Defending the country is a serious business, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned covering the military the past couple years, it’s that it can be pretty silly and sometimes, even downright dumb. Whether it’s a massive Nerf battle in the barracks, drunkenly turning on the fire suppression system inside of a hangar, dressing up as Ricky Bobby on the flight line, or buying a real live fire truck for the boys at Lejeune, there are a ton of amazingly dumb service stories out there, and we want to hear yours.
Like flavors of chocolate or genres of music, there are several different kinds of dumb in the military. There’s the “oh these orders are so dumb,” or “this is the dumbest speech I’ve ever heard,” or “this is the best dumb idea I’ve ever had.”
What’s something you did in the military that was so dumb, looking back now you feel proud of it? Perhaps you can tell us the story of how Pvt. Smith jumped off the balcony with a poncho parachute and actually flew like a bird.
Or it could be that time you did the following:
- used “PIKLRIK” as your radio callsign
- boarded a C-17 while dressed as a minion from the movie Despicable Me
- named your battle tank ‘Barbie Dreamhouse’
- fought a full-on battle royale with cardboard swords and suits of armor
- walked the deck of an active aircraft carrier while dressed as a Star Wars droid
- mowed the lawn … with shovels
Other words that encompass this type of story are “stupid awesome” or “amazingly dumb.” Just good clean fun where nobody got hurt, got investigated or got sent to jail, but everybody got a good laugh or eye-roll in the process.
Do you have a dumb story you would like to share? Please let us know in the comments section below! Let us know what happened, and also what it means to you now when you look back on it. Keep in mind that I’m just a dumb civilian, so when in doubt, dumb it down! If you couldn’t tell already, I’m a big fan of dumb.
Fire away, we’re excited to hear it!
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