TOPIC:

I work at bumper to bumper warehouse, delivering parts. my boss is cool enough that if we're in our slow season, I can bring my stuff for the bike and work on it there lol. in fact I took my new tail fender to work Saturday and bondoed the cracks and gaps in it and getting it ready to be primered

My first few jobs were all in the auto mechanic field. I did everything but major engine repair and paint/body work. Once I had an office job, I lasted for about 2 weeks. I'm just not designed to be in a cubical and push paper. Joined the Army's Infantry in '01 and was a "light fighter" in Hawaii’s 25th Infantry Division for 4 years. Then spent 3 years at Ft. Hood, Texas and was a part of the 1st Cavalry Division. I've deployed to Iraq twice (31 months in-country) and had a hell of a time there. I was forced to retire in '08 (at 28 years old!?) as a result of combat injuries and have spent the last 2 years being a stay-at-home Dad to my 2 girls (ages 6 and 10). Its been so much fun to watch these 2 kids grow as I make up for all of the lost time. My plan was to spend a few years among the enlisted then become a warrant officer, learn to fly a helicopter, and then retire when I was too old to do it. Unfortunately a few well placed I.E.D's ended that dream. So, once again I'm trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up.

This is me in my 3rd truck at the northern border of Iraq in '04. No doors...no armor...no jamming devices...it’s a wonder that most of us made it back at all.

alwaysbroke wrote: My first few jobs were all in the auto mechanic field. I did everything but major engine repair and paint/body work. Once I had an office job, I lasted for about 2 weeks. I'm just not designed to be in a cubical and push paper. Joined the Army's Infantry in '01 and was a "light fighter" in Hawaii’s 25th Infantry Division for 4 years. Then spent 3 years at Ft. Hood, Texas and was a part of the 1st Cavalry Division. I've deployed to Iraq twice (31 months in-country) and had a hell of a time there. I was forced to retire in '08 (at 28 years old!?) as a result of combat injuries and have spent the last 2 years being a stay-at-home Dad to my 2 girls (ages 6 and 10). Its been so much fun to watch these 2 kids grow as I make up for all of the lost time. My plan was to spend a few years among the enlisted then become a warrant officer, learn to fly a helicopter, and then retire when I was too old to do it. Unfortunately a few well placed I.E.D's ended that dream. So, once again I'm trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up.

This is me in my 3rd truck at the northern border of Iraq in '04. No doors...no armor...no jamming devices...it’s a wonder that most of us made it back at all.

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Wow! That's quite a story. Thanks for your service! You didn't elaborate but I'm hoping your injuries will be something you can live with gracefully and hopefully painlessly.

Once again, Thank You!

Bill

Bill- You’re so very welcome and it really was my pleasure to serve. It’s hard for me to accept the appreciation as I look at my service in a different light. Yes I was the one that volunteered, BUT it was you the tax payer that paid for everything. As crazy as it sounds...Being a soldier was my dream job and I had so much fun doing it, so in my mind, its you that needs to be thanked. Think of it like this...Imagine that you want to be a professional motorcycle racer and you have an entire nation supporting you with everything you need to make it happen. I wanted to be a soldier and I had everything I needed given to me. Meals, clothes, equipment, a place for my family to live, medical/dental, AND I was paid as well! It just doesn't get any better than that!

As far as injuries go I don’t usually elaborate as it makes me feel like I’m whining about it. But since you asked I don’t mind telling...several closed head / traumatic brain injuries. Lost all hearing in my left ear and 30% in the right. Shrapnel peppered my left leg and arm and one piece about the size of a dime went into my neck and made a mess of one side of the thyroid. Lost quite a bit of feeling in the left side extremities. They had to remove my thyroid completely and put some rods in my lower spine. That sucked. I wore out the cartilage in both knees and a hip with all of the running and road marching. I think the PTSD has been the worst of it all though. I despise taking pills so Im usually in some sort of pain, but that’s all my fault. Pills don’t make it hurt less; it just makes me not care about anything. I'd rather just deal with it than be a zombie. But if asked to, I'd do it all again in a heartbeat.

alwaysbroke wrote: Bill- You’re so very welcome and it really was my pleasure to serve. It’s hard for me to accept the appreciation as I look at my service in a different light. Yes I was the one that volunteered, BUT it was you the tax payer that paid for everything. As crazy as it sounds...Being a soldier was my dream job and I had so much fun doing it, so in my mind, its you that needs to be thanked. Think of it like this...Imagine that you want to be a professional motorcycle racer and you have an entire nation supporting you with everything you need to make it happen. I wanted to be a soldier and I had everything I needed given to me. Meals, clothes, equipment, a place for my family to live, medical/dental, AND I was paid as well! It just doesn't get any better than that!

As far as injuries go I don’t usually elaborate as it makes me feel like I’m whining about it. But since you asked I don’t mind telling...several closed head / traumatic brain injuries. Lost all hearing in my left ear and 30% in the right. Shrapnel peppered my left leg and arm and one piece about the size of a dime went into my neck and made a mess of one side of the thyroid. Lost quite a bit of feeling in the left side extremities. They had to remove my thyroid completely and put some rods in my lower spine. That sucked. I wore out the cartilage in both knees and a hip with all of the running and road marching. I think the PTSD has been the worst of it all though. I despise taking pills so Im usually in some sort of pain, but that’s all my fault. Pills don’t make it hurt less; it just makes me not care about anything. I'd rather just deal with it than be a zombie. But if asked to, I'd do it all again in a heartbeat.

GOT TWO JOBS, HOME DEPOT AND A WHOLESALE ELECTRICAL DISTRIBUTION WAREHOUSE, SHOULDA FINISHED COLLEGE, BUT I HAVE MY PHD(POOR,HUNGRY,DESPRATE)

I feel like sh!t after Alwaysbroke's story, but I'm still in the Army... I'm an 88M (Big Truck Operator) stationed on a forgotten post near the strip in Virginia Beach... He is absolutely right about it being the dream job though... sorry about your injuries... I was at a Marine FOB when I was over there and made many friends from the Jarhead Tribe (wonder how many will get that, or even admit to it,lol)... sadly, more than a few of them came home the hard way... miss them something fierce, but I believe that those that went that way guarded me and my team while I was there... was just an old truck driver handed a rifle and sent to clear buildings in Fallujah... made perfect sense... lol... anyway... joined the Army in '04 at the age of 34 after spending a decade driving big trucks to 49 states, Canada and Mexico... even drove a day in Hawaii while on vacation... buddy lives over there, too much Cuervo for him and I ran his route for him, boring story really... anyway, I've gone on long enough, Alwaysbroke, you are MY hero and maybe we will meet down the road somewhere and go for a ride...

"... anyway, I've gone on long enough, Alwaysbroke, you are MY hero and maybe we will meet down the road somewhere and go for a ride..."

Difference here and now is that we Americans appreciate your service way more than when I was of service age (Vietnam).

Last week I was flying to Atlanta and had the privilege to sit next to an 18 year old girl, E4, headed to Boot Camp. She was all about it and I was thrilled to offer her my support.

More of the Right Stuff!

Bill

Difference here and now is that we Americans appreciate your service way more than when I was of service age (Vietnam).

Last week I was flying to Atlanta and had the privilege to sit next to an 18 year old girl, E4, headed to Boot Camp. She was all about it and I was thrilled to offer her my support.

More of the Right Stuff!

Bill[/quote]

Appreciate it Bill, there are still those out there that don't get it and want to put the service members down... My Mom always seems to run into them though... she's 29 yrs old (with 33 years experience), 5'2", somewhere between 100-140 lbs (you ask her, I'm not that stupid), and has more than once been nose to nose with someone dumb enough to make a negative comment about her "Proud Army MOM" buttons, lol ... glad to hear this is a military friendly zone... back to hunting for parts that seem to be impossible to find... sigh

@ stablechaser35 -
I'm really sorry for that. It wasn't my intension to make anyone feel bad or to draw any sympathy. I'm just a blunt kind of person. I do hold you 88M’s within my highest regards. You guys were the biggest moving targets when I was there and were on the roads just as much as we (the 11B’s) were. Not to mention the fact that most of the big trucks, the same as our HMMWV’s, didn’t have any armor either. My base, FOB Gains Mills, was south of Kirkuk (and in the middle of the oil fields / no where) so it was always a more than welcome sight to see you all rolling in. I always thought of you guys as Santa Clause packing in the beans, bullets, parts and mail. We never had any complaints when it came time to run a escort mission for the 88 mikes.

I wasn’t around for Vietnam, but I’ve always held those guys and girls as the standard that I could only hope to live up to. I can’t even imagine what it must have felt like to survive a war only to come home and be treated like that. It makes me want to apologize. To come home to that and still be able to hold your heads high makes you a hero in my book. You guys, as well as the Desert Storm Vet’s, did more for my generation than I think most people realize. Not only did I benefit from the lessons learned from a tactical aspect, but also in the way the V.A deals with its Vets. You are leaving a legacy that I’m proud of and some big shoes to fill when it becomes my turn to help the following generations of war fighters.

Also, a BIG THANK YOU goes out to everyone that supports the military. A handshake, a smile, or a simple thank you did more for me than anything else. I can’t necessarily say that I will always support their mission, but I will ALWAYS support my military. As a soldier I never asked for anything more than that.

thanks for the comments about the mikes... I always just looked at it as something that needed to be done and I was best equipped to do it... I wasn't trying to make anyone feel bad either... it was/is our chosen lane... noone forced us to do it... we are a different breed because most of us actually enjoy this shit, lol... it took me a long time to realize that, but now that I do, I'm the one to train and push the younger soldiers to do the right thing...

thanks goes out to all that have served and all of us that still do... God Bless

"I always just looked at it as something that needed to be done and I was best equipped to do it..."

Well said my gear grinding friend, well said.