Good Bye Fort Polk!

I said good bye to Fort Polk a couple of years ago when I shipped off to Bosnia and figured I'd never return. Who knows if this will be my last trip there but I'll be content if it is. After arriving at the end of January, setting up and coordinating communications, playing war for about 10 days and tearing everything down, it was finally time to leave.
The night before heading back to Camp Shelby, Mississippi, a group of us went to a Japanese Steakhouse (one of those where the chef cooks your food at the table). After eating we requested our check and the waitress told us that someone had taken care of it and she handed us a note. It said:

Thanks for serving.
Dustoff 75
RVN '72

This means his call sign was Dustoff 75 and served in Vietnam in 1972. He had already left the restaurant by the time we found out he picked up the tab, but that's the way he wanted it. Thank you Dustoff 75.

Just Another VD!

No I'm not talking about what soldiers got during the Vietnam War, I'm talking about just another Valentines Day.  We are about half way through our mission here at Fort Polk, Louisiana, and sometimes each day just blends into the next.  At other times it feels like the movie Groundhog Day, where every day seems to be the same over and over again.  It's times like these that you really appreciate the simple things in the civilian world.  One thing I realized I miss is being able to go home after work and watching a show or two (in my case three or four) on the TiVo (in my case TiVos).  I'm doing okay though and eventually I'll be over there where I can complain about the weather.  I wish I could write about some exciting events but they have to happen first.  When they do, I'll try to give all the details that I'm allowed to.

Super Bowl XL

Yes I know the Super Bowl was a few days ago but this is my first chance to update my blog since then. I did get a few hours off to go watch the game and throw back a couple of beers. It was a short break but well needed. We are deep into this exercise which is known as a Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC) rotation.
I don't see any other breaks in action down here until our current exercise is over. I'll get a 4-day pass when I get back to Camp Shelby and I'm trying to decide whether to go to New Orleans, Pensacola or some other place within 150 miles of Hattiesburg, Mississippi.