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Today, this was my cubicle...

By The Armorer on November 3, 2005 | | Comments (23)

...no Red Staplers here!

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Click the highlighted words below while I gloat...

Neener - Neener - Neener!

McKenna Mout (Military Operations in Urban Terrain) Site. A faux ville, complete with sewer system (or 'snake pit' as the troops prefer to call it) for the troops to fight in. If it's been raining recently, it's a wet sewer, too - though just a storm system, not a sanitary sewer...

I - got - to - play - today!

I was the "clueless journo who thinks his press pass makes him invulnerable". At least that's what I told the curious. In reality, I was just wandering around in the fight because they said I could. Since I didn't have a MILES harness on, all the players knew I was technically invisible (and I cleared it with the OIC). I've been taking pictures of the tech we're here experimenting with. But there's some cool stuff in McKenna. But I got to listen to machine guns, rifles, grenades, shouting soldiers taking down buildings, shouting jihadis trying to save their buildings and not sell their lives cheap. And shouting instructors... instructing. Good times, good times. And this time, no ringing in the ears afterwards, either!

In an earlier exercise unrelated to this one - I almost got whacked by a troop with an M4 Paintball gun. Close range paintballs sound remarkably like 9mm rounds at range...

I can't believe I get *paid* to do this!

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23 Comments

By lex on November 3, 2005 4:42 PM
Does look like fun. I got to do a three and one-half hour VTC! Jealous? Din theen so.
 
By Beth on November 3, 2005 7:04 PM
I can verify that there was a lot of noisy shooting, etc John called me from his cell phone today so I could hear the fire. Gotta love him!
 
By AFSister on November 3, 2005 7:26 PM
*I* can't believe you get paid to do that.........
 
By Barb on November 3, 2005 7:48 PM
Gawd - just watchin' woulda been fun. What - doesn't your camera do movies, too?
 
By John of Argghhh! on November 3, 2005 7:51 PM
I've got one that does, but I didn't have that with me. These were shot with the EOS Rebel SLR.
 
By Jon The Mechanic on November 3, 2005 8:00 PM
I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you... No really, I do. You get ALL the fun.
 
By John of Argghhh! on November 3, 2005 8:30 PM
Jon, you can *always* re-enlist Infantry... Or izzit about the camera? 8^D
 
By Sgt. B. on November 3, 2005 8:50 PM
*grin* Shoulder is better... 90% ROM... Waiting for DD-214, and then it's time to hit the ground running...
   
By SangerM on November 3, 2005 9:27 PM
I am jealous! But one small consolation is that the base is gearing up for the airshow this weekend, so I got a closeup look at the J-UCAS (and lots of pics), and a B1. Tomorrow, the other folks start arriving and doing some practice stuff: Golden Knights, an F4 Demo, an F15 Demo (maybe), T-6 Texans, some acrobatic stuff, Thunderbirds practice run, etc.... I can't believe it, though, a J-UCAS (Navy version, w/ a tailhook even) just sittin' there in front of a B-1..... The **FUTURE** of air warfare, StarWars rules! Man, if I was a foreign pilot visiting the show, I'd sure be scared of what I saw today or thankful that I'm on the US' side.... Of course, it ain't really as good as things that go boom, but for an airplane geek, this is gonna be a BIG weekend... I'm hyper-ventilating already. . .
 
By ry on November 3, 2005 9:40 PM
man, Sanger. Now you totally have me jonesing for a trip home this summer. Miramar. I still say the Blue Angels should be flying the A-4, even if it isn't in the fleet. Nothing was as beautiful as those. Nothing.
 
By FbL on November 3, 2005 10:20 PM
You've even got me jealous!
 
By SangerM on November 3, 2005 10:22 PM
I don't know, Ry. I like the F-18. It is kind of like an F16 all grown up. I've been told the F22 is the same way to an F-15. There was an F22 here a few weeks ago, but I missed it. Those who saw it said it was just unreal how fast it took off and went UP. And next to it, the F-15s just looked kind of dated. Too bad that, I suppose. BTW, Bryn Mawr is Welsh, like Bala Cynwood and other place names in Philly, supposedly from immigrants. Otherwise, Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, PA 19010.. That and other place names from my childhood still ring musically in my memories: Cheltenham, West Chester, Ardmore, North Whales, Bala Cynwood, Roxborough, Conshohocken, Wissahickon, East Falls, Bensalem, Plymouth Meeting, Andorra, Manayunk, Valley Green (www.valleygreeninn.com), Fairmount Park (http://phillyskyline.com/fairmountpark/index.htm --visit and look at the pics, I spent a LOT of time in almost every place in those pictures, most of which (on the first page) are of the Wissahickon Crick. Man I sure do miss that place sometimes... You can see why if you look at the pics... I can name most of the places shown BTW 2, where in Indiana? I lived in SB for a few years.
 
By Barb on November 3, 2005 10:32 PM
Yeah - I realized my dig-SLR doesn't do movies either. Kinda funny, but a worthy trade off, for the pics you get from 'em.
 
By Ryan Gill on November 4, 2005 7:04 AM
Hey John, they're not equipped quite right! Try this one or this fire...open FIRE! Armor Support Are you swinging through for Vet's Day?
 
By Chadd on November 4, 2005 8:28 AM
Wow! It's changed a lot since I was last there in '95. When I was there it was just cinder-block buildings with no furniture. Still a helluva lot of fun though. It looks like they've made it more realistic, kind of like Shughart-Gordon down at JRTC.
 
By ry on November 4, 2005 2:11 PM
Sanger...but the F-18 looks all sharp anglely. The A-4 was sleek. She was smooth looking. She looked like she should be agile. Don't get me wrong, the Hornet is a very capable plane. She just doesn't look as sexy as the A-4. Lafayette, IN. About 2 hours south of Notre Dame and an hour from Indianapolis(NW of Indi). Boilermaker lab drone(another day older and deeper in debt. "Make me another furan Parsons!" 'yes sir. yes sir.'). It's odd here. 1/2 factory town(Alcoa, an auto plant, an Eli Lilly campus). 1/2 college town. It's pretty here right now. Actually have trees change colors? I thought that only happened in movies growing up in CA. Constant 75 is nice, but palm trees, concrete, and smog get boring after a while.
 
By SangerM on November 4, 2005 3:37 PM
Been through Lafayette _numerous_ times, mostly going back and forth between Soun IN or Crawfordsville and SB, usually just wanting to take a different route than 31 to or from Indianapolis, 'cause I HATED 31, especially through Kokomo and up by Grissom where the cops just had to do something to make up for the revenue they lost when they closed the base, and citations seemed the easist way to go... As for the area, I hated leaving IN. Unfortunately, there aren't a lot of jobs that involve the military. Too bad, I would not have left.
 
By ry on November 4, 2005 4:49 PM
"I HATED 31, especially through Kokomo and up by Grissom where the cops just had to do something to make up for the revenue they lost when they closed the base, and citations seemed the easist way to go..." And with the latest BRAC it's about to get worse. Not sure, but isn't Ball State up Kokomo way? Would also explain why the cops were jerky. Disrespectful college kids piss off everybody, even each other. Never taken SR-31 to Indy. Usually stick to I-65. Went to Ft. Wayne for a gaming convention once, but, other than that, I never leave Lafayette, Supposedly, there's good hunting around here, but, with a patholigically afraid of firearms wife and inlaws, I haven't been able to try and find out.
 
By John of Argghhh! on November 4, 2005 6:07 PM
Ry, you need to bring the Missus to the Castle Argghhh! Blogmeet, whenever that is... Heheheheheheheh
 
By Justthisguy on November 4, 2005 6:18 PM
Am *consumed* with envy. Just imagine, the fun parts without the hurtin', deadly parts, and the Guvmint pays for it, too. I reckon you paid earlier, though. Nonetheless, have fun! Fun is fun, and not to be sneezed at.
 
By ry on November 5, 2005 5:41 PM
"Ry, you need to bring the Missus to the Castle Argghhh! Blogmeet, whenever that is..." We'd survive. She's a big time cat lover. She'd play with the Interior Guard and often remind me to put my tongue back in my head(maybe a slap every once in a while to make the point stick). I'm actually torn over what to look forward to most(after meeting the Denizens of course): getting to play with pets after living petless in apts for a very long time or basking in awe of the Arsenal. Happiness is a warm puppy(Peanuts--George Shultz), after all.
 
By John of Argghhh! on November 5, 2005 11:23 PM
Sheesh Ry, why would you have to choose? Pick up a cat and wander in the Armory!
 
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