Quick update: I’m back at McChord, but I spent the past few weeks at the Air Force Medical Law Consultant (MLC) Course. The MLC Course was a great overview of the Air Force Medical Service, the various specialized areas of practice within the Medical Corps, and the many ways provision of medical care and the law are intertwined. Most of this course took place at Wright-Patterson AFB, near Dayton, Ohio, but we also spent a few days at Andrews AFB in Maryland (which is where I’ll be moving this summer). I have a lot of photos from this month-and-a-half trip (all of which comply with HIPAA and the Privacy Act!), but I wanted to post just one for now:
All those smiles disappeared when the surgeons told us what they really think of lawyers.
These are all the other course attendees — most of whom are fellow Air Force JAGs, but several are Navy JAGs. I enjoyed meeting all of these folks (plus the various facilitators/presenters) during the course and I am sure I’ll call on all of them sometime during my assignment as a medical law attorney for the Air Force.
I’ll be posting more photos from this trip (and more on our pending move to Andrews) soon!
M83′s “Midnight City” has been playing on an endless loop in my head lately…and if you watch their video, there’s a good chance you’ll get the bug too.
One reality of my life in the military is frequent moves. Whether this means a permanent change of station (PCS) every two or three years, or extended temporary duty assignments (TDYs) every couple of months, it seems like — especially over the past two years — my physical location has been in a constant state of flux. One surprising benefit of this lifestyle is that I’ve been forced to think about material possessions — and how much “stuff” I really need.
A year ago, while I was deployed to Afghanistan, I basically lived out of a backpack; I didn’t need much, and in many ways it was very liberating to be free from worrying about possessions. I was reminded of this as I spent the past two months of this year living out of a suitcase while I was at Squadron Officer School. It really is amazing how few items I need to live, and to live pretty comfortably at that. While I’m not quite ready for something as extreme as the “100 Things Challenge“, I have found that purging my home of things I haven’t used in more than a year is a good reminder of the fact that anything important cannot be bought (not even on Amazon). And although the military life has taught me to enjoy being a modern minimalist nomad — quietly rebelling against the Western consumerist culture — there’s also a big downside of moving so often when it comes to human interactions.
McChord Field: always like this (except for the ~70% of the year when it’s not…)
Maybe it’s just all the fresh evergreen-scented air, or the omnipresent view of Mt. Rainier, but I really have loved being stationed at McChord. Besides the awe-inspiring scenery, I feel like my time in the Pacific Northwest has been so enjoyable because of the genuinely amazing people who’ve come into my life through our local church and at work. I’ve also been lucky enough to make some great friends in the past year while traveling (while deployed, at SOS, and hopefully at my upcoming TDY for the medical law consultants course). Honestly though, I think part of my “luck” has been adapting to the small window for developing new relationships; being in the military and moving so often has forced me to recognize that I only have a finite amount of time to make friends. This is universally true — eventually everyone moves on, in one way or another. Still, Cori and I have learned to be much more proactive in reaching out to others — even when we maybe feel like “we’re new, and they should reach out to us”. I know I can do a better job at this, though, so I guess that’s one more lesson I’ll take with me as we prepare to move to Joint Base Andrews this summer.
Until then, I’ll keep winnowing my material possessions and enjoying the people around me. Just don’t ask to borrow my one pair of sunglasses.
Squadron Officer School (SOS) ended about a week ago, and I’m now back in Washington state. Despite some of the grumbling I had heard about this course before I went, I genuinely enjoyed the past eight weeks I spent at Maxwell AFB. The course covered some interesting information on leadership theory, team-building, and of course, plenty of military doctrine, policy, and strategy. But more than any of this, I enjoyed getting to know the 13 other folks in my Flight. Each of us brought a unique perspective from our particular career/Air Force specialties–ranging from C-130 pilots, air refuelers, RPA (a.k.a. UAV a.k.a. “drone”) pilot, personnelist, and–believe it or not–even a JAG. Most of the “class time” at SOS was spent in a seminar setting with my Flight-mates, so I got to hear a lot from them (and they probably heard a lot from me, too); I was continually pleasantly surprised by the depth of thought, originality, critical thinking, and humor I heard from this group.
As a JAG, I’ve prosecuted and been exposed to some really troublesome personalities in the military… I’ve seen enough of the bad to make me wonder how many of us are really all that good; but the great people I met at SOS were a welcome reminder that there is hope for tomorrow. So I can’t say enough about how much I learned from each of my Flight-mates.
Also, we may have played a war-game based on dodge ball. Yup.
My time at SOS really was a great learning experience, on many levels, and I’m very glad I had the opportunity to attend and meet so many great people.
I’m halfway through Squadron Officer School at Maxwell AFB, and I’ve really enjoyed my time here. I’ve spent a lot of my afternoons or early mornings running the flight line, and I’ve been pleasantly reminded of how enjoyable the pure experience of running can be. This has also been a good chance for me to reflect on how I’ve improved as a runner…
Over the past few years I’ve run three marathons and logged hundreds of miles training or just running for fun. Based on my own experiences, I think the biggest contributor to my ability to stay injury-free during this time was changing the way I run. Back in the Spring of 2010, I was living in Oklahoma City, and I wanted to start running faster. I went out hard on a few training runs (of distances ranging from 400 meters up to two miles at any given time), and I quickly developed a painful case of the shinsplints. The pain in my lower legs was persistently so bad over two months that I had difficulty driving, walking up stairs, and even jogging. After taking time off to recover, and going through a few months of physical therapy, I slowly started running again.
I eventually ran a half-marathon and three marathons over the course of a few years. While training for my second marathon, I learned to stop running “heel-to-toe” and instead to take quicker, almost choppier, steps. I forced myself to change my stride–keeping my feet under my body, not slapping my feet, landing on my mid-sole, and mentally imagining my shoelaces were tied together to keep myself from over-extending. I also gradually transitioned to a pair of minimalist running shoes (New Balance Minimus 10s), which helped immensely, by allowing me to feel the ground when I ran too hard. This was important, because thick running shoes allowed me to run sloppily, oblivious to how my feet were hitting the ground since they were so insulated. Minimalist shoes, on the other hand, gave me sensory feedback, so I got the message that “this hurts” if I ran with poor form; and that, in turn, reinforced proper running form. If you’re at all interested in minimalist running, I encourage you to try it out; I was initially a skeptic but I am now a true believer. Also, I recommend reading “Born to Run” for a narrative perspective on some of the leading ultra-runners who helped popularize minimalist/barefoot running.
I was recently looking into buying a new pair of running shoes (again, New Balance Minimus 10s, since I’ve enjoyed them so much), and I found this really helpful video, which quickly sums up a lot of the information on good running form that I discovered through trial-and-error.
Incidentally, I’m now running faster than I ever did before I started long/medium distance running (and I went with minimalist shoes); if you want to get faster, then go longer!
Posted by Micah McMillan 
