Big Dogs Weblog

Archive for the ‘Military’ Category

Average Worker vs Military Man

Sep 11, 2006 Military

Your alarm goes off, you hit the snooze and sleep for another 10
minutes…………….. He stays up for days on end.

You take a warm shower to help you wake up…………… He goes days
or weeks without running water.

You complain of a “headache”, and call in sick…….. He gets shot at,
as others are hit, and keeps moving forward.

You put on your anti war/don’t support the troops shirt, and go meet up
with your friends………… He still fights for your right to wear
that shirt.

You make sure you’re cell phone is in your pocket…………… He
clutches the cross hanging on his chain next to his dog tags.

You talk trash on your “buddies” that aren’t with you………. He
knows he may not see some of his buddies again.

You walk down the beach, staring at all the pretty girls……………
He walks the streets, searching for insurgents and terrorists.

You complain about how hot it is……………. He wears his heavy
gear, not daring to take off his helmet to wipe his brow.

You go out to lunch, and complain because the restaurant got your order
wrong….. He does not get to eat today.

Your maid makes your bed and washes your clothes………. He wears the
same things for months, but makes sure his weapons are clean.

You go to the mall and get your hair redone…… He doesn’t have time
to brush his teeth today.

You are angry because your class ran 5 minutes over……… He is told
he will be held an extra 2 months.

You call your girlfriend and set a date for that night………. He
waits for the mail to see if there is a letter from home.

You hug and kiss your girlfriend, like you do everyday……… He
holds his letter close and smells his love’s perfume.

You roll your eyes as a baby cries…….. He gets a letter with
pictures of his new child, and wonders if they’ll ever meet.

You criticize your government, and say that war never solves
anything……….. He sees the innocent tortured and killed by their
own government and remembers why he is fighting.

You hear the jokes about the war, and make fun of the men like
him………… He hears the gun fire and bombs.

You see only what the media wants you to see……….. He sees the
bodies lying around him.

You are asked to go to the store by your parents. You don’t……………
He does what he is told.

You stay at home and watch TV…………. He takes whatever time he is
given to call and write home, sleep, and eat.

You crawl into your bed, with down pillows, and try to get
comfortable……….. He crawls under a tank for shade and a 5 minute
nap, only to be awakened by gun fire.

You sit there and judge him, saying the world is a worse place because
of men like him…… If only there were more men like him!!!!

Photo Of The Day

Aug 21, 2006 Military

I received this in an email:

Before You Go, Tribute To Aging Veterans

Jul 31, 2006 Military

I received this in an email from a friend. Read this story and then click on the link to go play the tribute. I think you will find it very moving:

The elderly parking lot attendant wasn’t in a good mood!

Neither was Sam Bierstock. It was around 1 a.m., and Bierstock, a Delray Beach , Fla. , eye doctor, business consultant, corporate speaker and musician, was bone tired after appearing at an event.

He pulled up in his car, and the parking attendant began to speak. “I took two bullets for this country and look what I’m doing,” he said bitterly.

At first, Bierstock didn’t know what to say to the World War II veteran.

But he rolled down his window and told the man, “Really, from the bottom of my heart, I want to thank you.” Then the old soldier began to cry.

“That really got to me,” Bierstock says.

Cut to today.

Bierstock, 58, and John Melnick, 54, of Pompano Beach - a member of Bierstock’s band, Dr. Sam and the Managed Care Band - have written a song inspired by that old soldier in the airport parking lot. The mournful “Before You Go” does more than salute those who fought in WWII.

It encourages people to go out of their way to thank the aging warriors before they die.

“If we had lost that particular war, our whole way of life would have been shot,” says Bierstock, who plays harmonica. “The WW II soldiers are now dying at the rate of about 2,000 every day. I thought we needed to thank them.”

The song is striking a chord. Within four days of Bierstock placing it on the Web, the song and accompanying photo essay have bounced around ni! ne coun tries, producing tears and heartfelt thanks from veterans, their sons and daughters and grandchildren.
“It made me cry,” wrote one veteran’s son. Another sent an e-mail saying that only after his father consumed several glasses of wine would he discuss “the unspeakable horrors” he and other soldiers had witnessed in places such as Anzio , Iwo Jima, Bataan and Omaha Beach . “I can never thank them enough,” the son wrote. “Thank you for thinking about them.”

Bierstock and Melnick thought about shipping it off to a professional singer, maybe a Lee Greenwood type, but because time was running out for so many veterans, they decided it was best to release it quickly, for free, on the Web.! They’ve sent the song to Sen. John McCain and others in Washington . Already they have been invited to perform it in Houston for a Veterans Day tribute - this after just a few days on the Web. They hope every veteran in America gets a chance to hear it.

Play Before You Go

Big Dog Salute to BK.

I received an email with a prayer request for our troops. The request asked me to say a prayer and then send the request on. I thought, since I have more readers than people in my address book (at least one or two more anyway!), that I would post the prayer here and ask that you say a prayer for our troops and maybe post the prayer on your sites. Feel free to link and trackback if you would like.

“Lord, please hold our troops in your loving hands. Protect them as they protect us. Bless them and their families for the selfless acts they perform for us in our time of need. I ask this in the name of Jesus, our Lord and Savior. Amen.”

I would add a prayer that they complete their mission with dignity and professionalism and that they do so quickly so they can come home safely.

Thanks!

As always, I welcome your comments.