Check it out !
Sunday, December 27, 2009
marriot gas lamp
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Tiger Woods
Its been awhile since i've posted...been back from Kosovo for a while...been traveling around, a trip to alaska, texas, seen a Dallas Cowboy game and a Bengal game. I'm back to tossing some posts on here so you can read how i feel bout some random stuff...
I have enough hearing about Tiger Woods and his countless mistresses...who cares, hes a man, no different than anyone else...lets move on...im sick of ESPN spending countless hours talking about this...lets get back to the bowl season, lets talk about college basketball, lets talk about the Cowboys beating the Saints, lets talk about the make a wish foundation...something...something other than who Tiger is sticking his "9 iron" into...
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Euro Trip 2009 Paine Brothers Inc
Alright everyone...sorry for the oh so over-due post...but here is a shit ton of photos i took while on leave in Europe...Rome, Paris, Luxemburg, Brussels, Nuremberg, Berlin...good times to say the least...i will post some stories and randomness a few days from now...once i get settled into my new "home" and get caught up on school...shouldnt be too long til describing in detailed the various shananigans by the infamous Paine Brothers :) sorry if some of the pics are sideways (wrong way) or if they are a bit blurry-i think the amount of alcohol consumed has something to do with that...the goal : Drink 'til i could taste color ! - (think about it....now laugh) mission accomplished...yellow tastes the best...blue is over rated...
one thing...one story....never in my life have i ever seen a man wearing capries...in italy...dudes all over the place were wearing capris...so...being the smart ass i am...i decided to wander around during one of our pub crawl induced blackout drunken nights to roll my pant legs up and make some -"man-pries"- one italy guy came up to me and told me "your pants don't look good like that" (in an italian accent of course) so i responded "really...no shit sherlock, you look like a fag...if your going to buy some pants, by ALL of it, dont setting for 3/4 of a pant leg !" hahahahah i thought it was funny...funnier if told in person, but let your imagination run with it. Might make ya laugh.Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Update
Friday, August 14, 2009
Michael Vick, Donte Stallworth
And Donte Stallworth gets suspendend for ONE YEAR FOR KILLING A PERSON!!! WTF Goodell...what would it take for the NFL to come down hard on someone...you have a player KILL A PERSON...a normal civilian would get charged with man-slaughter and spend a good amount of time in jail...Stallworth gets a slap on the hand and house arrest...wow...way to set the example there NFL...NFL=money...what ever it takes...sell tickets...sell uniforms...dont worry 'bout the example your setting...WTF...
Michael Vick...thats another story...i have no idea what to say about that nightmare of a situation...yikes...another day.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Couple Volleyball Pictures
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Ty Loomis, Angie Akers, Tyra Turner, Ryan M, AVP Trip to CBS
P.S. Euro Trip '09 is getting closer and closer !!! WOO-HOO!
Friday, July 31, 2009
David Ortiz, Steroids, and baseball
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Bill Clinton
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Fantasy Football
Monday, July 27, 2009
Macedonia Round 2
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Swedish
(This is me holding a Swedish Assault Rifle-much heavier than an M4, but not a bad weapon.)
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Couple of Pictures
Friday, July 10, 2009
Macedonia Trip
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Random..
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Craig Ferguson Comedy Show
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Blu World
weather up-date
Friday, June 26, 2009
Sarah Palin in Kosovo
Thursday, June 18, 2009
New Orleans Hornets Cheerleaders
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
International Day 2009
I have been on deployment now for roughly 165 days, but whose counting...i've seen a lot here...
Today i attended International Day...a day for all the countries participating in this thing we call a Kosovo Deployment to come together, get some equipment, gear and food and stuff em into a booth and run around and check each other out...this event included live music, awards ceremony for US Volleyball and Basketball champs and plenty of time to run around and talk with our fellow allies about whatever you can without the help of a translator...things were interesting, fun, unforgettable all roled into one...i got to see some old faces and new faces, met some folks who had interesting and meaningful things say as well as the ever so awkward conversation with someone who speaks no english and i dont speak (insert language-Slovenian, French, Italian, Greek, etc). Old faces: The Irish, Slovenians, Italians, Germans. New Faces: Portugese, Latvians and Polish. The ever popluar exchanging of email address in hopes of establishing a long term or at least deployment long friendship via the ever so personal internet...a time to kick back and let the HOOAH/Squared away Army culture down for a bit and relax in a semi-informal enviroment...a chance for folks to talk, walk and just be themselves (to an extent) with out fear of reprisal via counceling statements/lectures or any other form of military punishment..i mean "corrective training".
I got to talk with my old friend Zhelka, a female Slovenian Infantry LT. We worked together many times in Germany as well as see each other at events like the CRC training event, Camp Bondsteel PX or pretty much any time i end up in Pristina...her face has become a welcome site at events...its always a fun time talking to her since i know about 40 words in Slovean and she speaks "okay" english...we spend about half the time we talk trying to work our way out of awkward silence and on to a slightly meaningful conversation...regardless of the language barrier, we are never short of shit to talk about...whether its patrols, life deployed or life back home, we always seem to find a new topic of conversation to battle our way through limited shared vocabulary...its fun...shes as cold hearted, unpolished and vulgar as I which is probably the main reason we are able to carry on conversations...i seem to keep offending foreign soldiers with the language, though it should come to no suprise...Infantry is known for its lack of tact in pretty much any and ever situation...
I also got the chance to talk with my many Irish friends (no translator needed). Their hospitality and ever cheerful attitude is a much welcome change to the normal greeting i recieve far to frequently hear at Bondsteel. I had the pleasure of spending a day at Camp Clarke with them, touring their base, learning about their weapon systems, touring there Area of Responsability (AOR) as well as sit in their bar and watch as the Irish Soccer team played Bulgaria for spot in the world cup. Gift of the Gab does these men little justice...there stories and manorisms are far more entertaining then anything i have seen so far deployed...the relative joy and constant smiles as we went about the day were ... almost inspiring...my morale was lifted ten fold just by sitting in there "rec-room" drinking coffee and commenting on the days events...everyone we met wanted to know where we were from, what we did before we came to kosovo, ever detail of our lives were set out on a table...it was great...there chaplain, what can you say about an Irish Priest...hes an Irish Priest...his very presence was uplifting and brought a smile to your face...
All in all today was a good day...lots to think about...plenty happened i didnt mention, plenty happened i sadly dont remember...but alas...life goes on...tomorrow, God willing, i will wake up...and will continue doing what i do hear in Kosovo...rest assured there will be plenty of drama, events, topics and randomness in the near future for me to write/blog/bitch about...until then...
"To do what ought to be done, but would not have been done unless I did it, I thought to be my Duty" -Phi Delta Theta
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Dean Brody-Brothers
love you bro...miss the shit outta ya...im proud as fuck at the man you are and man you've become...love you, miss you...look forward to crushing a beer with you when i get back!
Friday, June 5, 2009
A look back
Tonight was a look back at how things used to be...i was sitting watching the movie Rudy...that got me thinking about Friday afternoons at Buddy's house before a home game...sitting in his den watching a few motivational movies before we went out later that night to crack some skulls on the football field...i started thinking about home, as most soldiers do when they are deployed, and got to thinking how different things will be when i get home...
I wont be heading back to my dorm at U of La Verne to crush some beers with my fellow Phi Delts...i wont be sitting in class listening to a lecture...i wont even be heading back to my old stomping ground...in fact i'm not even sure what my place in this world will be ... i am at the perverbial "fork in the road"...college is done-the good times have sadly come to an end...the safety and security and identity of my former self that i wrapped myself in is now a memory, another chapter written down in the pages of what is The Life and Times of The Ben Paine. If this sounds a bit fatalistic, i appologize. i've never been good with sugar coating the truth, blunt might be a good discriptor to use.
I will eventually head back to good ol' So Cal in search of not only a job (great economy and all) but for a meaningful path to take. Friends are getting married and having kids left and right, friends and former lovers are moving on, leaving me as a distant memory...
I turned 20 in PA shortly before heading to Mississippi for deployment, 21 in Iraq, 24 in GA training, and now i will turn 25 in Kosovo...
looking back at my "plan" coming out of high school, i laugh...i mean really laugh...WTF was i thinking...things are vastly different that i thought they would be leaving high school at the tender age of 17.
i know this thought is fleating...i'll be lucky to even remember what im thinking right now in a few hours...hence me posting this...much love...miss you guys...hope all is well...
Long is the road and hard is the way...
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Jailbait
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Irish Eyes
Saturday, May 30, 2009
KFOR 11 VOLLEYBALL TOURNEY
(more pics and videos to come....)
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Just a thought
I've started my masters degree via the internet, so yea for homework and papers while deployed...nothing like coming back from a patrol to study for a test ... hahaha...its worth it :)
hope all is well..hasta !
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Tillman and the Italians
Just thought i would share that with everyone...hope all is well...love ya, miss ya...talk to you guys soon.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
some albanian music for ya
Thought you guys would like a little taste of Albanian music...this is what is blasting on our radios :) More to come...
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Just another day
Friday, May 8, 2009
Manny Ramirez
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Eye Candy
I realize i have been remiss...i have said plenty of times how beautiful the women are here and have yet to post a picture...above is one of the thousands of attractive women that grace the land between Serbia and Albania known as Kosovo...hope you enjoy the eye candy...i know i am...hasta
Monday, May 4, 2009
Swine Flu (cont...)
is it sad that people have died, yes...but if your reading this...then you most likely poses the necessary means (money) to purchase A. soap and B. an Orange...so you should not worry 'bout the swine flu...
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Swine Flu
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
When it Rains, it pours...
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
So Cal's Finest
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Sorry for the delay...
This frog was hopping around my barracks...
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Here ya go...
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Volleyball tourney Game One
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
A bit of a Morale Booster...
Here's a bit of a morale booster...there's nothing wrong with a few pictures of beautiful women to brighten up the day...Hope everyone is having a great day/night...Just to update everyone, life is good. Spending my time doing what i gotta do...nothing too exciting...we start our volleyball tourny tomorrow...cross your fingers that we win...Our company has put together a pretty good rotation and match up against the competition about as well as we can. I will post pictures/videos assuming i can get a camera man...we'll see....
Todays Bit-O-knowledge from the House of Paine:
It's nearly one in the morning and sadly i am not tired at all...maybe it was the late night coffee or the three Coca-Colas i slammed while watching the Daily Show and the Colbert Report. Anyways...for some reason I've decided to put on a movie, toss in a chew and hope that todays work out would finally catch up with me and i'd fall asleep...alas...nothing could be further than the truth...i am now on my second movie and no where near a state that would allow me to rest...I am watching A Good Year with Russell Crowe...Good movie to say the least...I have this intense erge (after watching the movie) to get a bottle of wine and sit in a chair over looking the Tuscan landscape...drinking and drinking til im blackout drunk....i dream...oh well...hope all is well...love you all, miss you all...hasta !
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Here's to you...an Update from the barracks...
Hope everyone is enjoying Spring Break :) Be safe, get drunk.....
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
A Sober St. Patricks Day
Friday, March 13, 2009
A bit of a Rant...
The title of the blog in case your blind is The Road I'm On... yes, its a title of a 3 Doors Down song. I honestly didn't realize 'til one night i decided to google search my site...making find my site via google pretty fucking difficult when the first 80 sum-odd search results are either links to music videos or links to lyrics. One part of "The Road I'm (currently) On" is the news...i find myself sitting infront of my 19 inch t.v. watching the AFN (armed forces network) watching the news update me on what is going not only back home, but around the world. One thing i often do is make loud comments directed at the t.v. about what they are saying...so i figured i could share with you what i think about the various news that is being reported...
John Stuart v. Jim Cramer....fucking amazing...John Stuart lays out what the problem is, and what the hell CNBC financial news SHOULD be doing...if you missed it, check it out online, it is worth the 30 seconds it'll take to find...
Today Fox news reported that there is a fear that the violence in Iraq will increase due to the promise of Obama to pull all combat troops out of Iraq....NO SHIT...lemme break this down for a second...if im a terrorist sitting in my cave or shitty house in Iraq and i hear that all combat troops (the guys that shoot at me when im pulling my shenanagins) are going to leave...im going to grab my AK and a shovel and start shooting and burying IED's like i've never done before...to not only to gain some sort of social status as a "freedom fighter", but also because hey, maybe it will make the Americans leave faster...kind of live a Vietnam ?!?!
I realize that the video has nothing to do with the rant...other than the video is to entertain and the verbage is to inform....hope you enjoyed :) More to follow......
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Our Economy....
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Friday, March 6, 2009
The French...
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Another Update...
Monday, March 2, 2009
Late Night in Kosovo...
needless to say its another late night here in lovely Kosovo...i've got myself a shit-ton of paperwork handle...i thought it necessary to post a pic of the beautiful (and furture ex-wife) Sara Shahi from NBC's TV show LIFE. Gotta say, I enjoy that show, but right now i enjoy watching anything...anything besides AFN commercials over and over again...could be worse, guess I need to get outta my room more often.
A lot has gone on since i last posted...economy is now doing great (ha, NOT). Looks like we'll be outta Iraq in 19 months or so....or 50,000 or so of us might still be there, but i guess one could see that as an improvement...or a bad thing depending on what side your looking from. The Dodgers can't seem to sign Manny (not very suprised). The big question is whether or not the Bengals are going to be able to keep T.J. "who's your Daddy"?!?!? Hope so. Palmer needs one hell of a year !
Well...love you all...take care...talk to ya'll soon. Hasta
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Me and some Kosovo Kids...
Sunday, February 22, 2009
KFOR 11 Update Video numero uno
Here are a few high-lights from the deployment so far. I tossed the tazor and OC videos on there again...thought there might be a few folks that wouldn't mind seeing me suffer one more time. :) Hope all is well with everyone back home. Things here are about as chill as they could be. We went to Gjilane ( a major city near us)...i had yet another amazing Nes-Cafe...good stuff...pretty much chocolate, hot water and a little caffine...good stuff for 50 cents :) I love you, miss you all, look forward to hearing from ya'll. Hasta!
PS. Every women around here walks around in highheels, painted on jeans and is absolutely gorgious...not sure what they're putting in the water, but DAMN...pics to follow to prove the point...very nice scenary for this deployment.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
KFOR 11 First of many updates
Everything here in lovely Kosovo is so far so good. It is snowing like crazy ! This So-Cal soldier is thinking it might be as close to a blizzard as he's been in quite sometime.
"Some say a hero is born to be brave....a Hero is a scared man that don't walk away
Monday, February 16, 2009
First Day in Kosovo....
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Random update....
Right now, its about 4 am...i am sitting in our Companies Command Post (CP) typing away as a couple of my fellow soldiers play dominos and listen to some Mariachi (spelled wrong) music. We are all pretty excited, training here is winding down and it couldn't come to soon...I can say one thing about our training here in Germany, it def united many of the various countries in genuine hatred of our situation...Dont get me wrong, we've been fed, clothed and for the most part paid. Our basic necessities have been taken care of, but beyond that, here in Germany was/is not like i expected it to be.
I dont want to be the bringer of bad news...Im sure Im just being grumpy because its 4am and i am not asleep...oh...and by the way...TONS O' Snow tonight...not cool mixing snow and high winds together, makes for a very shitty combination for soldiers to walk through to go to chow, barracks or latrine...
One thing i can say, i have fallen in love Java Monsters Originale...i shit you not...im drinking about three of these a day...feeling good...and i start to crash just before bed time...PERFECT...Just incase anyone was curious...I hope everyone is doing well, love you , miss you..talk to you soon.
Part 6 Cont...
Monday, February 9, 2009
AirField :)
today we got to ride some Blackhawks to a near-by airfield for a training event. When we arrived, guess what we found...this sign...i guess the Germans new i was coming :) Most of the Company got a good laugh out of the sign already being there waiting for me :) Hope all is well...our Training here in Germany is coming to an end...its been real, its been fun , but i wouldn't say it sbeen real fun. Love you all very much. Take care, i'll write again when i get the chance.
Ok...having issues uploading Pictures via military internet...i will post the pic as soon as i get to an interenet source thats worth a damn...love ya...
Friday, February 6, 2009
Part 6 of the story...
Long about mid-laugh there is a knock at the door followed by a loud "Formation" call coming from most likely the barrell chested and equally hairy LT from the otherside of the hall. Ben quickly takes out his headphones, puts his laptop into sleep mode and grabs his uniform top. Moving gingerly down the hall, zipping up his ACU coat as he walks down the stairs. He can feel the excitement of the coming weekend building up.
"Hey Paine! What are you doing this weekend?" Knowles asked.
"You don't remember, I told you earlier. I'm heading to the Braves game." Paine responds.
"oh yea, totally forgot, we still planning on having some beers if your plans change", says Knowles.
Ben responds, "Now worries, I'll call you on Sunday for lunch or beers during the game."
Knowles in classic style throws out, "Sounds good. Your still a pussy for not coming out this weekend!"
"Fuck Off!" Ben said with a smile on his face, extending his middle finger to enfasize his point.
All the LT's gather together in their various platoon formations four squads with each having ten soldiers in them.
2LT Paine stood rigidly at the position of attention, anxiously awaiting the one amazing command. The student platoon sgt sounded off with a loud "DISMISSED" unable to hold back his own smile. 2LT Paine and his classmates sounded off in return with an enthusiastic "HOOAH" followed by random cheering and the dull murmering of conversations about the various fomrs of debatchery that would take place during the weekend. 2LT Paine makes his way back to the barracks, removing his ACU cover as he crossed the theshold of the doorway, moving happily up the two flight of stairs back to the hallway his room is located along. Smiling he entered his room as the rush of cold air hit his face being pumped out by the AC...
PART 5 OF THE STORY...
After she had finished patching up the young soldier she escorted him back to his Drill Sgt. (Little did Katie know, her beuatiful face and tender touch would be the highlight of this young soldiers experience at Fort Benning.)
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Part IV
A couple of miles down the road...Katie ....
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Random Thought...
Update from Germany...
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Part Three of the story...
(an old picture-obviously cuz im in the old BDU's)
I suggest scrolling down and reading part one and two of the story to both fully understand and appreciate part three of the story…
About two miles down the road a young 2LT by the name of Benjamin Paine is just returning from five days out Forward Operating Base (FOB) Voyager…His body is exhausted from the heat and humidity, his feet hurt from five days of walking and running around the red Georgia clay of Fort Benning in the Oh so comfortable” standard issue brown boots. A steady stream sweat makes its way down the brim of his ACU cover (a baseball like hat), dropping heavily onto his nose, pausing ever-so-slightly before pouring down his face glancing off his chin as it careened down towards his already sweat soaked ACU uniform. 2LT Paine had just fought his way through your standard BlueBird school bus with his ruck sack, duffle bag, load bearing equipment (vest with ammo pouches, canteens, flashlight, etc.) and weapon. A skill aquired through several years of service to “God and Country”. He sets his extensive baggage down on the sizzling blacktop outside his barracks, leans back, exposing his entire face to the sun. Reaching back with both his hands he stretches his back in a futile attempt to relieve the pain in his back. As he does this he lets out a sigh of relief and tilts his head back to parallel with the blacktop allowing the shade from his cover to once again protect his face from the wave of heat he felt any time the sun touched his bare skin. Glancing around the parking lot he sees lines of future LT’s heading back to the barracks like ants marching one by one out of a long line of buses that brought the entire Company back from FOB Voyager. He, like every other future 2LT, anxiously makes his way back to his room in the barracks. Moving both slowly and gingerly from the parking lot to the front steps of the barracks. It is important to note that the 10 steps leading from the ground level to the stairs always seem ten times harder to traverse when a soldier returns from a training then they are to head down…the stairwell offers ever bit of resistance it cans as 2LT Paine wedges himself up the stairs to the second floor where his room is located. He had learned from making this trip several times that if he just leaned forward and pushed himself forward as hard and as quickly as possible, the sheer physics of such a motion was more than enough to cram his body plus his ridiculous amount of gear through the doorway that seemed to have been built by gnomes. He moved his way slowly down the hallway arriving at his door to find it locked. He had hoped his roommate had beaten him up to stairs to avoid having to put all is stuff down just to unlock the door. 2LT Paine, after dropping his gear, reaches up and lifts up the ceiling panel directly in front of his door and secures the key he and his roommate had hid during week one…He grabs his key, unlocks the door and prepares himself for the blast of cold air that no doubt awaits. (Given the fact that 2LT Paine is not a native of the hot and humid south, the first time he had returned back to his room from a rough day of training, he opened the door and was assaulted by the rush of cold air he was met with. If one is not mentally prepared, it can become an overwhelming experience.)
As he opens the door the cold air hits his sweaty body sending a chill down his body. He drags his ruck sack and duffle bag along the linoleum floor and with a quick jerk, tosses both bags onto his bed.... (to be cont...)
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
part two of a random story...
I suggest scrolling down and reading part one of the story to both fully understand and appreciate part two of the story…
“What are you guys smiling about?” Katie asked.
“You coming out with us this weekend…(long pause as her friend Amanda scans the table making eye contact with each individual at the table, as if making sure everyone was ready for the announcement she was about to make)…we got you tickets to Braves game!”
(Amanda pushes a plain white envelope decorated with “BFF” and drawings of flowers hastily done seemingly with a dry erase marker..)
“Why two tickets”, Katie asks, “aren’t you guys coming with me?”
“Oh, you know I hate going to baseball games, they last forever, but Sara here is going with you. We’ve got it all planned out; You and Sara head to the game and have fun checking out all the rich baseball players in their tight pants…Melissa and I have to work the morning shift, so we’ll need time to get ready…cause we are going for a night on the town in downtown Atlanta!” Amanda said all in one breathe.
Sara takes over while Amanda catches her breathe, “Jenn and Amanda will meet us at the hotel after the game. We already booked two rooms. That way after the game we can use the hotel room to drop off all our stuff and get ready to go out. What do you think, Katie?”
“I don’t know”, Katie said hesitantly, “you guys know I don’t like going to the bars down here…it’s the same ol’ Army crowd with a bunch of soldiers just looking to score”
“Come on”, Melissa pressed, “you never come out with us and your taking off back to Cali soon. One last night with the girls before you go! Please!?!?!”
(Katie lets out a long sigh, un able to hold the smile back) “Okay, it’ll be great” Katie said with anticipation.
“Who knows”, Sara sarcastically says, “maybe you’ll meet someone who catches your eye?!?!?”
Laughing Katie says, “Well, remember the last time we met some “nice” guys…” (flash back to a bar with several drunken frat boys being loud and inappropriate)
(the table erupts in laughter and stories of old…)
About two miles down the road a young 2LT by the name of Benjamin Paine is just returning from five days out Forward Operating Base (FOB) Voyager
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Another Update for everyone
I almost forgot to tell everyone... http://painebrothersllc.com new web page....still under construction to say the least...its an actual site that my brother and i own and will use to start the "buzz" about Paine Brothers LLC. When ever we actually start this company...couple new pics...no videos yet...but i will continue to update and get that site working as time allows due to training and the deployment i am on......the times i miss being here in Germany so far from those i love...Soon enough i will be back home enjoying the freedoms that my commrads in arms provide through our sacrafices...I love you all very much...if you have comments or questions or suggestions for the blog/site just kick me an email at painebrothersinc@gmail.com ... thanks for stopping by.
PS. Here's a little Albanian for ya .. "Tung, zoteri. Si jeni? Miredite." ( Hello, Sir. How are you? Good Day (aka have a good day).
A heavy dose o' Culture
Monday, January 26, 2009
Part 1 of a short story...
It’s Friday afternoon, Katie (a young Army nurse stationed at Fort Benning, GA) has just finished making her rounds. The rooms she is responsible for are full of either Airborne school students with various injuries ranging from broken legs, ankles, torn ACL’s, and the like caused by improper landing or Active Duty soldiers with colds, flu’s or other sicknesses related to a long night of drinking and debauchery. But honestly (she thought to herself) when you jump out of a completely good air plane at 13,000 feet in the air, you’re asking for trouble. As she finished her rounds she made her way into the break room where she found her fellow nurses gathered around the far right table directly in line with the flow of cold air from the A/C. Being stationed at Fort Benning conditions soldiers to battle the heat and humidity by finding the coldest spot they can where ever they might find themselves. Katie was a rarity, to say the least. A southern Californian girl, born to a father who served two tours of duty in Vietnam and a stay at home mother. Katie stood five feet six inches tall, long flowing brown hair wrapped neatly in a bun at the base of her perfectly shaped head in accordance with army standards, her hour-glass shape hid well beneath her Army Combat Uniform (ACU’s) swayed ever so slightly side to side as she made her way to the table where her friends waited anxiously for her arrival… (too be continued…)
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Address in Kosovo
2LT Paine, Benjamin
KFOR 11 Task Force Nightstawker
Team Aztec
Camp Bondstell
APO, AE 09340
Here is my mailing address when I am in Kosovo...I wont be there for about another three weeks or so..when i get a better idea of when i will be there i will let you guys know...mail is suppose to take about 5 days to a little over a week to get from CA to Kosovo...and of course i'll post plenty of pics so everyone can see what this base looks like and what my living conditions are going to be...hope everyone is doing alright...love ya...miss ya...
Friday, January 23, 2009
Something Old and Cool I found ...
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Hello From Das Germany
Monday, January 19, 2009
Upcoming Election....
The nation is in one hell of a recession, inching ever closer to a depression. Car makers, banks and other financial institutions are merging, busting and buying each other out....bail-out money was as effective as shooting a bb gun at a train to stop it...oil prices are fluxing from cheap to outragious...the US dollar is inching towards worthless...stock portfolios are can be described as a sea of RED, the US Armed Forces are fighting Terrorist in Afghanistan and Iraq with missions all over the damn globe...with a populace that doesn't understand how real the threat is of these terrorist groups...Israel and Hamas are once again attacking each other causing massive civilian casualties...its a hell of a world we live in...and sadly as most experts on the economy say, it's going to get worse before it gets better...at what point does "worst" kick in and we see a "better"...i remember about three years ago looking at my stocks and thinking that i made some good decesions...lots of green arrows point up...now...wow...things have changed....i can say one thing...im thankful for my family, friends and all those around me....i woke up this morning so things really aren't that bad. I love you guys, miss you....
Mailing Address in Germany...
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Issues with my HUMMVEE dorr... :)
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Update on Kosovo and what it might mean for ME !
-Serbia is not allowing Kosovar products into their country (causing an already poor nation to struggle to find outlets for its goods-making it poorer and poorer by the day)
-Bosnia Hertzvogenia (spelled wrong) is taxing FULL duties to products entering its nation from Kosovo (taking an even greater chunk of what little profits there is in that region away)
-Macedonia is naming newly built freeways after ancient conquerors whose victories included the brutal slaughter of Greece (political left hook sent to Greece which has started a political confrontation in an already unstable region)
-bombs exploiding and suveral ethnically fuled brawls have broke out in northern Kosovo in the city of Mitrovica between Serbs and Kosovoars
-paramilitary groups have begun posting YouTube videos of themselves in the moutainous areas between Albania and Kosovo as well as in Serbia declaring their intentions
-several groups of men have been arrested in Italy, France, Kosovo, Albania, Bosnia in connection with drugs, arms, explosives all supposedly coming from the Balkans...
Though these are serious events indeed...whether or not these various events will transform into violence on the ground is still debatable...the only difference for me is .... i'll be ON THE GROUND.....(to be cont....)