It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

So, we are down in Houston, TX for the Holidays. It is always interesting to see how people in different parts of the country celebrate the season. In the DC Area, people are always busy working so Christmas is just a little more hustle and bustle thrown in on top of what is ordinarily an overly busy place. In Texas, if traffic is any indicator, people have pretty much stopped doing anything other than shopping.

The kids and I have wandered into the fray a few times... Hopefully, we will finish our quest for the perfect Christmas gift today. Above all else, we are trying to remember to "keep Christ in Christmas".

Dragging Vampires Into the Light

Yesterday, USAspending.gov went live. With this database, you can "follow the money" and determine how your tax dollars are being spent. This is a great tool that I am sure will continue to improve and will make us all better stewards of our resources.

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Combat Fitness?

Here we are, over 6 years into the Long War, and the military - especially the Army and the Marine Corps - is coming to terms with what the term "combat fitness" really means. Are you combat fit if you are a marathon runner, but you can't carry a rucksack more than half a mile? Arguably not...

This week, the Marine Corps Times' cover story is on the redesigned "Combat PFT". It remains to be seen whether this PFT will replace the Pull-up, Crunches, 3 Mile Run PFT version. We have been told to expect more shuttle runs, sprints, fireman carries, and grenade throws.

Overall, this is a good idea since it makes us better able to handle the stresses of combat.