medicchief
Squier-Meister
We have a lot in common! If I could only play a guitar as well as I can set one up or mod it.....I would be famous!
Veterans and Active Duty, Where and When?
- Thread starter Flyer91
- Start date
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We have a lot in common! If I could only play a guitar as well as I can set one up or mod it.....I would be famous!
Rockbreaker
Squier-Nut
TODAY IS THE 42 ANNIVERSARY OF THE VIETNAM WAR. NO MENTION OF IT ANYWHERE. MY HATS OFF TO ALL VETERANS!
LDS714
Squier-Meister
Army, 70s-early 80s. Ordnance working in ADA.
Ft. Jackson for Basic and Common Basic Electronics Training (COBET), Redstone Arsenal for IHAWK CW Radar Repair, Ft. Bliss, Fort Hunter Liggett then back to Fort Bliss.
Bench repair of modular chassis' from IHAWK radars. Got really good at troubleshooting and repairing tube circuits. If I only had all of the mil-spec 6L6 tubes that were mandatory to be replaced when certain units crossed the bench...
Really enjoyed supporting foreign HAWK battalions when they'd come to McGregor Range for their annual live fire qualifications. Worked with units from all around the world, including South Korea, the UAE, and others. It was kind of cool, because a lot of them would bring their own equipment, and it was almost always beat up and non-functional. We'd have a short time window to get everything tuned up and working so they could shoot down some drones. Lots of high-pressure troubleshooting and repair, LOL! Some of them would know we'd fully service their gear, so they'd grab all of the 'dog' chassis' from other batteries and generally provided us with a lot of difficult to repair units. We got really good at the repairs, they got to fire some live missiles and would get to go home with their stuff in tip-top shape.
Found out I wasn't cut out for Army life, at least not a Jimmy Carter peace time Army. Too many junior officers and senior NCOs with nothing better to do than call people out for a rumpled uniform and scuffed up boots when they (and by they, I mean I) showed up for morning formation after working 24 or more hours straight getting a missile battery back up and running. And I had no choice but to lock my heels and eat sh*t while they made themselves feel important. I enjoyed the Army as far as the work and the missions, but the BS got too thick as the talented people got RIFed in favor of the sycophants.
Went on to a fairly successful career in electronics, mainly servicing pro and high-end audio gear, switched to IT when audio repair stopped being profitable. Got the chance to do a lot of work on studio gear and in studios, learning a lot of tricks about audio engineering and recording. Actually got to be a fly on the wall and babysit balky equipment when some pretty good albums were being recorded, all time favorite was the first Rossington-Collins album. A lot of demons got exorcised and/or anesthetized during those sessions.
Ft. Jackson for Basic and Common Basic Electronics Training (COBET), Redstone Arsenal for IHAWK CW Radar Repair, Ft. Bliss, Fort Hunter Liggett then back to Fort Bliss.
Bench repair of modular chassis' from IHAWK radars. Got really good at troubleshooting and repairing tube circuits. If I only had all of the mil-spec 6L6 tubes that were mandatory to be replaced when certain units crossed the bench...
Really enjoyed supporting foreign HAWK battalions when they'd come to McGregor Range for their annual live fire qualifications. Worked with units from all around the world, including South Korea, the UAE, and others. It was kind of cool, because a lot of them would bring their own equipment, and it was almost always beat up and non-functional. We'd have a short time window to get everything tuned up and working so they could shoot down some drones. Lots of high-pressure troubleshooting and repair, LOL! Some of them would know we'd fully service their gear, so they'd grab all of the 'dog' chassis' from other batteries and generally provided us with a lot of difficult to repair units. We got really good at the repairs, they got to fire some live missiles and would get to go home with their stuff in tip-top shape.
Found out I wasn't cut out for Army life, at least not a Jimmy Carter peace time Army. Too many junior officers and senior NCOs with nothing better to do than call people out for a rumpled uniform and scuffed up boots when they (and by they, I mean I) showed up for morning formation after working 24 or more hours straight getting a missile battery back up and running. And I had no choice but to lock my heels and eat sh*t while they made themselves feel important. I enjoyed the Army as far as the work and the missions, but the BS got too thick as the talented people got RIFed in favor of the sycophants.
Went on to a fairly successful career in electronics, mainly servicing pro and high-end audio gear, switched to IT when audio repair stopped being profitable. Got the chance to do a lot of work on studio gear and in studios, learning a lot of tricks about audio engineering and recording. Actually got to be a fly on the wall and babysit balky equipment when some pretty good albums were being recorded, all time favorite was the first Rossington-Collins album. A lot of demons got exorcised and/or anesthetized during those sessions.
medicchief
Squier-Meister
Sorry about that....I'm an Iraqi Freedom Veteran and I can't tell you what date it (Iraq War) started on. I can say that on October 3, 2004 I lost one of my medics in a firefight, won't ever forget that. Thank you for the reminder, I belong to a group that is mostly Vietnam veterans. I always tell a Vietnam Veteran "welcome home" when I meet one. They didn't have people cheering at the airport like we did.......it was quite the opposite.
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medicchief
Squier-Meister
A snapshot of me and some local youngsters from May of 2004, in the middle of Baghdad. When the kids were around, things were usually cool. My M4 is hanging from the clip on my right shoulder, that way both of my hands were free to work but still had quick access.
Ahnlaashock
Squier-holic
My son was Iraq for his first tour, and then Afghanistan for the second. He is scheduled for Afghanistan again later this year. Three more years and he will have his 20 done.
Rollmeaway
Squier-Nut
You must be very proud of your son. May God protect him and bring him home safe.
Best regards, Danny...
Ahnlaashock
Squier-holic
Proud and amused both. He is the son who was an anarchist, who was sure society was falling apart, and then he has been mister straight and narrow for 20 years or so. Yes, there is a woman involved, but that happens to us all.
When I look at the larger than me almost bald headed E-6 who runs a unit desk these days, I still see the long haired child and hear his words when he was younger.
Parents who believe they know who their children are, and who they are going to be, are in for a huge wake up call with many of them.
My child we worried whether or not he would be able to feed himself in life got a union job doing technical equipment type work, and makes more than the rest of us ever will most likely. He has been employed steady for many years. The long haired martial arts competitor who was sure all of society was just a sick game, joined the military, married a teacher, and has gone places he himself would never have guessed.
My wife corrected me. He is scheduled for Iraq again, not Afghanistan.
When I look at the larger than me almost bald headed E-6 who runs a unit desk these days, I still see the long haired child and hear his words when he was younger.
Parents who believe they know who their children are, and who they are going to be, are in for a huge wake up call with many of them.
My child we worried whether or not he would be able to feed himself in life got a union job doing technical equipment type work, and makes more than the rest of us ever will most likely. He has been employed steady for many years. The long haired martial arts competitor who was sure all of society was just a sick game, joined the military, married a teacher, and has gone places he himself would never have guessed.
My wife corrected me. He is scheduled for Iraq again, not Afghanistan.
