joy that is my civilian job, I got fed up and said "Over it!". Today I try again! I know everyone that reads this (Hi, Mom and Dad!) is on the edge of their seats wanting to know what my Sunday at the unit was like. Hold on, kids, because we're diving into a world that involves human urine,...read more

• Post Comment

I noticed I have never done a play-by-play of what it's like on a drill weekend. Take all of this with a grain of salt because 1) my unit is not the "typical unit" and 2) I'm a LT, which means none of this is very enthusing. This is from this past Saturday when I had drill. Sunday will be posted tomorrow. I know, you're excited. Calm down. Saturday 0400: Alarm goes off, put on PTs, grab my backpacks I packed the night before, head out the door...read more

• 1 Comment

I wish politics did not get under my skin the way they do. I already have re-occurring migraines, why add to it? But then I come across something like this and my blood just boils: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/19/us/retiree-benefits-for-the-military-could-face-cuts.html?_r=1&hpw I see this issue from the perspective of a child raised in the military by a man who gave up so much to serve his country. My dad spent 31 years of his life in the Army, he missed numerous...read more

• 5 Comments

6,204 American military personnel killed in both Iraq and Afghanistan operations 141 Military women killed 2,300 American contractors killed 144,000 Service members deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan currently 1,192 Foreign coalition forces killed 18,678 Iraqi and Afghan security forces killed 102,339 Minimum number of Iraqi civilians killed, including by other Iraqis 172 million MREs sent to Iraq and Afghanistan $1,645 monthly pay for an Army private with $225...read more

• Post Comment

This Sunday is the 10 year anniversary of that tragic day in our nation's history, 9/11. I was 15 at the time and a sophomore in high school. I was sitting in my advanced trigonometry class when some of my peers started telling us about this plane that hit some building in New York. Being the smarty pants that I am, I remember saying, "It's called the World Trade Center and the largest structure in the city." Yeah, and I wonder why I was picked...read more

• Post Comment

I came across this interview regarding 9/11 while listening to Fresh Air on NPR. Listen to it and you will hear a tale of a firefighter who survived the collapse of the North Tower. http://www.npr.org/2011/09/07/140035272/nyc-firefighters-share-memories-from-ground-zero

• Post Comment