Quote Originally Posted by goesh View Post
Steve, is this going to be the cover pic for the next book - A Line of Smoke in the Air: Conventional Applications in Iraq......?
There is an associated story that I suspect will become part of Army War College lore.

The latrines at Camp Bucca in the spring of 2003 were just sort of semi enclosed plywood boxes on top of 55 gallon drums. Now, I happen to have a very low gag tolerance. So there I was in the plywood box, 100 degree heat, clouds of flies, perched over top of about 54 gallons of crap. I got a horrible gagging fit to the point I couldn't even pop smoke and withdraw. I was on the verge of barfing. In the next "stall" was Ed Filiberti, my colleague and friend who was, at the time, a light infantry colonel (now retired). My gagging made him convulse with laughter to the point that he too nearly feel into the poop cauldron.

The way I figure it, I was THAT close to a Purple Heart.