Life in Hell; The Air Force’s “Tops in Blue”
First, the “Tops in Blue” website says this about the group;
Tops In Blue is an elite group of talented vocalists, musicians, dancers, comedians, and magicians and that perform for military personnel and their families throughout the world. The Tops In Blue team is comprised of active duty personnel who audition for the opportunity to perform.
So, now that you know who we’re talking about, apparently that life isn’t as glamorous as you might think, according to an article in the Air Force Times;
Former members of Tops in Blue said the pace of touring and rehearsing is grueling, and sleep is hard to come by.
“I wish it were 12-hour days,” Staff Sgt. Brittney Perry said when asked if Tops in Blue members regularly worked 12 hours a day. “It was normally 18 hours. It was hell. There was one [stretch] we pulled 36 hours. Because of a lack of sleep, our entire team was sick. There were a lot of injuries. A lack of sleep, it just messes with your body.”
Yeah, I’d rather be doing route recons around Kabul, it seems less strenuous to clear IEDs. But these guys aren’t doing the Air Force’s image any favors;
Perry, who was in Tops in Blue during 2011, said that a single day’s work meant members — both performers and technicians — often would have to load equipment and set up, perform, tear the stage down and reload it on the trucks, and get back on the road to arrive at the next stop on the tour.
Getting sleep on the bus often proved difficult, she said. Members would rotate through shifts in which they sat with the drivers of the bus, two 18-wheel trucks and an SUV to talk to the drivers to help keep them awake. The tours often pulled into hotels late at night, only allowing members to catch a few hours of sleep before having to get up in the morning to do it all over again, she said.
Whew! Sounds brutal. Those night spent in 3-star hotels must be tough, too. Of course, they volunteer for this duty, I guess it’s the Air Force equivalent to volunteering for the Ranger Regiment. The photo above that I snagged from the Tops in Blue website is entitled “Tops in Blue Down Range”, so….
Thanks to Bobo for the link.
Category: Air Force
Another band we can do without.
I saw them a number of times on Active Duty and Reserve times I was on active duty…. I was never too impressed. Too much like American’s Got Talent (or not) or American Idol.
Yeah, those 2 shows just haven’t proved very successful with the public. I’m glad you saw TIB multiple times though. Couldn’t have been too bad. Part of the idea is that is made up of cops, firefighters, pilots, etc….regular AF members and not neccesarily degrees professional entertainers.
Cops, firefighters and pilots? You mean those critically manned careers that can’t spare individuals to go play Air Force Idol? You and anyone else who would support this wasteful and embarrassing program brings discredit on the Air Force.
I could never believe the ego on these people. At one base they complained because they had to go through the same security procedures as everyone else. At every base they got their collective asses kissed by the Commanders. Their sob stories are an embarrassment to the Air Force.
There seems to be only 2 sob stories in question out of 60 years of tours.
I’m tempted to mock this because they’re just a bunch of entertainers, which is pretty frivolous compared to the jobs they’d otherwise be doing in the Air Force (the comments at the Air Force Times are not kind, to put it mildly). There is a serious point to this, however. In any job, from the most critical to the most frivolous, there can be unsafe working conditions. Here, you had bus and truck drivers operating with insufficient rest, which creates a hazard for not only the occupants of those vehicles, but also the public who must share the highways with them. It sounds as if the Air Force recognized this and made some changes.
The Army has (or had?) something similar, I want to say it was called the Soldier’s Show?
I remember basically being forced to go to a performance in Nuremberg around Christmas in 1987 (you know, morning formation and the 1sg says “every section needs to send one body.” It was my turn, I guess.) Got me out of duty for that day but beyond that, it wasn’t much fun. I don’t recall ever hearing another enlisted GI express any enthusiasm for it, either.
I think these things are a holdover from WWII and also some officer’s GFI (Great Fucking Idea) that is rooted back in the day when there wasn’t much for soldiers deployed overseas to do.
I don’t doubt that they have long hours but given the long hours that other soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines put in doing much more dangerous and less glamorous stuff, it’s hard to work up any sympathy (especially since, as it’s been pointed out, they are volunteers for this.)
Reminds me of the scene in Apocalypse Now with Robert Duvall: “You want to surf, soldier?” “Yes, Sir!” “That’s good, son, ’cause you either SURF, or FIGHT, that clear?” 😀
“But…But…That’s Charlie’s beach, sir.”
“Charlie don’t surf!” 🙂
I remember seeing the Soldier’s Show being advertised as part of the entertainment at the 1993 AUSA Convention in DC. I was there on Permissive TDY, but for some reason, I didn’t attend. Maybe I was distracted by all that free booze and skirts to be chased…
Cause NCOs never have good idea fairy attacks, right? 😉
Meh, I went to the convention, but many who went to The Soldier Show were “voluntold”.
They forced us to waste a day of precious training (or down-time) to go watch that bull crap in OSUT at Benning. At Fort Riley we still had old beat up A2 Bradleys and three of our tracks had to tow the other one around for spare parts in Iraq. My SAW was about as old as I was but there was money for the fucking tops in blue and the fucking soldier show
I never understood the need for these bands. We’re stressing about personnel costs enough to want to hike Tricare fees, curb retirements, etc and yet we pay people to tour the world and play music. I can see where I’d start cutting the fat. How much does all that TDY cost ? The TIB operating budget alone is around $1.4m, of which $1.2m is from NAF funding (yes, your MWR funds go to pay for them). From AF Times when sequestration caused them to halt their 60th Anniversary tour:
““Although only a small portion of the [Tops in Blue] budget comes from appropriated funds — nonappropriated funds and commercial sponsorships are key to Tops in Blue success — the current fiscal environment requires us to tighten our belt in every area,” Air Force spokeswoman Tonya Racasner said in a statement.
The Air Force anticipates that it will save approximately $200,000 in appropriated funds and $1.2 million in nonappropriated funds, which are generated from morale, welfare and recreation user fees and charges, said Mike Dickerson, spokesman for the Air Force Personnel Center, which operates the entertainment troupe through its services directorate.”
Because troop’s MWR money shouldn’t go to more important things, like ticket discounts and improved pools/gyms/etc that they actually use.
NavCWORet…Excellent points. The Admin and Pentagon are out to gut the funding for fighting needs yet we have the bucks for shit like this. It is NOT the Air Force I served in! In my day, I was when I was in need of “company”, I’d hit the local USO and dance as long as any gals were willing to dance. Old records on an old player was the music. Then, maybe out Pass Road from Keesler to a bar for drinks. The gals there were willing to dance but they were no ladies. They wanted that money out of my pocket. But I digress. My point is this kind of stuff is not needed and wastes dollars needed elsewhere. There are several enlisted clubs, Officer’s clubs and many other things on the larger bases these performers go to. If you’re bored…it’s your fault.
By the way their sob stories of how tough “life on the road” is just sets my teeth on edge.
Yeah, cuts are being made in Training and maintenance, NOT Sparkle Pony pet projects like this. We get told about cuts here, cuts there, and see that the US Army also sponsors a professional Bass Fishing Team, NASCAR,…
I think the short answer is that Tops in Blue is the pet project of some high-ranking or influential part of the COC and that’s why it doesn’t get cut.
For a lot less than the cost of the likes of TIB they could contract with a booking agent and get real entertainers that the troops actually want to see.
Martinjmpr…But that would make sense and result in truly entertaining, entertainment.
Is Bob Hope available?
Zombie Hope would be a hell of a lot more entertaining than these pampered princes and princesses. They came to my base in ’11 and spent three or four days to do one show down town. It was highly recommended to attend. Somehow I ended up scheduling myself a TDY trip to Mildenhall.
They do have crazy schedule. Its not like they get any special kind of pay I think besides per diem on TDYs.
I remember when I was stationed in Volkel AB, Netherlands…they did a show at the town of Uden. The next day they had to be down in Grafenwohr, Germany (near austria), about a good 8 hour trip or so they took on bus I believe.
Ridiculous schedule.
USAF Aircraft Maintainers still laugh at them.
Instead of these people doing their jobs, just have them eat up per diem and treat them like royalty.
AFN use to shove the Tops in Blues down our throats in Europe with little news items on them.
I toured with Tops in Blue, I just thought I’d set one thing straight they don’t get per dium!!!
And so do the Civil Engineers, but seeing as there’s not beer at these TIB shows, you’d never catch us Turd Herders, Woodchucks, Ground Pounders, or Sparkies anywhere near those events! Yes, Engineers are pretty much the same across the different branches.
🙂
I saw them once in Iraq. It was one of those forced moral boosters from the CO. I couldn’t stop laughing the entire time. Not from them being funny in a comedic way, but because they’re AD military and this was there job. The whole shit show seemed like a giant waste of money to me. A better use of that money could be spent on training funds for guys and gals with a legitimate job in the military….or spend it all on cases of Atomic Pom Rip Its so guys can stay up days on end to accomplish the mission without bitching to the press about abuse.
Air Force got better things to waste money right now like “AFSO 21” idiocy that still goes on.
Tops in Blue and Air Force Regional Band or whatever it is called was a waste of money. To think, Air Force regional band had their own basic training squadron, separated from regular old AD Basic training.
I’d forgotten about that. My son’s graduating class had an entire squadron of band members. So, since there were nine (eight?) squadrons graduating, I came away with the impression that 10% of the Air Force is in the band.
I think its eight, cant remember, only remember them being in their band formation.
Might be a little less than that. 8 percent or something. What happens is 1st week everyone is in their squadron, 331st, 332d, 323, 322 and etc. Within that week or so they pull out the regional band players and put them in their own squadron.
I am not even sure what goes on in Regional band either, no legitimate isntructors yelling at them. When I went to basic, they were not even doing physical fitness.
They were on their own little world too.
Drum & Bugle flight during BMTS is the same as any other flight, with the exception (in ’90 when I went through) of PK duties and such. D&B is tasked with rehearsals and performances during those periods. Other than that, it’s the same. As far as TI’s mine (MSgt) was the most feared in the squadron by the other TI’s, and rightly so.
And PT was the same as everybody else
I put in a AFSO 21 paper about the cars that are leased by the CAOC in CENTCOM. They get driven from the dorms to the CAOC sit in the parking lot all day and then back to the dorms to sit in the parking lot all night. The base has a shuttle bus system. Needless to say it went no where. I was told by one of the trans contractors that for what we were paying on the lease (per vehicle/per year) we could buy a vehicle stateside and fly it into theater. I figured just cutting half the CAOC vehicles could save close to half a mil a year.
the horror……the horror…..
1969
“Hey, I got tix to the Hendrix show tomorrow tonight! Wanna go?”
“Sure! Wait. Tonight? Dammit. Tops in Blue is here for only one show tomorrow. I’ll pass. I’ve been looking forward to the Tops show for months.”
2/17 Air Cav…Nobody but nobody would pass on a Hendrix live show…ever. Well unless the Tops In Blue are in town I guess.
What the hell has happened to entertainment standards brother? I mean Hendrix…LIVE. I’m still hoping for his reunion tour. Know I’ll be waiting forever but a guy can hope. By the way, Hendrix did serve in the Army, albeit a dicey stint.
Another time. Another place. Seems like another world. Hell, it was another world. Hendrix spent some time at the 101st. It was one of the first things I heard when there, that he used to play in the music rooms on post. I also heard he liked the dope and that he got das boot.
2/17 Air Cav…Yes another time and place…better music. Never to be repeated or copied by the likes of today’s entertainers. The talent just doesn’t seen to be there anymore. Oh…for the days.
I have an excellent sound system in my car and, now and then, there are certain tunes that I play that can only be listened to with full volume. So, imagine an old man (that’s me), tooling down the road, with Hendrix full blast, playing…
Or this, as I jog down memory lane: Cream. Okay, I’m done.
Well, that sure didn’t work out. But I said I was done.
Here ya go, 2/17 Air Cav:
Not Cream, but the live Cream versions I found kinda sucked.
Eric could still play, even at 62 (vid is from 2007 – he’s 69 today).
2/17 Air Cav…My favorite Hendrix and it is hard to pick one is, “Hey Joe”. Love the opening riffs.
If there’s a rock and roll heaven, the reunion has commenced. Noel Redding, Mitch Mitchell, and Buddy Miles are all there. Billy Cox is the only surviving member of Hendrix’s main bands.
ever’ body always thinks they got it roughest… universal rule there. Clerks complain about long hours and paper cuts, for all I know somewhere there’s a retired trumpet player with a disabled lip. Be glad it ain’t all humpin’ the boonies…. how many of us actually did that day in and day out? I sure as hell didn’t, nor do the majority.
I’m not too upset about them complaining. Everyone in the Miltary bitches. The saying when i was in was watch out for the Marine that isn’t bitching. He’s given up hope and is saving rounds.
The other thing I heard from the great GySgt Hangle out in Hawaii was,”You can take a Marine and put him in a rice paddy in Nam and he will bitch. Take the same Marine and and send him TDY to Austrailia, staying in a 5 star hotel and in the morning over breakfast he’ll bitch that the hot water took too long to come on in the shower.”
Just Human nature.
Everyone knows there are no tops in the AF….
I don’t know, Philly, I knew this female Airman once…. 😉
Strap-on? 😀
/waves to Valkerie
I was sore for days. Worth it.
Philly and BCEagles.. HEY NOW!! 😀
Navy….
Q: So why to sailors have their name stenciled on the back of their dungarees?
A: So they know who to thank when they’re done.
/Chairforce 1984-2007
ChipNASA…LMAO on that one.
How do you seperate the men from the boys in the Navy?
With a crowbar…
Oh the butt-hurt… Give me a break, it was an innocuous comment, get over yourself. At no time did she compare what she did to combat in any way, shape, or form.
I swear shit like this is hidden from infantry units. Not once did I see or hear about these things. I guess command thought it better they didn’t contribute to us laughing ourselves to death or getting pissed that this was somebody’s job in the military.
The horror.
grunts weren’t allowed. Afraid we’d rush the stage and beat down a bunch of whiny ass pogues
When was a last time a USO tour went to a COP? They go to the large cushy bases.
Yeah the whole support the troop shows and celeb visits piss me off because I know they are just being seen by super pogs that already eat hot pockets during their paid vacation “deployment”.
We had one person show up to our firmbase and that was Oliver North with Fox News for a couple of minutes. Otherwise we were basically forgotten about. Hell, even getting hot chow was an event.
Maybe higher-up was concerned about the “Showbies” being fragged by the Grunts as soon as they started bawling about how bad they had it?
USAF aircraft maintenance here. I’d like to apologize to every member of all the military services and the USCG for these whiney little shits.
Trust me we’re laughing at them, when we aren’t speechless in disbelief at how hard they have it…..
And to think they killed our base libraries instead of these hogasaurus tools….
PavePusher…About 1975, Little Rock Air Force Base. The new Commander of the 308th Strategic Missile Wing apparently liked singing. A bird Colonel without wings by the way. All staff and support positions his whole career. He put out official memos, flyers on every bulletin board on base and mandatory meetings for every member of the 308th. For what? To form the 308th SMW Glee Club! That’s right a Glee Club. He had been a member of his college (not the Air Force Academy) glee club and thought it had a moral factor beyond the comprehension of those who have actually heard non-professionally trained local glee clubs. The Academy Glee Clubs are in my opinion the best. However local talent gets you local fuckups. Time off from normal duty to practice three times a week was part of the deal, as well as all day shift duty in your shop. So every tone deaf, non-self respecting, dip shit in the 308th was signing up. Over 100 showed for try outs. The Colonel himself was there to be sure only the best of the best of the best were chosen. Because managing an 18 silo Titan II Missile Wing, well, it can wait. THIS shit is important! So to end this long comment, They produced a 10 man, 2 women glee club, who collectively could not carry a tune in a bucket. A mandatory attendance performance by all non essential and OFF DUTY personnel was given at the base theater. Guess what their first song was? Just guess? No shit and I mean no shit, they broke out with…here it comes…”Feelings”! You know “nothing more than feelings”. That pussy song that only fags listened to instead of hitting another button on their radio. I mean, there I was sitting there on MY DAY OFF, expecting an opening version of “The Star Spangled Banner”, “America The Beautiful”, “The U.S. Air Force”. But no I had to suffer through “Feelings”. It was also the worst rendition I have ever heard since the Colonel, present at most practices, wanted to change it a bit. Upped… Read more »
One of the first things you learn in the military is sleep is going to be in short supply. That is why if you poll the members on this blog, most will tell you they can fall asleep anywhere, anytime at the drop of a hat. Down time is nap time. I even bet that lots of our readers had that sleep button implanted in their ass, as soon as you sit down the power goes off.
Hell, when I was in Basic & AIT, we were left outside in formation so often that I and a few others in our Platoon found out how to take a nap while standing. Everyone yelled “AT EASE” as soon as any DS stepped outside and that woke us up!
I could fall asleep on a C-130 wearing my body weight in gear and parachute even if we were only flying from Pope AFB to Sicily Drop Zone. Or Howard AFB to Venado DZ.
To this day I retain a remarkable ability to detect sleep opportunity moments. After clearing brush in the back yard I can be asleep in minutes on a float in the pool, or sitting up in a lawn chair…or sitting on the steps to the house, or sitting in the work chair in the garage, or the weight bench, or the nice “every seat is a recliner” sectional sofa we just bought….
I find engine noise does make it easier, I blame that on the military, although I will say thankfully NASCAR provides a nice semi-constant engine background noise for some great 45-120 minute power naps….
Somewhere there is a picture of me sleeping on a tug at an airfield while waiting for a chopper to show up. The pack of civilians that I was with couldn’t believe that anyone could fall asleep in the seat of a tug with aircraft flying in and out.
The ability to sleep at nearly any time pisses my wife off to no end…she cannot fall asleep if the dog three houses away is barking at night. I’ve slept on a pallet of weapons cases during a sandstorm in Kuwait, on planes, buses, you name it.
Make Mine Moxie…Your wife too eh. Mine hears the house central fan running and says she can’t sleep! She wakes me up with the dog is barking, did you hear that truck, etc. etc. I sleep through everything except, any noise I know does not belong. She’ll be sound asleep and I hear something out of the ordinary and I am wide eyed, listening in the dark. Go figure.
If anything my problem is just the opposite. When my unit redeployed from the middle east in mid-December of 2004, our first night at Fort Carson was so quiet I had a hard time sleeping.
I didn’t take mid-tour leave, so it was literally the first time since late January that I had slept anywhere that there was NOT the sound of multiple generators running, aircraft flying overhead, heavy equipment “beep beep”ing people talking, big diesel trucks and HMMWVS driving by, etc. It was eerie.
I never deployed, It was back in them there Olden Times.
But I did have late night duty sections, especially when someone got drunk and didn’t show up on time. I learned to sleep with my eyes open. I can still do that.
I wish I had some REAL war stories. I feel so… left out. 🙁
Golly, show band life in Air Force is tough…
http://www.duffelblog.com/2014/03/afcent-band/
While their work load is pretty strenuous, the way they’re acting when other members of the Air Force have far more stressful and more often than not dangerous jobs then them is pretty ridiculous.
I don’t care how much your conductor rides you, the guy in Afghanistan guarding Bagram will always have it worse.
So, they can’t afford to keep the A-10, but they can afford to keep funding this kind of bullshit?
Air Force, WTF?
Bob Hope is turning in his grave!
Actually, Bob Hope was a huge supporter of the program. I don’t care if you understand the program or not. However, don’t bash other Airmen for being excited about doing something for other people. If you all would actually use the base theater (instead of heading to the state-of-the-art IMAX quadruple pled), clubs, commissary, gyms (instead of paying downtown), bowling alleys, etc. Any MWR activity that generates money puts money back into the base. So stop your whining about a program you know nothing about other than someone’s perception of what it is actually all about. The way you all bash other Airman is disgusting. So grow up and support each other whether you agree with their jobs or not.
Uh oh…sounds like someone is butt hurt! My money and I’m giving 8 to 1 odds on this one…it is an Airmen, current or former member of TIB. Any takers?
By the way Youdonthaveaclue, it isn’t whining performers we have issue with. Everyone bitches about their job in the military. It is the money for such programs, sorely needed elsewhere that I take exception to.
It’s my understanding that this is how Tops in Blue got their start. Not much has changed…
Am I the only one who hears this song and thinks: “Heineken? Fuck that shit! Pabst Blue Ribbon!”
I still remember the song from their commercial in the Seventies, “I’ve got Pabst Blue Ribbon on my mind..”
Anymore, I think Heineken is for yuppies and metrosexuals. Real Men drink Samuel Adams when they want to, and enjoy Pabst WHENEVER THEY DAMN WELL WANT TO!!
Sam Adams? Pitched a beef when gays were told there will be no sashaying in the St. Patrick’s Day parade in Boston this year. It is now known as sperm wash.
Best sleep ever is in the back of a C130. Or on the parking ramp under the wing waiting for the call to fly on a fire. Good times.
Another thing I remember seeing during my first Enlistment in the early 90’s was that “choruses” and “choirs” were some Generals’ pet projects, which of course attracted plenty of “sham artists”. We had one kid who was part of the Ft. Benning Men’s Chorus, and he was always bawling about getting weekend duty details while he spent three hours of nearly every weekday in an air conditioned room rehearsing while we were either training or working in the Motor Pool! Long hours, little sleep, but they volunteered to be part of that show, didn’t they? It’s like being deployed? Well, how often do they have to deal with ambushes, IED’s, RPG or Sniper attacks,…
“Tops In Blue Falcons”?
Well, I spent 25 years in the Army as a musician. Not one of the “Special” bands, just a regular bandsman (oops, person). I had to do the same shit as these panty waists, but never got the same coverage. My first assignment was the 82nd Division Band (87-90). On one of my first jumps I was given this nugget of wisdom from an old crusty E7 tuba player (he was in the 101st during Vietnam) “Always remember that you are in the band. Your job could be a lot worse, so keep your mouth shut and do your job”. I took this advice and passed it along to my Soldiers as I moved up the chain. My last assignment was 1AD Band. We deployed in 2010 to Iraq (we were known as the “Dirty Hesco’s and the Sweaty Brass”). My team pretty much understood what we did, and we had a blast flying out to FOB’s, JSS’s, and pretty much where ever we could. Unfortunately, there were some members of our band that just couldn’t wrap their heads around what we were there for. Playing for the troops while deployed, was a blast! Yea we had to schlep all of our shit with us, but none of whined or cried because we always knew that our job was so much easier (and safer) than pretty much everyone else. When I got back, I had the “pleasure” of working with some of the members of the USAREUR band. There is this E7 slick sleeve musician next to me and he said the reason he hadn’t deployed was that he was too “important” and didn’t want to take away from his unit’s excellent musicianship. I just shook my head and walked away. he wold never understand. I thought it a sad day when a musician calls you pog. It was then I knew it was time to retire. I had a great run, met a ton of real Soldiers, and stocked up on great stories. I would like to say that preforming while deployed was THE greatest honor of my career.… Read more »
Prior Tops In Blue member here. Let me point out, the whiny excuses for “Airmen” who have been quoted in these articles are all people who never made it through an entire tour – they washed out (got kicked out, however you want to classify it) – and because of that, it’s not surprising that they take their cries of woe is me to a public forum. They didn’t have what it took to make it through a challenging program. The female Ssgt here has also separated from the service and suffered an “eating disorder” – she didn’t have the fortitude to make it as an Airman or even a human without suffering because of poor self image (and probably things she blames in others). Keep in mind who is being the squeaky wheel in this case. You will notice that true “Priors” who have started AND finished a tour are never the ones crying in these forums. And why not? Because contrary to the image some project, we’re not entitled princesses (or princes). We know what it is to work. We know TIB was a challenge, but it was also a privilege, and it was far from the hardest thing we would ever do in our lives or our military careers. Let me add one more thing here – the Airmen on a Tops In Blue tour work hard, but their real responsibility boils down to “what do I wear and what time should I be there?” I was the Officer In Charge on my tour and dealt with every logistic and pets Call the program what you will, and while it’s clear you all don’t appreciate it, I can share (surprising even to me) stories of people who did appreciate it and lives that were touched (like I said, surprising even to me because I have never been personally “touched” by a TIB show – maybe by a TIB member, but what happens on the road stays on the road, so to speak). I will tell you, however, that we all know how hard you work alone is… Read more »
So I hit submit before I was ready (insert off color jab here) but you get the gist. The job isn’t the hardest, this chick is a whiner and not representative of those of us who made it through.
It’s a shame that military bands are getting such a bad rap these days. They have played a very important role throughout our history. Everything from morale issues to being recruiting tools. To say nothing of being an important way to connect the civilian population to the military.
Yeah, my view is biased, considering that my Dad was an Army band leader whose career spanned WWII and Korea. I grew up knowing all the pretty stories of what his bands contributed, but learned “the rest of the story” after coming home from DS/DS.
Meanwhile, I will not judge all military musicians based upon what these whining brats display any more than I will judge the entire US Navy based upon sKerry’s traitorous activities or assume that all infantry folks are like the nut jobs showcased here.
Bugles. Now, that’s a funny word. Bugles. Makes me chuckle to see it and laugh to say it aloud. Bugles. It’s not as funny in its singular form. Needs to be plural.
If you think the word is funny, you should hear some of the sounds coming from a singular one being “played” on the back porch. The resulting doggy howls is worth the price of admission.
Ok… I’ve read all of the trash talk I can take and I wasn’t going to comment but I also have a voice and feel I need to be “heard as well.” First of all please do not associate SSgt Perry has a Tops In Blue member. She simply could not hack it and therefore was released. Not only did she leave for her own induced medical issues but disciplinary issues as well. Tops In Blue is an expeditionary organization … meaning not only do they put on a 90 minute performance but they are given jobs that are similar if not their actual job in the Air Force that make up a self contained military unit from communications, messing, lodging, etc. They still do their military training on the road if in CDCs, WAPS test, Physical Fitness test, etc. (I assume I’m talking to a military audience here and can use AF acronyms). They are assigned a supervisor who writes their EPR at the end of a tour and they deploy to SWA AOR and have been under fire many times along with the rest of the deployed airmen while i.e., performing for the troops on Christmas Day at Bagram AB Afghanistan. But here is the real kicker.. They are Airmen first and entertainers second. AND they are supported by their squadron commanders based on manning in the unit otherwise they are not allowed to go on the tour. Also this is a permissive TDY which by AF definition is basically a TDY that is of the members choice and no monies are expended from the government for them to do this. They DO NOT make per diem while with Tops In Blue. However, Tops In Blue is an Air Force APPROVED program. And as such is given a small amount of money to run it with which is very small compared to other programs. So much so that they were sequestered last year and took the year to re-engineer the program to be more in line with what is actually needed. During that year they continually received phone… Read more »