Happy Veterans Day

[X-TECH MAN]

Originally Posted by 69Cobra

I also would like to thank our Veterans. Living with these guys and working side by side with them for the last eight months has given me a new found respect for them. Most of these guys went from high school graduation to boot camp and really don't know anything else. I've been asked how I like it over here, and my reply is I would do it again in a heartbeat. If you guys could see some of the conditions these guys live in you also would have a new found respect for them. I can't tell you how many FOB's or SP's we went to in the dead of summer which over here is 120* in the shade and these guys don't have any a/c or a working refrigerator for cold drinks or a working washer and dryer or a working hot water heater to take a hot shower in the winter now that its getting cold. That's my job, to give these guys an electrically safe and working base so to speak. I just came from a base this past week where a couple soldiers got shocked and when we got there someone had wired up a wash machine wrong. If you now anything about electric, you'll know that wiring up the ground wire to a hot phase is going to energize the chassis of the washer NOT GOOD and when its sitting side by side with another washer that is wired up right you have a very bad situation on your hands. This unit burnt holes in the two units on each side of it where it was arching (shorting out) between the two. So if someone walked up and touched one unit with their left hand and the one wired up wrong with their right hand they just put 120 volt across their heart and most of the time that's not going to end well. We went to one base that they could not go a week with out having an electrical fire and things burning up which is not a good thing at all. After spending a couple months there we rewired their camp and made it safe for them to operate out of. I personally am honored to help improve the moral of these guys. You can truly see the difference when you can give them cold drinks, hot food or a hot shower and a safe electrical system. We walk in to most bases and most guys kind of give us a cold shoulder at first but after they realize we are there to help them and they see that they treat us like one of the guys. A Lt. Colonel and his First Sgt. gave us one of there battalion metal and really showed there appreciation for our work. Once again I'm honored to be able to help these guys.

Happy Veterans Days.

And many thanks to you for helping our solders so far from home.