Stan R. Mitchell's Blog, page 61

Rest in Peace, Tyler Cone

A fellow Marine shared this on facebook: Rest in Peace, Tyler Cone.

It’s a story that’s unfortunately far too common. A returning vet taking their own life.

If you get a moment, read the short story of his life and try to think of a vet you know. Honestly, there’s almost no one who goes in who doesn’t come back changed and a little messed up.

Or, at least it’s almost always this way with the Marines that I know.

And partly it’s because things are so clear while you’re serving. You’re doing worthwhile work, you have the closest friends you’ll probably ever have, and things are simple. (Not always fun or easy, but certainly simple.)

And when you get out, the freedom and sudden lack of responsibility is a cold, hard slap in the face. You go from being a hero and doing something worthwhile to stocking shelves and dealing with some seriously immature and spoiled people, who just don’t get it. And you’re getting all these questions about what’s it like to serve and it’s just impossible to answer to someone who’s never been there.

Ack. It’s too complicated to get into without writing a novel. Please read about Tyler Cone (link, once again) and then share some love in the world.

To a vet, if you can, but since we’re impossible to approach or help sometimes, help someone who’s just hurting.

That stranger at the gas station who hasn’t taken a bath or shaven.

That weird friend on facebook who’s posting odd and scary posts on their timeline.

Hell, go give ten or twenty dollars to that woman or man who pulls up to a gas pump in a beat-up car and a look of desperation and fear in their eyes. 

Spread some love and good karma, friends. This world can be a cold, hard place.

Keep the faith,

Stan R. Mitchell

Oak Ridge, Tenn.

P.S. If you enjoy fast-paced books, you just might like my works. “Sold Out” tracks the life of a legendary Marine Sniper after a CIA unit decides to kill him for reasons of national security. “Little Man, and the Dixon County War” tells the uphill fight a young deputy faces after surviving three years of war only to find himself in the sights of a mighty cattle baron. And “Soldier On,” a short novel, follows the lives of several German soldiers in a depleted infantry company trying to make it through the final, miserable months of World War II.

My Valentine’s Day recap… And a three-season Kung Fu DVD set?!?!

I had a good Valentine’s Day.

Got to take this hot lady at left out to dinner, and I did my best to spoil her the past few days.

Since the past year was so brutal — fighting to save the company, only to come up short — I decided Danah deserved more than just an Valentine’s Day spoiling.

So, three days ago, I surprised her with a gift, and it was the first of three days worth of surprises — all involving jewelry, which according to her I did well on. (Have to give some credit to both her, and the lady at the jewelry store, of course! Danah learned years ago that I’m both dense and dumb, so months ago she hinted that if I needed something simple as some future gift, there were a couple of sets of ear rings she had that needed replacement due to loss or damage.)

I think she expected one set of ear rings, so I surprised her with both sets on two different days, and then found an awesome necklace and matching set of ear rings to give her today. (You can see them above, sort of!)

The jeweler I bought them from is a business friend, so he knocked the price down (too much), but it sure made my day to spoil her like I did. She certainly deserves it.

And I was thinking I had done pretty well until I saw my gift.

Danah blew me away by buying the three-set DVD collection of the original Kung Fu television series, with David Carradine. Yes, Kwai Chang Caine, aka Grasshopper. Not bad, those who got it. (Now, imagine his voice: “Your knowledge, young disciple, is remarkable, and not like the leaves, that blow across the ground, but like a tree, firmly rooted, deep, unto the ground.” Okay, that sucked, but I love the quotes in these episodes!)

Oddly, I had tried to find some episodes of this on YouTube a few months ago, and she had no idea how much I used to enjoy watching them. She told me it was just a hunch and shot in the dark, but it had kung fu in it and she did lots of research on it and saw it had great ratings, so yay, Danah!  (I actually didn’t even know these DVDs were for sale, or I’d have rectified this situation years ago…)

Anyway, we’re both on Cloud 9 after the awesome gifts and an amazing dinner with too much steak and potato, which the restaurant absolutely nailed.

And since I’m putting Danah’s pics all over the internet, I figure I should do likewise.

So, here’s me with the three-set DVD series.

Here’s me pretending to be a Shaolin warrior…

And here’s Maggie, screwing up my attempts to pull off an amazing shot that might go viral and earn me literally millions. She jogged up, nearly knocked me down, and then looked up at me as if she had done nothing wrong. Dogs… How could you not love a face like that?

I think she’s saying, “Put me in the picture, Daddy, and you’ll sell a dozen books tonight.”

Or, maybe she’s saying, “You’re ignoring me” or “I need to go out,” but would you really want to chance that? So, don’t let the dog down, help me replenish the depleted bank account, and tell me about your Valentine’s Day in the comments!

Keep the faith,

Stan R. Mitchell

Oak Ridge, Tenn.

P.S. If you enjoy fast-paced books, you just might like my works. “Sold Out” tracks the life of a legendary Marine Sniper after a CIA unit decides to kill him for reasons of national security. “Little Man, and the Dixon County War” tells the uphill fight a young deputy faces after surviving three years of war only to find himself in the sights of a mighty cattle baron. And “Soldier On,” a short novel, follows the lives of several German soldiers in a depleted infantry company trying to make it through the final, miserable months of World War II.

How to respond to negative people without being negative

I needed to read this… Really dealing with someone who drives me crazy and gossips and judges to no end.

How to respond to negative people without being negative.

So, how do you deal with negative people? Do you blow them off? Avoid them? Try to change them? Or what?

Keep the faith,

Stan R. Mitchell

Oak Ridge, Tenn.

P.S. If you enjoy fast-paced books, you just might like my works. “Sold Out” tracks the life of a legendary Marine Sniper after a CIA unit decides to kill him for reasons of national security. “Little Man, and the Dixon County War” tells the uphill fight a young deputy faces after surviving three years of war only to find himself in the sights of a mighty cattle baron. And “Soldier On,” a short novel, follows the lives of several German soldiers in a depleted infantry company trying to make it through the final, miserable months of World War II.

The most dangerous job in the world?

I dare you to watch this entire video below… Could you do the job for $15,000?

You have to watch it, all the way to the end.

I did, and it literally nearly made me sick watching it. Just amazing…

One person on the facebook post that this originated from has to go to OSHA classes for climbing and said they show this video in OSHA classes, and that the instructor said a climber makes $15,000 each time he does this.

So, watch the entire video — it gets worse toward the end — and tell me in the comments if you’d do this once for $15,000.  (Don’t just skip to the end. Some of the transitions required in the middle of the video are just unbelievable, as well…)

Keep the faith,

Stan R. Mitchell

Oak Ridge, Tenn.

P.S. If you enjoy fast-paced books, you just might like my works. “Sold Out” tracks the life of a legendary Marine Sniper after a CIA unit decides to kill him for reasons of national security. “Little Man, and the Dixon County War” tells the uphill fight a young deputy faces after surviving three years of war only to find himself in the sights of a mighty cattle baron. And “Soldier On,” a short novel, follows the lives of several German soldiers in a depleted infantry company trying to make it through the final, miserable months of World War II.

Jewish hospital a fixture in Tehran

An odd story I came across today that both knocks down a stereotype I held and gives me just a bit more hope in the world.

Jewish hospital a fixture in Tehran.

I know I’m a little dense in the head, but if you had told me prior to me reading this article that there were Jews so openly (and safely) living in Iran, I’m not sure I would have believed it. (Would you have?)

Yet more proof — me thinks — that much of our knowledge from the media is far too generalized (and often wrong). And given that the hospital has been there for fifty years, it reminds me that no matter how loud and ugly the crazies may be, their power isn’t nearly as strong as they think.

UPDATE 5:41 p.m.: My friend Raj, who has a PhD and is about a million times smarter than me, made the following comment on facebook, which I thought was worth sharing: “Persia also known as Iran (British name) has had Jews from the times of the Old Testament. Iranians do not hate the Jews, they hate Zionism and the state of Israel. Rather the Koran directs Muslims to protect the people of “The Book.” Jews have left Persia after the formation of Israel to be in the promised land, not because of prosecution.”

Keep the faith,

Stan R. Mitchell

Oak Ridge, Tenn.

P.S. If you enjoy fast-paced books, you just might like my works. “Sold Out” tracks the life of a legendary Marine Sniper after a CIA unit decides to kill him for reasons of national security. “Little Man, and the Dixon County War” tells the uphill fight a young deputy faces after surviving three years of war only to find himself in the sights of a mighty cattle baron. And “Soldier On,” a short novel, follows the lives of several German soldiers in a depleted infantry company trying to make it through the final, miserable months of World War II.

No excuses, no matter how old you are

Now if this doesn’t motivate you, then nothing will!

No excuses, indeed!

Keep the faith,

Stan R. Mitchell

Oak Ridge, Tenn.

P.S. If you enjoy fast-paced books, you just might like my works. “Sold Out” tracks the life of a legendary Marine Sniper after a CIA unit decides to kill him for reasons of national security. “Little Man, and the Dixon County War” tells the uphill fight a young deputy faces after surviving three years of war only to find himself in the sights of a mighty cattle baron. And “Soldier On,” a short novel, follows the lives of several German soldiers in a depleted infantry company trying to make it through the final, miserable months of World War II.

Don’t ever lose your faith in the world…

Help someone today. 

Encourage a friend who’s down.

Stop and lend a hand to someone overtaken by trouble.

Keep the faith,

Stan R. Mitchell

Oak Ridge, Tenn.

P.S. If you enjoy fast-paced books, you just might like my works. “Sold Out” tracks the life of a legendary Marine Sniper after a CIA unit decides to kill him for reasons of national security. “Little Man, and the Dixon County War” tells the uphill fight a young deputy faces after surviving three years of war only to find himself in the sights of a mighty cattle baron. And “Soldier On,” a short novel, follows the lives of several German soldiers in a depleted infantry company trying to make it through the final, miserable months of World War II.

Worst driver ever?

I had to share this…

Keep an eye on the scooter at the upper right when the video starts.

And after the video, make sure you read some of the comments I nabbed off YouTube. They may be even funnier, if that’s possible…

Hilarious comments of note!

Barbara Williams: “What I love is that he starts off with a passenger — who decides that he/she has had enough after the FIRST crash and doesn’t get back on!”

New Knave: “When the guy does disappear down the hole, no one goes to see if the poor chap is okay, one or two actually run away!”

Oriana Nichelle: “Give it enough time, Stupid fixes itself.”

Can anyone come up with a funnier comment? Or a hilarious caption? (Hat tip to Raj Jain for sharing this on facebook!) 

Keep the faith,

Stan R. Mitchell

Oak Ridge, Tenn.

P.S. If you enjoy fast-paced books, you just might like my works. “Sold Out” tracks the life of a legendary Marine Sniper after a CIA unit decides to kill him for reasons of national security. “Little Man, and the Dixon County War” tells the uphill fight a young deputy faces after surviving three years of war only to find himself in the sights of a mighty cattle baron. And “Soldier On,” a short novel, follows the lives of several German soldiers in a depleted infantry company trying to make it through the final, miserable months of World War II.

A war memoir that I can actually recommend

All right, crew, today I’m going to get a little wild and crazy and go outside my typical parameters.

That’s right, as you can tell by the image below, I’m going to be reviewing a book — something that for a lot of reasons I don’t like doing, so, no, please don’t, aspiring authors, email me asking to look at yours.

I practically dread even publishing this because I already get too many requests and I’m so dang nice that I have a hard time saying “no.” (I’m the guy who can’t answer the doorbell or I’m going to be buying some friggin’ item that I most certainly don’t need. But they’re working so hard, I tell myself…)

Anyway, with great trepidation I agreed to at least peek at the book “The Lieutenant Don’t Know: One Marine’s Story of Warfare and Combat Logistics in Afghanistan.” (Okay, aspiring authors, I do sometimes glance at books I’m asked to review, but since Jan. 2012, I’ve written about exactly zero of them if memory serves me correctly. This is the first, so hold off on emailing me.)

I hesitantly agreed to look at the above book and told the author in all seriousness that I really am the pickiest reader ever, and I seriously only get through about half of the books I start. (Believe me, it’s a curse I wish I could break… Seriously… And it’s so bad, sometimes I’ll go in a bookstore or library, browse two hours, and buy nothing. Like somehow I instinctively fear that whatever I start I won’t finish.)

But with all that said, I took said peek and literally devoured the book.

Frankly, I avoid most war memoirs. Most read slow and go into page after page about the author’s life — as if we care; we’re only here for the action! And I figured if I can barely get through some Navy Seal or Marine Sniper memoir, why in the world would I even attempt to read about a Marine’s time in logistics?

But Captain Jeffrey Clement writes one of the best war memoirs I’ve ever read in “The Lieutenant Don’t Know: One Marine’s Story of Warfare and Combat Logistics in Afghanistan.”

First of all, the book will really challenge the thinking of a lot of infantry Marines. (Maybe Navy Seals, too?) The amount of danger these Marines faced is unbelievable. (And after an infantry unit fails to fight their way into Sangin, guess what Marines actually enter first? Yep, Lt. Clement’s Marines of CLB-6. [In fairness, it was partly due to their increased experience in road ops, but it's still a reality that an infantry unit tried to fight their way in, was rebuffed, and the "logistical" Marines fought their way in first. And it's a feat that can't be knocked down or easily rebuffed.]

But Clement doesn’t try to make it sound like the logistics guys have it worse. He acknowledges that grunts have it worse from a suck perspective. Multiple times. (And he talks openly about the guilt he feels when he is able to get cleaned up while the grunts are out there in the mud and muck — something I had never considered from the flip side.)

But the Marines of Clement’s unit were seen as slow and easy targets, and the Taliban tangled with them all the time. (After all, who wants to tangle with some dirty, pissed off grunts looking to shoot something? Much more fun to shoot at the guys rolling 3 mph down the unimproved “road.” And seriously, my fellow trigger pullers, who wants to be in a truck pulling about 5,000 pounds of fuel alongside a couple of hillsides while bullets bounce off your trailer and IEDs explode to your front? That’s something I’d probably rather avoid doing.)

The book definitely opened my eyes to the logistical challenges faced in warfare period, but especially in Afghanistan. And it definitely doesn’t get bogged down in his personal life, like so many non-fiction memoirs seem to do.

In fact, one of the best things about the book is it takes you back to when you were serving. The hurry up and wait. The stupid regulations and games you have to play when you’re in a safe area and some stupid Gunny is complaining about your chewing gum or putting your hands in your pockets.

And just like when you served, there are stories of shocking bravery and leadership by Officers, SNCOs, and NCOs. And then Clement doesn’t hold back and shares stories of unfathomable incompetence by that same group, as well.

And he pulls all this together into a tight book that moves fast and takes you back to your own time, when you experienced these very same things… It’s really a moving, inspiring work, that’s enjoyable as hell, as well. 

Definitely one to buy. Here’s the link again: “The Lieutenant Don’t Know: One Marine’s Story of Warfare and Combat Logistics in Afghanistan.”

Keep the faith,

Stan R. Mitchell

Oak Ridge, Tenn.

P.S. If you enjoy fast-paced books, you just might like my works. “Sold Out” tracks the life of a legendary Marine Sniper after a CIA unit decides to kill him for reasons of national security. “Little Man, and the Dixon County War” tells the uphill fight a young deputy faces after surviving three years of war only to find himself in the sights of a mighty cattle baron. And “Soldier On,” a short novel, follows the lives of several German soldiers in a depleted infantry company trying to make it through the final, miserable months of World War II.

Winter is coming, but you don’t have to despair

My friends and supporters know that I’m so dang close to getting Mexican Heat down. (For those who don’t know, Mexican Heat is the sequel to Sold Out.)

And for probably two or three weeks now, I’ve been telling my beta readers and close writing friends that it would be done… “Probably in a day or two.” Or, “Just two more scenes, most likely.”

And I’ve said that multiple times. “Probably in a day or two.” “Just two more scenes, most likely.”

And then tonight I cranked out another 2,700 words. (For me, that’s a marathon, by the way. I’m a plodder, not a sprinter — with a good night being 800-ish to a 1,000 words and an average one being 500 to 700.)

So, frustrated tonight, I decided to re-read my writing tips file that I’ve collected through the past ten-plus years, and do some online research. Maybe ole’ Stan was losing his touch, right?

I mean, the 2,700 words I wrote tonight felt solid. Like, really good. But, I just crossed 90,000 words and I still haven’t gotten to those two final scenes that I know must happen. (Most novels should aim for 60-80,000 words.)

Then, I read this by George R. R. Martin, a legend obviously, and felt instantly comforted.

“Sometimes these damn characters have a mind of their own and refuse to do what I want them to do”. — George R R Martin

So, the book will be done soon. Probably in a day or two. Just two more scenes, most likely.

And because you guys rock and are such great supporters of mine, here’s some serious motivation I found while trolling the internet, trying to confirm my writer skills weren’t dead.

From, again, George R R Martin. (And if you had to click that link above to figure out who he was, you should seriously punch yourself right in the face.)

Remember: Winter is coming

Valar morghulis — All men must die. I think an awareness of our own mortality is something that concerns most art and literature. But I don’t think that necessarily translates to a pessimistic worldview. Just like in the real world, my characters are only here for a short time; the important thing is that love, passion, empathy, laughter; even laughing in the face of death, is still possible. There is darkness in the world but we don’t have to give way to despair. One of the best themes in The Lord of the Rings is that despair is the ultimate crime. Winter is coming, but you can light the torches and drink the wine and gather around the fire and continue to fight the good fight.

Thanks for being such great supporters, guys. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it and how thankful I feel to be where I am, chasing my dream with every ounce of energy and courage that I can muster, trying to make it to that next mile marker just up the hill a ways.

And I promise: The book will be good. It will have multiple hand-to-hand scenes. And Nick Woods and his crew (yeah, I know, a new development for the typical sniper/loner) will bag some cartel dudes… (Okay, more like a lot of cartel dudes… But would you expect anything less from me?)

Oh, and it will be done soon. Probably in a day or two. Just two more scenes, most likely.

Keep the faith,

Stan R. Mitchell

Oak Ridge, Tenn.

P.S. If you enjoy fast-paced books, you just might like my works. “Sold Out” tracks the life of a legendary Marine Sniper after a CIA unit decides to kill him for reasons of national security. “Little Man, and the Dixon County War” tells the uphill fight a young deputy faces after surviving three years of war only to find himself in the sights of a mighty cattle baron. And “Soldier On,” a short novel, follows the lives of several German soldiers in a depleted infantry company trying to make it through the final, miserable months of World War II.