Paul Garth's Projects & Actions

Teamwork
-Pretty good teamwork happening with our team of four today, which is good. We all have something we do well, and help each other.

Comms
-I heard that our team is showing most of our soldiers as “Comm Ready”, which means that they are being seen online, which is great. Not sure if they measure between teams, but we’re doing well.

Heat
-Day-over-day it’s getting really hot. Was 109 degrees by end of day. Tomorrow may be even hotter. I need a wide-brimmed hat. Used to have one of those for hiking, but can’t find it unfortunately. Might have to get one, as I have over a week left.

MREs
-We scored a whole box of MREs from one of the soldiers because we were making a big deal of them. I’m keeping my three packs for ultimate disasters.

Navigation
-One of the soldiers asked us how we were so effectively finding them. We said we’re using a military grade app. What’s good is that the soldiers are coming out for battery swaps, because they see us being out there as well – I think.

Truck
-We had second truck for our team today. I was driver of 2nd truck, which was fun. Mostly offroading on dirtpaths, and then improved roads. Have to remember, when going up hill, to never stop…

Conversations
-We’re going back to the same locations over several days. Opportunity to engage in conversations with soldiers over time, and learn more about them and their current training engagement.

Lotion:
-So far, the inexpensive Albertsons SP30 suntan lotion (greaseless and non-odor) is working well. Strategy is to apply at home, so I can see what I’m doing in the mirror. I then re-apply twice during the day. Key, for me, is to pretend I’m washing my face and neck — that way, I get the lotion everywhere I need.

Water
-Was really hot today (close to 100) and predominantly not in the shade. Also, was clambering up on top of military vehicles. Needed to suck down a lot of water — at one point it was several pints bottles within one hour. Must have needed, because only went to bathroom once during the day. I keep forgetting to take the electrolyte stuff I bought.

FREDI Location
-The lesson is that nobody will place a device exactly where you actually need it. I’m resolved to now just relocate, if I can, any device that’s obviously in a non-convenient location, and that won’t disturb any installation. That will avoid expending energy getting frustrated.

Tactical Nav
-I’m not the primary in using this app, so I’m just using it for my own purposes. I’ve found that it’s really accurate. One thing is to ensure I save any new waypoints because if I quit out of the app then I lose the input. Also, I have to ensure I’m in the correct folder before creating a waypoint — XCTC folder.

Map Reading and Land Navigation
-I saw a group of soldiers laying out on the ground what looked like a map of an engagement. They were quite creative with pieces of cardboard and twigs, to create the overall visual. This is a file for Map Reading and Land Navigation, by the military — here for reference, as I don’t see needing this right now.