15 minutes of fame

Whew. What a tiring day. We got a lot of stuff done today -- in quite an efficient manner, even. Lots of little training evolutions, most of them introductions to Army tactics and procedures that we will never have to use... but it gives us a new appreciation for what the Army folks with us will actually be doing. I have decided two things: first, that I made the right decision joining the Navy and not the Army, and secondly, that I really respect Army guys a lot more than I ever have. Among other things today, I learned how to search for IEDs, throw a hand grenade (from various positions), clear a building (like you've seen on most cop shows), low-crawl through the sand (it's harder than it looks), work with a buddy advancing down an alley, and "take a hill" using squad tactics. I have to admit it was all fun at some level... but not something I would want to do every day. The "15 minutes of fame" in the title refers to the fact that the press was here today covering our training. There are apparently reporters from the New York Times, Associated Press, USA Today, and some local papers, including the Virgininan-Pilot. (Not really local, but since Norfolk is a Navy town they are interested.) The photographer from the V-P caught a photo of me doing one of the training events and made sure he had my name for the caption. We'll see if I get published (probably not until this weekend). The "laser tag" gear we got today will be used tomorrow as part of our convoy training. Should be fun! I'm off to rest up these sore muscles. Tomorrow is supposed to be the last training day, and I'm glad. I don't think I can handle much more!