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See photos from Army’s 25th annual Ten-Miler in Washington, D.C.
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Bank fraud concerns delaying veterans’ access to GI Bill funds
According to this blog found at Stars & Stripes, some veterans are having to wait several days to use the money from their GI Bill because banks are concerned about check fraud. Banks are holding the checks several days until they clear, which is surely creating financial headaches for affected veterans. Wow, as if our veterans already haven’t dealt with enough! I’m a veteran and if not for the GI Bill I wouldn’t have been able to complete a four-year degree. I know how crucial those monthly checks were in helping me pay rent, bills and books. To think other veterans could be having a hard time getting their money concerns me.
Here’s the blog: VA to banks: Those emergency GI Bill checks are real.
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VT vs. Nebraska: What would ‘Ice Man’ do?
Nebraska head coach Bo Pelini’s decision Saturday to punt instead of going for it on 4th and 1 from Virginia Tech’s 37 yard line frustrates me to no end. The Hokies defeated the visiting Huskers 16-15 on a come-from-behind play that came in the closing seconds of the game. It was an awful ending for Nebraska fans.
In choosing to punt, Pelini was playing not to lose instead of playing to win. His decision got me wondering: What would retired Nebraska head coach Tom Osborne have done in that situation. I know the answer.
The Huskers are my second favorite team, behind Clemson, which lost to Nebraska in last year’s Gator Bowl. We were at that game and for Tiger fans it turned out to be a miserable day. My wife on the other hand, who is from Omaha and a diehard Huskers fan, had a big time.
Having watched Nebraska football the last 12 years alongside my wife I’ve become familiar with the Cornhuskers’ program, particularly coach Osborne, who out of admiration I nicknamed Ice Man. I came up with that name because of Osborne’s cool sideline demeanor he displayed through every game, even during the most stressful moments.
In Husker lore, Osborne is often remembered for his gutsy call during the 1984 Orange Bowl when the Huskers were facing Miami for a national championship. The Huskers had just scored a touchdown after Jeff Smith took an option pitch and scrambled 25 yards along the right sideline to the end zone. That put the score at 31-30, still Miami’s lead. With only seconds left on the clock, Osborne was not the least hesitant in his decision to call a 2-point conversion. That as opposed to playing it safe and kicking a PAT to end the game 31-31. Ice Man wanted his players to win the championship, not end their hard fought quest for a title in a draw.
The 2-point conversion failed after QB Turner Gill’s pass was batted down by a Miami defender in the end zone. The win gave Miami its first championship.
Flash forward 25 years to Saturday’s game in Blacksburg. With little more than 2 minutes to play in the game, Nebraska took over on offense. The Huskers led 15-10 and all they needed to do was sustain a long drive and run out the clock. With 1:51 to play, Nebraska was faced with 4th and 1 inside VT territory. Nebraska had been enjoying a good amount of success running against VT, so it seemed going for the first down was the obvious choice. Just one yard and the game is Nebraska’s. Instead, Pelini marched out the punt unit.
VT took over from its own 12 and after two unsuccessful attempts, QB Tyrod Taylor danced around in the backfield before unleashing an 81-yard bomb to a wide open receiver that carried the Hokies to Nebraska’s 3. VT scored the winning touchdown on the following play. I felt terrible for my wife; after all, she had spent the earlier part of Saturday with me watching Clemson throttle Boston College.
In the hours following Saturday’s game, I thought about Ice Man and what he would have done if he had been on the sidelines. I remembered the failed 2-point conversion against Miami and the guts it took to call it. And despite the losing outcome, it was the right call, one that undoubtedly taught Nebraska’s players a valuable lesson: In whatever you do always work hard and do your best, because in the game of life there are no ties, just success or failure.
Osborne played to win, not to lose. There’s no doubt in my mind what he would his decision would have been Saturday. He would have gone for the first down.
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Astronauts’ view of volcanic eruption
Wow, have you seen this photo provided by NASA? It was taken by astronauts aboard the International Space Station. In it you see the devastation of the Sarychev Volcano soon after it erupted, Friday, June 12. Read more about Sarychev’s eruption at NASA’s Earth Observatory page. The site is filled with more photos of Earth taken from space.
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Did you get married on 9-9-9?
Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2009, or 9-9-09, turned out to be one of the busiest days for weddings, officials reported. And in Virginia, lottery number combinations 9-9-9, 9-9-9-9 and 9-9-0-9 were among the most popular for Wednesday’s Pick 3 and Pick 4 drawings. Read more in this article from the Associated Press.
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NBC/Notre Dame football - getting old?
Is the NBC/Notre Dame football connection getting old?
Notre Dame beat Nevada 35-0, Saturday, and most of those points were achieved in the second quarter. Despite the obvious foreseeable blow out, NBC never turned away to other programming. That’s because the network has a contract that gives it exclusive rights to TV coverage of Notre Dame home football games. Which also means that NBC couldn’t break away from the game if Notre Dame was winning 85-0 four minutes into the first quarter.
A two-hour infomercial featuring Tony Little hawking his ridiculous Gazelle contraption would have been more entertaining than the game’s second half.
I understand NBC’s reasoning for putting Notre Dame football on TV lockdown. The team has a winning history that fans of other programs can only dream of achieving. The Irish have at least 11 national championships dating back to 1924; the last one coming in 1988 under coach Lou Holtz.
As well, Notre Dame is not scared to play anybody; you have to love the Irish for that. This season’s remaining games are against Michigan, Mich. State, Washington, Wash. State, Boston College, USC Trojans, Navy, Pittsburgh, Purdue, Connecticut and Stanford. With the exception of Connecticut (no offense, I know UConn is relatively new to the Div. 1A ranks), that’s a tough schedule. It also shows potential for several televised match-ups that viewers will likely want to watch, if not to see Notre Dame than the opponent. That’s smart marketing at NBC.
But playing Nevada, which finished 7-6 in the WAC last season, including a Humanitarian Bowl loss to Maryland, is hardly an enticing televised match-up (understandably unless you’re a ND or Nevada fan). And beating the Wolf Pack 35-0 certainly is not the same as beating Michigan or the Trojans by the same score. When Notre Dame does get back to a day when it once beat top programs 35-0 than I’ll start watching the entire game. And that’s what NBC is hoping for.
If you answered yes to whether the NBC/Notre Dame football connection is getting old, the news isn’t good. In June NBC and Notre Dame renewed their contract through 2015.
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LIFE: ‘Wolves in the wild’ slideshow
Check out LIFE magazine’s slideshow of wild wolves in Canada.
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Senator calls for investigation of private security contractor in Afghanistan
A private security contractor hired by the U.S. State Department (and no, not the company formerly known as Blackwater USA) is facing a potential investigation after claims that mistreatment of guards at the U.S. embassy in Afghanistan is threatening the safety of embassy personnel. The contractor is ArmorGroup North America. I found this story at the Stars and Stripes Web site.
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My father’s old baseball uniform
While visiting my parents in Maine this summer I had the chance to attend the 60th anniversary celebration of my father’s high school. Dad was a graduate of the 1949 class of Parsonsfield Seminary, also known as Par Sem. He was also among the last students to graduate from Par Sem, for the school closed its doors in 1949. Today, the buildings that housed the old school are registered national historic landmarks.
Dad grew up in a small village about 30 minutes from Conway, N.H. and graduated from Par Sem with just 7 other students. Four of the graduates are still alive, three are dead and the last, a woman, has not been seen or heard from since graduation.
In 2001, my father retired from Clemson University in Clemson, S.C., after nearly 40 years of teaching English there. He’s now 77. But as a teenager in the 1940s he was an avid baseball player, especially during his years at Par Sem.
Several years ago, while renovating the house my father grew up in, my parents discovered Dad’s old Par Sem baseball uniform. It was tucked away in a box in what used to be the barn where as a youngster my father performed the typical chores a child’s assigned on a farm. Dad has since donated the uniform to Par Sem, which has a room dedicated to donations from graduates.
At this summer’s anniversary celebration I got to see the uniform on display for the first time. It’s housed in a wooden case with a glass door and a brass placard overhead that reads “Original 1949 Par Sem baseball uniform worn and donated by Frank Day.” Also at the celebration, Dad pointed to a field behind the old school building that was once Par Sem’s baseball field. Tall trees and wiry shrubs covering what was once the infield were all evidence that time has been no kinder to the field than it has the surviving members of the class of 1949.
While sometimes I wish the uniform had been passed down to my brother, sister and me, I’m more pleased Dad donated it to his old school. Because long after my parents are gone, and perhaps after I’m gone, Dad’s uniform will be on display at Par Sem, not far from where he used to play baseball.
Wikipedia also has some good information about Par Sem.
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AP: 10 tips to know about swine flu
According to a report today by the Associated Press, more than 1 million Americans have fallen ill from swine flu since the virus surfaced in April. And since that time, about 500 Americans have died because of the flu.
But the news isn’t good. Officials suspect the number of swine flu cases in the United States will rise sharply this fall, perhaps in part because of students returning to school. This Associated Press article published Tuesday Sept. 1 provides 10 tips readers should know about swine flu.
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World’s best spot to look at stars
Do you like looking at the stars at night but can’t find a suitable spot to get a really good view? There’s good news and bad news. The good news: Scientists have just discovered what they believe is the world’s perfect site for stargazing. The bad news: That ideal location is a heck of a long way from the Albemarle and a lot colder.
Read more about it here.
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Revealing the symbols of the $1 bill
Here’s an interesting blog I came across this evening. The writer explains the mysteries behind the symbols found on a $1 bill. It’s odd, however, he never mentions the Freemasons and their most frequently alleged link to the images emblazoned on the note. Hmmm, what do you think? Check it out here.
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Health reform talk got you sick?
Have the last few weeks of health care discussions and town hall meetings made you feel a little woozy and sick to your stomach? Has the media circus left you lightheaded? Dizzy? If you’re like me than any adverse reactions you may have suffered also have not bode well with the fact that you are not as knowledgeable on health insurance reform as you’d like to be.
I’ve read several pieces on the Internet in the last week that have helped me to get a mental grasp of this confusing and complex health care reform issue. While I haven’t decided where I stand on the issue of government controlled health insurance, I do feel I’m in a better position to consider the possibilities after reading the following articles:
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The first two articles are basically lists of frequently asked questions about health care reform. Both are really good and cover a variety of questions.
- About 46 million Americans have no health insurance, and of those who do have insurance 25 million are underinsured, according to this article from CNN.com
- This list compiled by the Daily News newspaper in New York City answers the question of how bad is our current health care system.
- This is a link the government’s official health care reform Web site. It has lots of information. Especially useful is a map of the United States that provides information about how health insurance reform can benefit individual states. Click on North Carolina to learn how reform could eliminate a
hidden premium tax
some providers currently charge. - This article from Yahoo! lists five
freedoms
you could lose as a result of health care reform measures. - And last, the following video was found at WRAL.com in Raleigh.
- Raleigh/Durham International Airport does not offer complimentary wi-fi. My laptop was useless, unless I wanted to start a monthly subscription for just four hours of usage. No thanks.
- JFK International Airport in New York City does offer free wi-fi. Kudos to JFK for doing it right.
- On a not-so-positive note, 45 minutes seems to be the average time passengers flying out of JFK will sit in the plane before it’s finally cleared for takeoff. Duh! It is a major international airport, so waiting in the runway lineup behind several other planes is to be expected.
- Despite their age, AC/DC still rocks and puts on an awesome live show. Brian Johnson, AC/DC’s lead singer, will be 62 in October.
- Gillette Stadium, in Foxborough, Mass., outside Boston, where we saw AC/DC, is an outstanding NFL stadium.
- My father was a graduate of the 1949 class of Parsonsfield Seminary, a small school in North Parsonsfield, Maine. The 1949 class was the last to graduate Par Sem and my dad is the youngest living Par Sem alumni. Last Saturday we spent the day with my parents helping dad and his schoolmates celebrate the 60th anniversary since the school closed.
- Picking wild blueberries atop Stackpole Mountain is pretty fun, as long as the black bears stay away. None showed up the day we were there.
- The stone entranceway and stone flower planter that my great-grandfather built is still standing in the front yard of the home my mother grew up in on Little Island, a tiny stretch of land off Orr’s Island, Maine. My mom moved away in the early 1950s to marry my dad and the house was sold out of the family a few years later.
- Not to brag, but I’ve eaten a lot of Maine lobsters in my life. Thursday night my Aunt Shirley had everyone over and my cousin’s husband, who hauls lobsters for a living, brought 36. We steamed them in the garage and I ate four. Maine lobster still tastes great, especially with butter.
- Elizabeth City is in desperate need of a Dunkin’ Donuts. They are everywhere in New England and pretty plentiful in the south. Why not one in EC?
- Lastly, Elizabeth City is much hotter in August than Maine. Stepping off the plane in Raleigh Tuesday we were floored by the humidity. It’s good to be back, though, and back to work.
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Let Conan blow up your old car
The federal “cash for clunkers” program isn’t the only way to use your old beater vehicle to get a new car. Another way involves explosives and a very bad ending for your junker.
The “cash for clunkers” program provides savings of up to $4500 in rebates when buyers trade in their gas-guzzling clunker for a new vehicle. No doubt the $4500 rebate is awesome and hard to resist, but there’s at least two things American’s like more than buying a new car at a ridiculously low price. The first is watching fast-action movies and TV shows that feature cars getting blown up in fiery explosions, and the second is winning free stuff, especially a new car. NBC Tonight Show host Conan O’brien is offering the chance to do both, with the added twist of winning a brand new Lexus.
In a contest O’brien is calling “Conan, please blow-up my car!,” viewers can submit a photo or video of their rundown gas hog for a chance to win. Once a winner has been chosen, the winning vehicle will be packed full of explosives and blown up during a live taping of The Tonight Show. While certainly that sounds exciting, there’s more. The owner of the winning vehicle also will be awarded a 2010 Lexus HS250h hybrid. This car is sharp and photos and details of it are available at the NBC Web site.
All you have to do to qualify to win is submit a photo or a video of your vehicle to The Tonight Show Web site. All entries must be received by the afternoon of Aug. 21. Good luck!
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What I learned on my summer vacation
We returned from Maine Tuesday afternoon. It was a good summer vacation and we had a great time visiting my parents and family. This is what I learned during our trip.
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Welcome back to Hull, Mass.
I got a “welcome back” card during a quick trip to Hull, Mass. Wednesday. I say that with quotes because it really wasn’t a welcome back card.
After leaving Brockton, Mass. Wednesday after watching AC/DC the night before, I decided to take my wife on a quick trip to Hull, Mass. Hull is home to Coast Guard Small Boat Station Point Allerton, and that’s where I was stationed from 1991 to 1993 when I was in the Coast Guard for several years in the 1990s. By car, Hull is about 45 minutes from Boston, but by boat it’s only about 15 minutes away.
Until Wednesday, I hadn’t been back to Hull since I left to attend gunner’s mate school at Yorktown, Va. I left active duty in 1997 but have always wanted to go back to Hull since I left in 1993.
Once in town, I took my wife to see the Coast Guard station and later we found the old house my friends and I shared. The station and the house have both changed a lot in 16 years, but it was neat to see them again.
Afterwards, my wife and I parked along the main street running through Hull and walked on Nantasket Beach for about an hour. When we got back to the truck a bright orange parking ticket awaited me on the front windshield.
I had parked along a strip of sidewalk that was painted yellow for no parking. Duh! I never saw the yellow paint and for my absentmindedness I was awarded a $20 fine. It was totally my fault. I plan to pay the fine online so I can keep the ticket as a souvenir of my return trip to Hull.
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My mom’s old house
I’ve been to Maine a million times. I grew up in Greenville, SC, but spent every summer and winter riding up and down I-95 with my parents to visit my grandparents and other relatives here. My grandparents have long since died, but the remainder of my family still lives here.
Both my parents are from Maine, but my father’s teaching job at Clemson University brought them south. Where I am at the time of this writing is at my aunt’s house on Orr’s Island. Her home once belonged to our Aunt Kay and Uncle Joe. Her backyard overlooks Lowell’s Cove, where the house that she and my mother spent their childhood still stands. We went down and looked at the old house (which is still lived in) and not much has changed. The old stone walls and stone flower planter that my great-grandfather built are still there. But there are many changes, particularly the motel that was built next door to the house. Yea, that kind of sticks out.
My mom just pointed to the house and showed me the windows that mark the bedroom that was hers when she lived in it.
I’m 42 and the house that I grew up in still belongs to my parents and they still live there when they’re not in Maine. As a child, it was the only house I ever knew and I still call it home. I dread the day we have to sell it and dread even more the thought of strangers living there.
My parents are in their 70s. I can’t imagine the emotions my mom and aunt experience when they look out from my aunt’s back porch and see their old home.
The house my father grew up in belongs to him now and that’s where my parents stay when they are in Maine. That house is in a village about two hours from here near the New Hampshire line. I’m sure Dad gets sad when walking around his home and noting the dozens of changes that have been made since he was a child. After all the renovations my parents made in the 1990s Dad’s house looks entirely different. While I know he enjoys the new look, he must long for a few signs of what it use to look like.
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Nothing new, AC/DC rocked
As expected, AC/DC rocked. They opened with “Runaway train” and later Angus Young performed a 20-minute solo, which included him being lifted about 50 feet in the air on a small platform. Sadly, I fear this could be the band’s final tour.
After the opener, singer Brian Johnson spoke to the audience briefly, saying it was good to be in Boston and tonight “the party starts here.” And that’s what it was, one big party held outdoors where the New England Patriots play.
The band closed for the first time with another 20-minute version of “Let there be rock.” However, anyone who’s seen AC/DC knows that every show ends with an encore performance of “Highway to Hell” and “For those about to rock, we salute you.”
They also played several songs from the Bon Scott era, or pre-1980. I’ve been listening to AC/DC since about 1980, so it was nice to hear “Let there be rock,” “Dog eat dog,” “Dirty deeds done dirt cheap” and “Shot down in flames.” Considering the band has been touring since late last fall, Johnson’s voice sounded fine.
Last night’s concert even included fireworks after the band had said good night for the final time. AC/DC has always been among the best, if not the best, of rock entertainers. They know how to put on a show and money spent on tickets is always worth the cost.
The band also is known as one of the loudest live. I guess that’s where they got the nickname “thunder from down under” (for the most part, they’re from Australia). The first two times I saw them were indoors, which left my ears ringings for days. Last night’s show was outside, however, and much easier on the ears (especially at the end when they fired off the cannons during “For those about to rock”).
I’ve been wanting to see AC/DC on this tour for a long time. I didn’t catch the Charlotte show in December because I didn’t order tickets in time. It was sold out, as was last night’s show. And then in early spring the band took off for the European leg of their world tour. I thought I had missed them. However, likely out of demand, the band scheduled several more dates in the United States. Last night’s show at Gilllette Stadium was their first in the United States after returning from Europe. I think they’ll next be at Giants Stadium in New Jersey Thursday night.
This concert meant a lot to me, because Angus Young was my source of inspiration to learn to play the guitar. I started taking piano lessons when I was in the fifth grade and continued up until my senior year of high school. I began playing guitar when I was 13 and still play at least an hour nearly every day. And while I’m certainly not Angus Young, I’m a much better guitar player than I ever was a piano player. My mother wishes it was the opposite; she’s the one who paid for all those piano lessons.
I’m concerned this could be AC/DC’s final tour. There was one stretch during the concert when the giant jumbo screens displayed the front covers of every AC/DC album they’ve recorded. It reminded me of the quick videos you see moments before a legendary actor is presented a lifetime achievement award at the Oscars.
If the album covers weren’t cause for concern, then the jumbo-screen images of a much younger Angus Young performing live certainly was a sign (at least to me) that the boys could soon retire.
Anyone who’s really followed AC/DC knows they would never announce ahead of time that this was their farewell tour. It’s not their style. The band has never been about making money any way other than the old fashioned way: persistence and hard work. They are the ultimate example of blue collar rock and roll.
I still have my AC/DC concert shirt from when I saw them the first time in 1986 in what was then West Germany. It was their “Fly on the wall” tour and I’ve cherished that shirt. A few days before we left for our trip to Boston I tried it on. I was hoping to wear it and show off my old school concert shirt, as it lists several European dates, including the show I saw in Nurnburg. I don’t know what I was thinking, because the shirt was much too small for me. I was disappointed but and my wife and I got a good laugh.
That’s what AC/DC has always been about, good times and good laughs. Along with those comes good memories, of not just AC/DC, but also of times spent with friends from a much younger time in life. Farewell tour or not, AC/DC will always rock.
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Four more hours to AC/DC!
It’s 4:30 p.m. Tuesday and we’re getting ready to leave our Brockton hotel room and head over to Gillette Stadium. The gates open at 6 p.m. and the locals here say we should get over there by 5:30 p.m. because of the traffic. Luckily, we’re only about 15 miles from the stadium.
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“City of Champions,” Brockton, Mass.
Tuesday morning we’re heading to Boston for the AC/DC concert. It’s sold out, according to Ticketmaster.com. We’re staying in a hotel in Brockton. Sound familiar? Anybody been there? It will be my second trip to the town, which is about 30 miles south of Boston.
The city’s motto is “City of Champions,” and according to its Web site it is home to two world champion boxers, Rocky Marciano and Marvelous Marvin Hagler.
Here’s a link to the city’s Web site.
The town has an interesting history.
Brockton Mayor James E. Harrington.
Bonus
I watched the first part of NBC’s “The Storm” Sunday night. As expected it was ridiculous, but I did find it more entertaining than “Meteor,” which aired on NBC a couple of weeks ago. I liked how the plot in “The Storm” involved manipulating the weather for use as a military weapon.
However, I can’t imagine that not one person in the entire state of Colorado (where the secret experimental station is based) never noticed the almost hourly bursts of three giant neon blue lasers penetrating the skies before bouncing off a series of satellites and striking their intended target on the opposite side of the globe.
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Heading out on an AC/DC vacation
It’s 11 p.m. Saturday and my wife and I are sitting at gate 16 at JFK Airport in New York. We’re tired and we’re waiting to board our connecting flight to Portland, Me.
But I’m also excited. We are on our way to visit my parents, who have a home in Maine near the New Hampshire border. We go every summer, but this summer I’m especially stoked to be on vacation. That’s because on Tuesday my wife and I are driving down to Boston to see AC/DC in concert at Foxboro Stadium. That’s where the New England Patriots play.
AC/DC is my favorite band and this will mark my third time seeing Angus and the boys in concert.
Finally, it’s time to board the plane. I hope to write more about my trip to see AC/DC.
Oh, yea, “For those about to rock, we salute you.”
Latest comments
Fright Night Haunted House - How about we waited in line for two hours Saturday night to go through. This was our first time going. After standing in line for two hours, we were rudely shouted at by the li’l crossing guard woman, that writes everyone
... read the full comment by Heather B. | Comment on Heading out on an AC/DC vacation Read Heading out on an AC/DC vacation
Hope you have a great time !!!
My bro and I saw AC/DC in Charlotte, NC on 12/18/08. The boys put on an awesome show … as usual. This was my fourth AC/DC show, and the boys have only gotten better with time.
Jenni
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I don’t agree with the Army’s decision by not letting the reporter to return to be embedded with that Unit. When I was deployed in 2004 to 2005 to Falluja with the 2ND Infantry Division out of Korea we had a reporter embedded with us. I think
... read the full comment by S. Everett | Comment on Stripes reporter banned from covering Army unit Read Stripes reporter banned from covering Army unit
We need to let our President & Congress know that we as Americans need to take of ourselves and let those companys that aren’t able to maintain to move on so those that are able can move up. The Goverment has no business trying to run a company
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