Happy New Year?

30 December 2007

My friends and I had planned to go out to the ruins and have bonfire and do some recreational training with our M4’s and an M249 for New Years, but plans have changed. I have been reassigned to another Company within the Battalion. I will be working within my Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) in this new job, but I will leave the Company I’ve grown to love.

I’m better now, but I felt sad when I packed up and left yesterday. My Company often felt dysfunctional, but it was a dysfunctional family. I have never in my military career felt so sad to leave a unit. Part of it was the people, and part of it was that I loved the job and the unit we worked with. Despite being in Iraq, I felt like I was leaving a home. I am truly proud to have been a part of this unit for the last year, because this company was one that I could be proud of. My chain of command cared about the soldiers and was easy to work with. Every one worked hard, we always got the mission done, and accomplished more with less than any other company in the Battalion.

Another sad part about the move is that I will be leaving a job out on the road and going to one in the office. I am not much of an office person anymore. I will be seeing the same sights every day, and have few new things to see. There will be little reason to learn Arabic because I won’t be interacting with the local much anymore. I will not be eating or drinking chai with the interpreters late at night. I will not be greeting the Iraqi mechanic in Arabic and learning a bit more when I see him every few days. I will not going to range anymore, or driving a pickup. I will not have the dogs or the cat anymore, because I left them behind at another base. I will not be shopping anymore, because I will be nowhere near the local markets. The only physical danger I will face is the possibility of infected paper cuts. It will be a good move for my career, and in time I will grow to accept the change, but I will still miss my old company. Perhaps one day I will change my MOS or unit to one that spends more time outside the office.

I spent most of today moving into my new living quarters. I now live in a 20x8 foot containerized housing unit (CHU). I share it with another person. It is smaller than the space I had to myself before, but it is enough. I got a bunk bed and put it up on block so I can store things above and below my bed. I also have a real desk which I am thankful for.

In the afternoon I went shopping and treated myself to a late Christmas present. I finally bought the Surefire flashlight that I had been wanting for the last nine months. The Surefire is an amazing flashlight about the size of a mini Maglight that puts out as much light as a full size four D cell Maglight. I also bought a little green LED light the size of my little finger that puts out a lot of light for its size. I was also finally able to make some of the nice gourmet hot cocoa that my wonderful wife sent me. It was helpful in combating the cold desert night.

My mailing address has also changed. I will soon send an email to my family with the new address. If you did not get the email, and wish to send me LETTERS and NOT packages (I have no need for them, and too little space as it is) contact me or my family for it.

Because my life is going to get much more monotonous, I do not expect to be writing as much as I have been recently. Check back occasionally, maybe I’ll get an infected paper cut, or something interesting will happen. I’ll write something while on vacation for sure.

P.S. For some unknown reason the software would not permit a more aesthetically pleasing layout for the pictures.

December 07

18 December 2007

Yesterday I found out that sometime towards the end of the middle of January I will be heading home for a break from my government sponsored vacation. I’m looking forward to spending some time with my family and eating good food.

After a few days at the main base, I’m back to the smaller base where I’ve been enjoying life for the past few weeks. I was able to pick up four important things while I was there, but I forgot one. I will see if I can get it next time. The last three days were a blur, but they went well. My job at this base has never been easier, and I have never felt so good about the way it’s running.

While I was at the bazaar at the main base a few days ago, I accidentally found and bought the perfect item for my house. It’s an electric kettle, and I’ve been very impressed with how quickly it can boil a liter of water. Now I can have tea or coffee anytime I want to take the chill out of the cold desert nights. My first cup was some Tazo that my sister had sent me. After dinner tonight I went shopping at the Dining Facility and got some instant oatmeal packets and more tea.

Some local shopping

One of the units that we support asked for our help with something a few days ago. It was something that only my battalion could do because of our heavy equipment. The mission came down at the last minute, and I had no idea about it until I saw the LHS drive up to my house and said to myself “that’s not good”. 15 minutes later I was on the road headed to do something. I didn’t even know yet. Turned out there were several different things that they wanted us to do, and our equipment was capable of all but one. On the way there I was looking out the window and saw a shop with table full of baklava and pastries outside. At the next stop I asked the 1LT if we could stop and go shopping on the way. It turned out that one of our next stops was right next to the shop, and he even had his interpreter do the negotiating for us. I gave him 250 dinar (worth about a $.25) and got a plate with about twelve pieces of different kinds of baklava. It was dripping with honey and the best I’ve ever had. I hope to somehow get the opportunity to get more.

The 24^th of December

Not much happened today. My soldier and I got bored so we made a bonfire and then when that died down we got in the pick up and went cruising, but there was no where to go. We decided to help SGT L by lacing his cigarettes so they would explode when smoked.

The 25^th of December

We decided to celebrate the 25^th with an even bigger bonfire than we had the day before. The dining facility had a nice dinner, but I thought the lasagna they served for lunch was more meaningful. I had orange juice, lasagna, and broccoli. It was rumored that some high ranking officers were supposed to come have dinner at our chow hall, so I ate quickly and left. After diner we had the bonfire, and then went to the internet and phone café. I tried to call my parents and sisters, but the phone hung up on me after a minute. Then I could not call back on that phone so I called another. I was told that there was a problem with my PIN and I needed to call customer service, but I could not get through to them. After half an hour I gave up and went back to my room.

12 December 2007

A Typical Day Outside

Yesterday I had a mission off post. It took us two hours to load everything that we were taking to the soldiers out in the city. Everyone was in their trucks and we were getting ready to roll out when one of the trucks broke. We called our mechanic and he diagnosed he problem, and we decided to take a part off another truck to fix it, and use and replace that truck with a different one. It was a little harder than we thought and turned into a two hour job. This time half the convoy made it out the gate before the new truck broke. The Commander decided to just roll without it. When we got to our first destination I started to go about my job in the fuel truck, but when I was done I went help my soldier in the LHS. First his trailer malfunctioned when he was trying to remove a flatrack from it. About 20 minutes later the truck malfunctioned when he tried to put a flatrack back on the trailer. So that ate up about an hour or our day. Then we went back to our staging base and prepared for the next trip. This time I drove the LHS. I don’t drive it very often, so I enjoyed the trip. Nothing went wrong, but since we had a lot to do, we didn’t get back until late. It was a long day, made longer because I’d been working until 0200 the night before. At least it’s not normally like that. The worst part of the day was when my uniform shirt caught on the door and ripped.

A Night With The Interpreters

After I’d brought all my gear into the house, my soldier and I went to the MWR. He spent more time on the computers than I did, so I went to the Falafil Shop to hang out with the interpreters and wait. That nights entrée was falafel served with tomatoes and Iraqi ketchup and wrapped in flatbread. It was very good and more than made up for the three meals I’d skipped on the mission.

The Dining Facility

Except for the lack of a bread bar, I think the dining facility here is the best one I’ve been to so far. I know the cooks well, so anytime I want to I can get a case of cereal, soda or chocolate milk to take home. Most of the food has a spice to it, which I like. About I week ago I realized how much my wife had brainwashed me when I found myself annoyed at the lack of quality vegetables in Army Dining Facilities. Today at lunch I was excited to find some steamed broccoli. It was meant as a topping for the baked potatoes, but I took it anyways. Steamed broccoli covered in olive oil and parmesan make a grudgingly acceptable substitute for my wife’s cooking.

New Housing

The rest of my Company is starting to move into 2 person rooms at their camp. It’s will be the first time in 8 months they haven’t lived in a tent. I now have my room in our house to myself. It’s so big I don’t know what to do with it all.

Two new things

Fun in the Wind

Yesterday’s mission required one of my soldiers to fill a 3,000 gallon water blivet that was on his trailer. The blivet is like an enormous bag that is filled with liquid and then strapped to a flatbed. Normally it’s not a problem, but yesterday was a stormy, windy and rainy day. As soon as he loosened the straps the wind caught the blivet and blew it off the trailer. He then came over to my truck to ask for help, so my driver and I went to try to hold the canvas sheet on the flatbed. I got up on the truck and then the wind caught the sheet again and just about threw me back off the truck. After a few minutes there were four us trying desperately to hold it on, but barely succeeding and we were making no progress in getting more of it on. We were all laughing at situation, despite being almost blown across the truck. I went inside the truck to get on the radio for help, while the 3 other soldiers sprawled out across the sheet to keep it there. About five minutes later an Infantry squad rolled up, and they lifted the blivet up for us while we stood on the sheet to keep in there. Then we stationed 3 people to sit on the blivet while we attempted to pump water into it. Out pump was not working for some reason, and it took half an hour for the Iraqi water people to get it working, but not before sending a 2in wide by 20ft tall geyser of water out, soaking two people. To make things more interesting, there was a lightning storm overheard and EOD was setting of controlled detonations nearby for most of the time we spent there.

More Culture lessons

One of the things that I love the most about this base is being able to spend time with the interpreters. I love to travel and see new places, and so I am glad that this deployment has allowed me to see a glimpse of what Iraq is like, in contrast to my first deployment, where I never left the airport. If I could, I would want to go on some foot patrols and see what the country is really like.

Tonight I stopped in to the shop where the interpreters cook their food. They had been cooking all three times I had been in that area, and the smell made me hungry every time. It smelled just like my mother making taco shells. There was one person there I knew, but the other one I had not yet met. The person I had already met was a teenager, and here their teenagers do the cooking for the older men. There are no Iraqi women on the base, nor any American women. The one I had not met invited me to sit at the table with him and we introduced ourselves and started to talk. He immediately offered me some of his food, and I gladly accepted. The younger man was cooking some eggs and tomatoes and when they were done the older man (who is a year older than me) shared them with me. We ate it with Samoon and it was very good. Every time we ran out of Samoon the younger man would get more or the older man would cut his piece in half for me. I enjoyed talking to him. He graduated from Baghdad University a few years ago, but could not find a job so he took one as an interpreter. We shared details about out homes and families and the weather in our countries.

One of the most important things in Arab culture is hospitality. They will offer or do almost anything to for a guest. I saw some of that tonight, but I have noticed it in all of my dealings with the Iraqi people at this base. When I go to deliver fuel, the Iraqi man that I give it to will sometimes invite me to come and sit. When I dropped off laundry to get done, the man there invited me in to sit with him. Again, I wish I knew more Arabic, but what I do know is at least enough to win some favor with those I come into contact with. I wish that I was in a position to learn it. It is very rare that I come into contact with someone that does not speak English well, so I rarely have a need to use the language.

Sheep In A Jeep

The Start of December

I was only able to one picture this time. More later.


Trouble with Kitty

"fffffffffffffffffdshj,a.jh..aadshjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjn" says the kitty. Around lunchtime it decided to be friendly and let me hold it for a while. So we lay on my bed together and it purred and went to sleep. Then I got hungry so I left it on my bed. 7 hours later, it’s still there. I looked closely to see if it’s still breathing and then set up my computer on the bed. It makes a half way decent desk. When I started to type, kitty awoke from hibernation. At first, he was cute and looked at me and purred and watched me type a letter to my wonderful wife. After being refreshed from his 7 hour nap on my bed, he decided it was time to play. But I guess he was also cold, because he walked over to my lap, and crawled inside the left sleeve of my fleece jacket. This was fine until he passed my elbow and then it became a little tight. I attempted to continue typing. The cat soon got bored. Maybe he didn’t want to back out of the sleeve, or maybe he just wanted to explore my forearm, but for whatever reason he decided it was a good idea to just follow my arm through the sleeve until he saw the light. I opened my cuff for him, and fortunately he only used his claws for the last few inches when he had to drag himself out.

I still had some patience left for the little kitten at this point, especially since I was documenting everything, but I was still more interested in typing. Unfortunately so was the kitten. First he decided to chase the mouse, which would have been fine except that my hand was on it at the time. I didn’t like that, so I sat back to see what he would do. So the cat responded by multitasking. It typed a message to someone while it looked at me and said "why would you type when you could be petting me?" And I said "get off my computer cat!" It didn’t move fast enough so I picked it up and put it on my lap hoping it would crawl happily back into my sleeve or something. It did not. It walked back on to my keyboard and said "1aa1". So I said "get off my computer cat, now you can go on the floor!" Cat did not like not being the center of attention, so it climbed up my leg, jumped to the bed and walked across my computer again, and this time it "accidentally" hit the power button. I was not amused. So I said, "Now you can spend the night OUTSIDE, kitty." So for the past twenty minutes I have been happily typing and listening to music. Five minutes ago I stepped outside and Cat said "MEOW". I gave it some milk.

Winter Wonderland, Iraqi Style

I thought it was unusual that It did not rain all the way through November. Of course, this is only my second (and hopefully last) winter in Iraq, so I’m not sure when is normal. All the way through November it was cool and sunny. Iraq is quite nice this time of year. Even the locals were friendly enough. December 1st I woke up and it was overcast. It stayed that way all day, only raining a few drops at a time.
It was a long day and at 9pm I was still working. I noticed some flashes in the distance and at first thought nothing of them. A few minutes later E and both realized it was lightning. Normally I would be excited, especially because there is very little lighting in WA. But last night as the lightning got closer, I was standing on top of 1,000 gallons of diesel and my job was not yet finished. We were trying to transfer fuel from one tanker to another, and were the tallest things in a large open area. I flipped the pump into high and asked it to please pump faster as the lightning got closer and E and I were still standing on top of our Tankers. I had wanted to transfer 1,500 gallons, but we settled for 500 and finished our work for the day as fast as we could.
The lighting kept getting closer and a short time later was right on top of us, lighting up the pitch black night like an enormous strobe light. There was a lot of wind with it, and I stayed up for a little bit to watch the show. It rained most of the night, and the wind kept up for a few hours after that. The clouds never went away, and I think it might rain again. It hasn’t rained enough to create mud yet, but there has been no dust at all today.

Check back later for pictures

Vacation, Nov 07

I mentioned a few days ago that I’ve been moved to another base temporarily. I love this place. I would be very happy if I stayed at this base until it was time to go home. It is a very small base, but that is part of the charm for me.

I live in small building with four rooms and an enclosed patio. I have my own room with a bed and mattress. I spend much of my time in the patio on the computer. We have a fridge, power, and even hot showers. Our friends run the dining facility, so we can get extra sodas and cereal and milk to keep at the house.

Outside, there is an open patio where our two puppies live, and there are two fire pits. We have a very small maintenance shop where fleabag, our adult dog lives, and the kitten lives underneath it. The puppies are very cute and playful. They are still young and about the size of a large cat. Fleabag is a young but fully grown mutt. He looks like he’s at least part German Shepherd. The kitten is a small and should not have been left alone. I don’t know what happened to his mother and littermates. He reminds me a lot of my cat Simba when was a kitten. A few days ago, SGT L decided to give the kitten a bath. The poor thing turned into a pathetic looking ball of claws and wet fur. When we were done, it escaped and ran off into the dirt, so we had to chase it down and rinse the dirt and dry it this time. It was not very happy about getting a bath and we weren’t sure that it would come back. It took some time, but later that night he came around again. It’s nice to sit back in a chair and hold a soft, clean purring kitten. Yesterday someone told us that one of his buddies had tried to steal our kitten, but it jumped out the window of the truck and came back to us.

Now about the nightlife here. Every base in the area has several shops that are run by local civilians. This one is no exception. One of the shops serves chai and has a TV and a few couches and chairs. It’s like the local equivalent of a Starbucks, but the tea is free and endless. They sell lots of other things like movies, cell phones and local drinks and chocolate. I’ve always liked tea, but I especially enjoy Iraqi chai. Iraqis drink chai like Americans drink coffee. At night I enjoy going to drink tea and talk to the Iraqis and Americans that hang our in the tea shop. I’ve had lots of chai, some enjoyable conversations and learned about Iraqi culture and some Arabic. I have noticed that most Iraqis I’ve come into contact with are very friendly and hospitable.

A few days ago I spent some time talking to a young Iraqi man in the tea shop and we have been trying to learn each others languages. He speaks much more English than I speak Arabic though. I met him tonight and found out he has his own shop and cooks Iraqi food. I was excited to learn that I because I love to try new things and have always enjoyed middle eastern food. So despite having eaten dinner and hour earlier, I had him cook me some Iraqi food. I made me some falafel fried in sunflower oil, with cucumbers, tomatoes and a special sauce served in a piece of flatbread. (samoon) It was delicious, and the best food I’ve had since the last time I saw my wife. He was even kind enough to give it me for free always with some extra samoon and hubs (two different kinds of flatbread) that I had requested two days earlier. I wanted to keep a good thing going, so I returned later with a gift of a few of the Reese’s that I had been sent in a care package. It was a cold night, so I stopped for some chai on the way home. It was a good night.

Thanksgiving 07

Every Dining Facility in the Army goes all-out for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Even the small outposts get some kind of I’m at small base in Iraq. Instead of serving two meals today, they served a Thanksgiving dinner from 1200-1700. I had to wait about 15 minutes because they opened the DFAC a little late. When I walked in, I saw how much work they had put into the meal. They had all the trimmings of your standard American turkey dinner, a giant 3 foot square cake and banners and decorations on all the walls. Every table had “Happy Thanksgiving” place mats, and a bottle of sparkling cider. It was a strange scene, because ¾ of the diners were Iraqi Army, and all of the cooks were Turkish or Fillipino. I doubt either of them recognize the American holiday.

Here, the days really have no meaning. November 22 simply means that I’m about 6 weeks away from taking leave. I had forgotten that it even was Thanksgiving until I was in line at the DFAC and they didn’t open at the usual time. When I got inside and sat down to eat, I wished that it had been another day. Everything there reminded me of home and my family. I didn’t want to be reminded of how much I miss them.

A Much Better Place to Live

Today I moved into my third tent in the week that I’ve been on this new camp. There’s been a lot of confusion about where my company is going to live, but I pray that it is all settled now. The tent that I’ve moved into is that nicest place I’ve lived in the total 18 months I’ve spent in this country. It’s not much, but it’s a mansion to me. I would estimate my new place to be about 6x10’, that’s a few feet in each direction larger than my last place. It’s so long that that I do not know what to do with all the space. I would have been quite content with 6x6. I put some extra mattresses between my bunk bed and the next one for soundproofing, and bought a small rug for the floor. Then I put some cardboard over my two plastic 3 drawer chests to make a desk for my computer and lamp. I have a stool for now, but when my folding chair gets here I will be able to watch Stargate quite comfortably. I put up a few pictures, but because there is no wood in my “room” (space in the large tent) I was unable to put up my frame. I have my foot locker in a convenient place to keep my stuff secure, and an ice chest if I ever take the time to fill it. Also on my desk is the stuffed rat that wards off the real ones. I haven’t seen any mice around my space since July, so the rat must be territorial. My room is the size of a large closet, but I think it’s quite home like. Now, if only they would fix the hot water heater.

I’ve discovered some new brands of ice cream in the dining facility. I can’t even tell what country they are from, but I would be them at home if they were sold in the states. This new brand has 3 different flavors of ice cream bar, and all of them are very good. One variety is vanilla ice cream with chocolate chips, with a white chocolate shell with almond shavings. I think the brand is from Turkey or Eastern Europe. Yesterday I found a new color drumstick, and since I love drumsticks I had try it. I should have known that a green wrapper would mean the drumstick was made with pistachio ice cream. I do not like pistachios. If you do, come to the middle east and you can have pistachio ice cream in a drumstick.

Earlier this week I had the opportunity to spend an evening with one of our Iraqi interpreters. I enjoyed talking to him and hearing about Iraq from an Iraqi. Our conversation gave me a better understanding of the suffering and hardship of the Iraqi people, something that I can’t describe here. His girlfriend was killed by a car bomb, and several family and friends killed in other violence. He can never go back home, because if he does, the militias will kill him. Anyone who cooperates with coalition forces here puts their life at risk. All of the interpreters accompany soldiers on missions and face the same dangers from IED’s and RPG’s that US soldiers face. Arabic is such a hard language to learn that coalition forces would have a hard time without interpreters. I hope that if this war ends in anything other than a peaceful Iraq that our interpreters would be granted residency or citizenship in the US. It would an appropriate thing that our country could do after they’ve risked their lives for our soldiers on a daily basis.

First Impressions of my new place to live

I am sure that bread must have been something that God taught the first humans long ago. How else could anyone 4,000 years ago have thought to grind up wheat, mix it with water and bake it? Except for the bag of delicious Iraqi bread that I bought on patrol in August, I have not had real bread since leaving home 7 months ago. At lunch today I went to eat lunch at the dining facility at my new home. I was standing in line for some baked ham when I happened to look to the end of the room and saw something I could not believe. Off to the side of the main line was a large bread counter, with over a dozen different types of fresh breads. Dessert, coffee cake, cheese, garlic, rolls, they were all there. I approached the counter slowly, in awe of what I was seeing and after being prompted by the server who must have thought I was nuts, I took two slices of garlic cheese loaf and walked away feeling like I’d just been given a thousand dollars. Then I found some butter, gave thanks and joyously ate my lunch.

The base I live in now is significantly smaller than the one that I left, but it does have several advantages. Because it is so small, I no longer have to take a bus for 20 minutes to do anything. The Chapel, store, gym, library, Bazaar, food court, work and the cleaners are all within a reasonable walking distance. As I described above, the dining facility is much better than the one I left. There are also several new flavors of ice cream for me a try. I think that living conditions will be better here than they have been for the last 6 months. Of course, if I have more than two feet on one side of my bunk, it’s an improvement. One of the most welcome improvements would be to have consistently hot showers. I have not had one of those in a while. This new base even has a small national forest. Rest assured that I will send pictures and post a trip report as soon as I get the chance.

A Typical Day

Yesterday was a supposed to be a normal day. I’d wake up, go turn in the article that I finally finished after much procrastination, spend 30 minutes loading my truck and then go to a briefing and be done. It was not to be that way. At noon I went to the company HQ trying to find a ride to the chow hall, and found out the mission had changed. I had to find a way to get two full trucks completely loaded with cargo by the end of the day. The amount of material was so incredible that I spent most of the next two hours trying to find the person responsible to confirm that he really wanted us to carry that much. Then we spent the next three hours loading it on the trucks and making all the necessary preparations. It was more stressful than it sounds, and I expected it to go much worse than it did.

Early this morning my most of the company and I got up and went to the motorpool. It was even a little chilly as I walked to my truck just after dawn. Everyone made sure that the cooler were well stocked with ice and Gatorade, because we knew it would not stay so cool. After a few final preparations, we were on our way. We had a large group today, and so the movement was somewhat cumbersome, but we made it work. The civilians were all out early, walking around, talking and starting their day. All of the neighborhood kids would run out to wave at us when they heard the first truck pass. I had a bag of candy I didn’t want that I had been saving for the end of Ramadan to give away, so I threw it out the window whenever we passed a small group. The market at the traffic circle was typically busy, with fresh produce in some shops, and fresh meat on hooks on the porch of others. A few kids and adults waved as we passed, but many kept going as if we weren’t there. A few minutes later we turned on to the main highway picked up a little speed. There were plenty of cars on the road today, but they all pulled to the side to allow us to pass. Some of the cars were new Japanese and European models. Others are old and patched together. Still others were painted orange on the ends and white in the middle. I’ve heard this is a taxi pattern. Along the side of the road were some cows and at another point a donkey pulling a cart. At last we pulled into our first destination, a Joint Coalition outpost, or JCOP.

As soon as we got there I got out, went inside, and found an officer talking to a civilian. As I watched, they cancelled the mission that I had worked so hard yesterday to prepare for. With my own mission cancelled, I hitched a ride in another truck to go along for my favorite mission, that I would not have been able to take part in otherwise. For weeks I had been saving the candy for the kids at this location, and now Ramadan was over and I had already given it away, not knowing I would be able to come.

Our destination was a small cul-de sac near overlooking a river. It seemed that every kid in the area had come out to greet us, and a few adults as well. It took some time to unload our precious cargo, so I had some time to interact with the kids while we were waiting. I know enough Arabic and the know enough English so that we can sort of understand each other. Most of the kids just wanted to smile, shake hands and take pictures anyways. Today we exchanged names, but sadly I cannot remember theirs. I took several pictures, but every time they just asked for more, even though they could not see them. They will not be posted here. Many kids asked for things like water pencils, or my glasses and watch. Unfortunately, I had nothing that I wished to part with at the time. A few of them asked for a football, (soccer) even though it should have been obvious I had none in my pockets. They all spoke very good Arabic and some English for their age. They all remember us, and I remember many of them. A few weeks ago I had an extra pen, so I took it out of the pocket on my shoulder and gave it to the youngest child there at the time. Today I showed three of the kids the empty pen pockets on my sleeve to prove that I had no pens on me, and one of them pointed to my pocket, where he remembered I keep them. The only one I had today was my favorite. The most memorable part of the day was when a young boy, between three and five years old, came to me and held out his hand with a piece of hard candy in it. I don’t know how well these people live, but I’m pretty sure that such candy is worth much more to a child here than it is to me. I was touched, and accepted the candy and said Shukran (thank you) with my right hand over my heart, which is a gesture of sincerity in their culture. I thought for a second about what I had on me, and fortunately I had some gum in one of my pouches and gave it to the child as a gift in return. By this time we were done unloading the cargo, but a news media team was still there talking to the shop owner so we stayed just a bit longer before moving to our next destination.

The short trip was uneventful, and our next destination was a secure spot so we could rest and relax for a while. A few minutes after we got there, the news media team asked to interview me, so I stood in front of a truck similar to mine and they video taped a five minute interview. After spending some time in the shade talking to the residents and the crews of some other vehicles, we mounted up and drove uneventfully back to our base.

On the way to the chow hall, I got the opportunity to reinforce to the rest of the company that my section is the best. They were skeptical, but they are just misinformed. The chow was great after a long day, if only they weren’t out of near beers. They go so well with BBQ’d beef. There was plenty of Baskin Robbins to go around, and I enjoyed a good portion of it.

Am I done yet?

Today I received a long awaited package in the mail, a brand new pair of boots. I was so excited I took them straight back to my room to put them on to break them in. They fit just right. My old pair is so worn I’d forgotten how well defined the sole of a pair of boots should be.

Last night as I was on my way back from brushing my teeth, I saw a group of soldier around a fire and walked over to investigate. Two of them were friends, and they invited me to stay and enjoy some tea with them. The third soldier, who I met that night, had some tea he had bought from an Iraqi merchant and a kettle on the fire. So we sat around the fire late at night drinking chai and talking about home.

I’m trying to write an article about my unit for the Brigade newspaper. I’ve never been very good at writing in the third person, so I’m constantly checking the word count.

“Am I there yet?”

No, 98 words. Hmm

“Am I there yet?”

No, 128 words.

“Am I there yet?”

147 words. This isn’t going as I planned,

And so it goes. Maybe by next week I’ll get it done.

The key to enjoying movies

So I bought myself a copy of Star Trek the Next Generation today. It was a boxed set and had every episode of all seven seasons on it. It was a great price, and I figured since I since liked Stargate SG-1, maybe I’d this it, or I could just send it to Ariele, and she’d enjoy it. So I took it back to my bed and popped in the first disc. It didn’t hold my attention for very long. I blamed the hard to follow plot and 1980’s sets and costumes. But maybe there was another reason. I realized that since this was a new Sci-Fi series I need something more than just my computer to enjoy it. I need company. I need a nerd, and not just any nerd will do. I need a special nerd. This person is loving, captivating, beautiful and can make any movie fun. So someday, my wife and I will sit down on our couch and watch Star Trek: The Next Generation and have a great time together.

Another Post

For the past few days everyone that I have talked to has asked that I write something new. I never thought of myself to be much of a writer. I had some moments high school and college, but most of the time writing was accompanied by procrastination, tea, and late nights. Except for those rare occasions, I’m limited in my inspiration to things that I have seen or experienced directly. Most things I do I don’t think are very interesting myself, so I don’t expect anyone else to find them interesting. The demand for things I write has really surprised me, so I’ll try to think of something interesting.

One of the Pentagon’s benchmarks for progress in Iraq has been the establishment of large number of Joint Security Stations (JSS) in and around the Capital. These JSS’s are scattered and have US and Iraqi soldiers living and working together close to the civilian population. My unit’s job is to make sure that our JSS has all the supplies that it needs. In doing so, we’ve hard to carry some strange loads between here and there, but mostly just normal stuff. On Sunday’s mission there were two other stops in the local area. I love to get out and see what the country looks like, but I speak very little Arabic. At both stops we were giving out something very valuable, so many of the locals were glad to see us.

On Monday I decided to start of the month of October and the end of daylight savings time right. I spent the majority of my time awake cleaning everything I owned. I went through all the stuff I no longer needed, gave away things and reorganized my locker and space. I call it space because I don’t have my own room. My space measures about 5’x8’ and is dominated by my bunk bed. I have the bottom bunk and my rucksack has the top. I’ve made a nightstand out plywood and a plastic 3 drawer cart. On the night stand is my little lamp, the best 10 dollars I’ve spent in Iraq. Next my bed is another bunk, with only a poncho liner between us. Two feet from the other side of the bed is a poncho and the other edge of my space. So after working all day yesterday I was able to get everything clean, organized and in it’s place. So of course, I went to the CP this afternoon and found a large box from my wife. Now I have to find a place for all that stuff. Or eat it faster. She sent Reese’s, so that shouldn’t be a problem.

To most Americans who read this, it would seem very Spartan and harsh living conditions, but every time that I go out to see how the Iraqis are living, I am grateful for everything that I have. Whenever I go out near the Iraqis, they all ask for water. In the summer I thought it was because they were thirsty, but as I read the news and thought about it, I realized that they all want our bottled water because their tap water isn’t even fit to drink. I read in the news a few weeks ago that there is a Cholera epidemic in Baghdad because of it.

What's been happening of late

The last two weeks of August were among the busiest I have spent here. They were well spent though. I was tired, but enjoyed most of it. I learned to operate a crane and forklift and a few new words in Arabic. I love to learn new things. The past week or so has been fairly quiet. I have spent much of my time watching Stargate Atlantis or catching up on sleep. It’s amazing how fast the summer went by. I’ve already been gone for 5 months, and in just 4 more I’ll be home on leave.

Today I decided to torture myself by looking at trip reports from other people’s climbs on www.cascadeclimbers.com. I looked at places I’ve been and places I’d love to go. It was very sad, because there’s only one thing that I would want more than to spend a few days in the Cascades, and that is to spend that time with my family. There’s something awesome and indescribable for me in the mountains and the forests. When I’m out in the wilderness or high on a mountain I feel more alive than almost anywhere else. I feel as if that’s where I belong. When I go home to the city, I’m glad to be back to have the comforts there, but I miss the outdoors. When I come home I plan on recruiting people from somewhere and heading off to nearest glaciated peak, hopefully I’ll climb Mt. Rainier. It’ll be scary and amazing.

On my last mission our commander was given a plate of dates from a grateful civilian. They came from one of the date palms in his yard. I had never had one, so of course I had to have a picture of me with the date. It was about the size of a large grape, and very sweet, with a large seed. It delicious, but so sweet that even I only wanted two.

Lunch and Dinner

Today I went to have lunch at the home of a local Sheik. The Sheik was very wealthy, even by American standards and had a very large and nice home. Unfortunately I was only able to see the outside and one room of the inside. One of the first things that everyone in our group noticed was that he had a lawn with bright green grass. As I was waiting outside the house for all of the leaders to eat, I noticed two of the Iraqis walking in from the field, and one of them was dragging something long a black. My vehicle commander went over to investigate and learned that they had a black snake. It was either a Cobra or a Viper. The Iraqis showed no fear in handling it, and it was obviously dead, and I am glad there is one fewer snake in the world.

When it was my turn to eat, I walked inside the walled compound eagerly anticipating the Arab feast that I thought was coming. To my disappointment, it was not an Arab feast, but American food that had been made by American cooks. It was very good, but not what I had been expecting. The house and yard were amazing, and by far the nicest in the area. I took my plate and enjoyed a meal on the shaded grass. Nearby I watched a man face to the south and pray the noon prayers. The tables and food were on the patio, and around them were scores of American and Iraqi soldiers eating and talking. After I finished I went around and corner and found the restroom. It was outdoors, and to my surprise, had running water. It was an area in the side of the patio, and there were three stalls, and four sinks. Each stall had a bedpan shaped hole in the tile, and a hose and pitcher of water to ensure everything made it down the hole. I made sure to wash my hands when I was done. I spent about an hour in the patio and yard, and helped clean up as the lunch wound down. It was an enjoyable and memorable experience, but one that was disappointing as well. I had really been hoping that the food served at the lunch would be Iraqi, and I could have another variety of genuine Arab food. To add irony to the story, when I came back to the camp and went to the dining facility, it was Indian night. I got myself a delicious plate of curried beef, rice and Aloo Cabbage. The cabbage was the best. It was mixed with potatoes and spicy. One way or another I got to have my genuine ethnic food. I had genuine Indian food because most of the cooks are Indian. Of the two experiences, I found my walk through the villages to be more enjoyable.

A walk down the street

Today I went on a patrol with a small unit from another battalion. They escorted my soldier and me on a mission, and when they dropped us off at the outpost, they allowed me to come with them on their mission. I knew them all from when they had escorted us on previous missions, so we already had a relationship established and worked well together. The mission today was to do a dismounted patrol through several villages and pass out leaflets and interact with the civilian population.

At the first village we went to, all the soldiers were followed by children like swarms of mosquitoes. I was handing out flyers, but since we did not have a lot, I could only give them to the adults. Since we had them, all the children wanted them, and anything else we had. They were very persistent. I felt like the only word I said in that town was la (no). Everyone was friendly, and talked openly with us as much as we could with the language barrier. I was always alert, but did no feel threatened in any way. I truly enjoyed the chance to walk through the streets and see what this country is really like. I only know how to say hello, goodbye, thank you, and yes/no in the language, but it was enough to pass out flyers and communicate goodwill. After a time the children got annoying. Many of them would follow us for as long as they could, begging for the flyers that we had and soccer balls. We gave out balls at each town, but we only had enough for one per town. Telling them no and to go away would only get a few seconds reprieve. At one point, another NCO got out a pair of flex cuffs and started walking towards the kids with them, and that got him a minute or two of peace. In spite of the harassment, both the adults and children were very friendly to us. Many Iraqis just came up to shake our hands. This was the largest of the four villages, and we spent the most time walking here.

At one point, as we were moving a short distance in the truck, the driver asked me if I had a dollar on me. I asked why and he pointed to a bakery on the right side of the road and said they had excellent bread. I got out of the truck and another NCO, the XO and an interpreter came in with me. I was the first to enter, but didn’t know what to say so I stepped to the side to allow the others to pass through the doorway. The Iraqis inside looked a little nervous at first, but when they saw we just wanted bread they quickly warmed up to us. The interpreter helped me, and placed an order for me. I paid one dollar for 10 pieces of hot from the oven flatbread. It was delicious, the best I’ve ever had. I had plenty and shared with the driver and gunner of my truck.

The next village we walked through did not have nearly as many children out. It was not as big, and it was later in the day and warmer. There we many groups of men sitting in the shade as we walked along. I would walk up to them and say Salaam aleikum ( Peace be upon you), hand out a few flyers and then say ma Salaama and be on my way to the next one. I was never alone, and always had at least one other soldier with me. Often the one I was with was passing out a different flyer. After giving some to a group of men sitting on the steps of a Mosque, I looked and saw two other soldiers at a storefront across the street. I walked over and passed out a few flyers then kept a lookout while they talked to the people. It turned out they were bartering for sodas. This particular shop has a brand of citrus RC Cola that they liked. The deal they agreed on was four for a dollar, and so all the soldiers in the area got a soda. It was cold and very good and came from a glass bottle that Iraqis wanted back when we finished. I walked into the store to give the bottle back. It was dimly lit, and had cases of food and drinks stacked everywhere on display. There was an old woman in a tradition black dress inside, and all the men and older boys were outside talking with us. Once we had all finished our drinks we got in the trucks and moved on to the next stop.

I cannot remember the names of the places I visited today, but even if I could I could not pronounce them. The third village that we went to had no shortage of both pedestrian and vehicle traffic. I continued to pass out flyers, and was followed by a fair number of children. One 7-8 year old boy came to me and gave me a piece of hard candy. I said shukran (thank you) and pocketed the candy. Another Iraqi came up to me to shake hands. To my surprise he read my name from my uniform, and then showed me his ID card so I could read his. After walking a little further I saw a roadside butcher shop. I knew it was a butcher shop because there was a sheep tied up on the ground and two men were busy cutting its throat. I tried not watch. When I walked back later there was a puddle of blood running out into the street.

The last village that we visited was more rural than the rest of them. By now it was noon, so most of the people stayed where they were in the shade and let us come to them. We walked by a house with a fenced in barn, and another soldier told me to look over the fence to see their baby donkey. It was light grey, only two feet tall and really cute. I saw another bakery, and gave flyers to the bakers, but I had no more need for bread. Across the street was a produce stand, and I watched as another soldier bought some plums from them. Once we reached the end of the road, we got back in our vehicles and drove back to the camp.

Though it was hot and tiring, and I drank 2 gallons of water to keep cool I enjoyed the day immensely. I learned more about the culture and people than I have on any other day I’ve spent here.

Sleep is Overrated

Sleep is Overrated

It’s been quite some time since I’ve written one of these things myself. As I predicted earlier, life got very busy, and sometimes I hardly had time to write my own wife, let alone anything else. Some of this will be recycled from personal letters, so if you got the letters this came from, sorry it’s not new.

I am in a place that is great for making one appreciate everything in life. The circumstances have allowed me to go to services only three times in two months, but I have managed. I have been building a friendship with another believer that lives in the next building over. God has blessed me with his presence and fellowship. I don’t know how I could cope here without God. There are so many things that one could be depressed or hopeless about here. I see it all around me. As long as I rely on the one who is higher than I, I will be fine. If I rely on myself, I’ll be in trouble. I am completely at peace with the trials and dangers and trusting God to do as he sees fit. Don’t worry about me.

The weather here has been very hot, but not so bad as some places in the states have been recently. I’ve been fortunate to not be a heat casualty yet. Our trucks have a/c, but it does not work well. One of the other systems that is essential to our safety is unfortunately located in the cab near the a/c vents, and it sucks in all the cold air and turns it into warm air. I have an ice chest on my truck, and keep it stocked with cold drinks to help with the heat.

About a week ago I had the opportunity to drive somewhere I’ve never been before, something I always enjoy. I got to take a short trip through the north end of the capital city. It was fascinating. I wish I could come back and explore under different circumstances. It was crowded and an intriguing mix of the old and modern. More often I’m driving through less urban areas. Anywhere I go, I love to see new things and learn about the culture.

The food here is still top quality for what it is, but the longer I’m away the more I miss my wife and mom’s cooking. Today a friend said that he’d never met a vegetable that he liked. I replied and told him it’s because he’s never had my wife’s cooking.

A few days ago I tried a black and green olive salad that was delicious. It had a perfect mix of spices and seasonings. My friend thought it was repulsive.

We’ve been pretty busy for the past few days, but it looks like things will be slowing down a get soon. I think I’ve been getting enough free time to stay well. God has been good to us, and everything has happened safely. I recently bought a lamp and plastic 3 drawer chest/nightstand for my space, and it has made it much more livable. They are now offering wireless internet, and I’m probably going to get it in a few days. It will be nice to have access all the time. Perhaps you will see me on Myspace messenger in the future. I am most likely to be on between 9am and 1 pm PST. I even have real blankets, sheets and a pillow now, with a great looking pillow case. The other day we got a refrigerator too.

I do not want to post a lot of pictures here, but if you would like some you can contact my wife.

I’ll end here with some comments on future resupply packages. First off, there are very few things that I cannot get from the store here if I want. So I do not need care packages. If you do want to send them, then feel to do so, they are always appreciated. Here are some things that I like or could use.

-I have plenty of hard candy, tea, gum, stationary and hygiene items. Thank you for what’s been sent, it will be put to use, but I do not need more.

-Here are some of my favorite candys. Hot tamales, skittles and starburst (any kind of both), sour candy, red vines (can’t get them here), reeses, snickers, milky way,

- I also like beef jerky, but it’s expensive, and I can get it here. So don’t get it unless you want to.

- Chocolate or chocolate cookies in small packages.

I would also request that those of you that pray, pray for the following.

- Continued safety

- Rest and peace for both me and my family

- A new job for me.

Psalm 68:19-20

Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior,
who daily bears our burdens.
Our God is a God who saves,
from the Sovereign Lord comes escape from death.

Excerpts from John's letters to Me;)

“Like cold water to a weary soul is good news from a distant land.” Pr 25:25

Here in the desert, cold water is hard to find. Water left out in the daytime will heat to air temperature, about 110 degree. That makes in great for coffee, but horrible for quenching thirst. Often it is just too hot to drink if it is left in the sun. Sodas will evaporate and bend the cans. I don’t know how people got by without a/c here for 4000 years. I work out in the sun most days, and a bottle of cold or even room temperature water can make a huge difference, between heat exhaustion and health.

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I also met about 10-15 Iraqis today. Mostly children and young adults, but two older men. The women and girls almost never come to us. Most spoke little English. This country is an amazing blend of a modern third world. I’ve seen many Mud homes with satellite dishes on top. I’ve seen many people herding sheep and goats along the highway. One teenager wanted to arm wrestle me, so I let him win, and he was very proud of himself. Everyone was happy we were there. It was fun and I wish I knew more Arabic and could have stayed longer.

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Many of the Iraqis that we meet are friendly. I’ve only seen a small few who were not, and we saw them from a distance. It’s always interesting to try to get around the language barrier.I love the ways that we help people with the cargo we carry. There’s a lot of satisfaction in bringing needed supplies to those that need them. I’ve seen more of the country and people in the last two weeks than I did in a year. I enjoy seeing another country up close. I enjoy meeting the people. I have met many Iraqi soldiers, police and kids. The kids are surprising. They remember a lot. I went to a place yesterday and one of the kids remembered that the last time I was there I was in a different vehicle. I wish I could learn more Arabic and talk to the people.
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Viola!

I have found it!

The Perfect meal. Spaghetti noodles, marinara sauce, garlic and oil, red onion, oregano, salt, pepper, chicken or roast beef. Stir fry in skillet and eat. Goes well with chocolate milk and chocolate cheesecake.

I have been very busy working hard and trying to keep from melting at the same time. It’s over 110 degrees, and summer is a month away. I have to use gloves to touch anything metal in the day time. I don’t know how people could live here without a/c. I got an ice chest for long trips, and fill it with water and soda. It’s great to have. The work is hard, but my buddies and I have a good time whenever we can.

Every few days I go to visit a small village north of a large city. I see the same few people every time I go there. They are very fun, but none of us know each other’s language. There is one person there that gives me and my friend a meal every time we se him. My buddy does not like the food, but is polite. I eat my food, plus his share of the bread. They give us each a plate or rice and sauce, a piece of chicken and two pieces of flatbread. The bread is very good, the rest is a nice change and taste of the local culture. I really enjoy the trips because I get to experience the country I’m in. It’s an amazing mix of the modern and third world. Major highway with donkey carts along the side, and smll country roads with Mercedes on them.

Hey everyone, this is Ariele writing on behalf of John. His AKO email has not been working the last week and he has not received any emails since April 30th. If you sent him one, please resend it and if you know his other email address send it there too. He doesn't know to check that one yet, but as soon as he calls I will tell him to be checking both if he doesn't find any emails at AKO. AKO is his us.army.mil address. If you don't have his hotmail address let me know and I'll share it with you. Thanks.

I'm here...for now.

I finally moved. I live in a large dorm room and have a bunk bed with a mattress, a wall locker and AC power and air conditioning. Everything one could want. I also got a large stack of mail that was waiting for me. It included a letter from my aunt, several each from my mom, Kate and Erin, Carol and Ariele. If anyone else wrote me, it’s not here yet. It seems to be taking things about a week to get to me. The food is similar to what I’ve been eating throughout. It is the rainy season here, so there are large puddles of standing water everywhere. The area outside seems rather dull and dreary. Everything is brown, and muddy, and there are few trees. My roommates are all nice and easy to work with.

Most of my luggage was separated from me on the flight up here. I have everything I need with me, but my nice Bible was in the lost luggage. But I will get it back shortly. Fortunately I received another one in the mail today, but it is KJV, and I prefer NIV. I will also get some of the luggage that I shipped earlier.

I have the option of buying a cell phone or my own internet, but I am unsure if I will, because I don’t want to spend a lot of money.

If anyone would like to send me some thing, there are a few things that I would like

- magnetic hooks, clips, racks or organizers, to hang stuff on.

- magnets to put on my space, and hold other things up.

I have a metal wall locker that is 2’ deep by 1.5’ wide by 6’ tall. I need to make the most of the space.

Due to really slow computers, I’m going to ask for now that anyone sending me email send it in Word, Notepad, or wordpad document as an attachment. This will make it much easier for me to save and read them. If you can’t do with, I’ll still be able to read and reply to emails. If you’re willing, but unsure how, just call my wife. She’s very smart and nerdy and good at explaining things like that. Thanks.

Please pray for the following things when you think of me.

- That I would not forget God in my business, and would grow here.

- That I would be patient and loving with those I work with

- That God would heal Ariele

- Safety for Ariele and the kids.

One Year

Today is the one year mark of the say that I gave in to peer pressure and created a blog. Even my wife was doing it. I wouldn’t have remembered it until I saw that the posts went back to April 2006. It was originally started as a place to write about my adventure hiking, climbing and camping. It stayed that way until I moved out of the country temporarily and put an end to my outdoor adventures. When I return I will write about my trip to the summit of Mt. Rainier. I looked back to my first post and saw that I was lamenting the fact that I had not been to the mountains recently had no prospects of going in the near future. Not much has changed in that regard. I still long for the mountains as a place where I feel free and alive.

What are you looking at?

Doing very little...for now...

There are a quite a few familiar sights where I am right now. There is a Charley’s, Pizza Hut, Subway, Hardee’s, and who could live without Starbucks in the desert? The cafeteria even serves Baskin Robbins ice cream. I think I’m going to get fat by the time I leave this place. All the cheesecake, cookies and ice cream one could eat. Nearby there are a post office, a barber shop, a day spa, and many souvenir shops selling local merchandise. I made up my mind not to spend any money at the fast food places, but made an exception for the Hardee’s one morning. They don’t even have them in WA. They sell the same food as Carl’s Jr, and it’s been a long time since I’ve had a Western Bacon Cheeseburger. I’ll be moving to the north by the end of the month, so many of these amenities might not available anymore.

Living in a desert means a dire lack of water. Water is one of the essential elements of life, even more so than chocolate, red wine vinegar and baklava. Here, almost all of it is imported from somewhere else, who must have quite an overabundance of it, because they can spare entire truckloads of bottled water for my portion of the desert. It gets so hot that all the bottled water companies put salt in the water because they already know you’re at risk for heat stroke. It’s so bright that by 7am someone from another country might think it is noon. One of the most obvious symptoms of the lack of water in the desert is that nothing grows here. Not even people. Even they are all imported. And the ones that lived here before people started emigrating were nomads. They moved around from place to place because there was no water. This country’s main export is sand rock and oil and main import is everything else. Obviously, the people who founded this country were distant relatives to the geniuses who decided to put the largest city in America in another wasteland that is stuck in a perpetual drought. I suppose it is a good thing that so many people live in wastelands. Otherwise my volcanic rainforest paradise where I can take showers that last longer than 3 minutes might become even more overcrowded than it already is.

I was off today and did very little. The highlight of my day ( apart from my email) was trying all three flavors of San Bendetto tea. The peach is still my favorite, but the lemon and verde were surprisingly good. I’m also off tomorrow. I plan on doing very little.

I like putting pictures in my posts, and this was the only one I had that had anything to do with what I wrote.

Hard Work

I’ve been working very hard for the last three days. I’ve worked both all day and all night at different times, and driven every kind of vehicle that I’m qualified on. I enjoyed the work, especially yesterday. I had to be there, so I might as well work, and tried to find as much to do as possible. It feels good to home after a hard day’s work. I also got several chances to pass on some of my knowledge to others, by teaching them how to use the trucks that I drive. I enjoyed that. I went home satisfied and happy, only to go online and find that the job requirements had changed drastically and it may be some time before I can get promoted. Add that to the news that I’ll be here a few months longer than I planned to.

I was reminded to today of Hebrew 12:1-12, especially the middle part. So, while disappointed, I will not give up hope.

Italy

Ariele was right, the tea came from Italy. I found it amusing, because several of my other favorite things from Italy, including my favorite in all this world.

I wanted to see if anyone would guess where it came from, and what they would guess. I suppose it would have been easier to say “guess where my new favorite tea came from?”, but this was more fun to write. I do apologize to any out there who suffered from the suspense.

Justine, I did get the comment that replied to my last post. I enjoyerd reading it.

Hard work today, but I'm off tomorrow, so i think I'll write something.