Gyreneisms's definitions

railroad tracks

A slang term for the Captain (O-3) rank in the Army and Marines. The term comes from the Captain rank insignia, which is two wide bars connected by two thin cross-bars, resembling railroad tracks crossed by two railroad ties.

Damn, Lieutenant Carter used to be really cool, but ever since he pinned on his railroad tracks, he's just pulling rank and treating all his old buddies like shit.

by Gyreneisms December 18, 2011

Not a hill I want to die on

A military expression referring to an issue that the speaker wants to address, but recognizes would be too much hassle to deal with. It's a metaphor for realizing that, although you want to defend your "hill" from attack, to do so would be suicidal given the much stronger enemy, and this particular hill isn't so vital that you should give up your life for it, so it's best to just retreat.

- "The Colonel wants to kick off the exercise on Monday, but we're really not going to be ready until at least Tuesday. But that's not a hill I want to die on, so I'm just going to go along with what he wants."

- "Look, I understand you're upset about them demoting Corporal Thompson, and I know you want to go argue his case with the Sergeant Major, but is that really a hill you want to die on?"

by Gyreneisms September 1, 2013

Rice Bowl

In the military, a term used to describe someone else's turf/territory (literal or metaphorical), with an implication that the owner is unreasonably defensive about their area.

- "We were gonna run some ops in Task Force Thunder's AO, but they're all freaked out about us getting all up in their rice bowl, so they canked the whole FRAGO."

- "I had some great ideas about how to fix all these problems with the motor pool, but Sgt Thompson blew them all off because he thinks he owns the whole lot; what a rice-bowling ass-hat."

by Gyreneisms September 1, 2013

You want me to smoke it for you too?

A response, which can be either friendly jibing or hostile, when someone asks you for a cigarette and then immediately asks you for a light. The implication, joking or annoyed, is that person is going to keep asking you for things.

A) Hey chief, can I bum a smoke off you?

B) Sure man, here you go.

A) Oh, and can I get a light too?

B) Damn, dude. You want me to smoke it for you too?

by Gyreneisms May 20, 2011

Lance Coolie

"Lance Coolie" is used by US Marines to refer to the Lance Corporal (E-3) rank. The term implies that Lance Corporals are used for menial labor; a play on the term "coolie" applied to Chinese workers.

Damn, I'm stuck stacking ammo cans again? I thought I'd be past this shit when I got promoted, but I guess I'm just a Lance Coolie...

by Gyreneisms July 3, 2011

tracer

In the US military, a person with red hair. This comes from comparing them to a "tracer", a firearms cartridge that has a bit of burning magnesium at the base of the bullet, which burns and can be seen as the bullet flies through the air.

The term "tracer" can refer to either their hair resembling the red path of a tracer bullet flying, or the fact that tracer ammunition in NATO has the tips of the bullets painted red so that specialized ammo can be visually identified.

(to a redheaded coworker) Hey, you over there by the water-bull, getcher ass over here! No, not you Sanchez, that tracer ass-hat next to you... that redheaded assclown.

by Gyreneisms August 13, 2011

Do I owe you money?

A phrase used to accuse someone of staring at you, often used by Drill Instructors at Marine boot-camp. The point being that if someone does't have a valid reason to stare at you (like you owing them money) then they should stop doing it.

DI: (notices recruit looking at him) Hey recruit, do I owe you money?

Recruit: ... what? Sir, no sir!

DI: They stop frickin' eyeballing me then.

by Gyreneisms November 20, 2011