What day is this anyway?

Ugh....another day almost wasted...

Our ongoing training continues. The rest of the unit is still here (they were supposed to leave last Thursday) and now they are scheduled to depart next Tuesday. Our weapons issues have not been solved and we had to go zero and qualify with M16A2s and qualify will M9s. OK, the M16A2 is a good weapon, don't get me wrong, but there is a reason we keep saying send everyone to Iraq with M4s (or at least M16A3s).

Tuesday, 11 Jan 2005-The weapon I got zeroed ok, but I couldn't hit anything past 50 meters with it. When I brought it back to the arms room and told the armorer the problem he looked the serial number up and told me it was deadlined because the barrel was coded out...have discussion with armorer.

[Some backstory is needed here- but because I am tired I will shorten it to basic facts. Basic fact No. 1: I have graduated several Command Directed Anger Management Classes...]

[ok, I know some of you may not know the dif b'twix a A2, A3, and an M4...google it]

Right...so I get a different rifle and off I go to shoot again. No problem. The M9 shoots well and only looks like it's 15 or so years old. I qualify with both and am home before midnight.

Wed. 12 Jan 2005 to Thur 13 Jan 2005- This morning is Combat Lifesaver Training. Very good stuff because we may really need this. Unfortunately we are stuffing 40 hours of training into two days. Ooooooo....moi moi painful.
The up-side is at the end we get to stick each other with an 18 gauge needle and do an I.V.

Hey, a Four-Day Weekend is coming up! Not for us for we are going back out to the weapons ranges and shooting again Friday and Saturday. NOW...WE DON'T HAVE THE RANGES LAYED ON, BUT WE'LL TRY TO GO OUT AND SEE IF THEY LET US SHOOT.

(you military types will understand the caps...for the rest of you...imagine walking into a nice place on Friday night with forty guys and no reservation and see the reactions)

The time-line went something like this:

Fri 14 Jan 2005-

0600- draw weapons
0630- load busses.
0700- arrive range.
1200- still sitting waiting to get on range, order pizza.
1245- call pizza place and ask where the %^%$# the pizza is.
1315- pizza arrives- we eat.
1317- 1st Sergeant yells at us to get into formation.
1330- still waiting for more word.
1345- TENN Titan cheerleaders drive by. Driver stops because he knows me. Get to meet the girls.
1450- First firing order up to shoot.
1530- Second firing order.
1550- last firing order expends all remaining rounds.
1600- range police call.
1700- waiting for busses.
1800- waiting for busses, seriously thinking about ordering pizza again.
1850- busses arrive.
1900- return to arms room.
1930 clean M9s.
2130-turn in M9s.
2200- 1st Sergeant says we'll meet tomorrow at 0600 to draw weapons for M16 range.

There was an old TV ad that said 'We do more before 9 o'clock than some people do all day'. The funny thing is it's true. We just do stupid things, however.

(update)
Sat. 15 Jan 2005- M16 range ran very smooth today. Not sure I am really awake. Hoping that Titan's cheerleaders will pinch me to make sure.

This is Dutch508, out.