Back from Vacation

For the last week, I was in Jackson, Wyoming, with my in-laws on a family vacation.  Every year my father-in-law, Hall Crannell, arranges travel and lodging for 15 or more family members.  The Crannell family is a very frugal bunch--as evidenced by my wife's blog Miser-Mom.  We ate meals together every day, taking turns cooking dinner.  Hall cooked most of the breakfast meals, and lunch was leftovers and cold sandwiches.  I cooked hamburgers and hot dogs for my turn.  Other nights were salmon and stroganoff (a little weird I know--it was a request), pasta, and other fare for fifteen folks.

Now I am back to playing Army.  More tomorrow.

Counting Down

I realized today that I was paying more attention to the coverage of the space shuttle's last flight than I might have otherwise.  What I was listening to is the shuttle program expiration date.  I kept hoping that NASA would change its mind and extend the aging shuttle program another few years.

Obviously, I was thinking the same about the "Gussman in the Army" program that has an expiration date of 22 months from now.  I had so much fun at summer camp that I realized the next summer camp is my last one--unless I get a waiver to serve over age 60.  I will age out in May 2013.  If summer camp in 2013 is actually in the summer, I will be out before it begins.

You might be thinking that I got in on waivers and I have many people who would support me staying in, but that was in 2007and early 2008 when enlistments were down, the economy was up and the Army needed more people.  Now the reverse is true and it is not likely to change in time for me.  The brigade command sergeant major told me about another CSM who tried for a waiver to go on a deployment that would put him over age 60 before the scheduled end of the deployment.  He took a general out to dinner to plead his case and did not get a waiver.

But I won't give up trying.  Who knows, maybe things will get better or worse in a way that will make one more old soldier necessary for the mission.

Flying Army

Today I got up and put on my uniform at 5am.  I did not have a drill weekend, I flew on vacation to Jackson Hole, Wyoming.  This family vacation is an annual event paid for by my very generous father-in-law Hall Crannell.  He flies the whole family to a vacation spot for a week.  He has three daughters with families, so with the kids, he buys 15 - 17 tickets depending on the year and rents the vacation place.  This year is Jackson Hole.  I have missed a few for work reasons.  The best one I missed was in 2006:  a cruise to Alaska from Vancouver!!!!  

Anyway, I flew in uniform which may or may not be the right thing to do, but I haven't asked and no one told me I shouldn't do it.  The practical advantages are obvious.  We flew from Philadelphia.  My wife, my sons and I were whisked past the waiting line for the security checks to the scanners.

On the first flight, I was seated next to a master sergeant going to annual training.  He said when he was going to wear the uniform on the return flight.  He enlisted in 1977, five years after I did, but long enough back in history that he ate C-rations for years.  We both agreed that people who complain about MREs should have to eat C-rations.

There were a few open seats on the first flight, but the flight from Chicago to Jackson Hole was overbooked and I was the only one with a seat assignment.  We all got seats, but in different parts of the plane.  The boys sat together and got a 12-year-old girl as the third person on the row.  The three of them had a great trip.  My wife got a seat alone where she could read.

A few minutes after take-off on the trip to Jackson Hole, the flight attendant asked me why I didn't want to sit in first class.  I told her no one asked me.  So she moved me up to the front of the plane.  I had already eaten so when they served the first class lunch, I brought the sandwich back to the boys.  They can always eat a second lunch.

In 22 months I will be a civilian again unless I get some kind of waiver to stay longer.  No more flying in uniform after that.

Getting the TOC off the Ground

This group of shots shows the TOC (Tactical Operations Center) Troops getting the tent ready to raise the roof.

Raising the Roof of Operations

At the beginning of Annual Training the Operations Section (S-3) set up a full Tactical Operations Center (TOC) in a tent near the ranges at Fort Indiantown Gap.  Because the equipment inside the TOC includes classified material, I could not take pictures of the TOC in operation.  But in the next post I will show you pictures of the setting up the TOC tent.

Camo in the Metro

The Combat Aviation Battalion I drill with, like most line battalions is commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel and has fewer than two dozen commissioned officers (lieutenants, captains and majors).  Because we are an aviation unit, there are also a few dozen warrant officers.  From Sunday night until last night I was in Washington DC at the Biotechnology Industry Conference--a trade show for the the biotech industry.  I had several occasions to ride the Metro, the DC subway system.  Lots of officers ride the Metro from every branch of the US military.  I am sure I never saw an enlisted man of any branch.  I guess in the area of DC and northern Virginia, there are more officers than enlisted men.
I've been to DC many times.  I guess I did not pay attention to the rank of the uniformed subway riders before.

Next time I ride the Metro, I'll see if I can find at least one enlisted soldier.

Bike Update: Mike Zban Wins Brownstown

My friend and former coworker at Godfrey Advertising, Mike Zban, won the Brownstown Road Race yesterday.  Mike and I have been friends and riding buddies since he was hired at Godfrey not long after he graduated from college in the early nineties.  He is a strong member of the Lancaster Masters Racing Club Thru-It-All Body Shop.  Having a friend win a race is almost as good as winning itself.  Also in the race from Thru-It-All was Jan Felice another long-time friend.  Jan got knocked out of the race after for of the six 5-mile laps when another rider crashed in the turn and turned Jan rubber side up.  I was behind Jan when he crashed.  I did not crash but was off the road and could not catch back up to the main field.  I finished, but was was well back of the leaders at the end of the race.

Brownstown is a great traditional road race course and a big favorite for me.  Brownstown was the only USCF race I did in 2009--it was the race I rode in when I was home on leave.

On Sunday, I raced at the Emrick Blvd Criterium in Bethlehem PA.  The course was a smooth, fast, one-mile D-shaped loop.  Not quite flat, but a gentle uphill toward the finish and a slight downhill on the front side.  Nigel and Jacari came to the race and cheered for me on each of the 23 laps.  The race took just under an hour so they were yelling about every two minutes and fifteen seconds.  The also cheered for my five teammates in the race and for a owmen's masters race that ran simultaneously.  The boys stood on the side of the road with the family of one of the women in the race and cheered for her also.

Nigel and Jacari got to eat at Dunkin Donuts and McDonalds, so they liked the trip even with the 80-mile drive to the race.