The Good Book, Part IV

The good book is my autobiography so I will take criticism on the title I am okay with it. I am sure you are thinking 4? how can you be on four already? One, two, three and now four. The thing is what i have been struggling with lately is how to separate all this junk I can my life. I already figure the chapters I call "wife one, two and three," will be popular one way or another. I am thinking about grouping idea together instead of by time. Like religion is one topic and women a completely different one. No matter how I end up doing it, the fluidity will be an issue.

Why Are Not You Happy?

You. This is defined as the person reading this post.

You are here
~a) by accident
~b) purposely
~~ i) by conscience choice
~~ ii) by way of links of another post elsewhere on the web
~~ iii) by way curiosity

So no matter which way you may be here for, why is it when I have good news you can not be happy?

Is your life so bad that you cannot even fathom what it would be like to happy?

Being happy is why I must finish writing my book, because I have learned over the years when I talk about my life everyone else feels happy. (Usually because their life is so much better.)

Permanent Progress

For whatever reason most bloggers seemed to have missed this report. I knew about here and then saw it reciprocated by Fox News.

Major General Gaskin said: "I think that the positive trends are permanent."

That says it all. I am happy I have had hot showers everyday for almost five months now. If that doesn't say progress, I don't know what does.

Money, Part II (a) - Death and Taxes

When Ben coined the phrase who knew it it would be so true today? Appartently the fact that I don't pay taxes in a combat zone upsets people. Who knew? ( I think it is funny that the money I made in my first year in service didn't throw up red flags.)

So if you want to read it from the IRS click here. Other wise here is my explanation.

Public Law authorizes Combat Zone Tax Exclusion for all Service Members receiving Hostile Fire Pay in Iraq and Afghanistan. A Service Member who is present, however brief, in this area, including airspace, and is on official duty qualifies for Combat Zone Tax Exclusion for that month. All pay for both enlisted personnel and warrant officers is tax exempt for the months spent in the Combat Zone Tax Exclusion area.

The cool part is the death gratuity was raised to $100,000.00. When I first entered into service this was six grand. So what is a death gratuity? It is a lump sum gratuitous payment made by the military to eligible beneficiaries of a member who dies on Active Duty. Nifty, huh?

The death gratuity payment is $12,420, and is non-taxable. For those whose death is as a result of hostile actions and occurred in a designated combat operation or combat zone or while training for combat or performing hazardous duty, the
payment is $100,000.

So if I had died in '96 my folks would have been lucky to have bought a tombstone with that money, but now they could definitely buy the tombstone, casket, plot and some flowers.

Money, Part II

I did an earlier post about how much I make and wanted to know a some comparisons. Kind of like for shits and giggles. When ever I have a bad day, like today, sometimes the money thing makes me feel better. Like I get paid to get my ass chewed, type feeling. I know doesn't sound good does it? Well, it looks like I was right on the money(ha ha) when I said a I was going to make about 37 thousand this year. Because I was feeling not myself, I looked up my first year, I made seven thousand eight hundred twenty-three dollars and sixty-seven cents. So if you did the math in a little more than a decade my pay increased by more than 500 percent! I am trying to make myself feel better can you tell? The key to high pay is I am not getting taxed this year. The number would be much lower if I was and my first year total is the gross as well.

Nobody's Fault But Mine

I don't know what it is called so I will give an example and rant from there.

Scenario #1
When the senior says "I am going to go home for the day" and you ,the junior, says "don't worry I have it." Then later when someone comes looking for the senior, the junior says "he doing blah and blah," not mentioning he's at home and then calling or letting him know so and so is looking for him. What is that called?

Scenario #2
When the senior says "I am going to go home for the day" and you ,the junior, says "don't worry I have it." Then later when someone comes looking for the senior, the junior says "he's at home since this morning" and not doing anything extra . What is that called?


I call scenario number two, throwing someone under the bus or dropping dimes on someone. Either way the senior man is going to be in trouble later.

Some similar to the second example happened to me earlier in the day, so tomorrow morning I will be standing in front of the "boss" explaining why I wasn't where he had liked me to be. The job was still getting done, I was just not in the capacity to answer questions at the moment to the "boss" directly. It pisses me off when the junior guy completely lied to me about having control. (The junior guy is just junior to me, he has a bunch of rank.) The crappy part is not even fifteen minutes later I was back in the workplace, but the boss had already left for the day.

Flicker, Part III

I want to make a set. Seems simple enough. Maybe I am behind too many firewalls. I can not get to "OrganizR" it just says it is loading.

This where I am thinking about deleting the whole thing again. Remember, box of rocks. Not shiny.

How I Was Infected

As you can see it can be clearly documented how I repeatedly received the Splotchy Virus. I have successfully ridden myself of the virus and given it back to its maker. Hopefully, the strands will not mutate anymore and I will be in the free and clear. Only time will tell.

Wacky Meme of the Month, Part II

I've been tagged again and for me it was CDP, who was tagged by the brilliant Whiskeymarie, by way of Splotchy, who writes:

"This has probably been done before, but that is not stopping me, oh no.Here's what I would like to do. I want to create a story that branches out in a variety of different, unexpected ways. I don't know how realistic it is, but that's what I'm aiming for. Hopefully, at least one thread of the story can make a decent number of hops before it dies out.If you are one of the carriers of this story virus (i.e. you have been tagged and choose to contribute to it), you will have one responsibility, in addition to contributing your own piece of the story: you will have to tag at least one person that continues your story thread. So, say you tag five people. If four people decide to not participate, it's okay, as long as the fifth one does. And if all five participate, well that's five interesting threads the story spins off into.Not a requirement, but something your readers would appreciate: to help people trace your own particular thread of the narrative, it will be helpful if you include links to the chapters preceding yours."

Being the good sport that I am, I felt I couldn't let the readers down. So just as the world turns so does this:

I woke up hungry. I pulled my bedroom curtain to the side and looked out on a hazy morning. I dragged myself into the kitchen, in search of something to eat. I reached for a jar of applesauce sitting next to the sink, and found it very cold to the touch. I opened the jar and realized it was frozen. (Splotchy)

I was used to the house being quite cold in the mornings, as the night log usually burns out around one AM when I am dreaming cozily under my covers, not
normally waking to put a new one on until morning. I was surprised because on the rare occasions that it actually had reached sub-freezing temperatures in the house, I had awakened in the night to restart the fire. I would have been worried about the pipes before P-Day, but there hadn’t been running water in two years and that was one of the few advantages to being dependent on rainwater, no pipes. (Freida Bee)

I rummaged around in the kitchen and found one of the few things that hadn't frozen overnight to eat- an expired granola bar. "Better than nothing", I muttered to myself as I tore off the wrapper and took a bite, trying to not chip a tooth in the process.I thought I should go out to the shed and bring in more wood. The mind-numbing cold snap that had set in over the last few days seemed to be in no hurry to leave. Pulling on my heavy coat and wool hat, I considered for a moment what lay ahead for the day. Normally I would spend much of the day making any needed repairs to the house, cleaning, reading various newsletters, cooking, and just trying to keep busy in general. With no job to fill my time anymore I have found my new found "freedom" to be both a blessing and a curse. Ever since P-day, the only job most of us have is to sit in our homes and find something, anything, to pass the time.Well, that- and to stay alive. (Whiskeymarie)

I reached the woodshed I’d built from the remains of our fence, and heard a rustling. Fearing one of the wild dogs that now roamed the neighborhood, I crept back to the house for the gun my husband left with me before he volunteered to join the fighting. My hand was shaking so badly, I didn’t think I could pull a trigger, so I also grabbed an old broomstick to use as a club. My son tried to follow me, and I ordered him back inside; he obeyed, frightened by the harshness of my tone. He seemed not to sense how terrified I was and I was glad. Inching toward the shed, glancing backward every few steps to be sure the children were staying inside, I heard the rustle again, accompanied by a very human cough.“Who is it?” I shouted, in as angry and menacing a voice as I could muster.No response.“Damn it, I know you’re in there! I have a gun! Come out with your hands up, or I’ll just start shooting!”“Don’t shoot!” said the voice, and(CDP).

~
I woke up hungry. The room was white, small and seemed to not have any doors. That is when I realized I was naked. I had a thin sheet of plastic over me and some machine making beeping noises to my left.

I started to rise up that is when I noticed the cuffs holding me to the bed. I started to scream.

A large booming voice came over a loud speaker, " Calm down, calm down Mrs. Peabody."

I bellowed out, "Who are you?! Why am I chained down?! Where are my children?! "

The voice replied, " There has been an accident, everything will be fine. There will be someone to assist and answer your questions shortly."

Then there was silence. I yelled some more but nothing. No response. Then suddenly, I a creaking sound. To the right there was a door opening, it was......
(Wyldth1ng)

Gotta love cliff hangars. I doubt I will find anyone who will continue this one, but I will tag some more people and see if it goes anywhere or just stops at this.

Splotchy
FranIAm
Mathman6293
PrincessMindy
and the last one will be you the person that has always wanted to be tagged but hasn't. This is your chance to make this story a masterpiece.

History of Women Marines

An excellent source for Women Marine history is the Women Marine Association. Here is an excerpt of the answer to the question that has arisen from my previous post.

How did my mother serve in the Marine Corps during WWII?

"In 1918, the Secretary of Navy allowed women to enroll for clerical duty in the Marine Corps. Officially, Opha Mae Johnson is credited as the first woman Marine. Johnson enrolled for service on August 13, 1918; during that year some 300 women first entered the Marine Corps to take over stateside clerical duties from battle-ready Marines who were needed overseas. The Marine Corps Women's Reserve was established in February 1943. June 12th, 1948, Congress passed the Women's Armed Services Integration Act and made women a permanent part of the regular Marine Corps. "

Thinking About Presidental History

Being the history fan that I am, I was thinking about US Presidents in history. Who are the Presidents that we remember?

We remember the ones during war and the ones that were assassinated or both. Really, think about it for moment.

Why is that? Why do we as Americans forget the Presidents in between our wars or the ones that lived beyond their presidency?

I always enjoy asking people if they know their four generals that became Presidents and which ones are on our legal tender. You would be surprised to find out that most people I ask can not come up with the answer. The responses are usually two of the generals and can think of only one who is on our money.

Here is a couple of questions and an answers for everyone:
1) President Truman signed an important piece of legislation for women in 1948, what was it?
2) Who was the first President to fly in a helicopter?
3) Which President was the only one to earn a PhD?
4) Which President delivered the shortest inaugural address?
5) The "Baby Ruth" candy bar was named for which President's daughter?
6) Which President slept in pajamas with five stars sewn on to the shoulder?
7) Which President from the 20th century is on Mount Rushmore?
8) Which Presidents signed the Declaration of Independence?
9)Who was the only Rhodes Scholar amongst the Presidents?
10) Which President was the first to have been a POW(Prisoner of War)?

1a) Women's Armed Services Integration Act, which authorized women to serve in the organized services(military).
2a) President Eisenhower
3a)President Woodrow Wilson (John Hopkins 1886)
4a) President George Washington, 135 words
5a) President Grover Cleveland, Ruth Cleveland
6a) President Dwight D. Eisenhower
7a) President Theodore Roosevelt
8a) Thomas Jefferson and John Adams
9a) President William Clinton
10a) Andrew Jackson, Revolutionary War

Thank You My Heroes

I have received this letter and many similar like it and I feel that I do not deserve the niceties these people and others have shared with me and my Marines. The majority of the boxes contents, expect for a book and a couple of Starburst, will be going to my Marines and several other Marines that are deployed farther out from me.

I can't help but feel choked up when I read a letter like this one from Eve. I have never thought of myself as a hero and probably never will. I have always thought that everyday people with their acts of kindness are the heroes.

Thank you.

All of us, thank you for taking the time and effort to send a piece of your home to our "home" here.

Heathen

I am what you would call a heathen. This is why:

I am divorced. (3 times)
I have lied in the past. (A white lie and 2 fibs)
I have had sex out of wedlock.
I have been gluttonous.(I weigh about ten pounds over my healthy weight.)
I drink beer. ("In heaven there is no beer, That is why we drink it here.")
I have purposely tried and succeeded to hurt people. (They were all bad.)
I have used the lord's name in vain. (for both pain and pleasure)
I have taken items that were not mine. (When I was five I took a Tootsie Pop from the store without paying.)
I do not attend church services regularly.
I do not give ten percent to any church. (I instead invest ten percent for retirement.)
I have worshiped other gods. ( I have dabbled in many other beliefs.)
I have had envy for other people. (American society helps that sin to the nth degree.)
I have never truly confessed my sins to God, but I have to one woman who scorned me.
I am an extremist when it comes to my belief in the Corps.

I do not ask for forgiveness, I do not ask for grief, I do not ask for justification.
This is who I am.

Belly Growth, Part II

As promised more stick figures. As you can all see from this diagram, I started this deployment as a stick figure and I will be ending as balloon with needles sticking out in funny directions.

Knocker

My last wife received a knocker for Christmas one of the years we were married. I write it like that because when the marriage dissolved she took the knocker. Luckily, I received one just like it the following year. I would love to put on my front door. I seem to be missing a front door, at the moment. I bring this up for a few reasons, one for it being Christmas time and this was a gift. And of course, it looks just like the photo above.

Wacky Meme of the Month

Okay, so Fran tagged DCup who then tagged me with a nifty story building meme that was started by Splotchy who wrote...

Here's what I would like to do. I want to create a story that branches out in a variety of different, unexpected ways. I don't know how realistic it is, but that's what I'm aiming for. Hopefully, at least one thread of the story can make a decent number of hops before it dies out.

Whomever I tag at the end of this, if they chose to accept the mission, will most likely be in another circle altogether. I probably should not be the one linking the two but we shall see.

I woke up hungry. I pulled my bedroom curtain to the side and looked out on a hazy morning. I dragged myself into the kitchen, in search of something to eat. I reached for a jar of applesauce sitting next to the sink, and found it very cold to the touch. I opened the jar and realized it was frozen. (Splotchy)

"That's strange," I said out loud to no one in particular. My fingers slowly reached towards the jar again. My body experienced a wave of apprehension as weighted blanket covering me as I did so. The jar was completely frozen.

I picked it up and stared at it, my fingers stung with little knives of chill. "What the..." again I spoke aloud. Then I realized what had happened with a shock. Suddenly the jar flew from my hand. It shattered creating a collage-like mixture of frozen applesauce and glass shards on my kitchen floor, the lid lazily rolling to a stop across the room.(FranIam)

I stood for a moment considering what all this meant. Oh, I knew what it meant, I didn’t need to waste time thinking about it. He was back. And he was mad.

I ran down the hallway and flung open the door at the end. I was immediately hit with a blast of cold. I took a step back as I tried to catch my breath. I bent over, hands on my knees panting. He always had this remarkable effect on me. After so much time, it no longer scared me, but it was a shock nonetheless……

“You know,” I panted, “There’s no need to break things to get my
attention.” (DCup)

I woke up hungry. I rolled out of bed smacking my alarm clock that was singing Carly Simon and thinking to myself I have to stop eating pizza right before bed and then sleeping till noon. I must remember to change that station to something that will actually wake me.

Stubbing my toe on my boots on my way to the kitchen, I glanced sideways down the hall and caught the dead body out of the corner of my eye. (Wyldth1ng)

I hope I pick at least one person out of five that will continue the story. So without further hesitation:

Will Blog For Food
The Village Carpeter
More Cows Than People
LadyBurg
Jan

Daemon Wagon

I have not read the books as of yet, but from the website I have gathered a general idea. This Daemon thing I saw on Songbird's blog then I saw it on More Cows' blog. I have decided to join the fray and this was the result.

For the next twelve days or so you can interact with my results here:http://www.goldencompassmovie.com/?588009

But did you expect anything else?

RevGals Friday Five: Preparation

Sally from RevGals has decided to make us do essays this week on how we prepare.
Here then is this weeks Friday 5:

1. You have a busy week, pushing out all time for preparing worship/ Sunday School lessons/ being ready for an important meeting ( or whatever equivalent your profession demands)- how do you cope?
As a Marine, I accomplish the mission, then ensure troop welfare.

2. You have unexpected visitors, and need to provide them with a meal- what do you do?Three discussion topics:
a) Open up a box of menu A of MREs
b) Open up a box of menu B of MREs
c) Find an Any Marine package and share

3. Thinking along the lines of this weeks advent theme; repentance is an important but often neglected aspect of advent preparations.....
I really don't understand what I am supposed to do for this question/statement.

4. Some of the best experiences in life occur when you simply go with the flow.....
Take charge and secure the hill.

5. Details are everything, attention to the small things enables a plan to roll forward smoothly...
That is why you called the Marines.

Bonus if you dare- how well prepared are you for Christmas this year?
Better prepared than a Swiss Army knife.

Day of Infamy

Yesterday, December 7, 1941 -- a date which will live in infamy -- the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked......

I Q

A while ago(a few years) I had this "head mate"(shared a bathroom) that made a bet with me that he was smarter than I. We were and are fierce competitors and drinkers of fine beer. So this the short of this story.

The gamble was loser pays for dinner meals for a month and will always be considered not as smart(dumb as a box of rocks) amongst the players. The verification was a test proctored by a member of Mensa also a good friend of ours (at the cost of two hundred fifty dollars each). We were serious about this. The night prior we went drink for drink. This where the challenge came into play and you could say that was not smart. We were both late to the test. Since we were the only ones taking the test(at a local college) they waited. I will give props to my friend who finished this test two minutes before me. I scored one point higher than him.

I did not qualify for Mensa. But who cares, I got free meals for a month and he will always be as dumb as a box of rocks.