9/11...Never...	33 years old DAYTON, OH
Subscribe to this Blog Add as Friend Start a SlugFest Send a Message

This is from my myspace blog from a few years ago now.  It's a reprint of what I sent to my hometown newspaper Sep 2000 (1 year before), 2 months before I would head to the middle east...and one year before the rest of our lives changed...

Below that, is a description of my day, 11 Sep 01.  Lest we forget...

Thank you Jen...For reminding us.  It's why I still wear the uniform today.

"Flag Flying"
Current mood: awake
Category: News and Politics

This is an entry I sent to the local Vero Beach Florida newspaper, Press Journal back on 22 Sep 00 via email.  It was posted in that week's Sunday paper.  Email account and address are removed.  Little did I know, almost 1 year later things would change due to the horrifying events of 11 Sep 01.

Beginning of the original article

To the Editor of the Press Journal – "Flag Flying"

Please include this article in your next available Sunday edition of the Press Journal.  It is some commentary on flag flying here around Indian River County.  I would like the content to remain about the same, but I do understand that any editorial changes that you seem fit to make will suffice.  Please notify me if this article will run.  I can be reached at my email account; ----------------------------.  My home address is ------------------------.  My home phone number is ------------.  Below are the comments I would like to have run.

I was born in 1975 and can be classified as a Gen x'er although I do not fit the mold of your most common perceptions.  During the Gulf War I was extremely proud to be an American and I noticed in this beautiful town that most everyone was supportive of our troops.  Flags flew in higher numbers.  Yellow ribbons were everywhere and songs like "From A Distance" and "Proud To Be An American" resounded.  I was proud of my countries servicemen then and am equally proud of them now.  Some of our towns young men and women are overseas serving their country with distinction despite some arguments about what that mission may be.  They go because they volunteered to serve their country not for a political agenda.  We should respect their sacrifices of family time and free time by properly flying our flags.  This is a small token to them, but believe me, as a service member myself, when they see "Old Glory" flying in a crisp wind with all of her colors shining bright, it makes a difference. 

Here are some tips to properly show respect to the flag of this beautiful nation:

1. Make sure the flag is in good condition.  If it has tears or is fading, it should be replaced.  You can contact your local Veteran's Organization for more information. 
2. Make sure there is light on it if you fly it at night.  If there is no light, take it down.  A few seconds time is a small sacrifice to make.
3. The next time you talk to a veteran who served in any era, thank them for the sacrifices they made for their buddies and their country or for just being on standby.  They will appreciate it.

Not all of the protocol for flying the flag is included here because of letter size constraints, but ask any Veterans Organization if you are not sure.  They will gladly inform you.

Wayne K. Parsons, Jr., Senior Airman, United States Air Force AD (1996-Present)

End of the original article.

I was on Honor Guard at the time I sent this, and the views expressed, pretty much remain the same now, as they did then…

Thank you, all vets.  Past, Present and Future

This is my 9/11 blog from Sep 2006

September 11th...and what it meant to me in the long run
Current mood: mellow
Category: Life

It's a normal day.  I get up for work, shower and shave and don the ole BDU set, and boots.  Head out in my Toyota Corolla and get ready to start my day.  I listening to either 105.9 or 101.1 on the radio, as usual. 

I'm stationed at Patrick AFB in Florida, near Cocoa Beach and Satellite Beach.  I am a unit deployment manager, on top of doing my normal job.  I've been in the AF for 5 years by now, and I'm a damn good UDM, and the base IDO has recommended that I crosstrain into their career field, a multitude of times.  I've considered it, but I really like what I do in the AF.  On my Outlook, I have an appointment to review the deployment program of the Manpower office at around 0800.  After I get setup at work, I head on over to the wing building to conduct this review.  Some butterbar has it in her head, that the manpower office is commiting FWA by buying certain items, and stocking certain things in each individuals A bag that is stored at their unit.  MSgt Boardley has asked me to review their program, and as an experienced UDM but only an E-4 at the time, I jump at the chance.  I know I'm good at this and thrive on that knowledge.

During the inspection, he asks me to type a letter basically stating, that their program is above board, and that no FWA is rampant.  I notice that all that they have done, is precisely what any smart, warfighter focused unit does.  I am walking back to MSgt Boardley's office, and a civilian who is in the hallway, asks if we've heard the news.  We ask the appropriate question that one who isn't in the know asks.  She then states that a plane has hit the World Trade Center.  We immediately banter back and forth, that it is probably a Cessna.  The thought of terrorism is the farthest thing from our mind really, but we head on over to a TV. 

Another plane hits the other tower, and then we hear of one hitting the Pentagon later on...It is apparent that we are being attacked. 

I head on over to my office by this point, thinking that I am going to be very busy in the next few days, and am feeling my adrenaline rise, and my desire to kill or assist in killing those who have done such a thing to our nation.  We surround the television that day, and not much else gets done, including that letter that I was going to type...Fitting isn't it, that we might be using those very items, in the very near future?

The next few days are a real blur, but two things I distinctly remember...Our base shut down A1A next to the base, due to some very interesting happenings near our installation.  And I sent some folks down range to start a then classified base (but now unclassified) known as Masirah Island Oman.  On one of those busy days in the weeks ahead, I worked from 0730 in the morning to 2230 at night (1030 pm for you civilians).  I then was recalled back to the office at around 0000 (midnight for you civilians).  All of this, in preparation to get our warfighters in the fight. 

In the next few years, I am anxious to get in the war, and on several occasions, make that plainly known to those who I work with.  In 2003, I got the chance.  My troop was to be replaced in theater, and she was going to head home...A 34 day deployment, turned into 153 days, and my first wartime experience.  I am thankful for that deployment, as I learned a lot about myself, and what I was capable of performing in tough situations. 

Upon my return, the first words to anyone, are made to my boss.  "I want to go back in December".  Not a greeting to my wife, but a statement that I want back in the fight (I knew my marriage was failing, just didn't know what to do at that stage).  I didn't deploy in December, but I pulled some strings with my functional, and I headed to Iraq the following March.  Again, I learned a lot about my capabilities, and I learned that yes, I'm capable of taking an individuals life without prejudice. 

Flash forward to 2006.  I'm stationed in the Azores, and again, I'm feeling the itch to get in the fight.  I try pulling some strings to deploy to Afghanistan, but because the other enlisted person in my shop is deploying, I am told no.  In some ways I regret that, but I understood their logic. 

It's now September, and I am assisting a few of my friends with their personal affairs, while they are in the "Sandbox"...That said, I now know my purpose here while they are gone...To assist them, whenever, and wherever I can...To include being there to support my bestfriend in the world, while she is fighting the war.  I am now content with the fact that all needs aren't in the sand as a warfighter...Sometimes being the shoulder someone leans on, or the ear someone needs while downrange, can provide a very key ingredient to the folks putting iron on target, or assisting in the endeavour.  Since 9-11, I have searched for a way to support the war, and get involved...Little did I know, I was doing it the whole time by being a dedicated UDM, and taking an active roll in those warfighters affairs while they were preparing to go, or were already gone.  And now, I'll do it as a friend, since I'm no longer a UDM.  That in itself, can make me sleep good at night, and will over the next few months, while many of my friends, are in harms way.