Mass Effect and Days Off

W00t! I'm happy to report that after a couple months of casually playing on and off, I've beaten Mass Effect on PC! I bought it back in September, and I scared my roommate when I cursed loudly while trying to install the game. The SecuROM DRM prevented me from launching the game until I could activate with the internet. It wasn't until a month later that I actually got personal internet and was able to start playing. (Does EA really expect me to have an internet connection in the middle of the desert?) I'll also say that it's a system hog; my new laptop, built specifically to play modern games decently, is barely able to handle the game.

Having voiced those gripes, I'm very happy with the game. It's an original IP and storyline, and the backstory and plot are excellent! I was drawn into a galaxy of interesting alien races, clashing politics, and intense combat. Commander Shepard is a great lead character. The plot forces the player to make some tough decisions, something I haven't seen in a lot of recent games. Sure, there are the Good vs. Evil choices that only affect the side plots, but then there are harder decisions, beyond Good and Evil, that actually affect how the main game plays. It's more than what I've come to expect from BioWare RPGs. Just brilliant.

I finished the last bit of the game most of yesterday. While Sgt. Rhino has been on leave, Sgt. Antonio decided to flex his new sergeant stripes and implement one day off per week. Yesterday was my second day off since... getting to Iraq, really. Our fearless leader has been less stringent about people taking reset days, and many sections have taken advantage of the new policy. All I can say is, hallelujah!

Things are still relatively quiet. We've completed a couple of projects, and we're enjoying the time away from Sgt. Rhino. He's a great leader, but he does like things done his way, to the letter. It's a little easier to work without being micromanaged. Spc. Bonita is still with us, but we're starting to understand why she had personality issues at her home unit. She tends to be controlling, and a bit bi-polar. Still, she's friendly and outgoing, and she didn't deserve the treatment she was supposedly getting at her own unit. She'll be re-integrating with them soon, as they're scheduled to leave in a few months. I don't know what she'll do when she gets back home, but she'll be out of our workplace, and perhaps we'll have a little less drama.

A New Era

I've just finished watching the inauguration of our 44th president. So much has already been said about the significance of this moment in history. Even though I can't lay claim to any African American cultural heritage, I was still deeply moved by the idea that we are closer to equality than perhaps ever before.

This is one of the moments in history that I can tell my children and grandchildren about: those moments when you'll never forget where you were when you learned it happened. For other generations, those moments were the attack on Pearl Harbor and the assassination of JFK. I don't quite remember what I was doing when the Berlin Wall fell, and my recollections of the Gulf War are fuzzy at best.

But I do remember a fateful morning in my sophomore year of high school. In Spanish, my first class, there were rumors of news from New York. A small plane, perhaps a single-prop, had accidentally glanced off of a building. Anyway, no matter, class had to continue. But in my second class, chemistry, the teacher was listening to the radio. He didn't attempt to teach the day's lesson. Instead, we listened to the confused and panicked reports. Realization slowly hit me that this was much larger than an amateur pilot's navigation error. Confusion ruled the day, but by the evening, details emerged. September 11th would be a day to remember.

In contrast, I'm proud to say that I will always remember today. At the end of one of the most ground-breaking elections in American history, a victor emerged. He brought hope and moral values back into the hearts of Americans. In a time of seeming darkness, he is offering light. And this evening (for my time zone), that leader has been sworn in as the defender of the free world, and my new Commander in Chief. I'm proud to say that when President Barrack Obama was elected, and when he was sworn in, I was serving my country in a combat zone, defending the people and the country I love. Though it pains me to be away from my beautiful new wife, my family and friends, I'm proud to say I've done my part for America. For all it's flaws, our country still remains a beacon of hope and opportunity in the world.

So pray with me. Pray that President Obama will be imbued with wisdom and integrity, foresight and energy. He'll need them on the road ahead. God Bless America.

After the Holidays

Now that the flurry of the holidays is over, we've been settling back into the routine. I've been finding myself less pleased about my situation. I'm still trying to stay positive and use my time and stay involved, but it seems harder somehow. Although I know I have a long ways to go, I'm definitely ready to go home. I've seen my share of this base. I'll keep plodding along, and keep doing my online courses and helping out at church, but that doesn't mean I'm enjoying my time. Why didn't I go Air Force? I'd be done by now!

I've recently been reflecting on another issue: reenlistment. I told myself that I wouldn't be able to decide until I had a taste of deployment. And now that I'm here? Well, the time away sucks, in a big way. I see the same people every day, nonstop, no days off. I try not to think about it often, but I do miss everything about home. But another issue is the copious amount of BS that the military brings to the picture.

For instance: when it comes down to it, I like Sgt. Rhino and I respect his abilities as an NCO and a leader, but I disagree wholeheartedly with him on a few points. Spc. Gadget and Sgt. Rhino seem to butt heads every week, because Sgt. Rhino is only willing to see problems and solutions from his own special point of view, and Spc. Gadget swears that he knows a better way to do it. It got so bad last week that Spc. Gadget went around Rhino and asked Mr. Wizard for permission to fix an issue. Essentially, Gadget got an answer he didn't like from mom, so he went and asked dad, which has never worked out well for me. Mr. Wizard gave Gadget permission, without realizing that he was vetoing Sgt. Rhino. In the end, Gadget saved a couple people a little bit of time and then found himself in a world of trouble with both Rhino and Wizard.

Basically what I'm trying to say is, there's the right (industry-standard) way, the wrong way, and the Army way to solve problems. The Army way works, but it's usually not the right way, nor the easy way. It's a big downer when I start thinking about whether to re-up. Do I really want more of this? At least at a civilian job, I can just quit! On the other hand, staying Army is the patriotic thing to do, and more opportunities will present themselves. I still have time to decide, and the rest of this deployment will help determine my answer when that day comes.

Al, the Pop Culture Rock Star

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