One thing I really like about serving as an Army officer is the variety of duties I've been able to perform in my 17+ years of service.
I started my career as an aviator. I was trained to fly UH-1H and OH-58A/C/D helicopters. That, in itself, was unusual and exciting. I think it's fair to say that not many people have learned to fly, fly helicopters, under night vision goggles, at nap-of-the-earth altitudes, and fired a variety of aircraft-based weapons such as hellfire missiles, 2.75" rockets, Stinger air-to-air missiles, and .50 cal. machine guns. I mean, that is some cool stuff!
But then, in 2000 I was given the opportunity to move into public affairs. I now get the chance to tell the Army story.
This blog is not about that, really, but about my particular experiences in the Army and in life. However, being a public affairs officer (PAO) has brought me a whole new set of unusual and "wacky" experiences.
Now I routinely rub elbows with culturally powerful and influential people. Actors, journalists, musicians, politicians, singers, writers, filmmakers...these are the people that make my job unusual by Army standards. But I can say with sincere honesty that rarely have I met one of these "beautiful people" and were awed by their presence. The only cheesy photo I have is a shot of me with my arms around Randy Couture and Rich Franklin when they were visiting us in Iraq in 2006. I look at most of them as just ordinary people trying to do their job, just like me.
This year I've worked projects with Jake Rademacher (movie, "Brothers at War"), the TV show "Army Wives", a TV project with Ricky Shroeder, and another project for MTV. Each time I've interfaced with "famous" people. I try to be helpful and friendly in all of my actions...I want to my very best job in all that I do. I wonder if they are confused when we don't fawn all over them in the process?
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