That man paid his dues. I hope that he gets another 80 healthy and good years. He paved the way for guys like you and me.

When I took my elderly Stepfather, mother-in-law and her husband out to dinner they were shocked to see me leave a $10 tip on the table ($100+ meal back then - somewhat expensive). My father-in-law stayed behind to look over the table to make sure the waiter got the tip and no one took it from the table. When he got into the car where we were all waiting for him, he told us that he told the waiter that HE would only leave - at the most - a dollar for any meal for service.
A good man, but somewhat out of the loop even for those days when tipping was 10%.

If I were to do it all over again, I'd be a poag in the Air Force. Same pay, none of the danger and only 6 month deployments to super-FOBs with a PX and movie theaters instead of year+ deployments to dangerous outposts. Instead of doing daily combat patrols wearing body armor in the Iraqi heat, they get to sit and chill out in air conditioned offices. Their HMMWVs all had air conditioning while our didn't. They had a swimming pool, I had a cesspool.

True story. I was sitting in a waiting room at Ballad, Iraq waiting for a flight home for my two week leave from Iraq. I'd been in Iraq doing daily combat patrols for 8 months. Some air force guys came in and told us we had to leave the cushy waiting area because they were getting ready to have a cake and ice cream party for an air force unit that was getting ready to go home after their 6-month deployment - and we weren't invited!! I couldn't believe it! These are probably the same guys who are quick to proudly point out their service in Iraq and vote republican.

Seriously he told me become a coasty but at 17 I'm like he don't know. But hey my time was peace time , you know after I broke my ankle in 82 nd got pcs west Germany people ask what was Germany like. I said being mech infantry sucked but otherwise it was like the movie animal house. Just add m16 and crew served 60's and 50cals.

I was a mechanized platoon leader and I loved my Bradley. I did plenty of patrols both dismounted and in HMMWVs. Dismounted, you only had what you could carry on your back and HMMWVs were pretty much defenseless against improvised explosives and RPGs.

That being said, I lost 5 guys in a Bradley and never lost anyone in my platoon on a dismounted patrol or in a HMMWV... I'd still take a Bradley into a fight any day.

Honestly, I'm not doing that bad. I'm on more meds and I started taking a drug called naltrexone that eliminates my cravings for alcohol. I've been completely sober since about Memorial Day and, with the meds, it's the easiest sobriety I've ever experienced.

he will dine with someone else in the future...