Thank you all with special mention for my name sake and 3 grand uncles who made the ultimate sacrifice.



Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Ottawa
After the Remembrance ceremony those in attendance place their poppies on the tomb.

Happy Veterans Day to all of you who served.

My respects and best wishes.

You guys may remember me talking about my friend Doug who is a WW2 vet. If this link works. It will be of him singing in church last Sunday with a local opera singer. He is noted as "Major" Bartlett....that is his rank in the local cadet corps, where he was an officer and trainer for many years. He was AFAIK a Boatswain's Mate in The RN. He served from 1939 to 1946 and never once got home to Newfoundland during that time ( even though he says he could sometimes see St. John's Harbour entrance while he was on escort duty for Atlantic Convoys ). He served in the Channel, on Atlantic and Russian convoys; in the Med, the Home Fleet and ended the war in the Pacific. God Bless him and all that serve or have served.

Church of the Good Samaritan

Thanks Archie for sharing that. Very beautiful and meaningful. Thank you to all the veterans who have interrupted their lives to serve and who have sacrificed for our nation standing in her defense. Thank you for all that you have done on our behalf and for the freedom and protection that you provide to the citizenry.

A respectful thank you from Flanders!

Big "Salute!" to all the Vets out there

Thank you, vets!
Here's to you!

And a to all the brass out there.

For me it was a totally odd Veterans day. I have got a rather annoying spinal injury as some of know from back in Iraq. I am not trying to get on the feel sorry train although I am angry at the VA like no ones business. But after fighting the VA Choice program for like 4 months to get a spinal injection that might turn down the pain I got it approved on Monday. Today V day my Doc got me in and stuck me. Fastest turn around ever for me. I think fitting on the day. And it seems to already have turned down the pain. I was actually able to stand for like 20 minutes without the usual massive pain and only a mildly numb leg 8 hours later. ya, like my best Veterans day yet. Just to bad I could not hit one of the local events like I try and do. I was busy in a good way.

I know about the VA flashBurn .It's a struggle to get them to do anything,In Ohio it's a pain..I get hearing aids from them and the local VA clinic sends my to Chillicothe I have to make two trips there first for the hearind test then return a weeek later to fit them and test them,,The physical is go one week for bloodwork go back a week later and all they really do is tell me what my blood work shows
Most of the time I just go the DR's about 200 yards down the street

I did not know that Flashburn.
Thank you for your service, and your sacrifice.

Hopefully things at the V.A. will get better, in the near future.
I know they've been horribly bad in the past.

Give it a chance, wait and see......I really do hope, and believe, things will improve.

I'll just chime in that I agree with what Murphy just wrote, and that I'm really glad you were finally able to get that injection. Any chance of follow-up / add-on injections? Would those be expected to help further?

Thanks for your service Flashburn, I'm glad you are getting the treatment you need.

And thanks to Granddad, blinded in one eye at Dunkirk, Dad, who fought the Cold War at the cutting edge, and my great uncle Lucien, who fought Nazis when he could have stayed silent.

I should probably give a bit more back story. The VA proper tried an injection about 3 years ago. But they totally ignored what the hell I was complaining about. As my service connected disability has me listed as 10 percent for this and as degenerative arthritis. Which I might add does not result generally in crippling pain and numb leg that puts you out of work and from re upping on the voluntary. That is I was an idiot and did not complain loud enough and choose to just full fill my contract and not reenlist like I wanted too. Injury was documented with LOD's and all that. Had a dead man profile but I did not make all that much noise. MISTAKE! No idea how that was going to effect everything later threw the VA as it got worse rapidly.

So it took like 3 years of consent complaining to get the 1st try injection. However they refused my request for an updated MRI and more ignoring my medical complaints. They where going to roll with their idiot diagnosis for arthritis. Which IS true, but not what had knocked me out of life. So I got one at the Seattle VA and it did next to nothing. It kind of helped but they refused to do it again as they where expecting it to basically fix me. Then I kept ending up in the ER's over and over again with crippling pain. The last time I got an old Navi DOC in the local hospital that was like WTF is wrong with you. Told him my story and got an ear full of hate about the VA. Ordered an MRI right there. Ya, bone fragment pressing down on my nerve with a bulged disk and bone spurs all over. Sent that MRI bill to the VA. Had to push hard for them to pay for it but they did eventually. When I got home next morning from the ER I had this mailer from my local Congressman, Rick Larson. Come and tell me about your VA issues at the local American Legion. Hmmm ok. Said my peace, got a lot of WTF are they doing looks and the VA reps wanted to talk. More numbers and junk but nothing exactly came of it. Then 3 docs at the local VA clinic quit in protest. One was mine. Got stuck into the VA Choice program as not enough docs. Now I was getting somewhere.

A year later, like earlier this year I worked my way yet again threw months of waiting for appointments. A new DOC to go threw to get an Neurologist appointment. Now possible with my MRI from the ER. That old NAVI doc rocked let me tell you. Also ended up with an open invite from staff at that ER for anytime you need us. That one felt good. They where more than happy to Bill the VA for being idiots. Any rate my Neurologist was like hmmm ok, after the MRI. And ordered an EMG which tests nerve impulses. Took months for VA to approve. That happened this summer. I had nerve damage by this point. Also hypomyalgia from no care thanks to the VA being ass clowns. Back in 2010 they where throwing opiates at everyone. I said no, that is not what I want to do. By 2012 I said ya, I need freaking meds like bad. But the VA no longer was willing to give them out as they made addicts of everyone the previous years trying to keep the them quite. I had to fight for 30 vicodin at a low does a year. That only lasted for 2 years before I lost that too. Dose was to low and did not help all that much. But kept me out of more ER visits for the most part. Also for the 4 hour drives to the UW dental school for my falling apart teeth as I am rated to low for dental there. And then another 3 or so months and more back and forth with the VA Choice for approval for this new injection. And its day 2 and its freaking working. I can still not bear weight but I can stand upright with only a bit of discomfort for like 30 minutes. I hit the range to day with target pistols and I could actually walk off the pistol range 90 minutes later and not the drag my ass to the car as before. WOOT! Couple more days going to try and walk up and down a hill, that is murder. If I can do that with the face of pain I might be able to get a damned simple part time job finally. Well this mess only took 6 years since I left my hospital gig back in 2010 to make any progress at all.

I love being a 19d. This mess started in Iraq. I have no idea why. I was not blown up, I was not shot. Nothing. I was thrown around a turret ring a lot. But no smoking gun so to speak. I did not have any clue how bad it was going to get. I thought just get home and it will be ok. Even when I knew by 3 months from home time I was starting to get into trouble. But the idea of hitting up the medics I new was probably going to be get taken off mission. Hell no. My crew was not going out with out me. No #%&*$# way. When I was offered the wounded warrior platoon I was stupid pig headed stubborn idiot and said no. I was not blown up or shot. I just had a numb leg and it hurt like hell. They did give me 20 percent service disability in 6 months for this. But that was reduced in 2012 when I asked for a eval and increase to 10 percent. I put in for more when I had to put myself on leave from my hospital gig. Little did I know. Made tons of mistakes. Now waiting on a board hearing to see the ass hats that wreck lives. But now no thanks to the VA I have the evidence.

I have no idea if the VA will approve more injections later. Its like pulling teeth to get any help from them. But this wrecked my life. Simple as that. But maybe now I can start pulling myself out of it if this pain is under control.


And that is my VA nightmare. I really try and not say much about this crap. But its freaking insanely crazy. I felt shame for not getting blown up or shot and having such damned idiot issues. But its been long enough that I am just super pissed and now that I have been reconnecting with some of the guys I deployed with I am hearing more horror stories. This #%&*$# ain't right.

Also I forgot to say thanks to my Mum the Nam Navy nurse vet and my grandfather the WW2 in Burma and later Korea vet. I miss him.

Oh I forgot some more nightmare....

Remember when I said I got 20 percent service connected right away? This month they withheld 1000 dollars of my 1050 something for "back pay". You cant get both service connected and pay at the same time. basically I worked for free back then and now they totally #%&*$# me this month on that too. Had to get damned food stamps this month. But that is only for 23 dollars. And this after appealing it. But is pending to be resolved by 2019-2021. What the flying FOOK is wrong with these people?

This will crap will send vets on the edge OVER it. No wonder the suicide rate is crazy for the vets. So with that said, for Veterans day I thank my family and friends who actually helped this one.

I'm really sorry that you are having such problems Flash. I would like to tell you that things will get worked out, but I have been fighting to get two of my combat related issues dealt with. They are recognized as injuries, but are both rated at 0%. They should both be 10%, but if either gets rated as 10% it will change my overall status and they don't want to do that. Been fighting with them for 8 years. They are waiting for me to die or give up.

The VA feels that nothing is too good for our veterans and is working hard to see that they get it.

Man, Flash... that is off-the-scale high suckage right there.

Between your U.S. Representative, and your two U.S. Senators, would at least one of them go to bat for you?

Just found this picture of my Dad. He never saw combat, but still he served. He was stationed in Germany. He drove a munitions trunk. Mortar rounds. He was in during the the Korean War. He turned 89 this week.

You guys with VA Disability problems:

The only way you are gonna get it increased and get the care you deserve is to get a good VA benefits lawyer. I am surrounded by Disabled Vets, all Vietnam era, and to a man they say they had to get a lawyer to get decent care.

Those of you who know me know that me saying get a lawyer is no small thing. Talk to your local VFW folks and find out which firm(s) get results. I know, it shouldn't work that way but it does.

Flash it sounds like you are progressively getting more disabled from lack of care. Get on it man and get a lawyer.