Write the bugger!

22 April 2007

Ahh basic training. The best of times and the worst of times. The beginning of this week was awesome. The end of this week was pretty much the worst since I’ve been here.

The red phase ftx [test?] was a lot of fun, but very tiring. The cadre put together real operation orders and we busted out for a remote place at Fort Knox (right on the border in the deep woods) and set up a loose camp formation. We conducted a day time land navigation course which was very invigorating and mentally challenging. I was the team captain of my group and led us to four out of four of the points we were supposed to find. Of course everything we did that weekend was in “full battle rattle� (Kevlar helmet, vest with ballistic plates, LBV, rucksack, M4 carbine). Luckily we were allowed to ground our rucksacks during the land navigation course.

We didn’t get any MRE’s because the army is kinder and gentler these days and loves to contract out jobs to civilians. We get hot chow that is trucked out to our location wherever we’re in the field and sometimes at the barracks.

That night we did night land navigation course that was ridiculously hard. Ever try to navigate through the Kentucky woods in the middle of the night in a helmet and bulletproof vest with a group of privates that really have no idea what they’re doing? I have, it gets no where fast. Needless to say we didn’t get the night land navigation point we were supposed to but our platoon did win the land nav. Course streamer for our banner overall – that made our drill sergeants happy.

The whole rest of the weekend was full of red phase testing, and the rest of the week off and on as well (now I realize why I feel like so much has happened this week, I’m writing for two weekends… wow).

During the week (on Wed. or TH. I think) we learned some basic combative exercises. You know – hand to hand fighting? The army has a new style that’s a cross between wrestling, judo, and some Russian style martial arts. We had a lot of fun with that and I’m happy to say I can confidently kick butt if I have to now. I need a lot more practice but the fundamentals are there (so you better hope my Xbox is in good shape when I get home Ben and Keith…)

This weekend we had some red phase testing on first aid. I passed with flying colors and even got a complement from a drill sergeant who said I made the best splint for a fracture that he as seen all day. I’ll tell you what; it really helped to have all that training as Boy Scout. A lot of the first aid felt like refresher course. I was one of the main three authorities in first aid in my platoon – Everyone came to me for advice (not to blow my own horn but its true).

Also this weekend we did our first PT test. The full 2 minute push-up, 2 minute sit-up and 2 mile run. I think I might have mentioned before how I was worried about my diet and weight and not improving my exercises. Well, my PT test surprised me quite a bit. I did 42 push-ups, 45 sit-ups and ran the two miles in 15 minutes and 26 seconds. Not outstanding I know but before I got here those scores were considerably less (or more as the case may be).

My goals now for the end of basic training are to do 65 push-ups, 70 sit-ups and run a 14:30 two mile on my final PT test. Then at “pit” I can hopefully bump those scores up even more. I will be one seriously ripped dude when I get back. Oh yeah… Good times, good times. The soldier comes home to pound on all his geeky, couch potato friends.

Well, like I said before, this week didn’t end well. Our primary drill sergeant at the end of the week was D.S. Twocrow. This guy has a perpetual chip on his shoulder, is never happy with anything, and has a temper that would scare the terminator. We didn’t eat fast enough in the chow hall on Saturday and some other small thing and he flipped out on us. It wouldn’t have been that bad if it weren’t for the 2nd platoon. They were having a locker inspection at the time and their D.S.s [Drill Sergeants] started finding contraband crackers, cookies, cereal, and other food in the barracks. If you couldn’t figure it out - that’s a big no, no. Automatic counseling statement and article 15 UCMJ punishment (look it up, not enough time to explain it here). Well 2nd platoon’s drill sergeants got all worked up and told our drill sergeants to check our bays too. Fortunately, they didn’t find any food. Unfortunately, they found something even worse – a cell phone. One of our platoon members had a cell phone plugged into the wall behind his locker. Wow, we got totally screwed for that one. It was only a handful of people that knew about the phone and used it but the entire platoon got smoked (P.T.ed to death). Most of all the platoon guide and squad leaders, and guess what I am? Yay! All the leaders got smoked in the sand pit for a good 20 minutes while the rest of the platoon watched, it was bad. I was totally exhausted when we were finished. I mean. Totally beat. Basically what you do in “the pit� is run in place until the DS says�Hit it!� Then you drop to the push-up position and immediately stand back up again. In the course of 20 minutes a D.S. can say “Hit it!� easily 100 times and by the time we were done, everyone was running in foot deep hole in the sand they had dug with their feet and body. It was intense stuff man. All the D.S.’s from all the entire company were royally pissed off today. We lost all privileges (Px, phone calls, free time) and were smoked hardcore 2 or 3 times as a platoon and a company. Another reason our platoon was in trouble was because we constantly fight and bicker at each other and don’t work as a team. It’s getting really old and I completely understand why the D.S’s are getting ticked off about it.

As a squad leader a lot rests on my shoulders now. I have my squad to take care of and I’ve been put in charge of making sure our floor of the barracks is clean. I have a lot less free time now and I feel like I’m babysitting a lot. Especially one 17 year old Private Castleberry, from Tennessee who has ADHD and seems to make enemies anywhere he turns. I don’t know what to do about him. Everyone in his baby [?] hates him for good reason. But then again no one yet can be mature enough to work out their own problems. It is very mentally taxing to have to figure out how to best handle this matter. I don’t want to tack it to D.S. because both of them are already sick and tired of hearing stories about how we hate each other.

*sigh* Anyway this letter is a lot longer then I thought it was going to be so I’ll end it here. This next week we actually start white phase and weapons training and marksmanship practice - Woot! Expect a good letter next week.

I didn’t have any pie last Sunday cuz we were in the woods… but I did have some Oreo cookies with dinner Today I had apple pie mmm…. Only five left! Wow. Crazy.

PFC Christensen at Fort Knox

P.S. - Oh ya, I forgot to mention that at the PTX we had to post 360 guards around our camp all night long. People hardly got any sleep, myself included because the drill sergeants would periodically probe our lines and set of huge M80 fireworks (you know ¼ stick of dynamite kind?) next to our camp to simulate mortar attacks. Aaahh gotta love the United States Army.

P.P.S. – So am I to assume that no one is commenting on the website to my letters? Or is Ben just not sending them to me? [There have been six comments, none of which have real value; I have not been sending them] I’ve been here four weeks and only received three letters not from my wife. [One from me!] I guess “Support the troops� is just a bumper sticker huh?

Another letter from Sharpie. In it, we learn that our friend, husband, and dad is a much tougher guy than we thought!

15 April 2007

Hello from Fort Knox! I have so much to write about and so little time. Wow, I have a lot to write about. I have hardly any personal time anymore (I’m writing this in my bed after lights out) because I’ve been appointed squad leader of first squad. That’s right, first squad leader of first platoon. I am at the extreme front right coorner of the whole company formation. It’s a whole lot of responsibility to keep track of 11 privates and their needs and strengths and weaknesses and what they need to be doing & when. Sheesh. Of course I’m eating up the opportunity to serve and command & lead in this capacity. But its not like I asked for it. I was getting my antibiotics (for my pnemonia) at the Drill Sgt’s office one day this week and Drill Sgt Twocrow just asked out of the blue if I could handle leading a squad. Well of course I said yes. It’s a lot of work and a lot of pressure because the Drill Sgts will smoke (or “peel back” as they sometimes say) the leaders if something goes wrong in the platoon. So if my letters start getting sparse its because I have so much to do during personal time - I’m really sorry in advance.

So I guess the biggest news this week would be the gas chamber! Woohoo! That’s right, I survived the CS gas. One of the “highlites” of basic training is now over! It was quite an ordeal. While you’re in the gas chamber (without the mask) it is just as bad as you can imagine. I didn’t realize that it would burn my lungs so bad. It also irritated my eyes and nose until they started running like crazy but that was nothing compared to the burning in my lungs and shortness of breath. No wonder CS gas is so effective at flushing people out of houses and dispersing crowds. That stuff freaking works.

There were at least half a dozen guys that bolted out of the back door before exercise inside the gas chamber was finished. They were all very desperate and just freaking out. A lot of them were screaming that they couldn’t breathe and that they wouldn’t go back in. It took a lot of Sgts and Drill Sgts to get them back inside. One private never did go back inside - he resisted to the bitter end and the Drill Sgts still give him a hard time days later by instructing the entire company to shout out a loud “Boo” whenever they call out his name. I’m glad the gas chamber experience is over but I’m glad I did it.

Tomorrow and Tuesday we will go on our first overnight field training exercise. We’re packing tons of gear in our rucksacks and we’re going in full “battle rattle,” which means we wear out helmets, flak vest w/ ballistic plate inserts, LBV (Load Bearing Vest - the one that has ammo pouches and canteens and stuff), knee pads & elbow pads, and our weapons. We’re going to do our Red Phase testing (its kind of like a midterm I guess) and a big land navigation course. I love land nav so this should be fun. Plus we have to pull security and guard duty all night. And the Drill Sergeants said they would simulate artillery and morter attacks all night long by tossing huge firecrackers (like over-sized M80s) into the middle of our base camp. And while we’re on our guard duty we’ll have people try to penetrate our perimeter. So we have to challenge them, identify them, and let them through or detain them depending if they know the challenge/password.

Everything they teach us here is extremely modern training. Everything from getting our rifles issued 2 days into training to learning really modern first aid techniques and how to set up checkpoints and carrying our M4s everywhere and doing lots of tactical road marches. And everyone is always talking about Iraq. The rules of war have really changed. It sounds corny but basic training is not our daddy’s boot camp anymore.

It’s pretty fun to always be carrying my M4 everywhere. We can only not have it when we’re taking a shower (but we still have to leave it with a battle buddy). I’m getting really fast at doing functions checks and clearing the weapon & breaking it down and reassembling it. I know that by the time I get back and buy my AR-15, that thing will feel like an extension of my body…

Well there’s tons of more stuff I could write about but its late and I have to get up early so I’ll sign off now and say goodbye till next time. Oh yeah… this weeks pie was apple, mmmm…

PFC Nathan Christensen

Sharpie has an exciting time this week. And by exciting, I mean he missed the exciting thing to do a less exciting thing.

9 April 2007

Hey Everyone,

As I’m sure you know, the BCT life is a hectic one. The only time I get to write letters is 50 minutes in the evening everyday from 2100 to 2150 (9:00pm - 9:50pm), and that time also has to be used for laundry, shower, cleaning lockers etc, etc. So forgive me if my letters start getting spotty in regularity or lacking in detail.

The big news for this week (last week technically) is that I had my first, and hopefully only, big sick call. We had some pretty hot weather on Monday & Tuesday of last week and the PT and activities we were doing under the sun finally caught up with me. We ran a killer obstacle course and practiced drill & ceremonies in a parking lot for 2 hours. This was all in 85+ degree weather with hardly any breaks in the shade. It was pretty intense stuff.

When we finally got inside the barracks my body just called it quits. I was extremely hot, I felt faint and dizzy. I was sore, dazed, wasn’t sweating. I had heat stroke. I was drinking plenty of water the whole day but apparently my mom is susceptible to heat exhaustion & I didn’t know. It didn’t get any better and to make a long story short I went to the emergency room with a temperature of 104.5. Woohoo!

I stayed the night at the hospital and most of the next day. They kept me all happed up on IVs and tested my blood at least 3 or 4 times. I was dressed in those stylish hospital gowns and wheeling my IV stand around everywhere I went (which was usually just from my room to the bathroom down the hall). It’s a weird sensation to constantly have to pee even though you’re hardly drinking anything.

The hospital was an army community hospital but very top of the line. If it wasn’t for the staff (some of them) walking around in uniforms, you would’ve thought it was a new civilian hospital. I had TV in my room, room service, great beds, the works. They even had plasma screen TVs in the waiting room.

Anyway it was a fun stay but I ended up missing bayonet training and qualification. No big deal though. I can make it up. And the funny thing is that the next day (Wednesday) and ever since then its been in the low 40s with a big wind chill factor. Heh… such is life. Anyway everything is great now - I even got a blessing from the senior missionaries and a member doctor. Elder & Sister Jones lead the serviceman’s ward here. They’re a swell couple of people. OK End of the letter now. And the flavor of pie this week? Cherry. Mmmm… love that cherry pie.

PFC Nathan Christensen

New Sharpie letter…

29 March 2007 , Thursday

The night before shipping out to basic: I’ve decided to chronicle my experiences in this short diary/letter format. Every night I will write a very short paragraph or two about the days -activities. Then, at the end of the week I will have a full letter to send off with a bunch of nitty gritty details about a basic training experience. (I decided to go back on my decision to preserve the mystique of bct.)

I decided to pass the weeks in basic by counting pies. Yep, nine pies to be exact. Every Sunday, and only Sundays, I will allow myself some dessert for dinner. This will give me something to look forward to and I can count down the number of pies until the end! Whoohoo! So every week look forward to a new update on the pie countdown!

Today during one of our day-room stints we had trouble keeping quiet. Not me, mind you. You’d be surprised how hard it is for some people to just not talk. The drill Sgts. gave us a speech about learning to shut up when we‘re supposed. But as soon as they leave us for a few minutes quite a few of the group start talking. It’s really frustrating. Today the group singled out one particular pvt. (Casleberry from Tennessee) and threatened to best the crap out of him if he didn’t shape up (they dole out “mass instruction� in bct – if one guy screws up everyone gets smoked). When he got back to his bunk tonight some privates had torn it up. He later apologized after a bunch of guys visited his bunk with a few words of “encouragement.� Well, I think that’s it for today. Tomorrow we have our first real day of bct. It’s going to be a real big wake-up call for a lot of these guys but I think I can handle it.

I think I’m going to send this letter on Monday to start the schedule correctly. Start my letter diary the same Monday. That means you should get my basic training the same day as the weekly Bungie updates!! Cool…

Later everyone…

PFC Nathan Christensen

30 March 2007, Friday

Uh—yeah. It’s just as bad as everyone thinks it is. I’ll just start off with that. It would be quite a shocke3r to anyone not prepared for basic training to get a dose of a first day with real drill sgts. Yeah, so you think you know what a drill sergeant is like by watching TV or movies?? Pfffft… These guys at Delta Company 2-81 Armor Brigade are 100% more intense than anything you’ve every heard or seen before (unless you’ve been in the military and seen it first hand). But in all fairness (if it can be called fairness) these armor brigade serpents are supposed to be the best they have at Ft. Knox since Ft. Knox’s specialty is armor (tanks, mechanized infantry, etc.)

So to give you a little taste of what the first day was like, check this out… Our first task after getting off the bus that transported us form reception was to form up, “meet� our drill sergeants and then retrieve our duffle bags that had been transported over on another truck. To a civilian this sounds like a rather simple, unassuming task. Enter the untied States Army. The drill sergeants all had their “A� game on which meant the y yelled, screamed, cussed, cursed, bellowed, and shouted louder, longer, angrier, and more intimidating then civilians even think its humanly possible. You think you’ve ever yelled when you’re mad? No… You were whispering compared to what these guys do. Anyway so the duffle bags are all thrown onto a huge pile at one end of the parking lot where we formed up (there are 200 pvts. in our company so that’s a lot of duffle bags). We had to run to the duffle bags and try to find ours and then run back to formation. Ha! Pure and utter chaos. We did it a few times till l everyone got their duffel. Longs story short - it was a killer first day. I’ve got to end this cu I’m running out of time here…

31 March 2007, Saturday

I’ve been appointed “tag man� of the platoon. It’s supposed to be like really important or something but all it consists of is hauling around a little tripod sign and plastic signs that hang on it that designate what unit we are and what we’re doing when we have to do stuff outside. Anyway I’m in 1st platoon of Delta Company 2-81 Armor. We’re the “bandits�. It’s pretty cool so far, our platoon seems to get along ok and not have too many screw ups in its ranks. But we did get thrown in the “pit� today because some of the pvts in our platoon couldn’t fill out some freakin’ paperwork the right way. The pit is just a huge sand box/pit that can fit about 20- people at once. They make you do push-ups, running in place, a while bunch of things when you’re in there. Our two drill sergeants for 1st platoon are Drill Sergeant Twocrow (he looks Hispanic but his name almost sounds Native American doesn’t it?) and Diediker. Twocrow is the toughest by far. He’s the senior drill Sgt. Of our platoon.

1 April 2007, Sunday

Hey, I’m really not at basic training I’m at a Disney world resort for the next 8 weeks. Ha… Ha… Ha… Sometimes April fool’s day is cruel. The two big things that happened today were church and weapon issue. Church was absolutely awesome. I really needed the boost. We had fast and testimony meeting and watched some pre-recorded priesthood session talks. It was all I could do to not start crying quite a few times because the spirit was so strong. I also volunteered to lead the music since I think I was the only one there that knew how (out of soldiers.) The meeting took place in a small little building on the base and a lot of the leadership was handled primarily by two senior missionaries, Elder and Sister Jones.

We were issued our weapons today! I wasn’t expecting to get them until next week but we got them before the first week officially started! Yay! We got M4 carbines instead of the bulky M16s. We have to go everywhere with theses babies. I mean everywhere except the shower. And even then a battle buddy has to take charge of. Well it’s getting late again so I’ll end it here… This is getting long anyway.

Oh yeah! Almost forgot. This weeks pie was … Lemon marangue (or however you spell that)

PFC Christensen

P.S. - sorry Ben, I’ll try and keep the letters shorter from now on.

Next Sharpie letter! Uncensored! Opinionated! Wish he was here!

28 March 2007

Hey, this is my last letter from reception and then I’ll be in full fledged basic training! Reception has been a very strange, enlightening, and frustrating experience. None of the days that pass here actually count toward my nine weeks over at Ft. Knox.

Last night (and early this morning) we had our first experience with a Kentucky thunderstorm. The lightening was pretty spectacular but the thunder wasn’t that threatening so I guess it wasn’t close. It poured pretty dang good for a few hours in the morning so we had to march around in our ponchos outside.

We had our initial P.T. (physical training) assessment yesterday. It consists of 1 min. of push-ups, 1 min of sit-ups, and a 1 mile run. I did mediocre at best with the push-ups (25) and I did ok with the sit-ups (35) but it was the run that became an interesting story. I ran my 4 laps around the track (that equaled 1 mile) in pretty good time (7:40) but when I got to the end and told the drill Sgt. that I had finished my fourth lap but I think he thought I was on my fourth lap, so he told me to run another one. Far be it for me to not do what a drill Sgt. tells me to do so I ran another lap. I finished my fifth lap ahead of quite a few people that were still running their fourth and I timed that one at 9:05. I told the drill Sgt. that I did an extra lap and I’m pretty sure he shaved the last lap time off. I sure hope so because I’ve heard that they divide up the different platoons in basic training according to our P.T. scores (I originally heard that it was alphabetized separation but I’m not sure if that really makes sense.)

I have to tell you about this guy here that’s from Arkansas. He’s typical of the vast majority of the guys form the south (Alabama, Tennessee, Carolinas, Georgia, etc). These southern guys with their southern accents and southern disposition (crass and loud mostly) can be a bit too much for a northerner like me.

Anyway, this one private form Arkansas is like nobody I’ve ever met. He looks like a normal middle class kid with maybe a little bit of Hispanic background in him. But his southern accent is so freakin’ thick and deep that I don’t even understand half the things that are coming out of his mouth – literally, I’m not joking. If any of you watch King of the Hill, he talks almost exactly like the mumbling dude that you can never understand. And to top it all off guess what is name is� Jimmy Jack Huckaby… I kid you not, no joke, totally for real. So there’s just a taste of the southern soldiers here – most of them are form these southern states so it’s all around me all the time.

Well anyway, they’re starting to turn the lights out so I’ll end this letter. I’m doing fine, I’m thankful for all your support and I ask for your prayers to help me through the next nine weeks!

Nathan

Here’s the next letter from Sharpie.

25 March 2007

Well, I have time to write another letter so I think I’ll fill you in on some more reception stories. Reception is like purgatory. It’s painful, it’s damning, and it feels like eternity. The last two days have been a very strange combination of civilian and soldier life. We are basically “pacified� most of they day by being stuck in a big “day room� full of school desks watching movies on a big screen TV. And we’re not talking about a few movies, I must have seen at least seven in the last two days. And about 90% have been rated R – sigh.

Well let’s see here what can I tell you? We all got our haircuts our first full day here. Now we all look like proper soldiers and it’s a lot easier to be friends with people when they all wear the same clothes and have the same haircut.

The ACUs are awesome – I love wearing these things. I feel like a real high speed soldier when I am in these things. It was really interesting to see how guys changed as soon as they put on these uniforms. Not so much in our group but when other soldiers go their uniforms all of a sudden they turned in to drill privates (i.e. royally arrogant pricks (you can edit that if you want Ben?) Nah -Ben)

So I’m the official time keeper in my group. I think out of 45 privates only two of us brought watches. I really don’t understand it. So technically we’re not supposed to be sleeping in reception but that’s only technically. I’ll tell you about a little experience we had on Saturday. So we’re sitting in the day room watching movies when suddenly Sgt. Soto bursts through the door and turned off the TV. He had two Pvts in tow; apparently they were caught sleeping upstairs in the bays (the room with the rows of lockers). We were all supposed to be in the day room so those privates were in big trouble. But the army in their superior discipline techniques (and I’m not being sarcastic) doesn’t punish the offenders directly – instead Sgt. Soto ordered the rest of us to hold our full canteens out in front of us with both hands at eye level. The offending privates stood at the front of the room but didn’t hold out their canteens. We held these canteens up for easily 8 minutes probably 10. Try doing that yourself – not easy. And we had to keep them up straight the entire time. While we were doing this we shouted things to the privates in the front of the room (what ever Sgt. told us to) like, “thank you privates� and “Why did you sleep privates?� and “you are stupid privates.� The Sgt told us to stare at them while we did this. Man those two privates really got the tongue lashing from all of us. Gotta love army disciplinary strategy.

This letter actually has been written over the course of two days so some more interesting stuff happened today. For one, we go tour dog tags and military I.D. card. I tell you what; I.D. tags (dog tags) increase the cool/sexy factor exponentially. And the picture on my I.D. card makes me look like I am bout to kill something. I think I finally have all the gear I need to be a proper soldier, minus my M16. But I’ll be getting that in about 3 weeks and I’ll have it for the rest of basic.

I guess I have some more stories to tell but I’ll leave it for some later letters. Take care everyone!

PFC Nathan

Sharpie, our good pal, has entered Basic Training. After he finishes his education, he’ll serve his time with the Army for six years. Since Basic Training lasts a good 16 weeks, he and I agreed that I (my wife and I, that is) would type up his general letters and post them here. We’ll try to redact any personal sensitive stuff, but for the most part the letters he’ll be sending to me are for general disbursement. Note that I’ve create a new category for this communications: Boot Camp Sharpie. Without further ado, here’s his first letter.

24 March 2007

Well look at me! Writing on genuine, bona fide, United States Army stationary! How about that? I’m writing this letter while still in reception. That means I will be able to write you but you won’t be able to write me (because I won’t get my mailing address until I actually get to basic). Reception is a very curious state of existence. Basically it’s where you hang around getting paper work processed, equipment issued, and medical work taken care of. It’s not really basic training and non e of the time spent here actually counts towards time at basic training. Which is very frustrating considering I don’t actually ship to basic until next Friday.

There are some poor chaps here who have been stuck in reception for weeks. One guy, who helped one of the sergeants with processing when we first got here, has been in reception for 35 days!! That’s more then a month of doing nothing that gets him any closer to going home. Sometimes the delays are because of medical problems. But most of the time it’s because they are waiting for slots to open up in AIT (Advanced Individual Training) schools. I don’t know why they just don’t send these poor guys through basic then let them wait around for AIT slots. I guess that would make too much sense.

I could spend pages and pages giving a travelogue of everything that’s happened to me but to save me the writing and you time reading and to preserve the mystique surrounding basic training… I think I’ll write about what generally happened in the previous few days and then relate a few interesting anecdotes.

So I’ve already generally explained what reception is all about (hurry up and wait and drink a bottle of frustration) so I’ll give a few interesting stories. First, just to give you an idea of how much complete control the army ha over your behavior I give you this… in the latrine (bathroom) urinals there are rubber strainers at the bottom to keep people form flushing stuff they shouldn’t (you know, just like the kind you see in public restrooms) only these strainers are bright yellow and have the following printed on them, “If your urine is this color, drink more water.� No joke – they can get you anywhere.

I met this Private Holland from Alabama who has an interesting story. On 9-11 eight of his family members (cousins, sisters, etc) died in the first plane to hit the trade center. It really brings that whole event into a more realistic context when you can put a face to one of those grieving family members you know are out there. This Private Holland certainly had a good reason to join the army.

When in the army you need to be a very loud person. It’s called “sounding off.â€? It trains you to be confident and disciplined but it’s also very important when in the middle of a firefight to be able to hear orders and other communication over the sound of gunfire. Well, there are some people in the world that literally can not be loud. No joke, some guys just cannot breathe from the gut and belt out something nice and clear. We have an accountability formation every evening and we’re supposed to sound off with our last name when our series and line number is read off. This one private, every time, without fail, cannot yell his last name – He just talks it kind of forcefully. What’s even more embarrassing for him is the fact that he has a very proper accent (American accent but still very correctly pronounced) and kind of a sing-songy voice. Man it sounds so funny when he cannot yell any louder even when the Sgt. Is cussing him out and giving several tries to get it right. When he doesn’t he’s sent to the back of the formation and gets extra duty late in the day. Poor guy – I just don’t understand it

Well, I think that’s all for now. Until next time! Signing off from Ft. Knox.

PFC Nathan Christensen
Line and Series Redacted

Personal Comment Redacted

I’m going to upgrade to the latest version of WordPress (2.1.2) sometime in the next few days. During this process, you may not be able to comment on articles, it may look hideous while I make a new theme, or it may simply drop off the net for a few days. I’m currently running version 1.5.1.3, and it’s getting long in the tooth. See you on the other side…

-Ben