A Kindred Cowboy Soul

The Jersey Cowboy at The Questing Cat is at war, but that's not what he's posting about. He's cold and having comflicting thoughts about his dislike for the feeling and his like of the idea. He's also a fellow D&D geek! Check him out!

I utterly hate the cold. One of the reasons I retired in Arizona rather than PA was to endure the absolute minimum of winter weather. On my last tour to Korea, we suffered the worst blizzard in over 50 years the day after I got off the plane. I had my field jacket with liner, but that was poor defense against the numbing Siberian below-zero temps that sat over Korea that month. They couldn't issue me a parka for weeks because the issue point was inside a secure area and the security office wouldn't unpack from their office move for a while to process me. Fortunately, I had enough stripes that I didn't have to shovel snow at the squadron--I actually didn't even have to do anything but call in daily to see if I could report to work. That I could do in civvies, so I bought a nice warm Goretex coat and stomped through the snow from the hotel to the base, where I could get breakfast, a big cup of joe, and a Pacific Stars and Stripes to read.

At the end of my tour, I had to turn in my parka the day I turned in my badge. I braved the December ice-winds in my field jacket, all the while cycling profanities against the winter through my brain on the way home. After my retirement ceremony and final outprocessing, back to the snuggy-warm civvies until my flight out of Inchon. I'd spend Christmas with friends in Phoenix, gloriously clad in a short-sleeved shirt and slacks. Hang in there, Cowboy!