Today I was supposed to be at COB Speicher for a meeting with the DTO of MND-North. Thanks to the ubiquitous sandstorm I’m still in LSAA. The meeting was rescheduled. Instead of a busy day I was left with a slow day. Most of my time (that I actually spent working today) was expended on updating my “Battle Book” and team continuity folders. Remember the command visit that never happened? It’s back on again. I’ll be ready though. My team will be ready too. I’d just call it an inconvenient necessity of being in the Army. Command visits happen. It will have to be brief where my team is concerned. We’ve got another mission coming up fast.
There’s a syndrome that Joes fall into when deployed. It’s the “I’ll never” syndrome. I’ll use something very simple to explain. Every single day you’ll find chicken of some variety in the DFAC. It doesn’t take long before the syndrome hits. You’ll be sitting at a table when you overhear nearby conversation. One Joe says to the other, “when this deployment is over I’ll never eat chicken again!” Chicken is a great example because I’ve heard countless Joes claim they’d never eat it again. What’s the reality of the “I’ll never” syndrome? It’s all hype. In the case of chicken, Joe ends his deployment and goes home. Like any other Joe he makes the rounds visiting family and friends, where he’s feted large meals and other clichés of the homecoming. Mom cooks up a big pot of chicken dumplings, or chicken cacciatore, or buttermilk fried chicken, or smoked barbeque chicken, or any other one of those hometown favorite recipes for poultry. What’s Joe doing? He’s chowing down on that very meat he vowed he’d never eat again. That’s the reality of the “I’ll never” syndrome. I’ve heard the “I’ll never” applied to just about anything associated with deployment. Some notables include walking on gravel, going camping, spending vacation somewhere hot, and working outside. It’s only a short matter of time before Joe is back on the block doing everything he vowed he’d never do again. It’s funny. Has it ever applied to me? Hell yes. I remember saying I’d never eat rice (another food always in the DFAC) again. I’ve said the same about chicken and always succumbed to mom’s fried chicken. All a person has to do is go on deployment. Within weeks there will be something you’ll never do (or eat) again. At least that’s what you think.
After work I went to the Green Beans on the west side. I hadn’t been in a while since I’d been traveling. I sat with my friend Terry. He’s a Major in the combat aviation brigade and a regular at karaoke. Turned out they were having a “sing off”. I entered. The top four singers – based on fan response – were the winners. I was in the top four. What was the prize? They gave us each a portable water mister that clips to your belt. You fill the thing with water, pump it up, and mist sprays from the flexible hose. It looked to me like a penis pump. So I got a water misting penis pump. Great. Glad I entered the sing-off.
There’s a syndrome that Joes fall into when deployed. It’s the “I’ll never” syndrome. I’ll use something very simple to explain. Every single day you’ll find chicken of some variety in the DFAC. It doesn’t take long before the syndrome hits. You’ll be sitting at a table when you overhear nearby conversation. One Joe says to the other, “when this deployment is over I’ll never eat chicken again!” Chicken is a great example because I’ve heard countless Joes claim they’d never eat it again. What’s the reality of the “I’ll never” syndrome? It’s all hype. In the case of chicken, Joe ends his deployment and goes home. Like any other Joe he makes the rounds visiting family and friends, where he’s feted large meals and other clichés of the homecoming. Mom cooks up a big pot of chicken dumplings, or chicken cacciatore, or buttermilk fried chicken, or smoked barbeque chicken, or any other one of those hometown favorite recipes for poultry. What’s Joe doing? He’s chowing down on that very meat he vowed he’d never eat again. That’s the reality of the “I’ll never” syndrome. I’ve heard the “I’ll never” applied to just about anything associated with deployment. Some notables include walking on gravel, going camping, spending vacation somewhere hot, and working outside. It’s only a short matter of time before Joe is back on the block doing everything he vowed he’d never do again. It’s funny. Has it ever applied to me? Hell yes. I remember saying I’d never eat rice (another food always in the DFAC) again. I’ve said the same about chicken and always succumbed to mom’s fried chicken. All a person has to do is go on deployment. Within weeks there will be something you’ll never do (or eat) again. At least that’s what you think.
After work I went to the Green Beans on the west side. I hadn’t been in a while since I’d been traveling. I sat with my friend Terry. He’s a Major in the combat aviation brigade and a regular at karaoke. Turned out they were having a “sing off”. I entered. The top four singers – based on fan response – were the winners. I was in the top four. What was the prize? They gave us each a portable water mister that clips to your belt. You fill the thing with water, pump it up, and mist sprays from the flexible hose. It looked to me like a penis pump. So I got a water misting penis pump. Great. Glad I entered the sing-off.
2 comments:
Ok, the tent picture is freaking me out. All you fine folks are sitting around in a tent--with no helmets! Yikes!
Also, do you really think it's really about "I'll never" or is it actually about, "I'm looking forward to a time in the future when I'll have a choice"? I'm curious. I think it's the latter, but I've never been in similar circumstances. I appreciate all of you and the sacrifices you are making.
Noticed everyone is wearing the reflective belts you mentioned in an earlier blog. At first I couldn't figure out what it was and then the "light bulb" went on so to speak.
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