• Menu
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Before Header

  • About Us
  • Lexicon
  • Contact Us
  • Our Store
  • ↑
  • ↓
  • ←
  • →

Balloon Juice

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

It may be funny to you motherfucker, but it’s not funny to me.

Let me eat cake. The rest of you could stand to lose some weight, frankly.

When do the post office & the dmv weigh in on the wuhan virus?

JFC, are there no editors left at that goddamn rag?

Everybody saw this coming.

Chutkan laughs. Lauro sits back down.

Democrats have delivered the Square Deal, the New Deal, the Fair Deal, and now… the Big Joe Biden Deal.

Shallow, uninformed, and lacking identity

Red lights blinking on democracy’s dashboard

Is it irresponsible to speculate? It is irresponsible not to.

A democracy can’t function when people can’t distinguish facts from lies.

Nikki Haley, who can’t acknowledge ‘slavery’, is a pathetic shill.

The words do not have to be perfect.

Black Jesus loves a paper trail.

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

“What are Republicans afraid of?” Everything.

You cannot shame the shameless.

Republicans seem to think life begins at the candlelight dinner the night before.

Stamping your little feets and demanding that they see how important you are? Not working anymore.

There are no moderate republicans – only extremists and cowards.

Relentless negativity is not a sign that you are more realistic.

Everything is totally normal and fine!!!

… pundit janitors mopping up after the gop

Today’s gop: why go just far enough when too far is right there?

Mobile Menu

  • Four Directions Montana
  • Donate with Venmo, Zelle & PayPal
  • Site Feedback
  • War in Ukraine
  • Submit Photos to On the Road
  • Politics
  • On The Road
  • Open Threads
  • Topics
  • COVID-19 Coronavirus
  • Authors
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Lexicon
  • Our Store
  • Politics
  • Open Threads
  • 2024 Elections
  • Garden Chats
  • On The Road
  • Targeted Fundraising!
You are here: Home / Foreign Affairs / Military / And the Conversation Picked Up Where It Dropped Off

And the Conversation Picked Up Where It Dropped Off

by John Cole|  February 12, 20141:22 am| 32 Comments

This post is in: Military

FacebookTweetEmail

On 20 June 1992, as Shawn and Geoff Wood (my buddy who died in a car accident who I still, to this day, think about every single fucking day) dropped me off at the Fulda train station, a conversation ended. Today it started again, and I will be damned if there was no interruption in the conversation. It just was like it was just a few days ago. Here’s my buddy Shawn Reagan slinging bass and chilling with Lily:

reagan

We’re rocking out to Little Feat and shooting the shit. He’s playing along with many of the songs and is quite good.

*** Update ***

Not sure if I am just really good at assimilating animals, or if all my animals are sluts and really do not care about me, but I love how they immediately adopt “strange”:

sluts

Fair warning. You walk into my house, you are getting a pet or two on your lap.

Shawn and I both had a good laugh about our mutual involvement and freak-out from the Doha Dash, and got pissed off again by the pigheadedness that led to a hasty clean-up of DPICM and FASCAM and other munitions that led to a couple EOD guys getting turned into pink mist in front of us as they tried to get rid of a bad 120mm round (or whatever it was, and thank goodness I didn’t have to witness that) that had not entirely cooked off. Fucked up shit.

I just remember being in my bunk and munitions started to drop through the roof, and a receiver base for .50 cal landed next to me, and I woke up in a froth and ended up pulling my shit together in a second or two, wondering if they were using Soviet tactics and rolling the arty in before the fight started (I was just a dumb PFC From Fulda, that was all I knew), then figuring out there was no one to kill to make it stop, grabbing my LBE, helmet, weapon, toothbrush, and a carton of smokes and running like hell with Geoff, and meeting up with a bunch of guys in the UN compound. Not much you can do when the motor pool is blowing up and hellfire is raining down on you in all directions. Not like you can mount an assault and take the motherfuckers out. You just run and get out of the fucked up AO and hope you don’t step on a landmine.

FacebookTweetEmail
Previous Post: « Repubs Against Voters: The Hood Mask Is Slipping
Next Post: Early Morning Open Thread: John Oliver Yells at TechNerds »

Reader Interactions

32Comments

  1. 1.

    Mnemosyne

    February 12, 2014 at 1:25 am

    I worked 12 hours today getting my boss’s retirement party up and running. I am now officially pooped, but a fun time was had by all, especially my boss.

    (Plus I get to make Yutsy jealous by telling him I was the first person John Lasseter hugged at the party. Mostly because I was the first person he saw when he got out of the car. The man is a hugger.)

  2. 2.

    different-church-lady

    February 12, 2014 at 1:39 am

    That’s exactly the way it is with friends who are meant to be friends — the way I describe it with my BFF is, “We started a conversation 30 years ago and never stopped it.”

  3. 3.

    Big R

    February 12, 2014 at 1:54 am

    Are Shawn and Geoff Wood kin? I mean, with the same last name and all?

  4. 4.

    NotMax

    February 12, 2014 at 2:04 am

    Oddly fascinated by the box of 120 “Tealight Candles.”

  5. 5.

    gussie

    February 12, 2014 at 2:07 am

    I’ve changed in 20 years. I have different conversations now.

    I used to be nicer.

  6. 6.

    Yatsuno

    February 12, 2014 at 2:09 am

    @Mnemosyne: If it had been Jonathon Groff then oh yeah. As it is I just wanna be in a Disney orchestra. I’m a really good English horn player.

    @Yoda058: Not in the Chair Force, since that body style isn’t what they tend to look for. If he was a Marine I’d be much more concerned.

  7. 7.

    Yoda058

    February 12, 2014 at 2:11 am

    JoCo gives me real hope that it is possible for a young man like my son, who is a junior at the Air Force Academy and wants to become a pilot, could turn out to be OK. The thought has certainly crossed my mind more than a few times that he could become one of those stereotypical, overly macho, misogynistic, big-muscle-small-brained conservative after years of services in the air force.

  8. 8.

    ruemara

    February 12, 2014 at 2:13 am

    @Mnemosyne: You’re not just making Yutsy jealous. :P

    Here’s some pictures of the party I… I wouldn’t say attended, but did get to photograph.

    Dancing

    and acrobats!

  9. 9.

    Eljai

    February 12, 2014 at 2:37 am

    Lily must be quite the Little Feat fan. Or else she just likes cozying up to your friend’s butt — little trollop.

  10. 10.

    maeve

    February 12, 2014 at 2:45 am

    Feat’s don’t fail me now!

    In a fit of nostalgia, I bought this album this year. Best album title of all time.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wgm1DgeBMHI

  11. 11.

    Steve Anderson

    February 12, 2014 at 3:59 am

    I can’t even imagine what this was like. You have served your country, even though it doesn’t deserve it, with dignity and integrity. I appreciate you, and the blog, and your love of furry people.

  12. 12.

    David

    February 12, 2014 at 4:37 am

    Man how the political scene would be diff if only 10% of right wing bloviators could truthfully write a paragraph like that last one. Shit I wish.

  13. 13.

    oldster

    February 12, 2014 at 6:22 am

    I am shocked that you are still playing along with the cover up of Hillary’s guilt in over-heating the munition’s-carrier in Doha-ghazi!!

    Sounds like a bad situation. May the EOD guys RIP. And thank goodness it was not a whole lot worse for a whole lot of people, e.g. you.

  14. 14.

    PurpleGirl

    February 12, 2014 at 7:32 am

    @ruemara: Good photographs. Now that was a costume party with a theme.

  15. 15.

    oldster

    February 12, 2014 at 7:43 am

    And incidentally, props on grabbing the toothbrush. Even when I think I may be under an artillery bombardment, I never forget the importance of good dental hygiene. They may find my corpse riddled with splinters and fragments, but by gum they won’t find periodontia, and they won’t find that early-morning sweater-fuzz on my teeth!

  16. 16.

    Aimai

    February 12, 2014 at 8:07 am

    Wait– last time you guys met you were not a world famous republican apostate and blog owner with fund raising skills, great cooking skills, a troop of adopted sons, your father had all ten fingers, and you had never been quoted in the press for your extensive political commentary. You hadnt even been to a political convention with abl. So what did he say when you told him?

  17. 17.

    Soonergrunt

    February 12, 2014 at 8:13 am

    You were there for the Doha disaster? Christ.

  18. 18.

    donnah

    February 12, 2014 at 8:44 am

    I think many of us forget that you were in the service and that you faced some life-threatening shit, John. And even though you downplayed it in your post, the danger and fear had to have changed you.

    I’m glad you got to hang with an old buddy. I’ve got a friend from college with whom I share a lot of memories and we can do the same thing: pick up the phone and talk like we just saw each other a day ago.

    As for your slutty pets, that just means you love ’em so much they don’t fear anyone.

    Thanks, John. Thanks for everything.

  19. 19.

    Big R

    February 12, 2014 at 9:09 am

    Wow, I look really insensitive now with my earlier quip. Sorry, John.

  20. 20.

    Paul in KY

    February 12, 2014 at 9:12 am

    @Yoda058: The main thing is to do is to ensure he still has compassion for those on the outs & that he doesn’t mind paying his fair share in taxes. If he ends up as an officer pilot (and advances to captain, which almost all do), he will make alot of money. He will run into peers who bitch incessently about their taxes and they will want him to bitch too.

    Starting as an Academy grad & a pilot is about the best start you can hope for in USAF.

  21. 21.

    Paul in KY

    February 12, 2014 at 9:13 am

    @ruemara: Looks pretty ‘Marie Antiontteish’. Was Madame DeFarge in attendence?

  22. 22.

    Paul in KY

    February 12, 2014 at 9:15 am

    @Aimai: I’m guessing he has told him…

  23. 23.

    Yoda058

    February 12, 2014 at 9:22 am

    @Paul in KY: Thanks very much for the good advice on compassion! He and I do communicate with others very well and I will certainly do my best.

  24. 24.

    Paul in KY

    February 12, 2014 at 9:42 am

    @Yoda058: You have alot to be proud of! Best wishes on your son’s future. I served in USAF from 82 – 85.

  25. 25.

    Renie57

    February 12, 2014 at 10:58 am

    What kind of chair is your friend sitting in? It looks like its meant for two people; must be so comfortable.

  26. 26.

    Violet

    February 12, 2014 at 11:09 am

    Love seeing pictures of Lily! Such a sweetheart. Glad you guys are having fun catching up.

  27. 27.

    Mnemosyne

    February 12, 2014 at 11:23 am

    @ruemara:

    Well, I only get a few things to brag about at my job (and the salary ain’t one of them), so I have to get my thrills where I can. ;-) I had my pedometer on all day and registered over 14K steps (a normal day is about 7K), so that says how crazy it was.

  28. 28.

    Hugh G. Rection

    February 12, 2014 at 12:27 pm

    Bitchin’, dude! Too bad you didn’t get your nutsack blown off by some “arty”. What a toolbox!

  29. 29.

    wenchacha

    February 12, 2014 at 1:55 pm

    JC: last night PBS Frontline did a piece on Syria. The saddest part was watching the family of three little girls and their Mom, seeking and finding living space among the rubble of abandoned homes. The 5 year old has seen everything: bombs, explosions, death of a man whose head was exploded in two by a shell. She is a little girl full of life and fantasy and giggles, surrounded by death and destruction. Daddy is away at the war, and they never know if he will return.

    War is such a human failure. Why do we need the big brain if we don’t use it for that which will continue our race? It’s as if we were made to self-destruct.

  30. 30.

    James E. Powell

    February 12, 2014 at 2:16 pm

    I recently had the “conversation continued” experience with an old friend who disappeared from my life, probably not coincidentally, when I got divorced over 30 years ago. We found that we had not moved much from our positions in various arguments, but we were able to agree that Aerosmith’s post rehab albums, while very popular, were not in the same league as their early 70s stuff.

    We also got to thinking and talking about the fact that for almost all of human history these interrupted conversations were very much the exception.

  31. 31.

    John Cole

    February 12, 2014 at 3:19 pm

    @Hugh G. Rection: Ahh, yes, this again. Did not use the approved military terminology 25 years later, and thus, I was never there and I am somehow acting all hardcore when I just told you all I did was RUN LIKE FUCKING HELL.

    Thus sayeth the internet warriors. Also, my weapon was a fucking .45, and not a 9mm, if we want to revisit the classics.

  32. 32.

    LTT

    February 12, 2014 at 7:29 pm

    Well that all sounds fun. No not really.

    Hail to the friend and critters and music. And the memories (may they recede to a soft, quiet place…)

Comments are closed.

Primary Sidebar

Recent Comments

  • cain on Take the Fucking Win (Apr 15, 2024 @ 11:55am)
  • cain on Take the Fucking Win (Apr 15, 2024 @ 11:53am)
  • rikyrah on Take the Fucking Win (Apr 15, 2024 @ 11:53am)
  • Brachiator on Monday Morning Open Thread: The Tariff We Pay for Civilization (Apr 15, 2024 @ 11:53am)
  • Sure Lurkalot on Take the Fucking Win (Apr 15, 2024 @ 11:53am)

🎈Keep Balloon Juice Ad Free

Become a Balloon Juice Patreon
Donate with Venmo, Zelle or PayPal

Balloon Juice Posts

View by Topic
View by Author
View by Month & Year
View by Past Author

Balloon Juice Meetups!

All Meetups
Talk of Meetups – Meetup Planning
Proposed BJ meetups list from frosty

Fundraising 2023-24

Wis*Dems Supreme Court + SD-8
Virginia House Races
Four Directions – Montana
Worker Power AZ
Four Directions – Arizona
Four Directions – Nevada

Featuring

Medium Cool
Artists in Our Midst
Authors in Our Midst
Positive Climate News
War in Ukraine
Cole’s “Stories from the Road”
Classified Documents Primer

Calling All Jackals

Site Feedback
Nominate a Rotating Tag
Submit Photos to On the Road
Balloon Juice Mailing List Signup
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Links)
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Posts)

Fix Nyms with Apostrophes

Balloon Juice for Ukraine

Donate

Twitter / Spoutible

Balloon Juice (Spoutible)
WaterGirl (Spoutible)
TaMara (Spoutible)
John Cole
DougJ (aka NYT Pitchbot)
Betty Cracker
Tom Levenson
David Anderson
Major Major Major Major
ActualCitizensUnited

Political Action 2024

Postcard Writing Information

Balloon Juice for Four Directions AZ

Donate

Balloon Juice for Four Directions NV

Donate

Site Footer

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Comment Policy
  • Our Authors
  • Blogroll
  • Our Artists
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2024 Dev Balloon Juice · All Rights Reserved · Powered by BizBudding Inc

Share this ArticleLike this article? Email it to a friend!

Email sent!