News from the front:

[theGringo]

Skyped with my son last night. Here's what he had to say:

a mortar landed about 50 feet from me last week
i heard a boom in the distance
then i heard a boom closer
and thats when i realized they were walking it in on our b huts
so i got up when a third boom shook shit off my shelves and knocked my ass down

(I talk, he types ... so as not to disturb other guys sleeping in the hut.)

Pretty exciting place, Afghanistan.

 

[FrugalFannie]

my brother was just home for a week from there. he said it's been quieter. October they got shelled 140 times. His base is 1 mile x 1 mile. hope your son is well.

 

[theGringo]

my brother was just home for a week from there. he said it's been quieter. October they got shelled 140 times. His base is 1 mile x 1 mile. hope your son is well.

My son's base is also very small. Less than a mile in both N/S or E/W direction. Yes, apparently this shelling is to these guys what a rainy day is to us back home ... just another PITA you gotta deal with. The things you find out ...

The ironic thing is that, if his shift hadn't been changed that very day, he'd have been smoking his 0715 cigarette in the smoke pit. The morter blew it up at 0716.

 

[deadhead133]

Please thank him for me and tell him to be careful.

 

[theGringo]

Please thank him for me and tell him to be careful.

You know, deadhead, he's very philosophical. Moreso that I was at his age, I think, and definitely moreso than he was when he left. He sees himself as just another guy living in a plywood box, sharing 6 washing machines with 300 other guys.

He's with a Cav unit, and he knows what risks people take in their jobs. We talked about those kinds of things before he left, and I knew, or thought I did, what kind of place he was going to. Now, I just can't wait for the year to pass. But he seems to want to take his experience to another level.

Young men are all about adventure. I think there's an evolutionary purpose to that. And, apparently, there's no enough excitement there on post, working his shift in the S-2 shop. So he's training up in 9-line Medevac so maybe he can go out and get some dust on his boots from time to time.

Way to keep me awake at night, kid.

 

[Big_Red]

The ironic thing is that, if his shift hadn't been changed that very day, he'd have been smoking his 0715 cigarette in the smoke pit. The morter blew it up at 0716.

Holy crap. It looks like someone is looking out after him. Please tell him to keep his head low and come home safe.

 

[Palladin]

Please thank him for me and tell him to be careful.

This

 

[theGringo]

Holy crap. It looks like someone is looking out after him. Please tell him to keep his head low and come home safe.

The really neat thing is that, as the Intel guy, he got to write the report on it. Yes, I suspect that my late mother had a hand in this.

 

[RichM]

He's in our prayers. Tell him to be smart, keep his eyes open, and his head down. That IBV (Ballistic Vest)and PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) aren't there to stay in his footlocker!

Try not to worry too much, Dad. Sometime when we're at a shoot, I'll tell a funny story about my tour...

 

[Mass-diver]

God bless

 

[Gibbs]

Thanks to him--and to you--for his service.

 

[theGringo]

Thanks to him--and to you--for his service.

After hearing Dan's story firsthand, MY thanks and appreciation goes out to every man and woman who has volunteered for military service in wartime, and their families. I thought I knew, but now I know.

 

[USMA-82]

Our thoughts and prayers are with him, Gringo.

Just tell him to keep his damn head down! And don't volunteer for nothin'.....

I guess after this, shooting an old TV in the back yard won't seem quite as exciting.

*

 

[M1911]

He's in our prayers. Tell him to be smart, keep his eyes open, and his head down. That IBV (Ballistic Vest)and PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) aren't there to stay in his footlocker!

Amen.

 

[theGringo]

Our thoughts and prayer are with him, Gringo.

Just tell him to keep his damn head down! And don't volunteer for nothin'.....

I guess after this, shooting an old TV in the back yard won't seem quite as exciting.

*

Too late on the "don't volunteer".

You know, Ken ... the day after you left we found what appears to be a perfectly intact 45 cal bullet lodged between two planks at the rear of the deck. That's a looong way from the backyard "range", and I don't shoot 45. Did we shoot 45 that day?

I still have that artifact around here somewhere ... How the hell did it get way up on the deck?

Thank you for showing Dan a good shooting time while he was on leave. He might be back home late May/early June ... just sayin' ...

(This time I'll buy the ammo)

 

[USMA-82]

... the day after you left we found what appears to be a perfectly intact 45 cal bullet lodged between two planks at the rear of the deck. That's a looong way from the backyard "range", and I don't shoot 45. Did we shoot 45 that day?

Holy crap! Yes, we shot my Grand Daddy's old Colt 1911. I have no clue on that one.

 

[RadiCS]

Thank him for his service.

 

[Maxpower]

Pretty exciting place, Afghanistan.

Thoughts are with you and your son.

 

[M1911]

Thank you for showing Dan a good shooting time while he was on leave. He might be back home late May/early June ... just sayin' ...

(This time I'll buy the ammo)

Dude, if he's back from Trashcanistan, neither you nor he are paying for ammo. It's on us. Seriously.

 

[theGringo]

Dude, if he's bank from Trashcanistan, neither you nor he are paying for ammo. It's on us. Seriously.

I'm already stocking up for the occasion, M1911.

And you know, another PITA ... The Col. has barred the guys from buying smokes at the (2 shop) Afghan bazaar. Something about them turning up some poisoned cigarettes. Glad I just sent him two bags of loose tobacco.

 

[Realtor MA]

Please thank him for me and tell him to be careful.

+1 This. And we'll be praying for him and his fellow soldiers until they're all home and safe.

 

[killer127]

Please tell him that we are thinking about them and thank then for the job they are doing over there. GOD BLESS THEM

 

[GML]

He's in our thoughts, as well as all the others who are there.

 

[Reptile]

Thank him for his service from me too.

As a side note, it must be pretty cool to communicate via skype with him so far away.

 

[rsl5150]

Please thank him and tell him to be safe. God bless.

Sent from my HTC EVO using Tapatalk Pro.

 

[andrew]

Prayers for your boy. I know what you mean about adventure, but I get stomach knots just by trying to put my head where yours is right now. Prayers for you too!

 

[atilla]

glad your son is doing okay out there. send my thanks along as well.

 

[william_munny]

Wow, that's something else. I thank him for his service, and pray for his safe return.

 

[theGringo]

Thank him for his service from me too.

As a side note, it must be pretty cool to communicate via skype with him so far away.

It's pretty amazing, when you think about it. When I was a kid, this was all sci-fi. Video call from half way around the world ...

The connection is a little slow at times, but what a blessing to be able to see him live. Thank you to the NESer who sent me a webcam and got me started on this. I was clueless.