Turn Your Head and Cough... (formerly "Corpsman Up!")

Things are different...(Part two)

2009-06-26T08:11:00.003-05:00

I came back to Fort Riley on the 2nd of January and flew out the EARLY morning of the 3rd, stopping in New Jersey, Reykjavik(sp?), and Germany(I can't remember where but there was snow on the ground.) before we landed in Kuwait on the evening of the 4th. We were trucked to Camp Buehring where we had an In-Brief and they scanned our ID cards for "War-zone" accountability. We were able to stay in Camp Buehring for Breakfast, after we helped the Army guys that were staying there that were on the same flight as us unload their stuff from our truck. They loaded us onto another bus for the trip to Camp Virginia. Everybody slept for the hour trek.

When we got to Camp Virginia we offloaded our bags into our tents. After that we had to hike to the Navy LNOs offices, which gave us a tour of the Tent City, and we were able to see where our showers were. Why does it seem that they always stick you in the tent farthest away from the showers and shitters. At the LNO offices we did more paperwork, got our orders stamped and went off to our tent. We were able to get some chow(by then it was lunch), hit the PX and Barbershops to get our trims in. We had to be at Ali Asaleem at 3AM(which meant up at midnight) for an 8AM flight. Why? I dunno, I don't do schedules. Just follow them...

We landed at Baghdad International about an hour and a half after take off. We waited with our baggage for what seemed like an eternity. I also noted that things here were a bit different. Whereas Camp Virginia seemed like a ghost-town compared to Baghdad International. People were buzzing around, helicopters were almost flying in and taking off non-stop. We loaded our bags onto the bus, provided by KBR, and began our trip to Victory Base. For a few days we did nothing. Ate and slept was pretty much the highlight of our first days in Iraq. After a couple days like this we went to the Navy LNOs at Victory, which were housed in one of the Lakeside guest houses across the way from the Palace that Headquartered the Coalition forces. We submitted our final travel claims and such, did our final pay checks to make sure that our HazDuty pay and tax-free was started and back to the tent we went.

We started our check-in briefs with MNSTC-I later that week. This consisted of FINALLY finding out where we were going, Intel Briefs of Areas assigned, and some training about how the finances worked (more along the lines of submitting projects and such). After this we said goodye to some members of our team as we stayed behind in Baghdad to attend MRAP drivers training. This took a few days to get straightened out, as I've never seen anybody nuke something so simple. I guess that's the Army and civilians for you. After days of just being told that no-one could train us AFTER we had confirmed seats in the class. We finally had some help from the higher-ups and we got called back to get a "shorter-version" of the class, since we already missed 2 days worth of it because someone couldn't get their head out of their ass. After the training was concluded we sat around some more waiting for our Air Movement Requests(AMR) to go through. Here in Iraq, if you don't submit more than 3 AMRs at a time, you probably aren't going anywhere for awhile. It was a short time after we finished our drivers training that they decided on the bright idea to move us to Camp Stryker, which is closer to the airport than Victory

At 2100, sometime in early February(I think it was the 4th or 5th), we finally got a helicopter(UH-60 Blackhawks, one for our bags and one for us) to FOB Delta (at the time, I had no flippin idea where this was). We didnt know if anyone was going to meet us there, so we were prepared to sit in tents for another few days. I can't remember what time we touched down, but as soon as we off-loaded our bags the Helicopters taxied out and took off. There was no-one but us around. Here we were in a strange place, we don't know where to go, and there is no-one to guide us. Did I mention it was pitch-black on the flightline...

After a year, things are different...(part one)

2009-06-24T12:16:00.003-05:00

I'm in Iraq now. I feel I need to bring everyone up to speed after a year of absence.

Shortly after my last post, I received orders to deploy to Iraq. At the time, I didn't exactly know what I was going to be doing. I only knew that I was going to Fort Riley, Kansas for 8 weeks for training before a year long deployment. I didn't even know where I was going. I was slated as an "Alternate", meaning that I would go to training and if they didn't need me I would go back home. As you would later find out, this was most decidedly not the case. I had a few months to prepare, as I wasn't leaving for training until September. I was able to put my Household Goods into storage and terminate my lease with no great difficulty. I never did see nor hear about my security deposit. Oh well, not that much money anyways. I stayed with my Grandparents for a few days before I left for Kansas. I also left my car for them to babysit for me while I was off to training.

At Fort Riley I found out that I was going to be a Combat Advisor to the Iraqi Army, more specifically geared to Logistics and Support (Supply systems, Maintenance, Medical, etc.). We went through the usual riggamarole with weapons training, convoy training, comms training, and specialized classroom training on "How to be an Advisor" and Arabic language and cultural immersion classes. I also had advanced medical training which was a joke... Also, it was at this time that one of the HM1s in our group hurt his back in a Hummvee rollover trainer and was sent home. Guess what? Yours truly was bumped up to primary. We got to go home for Christmas, which was pretty nice.

I flew back to California to pick-up my car to drive to Washington. I made it to Redding, CA on the first day. We(My Grandpa was riding with me) left Redding at about 0600. We started to get some snow in the Siskiou(sp?) mountains. After we crossed over into the Oregon flatlands it cleared up. About 100 miles out of Portland it started getting bad, and what was normally an 8 hour drive turned into a 18 hour slow crawl all the way home. It never let up, in fact, once we crossed the Columbia into Washington it started to get real bad. It cleared up though as I got through Olympia, as the snow plows had already been at work. I got to the base of the hill at my parents house and high-centered on the unplowed snow and ice. I had just drove 1200 miles and I run into trouble 250 feet from my house... sigh...

I had a really nice visit with my family. The hard part was leaving. It always is....

To be continued...

Getting Set Up

2008-05-12T09:34:00.003-05:00

So I promised that I would get better about posting. I guess that once every 2 weeks is better than once every couple years.

I've kept busy the last few days by setting up my apartment. I bought a $2,000 computer, which is a little more than resonable, but it's a bad-ass machine. 2.6ghz Intel Core2 Quad, Corsair 4GB DDR2-800 RAM, 750GB Hard Drive, NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GTX, 512MB of Dedicate Video Memory, 48x CDR/RW with LightScribe, 16x DVD-ROM, and I updated the soundcard to a X-FI Fatality myself. So I bought a desk for that. I also got a Logitech 5.1 Surround System to go with it. I then bought a 50-inch 1080p Plasma HDTV. Oh yeah...the thing is sweet!!! I was playing GTA IV on it yesterday and I love it for gaming. I have the cable guys coming on thursday to set-up my internet and HD cable. So I'll be able to start blog-rolling from home again. Also I should be updating my mySpace and other things like that.

That's pretty much all that's been occuypying my life so far. So I'll try and keep you up-to-date more often.

Thoughts, random or otherwise unimportant

2008-04-30T10:21:00.003-05:00

Sometimes when you sit around you just happen to think about whatever pops into your head. I'm sitting here at my desk at work thinking to myself about all these things, and I figure that to get them out I'd just blog about them.

Something that's been on my mind since I arrived here in San Diego is all the Marines that are here receiving medical treatment. I think about the sacrifices that they have made and the places they've been. Then I think about those corpsman that are with them. The ones that are getting shot up and wounded, sometimes killed. The ones coming back with PTSD and they still want to go back out there. The reason that I'm thinking about them is how I've never been on the ground. Sure I was in the gulf for three months on the Comfort when the war first started, taking care of all the Marines and Soldiers, EPWs and civilians wounded. But that doesn't compare with being there. I floated off the coast of Somalia for 4 months doing absolutely nothing, and again floated off the coast of the Phillipines for 5 months, doing pretty much the same. You might ask what I'm getting at. I was Meritoriously advanced to 2nd Class for my innate ability to handle desk work, cure headaches and reduce dislocated shoulders. I have a bronze star on my Sea Service deployment ribbon, while some other 3RD CLASS corpsman have a SILVER star on their COMBAT ACTION ribbon. This kinda tears me up inside. Why was I given the advancement opportunity for doing desk work while guys on the front lines that are getting shot at, taking mortar rounds inside their fencelines and FOBs aren't being offered the same? Was it because I was a standout at my command? The best Third Class on the boat that did pretty much nothing more than his job and nothing else. Sure I maxed out my quals, but thats what any good sailor would do, right? Maybe its just that Corpsman humility thing getting the best of me. Am I really that much better than I think I am? I just don't think that someone who sits 5 miles off the coast and does paperwork should be given another chevron when guys are taking rounds over their heads stuck at the same rate they were when they left. And even after all this I'm still not really excited about going to Iraq(or even Kuwait for that matter) anytime soon. It'll happen soon enough, I'm sure. But thats down the road. The point is that I feel bad for those guys who put their lives on the line everyday are still stuck in a slump of bad advancement, while the guy who was safe got the gold...

Another thing I've been thinking about is politics. I've never been one to really follow politics that much. And I have always wondered about what party I would fall under. Both of my parents are staunch republicans, but are open to vote for the best canidate even if they are not republican(Dad voted for Ross Perot a couple times). So when it came for me to register to vote for the 2004 general election I did so as a republican. But I have always wondered about my party affiliation, so I found a little quiz on Blogthings.com that I took. In the quiz it provided a statement and 5 responses(Strongly Agree, Agree, Not Sure, Disagree, and Strongly Disagree). Here are the statements and my opinions....

1. People have a right to unrestricted gun ownership. Strongly Agree. I believe that Americans have the inherent right to bear arms, as outlined in the Bill of Rights. At the same time I also believe that certain provisions should be in place to prevent arms of any kind falling into the hands of a convicted felon, for example. If guns were outlawed, millions in the US would become criminals overnight. How would we police that? How would people defend themselves?

2. Abortion should be illegal in all cases. Disagree. I believe that abortion should be legal ONLY in the cases of incest, rape, and any condition where the mothers life is in danger if the child is conceived(i.e. ectopic pregnancy).

3. Drugs, including marijuana, should be illegal. Disagree. I believe that Marijuana should be legalized. I am not a pot head by any means, but this is a harmless drug. Alcohol is more toxic to the body than Marijuana is. So treat it like alcohol in the workplace, don't come to work drunk and don't come to work high. And if the governement taxed the shit out of it like they do cigarettes, think about how much more millions of dollars would be infused into the national budget. All other drugs should remain illegal.

4. Taxes should be lowered for all income brackets.Strongly Agree. This is a no-brainer. Who likes paying taxes anyway?

5. Marriage is only for a man and a woman. Gay people should not be allowed to get married. Disagree I'm not a homophobe. Nor am I gay myself. I'm kinda middle of the road on the whole gay rights thing. I do believe, however, that if two people love each other, why shouldn't they be allowed to get married? I'm not religous either, so you can't throw the whole Bible thing at me.

6. Social security should be replaced with private accounts. Not Sure I'm not 100% up-to-date with the whole Social Security thing. I know it's a depression-era system that is poorly funded and way out-of-date. Not sure if private accounts are the way to go though. Maybe you should just take "a system" away and let everyone manage their own retirement benefits.

7. Stem cell research is unethical. Strongly Disagree I strongly believe that any research that has the potential to yield life-saving results and cures for Cancer, Parkinsons, and any other disease is worth it.

8. We need to stay the course in Iraq. Pulling out is not an option. Not Sure As a member of the Armed Forces, this is a touchy subject all around. In the beginning I thought that we should stay. Three years down the line...I'm not so sure anymore. Too many have died and I think it's turning into another Vietnam.

9. Parents should be able to choose between competing schools for their kids with vouchers. Not Sure I'm not even 100% sure what this is about...

10. Oil companies should be left alone to run their businesses as they choose. Disagree I think International political bodies should be placing caps on how much they can charge for gas... I think prices are getting ridiculously out of hand.

And I scored 47% Republican, 53% Democrat...No wonder I'm going to vote for Obama!!!!

Been a while....Hasn't it?

2008-04-29T15:02:00.002-05:00

It amazes me that I can be away from this for so long and my account is still right there where I left it. Weird....

The last time I left I was ranting about a deployment which didn't really turn out all that bad. I look back on it now, a year and a half later and think to myself that it could've been worse. A LOT WORSE!!!

I kinda feel like I've returned to an old friend. I was tooling around the internet, bored as hell at work, and I stumbled across the blog that got me here in the first place. It happened to be Sean's Doc in the Box. It brought me back here to my own neglected blog. It's almost a warm comforting blanket.

So whats happened since that last post. Not much really...

In August 2007 we deployed to Zamboanga, Phillipines and tooled around Mindinao and Holo Islands for a good 5 months. We pulled into exotic ports like Saipan, Kota Kinabalu(Malaysia), Dumaguete(Phillipines), Tacloban(Phillipines), Singapore, Penang(Malaysia), Guadalcanal, Tonga, and Home. It was a lot of fun... I think I have pictures posted on my MySpace profile. And yes...I came back still single. We got back to port in February and March 15th I left the mighty USS Reuben James (FFG-57), for what I thought at the time was going to be bigger and better things at NavMedCen, San Diego. Boy, was I wrong!!!!

I reported to the self-proclaimed "Pride of Navy Medicine" on the 15th of April 2008. I was originally assigned to the Emergency Department, supposed to be relieving their LPO, I imagine. But I will never know. I was reassigned to the Emergency Management Division of the Disaster preparedness Department which is apart of the Directorate of Administration. And my clinical experience is torn from my hands and shot down the tubes.

Now, I can both be pessimistic and optimistic about this situation. I am planning on going to IDC(Independant Duty Corpsman) school within the next few years. This is the toughest school in the Navy with the highest attrition rate in the Armed Forces. And I need the clinical experience dammit!!! So I come to a job sitting behind a desk, with no patients... I'm not even in the same building as the main hospital...FUCK!!! Let me catch my breath....

On the other hand, working from 0700-1500 every day leaves plenty of time for studying for advancement, taking college classes and just getting prepped and building a solid package for school. So I guess it can't be all that bad.

So right now I'm waiting to get paid so I can pay first month's rent so I can move in to my new place. I'm living with my grandparents right now and the old folks are cramping my style. The only good thing is that theres a cute hottie that works at the store in their community that I like to look at when I go buy ciggarettes.

So I must go for now. I promise that I will be a more frequent writer. I should now that I have more time on my hands... A LOT more time.

Not as bad, but close

2007-01-10T16:12:00.000-05:00

I'm feeling a little bit more calmed down the last couple of days. The last post seemed a little dark. I guess it was just post-leave deppression that I normally get after spending time at home and then coming to a place where your appreciation equals the sum of work, hours spent after 1600, and how much ass you kiss.

And I had a whole long post about deployment and details and everything and in one keystroke it was gone. Internet explorer closed and I lost about an hours work. Guess it wasn't supposed to be seen.

Anyways...a List of things that sucked about deployment

1. Being on a ship underway for 78 straight days with the same 250 guys.
2. Not having a day off for 78 days because the CO decides that every sunday he wants to schedule UNREPs and VERTREPs
3. Fried chicken, baked chicken, grilled chicken, dry-ass chicken, chicken salad, chicken ala-king, chicken noodle soup, chicken adobo, chicken nuggets, chicken patties, bar-b-que chicken, chicken ribs, chicken teriyaki, chicken gumbo, chicken stir-fry, chicken stew, chicken ravioli, and that's just for openers. Chicken twenty times a week. Colonel Sanders has nothing on this place.
4. Laundry that comes back soaking wet.
5. Five hundred plus movies in the ship's inventory yet they repeatedly play only about 20 of them.
6. Milk that tastes like it came from a cow with mad cow disease. Milk that has a shelf life greater than that of a nuclear bomb or that would not evaporate if placed on the sun, has to have things in it that are not good for you.
7. People who actually believe that a cigarette filter can take down a helicopter from 300 feet away.
8. People that think that it is okay to sell a completely melted candy bar, stale crackers or flat sodas for full price.
9. The smell of some guy's rack who believe's the shower is an annual requirement.
10. Hot dogs with the word Dingo anywhere on the box should have been rejected immediately.
11. Only putting out butter when there is no bread. When bread is available, all you ever hear is "nobody broke out the butter."
12.Not seeing port for 78 days because the CO wanted to see some "action" that never came. And in sight of land the entire time.
13.Doing 30 knots straight towards port only to stop 5 miles out and have the Helo launched and land to drop someone off.

Now the list of good things about deployment...

1. Nobody Died
2. Sydney
3. Mauritius
4. Hong Kong
5. Making New Friends
6. Getting 2nd Nam
7. Getting Capped to Second Class
8. Not getting shot at

More about recent events later....trying to get you guys caught up....

It's been a while

2007-01-05T13:47:00.000-05:00

So after an arduous workup and deployment period, a Post Operation Movement standdown, a Promotion, an IDC change, a CO change, another 1/2 of a training cycle and a holiday '06 stand-down, I'm back.

I'm exhausted and ready to transfer. Alas, I still have one more year including a work-up period and another deployment. After 2 years already, it's old. The 3 section duty during stand-down and throughout deployment, the painting to cover up the chips and scratches that come from cleaning so much, the dust bunnies that touch everything and reappear 20 mins after you just mopped, eating rice with every meal, and dealing with young-ins that after being in the navy since breakfast think that they know everything and can run the ship by themselves. I'm tired of it. Sick of it all.

I'm not happy doing my job any more. When I try to enjoy it, it seems like it slips through my hands like sand. Maybe I'm holding on too tight. I try and relax and just chill, but something always seems to happen to piss you off more. I thought that when I got promoted the bullshit would stop. Nope... It just got thicker. I'd rather be shot at right now than deal with stupid people. These guys make marines look like friggin geniuses.

It got so bad at one point that I hit the bottle just to relax myself enough to sleep. I was drinking at least once a day. And I would get so annihilated on the weekends that my friends didn't even want to hang out with me. Thats when I realized I didn't need another problem in my life. So I stopped drinking altogether for a little bit before it got worse. But I'm still in an emotional funk. I'm depressed, but its not so bad to call it clinical yet. I have my good days and bad days. I keep trucking on. I guess its not as bad as it could be.

Anyways, I have to get back to work. I'll write later about deployment and how much it sucked.

Advancement? Not Likely...

2005-09-08T15:50:00.000-05:00

I took the Navy-Wide Advancement-In-Rate exam for HM2 this morning. I don't have a good feeling about it. I think I bombed it.

Anyways, since we were out for Labor day weekend I'm sitting here trying to think of shit to do for the 3 days I'm gonna have off. Alchohol will fit in somewhere around there, just because thats what I do on the weekends. Video games too. Maybe some picture taking, I dunno. I was thinking about going to Dave and Buster's on Friday night. Maybe Nashvilles, the local country bar. Anywho... Just a little note to let everyone who reads that I'm alive, IF anyone reads anymore. I'm gonna try and post a little note about something everyday. So keep checking.

Katrina was my ex-girlfriends name...ugh!!!

2005-09-07T01:53:00.000-05:00

My heart and sympathies go out to all those affected by that terrible storm that hit the Louisiana area last week. I would've posted sooner but we were finishing up with an aggressive underway period. I know several of the guys on my boat that have family over there that have heard naught from them. I pray for those nightly.

Unlike some of those bigger ships we don't get internet underway. Yeah it sucks for us bloggers, especially when we go on deployment.

Well, updates from me. I caught the flu underway about four days ago, and I'm still battling it off. At it's peak I was lying in my rack with a hundred and two fever, coughing my brains out thinking to myself "CORPSMAN AREN"T SUPPOSED TO GET SICK DAMNIT!!!"

So I'm getting ready to set-up my laptop and watch a movie and go to bed. All those out there who are hoping and praying for family members in Louisiana, I join you.

O gracious God,
we will never understand the sorrows of the world, but by your grace we will not turn away from them.
Renew and sustain in us the spirit of love that crosses miles.
Cheer and encourage those who labor to help the injured, the homeless, the hungry and those in despair.
Bless and soften the hearts of those who would take advantage of tragedy for their own profit, that they may come to know where true joy is to be found.
Unite us in prayer with all those who look for help, and use us to come speedily to them with the things that they need.
We ask these things in your own most holy Name.
Amen.

Life goes on....

2005-08-13T22:54:00.000-05:00

When do you submit to fate and accept the fact that a girl you've liked for the last 4 months or so has no interest in having that type of relationship with you? Is it when you see her making out with a guy, get pissed, walk out and later to find out that she's liked him for awhile now and all of a sudden you realize that you're happy for her? Thats what happened last night and here's how I handled it.

I waited about half an hour or so after the incident. We have a flower girl that sells flowers at the country bar I frequent. Anyways, I bought her three yellow roses(for everlasting friendship), and conviently held them down behind my leg so she wouldn't see.

I told her that I didn't play her for stupid and I knew that she knew that I liked her. And that I was content with being friends and showed her the roses. She got this look in her eye and gave me a big hug and told me that was the sweetest thing anybody did for her, and that no matter what anybody tells me, I should never change. She kept saying that I was making her be like a girl (she's always been "one of the guys"). I also owe her a dance. I love you Stacy, you'll always be my girl.

I drank till I Stumbled,
I drank till I fell.
When the drunk part was over it hurt me like hell.
Now I know about drinkin' so I know one things true,
Bein drunk's a lot like lovin' you.

Cause I loved till I stumbled,
I loved till I fell.
When the lovin' was over it hurt me like hell.
I know what a taste of the wrong love can do,
Being drunk's a lot like lovin you.

And I've woke up some mornings and sworn off the drink,
At that I've done reasonably well I think.
But I haven't done well swearin off you and me,
At that I've failed miserably.

Well I've felt the hangover of lovin' all night,
I've sat at the bar all alone in a fight
I've bottled up feelings and poured 'em out too,
Being drunk's a lot like lovin' you.

And I've woke up some mornings a sworn off the drink,
At that I've done reasonably well I think.
But I haven't done well swearin' off you and me,
At that I've failed miserably.

I've drank till I stumbled,
I love till I fell.
When the drunk part was over love hurt me like hell.
Now I know about drinkin' so I know one things true,
Being drunk's a lot like lovin' you.

Well I know what a taste of the wrong love can do
Sometimes I still get drunk lovin' you.

I'm back....

2005-08-11T20:08:00.000-05:00

...for a little while anyways. I'm not sure how long it will be till my next post. We've been pierside in Hawaii for the last month. However we've been working so hard that all I do when I go home is eat dinner, work out, and sleep. It sucks, but In the last 8 months (has it really been that long?!!?) I've become quite accustome to getting the shaft.

Now, sometimes, rarely, we get off early on a friday. and when we do, look out Waikiki, cuz the sailors are coming for you!! Yeah, I go and party a little here and there, but mostly there.

Now back to work. I usually have a pretty got work ethic. But I'm getting ready to give the navy a big FUCK YOU!! and be on my way. The military has shafted me, and they have shafted me more than once. So I'm ready to put it all on the line and to not give a FLYING FUCK no more.

My HM1 made chief so I'm stuck here by myself for the next 6 weeks while he goes through initiation. I don't know what the hell to do sometimes. Oh, well. I think I'll live.

Best medical in the surface navy

2005-05-23T04:06:00.000-05:00

Again apologies for the lack of posts. Work hours have sucked for the past few weeks. Computer access has sucked as well because of the long hours.

Anyways, we just went through INSURV...the do or die of inspections of the surface navy. Basically if you fail this inspection, the CO, XO, and CHENG ( Chief Engineer) get relieved for due cause, and the ship risks decommisioning. Well, ladies and gentlemen. We blew it out of the water. And on top of that, the medical department was cited as "One of the best put together in the whole navy." That would lead to my head only getting bigger.

Anyways, if you couldn't tell already, Im fucked up beyond belief. I'll hurt in the morning, but who cares, eh? It's five o'clock somewhere.

Take care everyone...Until next time, huga and kisses for all!!!!!!!

Sometimes change is a good thing

2005-05-07T00:47:00.000-05:00

So...I can't really talk about all thats going on here. It's tough and exhausting. Sean, If you still read and check in on me I envy you. You don't have to paint shit, or stand watches. You dont go to work in the dark and come home in the dark. But on the other hand, I wouldn't want it any other way. This is the best duty I could have wanted. I will learn so much. To those of you I have lost due to my inactivity, I apologize. It's rough when your not used to this. The hours should improve in a little while so keep checking back. In the meantime I've started up my own fotopage at http://usndoc150.fotopages.com/ . Check it out and leave comments. I'm messing with my self timer right now to get more pictures of me in my civilian clothes. So stand the frick by!!! Love ya all.

On the coast of somewhere beautiful

2005-04-26T03:22:00.000-05:00

Knew I could never hold that girl
She was born to see the world
All I got is a picture she mailed me
Barefoot in the snow white sand
A bag of sea shells in her hand
She finally found a paradise it seems

On the coast of somewhere beautiful
Trade winds blowin through her hair
Sunlight dancin on the water
And I wish I was there
Don’t know how I’m goin’ to find her
All I know so far
She’s on the coast of somewhere beautiful
Runnin’ with my heart

Sometimes whne the sun goes down
Shadows fall across this little town
And I close my eyes and I drift away
To another place in another time
When the world was ours and she was mine
I dream of holdin her again someday

On the coast of somewhere beautiful
Trade winds blowin through her hair
Sunlight dancin on the water
And I wish I was there
Dont know how I’m gonna find her
All I know so far
Shes on a coast somewhere beautiful
Runnin with my heart

Dont know how I’m goin to find her
All I know so far
Shes on the coast of somewhere beautiful
Runnin with my heart
Ohh she’s runnin with my heart
On the coast of somewhere beautiful

A Story To Think About

2005-04-12T03:11:00.000-05:00

In August of 1942, the first major USMC assault landings against the Japanese Empire occurred in the Solomon Islands, Pacific. The island chosen for the invasion was Guadalcanal.

As they moved inland, four Marines were walking point into the jungle. Advancing into an open area without cover, they came under heavy fire from the entrenched Japanese. All four Marines were wounded but managed to crawl into a shell crater, about fifty yards from where they had emerged from the jungle.

A Hospital Corpsman ran from cover into the crater with the wounded Marines, and ran back to cover, under fire. Having dressed the wounds of the Marine, he sprinted back for another, only this time he was hit. Not stopping to dress his own wounds, he carried the second Marine to cover receiving a second wound. After giving aid to the Marine, the Corpsman was hit for a third time going into the crater. Staggering toward the treeline with the third Marine, he was again struck by enemy fire.

When the third Marine's wounds were dressed, the Corpsman started after the last Marine in the crater. The Corpsman still had not stopped to care for his own wounds. In a final valiant effort, he stumbled toward the crater, where he was brought down by concentrated enemy machine gun fire. He lunged forward into the crater falling across the fourth Marine, finally giving up his life.

Reaching up to his own bleeding wounds, the Marine wrote on the back of the Corpsman's bullet riddled shirt,
"WHERE ANGELS AND MARINES FEAR TO TREAD, THERE YOU'LL FIND A CORPSMAN DEAD."

This was that dying Marine's final tribute to his shipmate's supreme sacrifice in fulfilling his oath, "TO AID THE WOUNDED, IN THEIR MOMENT OF NEED."

A Corpsman's Prayer

2005-04-12T03:05:00.000-05:00

Grant me, oh Lord, for the coming events;

Enough knowledge to cope and some plain common sense.

Be at our side on those nightly patrols;

And be merciful judging our vulnerable souls.

Make my hands steady and as sure as a rock;

when the others go down with a wound or in shock.

Let me be close, when they bleed in the mud;

With a tourniquet handy to save precious blood.

Here in the jungle, the enemy near;

Even the corpsman can't offer much lightness and cheer.

Just help me, oh Lord, to save lives when I can;

Because even out there is merit in man.

If It's Your will, make casualties light;

And don't let any die in the murderous night.

These are my friends I'm trying to save;

They are frightened at times, but You know they are brave.

Let me not fail when they need so much;

But to help me serve with a compassionate touch.

Lord, I'm no hero -- my job is to heal;

And I want You to know Just how helpless I feel.

Bring us back safely to camp with dawn;

For too many of us are already gone.

Lord bless my friends If that's part of your plan;

And go with us tonight, when we go out again.

Author Unknown

My Prayer

2005-04-11T04:20:00.000-05:00

Dear Lord,

There's a young man or woman far from home, called to serve their nation in time of war; sent to defend our freedom on some distant foreign shore. We pray You keep them safe, we pray You keep them strong, we pray You send them safely home ... for they've been away so long. Bless those who await their safe return and those who mourn the lost. Bless those who serve this country well, no matter what the cost.

Back in San Diego

2005-02-12T14:37:00.000-05:00

Sorry I've been gone for so long. We got underway a couple of weeks ago, and we don't get internet while underway, Yeah, I know, It sucks. Anyways, It's raining and miserable here. I don't know what I'm going to do today. I'm off, but it's 1135 and I'm still on the ship. I need to get out.

Well, tata everyone

General Quarters, General Quaters, All hands man your General Quarters Stations!!!

2005-01-28T19:43:00.000-05:00

Talk about an exciting weeek.

Heck, I died twice yesterday. In the morning we had a security alert, because some stupid civilians drove their kayaks too close to the ship. Later on in the afternoon we had a mainline oil/fuel leak in engineering and we went to General Quarters. That means me and my strecher bearers, by ourselves,mind you in the Aft BDS ready to start accepting casualties if that shit lit off. I was scared. Been on the boat a week and I already was going to be by myself. Luckily nothing happened and it all turned out ok. The engineering guys had a fucking mess to clean up though. Nonetheless, we had an exciting couple of moments yesterday.

Today we had fast cruise, which meant we went through every possible evoulution that we would underway, except that we were still tied to the pier. Unrep, flight quarters, General Quarters, Sea and Anchor. All in prep for our underway period. Can't say when we're leaving or where we're going for Operational Security issues. But seeing as they're starting to urethane the decks outside medical in the P-Way, I need to scamper off. Everyone take care...

Doc

Fun in the Sun....yeah right!

2005-01-24T17:58:00.000-05:00

Here I am in Pearl Harbor now. It's been busy the last week I've been here. I've inherited a junk pile from the old Baby Doc that was here. Anyways, hopefully I can get out and see the island here, and get my digital camera some good use to post some pictures.

It's hot here. I wake up and its about 75 degrees at 5 am. I think overall its going to be a good experience. It's about time to get back to work. I wish I had more time to write, but like i said, its busy out here. Talk some more later.

Doc out

Rainy SoCal

2005-01-10T22:05:00.001-05:00

First off Happy New Year...

Second...why does Southren California have to be so ugly when I show up!!! Rain??!!?? I can get rain back home in Washington damn it!!!

Anyways, I'm here in San Diego until sunday then I'm off to Hawaii for some fun in the sun. HM1 Bentley, I know it's crazy but hang in there. I'll be there soon!!

No much to talk about right now.

Love you guys!

2004-12-26T12:54:00.000-05:00

I swear that I can go on forever again
Please let me know that my one bad day will end
I will go down as your lover, your friend
Give me your lips and with one kiss we begin

Are you afraid of being alone
Cause I am, I'm lost without you
Are you afraid of leaving tonight
Cause I am, I'm lost without you

I'll leave my room open till sunrise for you
I'll keep my eyes patiently focused on you
Where are you now I can hear footsteps I'm dreaming
And if you will, keep me from waking to believe this

Are you afraid of being alone
Cause I am, I'm lost without you
Are you afraid of leaving tonight
Cause I am, I'm lost without you

Are you afraid of being alone
Cause I am, I'm lost without you
Are you afraid of leaving tonight
Cause I am, I'm lost without you

Are you afraid of being alone
Cause I am, I'm lost without you
Are you afraid of leaving tonight
Cause I am, I'm lost without you
I'm lost without you
I'm lost without you
----------------------------------------------

(I miss you, I miss you)
Hello there, the angel from my nightmare
The shadow in the background of the morgue
The unsuspecting victim of darkness in the valley
We can live like Jack and Sally if we want
Where you can always find me
We'll have Halloween on Christmas
And in the night we'll wish this never ends
We'll wish this never ends

(I miss you, I miss you)
(I miss you, I miss you)

Where are you and I'm so sorry
I cannot sleep I cannot dream tonight
I need somebody and always
This sick strange darkness
Comes creeping on so haunting every time
And as I stared I counted
Webs from all the spiders
Catching things and eating their insides
Like indecision to call you
and hear your voice of treason
Will you come home and stop this pain tonight
Stop this pain tonight

Don't waste your time on me you're already
The voice inside my head
(I miss you, I miss you)
Don't waste your time on me you're already
The voice inside my head

(I miss you, I miss you)[x3]
(I miss you, I miss you) [x4]

Due to the nature of our relationship, I cannot mention names here. Although I want to let her know that I still care, and no it's not your fault. I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up, especially after what I told her. Love is strong and will persevere, and yes I want to remain friends. Just some feelings I had to let out in the open. I hope to see you soon...

Good to be home for the Holidays

2004-12-20T11:09:00.000-05:00

Whew...

Been home now for a few days and have gotten myself settled. Seeing old places and faces again makes me feel good inside. 3 of my old friends are stil here. Chris B. has been down in Fort Sam Houston for OBC. He's now a 2nd LT stationed at Ft. Lewis with the Stryker Brigade as the medical officer (not a Doctor, just a title, as he explained it to me last night). That worries me a little. I knew that there wold be risks involved with being in the military, but it's hard to accept the fact that this may be the last time that you get to spend with someone you grew up with and hung out with for all these years.

Josh D., my best bud... He's stationed on the USS Carl Vinson. He's getting ready for a 'round the world cruise. Good luck there shippey. Haven't seen him yet, but I will.

Adrienne is working an apprenticeship at the shipyard. Haven't seen her yet either, but I will.

The only bad thing about coming home is knowing that you will inevitably have to leave and say goodbye to your loved ones once more, to go do your part to keep them safe. You try not to think about it, but it's always there and that makes the visits that much more cherished. You cherish every second, every moment your with the people that you love.

So helllllllooooooooo Washington!! HELLLLLOOOOOO Port Orchard!!! I'm here to stay for the
next couple of weeks.

As a close, to all my brothers in the Army, Air Force, Marines, Navy, Coast Guard, and Nat'l Guard unable to make it home for Christmas or New Years, keep yourselves safe and sound. You are much thought of here in the states (regardless of what those liberal nitwits say). And if one of you reads this, my email is on my profile. If you want or need someone to talk to, Doc's here. And to all my friends stateside, be thankful for what you have. Because someone else might not have that. And may everyone, whether it be stateside, on the seas, in the air, or on the ground of foreign soil, have a safe, wonderful and Merry Christmas. (Chanukah, Yule, Kwanza, or whatever you celebrate too.)

Goodbye DC, Goodbye East Coast

2004-12-14T22:50:00.000-05:00

Well, this is my last post from good ole Bethesda. I've been here two years and it's about time for me to move on. I had several talks from my superiors, chastizing me for my mistakes, however at the same time wishing me luck for the future. I hold no grudges against anyone as I depart this command.

I've met amazing people here and have made friends for life. I will miss every single one of them. Erica, you are such a sweetheart and I will miss you forever, until we meet again!! Colin, your gone from here, but you were the best guy I knew, besides Eric whom I'll get to in a moment. Eric, Congrats on graduating from FMSS!!! You earned and deserve it as much as the next person. Jen R., didn't really get to know you until I was running short on time, but your heart is big and you should follow it always. To everyone that I have had the pleasure meeting, Fair Winds and Following Seas until our wakes cross once more. Take care of yourself everyone.

To the new people I will meet, I present a warning. Prepare for the most shit hot corpsman to grace the decks of your ship. You will be "MY" Sailors and no one elses. I will protect you with my life as if it were my own.

As I close, I want to share with everyone something special to me....

I solemnly pledge myself before God and these

witnesses to practice faithfully all of my

duties as a member of the Hospital Corps.

I hold the care of the sick and injured to be a

privilege and a sacred trust and will assist

the Medical Department Officer with loyalty

and honesty.

I will not knowingly permit harm to come

to any patient.

I will not partake of nor administer any

unauthorized medication.

I will hold all personal matters pertaining

to the private lives of patients in

strict confidence.

I dedicate my heart, mind and strength

to the work before me.

I shall do all within my power to show

in myself an example of all that is

honorable and good throughout my

naval career.

-Hospital Corpsman Pledge

Story of My Life

2004-12-09T14:47:00.000-05:00

A Couple Songs that Caught My Attention.....

Welcome To My Life

Do you ever feel like breaking down?
Do you ever feel out of place?
Like somehow you just don't belong
And no one understands you

Do you ever wanna run away?
Do you lock yourself in your room?
With the radio on turned up so loud
That no one hears you screaming

No you don't know what it's like
When nothing feels alright
You don't know what it's like to be like me

To be hurt
To feel lost
To be left out in the dark
To be kicked
When you're down
To feel like you've been pushed around
To be on the edge of breaking down
And no one's there to save you
No you don't know what it's like

Welcome to my life

Do you wanna be somebody else?
Are you sick of feeling so left out?
Are you desperate to find something more
Before your life is over

Are you stuck inside a world you hate?
Are you sick of everyone around?
With the big fake smiles and stupid lies
While deep inside you're bleeding

No you don't know what it's like
When nothing feels alright
You don't know what it's like to be like me

Welcome to my life

No one ever lied straight to your face
And no one ever stabbed you in the back
You might think I'm happy
But I'm not gonna be ok

Everybody always gave you what you wanted
You never had to work it was always there
You don't know what it's like
What it's like

Welcome to my life

-Welcome To My Life, Simple Plan

Vindicated

Hope dangles on a string

Like slow spinning redemption

Winding in and winding out

The shine of it has caught my eye

And roped me in

So mesmerizing, and so hypnotizing

I am captivated, I am...

Vindicated

I am selfish

I am wrong

I am right I swear

I'm right

Swear I knew it all along

And I am flawed

But I am cleaning up so well

I am seeing in me now the things you swore you saw yourself

So clear

Like the diamond in your ring

Cut to mirror your intention

Oversized and overwhelmed

The shine of which has caught my eye

And rendered me so isolated, so motivated

I am certain now that I am...

Vindicated

I am selfish

I am wrong

I am right

I swear I'm right

Swear I knew it all along

And I am flawed

But I am cleaning up so well

I am seeing in me now the things you swore you saw yourself

So turn

Up the corners of your lips

Part them and feel my finger tips

Trace the moment, fall forever

Defense is paper thin

Just one touch and I'd be in

Too deep now to ever swim against the current

So let me slip away

So let me slip against the current

So let me slip away

Vindicated

I am selfish

I am wrong

I am right

I swear I'm right

Swear I knew it all along

And I am flawed

But I am cleaning up so well

I am seeing in me now the things you swore you saw yourself

Like hope Dangles on a string

Like slow spinning redemption...

-Vindicated, Dashboard Confessional

Moving Up, and Moving On

2004-12-07T09:54:00.000-05:00

Well...I think it's about time to get back to blogging. I know it's been a while and for those who have been wondering and worried, I do apologize.

Things came to a head about two months ago and recently again. I've been scrambling like mad to get everything good to go with my transfer and its really is taking a lot out of me. With all the things going on you rarely have time to realize what you have until it's too late. I experienced this first hand about a month ago, when one of my good friends died in a MVA. He was drunk, and thank the lord that no one else was killed. This is also a reason I haven't been blogging of late. I miss him as much as any friend would, and I just wish that I had more time to spend with him. He is truly one of the special ones in my life and he will be missed.

Now on to happier things....

Because of everything thats going on, and the length of time things have taken, my father ( the ret. Senior Chief) decided to give my CMC a little phone call. Apparently the CMC had no clue I had XOI pending and that I was in fact under orders. What happened next suprised me and all of my friends. All charges were dropped, and as of today I have 7 days left here and then I go home till Jan 8.

I report to SFMIC at Balboa NH, San Diego on the 8th and start class on the tenth. After that My class grads on the 14th and I'm off to Hawaii for three years. This is great. I am relishing and soaking up every bit of it. Haze Gray and Underway baby. Real Navy, Here I Come.

And from what I understand, theres some special things in store for me when I get to San Diego...wink wink. Anyways, I hope this finds everyone well and in good spirits full of Holiday cheer. PEACE!!!

Boulevard of Broken Dreams

2004-11-21T09:05:00.000-05:00

I walk a lonely road
The only one that I have ever known
Don't know were it goes
But it's home to me and I walk alone
I walk this empty street
On the Boulevard of broken dreams
Where the city sleeps
And I'm the only one and I walk alone
I walk alone I walk alone
I walk alone and I walk a-

My shadows the only one that walks beside me
My shallow hearts the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Till then I'll walk alone

I'm walking down the line
That divides me somewhere in my mind
On the border line of the edge
And where I walk alone
Read between the lines
What's fucked up and everything's alright
Check my vital signs to know I'm still alive
And I walk alone
I walk alone I walk alone
I walk alone and I walk a-

My shadows the only one that walks beside me
My shallow hearts the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Till then I'll walk alone

I walk this empty street
On the Boulevard of broken dreams
Where the city sleeps
And I'm the only one and I walk a-

My shadows the only one that walks beside me
My shallow hearts the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Till then I'll walk alone

--Boulevard of Broken Dreams, Green Day

Photos They Never Show on the News

2004-10-21T15:34:00.000-05:00

Sometimes in our everyday lives we tend to forget what's going on elsewhere in the world and that the brave men and women of the service are just like you and I. They have family and friends back home who love them very much and are praying for their safe return. Please stop for a moment and say a prayer for our troops (land, air, and sea) in Afghanistan, Kuwait, Iraq, and around the world. Of all the gifts you could give the US Military, Prayer is the very best one.....

What to do?

2004-10-13T15:22:00.000-05:00

First off, apologies to everyone for my neglect in blogging and blog rolling. I've been too busy getting hammered to really have enough time to post a decent post.

I've never been one for politics. Well, I pay attention to stuff...sometimes. The reason I'm talking about this is that I'm starting to doubt my own beliefs. One of my good friends and I got into a discussion about the first set of debates. It seemed that I didn't have any good arguing points to vote for Bush. I based all of my points on the fact that Bush has given us pay-raises every year(hence he takes care of the military) , and his terrorism policies, which I think are pretty much right on. His "Leave No Child Behind" policy looks good on paper, but so did communism. That I'm still thinking about. It leaves too much room for children to slip through cracks in the system, and bases everything on the fact that the child has to care about their education in the first place, something rarely found in inner cities. Also, It penalizes kids in special circumstances. I had the whole "unconditional" 6 absences and fail that class rule in Jr. High and High School. The question still stands that If a child has a serious medical issue and "unintentionally" misses 6 classes because of appointments or because of illness related to that condition, does it still apply?

On the home front, Bush's domestic policies aren't as strong as they should be. What has he done for the economy, except raise interest rates. Is "Big Buisness" the way to go? I'm not so sure anymore. Only if the answers were so easy to see.

In other news, no news. Not necessarily good news though.
Gotta jet,
Peace and Axle Grease
(PS... To Tragic...Axle grease is just that. It's grease that lubes the axle on your car allowing it to spin without metal rubbing metal.)

New Corpsman Group Blog

2004-10-08T21:05:00.000-05:00

Hey all you slimy suckers and corpsman lovers!!!

Head on over to Musings of a Few Corpsman, a new group blog that Sean has started where a few corpsman get together and share their sea stories and tall tales!!

In other news, still no word on the XOI thing....I'm really getting sick and tired of this fucking run-around that I'm getting handed down. I talked at length with my HM1 this afternon before I left about what he thinks is going to happen to me. He basically said that its up in the air, because of the fact that the new XO is a mystery to everyone. I expressed to him my fears of not being a corpsman anymore, he replied with encouragement that no one was harmed and that everything was rectified in the end. The intentions never were there to harm anyone. He also reaffirmed that everyone was behind me and the fact that I was a good worker before and have continued to be a good worker since, that I am a "Salvageable" sailor. He said the fact that I've approached all this with a good attitude and done the menial tasks that have been assigned with no complaint weighs on my side. I'm crossing my fingers on this one, but not thinking too much about it right now.

I was supposed to go to the bar at College Park with some friends tonight, but no dice. He called me about half-an-hour before we were supposed to leave and said that he had no room in his car for me. Oh well. I'll just sit and rot my ass off. Up yours!!!

Well gotta fly....
Peace and Axle Grease!!

"Now this is what I call a target rich enviornment"

2004-10-04T19:22:00.000-05:00

Well, I went out and bought the Top Gun DVD a couple of days ago and I've decided to dedicate this post to the finest fighter in the Navy's arsenal. Sadly, this year has begun it's decommissioning process. This jet is the Cadillac of fighters and I've decided to go through it's history, the immortilization of this fighter in american pop-culture, and some of my favorite moments from the movie and some more stuff too. So sit back, grab a beer and prepare to enter the 'Danger Zone.'

The History of the F-14 Tomcat

The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is a United States Navy supersonic, twin-engine, variable sweep wing, two-seat strike fighter. The Tomcat's primary missions are air superiority, fleet air defense and precision strike against ground targets.

The F-14 has visual and all-weather attack capability to deliver Phoenix and Sparrow missiles as well as the M-61 gun and Sidewinder missiles for close in air-to-air combat. The F-14 also has the LANTIRN targeting system that allows delivery of various laser-guided bombs for precision strikes in air-to-ground combat missions. The F-14, equipped with Tactical Air Reconnaissance Pod System (TARPS) is the Navy's only manned tactical reconnaissance platform.

The F-14 entered the fleet in 1973, replacing the F-4 Phantom II. The F-14B, introduced in November 1987, incorporated new General Electric F-110 engines. In 1995, an upgrade program was initiated to incorporate new digital avionics and weapon system improvements to strengthen its multi-mission competitive edge. The F-14D, delivered in 1990, was a major upgrade with F-110 engines, new APG-71 radar system, Airborne Self-Protection Jammer (ASPJ), Joint Tactical Information Distribution System (JTIDS) and Infrared Search and Track (IRST). Additionally, all F-14 variants were given precision strike capability using the LANTIRN targeting system, night vision compatibility, new defensive countermeasures systems and a new digital flight control system. The F-14 is currently scheduled to be retired from the U.S. Navy arsenal in the year 2005. It is to be replaced by the McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Super Hornet.

The F-14 is reputedly named for late Vice Admiral Thomas Connolly, whose testimony before the Senate was critical in the cancellation of the deeply flawed TFX project. Ironically, much of the F-14's equipment was re-used from the TFX, including the radar, Phoenix missile, and the Pratt & Whitney TF30 engines.

Statistics of the Tomcat

Description

Role: Fleet Defense Interceptor
Crew: 2, Pilot and Radar Intercept Officer
First Flight: 1970
Entered Service: 1973
Manufacturer: Grumman

Dimensions
Length: 62 ft 8 in
Wingspan: 64 ft 1 in (extended) 38 ft 2 in (swept)
Height: 16 ft 0 in
Wing area: 565 ft²
Weights: Empty: 39,762 lb
Loaded: 68,649 lb
Maximum takeoff: 74,438 lb

Powerplant
Engines: 2 × General Electric F110-400 Turbofans
Thrust: 20,900 lbf each

Performance
Maximum speed: 1,544 mph (Mach 2.34)
Combat range: 576 mi
Ferry range: 2,000 mi
Service ceiling: > 56,000 ft

Armament
Guns: M61A1 20-mm Vulcan multibarrel cannon
Missiles:
6 AIM-54s(Phoenix) + 2 AIM-9s(Sidewinder)
6 AIM-7s(Sparrow) + 2 AIM-9s
2 AIM-54s + 3 AIM-7s + 2 AIM-9s
4 AIM-54s + 2 AIM-7s + 2 AIM-9s
(work in progress....check back for updates)

Still compiling

2004-10-01T12:17:00.000-05:00

It might still be a couple days before my big F-14 post is ready. I drank about 3/4 of a bottle of Capt. Morgan last night. I still had to work today, but got off early to go to Quantico. That 3 1/2 cups of water I drank before passing out helped I think. Anyways, tonight im going to a party again to get sloshed and shitfaced all over again. It might be tomorrow or sunday. So stay tuned...

"I feel the need, the need for speed!!"

2004-09-30T19:23:00.000-05:00

I'm working on a big post right now....might take me a couple days. It's dedicated to the now Decom'd F-14 fighter jet. So in the man time, everyone take care...

The Hangover Blues

2004-09-25T21:17:00.000-05:00

Well....Last night was awesome. It would have been better if the ladies were more receptive and plentiful...oh well...

Yeah...I got utterly and completely shitfaced playing some stupid drinking games. Did a 45 sec keg stand...that was cool. I was beat by a little short chick who went an entire minute. Gotta watch out for those short ones...they can really hold their beer.

Anyways, life sucks the next morning. Laying in bed all day with a hangover that only seems to be cured with water, and mcdonalds hamburgers. Lamenting over the previous nights antics.

We played this game with the girls where we took an ice-pop and bit a piece off and passed it aroun in our mouths, the one who got caught with it melted had to chug a beer. The line moved every time to get a new person at the end and beginning. We played another game called "Flip-Cup." what you do is take your cup and fill the bottom with a little beer. The person at the beginning has a full cup and chugs it down then places his cup on the edge right-side up then tries to flip it to land upside down. This is difficult to do even sober. Once he gets it done, the next person goes, chugs his little bit of beer then tries to flip...the deal is that it's guys against girls. theres about five people on either side. It gets pretty woosey after a while.

After a bit I got hiccups and ended up puking in the back yard...then I started drinking agian after a brief washup and a glass of water. All good again.

I wish I brought my camera. Lots of cool stuff going on. And it was all for my buds going away party. Cool beans...

Well off to save the world again...

P.S. Im writing a story and posting it online at

Gods Mercy

Sic Vis Pacem Para Bellum

2004-09-23T18:28:00.000-05:00

I just watched The Punisher. Great movie if you get a chance to watch it.

Anyways, today at work I worked down in the cardiology clinic. I was filing all their old records and such, organizing and making everything neat. Busy work. I was starting to feel useless sitting on my ass all the time. Since I can't do patient care right now, I feel pretty useless.

The big day of judgement is fast approaching. Trying not to think too much about things right now. The fact that I'm broke and sitting on my ass all day I pretty much have nothing else to ponder except my own destiny in this great life.

I dont have much more to write about right now. Not much really going on. I'll keep everyone posted.

I am hard, but I am fair...

2004-09-21T20:50:00.000-05:00

Sorry....been a while again. I know.

I've been tired of a lot of things lately. Work, Work, and Stupid people...really, really stupid people.

Anyways, I went P-Balling agian on Saturday with Doc Haines and some friends of ours. It always seems better with a lot of people. And plus we got a lot of compliments of being very "professional and considerate" with the way we handled ourselves and the way we killed those less fortunate souls who were annihilated by us. It was a fun time.

Shit....I'm so tired that I dont have much too talk about.

New things I bought as sympathy gifts for myself:

1. A home theater system complete with a DVD/VCR combo and surround sound speakers.

2. A response trigger for my Tippman 98. Helps with the trigger pull so you can fire at a faster rate of fire which is also adjustable.

Again, I'm tired so I'm gonna go to bed. I'm trying as hard as possible to get posts up at a faster rate, its just that I can't seem to find the time for anything.

Oh yeah...If anyone is looking for a lesson in the Military Justice system go to Military Justice 101 .

What is your Battle Cry?

2004-09-16T05:26:00.000-05:00

Thanks for the Inspiration Sean!!

Suprised! No?

2004-09-14T15:27:00.000-05:00

A couple of days ago I asked a friend of mine to do a tarot reading for me. This is what the cards seemed to show:

How you feel about yourself right now: The Death Card

Perhaps you feel that everything as you have known it is falling apart. Unexpected changes and turmoil, end of a job, end of a career, divorce or end of a relationship, recovering from a bereavement or fear of bereavement. Try not to worry too much, this time of absolute endings heralds a brand new beginning, a period of great transformation.

What you want most at this moment: The Magician

What you most want is a new love in your life, and when The Magician appears, a new love affair or perhaps a rekindled affair is at hand. All things new are possible, the result is up to you - its all dependent on just how much you want it.

Your Fears: Strength

You are fearful of lacking the will power and strength to deal with someone or something that concerns you. Feeling negative and listening to all your fears will only cause failure and lost opportunities. Be as brave as a lion but work compassionately and you’ll be fine.

What is going for you: Justice

There is a karmic power to the Justice card, reward for the good deeds you have done in the past. This is a period of good luck even if you don’t know why you are being so favoured. You will approach any issues concerning relationships or business affairs with calm, balanced logic and any claim will go in your favour.

What is going against you: The Fool

Beware of impetuous and impulsive decisions, they could cost you dear. Draw on your knowledge and experience, perhaps there are naive and immature beliefs behind your current desires. Are you looking to move onwards and upwards or run away? Look before you leap, you don’t want to appear the fool do you?

The Outcome: The Empress

This is a truly creative and fertile time. Expect the best if you are considering having a child, creating a new job or business opportunity or starting a creative project. The Empress symbolizes abundance, joy and happiness, and reassurance - a firm foundation for future progress.

I normally dont dabble in these sorts of things, but damn! It's accurate and helpful. I should use this method more often.

Everyone take care of yourself!
Marc out...

Stupid Girls and Lonely Guys

2004-09-09T12:10:00.000-05:00

I just watched 50 First Dates. Good movie, funny, but at the same time sad. Sad because it made me realize some things about my life that are lacking. Sad becaus eit makes me want to wait till I'm in a commited relationship till I give it up.

At times, well, all the time I miss that feeling of being able to wrap my arms around someone and hold them close. Someone who'll love me back as much as I love them. What complicates this is that every single day I hear girls talking about their asshole boyfriends and how their sleeping around. Hmmm... lets see. Maybe if you shyed away from that musclebound asshole and looked for a more humble, less attractive guy, you might find a caring, understanding guy. Take myself for example, the hopeless romantic. I worship women, as they should be. They are the ones who god gave us to love, they are the ones he put to make us feel loved, they are the mother of our children. My bud told me that its too forward to give a girl a single rose on the first date, or buy her flowers. Maybe it is but thats just the kind of guy I am. I open doors and I refuse to let her pay for anything. I respect her like she is the queen of the modern world. Why don't some of these girls/women see that if they just lowered their standards a little on what kind of guy they want they might just find someone they like. I've been told that I'm not ugly, that I'm a sweet guy, that I give good backrubs, but....but I'm not the kind of guy shes looking for. What kind of guy are you looking for. One that cheats on you, one that goes out drinking with his friends on your birthday or anniversary, one that makes you do his laundry. Yeah, you go on and see what happens. I dont know... Maybe it's just me....

Push my fingers into my eyes...

2004-09-07T07:09:00.000-05:00

...It's the only thing that slowly stops the ache...

Hey y'all!

Well it was a long weekend for me. It was full of pleasure, pain, and good companionship.

Friday: I just get off work from Thursday night and my buddy calls me on the phone and tells me to meet him on the smoke deck. I go out there and he asks if I wanted to go to Quantico to get our hair cut, go to Wal-mart to get bins for his truck, and then go to get my phone. I was like cool, thats sounds good. So off we go. It's about an hour to hour and a half drive to Quantico. Why go that far just for a hair cut. Because its the only place that does it the way we like. Short, like Marine Regs short. Plus you get a shoulder and scalp massage, and no it doesn't come with a "Happy Ending" for all you sickos out there. So we drive down there and get our hair cut and drive to Wally-Mart, and as luck would have it, they didn't have the bins that he needed. We go to Radio Shack and were there getting my phone for all of about 30 minutes. I got a cool Kyocera Slider phone. For all of those who would like to reach me and talk to the real me in person my number is 240-676-0089. I have free nights and weekends so that would be preferable since I got the plan with only 400 daytime minutes. If you want to cantact me by land line, my number is 301-214-4888. I have free long distance(one of those military living in the barracks perks) so you needn't worry about my bill running up. Call collect if you want, I don't care. The only thing to keep in mind is that I work nights, so 7am to 5pm are my sleeping hours. We made a clutch decision to go Paintballing the next day so we roll to the P-Ball store to get paint. We then go back to the Barracks and watch movies and get our gear ready for the next day.

Saturday: Up bright and early for the hour and a half drive to the field. Two large guys and a skinny guy crammed into the cab of a Ford Ranger. Fun times. Anyways we get to the field and start getting ready. We go play a game and while we're waiting for the next game to start and a yellowjacket lands on the back of my neck. I tell my buddy to swat it away and what does he do...he blows on it. It doesn't move so I smash it against my neck, which turned out to be a bad idea. Good thing I'm not allergic, but god did it hurt. Only stung for about an hour or so then slowly started to go away. During one of the hyperball games(the two games we play are Hyperball, which is played on a small field and has many obstacles, or bunkers to hide behind, and Woodsball, played on a large forested field, usually with total elimination or CTF rules) me and this guy were exchanging paint for about 2 mins or so. I run out of paint in my hopper so I crouch down to reload and this guy books it around my bunker and lays about 5 rounds into my side at about 4 feet on full auto. Left 5 good sized welts. Good Stuff. Needless to say it was a good day. Any day I get to go P-Ballin is a good day.

Sunday: Relaxation and recovery day. Watched movies and did laundry, and slept.

Monday: Worked...Why do I always have to work on the holidays.

Thats about it. No new news really. So Imma gonna go to sleep now and go to work tonight. Everyone take care...
Navy Doc out...

Word to Your Mother....

2004-09-02T05:59:00.000-05:00

I know, I know...It's been, like, forever since I last posted. Well, my lifes been hectic and I've been more occupied than usual with other things. Getting ready to transfer, or not....we'll see what my DH does.

Let's start where I left off. I was off on thursday and I hung out with my buds, watching movies and such. I worked my ass off on Fri Sat and Sun. Who would expect anything less, right? I guess I've got something to prove now, and I'm confident that I'm doing a fucking badass job at it. I've got new motivation to be the best damn corpsman on the floor now. It's like a new energy. Being baptized by fire, and coming out unscathed. Still waiting to see what happens with previous events. My chief hasn't talked to me yet, and I'm not sure whats going to happen. But until then, I'm determined to show them how good I can be. On Sunday night I made a deal with my nurses, where I took three patients and they took the other three I was assigned to. This means they did the vitals, meds and such for their patients, and I did the same on mine. It made it a whole lot easier on me and I did a bang up job that night, only fogetting to do a couple things, but catching myself before they got out of hand. Simple things that really didn't make a big difference. I even gave report to the on-coming shift on my three patients. That was cool.

On monday, my bud was out PT'ing with the Marine Liason getting ready to go to Field Medical Service School, where they teach you about being a field corpsman with the Marines. He's got orders to leave here on Oct. 16 bound for 29 Palms CA. This would put him less than 6 hours away from his 2 yr old daughter, who he hasn't seen in about 6 months or so. Anyways, they were out running with flak jackets down a steep, bumpy road. He said he was right behind the Sergeant looking right at the back of his head. Next thing he knows he was on the deck screaming in excrutiating pain and grasping his calf. He rolled into the ER and they took X-rays. What happened is he rolled his ankle and chipped about a 1 square cm chunk out of his Tibia and they think he tore a couple Ligaments because the opposite side of his leg was swollen like a grapefruit. His ankles fine, but his leg is fucked up. On monday and Tuesday nights I hung out with him, watching movies and chilling in his room because I just wanted him to know that I was there for him if he needed me. I'm here for all my brothers.

Work last night was ok. We were busy from when I got on at 1830 till about 0000. Then from then it was slow until about 0300 when we started morning routine. Fun stuff. I did, what I think was, another bang up job. I'm fast on the path to redeeming my indiscretions.

Well, thats about all thats new in my life. I'm going to get a new Cell Phone on Friday. Thats right I'm finally getting a Cell Phone. After Sprint screwed me over when I transfered here I have been a little leary about getting another one. I do have a phone here in my room, so I'm not completely cut off from the outside world.

I'm going to end with a song that I think is pretty cool that I just heard for the first time a couple days ago.

When passion's lost and all the trust is gone,

Way too far, for way too long

Children crying, cast out and neglected,

Only in a world so cold, only in a world this cold

Hold the hand of your best friend, look into their eyes

Then watch them drift away

Some might say, we've done the wrong things,

For way too long, for way too long

Fever inside the storm,

So I'm turning away.

Away from the name (Calling your names)

Away from the stones (Throw sticks and stones)

'Cause I'm through mending the wounds of us

Keep your thorns 'Cause I'm running away,

Away from the games(Fucking head games)

Away from the space(Hate this head space)

The circumstances of a world so cold

Burning whispers, Remind me of the days,

I was left alone, in a world this cold

Guilty of the same things, provoked by the cause

I've left alone, in a world so cold

Fever inside the storm,So I'm turning away.

Away from the name (Calling your names)

Away from the stones (Throw sticks and stones)

'Cause I'm through mending the wounds of us

Keep your thorns 'Cause I'm running away,

Away from the games(Fucking head games)

Away from the space(Hate this head space)

The circumstances of a world so cold

I'm flying, I'm flying away,

Away from the names(Calling your names)

Away from the games (Fucking head games)

The circumstances of a world so cold

Why does everyone feel like my enemy,

Don't want any part of depression or Darkness,

I've had enough sick and tired,

bring the sun, or I'm gone,Or I'm gone

I'm backing out, I'm no pawn,

No mother-fucking slave to this,

Never lied

Never left

Never lived

Never loved

Never lost

Never hurt

Never worry about being me, or anyone else

Not a care, no concern, don't give a shit about Anything

Backing out, giving up, no mother-fucking Slave to this,

Never lied

Never left

Never lived

Never loved

Never lost

Never hurt

Never worry about being me, or anyone else

Not a care, no concern, don't give a shit about Anything,

I need to find a darkened corner,

A lightless corner,

Where it's safer and calmer,

I'm turning away.

Away from the name (Calling your names)

Away from the stones (Throw sticks and stones)

'Cause I'm through mending the wounds of us

I'm running away,

Away from the games(Fucking head games)

Away from the space(Hate this head space)

The circumstances of a world so cold

I'm flying, I'm flying away,

Away from the names(Calling your names)

Away from the games (Fucking head games)

The circumstances of a world so cold

---Mudvayne, "A World So Cold"

Navy Doc out...

The way things are...

2004-08-25T10:53:00.000-05:00

I hate playing catchup with my blog. I apologize for not throwing a post up, just that I had some personal buisness to cover and didn't want to pollute my mind with thinking about what to write.

It's 11 am and, alas, I should be sleeping. I had to get a fresh hair-chop for our inspection tomorrow morning. I feel like a recruit with the way they chopped me hair off, but I like it that way. Saves money on shampoo. But no worries about the sleep, since I have tonight off, I have plenty of time to play catchup on my sleep.

I had my Sea-Duty screening physical on Monday. Good Stuff... I noticed on my apointment sheet that I had a female Doctor assigned to do my physical. I was thinking to myself how nice it would be for a hot female doctor to fondle my balls and stuff. How wrong I was!! I check in at the fifteen minutes early. The corpsman gets my vitals and takes me back to the exam room. None of your typical drop your drawers or get naked talk. The corpsman asks me the usual questions about Tobacco and Alchohol use. She says "Illicit Drugs?" and I answer "Yes please!" Typical military humor since we can't do none of that shit. She tells me that the doc will be in to see me in a couple minutes. After about 6 minutes of sitting there looking at the posters about clogged atereys and smoking cessation, this dude walks in and asks, "How's your ankle?" I was like "What the f--k are you talking about?" "Oh, sorry. Your the guy for the sea-duty screen" "Uh, yes sir." Turns out hes a civilian med student. Not an Intern or resident, a med student. I hate med students, but I'm used to them by now. He runs through my physical and everything. No pecker check, no butt check. Just lymph node palpation and heart and lung sounds. "I'll go talk to the Doc about your paperwork and we'll be back in a second." I had some authorization for sea-duty paperwork she needed to sign. Well here the doctor walks in. Old lady, must have been 50 with thick coke-bottle glasses and moles all over her face. Just wanted to listen to my ticker, since it was beating fast from the 3 cups of coffee and the 3 ciggarettes I had smoked before my appointment. Smart thing to do huh? Then she notices my face is flushed, because its hotter than hell in the exam room. She orders a Thyroid test to see if my thyroid is functioning properly. WTF??? Theres nothing wrong with my Thyroid! And thats exactly what my labs looked like when I looked them up last night on the system. So I'm all cleared for Sea-Duty. Now if I could only get my Department Head to sign my sheet for Detach date verification, which she refuses to sign for reasons I'll get to in a minute.

Monday night was also my first day back at work since the incident last week. Went off without a hitch, except that my nurse was charge, so I was running around doing most of the work. Note to self: Do not wear brand new uniform shoes on a 12 hour shift before properly breaking them in. My feet were throbbing by the night's end, since I was on my feet, running around like a one-legged man in an ass-kicking contest. No other problems than that, except I got behind a little here and there for patient load reasons. You can't do everything at once when your by yourself. I spent a probably a total of an hour on the phone with the Pharmacy trying to get the meds for our patients sent up. To all the RNs that read my blog...Are all hospital pharmacys jacked up to the point where you have to send the MD Orders 20 billion times before they send the meds up 2 1/2 hours after the patient was supposed to get them? Good stuff!

Last night was more of the same. Had a demented patient that fell down flat on her face and busted the shite out of it. Got really combative and really wouldn't let us do anything but vitals. Not too busy. Nurses heped me out a lot last night. It was a lax night and we all heckled and joked with each other. One of the nurses kept hitting me in the nuts with his stethoscope. So while he was sitting charting on the computer, I dropped a liter bag of saline(unopened) right on his lap. Talk about hurting. Paybacks a bitch, huh?

This morning, as the shift was winding down, my DH said she wanted to speak with me about last weeks "event." We sat and talked for a good hour about the stress I've been under and outlets for help. I have an appointment to go see the chaplain to get some pointers on some stress relieving activities that'll get my mind off stuff so I can function better at work. I'm probably going to see my Chief for a DRB( Disciplinary Review Board). My LPO says its very unlikely that it'll go farther than that, but I'll keep everyone posted on how things work out. They have to collect "Data" on me before they do a formal board so I just sit and wait for now I guess. Theres not much data to collect on me since before these incidents I have nothing bad in my record. A lot of the stuff I have are compliments and LOA's (Letters of Appreciation). My eval scores are decent. I doubt anything bads gonna come down. More EMI probably. I know when my HM1 comes off con leave, he'll be pissed at me and real dissappointed. I guess you cant please 'em all. I try though, maybe too hard at times. To the reason my DH won't sign my transfer paperwork is that she needs to think about whether or not I'm qualified enough at this point to be the Jr. Corpsman onboard ship. Load of BS that it is. Another thing I have to wait on.

Well here we are. Tuesday morning at 12:30. Tired as fuck and ready for bed. Gonna watch Mad Max and rift off to never-neverland.

Navy Doc Out...

The Time of Your Life

2004-08-23T00:52:00.000-05:00

Another turning point a fork stuck in the road
Time grabs you by the wrist directs you where to go
So make the best of this test and don't ask why
It's not a question but a lesson learned in time

It's something unpredictable
But in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life

So take the photographs and still frames in your mind
Hang it on a shelf in good health and good time
Tattoos of memories and dead skin on trial
For what it's worth it was worth all the while

It's something unpredictable
But in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life

It's something unpredictable
But in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life

It's something unpredictable
But in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life
-Green Day, Good Riddance(Time of your Life)

This song is all I'm thinking right now...Can't think of much else to post about right now. Tkae care everyone.

Life...funny isn't it....

2004-08-20T07:26:00.000-05:00

Life has a strange way of coming and smacking you right in the face.

First off, my ex.... Skank whore, slut, bitch that she is. Well maybe thats a little harsh, but as you can tell I harbor bad feelings with the whole mess. I feel it necessary to give a rundown of the history between us two. When I was a junior in high school( 4 years ago) she broke up with her boyfriend. I saw the opportunity to ask her out. So we went on a couple dates and decided that we should date each other exclusively, or go steady as some call it. So we did the dating thing, kissing in the halls at school, taking each other to school dances, stuff like that. Mind you she was a year older than me, and a Senior. After graduation she stayed around and we continued to go out together. I took her to my Senior Prom, and the NJROTC Navy Ball, while she was in school, we were in together. I guess you could call her my high school sweetheart. I hung around after I graduated also, not sure what to do with my life. She got me a job at the Senior Citizen retirement home that she was a receptionist at working up in the kitchen. Well I worked there for about 6-7 months, then I figured that to be a pilot (which has been my childhood dream since that movie called "Top Gun" came out) I had to join the military. Of course being the independent and spontaneous person that I am, I went and signed up. That very same day I went and bought an engagement ring, I was going to pop the question. Somehow, through channels still unknown, she found out that I had joined up before I got the chance to tell her. I went to go see her the next day to take her out to dinner, where I was going to propose. Before I got the chance she told me that she knew I was going to be leaving to go to boot camp soon and that she couldn't take being that far apart and that she wanted to end it. This crushed me, but there was nothing I could do but get up and walk away from it all and move on with my life. Fast Forward till present day... She's married to a navy guy and 7 months pregenant with their first and his third child. They live in Florida and he's deployed. She's been leaving messages on my voice mail telling me that "She needs me." I'm severely stressed over this. And just for the record, we never had sex. She wanted to wait till she got married.

The next thing thats stressing me out beyond repair. Last week I mischarted urine output on a man whos on Dialysis. He hasn't pissed in 3 years. Obviously I made a mistake, but no one wants to see it that way. On top of the mistake I made 3 weeks ago which was similar in nature, I can only speculate on what they want to do to me, but I have a pretty good idea. I'll probably go to a Disciplinary review board with my Chief, who'll recommend XOI. I'll go to XOI and he'll recommend Captain's Mast. Thats where the shit is going to hit the fan. Worst case scenario is that I'll get 45 days Restriction / Extra Duty, forfeiture of 1/2 months pay x2, lose my Cadeucus( no longer be a corpsman) and receive a Bad Conduct Discharge from the military. My life is ruined. I don't know why I'm telling everyone this. I guess I need to get it off my chest.

I just want to crawl into a ball and disappear for awhile. I'm scared shitless right now. If I do get a BCD, I wont be able to even work at McDonald's. I'm such a wreck right now. I dont deserve to be called 'Doc' or even corpsman. I wonder what would become of me.

I have buisness to attend to. I dont know how long it'll be before I post again, so I love everybody and wish you all the best. Take Care......

Marc out....

Let's see....what's new

2004-08-17T23:44:00.000-05:00

I went to PSD today...

Well first I went to Military Family Health Center and got my record updated. Verified my 12 month for my HIV, which I'm cool with. Then I went to PSD and got my Transfer package. I filled out this form that asked if I wanted Advance Pay. Hell yes I want Advance Pay, I'll be 21. That's drinking money! No dependents, so I didn't have to fill out all that hoo-hah. No car, again none of that hoo-hah. I handed it to my Div-O to sign and she signed it no questions asked. Now my DH has to sign it...whos on leave right now. Anyways after that I went to the PRT office to get that stuff signed. The guy looked in the computer and signed my sheet, 1 failure, in Body-Comp standards, Hell yeah! No weight no tape, I was golden. Now the next thing I have to do is get my sea-duty screening accomplished. After that, its in the bag baby.

So the day I want to leave here is 01DEC2004, I'll fly into Sea-Tac and chill there for a couple days with some friends before going home to Port Orchard. Mom and Dad, I'm coming home!!!

What else to talk about.... I said my final goodbyes to Doc Arthur tonight. He leaves early tomorrow morning. I know i've said it once and I'll say it again. Fair Winds and Following seas Doc. "I WILL see you again. But not yet, not yet." --Gladiator Take care my friend. I'm gonna move to Hamlin so I can be your EMT when you're a Paramedic! You are my brother!

Well, I got peeps that wanna talk so I gotta run for now.

Navy Doc out...

"Whats all the blog about?"

2004-08-16T06:38:00.000-05:00

When I walked into work yesterday morning there was a Washington Times sitting on the desk at the nurses station. On the front page was a picture taken at the Democratic national convention and the headline read, "What's all the blog about?" Turns out it was a story about the blogging phenomena. Its was mostly about amateur journalists and political junkies who have started their own blog site. Not a word was written about the private blogs that many of us have, nothing about the numerous military blogs out there. Of course the Times is an etremely liberal newspaper so it didn't surprise me. Heres the link to the story one the web:

Whats all the Blog about?

Going to sleep...see you all tonight

This is what being a Corpsman is all about

2004-08-15T06:46:00.000-05:00

I wasn't going to post until my weekend of work was over, but I just have to post these happenings that happened at work last night.

I'm walking on Cloud Nine right now.

I had two particular instances last night when my heart just wanted to erupt with joy. I had an admit come in last night around two in the morning with CHF Exaserbation. She has a history of PTSD(Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) from being in a concentration camp in WWII. All this aside she is a complete sweetheart. Me being my compassionate self, bend over backwards for all my patients. Anyways somehow we got on the subject of transferring while I was drawing her blood. She says to me, "You're going to Hawaii, huh? You lucky dog. You'll probably meet yourself a girlfriend there. You will! Your not a bad looking guy. If I was about 16 or 17 I would definitely go for you." Needless to say I was quite taken aback by her remarks. It just confirms my suspicions that I'm a sexy bitch.

I was also taking care of a Ret. Marine Corps Maj. with HIV. He's been through everything health wise and is about ready to give up. All the estimates that we've gotten from the doctors have given him less than 6 months to live. I feel for the guy. Again I give my usual compassionate caring care to this gentlemen. Towards the end of the shift I was emptying his garbage and he says to me, "Doc(hearing the term "Doc" from a marine sends me into shivers of pure ecstacy), I just wanted to thank you for doing the best damn job I have seen. For making me feel comfortable and cared for." I walked over to him and put my hand on my shoulder, trying not to tear up in front of him and replied, "Major, thats my job. To keep people on this earth as long as their stay here entails." He looked at me, smiled and nodded, tears welling in his eyes. This is what being a Doc is all about.

Thats all. Navy Doc out...

Thoughts from a distressed mind

2004-08-13T08:14:00.000-05:00

This is going to be a short post, due to the fact that I need to get some things off my chest before I go to bed...

First off, to everyone that has been following, my punishment for that mistake I made is over and went off without a hitch. I had to present a report about honor and integrity to my subordinates this morning. Give it a couple days and lets see how they take it.

Next, a question that has plagued me my entire life. Why, when I start to get close to someone, do I do something to push them away? You know who you are, and I'm sorry. You have been a blessing in my life. You were able to make me smile when things started looking bleak. A great friendship has sprouted and its something that I don't want to lose. I cherish it too much.

Thats it. Navy Doc out...

Change is the only constant in life. But why now?

2004-08-12T18:47:00.000-05:00

I love the rain. But why does it always make me think of the bad things to life?

Why do I always seem to get close to someone right before they have to leave? One of my buds is tranfering and I feel like I hardly know him. I really only got to know him about 3 or 4 months ago, and I know that if I had more time to get to know him it wouldn't be so bad. One of the best guys that I met so far in the military. The other one that I've known since A school introduced us. Hes also a stand-up guy and someone that it's been a pleasure knowing. They're both going with the marines and that scares me. They are wonderful people and I just don't want anything to happen to them. I know for sure that one of them is deploying to Iraq in the very near future after he gets to his new unit at 29 Sticks. Both of them introduced me to the aspect of either running Fire or EMS after I get out, and I want to thank them for that. You guys are the best people I've met since being in the service. You've shown me my true calling in life and something that I would never be ashamed of doing, serving my fellow man. I want to thank you for everything you've shown me and taught me, and taking me in when no one else will. Doc Arthur and Doc Haines, fair winds and following seas, and may the very hand of God hold you in his hand(Arthur, I know you don't believe but just take it as it is). So to all the nights at the Broadway Diner, heres a toast to you! And yes Haines, you can have the milk WITH your meal.

If you didn't guess by earlier on, it's raining here and it's awesome. Thunder and lightning every couple minutes. Not much new going around here. Another day off, thats three in a row for everybody thats counting. Just a lot of thoughts running through my mind, trying to dodge all the cobwebs. So let's see, what to write about?

I went Paintballing on Saturday with the aforementioned gentlemen. Had a great time. We always end up on the same team for some reason. Needless to say we had a fucking blast. Then one of the guys came and watched me ge ink'd. Which by the way, it icthes like a bitch, cuz it's starting to peel. This is worse than actually getting it. The agony!

I also gotta start my own transfer process next week. For everybody that hasn't heard, I'm doing a cross-country and then some transfer from MD to Pearl Harbor, HI in December, witha 5 day stint in San Diego in between leave and reporting to the ship. I will be stationed on board the USS Reuben James (FFG-57). It will be an awesome experience I'm sure, to say the least. See, as a corpsman, I'm the only medical for 250 people onboard, except for maybe a First Class or a Chief, and maybe a striker underneath me. Plus, it's in Hawaii, which is like an added bonus to it all. I gotta go to the PRT office and get weighed and taped. Then go to PSD and pick up my transfer package where I can choose to get a whole bunch of advance pay and stuff, and I also get to pick the day I leave. Which I'm hoping will be in Late November or early December. I'm excited because there will be no bitchy nurses, and no doctors. It's all me baby!

Well thats about it for now. I'll catch up with y'all later.

2004-08-10T22:44:00.000-05:00

Haloscan commenting and trackback have been added to this blog.

"Hand me my lightsaber, its the one that says bad mother fucker on it."

2004-08-10T21:48:00.000-05:00

This blog took off faster than I realized.

Most of the contacts that I have now came through Vadergrrrl, one of the sweetest and wonderful bloggers out there. She happens to live about 20 minutes from my house in Washington. Her support of our Armed Forces is unrivaled by anyone in my opinion.

How I came to write this blog? I saw a article in People or some magazine like that about 2 months ago about an Army soldier in Iraq. I was at work at the time, it was a pretty slow night and right there I hopped on the computer and went to the page. I read a little bit and saw this link to a blog Doc in the Box and was suprised to find out it was a Corpsman deployed with a Casualty Evacuation squadron with the USMC. I thought to myself, "How ironic is this?" So I decided right then and there to start up my own and post about Corpsman life stateside, and give it a reality of what a Sailors life is like whos stuck on the shore(even though lately I haven't written much about work).

After a couple days I notice a post from someone with the SN Vadergrrrl. I figured it was just some young chick with a thing for guys in the military. So I cruise on over to her blog. Turns out shes a 34 year old, military loving woman who just so happens to live near my hometown. So turns a friendship budding that has given me new energy to do what I love. I love you grrrl.

So after a while people follow her link to my blog and I've added them to my links. I just wanted to say thanks to everyone for checking it out. So now on to daily events....

Today was pretty uneventful. Days off usually are. I got off work this morning about usual time and stayed up and watched one of my favorite racing movies, "Days of Thunder." After that I jumped on the net for a little while and cruised around, looking for upgrades to my Paintball Marker, and a Digital Camera. Then I threw on Episode II, curled up into my bed and fell asleep around 1 or 2 in the afternoon. I woke up about 5 or 6 and went outside to smoke. I met a couple of buds out there and we roll out to an "All You Can Eat" pizza joint. 4.81 for the Pizza bar and a Drink...beats Godfathers any day of the week. Anyways after that we come home and I find out that my bud was rear-ended today. That sucks, since hes headed on PCS leave in 6 days. Stick it out Colin, I'm here for ya buddy.

Well thats about it for now... Hopefully something interesting happens so I can write about it. Everyone take care and keep your heads up.

Still nothing to write about

2004-08-10T02:34:00.000-05:00

I got this from Aimee's blog. Seems like shes hit the same writers block I have and just started doing shit for the hell of it. Here it is....check it out!

*The \\*
Last Cigarette:	About an Hour AGo
Last Alcoholic Drink:	LaBatts Blue, sometime last week
Last Car Ride:	yesterday afternoon
Last Kiss:	May....yes the month of May
Last Good Cry:	Last Friday
Last Library Book:	Some Star Wars Book
Last book bought:	Tom Clancy's The Bear and The Dragon
Last Book Read:	Starship Troopers by Robert Heinlein
Last Movie Seen in Theatres:	King Arthur
Last Movie Rented:	Hidalgo
Last Cuss Word Uttered:	Fuck
Last Beverage Drank:	Ginger Ale
Last Food Consumed:	Ice Cream
Last Crush:	Last Year Some time...currently in one, you know who you are!
Last Phone Call:	To my Mom
Last TV Show Watched:	Fear Factor
Last Time Showered:	About 5:45 pm last night
Last Shoes Worn:	Black Oxford Uniform Shoes
Last CD Played:	Metallica-Garage Inc. Disc 1
Last Item Bought:	Sweet n' Sour Chicken
Last Download:	Superman- Eminem
Last Annoyance:	My Nurse
Last Disappointment:	I'd rather not talk abot it
Last Soda Drank:	Mountain Dew
Last Thing Written:	Mountain Dew
Last Key Used:	my Locker Key
Last Words Spoken:	Hey look at this
Last Sleep:	About two hours ago
Last Ice Cream Eaten:	Vanilla
Last Chair Sat In:	Rolling Chair
Last Webpage Visited:	randomaimee.blogspot.com
CREATE YOUR OWN! - or - GET PAID TO TAKE SURVEYS!

A Few Questions...

2004-08-09T17:49:00.000-05:00

I'm still not in the mood to write anything, it's kinda a melancholy mood right now. I'm at work, another slow night tonight I guess. So heres a little song, that happens to be from one of my more favorite country artists, Clay Walker.

How in this world can we put a man on the moon,
And still have a need for a place like St Jude's?
And why is one man born,In a place where all they know is war?
An' a guy like me,Has always been free.

An' how can two people who built a lovin' home,
Try for years an' never have a child of their own?
When somewhere out there tonight,
There's a baby no-one's holdin' tight:In need of love.To me, that don't add up.

But I wasn't there the day you filled up the oceans.
I didn't get to see you hang the stars in the sky.
So I don't mean to second guess you,
Or criticise what I don't understand.
These are just a few questions I have.

An' why did my cousin have to die in that crash?
A good kid, only seventeen, I still wonder 'bout that.
It seems unfair to me,Some get the chance to chase their dreams,An' some don't.
But what do I know?

I wasn't there the day you filled up the oceans.
I didn't get to see you hang the stars in the sky.
So I don't mean to second guess you,
Or criticise what I don't understand.
These are just a few questions I have.

Why do I feel like you hear these prayers of mine.
When so many oughta be ahead of me in line?
When you look down on me,Can you see the good through all the bad?
These are just a few questions I have.

-A Few Questions, Clay Walker, Arista Records

I hope this song will touch everyone as it had touched me. I hope you all stay safe....

2004-08-08T09:03:00.000-05:00

scorpion is old tat, Kanji is new tat

:: how jedi are you? ::

Aragorn

If I were a character in The Lord of the Rings, I would be Aragorn, Man of the West, leader of the Rangers who guard the hobbits.

In the movie, I am played by Viggo Mortensen.

Who would you be?
Zovakware Lord of the Rings Test with Perseus Web Survey Software

A reminder of why we are in Iraq

2004-08-06T21:57:00.000-05:00

I know this post may not agree with everyone out there. All I can say is that I feel it necessary to remind everyone why it is, we do what we do, and why I would rather be in Iraq than sitting here doing nothing. All I say is that respect my opinions and do not flood my comments section with negative posts. Thank You.

We are rapidly approaching the 3 year anniversary of the day that changed everyones life, for better or for worse. To me, it was for the better. It showed America what needed to be done and gave us the motivation to do so. A lot of people died that day, and they will be forever honored in the songs and speech of angels for eternity. Our security was lax. The higher ups didn't see the threat as concerning enough to do anything about. Some say it was Bushs fault that we were hit, but remember that he had barely been in office for a year. He had to play with the cards he was dealt, and he made a two pair into a royal flush. We attacked Afghanistan swiftly and decisively, freeing its people from tyranny and opression.

The next part was not going to be as easy. When George W. Bush said, "We will punish the terrorists responsible, and also those who harbor them," he made a promise to every country on the face of the planet that we would try our damndest to wipe out the scurge of the earth once and for all. He said it was going to be difficult, long, and a different kind of war than we had ever fought. But we couldn't just storm into Iraq, guns ablazing. We had to find a reason to do it logically and decisively. Enter Colin Powell and his intelligence about the WMDs. I cant remember how old the intelligence was at the time, and I doubt it was fabricated. All i know is that we gave them plenty enough time to destroy all evidence of their production. Some say it was started over oil, maybe. Some say it was to finish what George Bush, Sr. started way back in the gulf war, highly doubtful. I say, we knew we had to remove Sadaam from power and restore democracy to Iraq. The first parts now over, all we have to do is to subdue the insurgents and get the government back on its feet. Think briefly about how the world would react to us pulling out of Iraq because of insugents. The insurgents would win, and all the countries harboring terrorists would think that they could just bully us around.

Another thing is that you always hear about all the boys dying over there. Again negative feedback from liberal journalists. You never hear about the oustanding medical care that the Navy Corpsman and Army medics provide to the Iraqi civilians. You dont hear about the Army Corps of Engineers and Navy Seabees helping rebuild the damaged buildings in Iraq. To those who say that so many people have died over there and we should come home, I haev something to say to you. After D-Day, nobody protested that our boys come home. We liberated a continent from an opressive ruler, with the whole-hearted support of a grateful nation. So many more boys and men died on the beaches of Normandy than have died in the Gulf War and OIF combined. War isn't sugar coated and easy to swallow. The very thought of it kills me inside, but we all signed on the dotted line. It's our cross to bear. Ask the Marine on the wall over there if he wants to go home and leave a job half-assed finished, I'm sure he would tell you to "Fuck Off and die." I would. War is hell, and people die, but think of how many more men, woman and children would die because we didn't do something about it.

My next topic is on the President. Michael Moore, this ones for you. George W. Bush is your good ole hometown american man. Who gives a shit how he talks, or what he says. I don't, in fact I think that he relates to more people with the way he talks. He just says whats on his mind and doesn't lose any sleep over it. And his grammar...half the people in this country have bad grammar, so why dont you make fun of them too? His support and buildup of the military has been 100%. We have received 3 payraises in the last 3 years hes been in office. The ones that Bill "Slick Willy" Clinton said he would give us after he reduced the size of our Carrier fleet. Go suck a golf ball through a garden hose, ass hole. I bet G. Dubya gets some every night from Laura too, so no need for him to go to his intern. Get a clue Hillary! I haven't seen Farenheit 9/11 and nor do I want to. Half the things that happened on that day was from the previous president in office, not bush. And the Economy? Studies have shown that it takes 5-7 years for mistakes made in the economy to show up on Wall Street. So guess whos to blame on that one? That's right! Bill.... I support Bush 100%! Hes got my vote, Keep kicking ass Dubya!

So I hope you liked my little rant this evening....I'm tired and I gotta get up for paintball in the morning.

And thats all I got to say about that...

Breathe that breath...then sigh with relief

2004-08-05T00:49:00.000-05:00

*sigh*

There. Thats better.

Here I am feasting on my vending machine burritos at work

I had a meeting with my SLPO this morning. He was really cool about things. He didn't sugar coat the fact that I fucked up, which I know for sure that I did. Come to find out that my commander wanted to push it all the way up, but my SLPO defended me to the fact that it was my first offense, i've been an outstanding corpsman thus far with no complaints to speak of. We started talking about things like burnout and stuff that "might" be going wrong. He was really cool about letting me speak my mind and open up, instead of being oppresive and overbearing. I went home a new person, refreshed and alive. No more stress. Gonna take my lumps and be done with it. Couseling chit and EMI. I'm lucky.

Well take care, back to work.
Peace out, my homies

Accelerate your life.....thats what the commercial says

2004-08-03T04:13:00.000-05:00

The last couple of days, work has been hell. Thank god for a day off.

Some shits going on at work that I really can't talk about, but I might get screwed really bad-like. I make a mistake, granted it wasn't exactly a small one, but still. I've never had a complaint against me, counseling(verbal or otherwise), or bad marks of any kind. Then comes the threat that they might throw the book at me. For you civilians, that means Captains Mast, or XOI. That's really got me shaking in my boon-dockers really bad. Thats career demening territory. Why do they not see that I've been an upstanding, outstanding hard-worker for them thus far and they should give me a break. My Senior LPO(leading petty officer....kinda like a manager) asked me what my punishment should be. Thats torture enough, but I think I know what to say.

Anyways, I went on a ride-along with my buddys Volly Fire Department last night. I got to meet his crew, nice group of guys. Though we only got one call I had a blast. And it wasn't even a fire. Somebody had smelled some kind of noxious odor and called the FD. I was wanting to see a fire, but it was cool just hanging out at the firehouse. We were watching Stargate SG-1 when the call came in. Now a little explanation of the different bells. They have a bell for the Ambulance, One Truck, Two Trucks and Empty Station. Well, we were sitting there watching the TV like I said before, and the Empty station, minus Ambo(because the EMTs ride in the trucks) bell goes off. Everybody jumps up and books it to their gear, which is usually staged on the floor for easy access. My ride-along for the night was with the chief, who seems like a good-natured guy but doesn't talk much to the new guys, so I'm to his truck before he is, which is a good thing. Lights and sirens baby, COOL AS SHIT!!! I had a good time nonetheless. I'm even thinking about dropping an app to join a Volly squad either here, in Hawaii, or when I get home.

Well thats about it for now. I hope all of yous people are safe and in good spirits.

At work and not in the mood to write much

2004-07-31T19:21:00.000-05:00

N	Natural
A	Amorous
V	Vigorous
Y	Yummy

D	Delicate
O	Overwhelming
C	Cheerful

Name Acronym Generator
From Go-Quiz.com

>
WARNING

Navy Doc is radioactive. Wear protective clothing at all times.

From Go-Quiz.com

How to make a Marc

Ingredients:

5 parts friendliness

5 parts silliness

5 parts leadership

Method:
Combine in a tall glass half filled with crushed ice. Add a little cocktail umbrella and a dash of sadness

Personality cocktail
From Go-Quiz.com

Your Icecream Flavour is...Chocolate!

You are the all time favorite, chocolate! Turning white kids black since the 1800s. Staining carpets, car seats, and bed sheets for centuries. One thing is for sure, you will never go out of style. You can't go wrong with chocolate!

What is your Icecream Flavour?

Find out at Go Quiz

In that mood...

2004-07-30T02:14:00.000-05:00

To everyone out there fighting for freedom and democracy:

"Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."

John 15:13

My Dear Son, it is almost June,

I hope this letter catches up to you, and finds you well.

Its been dry but they’re calling for rain,

And everything's the same ol’ same in Johnsonville.

Your stubborn 'ol Daddy ain’t said too much,

But I’m sure you know he sends his love,

And she goes on,

In a letter from home.

I hold it up and show my buddies,

Like we ain’t scared and our boots ain’t muddy, and they all laugh,

Like there’s something funny bout’ the way I talk,

When I say: "Mama sends her best y’all."

I fold it up an' put it in my shirt,

Pick up my gun an' get back to work.

An' it keeps me driving me on,

Waiting on letters from home.

My Dearest Love, its almost dawn.

I’ve been lying here all night long wondering where you might be.

I saw your Mama and I showed her the ring.

Man on the television said something so I couldn’t sleep.

But I’ll be all right, I’m just missing you.

An' this is me kissing you:

XX’s and OO’s,

In a letter from home.

I hold it up and show my buddies,

Like we ain’t scared and our boots ain’t muddy, and they all laugh,

'Cause she calls me "Honey", but they take it hard,

'Cause I don’t read the good parts.

I fold it up an' put it in my shirt,

Pick up my gun an' get back to work.

An' it keeps me driving me on,

Waiting on letters from home.

Dear Son, I know I ain’t written,

But sittin' here tonight, alone in the kitchen, it occurs to me,

I might not have said, so I’ll say it now:

Son, you make me proud.

I hold it up and show my buddies,

Like we ain’t scared and our boots ain’t muddy, but no one laughs,

'Cause there ain’t nothing funny when a soldier cries.

An' I just wipe me eyes.

I fold it up an' put it in my shirt,

Pick up my gun an' get back to work.

An' it keeps me driving me on,

Waiting on letters from home.

-Letters from Home,

John Michael Montgomery

I encourage everyone to go to CMT.com and check out the Military Version of this song with sound clips of soldiers reading parts of letters inbetween the verses, very powerful.

Not much going on tonight. We got paid tonight so I cant wait to blow my money, hehehe. Anyways, been reading, watching movies, and playing video games. Typical night off. Anyways, I want to give a shout out to vadergrrrl, that Bremelo out there living it up back home. Hang in there, we all love ya. To Doc Arthur, You're my boy and you shall suceed! Other than that, thats it from my world tonight. Take care everyone and be cool!

My life is rated R.
What is your life rated?

More Corpsman stuff

2004-07-28T00:32:00.000-05:00

They always talk about the Marines in this picture, but did you know there was a Corpsman here too? His name was John Bradley, who a few days before had braved enemy mortar and machine-gun fire to administer first aid to a wounded Marine and then drag him to safety. For this act of heroism Bradley would receive the Navy Cross, an award second only to the Medal of Honor. In the picture you can just barely see the tip of his helmet by the pole.

It just goes to show that wherever the marines go, his "doc" isn't far behind.

Anyways, tonights going good. Not too much action to speak of at work. The good crew again, with a few others. We all do our job and go home at night. My bud let me borrow Robert A. Heinleins "Starship Troopers." Waaaaayyy different than the movie, toooootally different view. Well, I'm bored and theres not much to talk about right now, which I see as a good thing. So everyone take care and dont do anything I wouldn't do.

"The hero is commonly the simplest and obscurest of men." --Henry David Thoreau

I got the Fool too...must be a Corpsman thing

2004-07-27T00:55:00.000-05:00

You are the Fool card. The Fool fearlessly begins
the journey into the unknown. To do this, he
does not regard the world he knows as firm and
fixed. He has a seemingly reckless disregard
for obstacles. In the Ryder-Waite deck, he is
seen stepping off a cliff with his gaze on the
sky, and a rainbow is there to catch him. In
order to explore and expand, one must disregard
convention and conformity. Those in the throes
of convention look at the unconventional,
non-conformist personality and think What a
fool. They lack the point of view to understand
The Fool's actions. But The Fool has roots in
tradition as one who is closest to the spirit
world. In many tribal cultures, those born with
strange and unusual character traits were held
in awe. Shamans were people who could see
visions and go on journeys that we now label
hallucinations and schizophrenia. Those with
physical differences had experience and
knowledge that the average person could not
understand. The Fool is God. The number of the
card is zero, which when drawn is a perfect
circle. This circle represents both emptiness
and infinity. The Fool is not shackled by
mountains and valleys or by his physical body.
He does not accept the appearance of cliff and
air as being distinct or real. Image from: Mary
DeLave http://www.marydelave.com/

Which Tarot Card Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

I got the same thing as Sean. Thats weird. But I look at the description and nod my head in agreement. It suits me. Well I'm off for the night so I'm gonna watch some movies or something. Oh Yeah, and my congrats to my hero, Lance Armstrong for his 6th tour win. You go dood!

Back to the Basics

2004-07-27T00:34:00.000-05:00

Well, my fun in the sun was short lived, as I am here back in good ol Maryland to return to work tomorrow night. As I was flying back I thought to myself that 3 days getting smashed in a row was gonna wear me down. When I got back my buddy, Doc Arthur was sitting on the smoke deck and says to me "In the mood to drink beer?" I was like, "Sure, always in the mood to do that." So we head back to his room and he has a fucking case of "Blue" sitting there. I was like "Hell frickin Yeah!" So I ran upstairs and grabbed my XBOX and we drank some beer and played games. This is what I live for, Good Brew, Good Friends and Good times. I would be lying if I said that I'm not gonna miss him when he goes to Oki. He's been nothing be a good friend to me and I wish him the best when he goes to the Marines. Doc, It's been a pleasure knowing you and your presence has been a blessing in my life.

The things I love most in the world are my parents, and my friends. My friends are so important to me that I hold them as family. They are what help shape and mold my life, point me away from wrong, and show me the way, and constantly are there for me. I love you all...

Some long awaited R&R

2004-07-24T01:35:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm here in Florida, whilling with my friend and his buds down here in the good ol' Sunshine State. It's hot as fuck, not to mention humid. Anyways the days trip wasn't exactly perfect.

I missed my flight by like 10 mins, because after I got to the airport they changed gates. I had worked the night before and I was tired. So naturally I was sleeping. Well I woke up and looked around and there were loads of people around. I think to myself, "Alright, this is weird since the flight supposedly started boarding like 15 mins ago." So I walk up to the dude behind he desk, and he was like, "Yeah, the gate changed like a half hour ago." Fuck me, right? I book it, like I mean hauled ass down the airport and I get to the correct gate with 10 mins to spare according to my watch. The guy was like, "Sorry Dude" and I could see the plane taxing away. I go to customer service and get seen after waiting in the line forever, about an hour or so(I wasn't going to sleep again). I was able to get standby on a flight that lef tin an hour. So of course I'm bummed that I don't really know if I'm going to make it or not, so I wait. Turns out I get on it, in an exit aisle no less. Cool beans, I can stretch my legs, and get some shut eye. Good thing the pilot landed hard because thats the only thing that woke me up.

First thing my buddy does on the drive home is get a 20-pack of Bud. In about 2-3 hours I had downed six, still exhausted, haven't eaten anything since breakfast(it's about 7pm). I'm done. Of course I'm a lightweight, only been drinking sine I was 18(2 1/2 years, see what the military does to ya!) Anyways, I crash on his couch. and the rest is history. My head still hurts. Time for some high quality H2O.

You are not forgotten....

2004-07-22T19:49:00.000-05:00

That phrase means more to me than any other saying.

I was in a patients room just now taking his vitals, and he looks at my wrist and asks, "Is that a POW/MIA bracelet?," and I said "Yes sir." He told me "Thanks" and I felt the tears well in my eyes. The words "You Are Not Forgotten" are just that, words. But the meaning and presence behind them is so powerful that it touches you to the core, or me at least. To think that someone would endure the hardships of being a POW for over 40 years, or for a family of a member who is missing in action. It just overwhelms me and thats why I wear this bracelet. To remember my fallen or missing comrades, who paid the ultimate price, so that people can do the things they do.

"HMC Michael L. LaPorte, USN, 1st Recon Div. 1st Mar Div. Missing: Sept. 5, 1967"

Thats the name on my bracelet. To me it's more than a name, its a symbol of what a true hero is. I can't honestly say whether or not I'd be able to endure in thse situations. I'd like to think I would, however without truly being there I cannot really say for sure. All I know is that I just do my job and am able to go home at night and sleep restfully, because someone out there stands on a wall for me. When I came home from being on the USNS Comfort, people were calling me a hero. I had to whole heartedly disagree to their face with them. I said "I'm not a hero, I just did my job. The guys who are still over there are the ones who are heroes. The guys who'll never see their wives again, the ones who will never hold their newborn child, those are the real heroes." And you could see the expression change on their face instantaneously. I am proud of what I do, helping others and providing medical aid. But in what way does that make me a hero? Thats my question to everybody....

So I dedicate this to all my fallen and missing brothers...You will NEVER be forgotten!

Chilling after work

2004-07-22T07:04:00.000-05:00

Wow! This is grabbing more attention than I thought it ever would....cool!

Anyways, work was good last night, even though we got slammed with admits. The long and short of it is that I had a good crew working with me and for me last night. The best crew on the floor in my opinion. Everything worked so smoothly and timely to get things done on time. And we even had time to sit around and chill out for about an hour. The nurses were the best, helping us out with the morning routine and stuff. It was great.

And how about Lance Armstrong? That man is my hero if I ever had one. Beating Testicular Cancer that mastastisied to his Brain and Lungs and going on to win 5 Tours and Threatening to win his 6th. This guy is awesome!

Well, its about that time. Sorry I couldn't write more, but I'm really tired and shleepy. I'll see all of you in the blogsphere later.

Peace!

Hanging with my pals

2004-07-21T07:52:00.000-05:00

Well, It's 0900 and I'm bushed. After cruising around the web last night my roommate came back from standing Medevac watch at 2300. I thought I'd let him have some peace and quiet, so I hauled my XBOX downstairs to my pals room. I was there until about 0400 playing Splinter Cell:Pandora Tomorrow. He kicked me out so he could clean, which he doesn't do but once a week for room inspections. Anyways, I cruised back up to my room to get another pack of smokes and locked my keys in my room....*sigh*. So I carried my shiz-nit to the lounge and hooked it up to the big screen. I was rocking down there till about 0700. So I had to jaunt over to the BPO's office to get a new key..... So I get the normal lecture on how I should make sure I have my keys on me before I shut the door all the way. About that time, Doc Arthur comes rolling up the walk in his coveralls, for he just got off work. I says "How about some chow?," and he says, "Sure, what were you thinking?" "D's"(our slang for McDonalds). So we rolled out and ate and came back....(sounds exciting huh?). And now here I am....

While I'm here I want to shift gears a little bit and give someone some recognition. Spending some time out in the gulf last year at the "Spearhead of Navy Medicine"(thats what our CO called it) opened my eyes to many things. And I just wanted to tell someone thanks for doing what you do. Your support, although not known to many, is important. If your health didn't exclude you from serving, I would be honored to be "your Corpsman." Keep doing what you do. If there were more people like you here in America, I wouldn't be afraid to walk off bas ein my whites in fear of being spit on. Yes it happens. And whats worse is that I got accused of being a baby killer. Me of all people. You know what I did? I pointed to my caduceus(the medical symbol I am proud to wear on my uniform) and I said. "Excuse me? While you were here smoking weed and eating your cheeseburger and fries, I was out there holding a dying Iraqi 4 yr old in my arms, comforting her in her last moments. I was treating 4th degree burned Iraqi civilians, POWs that under the Geneva convention we are required to treat." She just gave me a blank stare and walked away. Hopefully I changed her mind about a few things. Anyways, Josh, thanks for what you do. It means a lot to me and a whole lot of other service members out there. You may no be standing a wall over there where you'd like, but your're standing on a wall thats just as important. Semper Fi! brother.

I urge everyone to take a look at his blog. And with that I bid everyone a fond adieu and good evening(or morning, or whatever the fuck time of day it is!)

A day off to do.......nothing at all

2004-07-19T20:26:00.000-05:00

I'm sitting here in my small cramped barracks room, thinking of something to do. I've watched the Butterfly Effect three times in the past week. Pretty good movie, but I don't like the alternate ending that came on the DVD. Too weird for me. Anyways I bought two new XBOX games today, True Crime and Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow. Played TC for awhile, pretty fun to drive around LA and kick some punks ass. Haven't played Splinter Cell yet. I liked the first one so I hope this one delivers.

Anyways, not much happening today. I have room inspection on Wednesday so I know tomorrow I'm gonna be field day'ing my room.

I think I'll talk about what I was doing last year at this time. It was about April to June last year, when the war first broke out when we were doing that 'Shock and Awe' bombing campaign. Well, I wasn't here thats for sure. I was floating somewhere in a 10 x 10 mile box 10 miles off the coast of Kuwait on the USNS Comfort. Oh yes, how I wish I was out there right now. Treating trauma patients is what I was meant to do. Burn patients, GSW's to heads, legs, arms etc., shrapnel taking on heels. Cool stuff. Instead now I'm here taking care of old retired wives that are 500 lbs and wonder why their in heart failure. Hmmmm...sounds exciting huh? I cant wait till I get outta here and get to my ship. Real, practical, Navy Medicine.

Well thats about it for now...Take care all my blogging friends and keep it real!

That's why god created Corpsman!

2004-07-18T21:05:00.000-05:00

Once upon a time, a very long time ago(106 years to be exact), God looked down at this big round ball he called Earth. And as he gazed, he saw the forces of good he had created. The army whose job it was to defend from land attack; the Navy, to protect our shores and sea lanes of commerce; and finally the Marines, who played with the army, rode with the navy, and enforced freedom and democracy overseas. Soon God's eyes fell upon a wounded Marine, and saddened to see him in so much pain, and to see him bear that pain alone. He wanted to create someone to care for and love this Marine. So...He took the flesh and blood of this man, mixed it with the salt of the sea, and he poured into it the compassion and love that we all know our heavenly father for. And from this emerged a man, with a grit in his teeth, and a pack on his back. This man is what we call a Corpsman, something that I am honored to share a name with. And every Corpsman is my brother(or sister) and I am proud beyond words or thoughts to be apart of this grand family.

So what? I feel a little melancholy tonight... Whatcha gonna do about it? Maybe you should read this then if you still don't understand:

I shall not walk in your footsteps,

but I will walk by your side.

I shall not walk in your image,

I've earned my own title of pride.

We've answered the call together,

on sea and foreign land.

When the cry for help was given,

I've been there right at hand.

Whether I am on the ocean,

or in the jungle wearing greens,

giving aid to my fellow man,

be it sailors or marines.

So the next time you see a corpsman

and you think of calling him "squid",

think of the job he's doing

as those before him did.

And if you ever have to go out there

and your life is on the block,

Look at the one right next to you....

I'm the one called "Doc."

So maybe now you know why I love my job. Maybe now you know why I tolerate fat-headed military nurses and stubborn civilian bitches. Maybe now you know why I am the best at my job, even though I hate this fucking place. Well later for now, duty calls......

King Arthur Rules!!!

2004-07-18T01:30:00.000-05:00

I saw King Arthur the other day.... I think I have a new favorite Dark Ages movie!!! Just the whole atmosphere of the movie was awesome. It was a new and refreshing take on the old legend of King Arthur and his Knights. It had very little special effects and what the effects there were, enhanced the telling of the story. The fact that Merlin was a regular shaman, or tribal leader instead of a powerful wizard was fascinating to me.

Anyways I'm back at work again at 0215 in the morning and the mundacity is killing me. My thoughts seem to always float to my brothers and sisters in Iraq, healing my fallen comrades. What I wouldn't give to be out there with them right now!

I can't wait till I report to my next duty station in December. Just to get away from this shithole of a hospital. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I hate Nurses. Where I'm going I wont have anyone second guessing my opinions on patients that I've taken care of for 5 consecutive working days and this is their first day taking care of that patient. No doctors to ask me why things weren't done while my hands were tied with a coding patient. Officers in the medical field need to take that big shiny metal rod out of their ass and throw it away. I wish the Assault on a Superior Officer rule didn't apply in these situations. Sorry, Just felt the need to vent. Not like anyone is really reading this yet.

I do seem to like the younger patients though. Their positive outlook on life is always a breath of fresh air, especially since they just had a hole cut in them from their chest to their groin. I find that very uplifting sometimes.

Well, my patients need me....Off to save some lives!! I'm outie....

Killing Time at Work

2004-07-14T01:23:00.000-05:00

The one thing I hate about working night shift is the intense boredom from 2300-0300. I also figured that starting this would help curb some of the frustrations that have come about with my staff and people appointed over me.

Just a little about myself at first. I am a US Navy Corpsman stationed at the worst possible place on the face of the planet, National Naval Medical in Bethesda, MD. My name is Marc and I'm 20 years old. I joined the Navy with the pretenses of being a Aviation Air Crewman, and going to sea. When I arrived at Boot Camp in May of 2002 I started my Career in the worlds finest navy. On day 4 on our inprocessing, during our medical exams, it was found that I was color deficient( a mild case of Color Blindness) which immediately cancelled my appplication to NACCS(Naval Air Crew Candidate School). I had to rush to find a new job which I was interested in or void my contract and go home. I had always wanted to be in the medical field, so I signed to be a Corpsman. What a blessing it has turned out to be, except for the fact that I am stationed in the ass crack of Navy Medicine. Anyways, 2 years later and I'm a third class and awaiting my transfer to Pearl Harbor in December.

I have met several people including some of my best friends, HN Haines, HN Arthur, HN Fitzpatrick, and some others. Joining the Navy has been one of the most gratifying decisions I could have made.

Well have to run for now.....