A Desert Shield/Storm Christmas
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  1. #1
    Marine Free Member SgtHopperUSMC's Avatar
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    A Desert Shield/Storm Christmas

    Anyone have any stories about that Christmas? I remember getting my first piece of mail on Christmas Eve. It had a canned ham in it that had spoiled on the way over. Plenty of hard candy also. It was from my wife at the time. It was a good time to get it. Oh, except for the rotting meat.

    Merry Christmas!!


  2. #2
    Marine Platinum Member Zulu 36's Avatar
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    My unit (Air Guard) was at Ramstein AB on the way over that Christmas. The local USO fixed up a really nice turkey dinner with all the trimmings, plus a movie (Total Recall). The chow was excellent and the movie was good too (first time I saw it).

    Probably the best memory I have was from during the movie, right after ol' Arnold has his first bloody gunfight and kills four guys. One of our NCOs was a Detroit cop and he popped up (humorously) with, "Shots fired and four dead on the street. Thanks, for bringing us a little slice of home."

    The joke brought the house down, but left the USO people puzzled until we explained that many of us were civilian cops.


  3. #3
    That Christmas was the closest I have ever felt to the real spirit of the holiday. We liberated a gallon of peanut butter and jelly from the seebees, and a couple loaves of bread from the mess tent. Everyone broke out there treats from home and passed them around to round out a genuine Christmas feast.
    That is how it's suposed to be, everyone putting there differences aside, sharing what they have and expecting nothing in return but company and friendship.
    Looking back I don't think I have ever appreciated a Christmas meal as much as that humble little lunch.

    Here's a picture of our camo netting Christmas tree

    http://www2.snapfish.com/slideshow/A...2/t_=114821412


  4. #4
    December of 1990, our platoon was just south of the Kuwait border in Saudi Arabia living in the desert and morale was pretty low with Christmas right around the corner. I got a letter from my wife, who was due with our first daughter back then, with pictures of the new baby!!! Man, those new pictures of that beautiful little girl brightened everyone's mood and we all talked of what college she'd go to and how I'd raise her and love her and we ALL agreed to never let her date a Marine!
    Our moods and morale never faltered once after that moment. We called her "our little Christmas girl". That same night, the rear command finally thought of us and sent us some hot chow and it was GREAT! Beef stroganoff with noodles!! I'm still in contact with a few of those guys and one of them, my best friend, reminded me of that day when I bought my daughter her very first car last month. I've never forgotten about that day...I just bring it out on special occasions. My pride and love for her has greatly grown over the years. I never told her how she lifted all our spirits that day....maybe I will...someday.


  5. #5

    Silent warrior

    I remember our Chrismas prior to the storm. we all were listening to Bing Crosby since I'm dreaming of a white Christmas. We had a 3 foot tree in the middle of our netting. Those were the days.


  6. #6

    Christmas in 1990

    I remember being in the rear @ Al Jabaal in a hamburger line drinking warm apple cider and Odouls.


  7. #7
    Christmas? Don't remember it but I'm sure I was either packing or unpacking from the moving every 2 or three day trip...

    Big Jim, speaking of hot food on the line. remember those great scrambled eggs for breakfast. the ones you had to drain a gallon of water out before you ate them. hmmmm. those were tasty.. lmao


  8. #8
    Marine Free Member sparkie's Avatar
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    I live in Vegas, and go to the buffets from time to time,,,,,, And still love those scrambled eggs,,,,, My wife don't get it, but they haven't changed a bit!
    I'm with ya Kaboom.

    Best day was drinking a coke, and seeing a roundeye. LOL.


  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by kaboom1371
    Christmas? Don't remember it but I'm sure I was either packing or unpacking from the moving every 2 or three day trip...

    Big Jim, speaking of hot food on the line. remember those great scrambled eggs for breakfast. the ones you had to drain a gallon of water out before you ate them. hmmmm. those were tasty.. lmao
    Yeah, I remember those nasty eggs! Thatz cause they steamed them and left them in the steamer to just be served from there!! I got into it with the messhall Msgt. one day over that! We only got hot chow at the most twice a week! And they wanted to feed us watery nasty green eggs! We were eating MRE's dated 1985 the rest of the time!!! Oh well, you can't get chocolate milk from a desert goat!!! No matter how hard you squeeze the teets!! Did you ever make it down to Shaik Isa Air Base at Bahrain? the Airforce had a giant red & white striped circus tent with a small fastfood order station with a beergarden and it was all A/C!!! They built a chow hall there...I mean a real building!! Those basturds had air conditioners in every tent in their tent city....I still hate those guys!!!!


  10. #10
    we went to a place called tent city that had a hamburger joint. Can't remember what it was called. but it was a franchise place back here. It was a small camp trailer turned into a burger joint. That was great. Other than that we went to camp 3 (i think) 2 times that had an olympic pool. there were girls and everything there. lol didn't get to stay long but was nice.


  11. #11
    here's another one. we went over 30 days without a shower. remember trying to trade dick cheese for peanut butter. who was to know the difference anyway. lol


  12. #12
    Quote Originally Posted by sparkie
    I live in Vegas, and go to the buffets from time to time,,,,,, And still love those scrambled eggs,,,,, My wife don't get it, but they haven't changed a bit!
    I'm with ya Kaboom.

    Best day was drinking a coke, and seeing a roundeye. LOL.
    dang sparky, you have to be the only one that did. I would grab what ever "mystery meat" was sevred and an MRE and call it good. I liked Dr. Seuss when I was a kid but green eggs and ham didn't do it for me.


  13. #13
    Phantom Blooper
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    Did you ever make it down to Shaik Isa Air Base at Bahrain? the Airforce had a giant red & white striped circus tent with a small fastfood order station with a beergarden and it was all A/C!!! They built a chow hall there...I mean a real building!! Those basturds had air conditioners in every tent in their tent city....I still hate those guys!!!!

    I enjoyed reading ALL your stories.I was not there...but I was with you ALL in spirit and brother prayers!

    Jim,this quote reminds me of this past Christmas. Our oldest daughters fiancé (good kid/ E-7) is in the Air Force serving in Qatar due to rotate back to CONUS in February. She said that he was depressed because he couldn't be stateside with family and friends and that his unit was having Christmas dinner at Applebees restaurant when he called her on his cell phone,while drinking beer and Santa giving out CD players and IPOD's.....good kid but this story just broke my fuken heart and damn near ruined what little Christmas spirit I had! LMAO


  14. #14
    Quote Originally Posted by Phantom Blooper
    I enjoyed reading ALL your stories.I was not there...but I was with you ALL in spirit and brother prayers!

    Jim,this quote reminds me of this past Christmas. Our oldest daughters fiancé (good kid/ E-7) is in the Air Force serving in Qatar due to rotate back to CONUS in February. She said that he was depressed because he couldn't be stateside with family and friends and that his unit was having Christmas dinner at Applebees restaurant when he called her on his cell phone,while drinking beer and Santa giving out CD players and IPOD's.....good kid but this story just broke my fuken heart and damn near ruined what little Christmas spirit I had! LMAO
    Man...life was rough for them wasn't it? If they endured what we Marines had to endure, they'd be better people and more appreciative of what they have and where they are in life! "AIM HIGH!!," what a joke of a branch of United States military! They flaunted those comforts in our face and even almost started fights when we went in their chow hall once a month in Bahrain!! They really didn't wanna get beat up but they cried so much about Marines being in their chow hall, some Major set up "Marine" hours only!! Man, I felt discriminated against!! Your story just confirms my experience with them "Wingnuts." APPLEBEE'S!! Man, life in the Air Force is rough, ain't it?! Those experiences just makes a person hard, you know?

    I mean only at Mildenhall Airforce Base, England where we Marines were treated with the utmost respect I had ever seen. I, along with 30 other Marines, had to fly a special filght home on a C-141, which was barely flying for all its broke d!ck controls and we barely made it to England! Being fresh out of the desert and around civilization again and real food, we all turned in our weapons at the Armory and made a bee line for the chow hall!! We walked in and everyone stood up and cheered and clapped for us!! That was my first parade! LOL! They gave us whatever food and drink we wanted until we couldn't eat no more! I had prime rib and mashed taters and gravy and stuffing and cranberry sauce...man, it was like Christmas!!! You know as well as I do, the true way to a Marine's heart is through his stomach!! So, I guess the Airforce are good for something....


  15. #15

    cold steel 1/6

    The last 2 months prior to hell opening up was primitive. We lived in dug out L trenches. I got in touch with my squad leader last year and we had went 100 days without a shower. After awhile you just pressed on and scrubbed off the crusties with the k-bar or bayonet. AH those were the days. God Bless my fellow Spartans past and present. You have never lived until you have almost died.


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