When we go in the gate at Fort Campbell I roll down the back driver's side window of my Ford Explorer so that the guard can see that the person sitting back there without an ID is a 3-year-old, not a terrorist. The unintended result of this, however, has been that my son feels the need to not only talk to the guard every time, but absolutely insists on ... wait for it ...
Showing him (or her) his shoes. Case in point:
I roll down the window and Dave says "shoes!" and then shows the gate guard his shoes. And we cannot drive away until I convince the guard to comment on Dave's shoes lest I have to deal with a crushed, broken toddler.
I have no idea why he feels the need to show everyone his shoes. It doesn't seem to matter what pair they are, either. The guard must have a chance to see Dave's shoes.
He calls this event "Hi, Man." As we drive up to the gate he says "See 'Hi, Man?'" And when we drive away he says "Bye 'Hi Man!'"
I, at least, think it's really cute.
If you live on or visit base regularly the guards are a regular part of your military life. You may even develop a friendship with some of them. So what's your favorite gate guard story?
