on the road

We're on the road again at our third stop. I came on the advanced party about eight days before the main body. It has been very interesting so far. We've been very focused on getting our briefings completed. Most things we have done are procedural tasks that everyone needs to move on. The hours have actually been decent by normal standards, save a few incidents. I haven't got to talk to everyone as much as I would like mostly due to not having any privacy. I'm extremely excited about finding out what my job will be at the next stop. Maybe I will find out soon.
I miss vanessa and ellie just as much as I thought I would. Vanessa has done a great job keeping in touch with me and sending me stuff. She's a trooper. I heard Ellie say "dada" after she got off the phone with me. That made my week for sure.

Coming Together

The last four days have been awesome. I've watched Ellie's last two months of growth culminate into eating food off the table, drinking from a sipy-cup, and almost crawling. I can't believe how much she's moving around now. I've got to spend quality time with Vanessa and have a great time, like we always do. I got to spend time with numerous family members and tell everybody that I'll see them in a while. Almost all of my gear has shown up including the boots I ordered in November! The bills are paid and it's time to go. I'm as ready as I'll ever be. One last stop in our own little third-world state, Mississippi.

Nomadic Lifestyle Continues

I've been living out of a bag for the past 6 months or so. The challenges are more numerous and personal than I could ever imagine. Especially when my family is harassed while I'm away. I constantly find myself wondering if I'm doing the right thing. Shortly after that I do what we call, "Getting my mind right." I think about September 11th and the innocent Fathers, Mothers, Brothers, and Sisters that were slain by a delusional enemy that hide cowardly among their own women and children. I also think about my little girl and how many children just like her are now missing a parent or were slain themselves. The same ethic that would make me run a thousand miles to make 1 day easier for my family makes me ruck-up, stay-up, live hard, deal with the pain, and kiss Vanessa and Ellie good-bye over and over again. The later is the hardest.

I'm lucky that I have faith in God, a wonderful family, and the best friends anyone could ask for to support Vanessa and Ellie while I'm away. It truly makes me more effective.

Training Continues

It's the end of week three, only approx. 395 days of madness left! Everything improved this week and I actually got a chance to do my job. Combatives training got a little ruff. We had two black eyes, a chipped tooth, and a lot of hurt feelings. I ended up with a bruised jaw and some scratches on my face but nothing major. I won my match but I out-weighed my opponent by 40 lbs. He was really short which is apparently an advantage in a ground fight. He wouldn't tap-out even though I was about to break his arm in an arm bar. He's a tough dude.

I'm ready to put this event behind us and move on to the next one! I'm also ready to see my girls this evening!

Back to reality

Moving back into the barracks really sucked. The weird thing is that it is all just like college again with more meetings. The pay is a lot better though. The paperwork never ends! The next few days should be interesting because we start training at a MOUT (missions oriented in urban terrain) city. It's where we really get to determine who's who as far as combat leadership is concerned. I'm excited about the training but leaving home gets harder and harder. If Vanessa wouldn't have woke me up this morning I would have had an extra day. Thanks babe. I got up, shaved, dressed, loaded my truck, and left in about 5 mins. It may be a new record.

Home for a minute

I'm home! It took long enough. As I was coming home yesterday the downtown connector and the section of 285 I needed to use where both shut down completely. It took me a couple extra hours to get home. Anyway, we've completed our first two weeks of training and we got a whole lot done at the expense of sleep and comfort. That's definitely how we play the game though. The weather was a little more extreme than I thought. We ran our first spur ride for our squadron. It is a gauntlet of events and if you make it you earn the coveted spurs. It was a great success and 100% of those who finished all tasks needed medical attention when it was all over. 5 new spur holders joined the ranks.

I sure am glad to see my girls. This last two weeks reminded me of how much I will miss them in the near future.

First Army Day

Today was our first full Army day. Let the madness begin. I set off for the office this morning at a brisk 4am. It rained so hard that all three of my bags got we in the back. I stopped and tarped everything but it was too late. It was flooding for sure. The ditches were over-flowing and red mud was running across the roads. After the 2-hour trek to the office I was there until about 830 and I left for another 2 hour trek to post. I got half way and got a call saying the person I was supposed to meet was 3 hours behind me. I killed a few hours at wal-mart and riding around, finding my way to the areas that I know I'm going to be for the next little while. I got a call on about that third hour that both vehicles where broken down. Mechanics left here to meet the vehicles and get them fixed. They fixed them and they headed this way again. They finally got here around 1430. We had our little ten minute meeting and then it was time to draw gear for the ranges. It took forever for some reason. We also had some room issues that required several trips around post. What a nightmare day. I'm optimistic about tomorrow for sure. Physical training will hit hard I'm sure. I haven't been a diligent lately.