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This blog is about the lives of a few entrepreneurs who are aiming to establish the next trend in social networking and the concept that will make it happen. Since our venture is all about connecting people together, we want to be involved and connected to you and we want you to be involved and connected to us. We'll be sharing with you: who we are, how we got started, how we’re doing and where we’re going...we're taking you along for the ride!!

Saturday, June 23, 2007

Once A Marine, Always a Marine

ORDER TO MUSTER DUTY PER TITLE 10 U.S.C. SECTION 12319

From: Commanding General,
Marine Corps Mobilization Command (MOBCOM)
To: Capt Ann Bernard

Subj:
INDIVIDUAL READY RESERVE (IRR) ANNUAL ADMINISTRATIVE SCREENING MUSTER DUTY & INFORMATION BRIEF

That’s part of a letter, well more like orders, I received a few weeks ago.

At 0830 (8:30am) this morning I was in Annapolis MD, at the
Naval Academy in the basketball stadium with hundreds of other IRR Marines. It was an unbelievably odd feeling to be around former Marines and Marines again.

I’ve been out of the
Marine Corps for almost two years and for the most part, I’ve been avoiding any, and all, contact with anything Marine related. Why?? It’s still too hard. I served for ten years. I was 17 when I joined...the Marine Corps is embedded in who I am and a day like today, makes it very hard for me to not just go back in.

While we were waiting for the General to do his opening statement, all sorts of videos were playing about Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. It was pretty unbearable to be reminded of what my fellow Marines are doing, how they are serving and what they are going through while I’m now safely sitting back here.

Mostly everyone that was in the stadium had served in either Afghanistan or Iraq….some multiple times and all of us are just a call away from going back. A Chief Warrant Officer came to talk to me, to let me know how badly Company Grade Officers are needed in both Reserve Units and for Individual Augmentation (IA) billets. Since returning home, I've been asking myself this question: Given the right billet (job/position) would I go back on Active Duty for a year in Iraq?? I attached some pics below from my tour in Iraq about two years ago...I've been doing a lot of reminiscing.

The Sergeant Major for MOBCOM said something that also stuck with me, he said: “Now, that you’ve earned the title (Marine) what are you going to do with it?” What am I doing to do with it, indeed? A very small percentage of the population will ever earn the title Marine and it stands for great things and has a glorious history attached to it. He talked about how there is nothing a Marine cannot do. We have the discipline, strength, honor and mental fortitude to accomplish, overcome, and achieve anything we set ourselves to do. His short speech was meant to motivate us to sign-up for the active reserve—what it did for me, was really fire me up.

I kicked ass in the Marine Corps and I never took NO for an answer. I never backed down from a fight and I always stood up for myself and my Marines. I fought for the opportunities I wanted and got them. In the last two years I’ve become more docile and less of a fighter. Well, I’m done with that.

I am so fed up and tired of people jerking me around when it comes to raising the funding for Why Go Solo. The way I see it, You are IN or You are OUT…because I’m done holding hands. I came up with a new plan while I was in the gym taking out my frustrations that I will discuss with Martin tomorrow morning.

Someday, some of the people we have talked to about investing in Why Go Solo will look back and hate themselves...but that’s how life goes.

The following pictures were taken in Iraq...mostly in and around the Green Zone. I'm not big on taking pictures, so everytime I left the Green Zone I forgot to take my camera with me...

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