Whacky Day!

OK, this was one for the record books. Today started off just nutty from the beginning.

I get up (wearing shorts and a t-shirt) and need to get my uniform on. I slide my socks on, and grab my cammie top... wait, I am forgetting something... next thing I know, I am staring at my gun belt in my left hand and thinking, "I should really have pants on before I put this on..."

Control-Alt-Delete... I went back and sat down on my bed and laid out a plan for getting dressed. You know it is going to be one of those days when they start out like that, right?

At a quarter to nine, I went over and talked to the instructors that were supposed to be teaching our guys. They were ready. All was well.

At about 10:00, one of the students comes over to the office and tells us that the instructors are no where to be found (yeah, those guys who were waiting on the students at 08:45). Cue the Twilight Zone music and start spinning up the Gunny.

I go over to where I saw them last and they were gone. I looked everywhere they would go on our compound and nothing. Finally, as I am about to learn the rest of the story, here they come from the adjascent compound.

I asked them where they were and they said they were over talking to the other precinct guys and that the students had not shown up.

Of course, no one told me this, and no one had gone to their boss to ask where they were, so I guess we just call an audible and punt the ball away on second down???? Basically.

In getting to the bottom of this one, I learned that only one of their students had shown up. Some head-bumping and chest beating happened and we got it all figured out after a few thumb-wrestling matches and bouts of rock-paper-scissors.

While we were over talking to the 2nd in command of the students (because the Col was out of the office) we learned that he needed a new badge. We can work that out.

Sgt Garrett went and made him a new badge. On the way to deliver it, they see the Col is back. They stop in to pay their respects and tell him in passing that they are taking the new badge to his second in command.

Somehow this displeased the Col... Now you really have to understand the culture of the people to get this concept, and since I don't, I am not going to try and explain it. How in the world can you get mad at someone for helping someone else when they have asked for your help? Yeah, I am at a loss too.

Shortly thereafter, we make our way to the vehicles. We are heading to pick up some chow and run a few other errands.

When we get to the Chow-hall in our many-ton MRAP, we notice that there are two vehicles there a-head of us. We decide to pull over to the side of the very muddy and wet road and wait for them to get done so we can slide in there next to them.

(now think back if you will to my "Rain" blog)

Yeah, you probably guessed it, we got that buffalo of a vehicle stuck!

Yeah, those Army guys getting chow were pretty excited to see the Marines acting amphibious in a puddle, but we were none-too-happy about the whole idea of conducting a beach landing in the middle of Iraq.

Eventually, after everyone was bored with the show and the drivers Gunny had shown up and yelled at him, the driver actually got himself out of the ditch, somehow.

We got the chow and finished our mission without further incident, but what a messed up day! It seemed like we were getting frustrated at every turn. It was a Monday, that is for sure, and it is over.

You know that tomorrow will be better, right!

Semper Fi,
m