And that's it for now, folks...

I'm in the process of potentially getting a proxy writer to maintain this in my absence, but this blog, at least in its interactive form for me, is standing down. I'll keep it up and running, but don't expect much in the way of updates...although I may end up sending updates via email.

The price of freedom is eternal vigilance. Always a catchy slogan, until you realize the obligations behind what it really means.

See you guys on the flip side.

Keystone Kops me, baby

As I prepare to depart the CRC, I can't help but recall some of the incidents of the last two days in particular.

There was a larceny in the barracks a few days ago. Normally I wouldn’t be too bent out of shape about it except it’s the 19^th laptop to be ripped off in the CRC barracks compound in the last year…

Now, going back to my days as a former cavalry troop commander, once I found out about the theft, the entire damn building would’ve been locked down. No entry in or out by unauthorized personnel. Everyone who was passing through the CRC would have been restricted to the building. Immediately. I don’t care if it’s at 4:30am or not. Anyone who was not at the building would have been recalled to that location.

The search that ensued was so perfunctory as to invite comparisons with the Keystone Kops (hence, the title). So, after faking the funk, and not shaking out every wall locker, space, and bag (to include those who work there, not just those who are transients), maybe a more detailed health and welfare inspection might have been in order. As to the protocol of shaking it all out – rank is not a discriminator. Every individual in the building (to include those in other cycles as well as the cadre) should have been searched.

The next day, those who decided to ship gear home at government expense got to go back to the Transportation staging point, and stand fast for about three hours as another incredibly half-ass search was conducted, this time by a CID agent who didn’t look a day over 17 and elements of the aforementioned cadre.

Of course, the laptop wasn’t to be found. Any likelihood of finding the missing laptop borders on serendipity because it’d take nothing short of divine intervention for that computer to show up after the incredibly crappy (“faking the funk” might be a generous way to describe it) search that ensued. This isn’t what you see in forensics laboratories, folks, but it’s not goddamn preschool, either. The involvement of the unit leadership was, to be honest, a tad sketchy.

Nineteen laptop computers in a year. Does this indicate a trend? A problem? Now, not to really defend the unit leadership, the guy involved did fail to properly secure his crap, and if he’s so stupid as to leave a laptop computer on a wall locker or on his rack or, as has been the case, on his belly as he falls asleep, there’s some personal accountability issues at hand, too. In spite of your best interests, sometimes there’s no saving Joe from a Criminal Case of Dumbass.

It’s all about commandership. Sometimes you have to be an asshole to do the necessary things that sometimes piss people off, but are unavoidable in the interests of good order and discipline. I could say the same thing about the enforcement of AR 600-9 in the CRC battalion, given the large number of fatbodies trolling around the compound. Standards are great, everyone should have some.

Unbefuckinglievable.

test shot

There's a feature to post indirectly, just checking to see whether it
works...because...

5.6mi, 54:25

Liz Story, "Escape of the Circus Ponies"

WX at 1100: 55.9 (13.3), DP 46.9 (8.3), BP 30.21 (1023), Calm, RH 72%

Odometer 4: 102.8mi

Z4.

The pathetically slow time relative to distance on this run would point to my run location this time. McKelligon Canyon Road is a rather unpleasant uphill. It's been a long while since I've had my legs start burning from lactic acid generation, but it was a good intermediate length run. Not surprisingly, I found it a fairly hard run.

Google Earth reports my start point at 4239 feet MSL. By the time I'd cleared the first hill, less than a mile later, my altitude was 4451 feet MSL. The turnaround for the run ended up being almost 3 miles later, at 4982 feet MSL. So I guess this is what it feels to be a mile up. Discussions of Mile High Club do not apply...as Household6 is not here, and to be honest, those rocks are kind of hard...

The weather was quite nice, though. I can only imagine the hurt box that would've ensued had I gone on a warmer day.

This is going to be my last run for a little while...

Splits
None, but the descent included a mile at 7:15 and the next at 7:45.

4.9mi, 41:36

Joss Whedon, Theme song to Firefly
Metallica, "Orion"
The Northern Pikes, "Dream Away"

WX at 0600: 54.0 (12.2), DP 34.0 (1.1), BP 30.01 (1016), ESE 8 clear, RH 46%

Odometer 3: 272.7mi

Z3 steady state.

I intended for today to be some light wogging. I figured a recovery day was in order if I was going to go hard tomorrow.

Today actually ended up being a little quicker than expected. Otherwise, it was pretty nondescript. Either way, though, I've been getting slower. This is not good.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.18 10:24 10:24 08:49 08:49 1.18
0.28 12:44 02:20 08:20 08:43 1.46
1.95 29:25 16:41 08:33 08:38 3.41
0.28 31:46 02:21 08:24 08:37 3.69
1.21 41:36 09:50 08:08 08:29 4.90

Shoot 'em in the face

If only I could've had a cool motto like that going through reflexive fire training today.

Unfortunately, today might have been more along the lines of "fake the funk."

Some etymology of the title motto: In 2000, a company of the 3d Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment in Kosovo adopted the motto "shoot them in the face" as its company motto. It came from their time spent on the reflexive fire range, where troops train to land rounds at very short range, in one of three lethal zones: head, chest, or abdomen. These lethal zones are usually marked with paper plates on a standard E-type silhouette. The majority of the paratroopers, being naturally competitive, usually went for the most lethal shot, and so, it ended up being head shots. Thus, "shoot 'em in the face." This came directly from a guy who had been in 3-504 PIR during its tour in Kosovo and could speak from personal experience as to its etymology. Anyway, I digress.

There were no lethal zones. The only discriminator was that it was highly recommended not to hit the wooden frame on which the E-types were mounted, but I could've been lobbing parabolic trajectory blooper rounds and I could've gotten about the same amount of feedback. If you gotta whack tangos close in, so to speak, you don't have a lot of luxury not to hit one of the lethal zones. It was fun - but hell, it's always fun to fire bullets. Besides, it's been a while since I've done any of that with a long gun. It's a lot more awkward to do that while wearing body armor.

There was one joker in the group, wearing dental brass, who I made it a point not to stand near. His lane safety told us this guy had tagged the wooden frame, which was the least of his essential cluelessness. I try not to vent too much, being the irascible guy that I usually am, but accountability and setting the example are kind of pet rocks for me. If you're wearing field grade brass, act like it and don't act like a complete toad in front of the junior enlisted. This guy might nominally be a peer, but you have to earn the respect of your peers and subordinates to truly get it. This guy doesn't rate and the only reason he's not standing at the position of parade rest for everyone else is because he happens to outrank most of them. Salute the rank, not the person...

I had occasion to get into one of the junior soldiers' faces about flagging, because he was carrying his bullet launcher around and being totally unaware of where his muzzle is pointing. Flagging is, mildly put, a great big problem in close quarters combat. He just didn't fathom that regardless of whether his weapon was clear or not, you never, ever point your weapon at anyone you don't intend to kill. Ever. He couldn't understand why I was raising my voice about it, but put simply, flagging gets people killed. Given the relative expertise levels in the group, I guess we could have spent more time on the range actually shooting.

In any event, we're done. Now I have to get ready to send stuff home, finish treating my uniforms with an unbelievably noxious insecticide that doesn't repel insects-- it kills them instead. It's always reassuring to see the warning on the bag that says "corrosive" and "warning: irreversible eye damage." Nice.

I might go for a long slow run at McKelligon Canyon on Friday. Load up the Camelbak, start at the bottom, and give it a few hours or so. That might not be so bad. Tomorrow, either way, will be easy, I think. Save the energy for Friday.

combat skills, or something like it

Today marked training on basic combat skills, primarily related to convoy operations and individual movement techniques.

Probably nothing differentiates those who kill for a living (or possessed those skills) from those who do not than events like today, where you have to move in simulated combat conditions.

There are tasks such as ACE reports that are de rigueur to light infantrymen and their cohorts that are alien to just about everyone else...but like it or not, the common denominator of life on the ground in theater is the ability to shoot people as needed. Up close. With a rifle.

Today's training had cursory coverage of some of the things basic to movement under fire, although there's only much you can teach to soft-skills, which comprised the majority of my group going through training. Of the folks who are in killing-people specialties, they are predominantly not ground maneuver guys, let alone infantrymen.

So much for getting reacquainted with a long gun. You have to watch the guys who have no experience, because they end up doing things like putting their muzzle almost in front of you trying to engage targets outside of their sector of fire. I'm not saying that everyone needs to go to Ranger School, but like any task, it takes practice. Some are naturally better at it than others; some are not.

I guess I'm thankful for my time spent in the 82d Imperial a few years ago; between that and what I did as a lieutenant and cadet before, certain things just don't go away. It's really akin to riding a bike, albeit with slightly more lethal consequences.

The battalion NCOIC of my old AC/RC battalion, also an alumnus of the 82d Imperial, used to play stump-the-chump with new guys coming to the unit; he would have me stand in front of them with my right side exposed and make them try to guess my basic branch. More often than not, they responded Infantry, which, of course, made both him and me laugh, as I'd turn and then show either lawnmower brass or crossed butterknives. Once you've gone light, there are certain changes that occur in terms of fieldcraft; I acted a bit differently after having been light than when I was mech. Not to take away from my mech brethren, but as a former armor guy (or, more bluntly, a Tanker Without A Tank, leading to the Acronym I Cannot Say), I just liked being around lightfighters more. They were a lot more congruent to my beliefs and attitudes about being in the military.

Tomorrow marks the last day of training, which should cover Military Operations in Urbanized Terrain. I'm a little curious as to how we will cover MOUT in a day. I await with baited breath.

Incidentally, I was far too smoked to make it out to the hash. Household6 advised me that hashing in El Paso almost guaranteed bad juju, so I decided to skip. Besides, I ran 7 this morning.

6.9mi, 58;54

Tommy Keene, "Love Dies Down"
Hilary Duff, "Wake Up"
Magnapop, "Lay It Down"

WX at 0500: 48.9 (9.4), DP 39.9 (4.4), BP 30.25 (1024), NNE 3 clear, RH 71%

Odometer 4: 97.2mi

Z3.

It's pretty chilly outside when you come back and your belly is pink. Yesssssss, fat. Unfortunately, I'm not running any faster because of these ideal conditions.

I think all I'm good for these days is about 8-minute pace. Not horrible, but not good either. Then again, looking at the times, that can't be right. I can't possibly be going that damn slow. I guess I am. Some of it might be altitude. Some of it might also be because I'm running for the first time since about, well, two weeks ago, for all intents and purposes.

The local hash is running something tonight and I'm actually thinking about showing up. Maybe. This morning's run was a hedge in the event I don't go and I still need mileage.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
0.89 07:44 07:44 08:41 08:41 0.89
0.93 15:35 15:35 16:45 08:34 1.82
1.63 29:21 29:21 18:00 08:30 3.45
0.85 36:39 36:39 43:07 08:31 4.30
0.96 44:24 44:24 46:15 08:26 5.26
1.63 58:54 58:54 36:08 08:33 6.89

The inexorable grind of training

We have left the administrative world and are now transitioning to classes about more immediate concerns such as combat operations and how to move in the city.

Today we covered improvised explosive devices, or IEDs for short. I expect to see a lot of The Walk tomorrow as we should be doing convoy operations and later, military operations in urbanized terrain. I wasn't surprised to see either of those topics on the validation slate, but I'm in a training group that's lightly populated by folks in killing-people specialties.

There's a part of me that wants to do it because I think it'll be fun. There's also a part of me that desperately wants to spectate as I think it'll be funny. As a strategic planner, it's my firm belief that if I have to practice reflexive fire techniques and IMT, I'll have miserably failed in my job. In spite of that, there's an element of that tactical heritage that I just don't want to give up.

It echos an interesting observation from one of my classmates at CBKS, when he told me that of all the folks in the class, I was the one who would most regret leaving my basic branch. As I related to him later, I had no regrets leaving Armor Branch, but it wasn't for professional competency reasons. There were other inchoate factors behind my decision to career field designate Strategic Plans and Policy that were at work on that one.

In the meantime, I spent most of Sunday doing PT, eating, driving from place to place, and finally watching Serenity. One of the places I went before seeing the movie was McKelligon Canyon Park. I thought I'd walk to the top of one of the hills, and was quite unprepared for the gargantuan smoking that it entailed. The view was nice, but man, did that ascent hurt. Probably, though, not as much as it would've hurt to roll downhill hitting sharp (literally) rocks, cacti, and thorn bushes. Haha. But it was picturesque, and in the unlikely event that I'm ever in El Paso again, maybe I'll go back. Who knows.

Amazingly enough, I had some time to kill before the movie started, so I checked out a local sports store, in the vain hope that there was actually some lacrosse gear in El Paso. Amazingly, the local Big 5 Sporting Goods Store had a few deBeer/Gait sticks, some STX Fiddlestx (which are miniature Protons and Bionics), some STX AV8s (a poor man's Proton), and an amazingly cheap STX Bionic at 50% off. Not that I need a new lacrosse stick, but when was the last time I saw a first-line lacrosse stick (albeit with only an AL6000 shaft) at $50? Admittedly, it only had a soft mesh with power V, which is not the kind of mesh I'd want to have (Both of my active crosses, a STX Octane and an AV8, are strung with mid-monster mesh, with hockey laces for a V and shooting strings), but I digress. I intend to reassemble those two attack crosses once I get settled, in the vain hope that someone in my immediate work area might actually play lacrosse and have a vaguely congruent work schedule.

In the meantime, though, it's looking like I'll be getting reacquainted with a long gun again.

You can't take the sky from me...

When I was a student this summer at CBKS, my professor and I pulled a trade. He highly recommended the show Firefly to me, which he had on disk. In return, I lent him my disks of Roughnecks: Starship Troopers, which he apparently used to watch with his son when it was still on...at the suicidally early time slot of 5:30am or 6:00am or something like that.

Anyway, to make a long account short, I burned my way through his Firefly box set and in doing so, ensured that I'd make every effort to watch Serenity before deploying.

This follows a trend; on my last overseas deployment, I made it a point to watch another large science fiction movie, which in 1997 ended up being Star Wars in its Episode IV re-release form.

I won't throw out spoilers, but in short, it's hard not to be incredibly partisan about characters who have been told in as much detail as the ones in Firefly. It ties up a number of loose ends, but certain things I saw in the series are now elucidated in the film.

In particular, the episode "War Stories" had a scene where River takes three blind shots and delivers three headshots on guards attempting to board the Serenity. The words she says are pretty chilling in the wake of it: "no power in the 'verse can stop me." That background becomes very clear in Serenity.

The movie is an interesting compromise from those Browncoats who were partisan Firefly fans and those who weren't as invested in the show as the former, but I think it does a good job.

In any event, I'm damned glad I saw it. The one thing that really hit from Firefly was Malcolm Reynolds as a character. It was obviously that he was once an idealist who had lost his idealism in a very visceral manner...an ethos I can empathize with in an awful lot of ways. Malcolm isn't a very nice character, but he is principled, and maybe that's why I think so damn much of and in turn, Firefly, and in turn, Serenity.

And, by the way, I wasn't leaving the theater until I heard the Firefly theme song. I had to wait until the end of the end credits to hear it, but I wasn't leaving without hearing it.

And to think I have my professor from BSAP to thank for all this...

3.5mi, 29:00

AC/DC, "Thunderstruck"

WX at 0500: 48.9 (9.4), DP 35.1 (1.7), BP 30.27 (1025), E 15 overcast, RH 58%

Odometer 3: 267.8mi

Z4.

I thought today was going to be short and easy, and it was neither. I didn't count on it being sub-50, though...which might explain my relative lack of sweatage this morning. I should take tomorrow easy and concentrate on doing a long fast tempo run on Thursday.

I think today felt faster than it actually was, but I think I started slow deliberately and in the absence of any split markers, I can't gauge the extent of my acceleration. I'm pretty confident I was running about 7:15-7:30 pace by the time I finished as I was hauling ass to finish.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
3.50 29:00 29:00 08:17 08:17 3.5

4.8mi, approximately 44:00

I've forgotten the soundtrack from yesterday.

WX at 0900: 60, DP 44, BP 30.03 (1011.9), N 15 clear, RH 55%

Odometer 4: 90.3mi

Z3 wogging.

I decided to take a slight different route and took a dead end out and back. The interesting treat was seeing two Southwest Airlines Boeing 737s overflying me during their short final approach to El Paso International Airport. Yes, I was that close.

Nothing ambitious. I just need to run to expend lard and potentially even keep myself vaguely fit before getting into theater. Or something like that.

Splits - none.

8.3mi, 68:48

Hilary Duff, "Wake Up"
The Connells, "Fun and Games"
Joss Whedon, "Serenity"

WX at 0800: 55.9 (13.3), DP 44.1 (6.7), BP 30.09 (1018), NNE 7, RH 64%

Odometer 3: 264.3mi

Z3.

Today felt fast, but then got slower and slower. Interestingly, as I got more tired, I was still able to maintain (for the most part) about an 8:17 pace. This is the first long run I've tried to do since getting here. My legs may still be recovering from the run the other night, so I'll probably go easy tomorrow morning.

The weather was nice, but the sun was definitely a factor. There's a big, big difference between shade and open areas, when thinking radiation and heat. Yay. Advice: in desert, run in shade. Duh.

The shoes on odometer 3 are starting to wear, and early, perhaps. I left the shoes tied too loose this morning and after tying them they were much more responsive. By having them tied loose, they acted as energy absorbers and I had to expend a lot more relative effort trying to run.

Fort Bliss is fairly flat. Differences in elevation can be measured in individual meters. In spite of that, I've been noticing every downhill slope, no matter how gentle.

I was meaning to wake up early, at about 5:00am, but I slept in a little later than expected. Tomorrow I'll need to wake up early so I can start rolling my body clock forward. It also spares me a little hassle trying to get stuff done (i.e., laundry, internet access, etc.) as no one else seems to share my psychotic fervor for waking up to avoid jet lag after the flight east (which is always worse than flying west, circadian rhythm-wise).

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
0.34 02:33 02:33 07:30 07:30 0.34
0.85 09:26 06:53 08:06 07:56 1.19
0.70 15:24 05:58 08:31 08:09 1.89
0.87 22:38 07:14 08:19 08:12 2.76
0.86 29:46 07:08 08:18 08:13 3.62
0.70 35:33 05:47 08:16 08:14 4.32
0.85 42:41 07:08 08:24 08:15 5.17
0.56 47:25 04:44 08:27 08:17 5.73
0.95 55:22 07:57 08:22 08:17 6.68
1.26 65:53 10:31 08:21 08:18 7.94
0.37 68:48 02:55 07:53 08:17 8.31

Death by Powerpoint and Classes

Yesterday marked Death by Powerpoint, namely predeployment briefings. Some of them were useful. Others were absolutely worthless. As is often the case, it’s generally in the presentation. For a service where so much information is distributed, you’d think there’d be a greater emphasis on briefing skills…but I felt my eyeballs rolling into the back of my head because the briefer was too incompetently poor to deliver the message.

It really gives me an incipient case of the ass when someone pontificates on stage in front of a few hundred people but is so diffuse in the delivery that the message is totally lost.

Two things stuck in my mind as I sponged the briefs:

First, army class sessions often start with a joke, to gauge the class and get them oriented to the material at hand. Two years after OIF 1, France-bashing is still fashionable. While the French aren’t real high on my list of preferred allies, it remains to be seen that they are still, contrary to popular American belief, our allies. Although there’s some collateral humor to be had, I wonder about the effects of that on relations in the future. Granted, there’s not much I see that are critical national interests that France affects…short of their membership on the United Nations Security Council. Because they do hold a permanent seat and veto power there, the US does have to court them. But I can visualize some day when we will be dependent on the French for a coalition or assistance and the capriciousness of the American people will come to bite us in the ass.

The other thing that stuck in my mind, also related to the people to some extent, is the massive jingoism I see these days. The war has been going on about four years now. But when I sit through hooah films (or Shockwave Flash objects, whichever they are) to the tune of Toby Keith’s “Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American), ” I find it hard not to feel a little embarrassed at lyrics of “we’ll put a boot up your ass/it’s the American way.” (This says an awful lot about what I think of that trend.) This probably isn’t the venue to discuss the virtues of federalism over a pure participatory democracy, but songs like that bother me. Of course, shows like Desperate Housewives and The Bachelor bother me for much the same reason.

Those two things probably make me sound pretentiously elitist. I’m not maligning the people who are in the military; after all, it is the soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines who will ultimately have to execute the orders I help write. But I can’t help but be reminded of the concept of the “strategic corporal.”

Other highlights of the day included seeing cavalry guidons at Fort Bliss for the first time in about a decade. As it turns out, I missed the activation ceremony of a brigade of the 1st Cavalry Division here this past Tuesday as I had a hot date at the Rapid Fielding Initiative site to draw equipment for deployment that morning, but we got back to the barracks in time to hear the trademark of any 1st Cavalry Division ceremony, which is the Horse Detachment charging hell-for-leather across the parade field as the division band played “Garryowen.” When I was a lieutenant, I would always chuckle as folks forgot to turn off their car alarms at the ceremonies, which were held at the division headquarters at Fort Hood. Inevitably, the volley of ceremonial guns at the beginning of the charge would add a not-infelicitous background of car alarms to the blank gunfire, horses, and division band.

Returning to scheduling: as has been the case, there’s literally no time for PT during the day or beforehand. If I wanted to get a run in, I’d have to wake up sometime around 3:00am and get it in before the initial formation. This will probably change next week as we start later in the day, but unless I force myself to get a run in (as I did last night), it’s just not happening. It’s just a matter of discipline.

Like any process, this entails some activity punctuated by extended periods of intense boredom. I have to wonder how much of this is legitimately mandated and how much of it is relevant. There were some classes (primarily at the small unit tactical level) that were just not relevant to, well, a strategic planner. Or, for that matter, just about any staff officer going to a general staff. But, of course, I could be wrong.

Today was no exception. It entailed some classes, some of which were probably not relevant to me – but everyone was going get those classes. Those classes were some of the most mind-numbing instruction I’ve received. Nonetheless, it highlights the staggering disparity of backgrounds of the folks here with me. Just as I wouldn’t expect to be able to do a root canal on anyone, I’m not sure a dentist would be proficient in plotting points on a map, for example. But common tasks are still common tasks, and he should be.

It also marked the first time I’ve had occasion to march in formation, calling cadence, since, well, when I was at Fort Benning as a student, long ago. Some people just don’t have rhythm. Myself, I’m a big fan of “at ease, march” these days.

Still, it sure is nice to be done before sunset. I’ve checked one of my two food yens before I depart; I ate Mexican for dinner a few nights ago. Tonight might entail Vietnamese, as I’ve been craving pho tai nam or bun bo xao before I fly.

One more thing. This blog will almost certainly go inactive when I depart the United States. Guidance on blogs requires that I register any blogs at division level. Based on that guidance, although I’ll be a member of the division staff, that level of oversight will probably detract from keeping this going. I may log entries and post them when I depart theater, but not before. I’d like to think I do a reasonable job of anonymity in this, but the concept of following orders dictates that the blog stands down while I’m there.

5.5mi, 43:44

2 Unlimited, "Are You Ready for This?"
The Bats, "Courage"

WX at 2100: 72.0 (22.2), DP 35.1 (1.7), BP 30.06 (1017), Variable 5, RH 25%

Odometer 4: 85.5mi

Z3.

This was a discipline run. If I didn't go out, then I knew it would lead on the road to ruin, so to speak.

I really need to start laying off the chow. I've been eating a large breakfast and large dinner since I've been getting here, and combined with eating an MRE for lunch, it's starting to add up. Given the dictum that I'm a fat man in a thin man's body (one that's been repeatedly proven over years and years), the importance of leveling caloric intake with expenditure remains relevant...

But it was faster, principally because of RH and also because of temperature. That 12 degrees from the last run made a difference. That should be no surprise. The trick is mostly one of figuring out what it feels like, because after being geared for humidity, you just never know...but being able to hold right at 8-minute pace is encouraging. For now, at least.

Based on that and being used to altitude, I should be able to consistently hold this pace if not slightly faster.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
0.34 02:33 02:33 07:30 07:30 0.34
0.83 09:18 06:45 08:08 07:57 1.17
0.70 14:50 05:32 07:54 07:56 1.87
0.87 21:48 06:58 08:00 07:57 2.74
0.87 28:49 07:01 08:04 07:59 3.61
0.69 34:26 05:37 08:08 08:00 4.30
0.85 41:10 06:44 07:55 08:00 5.15
0.33 43:44 02:34 07:47 07:59 5.48

guns, guns, guns

Today marked basic pistol qualification, preceded by premarksmanship instruction.

The folks who conduct the common tasks training (to include weapons instruction) are from an organization called The Edge R&D. The instructors are just about all (if not all) former military and have a pretty good idea of what is required of their students. They're knowledgeable and can translate that into quality instruction.

The quality of the instruction is so much better than what I've seen in other mobilization stations that I'm actually pretty impressed. This stands out in direct contrast to the mobilization of the 30th eSB two years ago...the 9mm range I went to was run to standard. I walked away with a pretty positive impression of what was going on.

There were folks in the group with me who had not fired a peashooter in a long, long while. There were some combat arms types who didn't do a whole lot of handwringing about it. Myself, I'm getting rusty, not having fired in almost three years. Still, I qualified expert with 27 hits. The standard was to qualify; anything above that is gravy. I'm glad I qualified expert, but that's a personal pride issue.

At the risk of sounding snooty, I remarked today about "the look of those who don't go to the field." Dead giveaways include poorly-fitted field gear (particularly LBE/LBV), a helmet sitting (unintentionally) at a jaunty angle in spite of the suspension system, or worse still, a helmet levitated by hair above the skull, and most significantly, the Walk. The Walk is hard to describe, but it's a gingerly hesitant step, as if someone was afraid to get dirty. First time I witnessed it was during the 30th eSB's mission rehearsal exercise at Fort Riley during the summer of 2002, when I saw an observer/controller-trainer who was not a full-time soldier and not in a killing-person specialty, doing the Walk, with an unevenly levelled, pristine, and improperly fitted LBE.

I'm not claiming to be the king of fieldcraft, but in a word, dude!

Still, today was well-run. I was feeling sorry for the guys who didn't return from the rifle range (as they had to do reflexive fire, unlike the pistol shooters) until about 8:00pm.

Here's the current MRE menu.

Today's MRE: Cajun rice with beans and sausage. Tasty. Either that, or I've become less discriminating.

Today's surprise: Cheddar Cheese pretzels. In the civilian world they're called "Combos." Grrr...

Tomorrow promises Death by Powerpoint. Necessary classes, but painful nonetheless.

CONUS Replacement Center, two days down

The last two days have been busy as hell.

I spent the first day getting inprocessed. I remember when I was advising National Guard troops in a former job that their obligations when they got mobilized were a necessary but painful process. Nothing has really changed, although the unit that is processing me for deployment is trying to do their best (as would normally be the case) but the group I'm with is a few hundred folks. Brings a new meaning to herding cats...

Yesterday marked drawing Rapid Fielding Initiative and central issue facility gear. That was a lengthy, somewhat painful process that was punctuated by a lot of waiting and finding out that there are a lot of funky MREs in the menu now. The MRE I ate the day prior had been Pork Chop ("imitation pork chop"). The one I got, however this day, was Veggie Burger in Barbeque Sauce. Actually, I thought it was pretty good, and if I get it again, I'll definitely eat it. Harrumph.

Today we go to the range. It's been a while since I've popped off 9mm rounds, but old habits die hard, so I expect to qualify with little issue.

Fort Bliss is at 3800 feet MSL. I had a low-grade headache the first few days I was here, but that seems to have gone away. Surprisingly, after getting voodoo dolled on the first day for immunizations (which included the vaunted smallpox and anthrax vaccines) I don't feel as bad as I ordinarily would. Normally I feel like I got quashed by a baseball bat after a large series of vaccinations, but this time, surprisingly not. I guess I should be thankful.

I could say this deployment vindicates my huge investment in "go-faster" gear that I collected over the space of over a decade in college and on active duty, but in reality, only a little of it was really critical. I did show up with quite a bit of my own kit, and for that I have no real regrets.

More to follow when I get a chance.

5.5mi, 45:48

The A*Teens, "E Is For Everybody"

WX at 1900: 84.0 (28.9), DP 51.1 (10.6), BP 29.96 (1014), SW 12, RH 32%

Odometer 3: 256.0mi

Z3-4

First run since getting to Fort Bliss. I was wanting to see what the altitude would do, and it was predictable. A little slower, but I'm not sure if it's necessarily going to really be a problem. It didn't feel like 84 degrees, it felt a little cooler. I guess that's what a 32% RH will do for you. If I ran this morning maybe I'd be faster.

I need to be disciplined enough to run, so I was trying not to get too hung up about the times.

Splits
LEG AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
0.34 02:38 02:38 07:45 07:45 0.34
0.83 09:47 07:09 08:37 08:22 1.17
0.70 15:40 05:53 08:24 08:23 1.87
0.87 23:01 07:21 08:27 08:24 2.74
0.87 30:28 07:27 08:34 08:26 3.61
0.69 36:19 05:51 08:29 08:27 4.30
0.85 43:11 06:52 08:05 08:23 5.15
0.33 45:48 02:37 07:56 08:21 5.48

And so it begins...

Today marked the beginning of my expense-paid vacation in Southwest Asia...or at least, the first part of it.

I'm currently sitting at Fort Bliss, Texas, just outside El Paso, after flying out from Fayetteville. I should be here about two weeks before I actually depart the US.

Long day. This is the first time I'll have been away from the wife and kids for a long while (i.e., more than just a month or so - I was driving home on long weekends when I was at CBKS).

I don't think it's hit the kids yet. Household6, on the other hand, is fully cognizant of what is going on. Combined with the fact that I have no Batphone here (thanks to Verizon and their crappy-ass corporate policies), the fact that I have internet access here is one hell of a blessing. The unit here set up a 802.11b hot spot and have Ethernet cables.

This underscores just how thankful I was that I was able to score my new laptop. In the running tradition of my new laptop being the fastest thing I have, it's been named Phlegethon...after the river of boiling blood. (This is what I get for reading Inferno during scout gunnery when I was a junior first lieutenant in an armored cavalry squadron, long, long ago.) I held off going Wi-Fi and Bluetooth for a long while, but now, it was just inevitable. So much for being a technical Luddite while still claiming conversancy in the dark arts of computing.

For the benefit of all my Basic Strategic Art Program classmates who might be reading this, yes, this means I'm still getting my geek on. At least while I'm still in the US.

3.8mi, 29:39

The Wiggles, "Dorothy the Dinosaur" (no shit.)
The Connells, "Fun & Games"
disappear fear, "Echo My Call"

WX at 0700: 63 (17), DP 55 (13), bp 30.02 (1016.3), overcast N 6, RH 77%

Odometer 4: 80.0mi

Z3-4.
Resting heart rate before start = 43 (133/89)

Today was quicker, but didn't quite feel as quick as it might have.

My hair was a factor. It's been over two weeks since my last haircut and now I have enough hair for it to become a nuisance. Tomorrow or today, I get a clean high and tight. I thought it was close to 100% humidity this morning. Apparently not!

I have no earthly idea why I was thinking of a song by, of all people, The Wiggles. Maybe it's because of my impending deployment and realizing that I won't be around my children for a few months. Again.

Splits
LEG AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.5 11:33 11:33 07:42 07:45 1.49
2.3 29:39 18:06 07:52 07:53 3.76

gorram batphones

First things first: good god does Verizon Wireless suck cock.

It's really a shame, because their network is excellent. I can get coverage all over the place, for both voice and data, and yet their customer service fucking bites.

Given that I'm about to deploy to a fucking combat zone, I'd like to leave my wife the better of our two phones. Turns out that VZW isn't activating any phones that aren't E911 capable. Fine. This is a prohibition on new phone activations.

So, what about a fucking phone that's been on their network for the last TWO GODDAMN YEARS? That was on the network until about, oh, 13 fucking HOURS ago? What a crock of shit.

Fuck You, You Fucking Fucks. When the contract expires, we're dropping VZW like the psycho ex-wife that it is.

5.1mi, 41:08

Julian Nott, music from train chase from Wallace and Gromit: The Wrong Trousers

WX at 1000: 66 (19), DP 66 (19), BP 29.97 (1014), NNE 7 mist, RH 100%

Odometer 3: 249.5mi

Z3
Resting heart rate before start = 61 (128/88)

I was thinking about 7.6 this morning. I decided against it, since I had some other stuff to do today. I felt surprisingly good, even though I really didn't feel like going out this morning.

Splits
LEG AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.5 11:57 11:57 07:58 08:01 1.49
2.1 29:18 17:21 08:16 08:00 3.66
1.5 41:08 11:50 07:53 07:59 5.15

WARNORD 1, impending deployment

I usually use this for just a running log. Time for some more substantial content.

Given my current profession, it was a matter of time before I was going to go to either a sandy or a mountainous place.

Right now, it's a sandy place. I'll be one of the first strategic planners to deploy in a division headquarters in a combat zone. Charmingly, it also happens to be my first combat deployment.

The last time I deployed overseas was with the 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry for an INTRINSIC ACTION exercise in early 1997.

I leave Fayetteville to go to the CONUS (Continental US) Replacement Center (CRC)for Iraq augmentees on Saturday.

And for all those geeks who want to take me to task for "WARNORD," go look at Joint Publication 1-02. Harrumph.

3.8mi, 32:03

Corrosion of Conformity, "What(?)"

WX at 0800: 66 (19), DP 64 (18), BP 29.82 (1009), NNE 6 overcast drizzle, RH 93%

Odometer 4: 78.2mi

Z2.
Resting heart rate before start = 61 (130/99)

Woggage! And nothing much else. I didn't really feel like running this morning, but to not do so would start the slippery slope...so I went out.

Splits
LEG AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.5 12:48 12:48 08:32 08:35 1.49
2.3 32:03 19:15 08:22 08:31 3.76

7.6mi, 63:09

David Byrne, "Seaside Smokes"
Hybrid, "Finished Symphony"
David Byrne, "Body In Water"

WX at 0800: 73 (23), DP 73 (23), BP 29.64 (1003), Variable 2 mist, RH 100%

Odometer 3: 244.4mi

Z3-4
Resting heart rate before start = 50 (138/88)

Good GOD did today suck ass. The start wasn't so bad, but I started fading fast after the first 4 or so. First time in a while I've had to stop to get my heart rate down, and it was on more than one or two occasions.

I was noticing my fingers are slightly swelled; not sure why.

I'm lighter, not because I'm leaner; some of my muscle mass has converted back to fat, as should be expected over the last two weeks of minimal activity.

Splits
LEG AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.5 11:55 11:55 07:57 08:00 1.49
2.1 29:46 17:51 08:30 08:08 3.66
1.5 42:02 12:16 08:11 08:10 5.15
2.5 63:09 21:07 08:27 08:17 7.62

5.1mi, 42:54

The Posies, "Please Return It"
The Posies, "Grant Hart"

WX at 0700: 72 (22), DP 70 (21), BP 30.05 (1017.5), E 2 fog/mist/light drizzle, RH 94%

Odometer 3: 236.8mi

Z2-3.
Resting heart rate before start = no reading.

Slow and crappy. First run in four days. I just haven't felt that motivated to run lately. This morning was light drizzle, so all the suck of high humidity without any of the benefits of rain. Yay.

Splits
LEG AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.5 12:20 12:20 08:13 08:17 1.49
2.1 30:24 18:04 08:36 08:18 3.66
1.5 42:54 12:30 08:20 08:20 5.15

9.9mi, 79:23

Little Red Rocket, "Back to Where I Started"
Michael Kamen, Band of Brothers Suite 2
some random running cadences

WX at 0700: 69 (21), DP 66 (19), BP 30.28 (1025), NNE 5 clear, RH 90%

Odometer 3: 231.7mi

Z3 steady state.

Long run, schlong run, whatever. I needed to do one, and today was the day. I'm down visiting the in-laws, and we went to the beach later.

Didn't feel so bad, although I tried not to go out too fast.

Still, overall 8:02 pace for not killing myself too bad is livable.

This made up in advance for the gargantuan amount of chow I ingested later this morning and later at the Slowest Friendly's In The Known Universe, located at North Myrtle Beach.

We just got back from the beach, where my kids and I (and two of their friends from home) were building a farm of sand castles. Then I marked out a communications trench, three target reference points, a linear artillery target just past the three TRPs, two turning obstacles, with two DPICM point artillery targets, and a final protective line in front of the communications trench.

Welcome to the world of direct fire planning, kids.

Order of battle was four tank mounds and some simulated infantry. They lasted approximately six seconds against the combined onslaught of me, my children, their friends, and the directive to "do it like Godzilla."

Man, destruction is so fun.

Splits:
PLEG AGGRG SPLIT PERMI AVGPC DIST
4.86 41:37 41:37 08:33 08:33 4.86
0.98 49:29 07:51 08:00 08:28 5.84
4.04 79:23 33:22 08:15 08:02 9.88

Jump 68, Luzon DZ, J/A/NT

mewithoutyou, "January 1979"
Cruiserweight, "Permanent Things"

Drop altitude 1250 feet AGL, time of drop 1110

KPOB 011655Z VRB03KT 7SM FEW030 SCT050 26/17 A3028 RMK SLP254
Conditions at: KPOB observed 1655 UTC 01 October 2005
Temperature: 26.0°C (79°F)
Dewpoint: 17.0°C (63°F) [RH = 58%]
Pressure (altimeter): 30.28 inches Hg (1025.5 mb)
[Sea-level pressure: 1025.4 mb]
Winds: variable direction winds at 3 MPH (3 knots; 1.6 m/s)
Visibility: 7 miles (11 km)
Ceiling: at least 12,000 feet AGL
Clouds: few clouds at 3000 feet AGL
scattered clouds at 5000 feet AGL
Weather: no significant weather observed at this time

First C-17 duty in over three years! I needed a jump and a duty to get current and jumped ahead, and got one with my unit's static line jumpmaster course. It's good to know the course officer in charge!

Smooth duty in general. The C-17 is a great ride, but can punish a jumper if you go out weak. I had a good exit, and more importantly, no issues during the jump. I had good control over the jumpers, had no problems identifying the 1-minute and 30-second reference marks, and most importantly, set a good example for the jumpmaster students.

Upon exiting, I immediately turned for the turn-in point and started running with the wind. Normally, this isn't too smart, but being an experienced enough jumper, I felt comfortable with steering, then lining up for landing. Once again, I managed to snag my chute on a scrub brush, which is the norm for my jumping Luzon, as it seems. My last jump at Luzon was during jumpmaster refresher last year, and I did just that.

I'm glad I keep current - and all my lessons learned from my time pulling duties in the 82d Imperial a few years ago haven't completely evaporated.