Happy Halloween!

Project Valour-IT

I don't know if these are the totals raised so far or just yesterday but I think these are what was raised on October 29:

Army $7521
Navy $1000
USAF $1405
USMC $1615

For a grand total of $12,042

Nothing To See Here Folks

FTC Drops Investigation of Google Less Than a Week After Company Exec Hosts Obama Fundraiser.

Tis The Season Of Giving

It's Project Valour-IT time again. Don't know what that is? Then you haven't been paying attention the past few years. It's an awesome fund raising drive to help our wounded heroes. I know times are kinda tight right now, but if you're able to give a little something-something do so. It's good Karma.

Wednesday Hero

GySgt. Carlos Hathcock
May 20, 1942 – February 23, 1999


Carlos Hathcock was a United States Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant sniper with a service record of 93 confirmed kills. Hathcock's record and the extraordinary details of the missions he undertook made him a legend in the Marine Corps. His fame as a sniper and his dedication to long distance shooting led him to become a major developer of the United States Marine Corps Sniper training program. He was honored by having a rifle named after him: a variant of the M21 dubbed the Springfield Armory M25 White Feather.

You Can Read More About GySgt. Hathcock Here

You can watch an interview with Gunny Hathcock
Here
Here
and Here

I have to say that it's kind of sad that the best source of info I could find on Gunny Hathcock was on Wikipedia. There should be a lot more sites honoring this man.

These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives so that others may enjoy the freedoms we get to enjoy everyday. For that, I am proud to call them Hero.
We Should Not Only Mourn These Men And Women Who Died, We Should Also Thank God That Such People Lived

This post is part of the Wednesday Hero Blogroll. For more information about Wednesday Hero, or if you would like to post it on your site, you can go here.

Attention Military Families

If you or a loved one are getting set to deploy soon then this is something that may interest you. Hallmark has these things for children called Recordable Storybooks. They let you record your voice and add it into the story. So while you're overseas your child will still be able to have that connection to you when they read the book. If you would like a chance to receive one head over to Hooah Wife & Friends to find out how. I'm not sure when this contest ends but I know it's soon so let them know ASAP.

Music Czar Monday

Pink Floyd's magnum opus. It's one of the most amazing pieces of music I've ever heard. This was done just before DSOTM so they were still one cohesive unit and were creating some of the best songs ever. This was actually recorded at Pompeii with no audience or anything. Just the band alone and they managed to capture something spectacular.

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Stoopid

This is one of the dumbest things I've read in some time. I'm not voting in this election. 1) I'm just not that into politics as I have been in the past. 2) There's no one running that catches my eye. They're just Republicans and Democrats who have been in power so long they're corrupted or are just wanting their piece of the power pie. And 3) This is the worst election cycle I've ever seen. I can not accurately describe just how much I am turned off by the people. If I'm to be honest, I don't care anymore. I don't like to say it but I really don't. I want to. I know I need to, but... Meh. Maybe by the time 2012 rolls around and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie runs for president I'll be more involved.

Friendship

Please bare with me. This post might get a little cheesy. Names have been withheld to protect the guilty.

What exactly is a friend? Webster's defines one as

A: one attached to another by affection or esteem
B: acquaintance

That's kinda cold. I, along with most people, I think, would define a friend as someone who's there for you when you need them. Maybe not necessarily in person. You're best friend could live halfway around the world. That don't make them any less your friend. There have been less than a handful of people in my life I would call a friend. I'm not a people person. I'm what they call "antisocial". Whatever. I don't like people so I'm not very adept at making friends. There is, however, someone I've known for a few years that I've considered a friend. I can't say that I took that friendship for granted, mainly because I didn't realize that I was. This person has stuck by me for years and I've only just recently realized that they are my best friend. But here's the kicker. I've never met them. This person lives in another state and chances are we'll never meet face to face. But that doesn't make them any less a friend. I realized all this when I was dealing some personal issues a couple of months back and this person was there for me when I needed someone to just listen to me ramble on. All this while they were dealing with some personal issues of their own. I thank them for that and I only hope I've been able to return the favor in some small way.

Only 2 Months

Think I'll try to get a start on the Christmas layout this weekend. Been messing with Bloggers new Template Designer and I think I just about got the hang of it.

Wednesday Hero

This Weeks Post Was Suggested By Beth

SSgt. Robert J. Miller
24 years old from Wheaton, Illinois
Company A, Third Battalion, Third Special Forces Group
January 25, 2008


Staff Sgt. Robert J. Miller was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously in a Pentagon ceremony on Wednesday, October 6, 2010. He died in Afghanistan saving his fellow soldiers in an act of heroism that is honored as courage above and beyond the call of duty.

You can read the rest of SSgt. Miller's story here.

These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives so that others may enjoy the freedoms we get to enjoy everyday. For that, I am proud to call them Hero.
We Should Not Only Mourn These Men And Women Who Died, We Should Also Thank God That Such People Lived

This post is part of the Wednesday Hero Blogroll. For more information about Wednesday Hero, or if you would like to post it on your site, you can go here.

Music Czar Monday

Jackyl have been mistaken for AC/DC a number of times because their singer, Jesse James Dupree, sounds a bit like Brian Johnson. So what do they do? They bring Johnson in and record a song with him. And it's \\m// AWESOME \\m//


Locked And Loaded by Jackyl w/ Brian Johnson

Wednesday Hero

First Lieutenant Gregory F. Ambrosia
28 years old from Knoxville, Tennessee
2d Battalion (Airborne), 503d Parachute Infantry Regiment, 173d Airborne Brigade

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Wednesday Hero On Facebook

The Wednesday Hero facebook page is up in case anyone is interested. It'll mainly be where I post the WH posts but it'll also have military stories that I find around the net. And if you have stories or pictures or anything you'd like to share about your time in the service or a loved one or any story pertaining to the military feel free to share them.

Music Czar Monday

What a great party song. And he's right, today's music ain't got the same soul. And I do like that old time Rock & Roll.


Old Time Rock & Roll(Live) by Bob Seger

Wednesday Hero

Sgt. 1st Class Brandon McGuire


The early morning April sky dawned clear over Forward Operating Base Iskandaryia, Iraq. Sgt. 1st Class Brandon McGuire, a platoon sergeant with 3rd Battalion, 509th Infantry Regiment, whose home base was Fort Richardson, Alaska, and his spotter settled in for their third day of looking for insurgents.

"We were observing a stretch of road that had recently been cleared of IEDs (improvised explosive devices)," said McGuire, now first sergeant of Fort Polk's Alpha Troop, 1st Battalion (Airborne), 509th Infantry Regiment.

"The area had also seen a lot of mortar activity. We had several Soldiers killed and severely wounded along that stretch of road by IEDs and mortars."

As the two Soldiers gazed across the expanse between their hiding place - an abandoned shed - and their target area, they noticed a man in local garb sauntering up and down through a series of canals. When he dug into a canal bank and uncovered a mortar tube, McGuire said he knew this was a target.

You can read the rest of Sgt. 1st Class Brandon McGuire's story here.

Photo Courtesy Army.mil

These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives so that others may enjoy the freedoms we get to enjoy everyday. For that, I am proud to call them Hero.
We Should Not Only Mourn These Men And Women Who Died, We Should Also Thank God That Such People Lived

This post is part of the Wednesday Hero Blogroll. For more information about Wednesday Hero, or if you would like to post it on your site, you can go here.

Music Czar Monday

This is the first time Led Zeppelin has been on MCM and I apologize for that oversight. Ask most people what their favorite Zeppelin song is and chances are they'll say "Stairway To Heaven". I blame radio. Don't get me wrong, I love Stairway. It's an amazing song but, in my opinion, they have songs that much better. "Kashmir", for instance, is miles better. It's on a whole nother level. The lyrics, the sound, the imagery. It's almost spiritual. I know, just go with it. When Robert Plant belts out "Tryin' to find where I've beeeeeeen...." Chills. You lucky SOB's get a twofer today. The original studio cut and the live Page & Plant Unleadded version which is simply amazing. And if I find out anyone likes that Sean Combs abomination I will disown you.

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