Home Again!

It’s good to be home. I had Big Fun in San Antonio…it was more than good to spend that much time with Buck, see the sights, meet new friends, do “big city” things and all that, but as the saying goes: “…be it ever so humble (and it is that), there’s no place like home!”

Random notes:

First and foremost…the thought occurred to me this morning: they ALL look so young! This regarding the appearance of every single one of Buck’s friends and peers, who are primarily Captains, First Lieutenants, and junior Majors. Even a few of the Lieutenant Colonels looked pretty young to me…A sign I’m getting way old, to be sure.

Rubbing elbows with “The Stars”… Buck returned to the room after the LOA banquet Thursday evening to change out of his Class A uniform into something more appropriate (read that: jeans and a tee shirt) for our final night on the town. We went down to the Menger bar to meet his buddy, gather up the gaggle and head out. Upon entering the bar Buck said “Wow! Not one, but two generals!” And sure enough, there was a two-star and a one-star standing at the end of the bar, along with a Lt Col and a Captain. Turns out Buck knows them both, and to make a long story short, Buck goes over and says “General Sullivan, I’d like to introduce my dad, retired Master Sergeant Buck Pennington…” So, we spend about five or six minutes shooting the bull with a couple of generals. It’s not the first time I’ve stood at the bar with a general, but it was the first time I stood with two of ‘em. Most interesting.

Which brings up the next point. Both generals made the obligatory “thank you for your service” comments almost immediately after the introductions were completed. I’m not quite sure how to address this without appearing to be both ungrateful and curmudgeonly, but I’m getting just a little bit tired of all this “thank you for your service” stuff, especially among and between members of the military community. It’s one thing to be on the receiving end of those comments when they come from a member of the civilian population who has never served, it’s quite another to get it from a fellow warrior. It’s difficult to put into words, as I said in my intro, but the “thanks for your service” thingie is acquiring the aura of “the politically correct thing to do.” At any rate, I find it a little, perhaps a lot, off-putting. A firm handshake, a knowing look, and perhaps a “where were you stationed?” would more than do the trick when coming from another military man or woman. Just sayin’, ya know.

OK, that said… I did exactly the same thing while at the Alamo. There was this young Army private first class, in uniform, there with her mother. (How do I know it was Mom? Because Mom’s tee shirt said “My daughter is a combat medic at Fort Sam Houston.”) I walked up to the PFC and said “I know you probably get tired of hearing this, but… thank you.” The private immediately extended her hand, looked me directly in the eye, shook my hand firmly and nodded. Her reaction, and her expression, led me to believe she felt exactly the same way I do. Perhaps if we just said “thank you,” rather than “thanks for your service,” that would be more than enough. And not so damned politically correct.

One thing that makes Texas unique (out of many things) is the number of state flags one sees flying. They’re literally everywhere…car lots, banks, schools, homes, businesses…everywhere. The Texas flag just might outnumber the US flags. As an example, I could see four Texas flags from my hotel window, and only two US flags. And that’s just the flag itself, and not the various representations of the state flag, be it on logos, in art of all sorts, on bumperstickers, tee shirts, and God-knows-what-else. I think that’s pretty cool. No, it’s way-cool. No where else…

Well. I must get my day under way. I have to remedy an act of stupidity I committed yesterday when I bought a new optical mouse for the computer. I bought a “notebook” mouse without realizing it’s a notebook mouse, which is to say the mouse cord is only about eight inches long, way too short to reach the USB connection on my computer, which sits under my table/desk. I don’t know if there’s such a thing as a USB extension cord, but I do know there are USB hubs, which I can sit on the desktop, plug the spiffy new mouse into, and plug the hub into the computer. This new mouse is going to be the most expensive mouse around, once I get done jury-rigging the connection to the computer. {sigh} It’s always sump’thin!

Today’s Pic: The back side of the Alamo, taken this past Wednesday.