D-Day Chap

Friday Day 47, Week 13

2009-09-03T09:03:00.000-07:00

Graduation!

It was pretty cool. We had a lot of people there. We surprised some people with our singing talent (or lack there of). My state Chaplain surprised me by showing up. That was pretty cool. He didn't have to do that. I appreciated it. Connie and the Boys were there, as was my parents and sister. That was nice too.

Thursday Day 46, Week 13

2009-08-27T18:32:00.000-07:00

Wow what a long day. We were doing out processing and preparing for graduation. It really was a challenge staying with the program today. Everyone had to "digitally sign" paperwork. What a pain. Only a few of the computers would work. 170 students trying to use a handful of computers. Not pretty. Oh well one more day.

One of the guys did a really good drawing for the Group leader. It was impressive. The entire platoon signed it and we gave it to our SGL, Good stuff

Wednesday Day 45, week 13

2009-08-27T18:08:00.000-07:00

A pretty good day. Not a whole lot on the schedule. The guys going active duty had several meetings in the morning. We didn't come in until 11:00 and then we got out pretty early.

Connie really enjoyed more of the spouse seminar. It is a must for any wife of a chaplain. Absolute must. She is learning a lot and is meeting other women. She is joining the military too. This is something that many army wives don't realize. They do not sugar coat it. But they also let you know what the benefits are.

The kids did better at the day care.

We did the "Ball" last night. It was not a dance at all. It was a military formal event. Dinner and speeches. We had a "receiving line and everything. It was a good time.

The only really bad part (which ended well) was the child care totally dropped the ball. This is a huge class. We showed up for the child care (we had gone over and toured the facility before) and they had no record of us. And they were full. Nothing doing! We went over to the Dinner to let my chain know that we would not be attending. We ran into one of the ladies that Connie had met in her class. She knew of someone that had 3 teenage kids that were not doing anything. So we went over to surprise 3 kids with baby sitting detail. It all ended up well. They turned out to be kids of a friend of mine. They had a great time with our kids. God is Good, ALL THE TIME!

Man some really good skits. They really poked some fun at some of the very serious staff. It went over well.

Tuesday Day 44, Week 13

2009-08-25T18:05:00.000-07:00

Another good day

We got the boys to the day care early. Caleb was really not thrilled. Nate and JD were fine. Connie went to her classes. She seemed to have a great time. This is really a high point for the course. They are really giving the wives a ton of information and guidance. Many of the wives have never been around the military before and there is a lot to learn. She really came out of it in great spirits. I really recommend this to the spouses.

The chaplain school continued. We worked on the married side of PICK, which is LINKS. It is a great program as well. The instructor was top flight. Again this is both secular and religious based programs that we will be certified in.

We went to eat and then to the pool. Spent an hour helping nate to "fly again". He did flip after flip. Caleb did too. they loved being tossed into the air. JD did "canon balls" off the side with some high schoolers that were here with their dads at the chaplain school. He was big stuff.

Monday Day 44, Week 13

2009-08-25T18:00:00.000-07:00

First day with the family here.

At the school house we worked on PICK or how not to marry a jerk. Excellent stuff! It is counseling stuff that can be used in both the secular and church framework. We will be certified instructors. This is stuff we can use both in and out of the military.

School is winding down. Got to spend lunch with the family at the park on post. The boys had a blast on the slides. Connie and I just enjoyed being together.

Sunday Day 43, Week 13

2009-08-25T17:55:00.000-07:00

A very big day

Connie and company arrived! Pretty cool. I really missed them. They came in from West Virginia. I spent the day moving rooms. I had to move to a room with two beds. We all would not fit on a big bed.

We had a platoon meeting in the evening. I brought JD. He did real well. We put some papers in our folders. Nothing major.

Saturday Day 42, Week 12

2009-08-22T19:06:00.000-07:00

Family wellness again. we spent the morning at the school. We are done. Next week is PICK and "how not to marry a jerk".

We played risk. I lost. Oh well. I have lost my touch in risk.

Friday Day 41, week 12

2009-08-22T18:58:00.000-07:00

No PT. Oh!

Family wellness counseling training. Good stuff. Good tools. A tool I am going to use personally is "looking for the pony". This means that if someone is saying rough things to you. You must look for the good reason behind it. For example. If you complain that I come in late, the Pony is "that you care about me and want to spend time with me". Become a half full sort of person. I think I already am. But it will help me to be intentional about it.

I passed my "sacred coms". I did what the SGL wanted. I read the sermon. Liturgical style. Check the box. Play the game. I will never read a manuscript again, if I can help it. The last time he said my "sermon" was a "bible study" and had to many "umms". I did have to many umms. But the style was the bigger issue.

Thursday Day 40, Week 12

2009-08-20T15:45:00.000-07:00

Regimental Run day! Up at 4:00 to be at the field by 4:45, to be ready at 6:15. We waste more time than most people waste all day! The sergeants spent a lot of time "driving" our platoons around the field until we were in the "correct" position for the arrival of the Chief of Chaplains. We had the entire chaplain school, the AIT, BNOC, C-4, the offset CHOBLC class and all of the sundry Chaplain School elements. Not a long run. The Chief spoke with us briefly at the field.

At the school house we listened to the General again. It is good to hear the head of the Chaplain Corps talk to the new guys and girls. He is very passionate about soldiers.

We continued our Family wellness training. we all gave "presentations" to the rest of the class. Nothing to painful. only 7 minutes of our life.

Wednesday Day 39, Week 12

2009-08-20T15:39:00.000-07:00

A combination Muscle failure/short run. Not to bad. Pretty sore though.

Family wellness training today. We will be qualified as instructors when we finished. Good stuff. Still struggling to stay awake. We got to have a "working lunch", basically we got to eat whatever we could grab in a few minutes, and listen to a briefing. Not to bad.

Lots of homework tonight.

My anniversary tonight. My wife is in West Virginia and I am in South Carolina. I wish I could have spent it with her. But we had so much homework to do it would not have been much fun. I finally got to bed at 10:30 to get up at 4:00 am. I don't think I would have been to much fun. I can't wait till she gets here on sunday! We will celebrate on next wednesday.

Tuesday Day 38, Week 12

2009-08-18T15:37:00.000-07:00

Card PT!

A really rough PT session. Actually it was pretty fun. It's simple. Draw a card from a deck. A heart is regular pushups, a diamond is wide arm pushups, spades are rocky sit ups, clubs are regular sit ups. A ace is 25, and face cards are 20, numbers are what they are. And start drawing cards and do what the cards say. That will smoke you. Oh and if you are not tired enough at the end, you can do 100 four count overhead arm claps. Makes for some arms shaking.

Today was great! We got to go over casualty notifications. Sounds bad. but really it was good. We also got to have some of "T.A.P.S." people here to help us understand the mistakes that are made by chaplains and Casualty notification officers make. Taps are wives and family members that are gold star moms. (they had spouses lost in combat). Powerful stuff.

Last we had 3 guys receive there citizenship today. One from Korea, the other two from Nigeria. We honored them and then the course leader had them do pushups. Welcome to the country! My phone does not take the best pictures. Oh well.

Monday Day 37, Week 12

2009-08-18T15:31:00.000-07:00

run day:

We ran a little over 2 miles. Well I didn't, one of the guys had a profile against running and was out running when he was not supposed to be running. I had to "walk" him back because I was a road guard. I didn't mind at all.

We did some counseling prep. I did not do my sermon. Once again no biggie. I am supposed to do mine on thursday.

The Hotel hooked us up. They had Quedoba for us. That was nice. Watched part of a football game. It's good to be back in football season.

School started today. I should receive my books soon. I can't believe that school is starting already.

Sunday Day 35 Week 12

2009-08-18T15:23:00.000-07:00

A strange day.

Started off with a trip to a Lutheran service. Not too bad. It just is not my thing. I do not understand why people enjoy the repetition. It does nothing for me. There is no heart in it. I am pretty sure if my "sacred communication" was similar, I would have gotten a "no go".

I stayed at that chapel for a "Jewish" service. I was expecting a learning opportunity (like the muslim service). But this was not the case. The "rabbi" was a civilian contractor. He thought it was great fun to poke fun at Christians. He also gave the "basic training" soldiers oreos and wine for communication. I did not know that the Jews did communion? From what I understand this was a "hybrid" service. A combination of jewish elements. I don't know. There was one interesting thing. they had a "traveling" torah. This was a real vellum torah. Petty cool.

The rest of the day was spent "chilling out" and doing homework. Getting a sermon together.

Saturday Day 34, Week 11

2009-08-18T15:21:00.000-07:00

A nice Saturday off. went to the store and restocked my Mt Dew and Gatorade supply. Much better

Friday Day 33 week 11

2009-08-14T14:41:00.000-07:00

We got a late start. A recovery day. They let us skip PT. Pretty cool

We did after action reviews in the morning. and then a graveside service with me as the body in a coffin. Fortunately I was raised from the dead.

Met the 18th Airborne Corp Chaplain. He took several of us to the NCO club for lunch. It is strange who you can meet in the latrine (well his assistant chaplain). A divine appointment to be sure. I really am convinced that Ft Bragg is in my future. Had another chaplain that really encouraged me to keep plugging away, that we are almost there!

It looks like we might play risk tonight. Sounds fun!

thursday Day 33 Week 11

2009-08-14T14:22:00.000-07:00

2 hours of sleep before being up at 4:00. Oh when you have to be at the school house at 5:00 you have to leave the hotel VERY early! My sermon is done.

Well I got a "Go" on the field service. I won't do another one like this. Not sure I understand the point of doing a service in a manner that I won't use again. Oh well, check the box.

We got to "brief" the commander. More practical counseling sessions. We really got a treat, because we had some C-4 students (senior chaplains in school) to help teach us how life works in the real world. Good practical stuff. With the change at CHOBLC, this is some of the first "mentoring" that we have received in phase 2 and 3. We had a chance to talk "informally" with these guys. PRICELESS!

Oh yes, the road march back! another 4 miler back. It was really good. I really am in my element doing ministry "on the march". I may not be the best preacher or counselor (I'm getting better), but I love spending time with solders, Encouraging them.

When we got back, they were playing "I'm proud to be an American" over loud speakers. Call me silly, but it was really cool. It made the hair on my arms stand up. In a good way. It reminds you of at least one reason for what we do here. A bit of good old fashion American Pride is a good thing.

I'm real tired. and have no clean uniforms. time for washing. My stinking camera died!

Wednesday Day 32 week 11

2009-08-14T14:06:00.000-07:00

Back out to the field at 5:00 am, to sit around and wait until 7:30 for chow. We waste more time before 8:00 AM than most people waste all day!

Field services, field services, field services! Found out that now my "field service" was lacking "liturgical elements" and was not acceptable. My SGL is liturgical and wants it done that way. Quite a few "no goes". I didn't do mine, So when we get "off" tonight I will redo my service. Nice!

Practice counseling and briefing our commanders.

We got to have quite a bit of time playing in the rain.

When we returned from the field, we went into the computer lab and got to play with the Blue force tracker. We were supposed to plan the actions of a Unit ministry team in combat and communicate with our higher elements in real time. Good Training! It would have been even better if there were more instructors for the "higher" elements. It made the process very slow and you rarely received answers to your email requests.

Finally got back at 11:00 PM time to redo my sermon. Not much sleep tonight.

Tuesday Day 31 Week 11

2009-08-14T13:46:00.000-07:00

Just a walk in the Park! Well not quite. We did a bit of a road march out to the "field". Right at 4 miles. But it sure was hot out! Even at 0500 in the morning! It was enough to make your "dogs" (feet) bark and cramp. We moved out to a FOB (forward operating base) that is supposed to be similar to one that is "in country". It is even "guarded" by our chaplain's assistant students that are in AIT. We didn't do anything with them, we were doing different stuff. But they were there. It was some good practical stuff to learn.

First thing up was a "round robin" event. First for us was a "ramp ceremony". I got to be on the "transfer case" detail.

Next was a first aid refresher.

After that was an IED (improvised explosive) class. Not how to make them, just what they look like and how to avoid them.

Last we watched a large (very large) sand table. Basicly we got to watch an opperation unfold on a large map.

Lots more "field services"

Monday Day 30 Week 11

2009-08-11T18:56:00.000-07:00

Morning PT. A run day. 2.15 miles, last man up.

Counseling practice/practicums. Lots of practice using the solution focused basis for counseling.

We also did several more "sacred communications".

Getting ready to go to the field. Not quite sure what to expect. Not too worried.

Sunday Day 29 Week 11

2009-08-11T18:52:00.000-07:00

Went to Chapel Next. Great stuff. very good contemporary service.

Met my Cousin Zack. He is here at a school located here at Ft Jackson. It was really good to meet him. He is doing very well with the Army Guard. We went out to eat.

Saturday Day 28, week 10

2009-08-08T18:23:00.000-07:00

A surprise visitor took me out for breakfast. He even tried to fix my BMW. Not successful. The rest of the day was spent chillin out.

Friday Day 27 week 10

2009-08-08T18:15:00.000-07:00

PT test. Passed it. It was not pretty. I got exactly what I needed on the run. I maxed my sit ups for the first time ever! Pushups were down a little. But a 253 isn't bad.

We spent all day on memorial and graveside ceremonies and services. We got to watch a really good AIT team do their thing. Brought back memories of my firing party days with the 82nd. We did a bunch of practice ceremonies.

I went to see GI Joe at the movies with about 15 other chaplains. That was fun. Escapism at its best.

Thursday Day 26 Week 10

2009-08-08T18:10:00.001-07:00

NO PT, Getting ready for PT Test.

Instead we got up early to go for "sacred communication". Then we finished up the PREP stuff.

In the afternoon, guess what? More Sacred Coms.

wednesday Day 25 Week 10

2009-08-05T16:06:00.000-07:00

Morning PT. Run Day. Dusty delta ran "last man up". The last men in each column have to sprint to the front. They are followed by the next two. Not to bad of a run. Approx 2 miles.

More PREP training. We spent more time learning to facilitate PREP. It is good stuff. It is still a long day. The group of people in the back trying to stay awake at times was large. It wasn't slow. It was good. It was just a long day. Some people have the gift for sleeping while standing. It was pretty good the "acting" that went into the counseling sessions.

Tuesday Day 24, Week 10

2009-08-04T17:25:00.000-07:00

Morning PT. "Muscle failure" day. Actually it was a very good day of push ups and sit ups. No screaming and yelling. Just do whatever number we are doing in that set. It is on you to do it or not. And you know what we rose to the level of expectations. Reminded me of CHOBLC 2 years ago. I really enjoyed being treated as a professional.

The rest of the day was good too. We received training on PREP. We will be certified PREP and PIC instructors. This is for the Marriage enrichment (PREP) and "how not to marry a jerk"(PIC). This is both the Religious based and the secular based programs. This is not cheap certification. We are very fortunate to receive it.

We also were able (during lunch) to go to a sale for military clothing. This was clothing that was "issued" to privates that were just coming into the army. They did not complete Basic for some reason and did not get to keep their initial issue of clothing. The cannot reissue the clothes. We were able to go in and buy whatever we wanted for really cheap. The enlisted got first crack at it yesterday. The officers got a go at it today. I was able to buy 400+ of clothes for 82 dollars. What a deal! So what if I had to skip lunch. It sure won't be the first or last time we do that here at Ft Jackson.

Monday Day 23 Week 10

2009-08-03T16:13:00.000-07:00

Morning PT. Run Day. A tough day in ability group D. Friday I tried to keep up with C and got smoked. Move down and got smoked again. We have some people that need to move up in ability groups. Oh well, it was a good run even if my legs felt like rubber afterwards.

Most of the day spent learning about doing military memorial services and ceremonies. These are "graded events" for chaplains. It is what we do. If we mess one of these up, it will not go well for our careers. They are very serious about teaching us the RIGHT way to do it. I appreciate it. It still made for a long day. As you can see from the pics. All during breaks of course.

We are going to have a long week this week. It will be capped with the PT test on friday. Time to put up. We did the "diagnostic" PT test a couple of weeks ago. Now is time to do it for real. I want to improve on my score. But passing will suffice. My ankle feels pretty good ( superior through superior chemistry).

Sunday Day 22, Week 10

2009-08-02T14:55:00.000-07:00

A Great Day!

Chapel Next is a blessing. Good contemporary worship and preaching. A great pruning of a tree illustration. It was really good. I needed it.

Went to lunch with Wilson and his buddy. Solved the Calvinist and Arminian debate. Everyone can stop arguing and we can all be brothers again. It is nice to be able to discuss issues and not fight. We really have good people here. There is hope for the Church.

Drove by the new "Navy" Chaplain School house. It should be very nice.

Saturday Day 21, Week 9

2009-08-01T17:18:00.001-07:00

A day off. My mother and father came down. We "fixed" the Beemer. Well we sort of fixed it. The air conditioner and the windows still won't work when it runs. but I can roll them down while the car is not running. My dad has been delayed going to sweden a couple of weeks.

tomorrow will be chapel next. Good stuff.

Talked with Connie. She is doing well. I married way over my head! She has managed to handle all three boys, the Tahoe breaking down, and music camp. I don't think I could do it.

Friday Day 20, Week 9

2009-08-01T17:05:00.000-07:00

Morning PT. Run day. Tried to move up to Charlie group. Probably not the best idea. Fortunately I was the "rear road guard" and had to stay with some others that tried to move from Delta to Charlie. I'm trying to improve my run. It is just a long process.

Got to give my sermon. I guess 5 hours of prep time was just not sufficient. I get to do it again. Several comments that it was a "Bible study" and not a Sermon. Not sure what that means. I guess being conversational makes you not laying down the goods. I also said "Umm" about 38 times. Oops. That won't pass here.

Got to go to the Muslim service. We were "observers" and not participants. Which was fine. It was very interesting. Pretty good message. Encouraging people to be full time muslims and bridge builders. Not part time muslims and prejudice. Kinda like part time Christians and hypocrites. Most of it could have been given in any church in america. Well except for the stuff about Muhammad. I was pleasantly surprised by the respect given to Jesus. He is considered a high level prophet, that will come back from the dead.

I was able to go to a Buddhist "service" this evening. Very interesting. We were more participants than in the muslim service. But we were encouraged that we could pray to God while they were meditating on "nothing". They were of the "whatever works for you" philosophy. It was very educational. They were from the Zen school. Respect is very important.

I'm smoked!

Thursday Day 19 Week 9

2009-08-01T17:01:00.000-07:00

Morning PT. Muscle failure. partner "resisted" pushups, sit ups, military press.

Lots of Sermons. I think we did six today. They all kinda blend together after a while. There were some amazing sermons. I was really impressed with the priest. I was expecting a homily and got a gospel presentation. Good stuff.

Very tired. Apparently I wasn't the only tired one. He was taking notes not sleeping. right!

Wednesday Day 18 Week 9

2009-07-29T13:05:00.000-07:00

Early Morning PT.

Some good pushups, sit ups and creative "rest" position (where you don't really rest). We then went and did some sprint a half lap, walk a quarter and so on.

Next was a great time. We went to Victory Ranch. Victory Ranch is a ministry of Cadence International Ministries. They specialize in ministry around the world to our military. They provide a place for retreats and bible studies. A really great ministry! They fed us, and gave us a day to "chill out". We got to watch (and critique) 4 sermons given by our platoon. Then people went out and did anything we wanted to. There was fishing, horse shoes, basketball, table tennis, and a bunch of other things. It was great!

We got a glimpse of a good ministry. This ministry is a good resource for the chaplain to be in touch with. A good note to self! When I get on active duty, I will look for them where ever we go.

Tuesday Day 17 Week 9

2009-07-29T12:44:00.000-07:00

Morning PT. Good stuff, We did the "extra mile". A very large circle of exercises. Pushups, sit ups, ski jumper, ext.... A pretty good time.

Blue Force Tracker!

Cool stuff. Technology has come a long way since my days as a grunt. It seems everyone has a GPS that his hooked into a large command system. It is good stuff. Everyone sees where all the "blue" (good guys) forces are. Everyone also sees where the "red" (bad guys) are. It is like a very detailed video game. Only you can't control the pieces. We spent all day learning the basics on how to operate it. We are not experts by any stretch. We have a basic understanding of how it works. Thats about all I can say about it. You know security and all? Bottom line is, It helps us not to shoot each other. A good thing. Even if a Chaplain could shoot (I can, but won't. Part of the deal you know? It isn't our job) at an enemy.

Monday Day 16 Week 9

2009-07-27T16:16:00.000-07:00

Well change in plans.

CHOBLC went to the "Confidence Course". I unfortunately got to go on sick call. Pink eye is so much fun. I went from the TMC (troop medical clinic) where the PA decided that it might be a good idea if I went to an optometrist. I spent the morning there. The rest of the day was spent on learning about "Solution based counseling". Good stuff.

A slight problem, my camera made its way up my parents house yesterday. There might be a shortage of pictures for a couple of days. Sorry!

Sunday Day 15 Week 9

2009-07-26T17:17:00.000-07:00

A low stress day. Lots of homework and spending time resting. Tomorrow should be pretty entertaining. Pictures should be good.

Saturday Day 14, Week 8

2009-07-26T11:53:00.000-07:00

Spent the day with my parents. A very good day. My father is on his way to Sweden to work. He fixed my car in a few minutes. Took them to see the chaplain school. I wish the museum would be open on weekends. But they got to see the new school houses for the Navy and Air Force

Friday Day 13 Week 8

2009-07-24T14:44:00.000-07:00

Wow, this was the best class since coming back! A hospital chaplain came in and gave a briefing on caring for the dying and the dead. His pastors heart came out. Very emotion charged stuff. Yet he kept giving us practical advice on how to be effective in the middle of very difficult situations. This was some of the best advice that we have received. I hope he comes back for more. He is the sort of Chaplain I want to be. Not necessarily a hospital chaplain, but a chaplain that ministers to soldiers first and always. You must be a quality staff officer in addition to being a good chaplain. In the military I have seen good staff officers that are lousy chaplains, they probably will get promoted and have great evaluations. But I will take care of soldiers. Period!

Tonight the chaplains from Sierra Leone are showing "Blood Diamonds". They are wanting our chaplains to understand what has happened in their country. They are also wanting to bring US Army chaplains over to help their chaplain corp to really get off the ground. What an exciting ministry opportunity! The only catch is that it is not assisted by the US Government. It will be all on our own dime if we go. The ministry "Olive branch" is the organization that is setting it up. We are really blessed to have the two "chiefs" of the chaplain branches of Sierra Leone (muslim and Christian) in our class. They are going through CHOBLC just like any other students. It has been a treat to get to meet them.

We have a diverse class. We have chaplains from Korea, Nigeria, Portugal, Vietnam. And this is just the ones I know of. In the other platoons there are others. All of these are American soldiers. But ethnically we are very diverse. Just like the Army. Imagine that! We even have 2 SEAL's. Not sure what country seals come from (ex-navy SEAL's that are now chaplains). I guess we let in "Jar heads" (marines) and "Airdales" (air force) so why not Squids (Navy)? Just kidding, my brothers and sisters from other branches bring some amazing skill sets and knowledge to the table and we are VERY LUCKY to have them.

Thursday Day 12 Week 8

2009-07-23T18:20:00.000-07:00

Parris Island.

We were in formation at 4:40 AM to load busses at 5:00 AM. But we drove to Parris Island Marine recruit depot to find out how Chaplain's work with marines. The Marines don't have chaplain's so the Navy provides them. You can see that the Chaplain's that volunteer to work with marines LOVE their marines. Pretty cool.

It was a long day. We got to play basic training a bit. Not to bad though. It was just lunch. It was a Marine chow hall. Several of the prior service marines were having "flash backs" to their "FUN" experience they had at Parris Island. I am pretty sure they are VERY glad that the Army chaplaincy is not like that.

Forgot the camera, I will try and get pics from others. Later.

Did you know that a chipmunks memory only lasts three days? gotta love animal planet.

Wednesday Day 11 Week 8

2009-07-23T18:12:00.000-07:00

Wow, more death by power point. It is very interesting to see how the Army responds to public events. We learned how to handle "sacred texts" that are needing to be destroyed. The whole presentation could have been shortened to a sentence or two. Oh well, we know the correct way in detail.

We had a barbeque that the Hotel put on for us. They have been wonderful. We have about 70 or so of us at the hotel. Thats a lot of money. Do the math.

See I fixed his hair!

Tuesday Day 10 (Week 8)

2009-07-21T14:46:00.001-07:00

Passsed the PT test! Most of our platoon did too. This has been quite the process. I am not 18 anymore. I shaved almost a minute off my time, 17:58, 2 mile.

More power point.

Talked over "pluralism". Got to deal with it, what it is, what it isn't, and how it relates to the Army.

We also got to get a look at the Navy and AirForce Chaplain programs. Very interesting! Check out the new Navy Camo. Very nice. If you fell off the boat you might be in trouble with blue camo.

We also learned a lot about Chaplain's Assistants. How to take care of the other half of the Unit Ministry Team (UMT's)

Got to do pushups for giving a bad hair cut. Oops. I'll fix it tonight. The hotel is grilling for us tonight. Pretty cool.

Monday Day 9 (week 8)

2009-07-21T14:35:00.000-07:00

Late start today. 1-3 platoons had the PT test. Ours is tomorrow.

More Power point. Dealing with the decision making process, "ARMY style." There is a lot to learn in doing things the army way.

We also talked over privileged communication. It is good to know that we have 100% privileged communication as a chaplain when dealing with soldiers.

Got a picture from the Air force that is of one of our Chaplain Students doing a "ramp" ceremony with the Air Force.

Sunday Day 8, Week 8

2009-07-19T17:52:00.000-07:00

Another Lazy day. Did laundry, gave another haircut. I'm getting better and you can't beat the price. I watched the motel staff chase a water moccasin. To my knowledge they didn't get it. I guess I won't be going out. PT test for Platoons 1-3, we get to have a late start and do the PT test on tuesday. Hoping to do well. The ankle is pretty sore. In the overall scheme of things my foot is minor. But to me, when I am running, it's pretty major.

Saturday Day 7, week 7

2009-07-19T17:48:00.000-07:00

A lazy day! It was just what the Dr. ordered. Nothing military other than doing homework. Nice.

Friday Day 6 week 7

2009-07-17T18:36:00.001-07:00

An outstanding day!

Went for a run. Dusty delta run group ran 2 miles at a rate that will pass the PT test which is coming up. That is only if you are OLD, like me. I was thrilled. It has taken a long time after breaking my ankle to run a good time. I'm not 18 anymore.

Next I forgot a T-Shirt and there was no time to go back to the hotel (its graduation day for the Basic training units). A guy in the gym just handed me an extra t-shirt. He wasn't even a CHOBLC student. Just some army guy using the showers.

God is good. He looks after the forgetful and clumsy!

More classes. We did sacred communication. this is where chaplain students (us) get to critique a sermon given by a student. You would think it would be gentle. Not so much. We are all currently or just were seminary students. There are no punches pulled. Better have your game on! I wish things were a little more pastoral. There are guys here that have only preached a couple of times. They get slammed. So do the experienced preachers. I honestly have not heard a bad sermon yet.

We went to Outback for dinner. Man it's good to spend time with men (and women) of God.

The rest of the students went to a Chaplain event. Black tie and dress uniforms. Receiving lines and all. It was not mandatory, and cost money to go. I missed it.

Came back and talked theology, gave a haircut and prayed for a brother.

Thank you Lord.

Thursday Day 5 Week 7

2009-07-17T18:23:00.001-07:00

Another good day.

It started with building a pyramid, or muscle failure PT. No joke. Try 7 pushup, then 12, then 15, then back down. Only resting while doing "modified cherry pickers" (not resting). Then doing sittups, crunches, rocky sittups, again with the same "rest" position. Try that for an hour or so. Easy right? It'll get ya.

Had to run back to the hotel after PT to get a pair of boots my buddy forgot. Nearly did not make it back, it was "family day" for the basic training people, hundreds of families trying to get on post to spend time with little jonnie. The gates were busy to say the least.

More death by powerpoint. But the classes are more practical. They are putting all the pieces together that they have been teaching for the whole time here.

Wednesday Day 4 Week 7

2009-07-15T16:48:00.001-07:00

More "Death by power point." Most of the day spent in classes. The classes were pretty good.

We all got weighed in. We also had a dress uniform inspection. It seems like about half the people's uniforms were still getting prepared. All in all a pretty good day.

Got to speak with the Assessions officer for active duty. She is Pathfinder qualified and a master parachutist! I have never heard of a female pathfinder, much less a chaplain.

It was really good to find out how things really work, no more "armchair Lawyers." It looks like it is almost time to start my packet for assessing as a chaplain next summer. Wow we are almost there.

Tuesday Day 3 Week 7

2009-07-14T17:19:00.000-07:00

A Pretty good day.

We took a "staff ride" to Charleston, SC. A bit of a bumpy start. Our buses didn't show till two hour late. But we arrived.

We got to watch a "Ramp Ceremony". This is a critical part of what military Chaplains do. We are to honor the dead. As Chaplains we must perform this with perfection. It was nice to see it done (even if it was "practice") on an actual C-17 with an Air Force honor guard. Sorry no pics, OPSEC.

We moved from there to Ft Sumter. This is where the "first shots" of the war of northern aggression (that's what they call it down here) were fired. Truth be told, it happened in Kansas, but that's what the park rangers said, I didn't argue.

It was a good trip. Much lower stress level and everyone seemed to have a good time. We got to meet a WW2 Vet that was related to one of the Cadre. That was special. It is cool to meet someone that has been there and done that and it was the carrier he was on. The Yorktown that served in the pacific theater of WW2 and is now located there in Charleston harbor.

Monday Day 2 (week 7)

2009-07-13T18:17:00.000-07:00

A Very Rude awakening!

Wow, what a day. PT at "O" dark thirty. I finished, but I am smoked.

We watched a "Ramp" ceremony for bringing a "coffin" onto the plane. It was real neat to see the Chaplain walk through the process that he had been through quite a few times before. You could see the passion that this is VERY important for a Chaplain to get right!

The CHOBLC has change drastically from years past. This is much closer to what I anticipated from CIMT (or "O" phase). I will give it some more time before I pass judgement on things. But the days of easy low stress CHOBLC appear to be a thing of the past. Don't know why. I am sure things will be apparent shortly.

Tomorrow should be a better day. More to follow.

Sunday Day 1 (week 7)

2009-07-13T18:12:00.000-07:00

Signed in and had some briefings today. Somehow I went off and forgot my copies of my orders. Not a good way to start. Be that guy!

There is a significant difference in the "air" of CHOBLC than 21 months ago. The staff is completely different. It is also a huge class. We have the phase 2 and 3 people that just showed up from previous classes being added to the already huge class that is staying for the whole course. It is bound to be different. Also we are staying off post at a hotel instead of the officers housing.

Low stress day in Macon GA

2009-07-11T19:59:00.000-07:00

We had a low stress day in Macon GA. We met Roger's Mom and went to Bass Pro.

Part 2 Off again

2009-07-10T06:30:00.000-07:00

Its off to South Carolina and Army Chaplain School for Phases 2 and 3. I report on Sunday. We Roger and I will take the scenic route and visit family.

I'm Home.

2007-10-29T08:24:00.000-07:00

It has come to my attention that I never "arrived" home. On the "way home" I met my wife and boys at Muskogee Airport for a Air show. The Blue Angels rocked the place. Man that's cool. The boys thought it was cool, until it got loud.

The boys enjoyed playing at the airshow. I think I need to teach JD a bit about safety with automatic grenade launchers. Leave it to the Marines to let my kids play with one. Jd also showed them up with his skill on doing pull-ups.

It was really good to see my family. We finally got home saturday. It's good to be home.

I will be posting further blogs on

http://d-chap.blogspot.com/

this will be continued next summer. during phase 2 and 3

Day 41 (Week 6)

2007-10-26T09:19:00.000-07:00

Last Day of Phase 1

And my last day till next summer. Thanks to all the guys and girls for making this a great experience. We made some great friendships that will last. We will also be serving with this bunch for a very long time. The troops will be blessed. I look forward to finishing and pinning on the Cross.

We have a great Cadre that helped a lot. It was good.

We just did some out processing and everyone was off. I will be on the road for the next 13 or so hours. I have an appointment with my family tomorrow!

Day 40 (Week 6)

2007-10-25T15:31:00.001-07:00

A very good day!

We went to Cow Pens Battlefield. It was really a good time. We reenacted the Revolutionary war battle. Not exactly "historically accurate". But we did win. I was captured and forced to fight with the British, only to be rescued a short time later.

Standing on a stump is the only way that "certain people" could be as tall as other people. This is not a "caption", but pictures sometimes just don't make sense. hopefully you can figure it out?

The guy that took us to the battlefield was really interesting. It is fun to watch someone that really "sees" the battle in his mind try to explain it to us. He is very passionate about history. I really like history as well, so I really enjoyed his detailed recreation of the battle. He knew every detail about individuals that were involved life. Who they were and what happened to them.

We also did a prayer breakfast. It was done very well. I didn't have anything to do with it. But the guys worked very hard and it showed. We got to spend some time with some chaplain's assistants. They are great. But man are they young. Does that make me old? I don't think so. They are just getting younger.

Day 39 (Week 6)

2007-10-24T18:51:00.000-07:00

Another good run. Actually I did not do so well. Tried to run with A/B group. Just not up to a 16 minute, 2 mile. Really embarrassing for "getting famous" for "falling out"(falling back) in a run. I wish there was a C+ or B- group. Oh well.

More Death by power point. Most of it was good stuff. Lots of practical stuff. How a ministry team will work. How to take care of your chaplain's assistant.

Tomorrow will be a good one. But once again you will have to wait. I should have lots of pics.

Day 38 (Week 6)

2007-10-23T18:26:00.000-07:00

Gave my sister the camera. Not a good idea.

Another day of Power point.

Got to learn a lot of Chaplain history. Very interesting.

More operational stuff. Can't tell you. Your a civilian.

Got my BC glasses. Pretty exciting. Oh you don't know what BC stands for? Well if someone wears them they do not have to worry about contributing to the gene pool. Look at them. I am sure you understand.

Got to be part of a pretty good PT session this morning. Had another class with us. They did not know what to think. Just "make the bad man stop!" was in the forefront of their thinking. The fun you can have with a simple deck of cards. Hee hee! More Pop PT. Not too bad.

Day 37 (Week 6)

2007-10-22T17:51:00.000-07:00

Man it was a good picture day. I wish I could put up all off them. Check them out on the Picture dump. Not a lot of pics. But ones that I like. Ones that tell a story. Too bad I cannot add captions. Oh well.

Got to give briefings today. Quite a bit different from giving a sermon. More stress involved. I had not thought that would be the case.

We had a dinner for those of us that were leaving. Our Cadre showed up. It was really fun to see them in a slightly different light. I am looking forward to not being a "student" and being an "equal". The dinner was very good. We got to have some awards. Mine was pretty funny, the "This would not be nearly as fun without that blog" award. We also got to have communion with the whole platoon. A very special time. I am truly blessed to get to be part of this. I really cannot describe it.

I am looking forward to seeing my family. Talked with my four year old about going to see the blue angels on Saturday. I can't wait to see them through his eyes.

Day 36 (Week 6)

2007-10-21T17:58:00.000-07:00

Starting Week Six!

Here are a couple of random pics. The cool shades are from having my eyes dilated. No glasses yet. They should be here at the beginning of the week.

We are gearing up for a busy week and then I am headed home. Wish I could stay, but I am equally ready to go. I will have to continue this blog next summer when I come back. Who knows maybe someone else will "continue" blog. If so I will add a link.

My Vikings just could not get it done against the Cowboys. Neither could by Raiders. Not picking real well this year.

Went to Chapel Next again. Very good service. Something to get very excited about. I know everyone pictures Father Mulkahey from "MASH" as what a chaplain does. I like his ministry, but his services leave a little to be desired. Chapel Next is very contemporary. Excellent Stuff. I could get very excited about being involved in a Army Chapel like that.

Day 35 (Week 5)

2007-10-20T16:52:00.000-07:00

Wow, God is good. I think I may have been tired. I went to bed at 9:00 and got up at 9:30 this morning. Still pretty sore, but in good spirits. Tommorow starts my last week here. I'll be back next summer to finish what I started. But I am ready to head home. On thursday my 4 year old made me tell him our address. He wanted to make sure I knew where to come to. That will get you.

Our buddy is out of the hospital. We showed up at 10:15 and he was already gone. Removed his gall bladder yesterday afternoon and gone home (sorta home) this morning. Amazing!

Day 34 (Week 5)

2007-10-19T13:28:00.000-07:00

What a day!

I picked the wrong day to "promote myself" from the "C" ability group to the "B" ability group. Both groups upped the ante with PT this morning. I probably would have been smoked by the "C" group. But "B" proved to be way to much fun. I was done when we finished.

We had some more briefings on ethics and Islam (not the same class). Good stuff. Especially the Islam class.

We got off early and no Pop PT. I think everyone was really glad. I know I was.

Some of the guys are going to the fair tonight. I'm going to pass. Just get some dinner, run some errands, talk with my wife and go to sleep.

Got a Care package yesterday. That was really nice. We love the jolly ranchers. Good stuff.

Day 33 (Week 5)

2007-10-18T16:12:00.000-07:00

Another long day.

AM "Muscle failure" Pt. Circuit training. Not too bad, everyone had a sense of humor. Even with the ungodly hour of the morning.

More classes today. Spent a lot of time on ethics. Had a guest speaker. She really was a "subject matter expert". They spend a lot of time and money bringing in people to train us well. She had a lot of knowledge. She obviously knew lots of stuff that was over our pay grade. She did challenge our thinking and made me mad a couple of times. But that is what she set out to do. So mission accomplished. In the military you will not always deal with people you agree with. She challenged us to be great chaplains (which I agree with). That our job would often shape the army, one person at a time. Not a responsibility to take lightly.

We also learned about basic officer stuff. Evaluations and stuff like that. Simple, but if it gets messed up, "Get your resume ready!"

More Pop Pt. Upper body and stomach. No running. I'm glad. I was just about through on the running side. Tomorrow will be more running.

Day 32 (Week 5)

2007-10-17T18:37:00.000-07:00

Well the suspense is over. The Chief of chaplains for the army came to see us. Pretty cool. We had a Regimental Run with all of the chaplain school house running.

We then had the chief there speaking and answering questions for us. He was very nice. Seemed to be a good leader as well.

Did Pop PT in the afternoon. More running. Good stuff. But I am tired

Lots of homework. So I am off to bed to start it all over again

Day 31 (Week 5)

2007-10-16T18:20:00.000-07:00

Franco Harris was here at the NCO club. I didn't go. But one of our instructors is a huge Steeler fan. He got an autograph. I'm a Steeler hater, so I wasn't greatly impressed (I've not been a fan since I was a kid). He was impressed.

More briefings. Learning to be a chaplain. Lots of practical stuff. If that doesn't get your chaplain blood pumping nothing will.

Day 30 (Week 5)

2007-10-15T17:11:00.000-07:00

Well it looks like the pace is not going to slow down. Much is going to happen. It should be fun. Can't tell you, you know "Ops-Sec"and all. You can just be surprised. Actually you may not care at all. Oh well.

The classes seem to be picking up too. Much more practical stuff. We are finding out what it means to be a chaplain in the real world. Good stuff.

Lots of PT today. Also went to the eye doctor again. I think I was busy today. Maybe that is why I am tired. Don't think I will finish the football game.

The guys were calling me "Hollywood" due to my "stylish" shades that the Dr. made me wear after getting the eyes dilated. Will try to get a pic of it. Pretty funny.

More faces from home. My recruiter is here at school with us now. Oklahoma has quite a representation here. That is due mainly to him and his guys.

Day 29 (Week 5)

2007-10-14T17:08:00.000-07:00

Well we are off. Time for week 5. More death by power point.

I enjoyed my weekend up in Greenville with my parents. Just sat around and watched football and some movies. Nice change of pace.

Oh, gotta love those Patriots. It's always a good day when the Cowboys lose and my Vikings win. If the Raiders would have won it would have been a great day all the way around.

Day 28 (Week 4)

2007-10-13T19:11:00.000-07:00

Last day of week 4. Went home to visit family. It was good. Slept for 11hrs. I must have been tired? Not sure why?
Met my niece's fiance'. Wow am I really that old? Pretty cool, he seemed like a nice guy. Paintball player and all.
Yesterday we went to the Officer's club. Not bad. I am not sure what I was expecting. Not sure I will be a regular. Sorta like a country club, only not quite. Hard to describe. It was fun to meet the families of several of the guys that we have been hanging out with.
Well, church in the morning. Then back to Ft Jackson.

Day 27 (Week 4)

2007-10-12T08:43:00.000-07:00

Frisbee football (or ultimate frisbee) for PT. That was fun. I think I was more tired from the football than I was from actual PT. Funny how competitive a bunch of chaplains can be. But as usual 2nd platoon rocks! We ended up playing eachother for the "championship". It was a tie. They should have beaten us. but we ended with a tie. we'll take that.

Off early. on pass, yescya

Day 26 (Week 4)

2007-10-11T16:44:00.000-07:00

My Flak vest is gone! We handed in our TA-50. Sweet.

Things have changed greatly. We are done with our Basic training. We are going to be learning to be staff officers from here on out. Good stuff. We are spending a lot of time doing PT. In the last two days I have done PT 4 times. I sure hope it pays off. I believe it will.

Day 25 Week 4

2007-10-10T18:48:00.000-07:00

Check the pics, Added part 2 to week 3. Lots of pics from another guys camara.

Another long day. A good day. Had an excellent Devo. Then a good run. I would not really put good and run in the same sentence, but it was not too bad. Several good hills. Got to meet a accessions officer. He told us the straight deal on how we would be handled when we go active duty. Really laid out that if we became chaplains we would be deployed. End of discussion. We need to really count the cost and know for sure that this is what God is leading us to. We should be heading towards what God has planned for us, not going to fill a need we have. Hope that makes sense? We also got to have an excellent chapel service. Too cool. We get paid for this?Did a layout of our equipment. Not to bad.

We also got to try on our Berets. Lots of berets that looked like pizza hats. I am sure that tonight there are a lot of us with wet berets on our heads while working on the computer or watching TV. Pretty funny. But serious. Our berets are part of our uniform. We should take pride in the uniform and not wear it all jacked up.We will get to start wearing them tommorow. I miss my maroon beret (Airborne). A few years to wait.Man, it sucks getting old. I just got my first perscription for glasses. Bifocles! Oh well.

My oldest JD just informed me that he has 4 stickers from AWANA for scripture memory. pretty cool. He's just turned 4! I'm impressed.Went and had Chick-fil-a tonight. Man that's good stuff. My "comfort food". I guess that comes from 18 years working in Malls.

Day 24 (Week 4)

2007-10-09T19:32:00.000-07:00

Death by power point! Lots of lectures. Learned about the rules of land warfare. Or the Geneva convention. More on non-combatant stuff. I am pretty sure I understand it.

We had a very good discussion with a guy that knows the Reserves inside and out. Very knowledgeable. We picked his brain for quite a while. Learned a lot about how things really work.

I promise to break out the camera again. I have been slacking. I have another disk to download and post to the picture dump. Maybe tomorrow.

I've got an eye appointment tomorrow. Man it sucks getting old. I really am having difficulty reading. but I suppose I will just get it over with and get glasses before going back to my day job at the jewelry store. It just would not do to have a blind jeweler would it?

My wife is pretty cool. She is a trooper. I do not know how she does it. She had maintained those three wild Indians and still got things done. She is remarkable.

I am ready to go home to be with them. But at the same time I really wish I could finish with this class. I have really enjoyed getting to know them in a way that I have not done in a long time. There is something about the military community that I really enjoy. It is also amazing to be around this group of guys. They are commited to ministry to soldiers. Many have had similar experiences to my own and are trying ministry again. Some have just come out of civilian pulpits. But across the board, they are amazing people. I am privileged to serve with them. It is an honor to be with Warrior/Priests.

Day 23 (Week 4)

2007-10-09T19:29:00.000-07:00

Columbus day! And here in Columbia, it is taken seriously. Actually it is just a federal holiday. So we were off. Spent the day doing homework and watching TV. Actually spent a lot of time sleeping. Very nice!
Watched the Cowboys play the Bills. Couldn't believe the ending. I stayed up and watched it. Good game, even if the Cowboys won.

Day 22 (Week 4)

2007-10-09T19:24:00.000-07:00

Sunday,
Well I guess I got a bit behind. But sunday was very low stress. Went to the catholic service. It was much different than I expected. They had accustic guitars! Pretty cool. Still all of the vestments. Lots of stand up, sit down. If they had a order of service I would have enjoyed it more. But I did have a nice gentleman help me out somewhat. But the Priest (chaplain) was pretty good.
Had our usual formation and got off. It was good to finally meet some of the family members that my wife has met on line. Connect the dots.

Day 21 (Week 3)

2007-10-06T17:28:00.000-07:00

Well this has been a low stress day. We have the day off and I am working on homework. Yes homework! We have assignments that we have to do.
We will do a few more services tomorrow.
Piggies was good. BBQ. I'm not a huge fan of vinegar BBQ sauce, but it was still good. You can tell you are in the south when you order Tea, you get SWEET tea. Heavy on the sugar, light on the tea! Southern Ice Tea. They look at you funny if you order it any other way.

Day 20 (Week 3)

2007-10-05T13:17:00.000-07:00

Ok now we are caught up.

Secret methods of chaplains 101

1. Become one with your gear. Today I took a shower with all of my TA-50 gear. You would be amazed at how much sand a vest, harness, pads, pack, Kevlar and boots ( I still have to shower with my cloths) can collect. That stupid vest is still heavy, even without the armor plates. In fact the shower is still running. My gear is still enjoying it's shower. Maybe I have issues now? Don't answer that!

Today we cleaned gear. Not a problem. Cleaned a couple of Hummers and 5 tons (trucks). Normal stuff for post field time. We even got off early for the weekend. Pretty cool.

We are headed out for a "platoon dinner" tonight. Can't tell you where, you know "Ops-Sec" (Operational Security) and all? I could tell you, but then would have to kill you.

Got a real cool video/slide show from some of our instructors. It shows a lot of the pics that they got from our training. I will try to come up with a method for posting it (my wife will help me over the phone!)

Day 19 (Week 3)

2007-10-05T11:46:00.000-07:00

Today was supposed to be a smoker. The first half was and so was the night part.

We did "day infiltration". Which is not as "high speed" as it sounds. What it really means is that you are getting your face in the dirt! Crawl and crawl some more. It will smoke you! Well if you do it right! gotta love the low crawl! We ran that a couple of times. Then we ran an "assault course". I got to play an assistant. I had a pretend rifle and said "bang" a lot. My chaplain ran with me. Good stuff. Love the knee and elbow pads. We really do have some excellent equipment. I remember my basic training, we often received the worn out, antiquated stuff. Not so anymore. most of the equipment is at least serviceable, if not new. Very surprising.

We did some "paintball". Which means we ran, while instructors shot at us. That had some great possibilities for training. Plus as a avid paintball player, I would have loved to "play" if I had the chance. But in this case it is like "raccoon hunting", and the raccoon doesn't need a gun. Not that I have ever been coon hunting. I just think the saying is funny. But getting a chance to shoot back would be good stuff. There is at least one other guy that has a lot of experience playing. teaming up with him, we could really have some fun with our instructors. I doubt that will happen. But one can dream.

Night infiltration! Man that was fun. We got poured on. It rained hard so that the ground was nice and soggy. Then we got out on the range with machine guns shooting over our heads and crawled for quite a ways. It was funny to listen to the Drill Sergeants tell their troops that the bullets were flying 30 inches over head. If you think about it, you will know that that is not a true statement. This training is very safe. Well except for the bullets. If it were really dangerous they would not sent thousands of soldiers through the courses. The army tries to be safe with its property. But that does not mean that they won't mess with privates, just for fun!

We crawled the course along with some other soldiers. Some had never done anything like that before (I suppose that outside of the military nobody would?). We encouraged them as much as you can crawling through wet sand, under barb wire, with bullets flying by 10 to 20 feet above our heads. Not at all like the movies. where the drill sergeant has the machine gun firing just above soldiers. These guns are very safely employed. Fixed to fire at a certain point well above the soldiers. I remember doing it as a private, I believed the drill sergeant. I had seen the movies. This time was much more fun. Perspective and age are valuable commodities. Sorry no pictures of this range. it was at night and we were hustled into and out of it so that we could come back to our rooms

Showers are great! I feel sorry for the staff that cleans our rooms. They have to deal with the Red Clay/Sand. It stains.

It felt good to be in a real bed!

Day 18 (Week 3)

2007-10-05T11:34:00.000-07:00

Gotta love ants. they are a bain to the existence of "big people". I believe that this must home to most of the worlds ants. And they bite!

More good training. Ran the "fit to fight" obstacle course. A smoker. I believe the fastest time was in the mid 12's. We were through when we got done. What's funny is people pay good money for this sort of fun.

Also ran the night land navigation course. Good stuff. took the lead and "plotted" the first point. Way off. but recovered and ran a good compass azimuth to redeem myself.

We also got to see how convoy operations are run. Very educational. Can't go into how it works. But suffice it to say that the army is learning lessons and trying to be more effective. And even chaplains have to learn how to react to hostile fire. The enemy does not care that we are non-combatants. We have to do it right.

Had "Hot A's" for several meals today. We do not have MRE's all the time. Gotta love those hockey pucks (fried veil patties, I think?).

Day 17 (Week 3)

2007-10-05T09:53:00.000-07:00

We are back! would have posted this last night, but I was just too tired. Talked with my wife and went to bed. LOTS of good pics just posted.

Well life at chaplain basic training is MUCH different than infantry basic training! We stayed in Large tents with cots. Much lower stress. Much better treatment. Almost fun. Almost. But not bad at all. It was really interesting to see how the other half lives. But in spite of it not being stressful, it was still good training.

If things seem vague as to details on training. This is on purpose. We have to maintain operational security. We cannot give details as to times, numbers and other details that could be used to potentialy be used by our enemies.

So that being said, here we go.

Since chaplains do not handle weapons at all, what do we do "in the field"? Well we do quite a lot. We were able to spend quite a bit of time doing land navigation. Basic compass and map stuff. It was a lot of fun. I haven't done land navigation for many years. Kinda rusty. I was supposed to be an expert. Oops. go back to basics, do it the way you are trained without the "tricks" and it is amazing how well you do.

We got to see a "field" service in action. Good stuff. I really like seeing how it all works for real. Kind of a combination service. Some litergy and some contemporay elements. We call it field expedient. We want soldiers to have a worship experience no matter where you are at.

Got to have the new MRE's (meals ready to eat). Man they have changed. I had MRE's 16 years ago. They were pretty good. Today you can have all sorts of meals. Really good. Well not all are good. But you get what you get, then trade. They have vegeterian and Kosher meals. Thats pretty amazing to me. But in today's climate, you must accomidate soldiers beliefs as much as is possible.

We also got to participate (walked along during) in a live fire range with basic training soldiers. That was good stuff. It is humbling to realize that many of these kids (18-20 year olds) will be walking hostile streets in just a matter of weeks. They a have answered the call during war. The training they do is vastly improved over when I went through infantry school.

Day 16 (Week 3)

2007-10-01T14:50:00.000-07:00

Map reading and first aid. A pretty good day. People seemed to get a pretty good handle on the map reading. We will spend quite a bit more time during our Field time.

We had a very good first aid class. It really helps to have sergeants that have been there done that. The NCO in charge of the class was first rate. It also helps when you have someone teaching how to treat tension pnemothorax when he has done it 4 times for real. Much more serious to be sure.

We were encouraged to get to know our medics. We would spend a lot of time with them.

Day 15 (week 3)

2007-09-30T17:13:00.000-07:00

Well today was an "off" day. Which means we were busy. We went to 3 services. A protestant, an LDS and a Pentecostal. Talk about opposites. I really enjoyed the protestant service. It was packed with new recruits. They may have been just trying to get away from their drill sergeants, maybe they really wanted to be there. I don't know. They really got into it. A good service.

The other two services were interesting. The Pentecostal was pretty wild. They "sang" most everything that happened. Man they know how to get a congregation going. I'm not sure that is a service that I would like every Sunday. But it was interesting to go to.

The LDS was very different for me. I had never been to anything quite like that. I found it to be very educational. I suppose that is why were are doing this exercise. To expose us to a variety of worship styles and religions. We are expected to minister to soldiers that are of a different background than us. We are here to allow for the freedom of religion of our soldiers. So a basic knowledge is good thing. I think it is kinda hard to explain exactly how it works. I have a clear view in my head though.

Then we had a formation to get us ready for the field. Make sure we have all of our toys.

Nate is ok. He is home from the hospital. He had pneumonia (still has). They gave him some breathing treatments. Mom and nate are doing much better.

Day 14 (week 2)

2007-09-29T19:39:00.000-07:00

Well here is a strange day. We were off. Slept in. A good start to the day.

Then I went to tail gate at a South Carolina football game with my sister and brother-in-law. This is not normal "tail gating". This is how the other half does it. We spent the day moving from gathering to gathering in a high rise building right across from the stadium. People that buy apartments for a 6 or 7 weekends a year. And spend 20,000 per parking space cause they don't want to walk or pay 20 bucks for parking. Unreal. Not a world I live in. But fun.

We got to look down on the commoners that came and went from the stadium.Then I got a call saying that my 1 year old, Nate, was on his way to the hospital with pneumonia. I really wish I could hop on a plane and go. I can't. But I want to. This is not easy. They say he is OK.

Day 13 (Week 2)

2007-09-28T18:43:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures that we recieved from the staff. Yes the one standing on the casualty is me. Hey, he made it across didn't he? I was just to short to reach the wire. Lack of planning on my part.

It's the end of week 2. We ended the week at Golden Corral. Our Platoon all went out. A good time.

We had more class time. Learning about land navigation. We have some really good NCO's (Sergeants) that led the class. They are not our Cadre, but they run our ranges. So we see them a lot. They gave us a ton of pictures. They make up most of "Week 2 part 2". Check it out. Lots of pics.

More Pop PT. A good run. We get the weekend off. Well mostly, we will go to various services. But we get to rest.

It's a long funny story (which I'm not going to tell). But suffice it to say I ended up in the mental health section having a Major taking me to the side, asking me if I was "OK!" I escaped!

Bonus Blog

2007-09-27T14:55:00.000-07:00

Chaplain and chaplain candidate wives

My wife is doing a blog as well. She calls it her thankful blog. She wants to get connected with as many wives as possible. She is new to this whole thing, both military and the chaplaincy. And information for her is a good thing. Kinda work on supporting each other.

http://connie-johnson.blogspot.com/

Her email is

montyandconnie@msn.com

Day 12 (week 2)

2007-09-27T14:24:00.000-07:00

I did not throw up! I made it through the "gas chamber". The last couple of times I went through the gas chamber I tossed my cookies and was sick for a couple of days. Not today. I feel pretty good all things considered. Tired and sore to be sure. But in good shape.

The gas chamber was pretty short and sweet. We were done quickly. Nobody panicked and had to be tackled. It was not fun by any stretch. Lots of snot, burning eyes and skin. But nothing really bad.

Things have ratcheted up a notch. We had been receiving a lot of grace. That time is passed. It is time for us to behave as officers and chaplains in the United States Army. And I believe we will. If we do not we will pay in sweat! As we should and have. We must be professional.

This afternoon we got a class on a radio that we will be using. I carried the same radio for a year and learned quite a bit from the class. They really are pretty amazing radios. Heavy! I don't miss carrying it at all.

Quite a few guys got military issue glasses. We call them BC glasses (birth control glasses, you do the math). Pretty funny. but they can see, a good thing.

Tomorrow we will finally do PT as a platoon. It should be pretty good. More briefings and then we should be off. Too cool! I think everyone is pretty tired.

Day 11 (week 2)

2007-09-26T16:21:00.000-07:00

Today's blog rambles a bit. Sorry.

Life is a road. A road (unless you live in Kansas) is never flat. Full of ups and downs. Today was a road. And I like to drive.

We went to the gas chamber today. We did not get "gassed". But we did learn how to put on the mask and a lot about how to deal with the frightening prospect of Nuclear, Biological and Chemical warfare. I learned just enough to pray that that's not where we want to be. Loved the gas masks in the latrines (porta johns).

Fought a loosing battle with the "Z monster"( I kept trying to fall asleep in the class) not that it was not interesting, I was just very tired. But I was not the only one. Had a friend of mine almost fall asleep standing up. That would have been a great picture!

We got to do another road march. I'm now a road guard. Which means I am a speed bump placed out in traffic to protect the rest of the platoon when we march or run. A lot of extra running. Actually it is not bad. I need to run anyhow. I get to see everyone in my platoon quite a few times during the march. Not sure how far it was. A mile and a half, maybe 2? not sure. But not bad. Still not a fan of the Flak Vest.

We had an opportunity to be brought back into "focus." It is easy for us to think that we have it all figured out. We really have done very well. With our small class size and older students we are pretty responsible. But we are still in a military school. And there is bearing that must be maintained. Bearing can only be maintained with discipline. Discipline can be subtle or when that fails, it must be direct. We did a little extra PT.

We have an amazing bunch of guys and girls. It is an honor to be here with them. We also have an amazing Cadre (staff) that is focused on training us to be chaplains. Not just ministers, but military officers. That's important. Because to be a chaplain requires both. It is a balance. Most of us have the pastoral stuff down. We sometimes need help with the chaplain side. We have the "pick of the litter" for our staff. These chaplains and assistants have been there and done that all over the world. They are the best of the best. And they are the ones that are training us. We are doubly blessed.

Hopefully tomorrow we will keep the valleys a bit shallower. Hooah?

Oh on the slightly funny side. I got salutes from 2 drill sergeants. That is the first time I have ever taken sadistic glee in salutes. Maybe I just have issues with my past. I thought it was funny.

I also had a strange experience with a group of basic training students. I walked past them and man did they pop to and salute. But there was no pleasure in it. There was fear in their eyes. I remember that fear. I suppose it is a part of army life? What is the mix when you are looking at ministering to soldiers? I have always avoided officers. Now I am one. Strange.

Prepare for some good pictures tomorrow. We will get gassed. It is no joke. The pictures will be unedited. I might censor them, but then again I might not! Snot from your nose to the ground! Good training! We will see if I am this positive when I am coming out?

Day 10 (week 2)

2007-09-25T15:30:00.000-07:00

Today was another "team building" event. We got to do some obstacles that really challenged the mind. It required leadership and planning to get your team of 6 through each situation. I'm not going to try and explain it. But suffice it to say "don't touch the white" and don't step in the sand. Get to the other side, taking all of you people and equipment!

We also got to road march with our flak vests (in the picture). I don't care what people say about these necessary pieces of equipment, they are hot! And not the good kind. Not sure how much they weigh, but with the "plates" in them, and you can see they were, they are not fun.

Got to do POP Pt(extra) tonight. Good stuff! Excellent workout. Not a smoke session. My wife is not going to recognize me. Actually with the "basic" hair cut, she might not. But once again part of the deal.

Had a convocation (google it) and sang the army song. Also had a class or two.

Oh typing is really hard with my thumb all bandaged. I smashed it pretty good. It was not a good day for some of us grunts(infantry). Oh well. Waaaaa!

All things considered, a good day.

Day 9 (week 2)

2007-09-24T14:44:00.000-07:00

Today was another good one. We went to the confidence course. It ended up being not so much an obstacle course, as a team building event. We did a few "rope" things, a "full metal jacket" tower, a series of walls and a Team Tower event. You cannot make it up the tower without your buddies. Trust is vital (as is strength and a bit of intelligence). We road marched out there and back. Not far. We are operating on the crawl, walk, run philosophy. So we will gradually get tougher.

We got a good briefing from the CHOBLC Commandant. Very motivating. We also got to see the Chaplain museum. Very cool

Lots of hair cuts tonight. The good kind! straight clippers without a guard=NO HAIR!

Day 8 pt 2

2007-09-23T15:37:00.000-07:00

Are we having fun yet? We just had our "accountability" formation. Checked out our gear and did some PT. Just for fun! We were told not to "take it personally". Good advice. Everything we do is according to a schedule. They also succeed when we succeed.

We then did "over the head arm claps", flutter kicks and the pushup! Good stuff.

Tomorrow we get to do the confidence course (obstacle course). Drink water, its going to be hot. More pics to come.....

Day 8 1/2

2007-09-23T06:29:00.000-07:00

It's Sunday morning. I am going to do an "extra". Yesterday was a good day. I am glad that I was able to share it with people via this blog. But probably the main reason for this is so that I can share it with my family. Maybe I am just feeling sappy this morning. Maybe I just miss my wife and kids. I don't know. I just wish I could share more of this adventure with them. They are part of it to be sure. But somehow they have to ride in back, and I have to tell them about it. I suppose that is how life is. It does not make me not "wish" things could be a bit different.

My wife sent me some pictures of my boys playing in a blackhawk helicopter at a large Tulsa church. It was cool. My wife is doing well. So are my three boys. It does not stop me from wanting to be part of what is going on. I guess I missed part of their adventure too.

Happy 4th Birthday JD!

Day 7

2007-09-22T12:47:00.000-07:00

We get paid for this! Unbelievable! We got to go to victory tower. Fun stuff.

It was a good, short day. Now we are off for the rest of the weekend. This is not basic training! It's fun. Although we did have to "march" to victory tower (about a mile, maybe), it was pretty hot, so we got a ride back. not a bad day at all.

I wish I could have "aussied" (reppelling "face first"). We did get a demonstration. Cool.

Just check the box in the upper left for 200+ pics

Day 6

2007-09-21T14:26:00.000-07:00

This is not basic training! But we do work hard. Lots of marching. Did I mention lots of marching? I think everyone's dogs (feet) are barking (hurting). Trashed my boots. Not good.

PT test in the early morning. I guesss Pop (extra PT) PT will be a good thing after my run (which did not go so well). We "get" an extra session each evening. But most of us are in the same boat for one reason or another.

Well tonight is getting some real food, laundry and we get to sleep in tommorow (Hooah). Then to victory tower (repelling) all afternoon. Sweet! we will have some good pics then.

Day 5

2007-09-20T18:48:00.000-07:00

Two of our instructors directing a demonstration of the pushup. Pretty funny. You can't see his arms "shaking". Should have won an oscar!

Well another good day. We had a lot of briefings today. We finally got to wear the uniform. It felt good. We have a great bunch of guys. Most of our guys are prior service. One was in the coast guard during Vietnam! needless to say we are an older group. A great group.
We are supposed to visit services here on post. I am very excited about visiting the jewish and the Muslim service.
Tommorow is the diagnostic PT test. I am not looking forward to it. I really want to do well. But it is going to be difficult, especially the 2 mile run.
We have great staff. They seem to really want us to succeed. Very different than other military schools that seemed to want to make it difficult or only allow a certain number to pass.

Day 4

2007-09-19T14:19:00.000-07:00

---

Lots of time at the Doctor. Shots and exams. Nothing to bad. Several Briefings. We spent some more time putting our TA-50 (pack, webbing, helmet) together.

-Things will pick up steam tommorow. We will finally get to wear our uniforms. I've worn it before, but tommorow I believe it will be different.

We had a devotion this morning prior to the first formation. Man it really set off the day to a good start. I also got a bit more sleep. that may have helped too. Everyone seems to be getting adjusted to life here and getting excited about what's next for everyone. 15 or so will be going on active duty. 7 or so will be full chaplains in the reserves or guard. the rest are chaplain candidates (like me). We are part of something bigger than ourselves. Exciting!

Friday is the PT (physical fitness test). A very important day for everyone. It will also signify a change in how our instructors deal with us. Can you say pushups?

Day 3

2007-09-18T15:59:00.000-07:00

Another pretty low stress day. Long, but not bad.

Showed up at early for formation and a short drive to CIF. There we were issued TA-50(back pack and web gear, flak vest, Kevlar helmet, sleeping bag and a gas mask)

Chapel, then some SPAM training.

Our afternoon was spent putting stuff together. Then we headed over to the PT field to get used to pt sessions later on. It was pretty funny to see 20 odd vehicles in a convoy trying to follow each other through Ft Jackson.

Tomorrow we report at even earlier. Each day there are a few people late. They don't seem to get that if you're late, we have to show up early the next day. I hope we learn to be on time. It is not that difficult. We will be in civilian clothes for one more day.

I am the S-3 for my platoon. I have to know everything that is going on with everybody all the time....

I'm tired an will head to bed after a short run.

Day 2

2007-09-17T15:33:00.000-07:00

First full day of Choblc.
Had briefings on finance. Filled out a lot of forms all morning
Went to the "Clothing and Sales". Man was I glad I spent my time on eBay! Watched all of the guys that spent a ton of money on uniforms. I spent 7 bucks on a PT shirt.
First formation was pretty earkt. Several late people, guess what formation even earlier? Hope we learn! I like my sleep.
Still in Civilian clothes. We should be in uniform in a couple of days.
The PT test is on Friday. Life will change drastically after that I am sure.
Haven't taken pics yet. But I will do better.

Day 1

2007-09-16T14:59:00.000-07:00

My rooms

I'm finally here! It it has been quite a road.
Drove from Tulsa to Greenville yesterday. Up at 4AM, 937 miles later and 14hrs later (does that up?) I may have been speeding just a bit. I did pull over at 5:30AM and sleep for 30 minutes.
Arrived at Ft Jackson (Columbia). Checked into Dozier Hall. Very nice accommodations. A suite. Full kitchen, bedroom, and a small living room. Individual rooms.
Reported in civilian clothes. 45 of us in the course. We have some pretty squared away NCO's (non-commissioned officers, Staff Sergeants). We did some paperwork, got split up into platoons (2), and they released us. No stress at all! Kinda surprising. Still waiting for some harassment. I think everyone is a little nervous. Not bad. We were done by 5:00 pm.

CHOBLC D-4

2007-09-12T15:15:00.000-07:00

I am finally getting ready to go to CHOBLC (chaplain basic training). This has been a 2 1/2 year odyssey that started at the Purpose Driven conference in California. God sure has a sense of humor with the many things that have happened. I won't lie and say that I would like to go through some of the things again. But, other things that I would not change for anything.
Sorry, those are mine. I'm not telling. :)
God is on His throne and has something cool in mind. I think it is pretty cool to think that He might use a broken toy like myself.

My plan is to give a day by day account of CHOBLC (or at least every couple of days). That way those that are looking forward will have some way to know what is around the bend for them. Plus, there are people that might be interested in what I am up to.

I am done with my ADSW (temp active duty) chaplain recruiting duty. I will be off to Ft. Jackson, SC for 7 weeks of basic training. When I get done at the end of October, I will go back to work as a Jeweler and full time seminary in January.

A State of change

2006-06-21T20:08:00.000-07:00

Life is in a state of flux. Constant change.
The last couple of years have been wild. Both wonderful and terrible. Pain and pleasure.
God has brought us through the fire, and now we are on the mend. We will never be there again.
What he has in store is anyones guess.
Hopeful...