I'm Still Here...

Greetings all,

Had a rough couple of weeks...missed making the deadline for my fifth blog entry last week having overextended myself somewhat in meeting prior obligations and then I got sick...

Oh, well at least Spring Break is here so all is not lost, just set back a little.

Am helping out with an Eagle Scout project at the moment, today was day three.  Got home about an hour ago...very tired, but satisfied with contributing a full days work (make that weekend) to a good cause.

Just wanted to make a brief posting to say I'm still here...will try to make up for the lapse later this week.

Out for now, going to go to bed!

The Benefits of Re-enacting...

It's been another busy weekend, so again just a short post today...

Having re-enacting and living history as hobbies opens the door to a plethora of experiences, all of them unique and some of them completely unexpected.  Over the past few years I have had the opportunity to do the following among other things-

• I have ridden in and driven jeeps, 2 1/2 ton and 5 ton trucks, as well as armored vehicles.
• Have shot a variety of vintage military rifles.
• Have towed aircraft and helicopters.
• Worked on machine guns (non-functioning).
• Worked on 500-lb. bombs (non-explosive dummies).
• Acted as ground crew for visiting C-130 Hercules and P-3 Orion aircraft.
• Have handled artifacts recovered from aircraft crash sites.
• Acted as an advisor and extra for a photo shoot and short film.

And the awesome part about doing all these things, is that I did not have to go anyplace to do them!  I had all these experiences right here on Oahu; and it certainly goes to show that you don't always have to go far to be able to do exciting things- adventure can be had in your own "back yard".

If anything, I'm hoping that it will help my resume in the near future...we'll see!

I will try to make it a point to post more pics, I haven't quite picked up the habit of always carrying a camera with me just yet.

Out for now...

Some Brief Thoughts on Re-enacting...

Having a pretty busy weekend, so just a short post today...

Tips on Re-enacting-

1. Be respectful to the uniform that you wear and always conduct yourself appropriately.  
2. Be historically accurate and knowledgeable.
3. Practice good grooming (i.e. correct haircut) and dress (i.e. shined boots, clean uniform).
4. Remember to tell the human story behind your historical impression.
5. Connect your historical impression to a unit with local ties (i.e. in Hawaii we have the 25th Infantry Division of the US Army at Schofield Barracks).
6. Maintain a professional, military bearing while in uniform.

Lastly, and this is just a personal opinion of mine; try to avoid focusing exclusively on the "elite" forces, such as airborne, Rangers, Special Forces/Green Berets, Marine Force Recon, Delta Force, and Navy SEAL's.  While these units are certainly most deserving of recognition and do indeed execute some of the most dangerous missions, I cannot help but feel that people lavish a little too much attention on them at times; and in my mind this leads to the attitude that "only special forces matter" and "only special forces can make a difference".  Always remember that it is the rank-and-file troops and support personnel who shoulder the larger burden of carrying out operations and without them, the military simply could not function; the special forces included!  In short, give the "everyman" soldiers their due as well.