DUNBAR

I'm going to start things rolling with KC, but I'm curious if anyone has any commentary on "Veterans United" for VA mortgages?

Wow, thanks for posting that blog. Very interesting read. It's curious how he talks about the job being "financially taxing" -- you'd like to think these guys are making some decent coin but I guess not. What a tragedy. RIP.

Best of luck to you -- looks like you're getting quite a bit of good advice on this thread. I feel like I have quite a bit of experience on this topic so let me throw in my 2 cents: 1. Guard and Reserve opportunities will be very beneficial. No matter how aggravating things are, when you pull the plug you'll be surprised how much you miss the camaraderie, the flying and the good times (even though the good times often feel rarer and rarer). Additionally it obviously helps with the $$$. 2. The recruiting companies can/will do great things for you -- resume prep, interviews, etc. It's much more challenging to get a job without them unless you have very strong connections. 3. When you work with the recruiting companies, never forget their guys are paid on commission based on how many hires they place, so do your homework on the companies and opportunities they set you up with. 4. PRACTICE your interviews. Job interviews tend to be surprisingly standard...."What are your strengths? What is your leadership style? Tell me about a time you took the initiative. How do you resolve conflict?" You should be prepared for 90% of the questions they throw at you. 5. Don't underestimate yourself. Companies love junior military officers; that's why there's such a huge industry dedicated to placing them. You have a security clearance, you're reliable, you're trainable, you're probably healthy and physically fit, you're respectful and polite, you've been in stressful sutuations before, you're drug-free, etc etc. There's a hell of a lot of people in the workforce who can't say that. 6. It's a good idea not to buy a house during the first year or two, until you're confident you've attained a good employment situation. Rock the house

What the heck? The Deid thread falls to page 3??? This calls for another video:

I thought HUW posted a picture of it. Either he deleted it or I'm hallucinating again. Hopefully it's the latter.

Please tell me that flight suit the CSAF is wearing has been photoshopped. Is that for real? I'm deployed and out of the loop.

I don't believe the tobacco issue has anything to do with the morality police -- I think it's just a tax/AAFES issue. Hopefully it will be resolved soon. The bigger issue here has been the great sickness of Nov 2011, which is causing more GI distress then you even want to imagine. Hopefully that's in remission too. For me, the most cosmic mystery about the undisclosed location in South West Asia is the threshold rule. As far as I know (correct me if I'm wrong) they don't play by that rule at the undisclosed Army base here or at any other Army base in theater. Don't know whose rule it is or if anyone has ever really pushed to test (congressional, etc) but it amazes me we are forced to live with it. As a 20 year married dude it isn't a real concern of mine (like tobacco) but the policy has always surprised me. Oh, and this place is hell -- I had to drink my Bombay and tonic last night with no ice.

It's not a complete disaster. If you read the "who what where why and hows", the "how" is described as "based on your personal preference." If that's not an invitation for sarcasm, mockery and general ridicule, I don't know what is. My personal preference is to recite the creed with my best Joe Pesci "Casino" impersonation, with an f-bomb as every 4th word. What's your personal preference?

The really infuriating, bizarro thing about all of this is they are talking about saving $250B over 20 years with this draconian, slash-and-burn proposal. Math in public, but isn't that like $12.5B/year? Isn't that like beer money when compared to the annual DOD budget? I concede that there will be a day in the near future in which we have to unplug the 20 year retirement system. But before we do something so radical and disruptive, shouldn't we make a real attempt to cut the fat, fraud, waste and abuse in the DOD budget? Here in my undisclosed location in SW Asia, you can't swing your reflective belt without hitting a brand new king cab Ford F150 4x4. Walk through downtown Honolulu on any weekday morning and tell me how many uniformed military personnel are staying at the hotels downtown. Maybe people who set foot somewhere in the vicinity of the middle east for a day don't need that entire month tax-free? Maybe evaluate the 18 gazillion intel agencies that sprung up after 9/11 and see how many are redundant? Sheesh.

Just arrived in Deidville for a 179. As a staff weenie, I can't speak to life for the aircrews, but generally speaking life is pretty damn comfortable here. I was a little disappointed to discover that even as a Major I'm in the trailers for 1-2 months, but overall I can't find much to complain about. I was here 4 years ago and Coalition Compound/Trailertown is almost the same with the Fox Sports Bar being the exception. The biggest difference from 4 years ago is that due to all the new BPC construction, trailertown is so much less crowded. No more shaving with 40 of your closest friends. Oh, and no more ration cards--beers are tracked on your CAC card. Wi-Fi is good in the trailers but not great. I've been able to skype from the room with no booster but there's been some episodes of marginal connectivity. Lots of hokey rules but good food and very comfortable living. 2 BXs, swimming pools, movie theaters, sports bar and O club, library, community center, nice fitness centers. And downtown Doha is not too shabby either.

Multi-year thread bump. I just wanted to say my 2 cents on cholesterol. Approx 5 years ago the flight doc, after years of badgering, put me on the zocor as my total cholesterol was 280 or thereabouts. Although my cholesterol totals plummeted like a rock, after several months I began to feel lethargic. It was very slow and insidious, and I thought "well, welcome to middle age." Little by little the muscle pain and lethargy got worse. Climbing a flight of stairs was to be avoided; running a mile and a half was inconceivable. As I began to research this dreaded cholesterol menace, that has 10s of millions of Americans popping pills every day, I was stunned. I was stunned at the prevalence of nasty side effects (muscle degradation, neurological disorders) and at all the whispers in the medical community that maybe this theory of cholesterol and saturated fats was completely erroneous at best and a cynical money-making scam at worst. I laid off the drugs and felt 100% better. I suspect the flight doc may roll in with guns blazing and that's OK. I'm obviously not a medical professional. But please, please, if the doc starts pushing the statins on you, please do some objective research and be vigilant about the side effects. I believe there's a former flight doc (Graveline?) who is quite prominent in the anti-statin crusade. We obviously can't believe everything we read on the internet, but after decades of Americans popping these pills like candy, it's important to start asking some tough questions.

Yeah, I can see your point 3 H. I've done quite a few partial DITYs. We did a big one last summer and I was stunned how little the DOD is compensating us for it these days. I loved loading the truck on a 100 degree day too. Take your time, be safe, and keep your figures legit.

Seriously 3 holer. Is your shtick just an act to push our buttons?