Army Life

Another Deployment

2011-05-18T09:35:00.001-07:00

So, here we go again. another deployment. this time to afganatan. I am not really nervous just not wanting to deal with the day in and day out of a deployment. I am currently in Rota, Spain though. Which is way awesome. So this first month I can't complain at all. I am guessing our deployment will be a lot like it was in Iraq. long hours of work and listen to a lot of people whine about sicknesses. haha Oh well i do get paid a little bit more. This past year has easily solitifed that my army life has an expiration date. I am currently looking for what I can do after the Army. It is interesting to see their are a lot of options. I am still nervous about it but I am sure something will open up before I get out of the Army. I know the Army is not a career choice for me. I still wonder why I joined somedays. I will say that it has taught me a lot and helped me to grow. So, I can't say that it is all bad. Thats about all I have to say about the Army today.

Al Asad

2010-03-21T22:47:00.000-07:00

Wow, so craziness ensues. First though let’s see got promoted in December to Specialist, which was exciting. I have been learning a lot of medical things and seeing a lot of things, nothing really traumatic though. Just mostly sick call things. I went on leave at the end of January, which was fabulous and great to get away from all this useless drama here. I think anyone looking to be a leader needs to realize that this is the complete opposite anyone should lead. They are all about themselves and kissing up to their bosses so much that they forget or purposely try to make things harder than they need to be. I will say though that SFC Fuller who used to be over us, is a tremendous leader and that is someone we should strive to be like. He has a quote on his email that reads, "Leadership is solving problems. The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help or concluded you do not care. Either case is a failure of leadership." Colin Powell. And the thing is he lives that. When I saw him last it was all about what can he do for me, and building me up telling me all the good things I have done. Don’t get me wrong of course a leader is going to have to reprimand at times, and be unpopular. I realize that. Trust me; SFC Fuller would be the first to get after someone if they needed it. The fact is that we have good medics that strive to work hard and do the right thing, and it goes unnoticed by leadership. The only thing that gets noticed is the small mistakes, which quite frankly have no bearing on a successful mission or not. Small things are important when it comes to a lot of things, but going out of your way to find a mistake I may have made is a complete waste of time and energy. Plus it makes me very angry. When I get put in a greater leadership position I am going to strive to be like SFC Fuller. Other news, I have moved bases. I am know on the largest Air Base in Iraq, Al Asad. There is like 100-200 Air Cav soldiers here and after 3 previous medics all left for different reasons, I was next in line to finish the job. I am ecstatic to be here. It is much more laid back; I don’t have anyone over me. I do what I need to do; I see way less people here, and most of them I Do see aren’t coming in just to get out of something. I am actually in an NCO position here. Since I am the Senior Medic I run the clinic, which is pretty exciting I can use that with great benefits in the future. So, here I sit the last month of my first tour in Iraq. I hope I can get into PT school with Baylor before the unit gets deployed again. That is my next goal on the table. I just completed my Bachelors Degree with Excelsior College and need to finish up 3-4 science classes before I can apply, so hoping by the end of the year I will be good to go. There are a lot of decisions to be made in the near future and I am not sure where my life will end up. I can only hope that I make the best decision for whatever is going to happen in the future. Being deployed has taught me a lot, some things I would rather not have cared to learn. I hope though that in the long run this deployment becomes a blip in the map, and I never have to go through another one. I still question why I joined in the first place. If it wasn’t for the kids I don’t think I would be in this situation.

Iraq

2009-09-16T19:23:00.000-07:00

It has been an interesting few months here in Iraq, that is for sure. A lot has happened. We work long hours and don't really have much time off. The people around are fine, not too happy with our leadership here. I have, however, learned a lot about the medical field. We get to see a lot of patients but nothing traumatic, we work in an aide station so we see people for day to day sicknesses. Its good to know but sometimes people annoy me with why they are coming in. There has been no real threat to us here, as things are extremely quiet on the war front. Hence why we haven't seen anything traumatic. I am currently at Freedom Rest in Baghdad. Its pretty relaxed here, so I am enjoying that. There not really a lot to talk about. I often feel like this year is a waste of a year of my life. I can't really do anything about it. I guess there has to be some reason why I am here. I just don't know why at this point.

Iraq here comes the summer

2009-06-12T04:44:00.000-07:00

Well I have been here for a few weeks now. It really isn't to bad here. I mean its not the funnest thing I have ever done. I work at the TMC with the doctors and PA's. I am definitely learning a lot too. Really its like just having a job away from family and friends. I go to work way to much though. There not much else to do here anyway. There not a lot of extra stuff going on. You work, eat, sleep, go to the gym, do homework, watch movies, and not much else. You hear big booms every once in a while, but as far as I know they have all been out going. I would say though as compared its not too bad. I do, however, have no desire to come back. Or for that matter, re-enlist. I sure hope I can find something else in 2012. There a number of things that I just can not stand in the Army. I figure it was a good experience, and hoping that in 20 years I am not talking about retiring from the Army. If I do, I definitely will become an officer though, none of this enlisted stuff. I got a great roommate though that has been here and will listen to me whine a bit about different things. It definitely helps a lot. I am sure I would go crazy without him listening.
The temperature is warming up nicely. Honestly, I could be in Texas or Arizona though. Its hot and dry. So, I like that compared to cold. I just don't enjoy walking everywhere in a long sleeve shirt and pants. I get over it though cause all the stuff I need to do is pretty close. I also do a lot at night which makes it pretty cool outside. Hopefully though at the end of this deployment I will have a good chunk of loans, debts and other bills gone. I think that will be great and have a good chunk of change in the bank will be good as well. That financial stability will take a lot of stress out of my life. Anyway, all and all I guess I got lucky being in an aviation unit. It's pretty sweet to see Blackhawks, and all the other helicopters that are around. That is way exciting.

Kuwait- week one

2009-05-02T20:02:00.001-07:00

We left from Ft. Hood, TX and flew up to St. Paul, MN than to Amsterdam, then finally over to Kuwait City. Then we were bussed over to Camp Buerhing, where I am now. Now I am getting used to the temperature, climate, and time change. It is not going that badly. It?s actually a lot like Texas here, so not much change.
We live in tents but its not that bad. They are HUGE tents. We have like 75 people in them. They also have tremendous a/c which is awesome. Then if it?s winding outside I wouldn't even know, which is sweet. We do sleep in cots, which isn?t the best thing in the world, but better than the ground.
We have internet hence how I am posting this. But it is pretty unreliable here. I paid $28 to have access in my tent and it will work at like 2 am no problem. In fact today it wasn't to slow even. Don?t worry people are waking up and it has slowed back down. There a few things to do here, not much they do call it camp boring. Yesterday I played Guitar Hero for the first time ever, it wasn't too bad. Since my roommate in Iraq will have it, we may spend a lot of time playing it during the next year.
Had a little problem with my sergeant, and hoping for my sanity we get our old NCO back. Not sure it will happen, but I can pray and wish right. I will try to keep this up to date as much as I can.

Here I go

2009-04-23T19:27:00.001-07:00

The last month has been a blast. A lot of stuff has happened, I haven't had to do a lot of work. Which has been great. I had a great time in Arizona, seeing some great people. I have tremendous friends. I hope you guys all are doing great. I have a lot of mixed feelings of what is about to happen. I am sure it will be a good experience though. I am not sure what to expect right now. My plane leaves at about 8 or so on Saturday the 25th. I will try to keep this updated, and my facebook updated. Otherwise feel free to e-mail me whenever you can. Just a hi I am sure would be great. Also, the birth of my third little girl happened this month. Kimber was born on April 16th. A day before her grandpa' s birthday. Which I know he was hoping we would have waited a day. She is adorable and looks identical to her sister, Alyssa when she was a newborn. The girls have loved having daddy around a lot more. They have had a lot of fun. I also enjoyed seeing them. Hailey has become quite the funny little girl, who knows how to talk. (gets that from her mommy for sure) She loves telling knock-knock jokes and stories about monsters and telling me that she cracks me up. Anyway, off to Iraq I go. It will definitely be different.

2009

2009-04-01T14:16:00.000-07:00

This year has gone by so fast this year. I have been in my unit for about 4 months now. It has been a crazy 4 months. The worse part ws when we were getting our unit and our stuff packed. That month we spent many late nights and was so worn out. It was not that much fun. We did all kinds of things like take blood for HIV test, give out shots, make sure people were medically ready to deploy. We also went out and helped pull medical coverage for our companies training. It was quite boring we did not do much. There was one swollen ankle to wrap, and handed out a few over the counter drugs. Nothing to exciting. I can't bielive that the time to deploy is less than a month away now. This past weekend I took Alyssa with me to Arizona to see family and freinds one last time before I leave. It was a lot of fun to see everyone, and the next week I am going to catch up on homework and relax. I am pretty sure the next few weeks will fly by, just like the rest of the year. Anyway thought I put a few pics of my kids and myself up here. To make my Blog look a whole lot better.

Deployment

2008-12-13T05:09:00.001-08:00

I knew joing the Army that it was a possibility to deploy. I never excpected it to becomeing up so quickly. I have joined the HSC 615th Aviation division in the 1st Calvary at Ft. Hood, TX. The unit is awesome so far. Its so nice to be out of training. The onlproblem is we start deploying April 9th of this upcoming year. We are not sure where we are going yet. The rest of 1st cavary has been or is on close to going to Iraq but we could end up in Afganastan as well. I am not going to lie, I am a bit mixed on emotions. It is obvious the bad emotions, I think anyone would have going downrange. It will definitly not be an easy task that I have to accomplish. The upsides are there too though. I am excited for the oppurtinity to serve our country and defend our freedoms. The media has torn apart the Army in recent years and I don't think most people know the truth about what good the Army does and is still doing. Iraq is so much safer than it ever has been. The Iraqis love the soilders to them we bring them peace and protection. How bad would it be if we did actually have to worry about Terroist every single day of our lives. We don't because countrary to media beilf we are winning the war in Iraq. Then in Afganastan the Gernal of the Afgan Army was in my Command Saregent Majors office the other week. He was excstatic about all we have done. We have been trainig their army as well and they have made major improvements. In the Sargent Majors words, " The United States Army does not lose, we win wherever we go." It makes me mad to see people think we don't need to be over there and think we are losing the war. The opportuiunity to go over and heelp assist in continuing to win this was is partly what I am excited about. I am part of the greatest Armed Forces in the world. Though the road I am about to take will proably be the hardest thing I have ever had to do. I know that it will in the end make me a stronger and better person. I wish I didn't have to go of course, but my country needs me and has asked me to go. Your prayers and letters of encouragment will be greatly appreciatted. I love my God, my family, and my country.

One more month

2008-10-26T12:33:00.000-07:00

Wow, AIT is going by fast. I love the training I am getting it is a blast. I got my EMT-B certification finished then we moved onto the Whiskey training which is the combat medic portion. We play with needles a lot. From giving shots, taking blood, and starting saline locks or IVs. It is great fun. Last Friday we Validated, which means we had to preform skills to the instructors. Then if we did them right and didn't kill our "patient" we passed. We did things like starting an IV, putting a tourniquet on, apply an emergency trauma bandage, preforming a surgical crich., inserting form of airway management equipment, and a needle chest decompression. To name a few. We have been out in the field doing trauma lanes which learning to safely get to a casualty and preform your medic duties while under fire. It is great fun. This coming week we have STX (situational training exercise). We are completely done with any school type work and it is all hands on. after 2 weeks of that we go to FTX (field training exercise) Which all that it means is we get to play solider for the next 3 weeks. I am getting anxious to find out where my duty station will be. And ready for the real Army. It should be an experience. Being a medic as with any medical job, your learning never really ends, there always something new to learn.

AIT at Fort Sam Houston, TX

2008-09-06T18:02:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone. I am at Fort Sam Houston just outside San Antonio, TX. Learning to be a 68W, a Combat Medic. The first 6 weeks is becoming a registered EMT. And I am loving the classes. Its gone by fast so far. To Top it off I have been named as Platoon Guide, PG. We have a company of about 400 solders and that is broken into platoons of about 40 in each. I am in charge of one and give out commands keep them informed of what Sargent wants etc. Basically in mission terms I am the zone leader. It has been a good experience for me.
Sadly we do live in the oldest barracks in the United States Army, and they still expect it too look like they are new. Otherwise its a lot of information really fast. But I have an 88% GPA and am keeping up for now. I don't want to stay any longer than the 16 weeks I have too. I hope everyone is doing well.

Almost Done

2008-07-19T18:47:00.000-07:00

I got to talk to Jed today, he had a pass for part of the day because he got over 90% on his final PT test. He sounded pretty good, and actually pretty excited for this next week. This week is their final "camping" excurtion that is five days of putting to use everything they have learned so far. Apparently they have to hike in among "insurgents" and then they will have mock attacks and be gassed and all that "fun" stuff. Jed said he was actually kind of excited because even though they won't get much sleep they will get to put everything they have learned to good use. That is about all the news for now. I will have more, and pictures to share, after graduation.

Blue Phase

2008-07-15T05:48:00.000-07:00

Jed has finally moved into the last phase of basic. He said it is exciting now when they go into the mess hall because they are the company with the fewest days left until graduation on the countdown board. This week they have urban combat training (I think is what Jed called it) where they have to go into 'live' buildings and clear them before they are 'killed' by their drill sergeants. He said it is kind of like laser tag. He had his last PT test yesterday, but he wasn't worried about it at all, so as long as he doesn't break any rules he should be graduating the 31st as planned. I got a hotel booked for the girls and I and we will be heading down the 29th so that we can be at the family briefing the 30th. Then, if all goes well (some extra prayers would be great) we will be driving Jed down to his AIT location in Texas. It would give us a couple extra days with him which would be really nice. I think that is really about it for now....stay tuned!!!

3 Sundays Left....

2008-07-06T18:47:00.000-07:00

Of basic training that is. The girls and I sure can't wait to go down to Jed's graduation and see him. Anyway, sorry there haven't been any real updates lately, we have been on vacation with my family and didn't have internet access for a while. So, I will try to remember the things Jed has told me...
He passed his BRM qualifications, YAY! The only qualification he has left to be able to graduate from basic is one more PT test. He passed the first one easily, so I just pray the next one (which I think is in about 2 weeks) will be just as easy for him. Then, as long as he doesn't break any major rules, he will graduate the 31st of this month. This weekend has been pretty laid back for them. The 4th they had a brigade pass and then Toby Keith played a concert there on base just for the soldiers followed by a nice fireworks display. He said it was nice to be doing something else for a bit. He also had an off-post pass last Sunday and he got to go eat whatever he wanted and 'play' in a nearby town. We also got to talk for quite a while that day which was nice. He said that the root beer he got didn't really taste good and that made him a little mad because he had so been looking forward to it.
This coming week they get fitted for their dress blues (more formal uniform) and have a few other training exercises. They also get to train on a few of the bigger weapons, like the grenade launcher this week. All in all, Jed is doing well, but very much looking forward to getting to San Antonio where AIT is supposed to be a little more laid back, and definitely more interesting as it will be his job training in the healthcare field. As always, we appreciate all the thoughts and prayers of family and friends!

A Letter from Jed

2008-06-19T19:01:00.000-07:00

I got a letter from Jed today that said:
I just remembered I should update my blog. So, here is an entry for you to put in.
Basic Training is definitely interesting. I have learned a lot. It is definitely a lot of hard, tiring work. The worst part is being away from everyone. But, I have done a lot of things I never would have. Like repel a 60 ft wall or climb down on a rope that's about 35 ft in the air at a steep slant coming down, crawl in dirty water and overcome obstacles. I passed my PT (physical training) test the other day, including running 2 miles in 15:07, which for me is awesome. I had to look twice at the clock when I got there. But, I was at 77% for sit-ups and 76% for the run. The push-ups are a different story but I passed that too, I was at a 52%.
The first phase, red phase, is almost done. We next head to white phase which gives us a little more control away from drill sargeants. You have no idea how excited I am for that. I was given the assignment of company guidon, which means I carry the company flag, so I stick out if I make a mistake in front of 250 plus people. Good thing I don't make mistakes!
Besides being hungry, tired, and every joint and muscles aches, basic is alright. Definitely looking forward to getting it done though. I never expected to be in the Army, and somedays I wonder why I did it. I do know that it has been good for me. It has tested every aspect of me, and is teaching me more about me, and what I can do. I hope I can translate that into a better me overall.

New Website

2008-06-13T17:55:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! I got a letter from Jed's commanding officers today to let me know when he graduates and things like that. I think it's really cool....he graduates basic on Hailey's birthday, so we will get to spend the whole day with him after his graduation. The letter also had a website address in it that his drill sergeants put up a weekly letter and pictures and things like that if you want to keep up on it. I also have an address (finally) if you want to write him letters or send him anything, though he is not allowed to get any food or reading material (not that he reads, but still) in packages. The website is http://www.wood.army.mil/2-10IN/D_Company.html and his address is (and it has to be written exactly to actually get to him):
PFC Robins, Jed
Co D, 2-10 Infantry, 2nd Plt
495 Iowa Ave., Unit 42
Fort Leonard Wood, MO 65473
You also need to write 2nd Plt on the back side of the envelope for sorting purposes. Thank you all for your love, support, and prayers while Jed is gone.

Three Weeks of Basic Done

2008-06-11T07:21:00.000-07:00

Well, I have talked to Jed twice since my last posting, each time for four minutes. He is doing well at basic. The first week he said he was pretty sore. They had gone repelling the day before I talked to him and his harness had been too tight and left a blister on his thigh, so that was causing some discomfort. Then, this last week they did the CS gas chamber. He said that was definitely an interesting experience. He has a PT test tomorrow that if he passes will move him into the next phase of basic...whatever that means. Sorry I don't have more to report, I really don't know that much either. He is doing well and we miss him dearly. We sure appreciate the continued support and prayers.
Oh, if anyone wants to email him, which I'm sure he would appreciate, the branch will print off emails and give them to him on Sundays. The address is nephi37@embarqmail.com and you just put his full name in the subject line. Have a great day!

The First Letter

2008-05-29T15:25:00.000-07:00

I got my first letter from Jed today. It really didn't say too much. The first week was a lot of paperwork and hurry up and wait as he called it. In one day he got 7 shots, which he wasn't real pleased about. Then, the next day they ran the mile. He said it was raining while they ran, but it was so nice to be outdoors and doing something. He also said that they only have time to inhale the food, so even if it tastes bad it wouldn't matter...ha! Finally, he said he was actually looking forward to getting to basic, that he knew it wouldn't be easy, but he would actually be doing something so he was hoping the time would pass faster that way. There is not an address yet because he hadn't officially shipped to basic. I'm hoping there will be one with the next letter and then I can post it for anyone to write to him.

Small Update

2008-05-26T06:44:00.000-07:00

The only thing I really have to report is that Jed arrived safely in Missouri. He got to call me for about 4 minutes the day after he got there. He said it would definitely be an adjustment and he wasn't sure how he was going to get through 10 weeks, but didn't get to say much more than that before it was time to get off the phone. Then he got to call again about 3 days later....this time for 7 minutes! YAY! Anyway, he said they had run the mile and, thankfully, his toe was doing fine....for those of you who didn't know he fell down the stairs the Saturday before he was supposed to report to MEPS and we weren't sure how running would go because he either jammed his toe really badly, or broke it. Anyway, he also said he likes the ACU's and that, although hot, they are very comfortable. That is really about all for now. We haven't gotten any letters or an address to write to him yet, I will post again when we do.

First

2008-04-28T11:19:00.001-07:00

I figured this would be a great way for everyone to follow where we are, what we are doing etc. Most of the blogs will be updated by Steffani, at first when I am in Basic Training and can not do it.
For now, I am getting done with Finals this week!!!! Then I have been working out with a friend from San Antonio( I forgive him that he is a Spurs fan, although trust me it is hard!!) He planning to go to Hell Week for the SWAT team. I had my first PT Test for the Army. I had to do 40 push ups in a min, 50 sit-up in a min and run the 2 miles in 16:36. I did well on all except the running part. Actually I was on pace at the mile mark, but struggled the last 4 laps. So, guess what the next three weeks before basic are going to be focused on. My Goal is to pass the PT test before basic. I am going in as an E-3 (Private First Class) . My Report date is May 20th. I will be at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri. They call it Fort Lost in the woods. So I am wondering if a solider falls in the woods would anyone know? There's a deep thought. After 10 weeks of getting yelled at and pushed to my limit and beyond among many other eventful events I head to Fort Sam Houston just outside San Antonio, TX for 16 weeks of AIT. That is training for my job which is a Health Care Specialist. That will bring me to the end of November where we will be sent to a base of the governments choosing.