My time on a submarine taught me a few things, like I have "NO" phobias
But after 4 years in, I just don't see doing it anymore, then I have been out for some time now and the game has changed alot.
You're in need of a new adventure, not the old one

Strap dat shit on foo.

Having some bullets fired up ye arse will motivate you and refocus your life priorities.

Yes. If you were already in the military, you can make more money working for Blackwater as a merc.

I can imagine every veteran has this feeling at least a couple of times.

Long ago you wrote they used you as testcases in Iraq (first GW), that should be enough man, somebody using you as testcases. Fuck 'm.

seems like a dramatic change man.

and what the hell is Blackwater

I would think that there would be better alternatives in the hunt for thrill in your life than to put yourself in deadly harm's way. Patriotism is one motivator, but you seem to just be bored with the daily grind. Personally, I wouldn't do it.

never mind, found it...

http://www.dvorak.org/blog/wp-conten...blackwater.jpg

You must have lived in a hole since the Iraq war started, didn't you?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackwater_Worldwide

:1orglaugh :1orglaugh :1orglaugh

Just not into all the wars and all ;-)

My wife will absolutely shit a monkey if I re-enlist.

I just envisioned that and it made me 'lol'.

Guess that settles that.

Oh neither am I, just that there's been a lot of controversy over their involvement in the war zones over the past 7 years.

Yeah, I know. One of the family is signed on with a merc company since he got out of the military about 4 years ago. He's been in Afghanistan since, and been back to visit twice. His bank account is insane. He'll easily be set for life by the time he decides to quit, if he survives that long.

Ditto! But not anymore..

Blackwater changed their name though.... now it's "Xe". (pronounced Zee)

from page 1 of Moby Dick and part of the reason I am trying to get on a boat. If all goes smooth, Ill be making runs from our local dock, to Venice, all the way out to gulf and back daily, helping with the oil containment, cleanup, and animals... spending a lot of time on the water. no desire to join the navy but I love being out on the water, waiting on the call to get started, exciting! Me, my fellow shipmates, my sombrero, and the open water. Haaarghh!

I still don't know if it's hunt for thrill, or avoiding regret. I don't regret the knowledge I've gained, but I feel like I'm wasting away sitting at a comp all day. I already regret the last ten years, so am I not still on the path to regretting another ten? Feel like I have more to offer the world than just making porn websites. I don't really care about the money issue, (soldiers don't hardly make shit), the most important thing for me is not feeling like I wasted my life at a desk. If I don't do something to change that now, I probably never will.

I broke 3 ribs a few years ago, too.

Jailhouse brawl, tho.

I doubt you will acheieve anything more than posting on GFY, the fact you had to post here to decide to back up your lame ass story shows what a loser you are.


sad sack of shit

You could get a job cleaning up the oil spill in the gulf. I don?t think it pays that much, but it would be some hard physical outdoor work for the next several months and break the monotony your feeling right now.

In truth it's better not to get back into what was originally a good memory, offering challenge and intrigue and risk. Chasing a memory....

From a mental standpoint you probably aren't as quick instinctively, and potentially have a more jaded viewpoint on the reasons why war happens and generally have a more advanced concept of consequence than you did in your youth.

As a result of that awareness of consequences through actions you might have pause for thought during a critical mission and that could be disastrous. Is that something you recognize now? If it's even entered your mind as a possibility you shouldn't head back to war.

I don't mean to come across as overly critical because I have a lot of respect for you through reading many of your posts over the last year or so.

This is a bare bones assessment of your state of mind. As a young grunt second thoughts weren't going to get in the way. These days you have seen enough "reality" to double check your data, which could be a life or death decision.

My 2 cents.

call me out if i'm spouting BS, won't be offended.

:thumbsup:thumbsup

Go for it Amp!

I miss the chow hall big time.

Don't know what to say here... just had to say that......

All good points. To apply KISS...you did not like the Army well enough to stay in the first time around...and at your advanced age you will like it even less the second time around.

Your memory of the miserable times you had in the Army (especially during Desert Shield/Desert Storm) have faded...so you need to rethink.

I spent six years in the Army and don't regret a day. Serving your country is an honorable thing to do and you should be commended for considering re-enlisting.

To be in the military is to live a real life of value and meaning. And, at the end of the day, you feel that you have really accomplished something.

Well...I spent 12 years in the Army and would have been a 30 year man if I had not been forced to accept a Medical Discharge due to injuries recieved during Desert Storm...but the Military definitely is not for everyone...and if one does not like it well enough the first time around to re-enlist one is not likely to like it any better the second time around.

I'd go back in as a Brigadier General. That's a good rank. You get all the perks and don't have to put up with much political BS.

It's funny that you should mention this. I'm actually very seriously considering going back into the military myself. Civilian life has started to become very dull in recent years and I have thought long and hard about creating a few more challenges for myself; although I've figured out that at 34 my choice of branches is pretty much decided for me...

We were under the water
We didn't do anything Noble like help a country in need of help, My daughters ship, the USS Ronald Reagan helped the philippines after their disaster, they provided supplies, water and power, a truly amazing ship
One of the great sub movies, people ask what it was like, I tell them you had to be there

Imagine being on a ship 1000 ft deep and it goes into a 35 degree up angle and then a hard left, the sirens are blasting, and no one is panicking , because they know their job. I have never been with a team like that before and will never again be around such a great bunch of guys again.

Ah, true, I can only imagine being under water for extended periods of time is quite different from being above water LOL

However, Ive just been informed I may be doing 14 days out on the water at a time or more. Wow, I am excited!!! I much prefer adventures without being shot at, so this is right up my alley and just what I needed. I am going in the morning to begin the paperwork and get the ball rolling. Take my drug tests, physical, and schedule hazmat class etc...

Go for it Amp!

Lots of people are considering this type of life change right now.

Do what feels right Amp.

But, remember, there's some cool work left to be done in the Mainstream that you are more than qualified to do.

You've said so much here and probably don't even realize it. The first lesson I picked out and it's one of the most important ones is that life is not greener on the other side.

You'll get out in the middle of nowhere and begin to miss home.

Am I sensing a mid-life crisis? If so, get some meth, a hooker and a hotel room. You'll figure it all out or die trying. :1orglaugh

The good news is that you're normal. You'd be abnormal if you didn't get restless in life.

I've found that memories are oftentimes just that...

Its sometimes the same with friends, too. Through Facebook I've reconnected with so many people from over the years all the way back to my childhood. We can share memories online that take me back to the best times in my life. When we get together in person there is nothing there. It kills the memory. It's sad.

I still remember one of your posts where you showed one of your "souvenirs" of that guy's ID. Pretty crazy.

My record is 64 days underwater, so if when you meet me I act a little different, thats why!

Yeah, I still have it. Unfortunately, the police decided to steal a bunch of my other war trophies.

Been doing some more thinking today about it? all this input and feedback is fantastic by the way, thank you everyone so far. :)

Still undecided though. It's very compelling. The reason I left the military the first time around is because a lot of my buddies were dead set on being career lifers, and I couldn't help but wonder what I'd miss out on if I stayed in. Combined with that, my Captain wouldn't let me change my MOS, and that was the dealbreaker. I was already pretty far out of touch with normal society by then. (not sure I've ever been in touch with it, lol) Well, I think that question has been answered. Mediocrity in suburbia awaits us all. Kind of like death. Death by re-runs of Friends & Seinfeld.

And so now that I'm nearing the end of my re-entry window, another block-of-life question has risen. Do I want to forever ask myself, "What if I was able to rejoin and finish my career time, and didn't?" Because that time is now. Ten or twenty years from now is far too late. So, I think in order to avoid regret, what I need to do is a self-diagnostic test first. If I can't survive 2 months here, of at least half intensity of what I'd have to go through, then I can put the whole thing to rest and leave the Taliban hunting to the 20 year-olds. So that's the next step I guess. Find out for real if I'm physically just too old or not. So I'll post my results in a couple of months I guess.

And in a way, it's sort of like one of those questions everyone always wonders aloud? "What if you could go back and do over [something] with what you know today?" So maybe not exactly a do-over? but sort of. :winkwink:

If there are any multi-war veterans here, how did you go about explaining to your families that you're potentially going to put yourself in the line of fire again? And how did you overcome their objections, if any?

shit.... I'm probably on the wrong forum at this point. Time to dig up some soldier forums.

I have no idea how the hell I'm supposed to ever convince my wife that strapping on body armor and going back to the middle east again is a good idea. I don't see her taking that little nugget very well. :(

Maybe should try your hand at being the Pope for a while, and see how that goes...

http://itodyaso.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/pope1.jpg

Perhaps you would be a good Pope - ever think of that?

The Vatican would burst into flames the instant I walked through the gates... :1orglaugh

Go try to find Osama Bin Laden.

Maybe just do a little Poping around your own area, you know, start local.

You can tell everyone you're the new neighborhood Pope, and see if they have anything for you to do, so you are not so bored any more.

There's a good change the Bradleys down the street need some sort of miracle performed, or maybe the Smiths need you to pray about something for them... who knows?

I just think you are dismissing the idea too soon. Start dressing a little more like the Pope every day, and see how you feel.

It is unlikely you will poo-poo this idea once you are wearing the big hat. I know this from personal experience!

It just wouldn't be the same unless I had my own PopeMobile.

Join the Military! Travel to exotic, far away lands! Meet strange and interesting cultures and native peoples.... and kill them.