TRCNAK - "Da Hug"

TRCNAK has become the writer I always knew he could be and sends us a back to back installment. His earlier post is here. In this dispatch he writes about how complaints are "handled" by the troops performing their mission. He writes:

Since I’m “dusted in,” I’ll write another installment.

I think we’ve all had that sixth sense that something is missing. You may be walking in the woods and realize that there is something different. The birds have stopped chirping, or there is a lack of background noise. Well, I just realized that I’ve been here for several days now, and I have heard very few complaints.

Now I have an honorable discharge from the Navy and an honorable discharge from the Army. I can say that I have heard a wide spectrum of truly unique and creative complaints. I’ve heard people who would win gold in world class complaining. We used to have a saying in the Navy that if the bitching stops, prepare for a mutiny.

The secret weapon in today’s arsenal against complaining is - (drumroll please) “The Hug.” It is also known as “Da Hug.” I’ve seen it once. A female sailor came into the shelter and was explaining her assigned task. The group talked through the problem. Using my knowledge of logistics, I agreed with the other troops that it was going to be impossible to meet the timeline. Then she screwed up. She complained.

The biggest dude in the shelter said (sweetly), “Do you need a hug?” The whole place went quiet, and the Army guy said under his breath “Oh, shit.” The female sailor had that “deer in the headlights” look. She knew she had screwed up. Her eyes darted around the room, and she said meekly, “Yes.” Her stance changed as she braced for it.

No one in the shelter moved. The big dude hugged her sweetly but it progressed into a grapple. That’s when I saw her form a ‘spear hand’ and stab him rapidly in the ribs about five times in one second. But, he is one big dude and he was having none of it. He twisted her head around and started to take her to the ground, but she broke out of the embrace with an upward movement of her right arm.

They broke apart laughing. He said, “You let me know if you ever need another hug.” She put a chair between them and started backing out of the shelter never turning her back on him. She peeked back in the shelter and said, “I’ll call you if I do.” and then escaped before he could get up again. One of the other guys looked at me and deadpanned “Dude, you don’t want 'DA HUG'” I believe it, and it appears to be very effective.

“Out Here”
TRCNAK

As we all know brother, if a soldier isn't complaining something is definately wrong, soldiers as a "species" have taken bitching to an art form, and I've met some of the best artists. So glad to hear that our troops are able to refocus their energies so quickly onto handling the tasks at hand and not falling into the trap of constantly complaining and not working on a solution. Keep up the good work, stay safe, and drink water, 'til next time brother.

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