[[OOC: I know basically nothing about the actual air force, so this is basically just cursory research mixed with a lot of BS]]
"No strawberries," Eli confirmed. "I don't like 'em much anyhow." Leaning forward, Eli poured a glass of tea for Sebastian, eying the tape recorder a little warily before settling back into his chair. He was sure that Sebastian wouldn't have any sinister intentions with that tape, but he couldn't be so sure about the rest of the newspaper staff. Of course, he could just be as truthful as possible about his experiences and ask him to shut off the recorder later. "All right. You can record if you'd like. I know accuracy is supposed to be important to you young journalists." He didn't add that he wasn't so sure about the older journalists, the ones with less starry-eyed idealism, the ones who could generally be bought.
Taking a sip of his tea, he looked directly at Sebastian as he spoke. "I joined the Air Force in 1985. I was eighteen at the time and I'd just recently graduated from high school. By all accounts, I had a rather easy tour - I spent some time in the Caribbean and in various parts of Europe until 1990, when I was shipped off to Iraq for the Persian Gulf war. You might know it better as 'Operation Desert Storm,' I suppose. It was a hell of a last year in the Air Force, I can tell you."