Day 14

FIRE!!!! Safe to say, that's the word for today. Lots and lots of ammo and lots of time spent on my stomach at the firing range. It was by far the longest day yet. It started beneath a heavy fog at 6am and didn't end until around 6:15pm. In between, we were at the firing range. First up, was our opportunity to qualify per Navy instructions on the 9mm pistol.  In 14 years of Naval service, I had yet to do this so I was happy to get the opportunity. I'm confident that I qualified but I haven't been told the level yet. It's either Expert, Sharpshooter, or simply qualified. Being qualified let's me wear a corresponding ribbon and either an "E" for Expert or "S" for Sharpshooter over it. We shot a LOT of 9mm rounds and I had a blast doing it. (pun intended!)

Next up: the M4 Carbine rifle. The weapon of choice for our soldiers in Oz. Today was not the day to qualify. It was the day to "zero" our weapon. Zeroing is fine tuning the weapon by getting ourselves comfortable with it through breathing, trigger control, and sight position and also making the necessary adjustments to the front and rear sights. Laying in a bed of very comfortable shredded tires, we shot 3 rounds at a time then approached the target to review the shot patterns with the drill sergeants.  For some, they must have been naturals. Not me, though. I was definitely getting frustrated. I would fire 2 beautifully and then the other one would be way off for who knows what reason. I just couldn't nail 3 in a row where I needed to. ARGH!!!!  Eventually, I met the standard and could leave the range but I went through a LOT of ammo to get there. I must say...getting paid to fire a M4 rifle for hours is not too shabby of a deal! :-)  After I was sent off the range, I curled up with some more Max Lucado reading before heading out into the field with everyone else to gather the brass shells.

We also were "blessed" today to have MRE's. "Meals Ready to Eat." Vacuum packed and with an incredible shelf-life. Some are good, some are tolerable, some horrendous. Today, I had vegetable lasagna. Also in the package was a cracker with jelly, brown rice, a miserable excuse for a chocolate bar, some coffee powder, and energy drink powder. The heating mechanism was pretty cool, though. You take about 40ml of water...not very much...and pour it in this long, narrow blue bag. In the bottom of this is a gauze-like material with some kind of chemical on it. As the water hits it, immediately it gets very hot. In 12 minutes, the lasagna and rice are hot...it really works!  I couldn't believe it. As for the food, it was OK. While you may be picturing nice, picturesque lasagna in a baking dish, imagine instead inside of a plastic, green vertical pouch and scooped out with a spoon.

Here's the lasagna as viewed from my vantage point. Looks good? Right?  It really wasn't that bad....sort of a cross between baby food and unable-to-identify-the components lasagna.  All in all, the entire MRE package contains about 1200 calories.

All in all, today was exhausting. The truth, though, is that even though it felt hot out, we only got to Category 2. It was Category 5 a few days ago with temps in the low 90s and high humidity. EVERYTHING is amplified when wearing body armor. EVERYTHING!  Plus, we're drinking lots of water from our CamelBaks which just makes us have to go to the bathroom more often...not easy...especially if it's you know what. :-)

This is now the longest I've been from home since both Tin Man and Scarecrow were born. Like I told Dorothy tonight, I'm fine when busy doing the Navy/Army thing. It's those quiet times when I think about them that gets to me. I have a long journey ahead, though, so I just need to buckle down and do it. Thankfully, technology assists us all and I was able to see both of my kids tonight. Thanks, Apple!

Goodnight, everyone, and please have a very Happy Easter tomorrow!  He is Risen!!!