A 1950's Army Motto and America Today

I read an old Army saying from the 1950s the other day, and it made me think of just how different, and not necessarily in a good way, the Army  - and America - is today. The saying goes:

"If it moves, salute it.

If it doesn't move, pick it up.

If you can't pick it up, paint it."

The New Year in Deutschland!

So, the New Year has arrived, with a bang I might add, here in Deutschland. They sure do love their fireworks!!! I spent my NYE writing my dissertation until 0200 as my cat, Little Boy, slept next to me. At least he could sleep through the hullabaloo, but I couldn't so I figured I'd at least be productive, lol. It was a nice, quiet (theoretically), productive evening! But what, you might ask, have I been up to lately? So many things...

Another Step Closer

Once again, I'm home from training. On Thursday, I graduated from Basic Officer Leadership Course II (BOLC II) which was basically a review of everything I have learned in both BCT and OCS. I'm actually glad of the review since I feel much more comfortable with the infantry-type training I have thus far received.
Now that is all behind me. On June 1st, I finally begin my branch training, AKA job training. Everyone is required to have a certain amount of infantry training in the Army these days because everyone is pretty much expected to eventually go to Iraq. Even if your job is not infantry per se, no one wants to be another Jessica Lynch if you know what I mean. That was simply an instance of ignorance and poor decision-making at its finest. Thus, everyone is required to be infantry trained nowadays, thank goodness.

From Books to Bunkers: A Scholar-Turned-Soldier Story

Where might you find graduates from Yale and Cornell, a Capitol Hill intern,  and conversation concerning the anatomy of a comma splice, the correct pronunciation and etymology of the word "forte," the Christian undertones in Beowulf, or a discussion of the differences between Islam, Christianity and Paganism all in one place? Why, the United States Army, of course! As fantastical as that idea may seem, it has been my own personal experience. If such a possibility had been proposed even to me a mere year ago, I probably would have scoffed at it: Ivy League alumni and erudite conversation about every conceivable topic among the rank and file of the Army? Are you kidding? Fortunately, I have been disabused of such stereotypical beliefs. I discovered since my embarkation upon this journey into the Army Officer Corps that, surprisingly, the Army was to become one of the most multifarious, entertaining, and mentally and physically challenging experiences of my entire life.

You Can't Spell Lost without the "LT"

So here I sit, basking in the afterglow of my graduation from Officer Candidate School on Thursday. I don't believe the enormity of it all has actually quite hit me yet. In fact, it seems mostly unreal. It probably won't fully hit me until I reach my permanent duty station in August. Then, I imagine as I walk into that position of command, it will slam down upon me like a ton of bricks. If I don't feel lost now, I will most certainly feel it then.

Viva Las Vegas!

Ok I promised a friend I'd write a blog about the fact that I was a stripper in Las Vegas once. Yes, it's true, from 1999 to 2001, so I was 29-31, can you believe it? By this time, I had both my Bachelor's and my Master's degrees. So, you guys who go to strip clubs and the girls tell you stuff like that, it ain't *always* bullshit!!! Keep that in mind. Anyways, my whole family, besides my sis, thinks I was a server at a casino, just to keep the peace. How on-the-edge, you might think; how risque! How trashy! Whatever you think, now you'll get the low-down from someone  who's been there and who is actually a normal girl, just like anybody else! So here's the story: