I Don't Know

Yes, it has been quite some time since I have written in my blog (2 months, 5 days) and I apologize to those of you who look forward to my posts. I really meant for this blog to be at the least a weekly or bi weekly thing, but for some reason it just has not panned out that way. Right now I really don't have anything pertinent to write about, so I am writing for the sake of writing. There's a lot of things I could speak about, like what's been going on here, or how my leave was.

I went on leave in late July, and well, it didn't quite turn out as I expected. I had a great time with my family and friends, but the love life kinda disintegrated. I guess you'll have that being in the Army. Who would want to be with someone that's gone all the time anyways, right? Regardless, I've dedicated myself these last 4 years to my country, and it all comes with sacrifices. One right after the other. Over and over and over again. And we just keep taking it, because that's what we do.

It was strange to come home at first. When I am used to having my head on a swivel, it is unusual to come to a place where there is no one that wants to kill Americans and shoot rockets at their base and try to bust down fences. There's just the peace and tranquility of a nation that has all but forgotten that there's a war going on. The only reminder is maybe the gas prices or the upcoming election. I know for families that have a service member directly involved it is a daily thought. I may have already written about this stuff in previous posts, but I did not read my previous posts recently, as I only remember talking about the Battle for Salerno.

We've been working, and the fighting has continued. It's almost as if everyone depends on us to keep these cans in the air, but we manage to get the job done regardless of the stressful situations in which we find ourselves more often then not. I swear, if we ran out of parts we'd be using bubblegum and string to keep these machines alive. We are the McGyvers, the best of the best. When we leave in a bit, the aircraft will be staying here; a sad situation in itself to me. We've literally put our lives into these things, lost blood and sweat, and now we are just going to hand them over to some other unit. They need a break just like us, but unfortunately, the fight goes on for them, and someone else will be their caretaker. Like an old car, we know the funny quirks and creaks of these war birds. Guess all we can do now is pass that knowledge on.

Let me talk about civilian contractors for a moment. These people have been getting under my skin since I entered theater nearly a year ago. Sometimes I think there are more of them than actual US Soldiers in this country. They eat in our chow halls, take up our shower houses, and make ten times more money than we do. We have guys here that help work on our aircraft when they are in phase maintenance. They do the SAME JOB that I do, and usually know LESS, and make more than one hundred thousand dollars a year out here. Gimme a friggin' break. Throw me a bone. They use our tools, our equipment, and our knowledge. They aren't as professional as you might think and they get to go home dirty stinking rich. It makes my blood boil to see how much money the US Government blows on contracts and the worthless people who fill them. When an aircraft comes out of phase and is all messed up, who do you think has to fix it. My guys and I, that's who. A lot of these contract guys did their time in the service, but that doesn't excuse the fact that they don't live up to their end of the deal. I wonder if the ARMY knows how much money they send to the wind...Money that they could use on their own soldiers. I guess I sound a little bitter, but that's what happens when everything is ass backwards. If the civilian contractors want to fight this war, I'll gladly take the next plane home. They are like maggots leeching onto the carcass that is our war. It pisses me off to no end.

After awhile, being gone starts to get to ya. The food never gets any better, only worse. The hours never lessen. The fighting never stops. I'm not being negative, but I am pointing out facts because it is important for people back home to know what our soldiers deal with on a daily basis. It is the job of leaders to keep troops on the up and up, fighting the fight, and pushing forward. Regardless of how leaders feel, they have to be strong for their guys. Put on your smiley face and get the job done. That's the motto. Hopefully we live up to that.

Cheers,

-J