Ladies and Gents,
Hello again. It has been much too long since my last entry. Over a month. A million reasons why I have not written. But here I am again. I just want to say hi to Natalie, Michael, and Anti and I hope you are having fun in NY.
What's going on here? Well, the Afghan presidential election will occur on 8/20. There are three candidates. Obviously Karzi is one. Abdullah Abdullah is another, and Ghanzi is the third. When I ask the Afghans we see who will be the winner they all think Karzi but they do not know if that is best for the country. None of the military even cares who wins but we would like to see it executed safely and changes instituted to curb the rampant corruption. Its incredible.
The average Afghan is a pawn. He makes about $100 (us) monthly and rent is typically 400-500 (us) dollars. So, multiple generations live together in small house in Kabul. I suspect it is much worse in the countryside. Probably living in tents.
The average lifespan is @ 42 for men and 40 for women. Childbirth hemmorhage is the leading cuase of female death 265/1000 live births. Infant mortality (children that die before the age of 5) is the highest outside of Africa. Malnutrition and access to clean water are some of the worst in the world. There is been no effort in upgrading infrastructure since the early 70's because there has been continued fighting since that time. Pretty depressing if you think about it.
Anyway, 8/17 marks my 2 month mark here. After that only 4 months remain. The days go by slow but the weeks fast.
I want to thank you all for keeping in touch and sending the many emails and letter. Keep it up. I miss Natalie and the kids more each passing day and look forward to getting home.
Love and best,
Fran
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Kabul
Hello again,
I have been in Kabul for a week at this point and have had some interaction with the locals. Some of the Dari language is similiar to arabic. The greetings and religious things. That makes sense because the Arabs ruled over Afghanistan from around 900 AD to just before the period of European colonization around 1700's. That is a long stretch. Parts of Northern Afghanistan along the border of the other "Stans" was controlled by the ottoman turks. After that, the Russians. They just obtained independance after the Soviet union collapsed.
So, what is Kabul like? It is a city of about 4-5 million people that has a river (the Kabul) running through the center in a valley at an elevation of about 6000 feet surrounded by mountains that rise up to a least twice that. The city had a population of about 2.5 million 10 years ago but given the violence and lack of opportunity the people have moved to the cities in search of work.
I would say that Afghanistan is a "fourth world" country. It is poor. It has little to no infrastructure. The illiteracy rate is aound 80 percent. Illiteracy is also prevalent amongst many of the leadership. They all survived the Russian, the Taliban , and us and are basically warlords that are trying to leverage their position to get rich. Nepotism, corruption, tribalism is rempant.
The central government is quite weak as loyalty is shown first to family, tribe, ethnic group, than country. Much different than what we are used to. Little faith is put in the system it will be a multigenerational path to change.
Anyway, glad I had a chance to post this. Must run to work. More to follow. Miss you all.
Love,
Fran
I have been in Kabul for a week at this point and have had some interaction with the locals. Some of the Dari language is similiar to arabic. The greetings and religious things. That makes sense because the Arabs ruled over Afghanistan from around 900 AD to just before the period of European colonization around 1700's. That is a long stretch. Parts of Northern Afghanistan along the border of the other "Stans" was controlled by the ottoman turks. After that, the Russians. They just obtained independance after the Soviet union collapsed.
So, what is Kabul like? It is a city of about 4-5 million people that has a river (the Kabul) running through the center in a valley at an elevation of about 6000 feet surrounded by mountains that rise up to a least twice that. The city had a population of about 2.5 million 10 years ago but given the violence and lack of opportunity the people have moved to the cities in search of work.
I would say that Afghanistan is a "fourth world" country. It is poor. It has little to no infrastructure. The illiteracy rate is aound 80 percent. Illiteracy is also prevalent amongst many of the leadership. They all survived the Russian, the Taliban , and us and are basically warlords that are trying to leverage their position to get rich. Nepotism, corruption, tribalism is rempant.
The central government is quite weak as loyalty is shown first to family, tribe, ethnic group, than country. Much different than what we are used to. Little faith is put in the system it will be a multigenerational path to change.
Anyway, glad I had a chance to post this. Must run to work. More to follow. Miss you all.
Love,
Fran
Thursday, June 18, 2009
The Rest of The Trip
I last left off bringing everyone up to date regarding my travels and left off in Kuwait. While there we participated in some additional training which consisted of going to the pistol range and performing convoy operations in preparation for the mission in Afghanistan. I have pictures to post in the next blog entry.
From there the group I had been through all the training in South Carolina with began being sectioned off. Some went to the Horn of Africa, others to Iraq, Bahrain, other locations in Kuwait, and about a third to support military operations in Afghanistan.
Every group that was being pushed forward departed in the middle of the night. Maybe the average Kuwaiti does not like to think that there are thousands of armed and well trained American combatants in there country. I can say I can't blame them but we did save them from being subjugated to rule by Saddam in the early 90's.
We were bussed to the Kuwait Internation Airport, military area and boarded a military cargo plane called a C-17. An impressive piece of American ingenuity. We were packed in with our gear and after 4 hours of flight landed in Bagram Air Base in Northern Afghanistan. It is a sprawling compound in the mountains. Located at an elevation of about 8000 feet. The Soviets built it and the UN or coalition forces call it home now. There are forces from many countries as diverse as the Koreans to Macedonians, to Peruvians. The Egyptians runs a hospital for local Afghani's and the other Muslim nations include Turkey.
There is absolutely no chance that base will ever engage with the enemy. The biggest threat we have is to ourselves or maybe getting run over by a vehicle. Not exactly what the Marines are facing down in the South. I believe the ratio of actual trigger pullers to support personell is 1:10. That's incedible.
We berthed in a 100 man tent with many other transients coming and going. After three days we were on a convoy in armored vehicle from Bagram to Kabul, Camp Eggers.
I met me relief (the guy I am replacing) last night and met other members of the team. He explained the job to me and remains very upbeat about his time in Kabul. More to follow on this topic.
All in all it has been quite a trip. I am finally here and look forward to settling into a routine and getting home. Miss you all especially Nat and the boys.....
Love to all....
Fran
From there the group I had been through all the training in South Carolina with began being sectioned off. Some went to the Horn of Africa, others to Iraq, Bahrain, other locations in Kuwait, and about a third to support military operations in Afghanistan.
Every group that was being pushed forward departed in the middle of the night. Maybe the average Kuwaiti does not like to think that there are thousands of armed and well trained American combatants in there country. I can say I can't blame them but we did save them from being subjugated to rule by Saddam in the early 90's.
We were bussed to the Kuwait Internation Airport, military area and boarded a military cargo plane called a C-17. An impressive piece of American ingenuity. We were packed in with our gear and after 4 hours of flight landed in Bagram Air Base in Northern Afghanistan. It is a sprawling compound in the mountains. Located at an elevation of about 8000 feet. The Soviets built it and the UN or coalition forces call it home now. There are forces from many countries as diverse as the Koreans to Macedonians, to Peruvians. The Egyptians runs a hospital for local Afghani's and the other Muslim nations include Turkey.
There is absolutely no chance that base will ever engage with the enemy. The biggest threat we have is to ourselves or maybe getting run over by a vehicle. Not exactly what the Marines are facing down in the South. I believe the ratio of actual trigger pullers to support personell is 1:10. That's incedible.
We berthed in a 100 man tent with many other transients coming and going. After three days we were on a convoy in armored vehicle from Bagram to Kabul, Camp Eggers.
I met me relief (the guy I am replacing) last night and met other members of the team. He explained the job to me and remains very upbeat about his time in Kabul. More to follow on this topic.
All in all it has been quite a trip. I am finally here and look forward to settling into a routine and getting home. Miss you all especially Nat and the boys.....
Love to all....
Fran
Friday, June 12, 2009
Longest Day Part II
I'm back.....
We boarded the plan with a sense of gratitude and thinking we were really appreciated. That euphoria ended abruptly as the flight plans were announced. We would stop in Canada, Iceland, Germany, and land in Kuwait at 1:30 in the morning local time.
After a quick calculation in my head the math did not make sense. It should be 1:30 in the afternoon. I raised my hand,"Don't you mean PM?" She promptly and with great zeal exclaimed, "No." What was I thinking?...It was a classic rookie mistake. As looked down in a dissapointed embarrassment I saw that I was wearing a military uniform. What was I doing asking sensible questions? The other officers snickered at me and wondered if I was a reservist. I could read their thoughts, "Go to sleep huckleberry and don't let us catch you crying for your Momma!"
The layover in Canada was brief but it felt longer because they would not let us out of the plane. As I attempted to get the crick out of my neck I looked out the window and much to my surprise there was snow on the ground. This might be the last snow for a while!
2 movies later we landed in Iceland. I read somewhere they had gone bankrupt. But they let us out anyway. This time of year the sun never sets there.
Here are three bottles of "Viking Beer" that some of the sailors drank. Not me Mom!
We boarded the plane and three movies later we landed in Germany. I am not allowed to say the name of the town but it definitely had a Eastern European feel. I was spooked when we were loaded into busses and made to walk single file into a holding area by tired appearing woman in a gray uniform. The woman handed blue passes and passed instructions to the group. Unfortunately for us the directions were in German. The guy standing next to me and I look at eachother and swallowed hard. Wasn't Aushwitz in Poland?"After all it was the "Longest Day." Maybe they held a grudge?
I've been known to exaggerate. Just ask Natalie. It makes her crazy. But, my philosophy is this: don't let a white lie get in the way of a good story......am I right?.....looking for some validation. Elizabeth and Regina...do you feel me? Plus, on the random chance you get in a conversation with a sailor; if he begins the story by saying,"Hey, this is a no shitter..." just go with it. Its your contribution to the war effort.
But right after the woman yelled into the loud speaker two middle aged German men dressed in drab eastern european clothing came out pushing a vendor's cart laden with bratwurst, sourkraut, and beans. I could believe it! Thank goodness there would be no smoking on the last leg of the flight to Kuwait because that's a volitile meal.
But, it gets better. The lay over in this airport was 15 hours!!! 15 fricken hours!!!
The woman that gave us the tickets then approached a doorway and opened it with a key. Inside were the beds you see above. We ate and slept only occassionally awakened by the symphony of noises our German hosts had provided for us with the previous meal.
As I lay down to sleep I realized my long day had come to an end. I lay with a full belly on a comfortable bed provided by a country we had been in an all out war with only 65 years earlier. Amazing. Something in me doubts that in 65 years Afghanistan will be a place a US service member could be resting comfortably. I'll let you know.
Love and enjoy
Fran
The Longest Day...Part I
It is often spoken that the soldiers and sailors that landed on the Beaches of Normandy on Jun 6th, 1944 were the bravest of all Americans. The cemetaries on the shores of France atest to the sacrifices they made. It is said that Roosevelt and Ike wept when the order was given. As I am sure many of the family members wept at home. For that reason its been called the "Longest Day." Well, 65 years later another US service member boarded a plane to serve his country in a distant land. Let me tell you....at the end there was plenty of weeping. 06 Jun 2009 was also the longest day!
It started at Fort Jackson with these forboding clouds seen above. Quickly lightening and thunder followed. Our flight could not land and our bags which lay prepared uncovered in a stake truck were soaked. We assembled at midnight just to be told to go to sleep. Our barracks had been emptied of linens but we dutifully laid down and slept fitfully on mattresses worthy of death row inmates at Sing-Sing dodging water drops from the leaking roof trying avoid getting the "crabs."
We woke up and rode out to a hanger at the airport in Columbia, SC and were surprised to be greated by USO and VFW folks wishing a safe travels. That was truly a heart felt surprise. One guy drove all the may from Kentucky just to wish 120 stangers safe travels and Godspeed!
They formed a tunnel and we shook every last persons hand! You can see above! These folks went above and beyond! In fact one older woman was dressed in a red, white, and blue outfit and gave every last one of us a kiss. Wow..........maybe she was the woman in the Times Square post card with the sailor after VJ day!!! Now we know "whatever happen to her?"
The other picture is the group assembling to get flight instruction from the crew.
Let me publish this post and add more pictures to the next.
Fran
Travels
Hello,
It has been a while since I have logged in. This is because I am currently in Kuwait and the blog directions are written in Arabic. Took some help figuring it out. I did not expect to be able to post so this one will be short.
Much has happened since the last post and I have also have pictures to share. So, hang in there and I will do it tonight!!!
Otherwise, I am well and look forward to sharing my adventures with you!
Love,
Fran
It has been a while since I have logged in. This is because I am currently in Kuwait and the blog directions are written in Arabic. Took some help figuring it out. I did not expect to be able to post so this one will be short.
Much has happened since the last post and I have also have pictures to share. So, hang in there and I will do it tonight!!!
Otherwise, I am well and look forward to sharing my adventures with you!
Love,
Fran
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Packing the seabag
Seabag: noun, a cylindrical drawstring bag used by sailors to hold their clothing and other gear
That definition is for the non-sailors in the group. Pictures will help. Alas, I am treating you all like civilians. In the military we say cilivilians. Pronounced silly-vilians. I think everyone gets the picture. We have all seen the movies with airport, bus, or train terminal scene. There is always a sailor with a seabag in the background. Most often he gets killed as collateral damage.
So yes, the seabag carries a our clothing and other items and no, it is not the most efficient means of transporting equipment. But, there is the right way, wrong way, and the Navy way.
A seabag is much more than a bag with a more crap in it. It is a transition. Packing one's seabag means it is time to go. And the places that seabags are taken do not include your family. No one packs their seabag to go to "The Cape", a weekend getaway to Santa Barbara, or to meet up with some "high school buddies" in Vegas. It is the Navy's version of a business trip. A trip in which we usually visit distant countries that are very hot, loaded with natural resources, and populated by little people with brown eyes and dark hair. Bit of gallows humor.
For me packing the seabag is therapeutic. It means putting everything you know and care about you behind, getting your mind focused around the task that lies in front of you, and getting on with it.
My seabags are packed. My mind is focused. I am ready. Let's get it on!
Love to all......
Fran
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Managing uncertainty
The training the group embarked upon at Fort Jackson in Columbia, South Carolina is nearly complete. We finish on Wed. From there we receive our flight schedule arrangements to Kuwait and then Afghanistan.
Sunday is always a day that is slow because there is no training. As the old expression goes....idle time is the devil's playground. I can see by the actions and looks on the people's faces that a lot of introspection is going on. The next phase of our deployment is upon us and with it comes the uncertainty of what lays ahead.
I overheard someone once say that those that succeed best at business were those that had the best ability to handle or manage risk. That may be true. But if one thinks about it all that is at stake is money and professional reputation.
Introspection and managing uncertainty is truly the the domain of the deploying military forces. All outside distractions are stripped away. One is uprooted from family. Everyday challenges are removed and the focus becomes preparation for the task at hand. The evenings and down time are when the mind begins to wonder. You all get it. The personal management of uncertainty.
What does one lean on for solace in managing uncertainty: Shipmates, family, God, knowlledge that the chain of command has your best interests at heart. The last one is what creates the most angst. Let's hope so.
Coping skills include compartmentalizing thoughts in your mind.....Well, enough about that subject.
I know today back in the New York metro area Lilly is making her 1st communion. Great! Love you all. Hope you all check out this blog. Made especially for you. Elizabeth.....show everyone how to use it.....
Meanwhile back in San Diego.......the kids have two weeks of school left and summer preparations are being made for them to spend some time in Portland, Arizona, and New York. Should be a great summer for them. Hope they get to see all of you.
Lastly, I would be remiss without saying God bless and best wishes to Brian and the Jamisons. Brian starts work in Memphis Monday. Love you all...in my prayers...
A lot of uncertainty for clan Hall in general. Let's pick those lemons and start making lemonade.
Love to all.......especially Natalie,
Fran
Sunday is always a day that is slow because there is no training. As the old expression goes....idle time is the devil's playground. I can see by the actions and looks on the people's faces that a lot of introspection is going on. The next phase of our deployment is upon us and with it comes the uncertainty of what lays ahead.
I overheard someone once say that those that succeed best at business were those that had the best ability to handle or manage risk. That may be true. But if one thinks about it all that is at stake is money and professional reputation.
Introspection and managing uncertainty is truly the the domain of the deploying military forces. All outside distractions are stripped away. One is uprooted from family. Everyday challenges are removed and the focus becomes preparation for the task at hand. The evenings and down time are when the mind begins to wonder. You all get it. The personal management of uncertainty.
What does one lean on for solace in managing uncertainty: Shipmates, family, God, knowlledge that the chain of command has your best interests at heart. The last one is what creates the most angst. Let's hope so.
Coping skills include compartmentalizing thoughts in your mind.....Well, enough about that subject.
I know today back in the New York metro area Lilly is making her 1st communion. Great! Love you all. Hope you all check out this blog. Made especially for you. Elizabeth.....show everyone how to use it.....
Meanwhile back in San Diego.......the kids have two weeks of school left and summer preparations are being made for them to spend some time in Portland, Arizona, and New York. Should be a great summer for them. Hope they get to see all of you.
Lastly, I would be remiss without saying God bless and best wishes to Brian and the Jamisons. Brian starts work in Memphis Monday. Love you all...in my prayers...
A lot of uncertainty for clan Hall in general. Let's pick those lemons and start making lemonade.
Love to all.......especially Natalie,
Fran
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
What the barracks looks like
We have a week left in training in South Carolina. The weather is on the brink of turning quite hot and humid with almost daily thunderstorms to break up the thick humidity. Today (Wed 5/27), is to be 91 degrees and 97% humidity and chance of afternoon showers. These two pictures display our barracks living arrangements. Not bad for three weeks.
Came across this poem from Kipling about the British incursions into Afganistan. They have been in there 4 timres in the last 200 years all wound up in defeat.
FORD O' KABUL RIVER
Kabul town's by Kabul river--Blow the bugle, draw the sword--There I lef' my mate for ever,Wet an' drippin' by the ford.Ford, ford, ford o' Kabul river,Ford o' Kabul river in the dark!There's the river up and brimmin', an' there's 'arf a squadron swimmin''Cross the ford o' Kabul river in the dark.
Kabul town's a blasted place--Blow the bugle, draw the sword--'Strewth I sha'n't forget 'is faceWet an' drippin' by the ford!Ford, ford, ford o' Kabul river,Ford o' Kabul river in the dark!Keep the crossing-stakes beside you, an' they will surely guide you'Cross the ford o' Kabul river in the dark.
Kabul town is sun and dust--Blow the bugle, draw the sword--I'd ha' sooner drownded fust'Stead of 'im beside the ford.Ford, ford, ford o' Kabul river,Ford o' Kabul river in the dark!You can 'ear the 'orses threshin', you can 'ear the men a-splashin','Cross the ford o' Kabul river in the dark.
Kabul town was ours to take--Blow the bugle, draw the sword--I'd ha' left it for 'is sake--'Im that left me by the ford.Ford, ford, ford o' Kabul river,Ford o' Kabul river in the dark!It's none so bloomin' dry there; ain't you never comin' nigh there,'Cross the ford o' Kabul river in the dark?
Kabul town'll go to hell--Blow the bugle, draw the sword--'Fore I see him 'live an' well--'Im the best beside the ford.Ford, ford, ford o' Kabul river,Ford o' Kabul river in the dark!Gawd 'elp 'em if they blunder, for their boots'll pull 'em under,By the ford o' Kabul river in the dark.
Turn your 'orse from Kabul town--Blow the bugle, draw the sword--'Im an' 'arf my troop is down,Down an' drownded by the ford.Ford, ford, ford o' Kabul river,Ford o' Kabul river in the dark!There's the river low an' fallin', but it ain't no use o' callin''Cross the ford o' Kabul river in the dark.
Kabul town's by Kabul river--Blow the bugle, draw the sword--There I lef' my mate for ever,Wet an' drippin' by the ford.Ford, ford, ford o' Kabul river,Ford o' Kabul river in the dark!There's the river up and brimmin', an' there's 'arf a squadron swimmin''Cross the ford o' Kabul river in the dark.
Kabul town's a blasted place--Blow the bugle, draw the sword--'Strewth I sha'n't forget 'is faceWet an' drippin' by the ford!Ford, ford, ford o' Kabul river,Ford o' Kabul river in the dark!Keep the crossing-stakes beside you, an' they will surely guide you'Cross the ford o' Kabul river in the dark.
Kabul town is sun and dust--Blow the bugle, draw the sword--I'd ha' sooner drownded fust'Stead of 'im beside the ford.Ford, ford, ford o' Kabul river,Ford o' Kabul river in the dark!You can 'ear the 'orses threshin', you can 'ear the men a-splashin','Cross the ford o' Kabul river in the dark.
Kabul town was ours to take--Blow the bugle, draw the sword--I'd ha' left it for 'is sake--'Im that left me by the ford.Ford, ford, ford o' Kabul river,Ford o' Kabul river in the dark!It's none so bloomin' dry there; ain't you never comin' nigh there,'Cross the ford o' Kabul river in the dark?
Kabul town'll go to hell--Blow the bugle, draw the sword--'Fore I see him 'live an' well--'Im the best beside the ford.Ford, ford, ford o' Kabul river,Ford o' Kabul river in the dark!Gawd 'elp 'em if they blunder, for their boots'll pull 'em under,By the ford o' Kabul river in the dark.
Turn your 'orse from Kabul town--Blow the bugle, draw the sword--'Im an' 'arf my troop is down,Down an' drownded by the ford.Ford, ford, ford o' Kabul river,Ford o' Kabul river in the dark!There's the river low an' fallin', but it ain't no use o' callin''Cross the ford o' Kabul river in the dark.
A hard and ominous land!
Here is a great video about killing time and the competitve nature of those in uniform. 120 people had to go through the range. There were only 14 lanes. So, many people were sitting and waiting. What to do? Put a can on top of a post and see who can knock it down. The military expression is hurry up and wait. Find something to do to fill up the "wait" portion.
Talk to you all soon. BTW, Natalie and I shared our 8th anniversary yesterday! Thanks!
Sunday, May 24, 2009
More pictures
Here is me shooting at the 9 mill range from twenty five meters. Great picture because one can see the shell casing being ejected from the magazine. The strange looking attachment on my shoulder part of the body armour (battle rattle) we wear.
We went to the 9mm pistol qualification. Unfortunately, the video clip was too big to load. As we can see the range is rigorously monitored by instructors. It is quite funny to hear the comments about the range. One is "we are so close to the target at 3 meters that we will go to jail even if the target is an enemy combatatnt. Therefore three rounds will have to be expended. One for the Taliban and one each for the CNN newsman and cameraman." After all, who wants to go to Gitmo?
Pictures
Must apologize for some spelling errors in the last post. I will be more diligent about checking before formally posting.
Included on this will be some pictures from the previous week's training. Some pixs of the M 16 rifle range and us firing at the targets. great fun. We had great instruction and wound up better shots than we thought. More pics to follow. Enjoy.
Fran
Saturday, May 23, 2009
"Army Training"
To all,
The first week of Army training is completed. We spent a great deal of time at the rifle and pistol range and learning how to wear body armour. (We call it battle rattle).
As all of you know, the have not posted any pictures on the blog because I do not have a camera. I will be a cheap digital this weekend and begin posting the shoots. Lots of interesting this going on here.
First of all our main drill instructor is a is a huge black man named 1st Sargent Shepperson from the beautiful town of West Patterson, NJ. I think the most recent mayor there has been imprisoned form corruption. He is the epitome of a drill instructor. Very knowledgeable, a believer in the Army mission, and high a great motivator. Also, he is very funny and remains me of the black comedian on the Drew Carey show "Whose Line is It Anyway?" Dude is funny, serious, perceptive and a great instructor.
What he has taught me: I am actually a much better shot with the M-16 and M9 pistol than a week ago. I was hitting 4/5 shots at a target 300 meters away consistently. Wow! Anything within 200 meters I will be able to hit. This provides me a great deal of relief before going over there.
So, this Army training essentially boils down to a mini boot camp for people to learn basic soldiers skills. We have renamed our military department the Narmy........Navy and Army. Because as drill sergeant Shepperson is fond of saying,"You never know where your Uncle is going to send you...so you have to do your best to be as prepared as possible."
Truer words could not be spoken.
On a family note...Nat I watched "A day in the life" again today. The kids have grown a lot since Dec 08. Made me miss you guys more. Love you all.....
Brain Jamison, Best wishes with your transition. The Jamison's are in our prayers.
Love to all..........
The first week of Army training is completed. We spent a great deal of time at the rifle and pistol range and learning how to wear body armour. (We call it battle rattle).
As all of you know, the have not posted any pictures on the blog because I do not have a camera. I will be a cheap digital this weekend and begin posting the shoots. Lots of interesting this going on here.
First of all our main drill instructor is a is a huge black man named 1st Sargent Shepperson from the beautiful town of West Patterson, NJ. I think the most recent mayor there has been imprisoned form corruption. He is the epitome of a drill instructor. Very knowledgeable, a believer in the Army mission, and high a great motivator. Also, he is very funny and remains me of the black comedian on the Drew Carey show "Whose Line is It Anyway?" Dude is funny, serious, perceptive and a great instructor.
What he has taught me: I am actually a much better shot with the M-16 and M9 pistol than a week ago. I was hitting 4/5 shots at a target 300 meters away consistently. Wow! Anything within 200 meters I will be able to hit. This provides me a great deal of relief before going over there.
So, this Army training essentially boils down to a mini boot camp for people to learn basic soldiers skills. We have renamed our military department the Narmy........Navy and Army. Because as drill sergeant Shepperson is fond of saying,"You never know where your Uncle is going to send you...so you have to do your best to be as prepared as possible."
Truer words could not be spoken.
On a family note...Nat I watched "A day in the life" again today. The kids have grown a lot since Dec 08. Made me miss you guys more. Love you all.....
Brain Jamison, Best wishes with your transition. The Jamison's are in our prayers.
Love to all..........
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Getting on with it
I left on San Diego on Saturday morning. Natalie dropped me off at the Naval Station and we said goodbye. It was sad to see her drive away but 8 months will go quickly and I feel a sense of relief finally getting this thing started. Sooner started..sooner finished.
We departed for South Carolina and arrived without incident. We were bused to the Fort and put into on open bay barracks with 40 other sailors and only two showers and one washing machine. It will get interesting......
We embark on training starting in a few hours. People who have gone thru have given positive reviews of the training. I suspect it will be what is needed. Working with the Army will be different.
I intend to post twice a week and include pix and hopefully some video.
Love to all,
Fran
We departed for South Carolina and arrived without incident. We were bused to the Fort and put into on open bay barracks with 40 other sailors and only two showers and one washing machine. It will get interesting......
We embark on training starting in a few hours. People who have gone thru have given positive reviews of the training. I suspect it will be what is needed. Working with the Army will be different.
I intend to post twice a week and include pix and hopefully some video.
Love to all,
Fran
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Test
This is the initial post to my blog. Let's see if it works. I leave in two days for additional training and then on to afghanistan. I hope you will enjoy the blog.
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