It's Cold Up Here

Happy belated Thanksgiving everyone. For the long Thanksgiving weekend I was in Palmer house-sitting. The house that I was sitting at didn't have a functioning computer, so I wasn't able to update the blog. Going into break I was way behind on my posts, now I'm even more behind. This is becoming a theme.

I had a couple of really good Thanksgiving dinners, and the company was great. The weather outside was extreme. We went from having about two feet of snow dropped on us in two days to -15 temps. Right now here in anchorage it's right around 0, Palmer is usually colder than Anchorage. The forecast is for more of the same.

I went to the reserve station Wednesday and talked to a couple Staff NCO's. They are going to see if I can just hook up with them in my present MOS (military for "job", mine's electrician right now) for the time being, and then switch over to the 0300 field in the future (0300 is Marine for "infantry"). I'm pretty excited about that. I even ordered a set of utilities so I would be prepared. Since I left the Corps they switched over to using digital camouflage, and I currently don't have an up-to-date uniform.

A few comments back I had a question about the use of the term "the suck" by Marines. I've put some thought into this and I think I can explain it. When Marines meet they often start conversing by each giving a background of their own service. This is as much an ego thing as it is a practical thing. Marines want to establish themselves as experienced in each other's eyes. This exchange of histories is always accompanied by a rundown of worst experiences.

Marines always end up comparing their worst experiences with each other. This includes everything from boot camp on. Get a Paris Island Marine and a San Diego Marine together, and they can go on for hours. One will claim sand fleas are a form of torture, the other will dutifully explain the effect massive hills have on marching. No conclusion will ever be reached.

I think this is where the term "the suck" comes from. Marines take great pride in the hardships they endure. My chest swells every time I think of the Marines who fought at Tarawa and Iwo. They overcame incredible hardships, and they were in my mind when I deployed into Pakistan and Afghanistan. I knew that whatever I faced, I could overcome it by following their example.

So, when a Marine complains about a shitty situation he is really pointing out the fact that he overcame adversity, maybe just to gain a little respect and credibility amongst his peers. I think the biggest thing that should be pointed out is the frequency at which Marines bitch to each other, and the infrequency that they bitch to those outside of the Marines. It's common to hear Marines complaining to each other, comparing hardships; it's not so common to hear Marines complaining to people they don't know. If you don't know a Marine personally you'll probably never hear one refer to the Corps as "the suck."

I hope this makes sense. I'm sure I could better explain it after about eight hours of sleep. I better go while I can still get six.

Brandon