A LITTLE ABOUT MYSELF

I always knew that I wanted to join the military, but was never sure what I wanted to do and what branch I wanted to join. It only took one visit from the Marines for me to decide that it wasn't for me. I contacted the Army, as well as the Army Reserve. I wanted to be close to home so I could knock out some college while I served, so the Army was quickly eliminated from my choices. Then I turned to the Air Force. I was always intrigued by aviation, particularly fighter jets. Of course, what kid didn't want to be a fighter pilot at one point in their life? My dad had gone with me to talk to the Air National Guard recruiter, and it seemed as though he really wanted me in the Air Guard. He later admitted not wanting me to join the Army. He took me on a tour of the hangar on the base there in Lincoln. While he was giving me a tour, I ran into the Army National Guard recruiter. He gave me his card, and a few short months later, I was an American soldier serving in the Nebraska Army National Guard. I swore in on 16 April, 2003 along side my classmate Jessica Benkusky.
The day following my high school graduation, I reported to MEPS in Omaha, Nebraska. A few days later, I found myself in Fort Knox, KY for basic combat trianing. I graduated from Bravo Company 2-46 Infantry on 30 August, 2003. I spent one year at Midland Lutheran College, where I played basketball. As most of you know, I have an undying love for basketball. Unfortunately, things didn't work out too well with my college basketball career, as my dad was deployed on his first tour to Iraq. I usually went home on the weekends to be with my mom and sisters to help around the house, and one weekend a month I had drill. Most of the time, I ended up working out at P.O. Pears on the lake. After my freshhmen year, I went to Advanced Individual Training at Fort Leonardwood, MO to become a Motor Vehicle Transport Operator. Yes, it's a truck driver, but it sounds cooler and more exciting than a truck driver. I graduated on 30 August, 2005. After that, I transferred to Southeast Comunity College in Lincoln and eventually rented a house with my buddies Andrew (Spilk) Spilker, Derek (Michel) Michel, and Christian (Bandiola, Bandiholerfield) Bandiola. After many parties, visits from Lincoln's finest, and many local college students coming through to add to the memories of my experiences at 31st and N, I moved out the month before I left for Iraq. Exactly one year to the date, I mobilized and finally deployed with the 1-167th Cavalry (RSTA) as the squadron mail clerk. That is pretty much where I am now, with lots of other smaller events in between, but that's for my next post.