My Soap Box

Time for an update. Instead of using the past format of running through the days of the week I am just going to inform you guys of a couple events that happened this week that are of significance.

At some point this post is going to turn into me on a soap box...just a warning.

At work on Tuesday I started drafting up a US Flag raising program for my unit. I work at the headquarters area and they fly the US flag 24/7, and there used to be a program in place where you could go out and raise your own flag and salute it and then the general would sign off on a certificate saying that the flag was flown on a certain date and was flown on the behalf of fill in the blank. The program has stopped recently because the guy that used to be in charge doesn't want to the responsibility of it anymore, but he said if I want to start the program it's all mine. Well I need things to put on my NCOER (paperwork that says everything I have done...it makes sure NCO's and officers are being responsible) and I think it would be a cool program that people would appreciate.

So, I am going to ask all of you out there reading the blog to please let me know if you would like a US Flag that has been flown over here at the headquarters bldg. I would be more than thrilled to give anyone a flag that wants one. Since I am in charge of the program I can have the flag fly all day if you would like or on a certain date (like a birthday, veterans day may be little full).

On Friday there was an awesome thunderstorm.

We are at the gym working out and when we are done we decide to go to the USO, and when we step outside the ground is wet and huge drops of rain are falling from the sky. This of course makes Cara nervous. Luckily, no choppers fell from the sky. The thunderstorm was insane though. The lighting lit up the whole sky and the thunder was so loud it rattled the buildings. I have experienced some pretty intense storms in Texas, but this one had the most impressive lightning. At one point we were walking home and the whole sky lights up with lightning and Cara literally jumps, screams, and grabs my arm in one fluid motion. I, being the caring and sensitive person that I am, laughed hysterically at her expense and called her a sissy.

The next day we had our first flag football game of the season. We lost. It was sad. I learned that Powder Puff is a version of flag football...and I hate it. It is clearly a more "feminine" version of flag football, and that does not sit well with me. I went from playing flag football and reffing flag football at a University intercollegiate level to playing on a loosely organized volunteer based league. I am learning patience. My intensely competitive nature is struggling to stay in check though. Several of my teammates noticed this, and made comments to me the next day that they did not realize that I had such an intense side, and that they were lucky I was on their team because they wouldn't want to play against me. I like to win.

Apparently in Powder Puff football you can only blitz once every series. This is beyond infuriating to me. The reason for this rule is due to the fact that females struggle with protecting the quater back and generally female quarterbacks struggle under pressure. So they make this rule in order to provide the quarterback enough time to either throw it or run it. I think it is a bogus rule. If the quarterback can't move well under pressure and gets sacked every time then get a new quarterback. The team that I played on at Mizzou managed to run up the scores on teams and avoid the sack because our quarterback was quick and we knew how to block. The rule is insulting.

For all the rugby players out there think if there was a rule in women's rugby that said you can only hit the scrum half once per possesion when she is trying to get the ball out of the scrum, otherwise you have to allow the scrum half time to get the ball out of the scrum and cannot hit her. How ridiculous and insulting of a rule would that be?

I also learned while I was playing that I had CQ...this was news to me. I was under the impression that I had CQ on Monday evening, but apparently they changed the schedule and manage to not disseminate the information properly and so me and my NCOIC (who was playing in the game with me) where unaware of this. I was a little upset because I didn't want people to think I was avoiding duty or something like that. But no one was upset, because they all realized that I never got the updated schedule. So my name has not been tarnished. Sigh of relief. I started watching Band of Brothers while on CQ, which might have been a poor decision. That mini series is very intense and it made me think about life and the meaning of it, my grandparents who fought in WWII, and war and what it does to people. Next time I will stick to watching comedies.

However, they sent out the new CQ roster and my name is not on it. I think someone feels bad that I got the short end of the stick on CQ and took me off the next rotation. Fine by me.

Warning: Soap box follows.

Yesterday I had to go to a class about EO (equal opportunity). It wasn't a class, so much as a informative meeting about what is going on in the unit in regards to EO. We had to fill out a survey awhile ago about morale and EO and this meeting was a follow-up. I managed to keep myself in check during the meeting, because my battle buddy was brought up at one point and I used all the self-control I had to not say anything in retaliation to what was brought up.

The reason for my battle buddy being brought up is due to an incident that happened wayyy back at Ft. Hood. She got caught up in a bad situation, and some individuals decided to take it up the chain of command and punish her and one other person with an Article 15. For background on the story, my battle buddy did nothing wrong and the person that tried to bring charges against her was unable to do so for lack of evidence. The other person involved made a comment that should not have been made and because of it is being punished for her actions.

My battle buddy and the other person were not present at this meeting because they are of a lower rank, and this meeting was for SGT and SSG. So, people brought up this Article 15 because they said it has hurt their morale because they speak up when someone is doing the wrong thing and nothing happens to those soldiers. Instead the chain of command has turned on them and now they are being made out to be the bad guys because they were trying to do the right thing. The right thing is understanding that you are innocent until proven guilty. The right thing is knowing how the legal system works in the Army. The right thing is being tolerant of others and not passing judgment because they are different than you. The right thing is letting go of your pride when you may have jumped to conclusions too quickly and were wrong for making assumptions that had no evidence for support.

I realize that my view is completely biased and so of course I am going to stick up for my battle buddy. This is true, but my battle buddy did absolutely nothing wrong in the situation. Seriously. People wanted to make assumptions and false accusations. The other person was in the wrong at one point, and she knows this and is being punished for it. The people that spoke up in our meeting want blood to be shed over the incident, because their pride has been severely hurt in all of this.

After months of this incident not being dropped very few people support these individuals and the accusations they tried to make. They feel like no one likes them. I think very few people do like them, because their true character has been shown and it not pretty. One of the individuals that started the process of the Article 15 is a very devout Christian. She will talk everyday all day about how her Lord Jesus Christ is her savior and has blessed her and He is the one she prays to for guidance. I fear that her bible is lacking chapter 7 of the book of Mark. I figure that is the only way she can praise Jesus with the same mouth that she so easily judges others with.

On to a lighter subject.

Maire re-enlisted. Cara and I went to the re-enlistment ceremony. She had it at the helicopter pad in front of a Blackhawk cause she wants to fly choppers someday. On the way there we passed the Port-A-Pottie farm. It's a very impressive sight. Cara asked a good question: "How do you know which ones are ripe?" This reminded me of Jerry Seinfeld's "I'm Telling You For the Last Time."

At the re-enlistment ceremony Cara told me about the first time she saw a Blackhawk. And how the tail was missing, it was rolled on it's side, and how there was a guy pinned underneath it.

This week I will try and update more than once so you guys don't have to read a novel.