By Sgt. 1st Class Jim WagnerKFOR15 Public Affairs Office
Wisconsin Army National Guard Soldiers in Kosovo have been in a funk the past several weeks as we — like most of our state and rational-minded folks everywhere — come to grips with the fact the Green Bay Packers not only did not return to the Super Bowl but were knocked out in the divisional playoff game.
To understand the importance of football games in a deployed environment, you need to understand the conditions we find ourselves in and the logistical and personnel issues we face on a weekly basis. I am admittedly a football junkie in general, and a Packer Backer specifically, so this may or may not apply to your deployed family member or friends.
My Sunday ritual during football season back home goes something like this:
•wake up late
•forgo shower, shaving and other hygienic practices
•promise to feed the kids pizza for lunch if they can just have a bowl of cereal now
•watch two hours of pre-game shows to get into the proper mindset
•channel switch from noon to early evening between the AFC and NFC games
•order pizza for the kids
(Note: If I’m going to a friend’s house or actually lucky enough to get tickets for the game, all but the last two bullets apply.)
On a deployment, the rules change. Instead of a relaxing day at home, most of us are working Sundays so we’re generally up very early to conduct the mission of the day. Our days generally run between eight and 12 hours daily, trying to keep our minds on what we need to accomplish before we can “unplug” and watch football.
Time zones play havoc with football Sunday in Kosovo. Noon games back home are held at a respectable hour of the day … well, noon. Here, we have to wait for the day to end before getting into the football zone — and let me tell you, it’s a little jarring watching a game at 7:30 p.m. and seeing people cheering under the bright afternoon sun.
That’s if you even get to see your game of choice. Overseas, football is broadcast by the Armed Forces Network (AFN), which has the unenviable task of having to pick two games and hope that enough people are interested to watch — and don’t call or e-mail to complain about what’s been picked.
Oh, a note on commercials. In the U.S., commercials are sometimes the best thing about football if your team is tanking badly against their opponent. Super Bowl commercials are sometimes the only reason people tune into the game if they’re not football fans, and are nearly a cultural icon in their own right (I’ll never forget the Bud Light wasabi commercial if I live to be 100).
Overseas, we have the infamous AFN commercials. Created by military members (my career field, in the interests of full disclosure), they are a cross between infomercial and public service announcements ranging from military history to stern reminders of the importance of oral hygiene and to visit your base dentist to keep dental health at its finest.
Now, don’t get me wrong, AFN commercials serve their purpose and are chock-full of Very Useful Information (that capitalization is intentional) — but come on, really, it doesn’t hold a stick to the Mean Joe Green Coca-Cola advertisement, not to mention the EDS Business Associate’s “Cat Herding” spot.
Fortunately, with the Packers’ near-historic run, Wisconsin Soldiers here have been lucky when it comes to watching our games; the Green and Gold was on nearly every week as we got to watch and experience the best team in the NFL romp through the regular season. Unfortunately, with the Packers’ near-historic run, Wisconsin Soldiers here were unlucky enough to watch and experience the same unfathomable performance of the Pack’s one-and-done playoff experience that you did.
Military policies also provide the deployed Wisconsin Army National Guard Soldier with their own little quirks to normal, back-home football Sunday. General Order #1 — specifically the part that prohibits the consumption of alcohol — really interferes with proper tailgating for many a deployed Soldier, while policies also prevent coed get-togethers in any personal living space.
It’s a quandary that we’ve managed to overcome here at Camp Bondsteel. Chief Warrant Officer 2 Christopher Hudson, who found himself the Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) representative for the brigade — quite by surprise to him — spent hours of his personal time to set up and manage weekly screenings at one of the auditoriums here, giving all Soldiers a common area to watch the games, complete with snacks and refreshments. And regarding alcohol — well, there’s non-alcoholic beer.
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