in 2004, when I got on the C-130 to go to Iraq from Kuwait, I was sick with what they call the "Kuwaiti crud." This is a bug that everyone gets when they first get in theater due to exposure to large amounts of dust, other peoples germs, and, as I like to say, depleted uranium in the soil (probably.) SO, that being said, My ears were clogged, my nose was clogged and I could barely breathe. I got on the plane, expexcting a somewhat normal flight, and instead was treated to an hour and 45 minutes of brutal assault on my senses in every possible way. Just like that. No warning, no leading up to it, just BAM!
Imagine, if you will, being in a flying, metal container (NOT a pressuized cabin of a jet) with 200 other people all encumbered with full body armor and kevlar helmets, packed in tight like sardines. Its about 125 degrees, you just ate an MRE, you have been traveling for 48 hours straight, and you are sick with what amounts to a bad cold. To top it off, you are already nervous because you are flying into an active war zone. You are about as relaxed as Joseph MCCarthy in Communist China. so far, the flight is going somewhat well, so you haven't vomited into your helmet or anything. Then, all of a sudden, the plane begins to lose altitude. RAPIDLY. Ever been on the "Tower of Doom" Ride at an amusement park? Yeah. Like that. Because you are brilliant, you surmise that the plane is about to land, but there is a small part of you that is wondering if all four engines just failed and the plane is plummeting to the ground. So, you look around. All the soldiers are sleeping. SLEEPING. You look at the civilian sitting directly across from you, who gives you somewhat of a reassuring glance. Then, the plane begins to lose altitude much more rapidly. Air begins to rush into your ears. Now, remember, you are sick, so your ears are filling up with air, but not releasing it. You try the plugging your nose and blowing technique, which doesn't work. You start to become slightly alarmed because you have now lost your hearing and your head feels like it's going to explode. You look at the civilian accross from you again, and he mouths "Blow hard.. it is going to hurt". So you do. It feels like someone just punched you in the ear from the inside. Then the plane lands. Welcome to Iraq!
Yeah. That really happened.
The flights now are not much better. You get into theater and immediately you are bussed to Ali Al Salem, or as I like to call it, Hell. You will probably be there for about a week in a tent with 9 or 10 other people. Trying to get on a flight is actually an even bigger pain in the ass then the flight itself, though I can not imagine why. Who the hell would EVER want to get on one of these flights? Crazy people, that's who! But for some reason, there is always a waiting list, so you end up sleeping in the PAX terminal until your name is called. This is actually preferable to sleeping in the tents. By day four, you are ready to get on a plane ANYWHERE, so long as it's not Ali Al Salem. Seriously, I will go to Afghanistan, I don't care. Then, you get on a plane, and have to deal with the above scenario. Welcome to Iraq!
The only positive flight I ever had in theater was on a Blackhawk helicopter. Honestly, if I could helo everywhere around Iraq, all the time, I would. It's a much smoother ride and it's a ton of fun and the pilot seems to know what he's doing. Plus, you then have "I have flown on a Blackhawk Helicopter" bragging rights, which is awesome.
Don't kid yourself, C-17's are not much better. There are more people and actual plane seats, sure. But there is no room between you and the other seats and when a plane that large loses altitude quickly it is far more frightening than a C-130.
I guess what I am trying to say is, working overseas has given me a new appreciation for aircraft. As someone who formerly loved to fly, I can say without a doubt now that there is no part of any flight that I enjoy. Unless I am in first class. But as far as experiences go, this is definitely a story that I enjoy telling over and over again, and it reinforces the statement that I am awesome. I guess, I have kind of my own 'war stories' that I get to tell my grandchildren. What an interesting thought.
Showing posts with label combat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label combat. Show all posts
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
5 Reasons Why I Love Soldiers of the US Military
It has been stated by a few that I have been less than kind to my uniformed counterparts in this blog. I want to say right here and now that I mean absolutely no harm by poking the soliders with a stick, and I am sorry if it offended anyone. And to prove it, I am giving you a list of 10 reasons why I absolutely love working and associating with the US military. Enjoy!
5. Cadence-
A few weeks ago, there was a Groundhog Day 5K run that started at about 4:00 in the morning. Since I work the night shift, I got to see a constant stream of soldiers run past my shop. One unit was running together, doing a cadence. This was not my first exposure to cadence, having deployed with the military before. However, it is something I always thoroughly enjoy. I never know what it is they are saying, and really it doesn’t matter. To me, this act symbolizes the solidarity that the soldiers have, which is, of course, one of the reasons the US military is the greatest in the world. I almost wish I was cadenceing with them, if I didn’t have to run.
4. Soldiers can (and do) sleep ANYwhere.
In 2004 when I was here, I remember a soldier telling me that he slept for 20 minutes every five hours when he was on a mission because that is all the body needs to refresh itself. Now, I am sure that was an extreme case, but can you imagine? 20 minutes every 5 hours?! I would be dead on my feet after two days! Not only did he have to do this, but he was expected to be alert and accountable for his team mates as well!
I have seen soldiers sleep on a C-130 during a combat landing, in the mud in all of their gear while it was raining, in a busy airport on the floor at the gate, in the DFAC (that guy was probably straight exhausted!), packed in to various other aircrafts, on any surface, at any temperature, in any condition, without complaining. A comfortable bed is a luxury to these guys most of the time, and when they get one, you better not bother them! Anyway, I admire the fact that they can sleep like this, because if a mouse sneezes or there is a tiny crumb in my bed, I wake up instantly.
3. Soldiers pray, cry and hug each other openly-
Here they are, the toughest, saltiest dogs on the planet, in a freakin war zone. How would you expect them to act? Like John Wayne in The Green Berets? Me too. Except it’s the complete opposite. Being away from your family, enduring extreme conditions and being faced with your mortality on a daily basis doesn’t make you a hard-nosed, emotionless prick. What it does is it completely cuts out the bullshit façade completely. These guys don’t give a crap if you don’t think they are manly for praying at the dinner table or hugging their buddy, they do it anyway, because dammit, they might not get to do it tomorrow. They cry when they get care packages from their kids and tell their wives and girlfriends they love them on the phone every single time. They do this without being afraid they have to somehow defend their sexuality to their battle buddies and without any ego.
2. Soldiers motivate and care for the people around them-
When I first got to CRC, there was this big ass hill that we all had to walk up to get to some of our briefings. I suppose it really wasn’t that bad of a hill, but I was ridiculously out of shape and it was about 85 degrees in Georgia, so I had a hard time making it up the hill. There was one point when I really, honestly and truly thought I was going to pass out. Another contractor and former solider, Oz, slowed down a little bit to walk with me and carried my backpack, so I wouldn’t fall out of formation and I wouldn’t pass out. (WHY were civilians in formation anyway? Who knows!) Not exactly one of my finer moments, admittedly, but it forever cemented my friendship with Oz from that point on. Aside from being horribly embarrassing, this is a perfect example of the types of things that soliders will do for you. We had to walk up that hill every single day, and every single day Oz would grab my backpack and walk with me, giving me a motivating pep talk the whole way.
Just the other day, another soldier did something nice that surprised me. I have had a particularly nasty hacking cough for about a week now (something to do with inhaling large amounts of sand) and my CHU neighbor showed up at my door with some cough syrup and some Halls cough drops. That means he actually walked all the way up to the PX to by them for me and walked back to give them to me. I have to admit, I was really touched that there was someone out there who did something nice without asking still. The same guy has been driving me nuts for months with his loud tv and phone conversations while I am trying to sleep. But now, when I hear his tv, I just smile and go back to sleep. A little courtesy goes a long way, and this soldier knew that.
2. Soldiers motivate and care for the people around them-
Not only do they do it right, they do it right the FIRST time. Could this be a product of months of psychological conditioning that if they don’t, their NCO/CO/ETC is going to come down on them hard? Probably. However, I prefer to think that they actually take pride in doing their job and doing it correctly. For every lazy bad apple there are one thousand dedicated, hardworking men and women who know their jobs inside and out, can do it better than most civilians with 5 times the experience in the trade, and do it more efficiently. The standard shift for most soldiers is 12 hours., but most work between 16 and 19 hour days, because they want to get the job done. At least here anyway.
There are so many other reasons I love soldiers. One of the main reasons not mentioned here is that they have greta senses of humor and don't mind when a wily civilian pokes fun at them. So please, don't take anything I say here seriously, because as you can see, I really do admire the soldiers a great deal.
5. Cadence-
A few weeks ago, there was a Groundhog Day 5K run that started at about 4:00 in the morning. Since I work the night shift, I got to see a constant stream of soldiers run past my shop. One unit was running together, doing a cadence. This was not my first exposure to cadence, having deployed with the military before. However, it is something I always thoroughly enjoy. I never know what it is they are saying, and really it doesn’t matter. To me, this act symbolizes the solidarity that the soldiers have, which is, of course, one of the reasons the US military is the greatest in the world. I almost wish I was cadenceing with them, if I didn’t have to run.
4. Soldiers can (and do) sleep ANYwhere.
In 2004 when I was here, I remember a soldier telling me that he slept for 20 minutes every five hours when he was on a mission because that is all the body needs to refresh itself. Now, I am sure that was an extreme case, but can you imagine? 20 minutes every 5 hours?! I would be dead on my feet after two days! Not only did he have to do this, but he was expected to be alert and accountable for his team mates as well!
I have seen soldiers sleep on a C-130 during a combat landing, in the mud in all of their gear while it was raining, in a busy airport on the floor at the gate, in the DFAC (that guy was probably straight exhausted!), packed in to various other aircrafts, on any surface, at any temperature, in any condition, without complaining. A comfortable bed is a luxury to these guys most of the time, and when they get one, you better not bother them! Anyway, I admire the fact that they can sleep like this, because if a mouse sneezes or there is a tiny crumb in my bed, I wake up instantly.
3. Soldiers pray, cry and hug each other openly-
Here they are, the toughest, saltiest dogs on the planet, in a freakin war zone. How would you expect them to act? Like John Wayne in The Green Berets? Me too. Except it’s the complete opposite. Being away from your family, enduring extreme conditions and being faced with your mortality on a daily basis doesn’t make you a hard-nosed, emotionless prick. What it does is it completely cuts out the bullshit façade completely. These guys don’t give a crap if you don’t think they are manly for praying at the dinner table or hugging their buddy, they do it anyway, because dammit, they might not get to do it tomorrow. They cry when they get care packages from their kids and tell their wives and girlfriends they love them on the phone every single time. They do this without being afraid they have to somehow defend their sexuality to their battle buddies and without any ego.
2. Soldiers motivate and care for the people around them-
When I first got to CRC, there was this big ass hill that we all had to walk up to get to some of our briefings. I suppose it really wasn’t that bad of a hill, but I was ridiculously out of shape and it was about 85 degrees in Georgia, so I had a hard time making it up the hill. There was one point when I really, honestly and truly thought I was going to pass out. Another contractor and former solider, Oz, slowed down a little bit to walk with me and carried my backpack, so I wouldn’t fall out of formation and I wouldn’t pass out. (WHY were civilians in formation anyway? Who knows!) Not exactly one of my finer moments, admittedly, but it forever cemented my friendship with Oz from that point on. Aside from being horribly embarrassing, this is a perfect example of the types of things that soliders will do for you. We had to walk up that hill every single day, and every single day Oz would grab my backpack and walk with me, giving me a motivating pep talk the whole way.
Just the other day, another soldier did something nice that surprised me. I have had a particularly nasty hacking cough for about a week now (something to do with inhaling large amounts of sand) and my CHU neighbor showed up at my door with some cough syrup and some Halls cough drops. That means he actually walked all the way up to the PX to by them for me and walked back to give them to me. I have to admit, I was really touched that there was someone out there who did something nice without asking still. The same guy has been driving me nuts for months with his loud tv and phone conversations while I am trying to sleep. But now, when I hear his tv, I just smile and go back to sleep. A little courtesy goes a long way, and this soldier knew that.
2. Soldiers motivate and care for the people around them-
Not only do they do it right, they do it right the FIRST time. Could this be a product of months of psychological conditioning that if they don’t, their NCO/CO/ETC is going to come down on them hard? Probably. However, I prefer to think that they actually take pride in doing their job and doing it correctly. For every lazy bad apple there are one thousand dedicated, hardworking men and women who know their jobs inside and out, can do it better than most civilians with 5 times the experience in the trade, and do it more efficiently. The standard shift for most soldiers is 12 hours., but most work between 16 and 19 hour days, because they want to get the job done. At least here anyway.
There are so many other reasons I love soldiers. One of the main reasons not mentioned here is that they have greta senses of humor and don't mind when a wily civilian pokes fun at them. So please, don't take anything I say here seriously, because as you can see, I really do admire the soldiers a great deal.
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