Silent Night

Christmas in Iraq is bearable as we are pressing into the home stretch. The many packages, cards and e-mails I have received certainly help immensely, I enjoy them all. I have left some of your packages to open until today so you will be receiving a personal thank you note shortly.

The day was routine for what we have been accomplishing lately. Churning out awards write ups for the many deserving Marines. Their professionalism, dedication and morale have been remarkable. My confidence in their ability to accomplish any feat assigned now has few bounds.

I spent my Christmas eve with the Marines. Took a turn serving up the 1830 chow from containers for those who can't get away from the site. Once they were all fed I caught a ride down to the chow hall for a Christmas eve feast of red beans and rice. Actually, it is one of my favorite meals. I had two bowls of ice cream as it is a traditional holiday celebration for me. The second bowl was a result of the CO and OPSO returning from pumping iron and catching me still eating. It was only polite to continue to eat with them. I had Dave drop me off up at the site as he was headed to the recreation center to make Christmas eve phone calls.

I had a few small gifts to prepare and some gear to pick up and was going to hoof it home. I played a couple Christmas carols on the guitar and dropped in on the Marines in operations to see how the night was going. They ended up talking me into sitting down as the Tactical Air Traffic Controller for a couple hours. The practice of bringing the uninitiated on to talk to airplanes is a tactic in fighting boredom. Talking on the radio to tactical aircraft with demands of protocol and brevity is much harder than it appears. I seemed ripe for the picking as it has been 20 years since I was the "master of air disaster."

I was well coached by Gunnery Sergeant Eppenbaugh, who is King of the gear, and his evil minion, Gunnery Sergeant Raymond. They coached me through all my transmissions with practice calls and written scripts. I managed to perform fairly well, and knock some of the rust off my aging skills. I believe I was able to successfully route several aircraft around potential mid-airs with Santa as that joker has no care for air route discipline. He's very haphazard in his flight path. The fighters get no radar returns as I believe he has upgraded his sleigh with stealth technology and magic. The only comment from the pilots was, "damn, that red light is bright."

In classic Marine Corp fashion, by this morning, my training session will have morphed into a combination of Daffy Duck and Porky Pig but that is the point of having me guest on the gear. It is all about the funny stories you can retell with extreme exaggeration. At crew change Gunny Epp was doing a fine impression of a 1st grader attempting to read from Shakespeare in describing my style and proficiency on the radios. It was a good time and made the evening pass quickly for all.

We get to sleep in for the holiday and I made it all the way to 1030 as it's quiet on the Iraqi front today. Looking forward to a decent line up for the noon feast and am headed that way momentarily.

Hope you are all having a very Merry Christmas and are enjoying the peace and happiness of the season. I look forward to joining you in a mere 37 days.

Vacation in Qatar

I got to spend some fun in the sun in Qatar. Rest and Relaxation. Free 5 or so day vacation. Hard to count the days really. We mustered at Al Asad at 1900 and flew out a few ours later. Stopped at another base to drop some folks off and then pressed on to Qatar and arrived at 0300. Customs, in briefing and finally into our "Bay" 12 person room by 0630. This is called day 0. It doesn't count toward your 4 day pass.
Woke up at 1000 feeling quite refreshed and went out to explore.
The buildings are big warehouses subdivided into "spaces". I think you could fit two tennis courts side by side in these buildings and they are over a 150 yards long. Huge. The USO building is a real treat. Computer area with fiber connection to the world so it's the fastest thing I've seen in terms of bandwidth in a long time. There is a big pillow room with video games and a movie area. Another movie area with couches. Briefing rooms. Green Beans coffee. Various little side rooms. A great facility to unwind in. We hang out here most of the time.
I went on a great tour of the inland sea. Basically a 4x4 trip over sand dunes to a secluded beach facility for a picnic. Quite fun. I'll draft up a post just to show that part.
A wide open stage area for live performances and lot's of tables and places to sit and watch or play cards or internet. The whole building is wireless which is nice. I didn't bring my laptop as I was traveling light.
There are three bars in the joint. These look like movie set buildings as they are like real bars but no ceiling. You just look up to the top of the warehouse. We get three beers per day. Which is more than enough quite frankly. I've been loopy every night and that is after just two normally.
The pool is great here. There is a real live Chili's adjoining which means I've eaten lunch there just about daily. The burgers are certified US GOOD!!! I couldn't tell I was away from home. They have a crankin' hot tub with jets and 105 degree water. What a relief.
The gym is 1st class. Of course it's not a Marine Base so no one uses it. I was in there at 1700 yesterday and it was me and 4 other people. There is a full service spa and I got a 1 hour massage for $40 with tip. It wasn't quite as good as home but hey, what is a bad massage.
The gym has a giant hitting cage for golf. I hit about 200 balls and thought I was ready for my golf outing. We had to muster at 0530...I thought golf was civilized. Nice drive through decent parts of Doha. Saw lots of interesting architecture. They aren't worried about urban sprawl out here. I've never seen so much construction. We didn't get to play the championship course but I didn't exactly need it. We arrived at 0730 for a 0800 tee time. Barely got 20 practice balls hit. No putting practice. In the end I ended up with a lot of balls in trouble and in the sand. Big shocker. A couple of those sand traps cost me two strokes. I shot a 51. Not bad for a guy who hasn't been on a course in months. Thoroughly enjoyed. It.
So this is day 4. We find out at 2100 when we fly out. If we are lucky it's tomorrow around noon. If we are unlucky it will be tonight at 2300. Place your bets.
In any event, it has been a great break. I think I really needed it. Been a bit edgy lately to say the least. Ready to charge into the last 45 days!!!

Where rocking horse people eat marshmellow pies,

OK, so these are butter people

...on a river...

Yes, that is the Taj Mahal. A famous Pilgrim landmark that they built soon after landing.

Lucy in the Sky with Thanksgiving

Picture yourself in a boat...
OK, not the Mayflower but a blue boat made out of gelatin.
The day started out with the normal routine. Up at 0600, to get the war started.

The usual mail, briefings and mayhem. Then began the festivities.

At 1030 Dave raised and objection to the lack of holiday routine. It just so happened that I had some boxes from good neihbors (Beth and Rusty Hall) with real live Pepperidge Farm cheese and beef sticks in them. Dave, never misses an opportunity for protein to build his body further, and Captain McKinney is a Sausage and Cheese addict. There isn't a twelve step program for him yet. I just like to eat so we broke it out and set to eating. It was a total highlight. For that 30 minutes it was the holidays.
The CO arrived at 1100 and announced that the Thanksgiving meal was being served from 1100-1500 so get on board. At this point Dave could not even hear because the food had backed up into his auditory canals. The CO rushed off unhappy that he had missed the opening bell. Eating was out of the question for me for at least a couple hours. Dave vowed he'd never eat again. McKinney promptly forgot he had eaten anything and rushed off to try and get to the line before the CO. I wasn't there but I'm told that the line stretched all the way to Syria.

By the time I recovered my appetite it was 1430. I headed off to dinner alone.
Dave ate so much he blew off the meal altogether. I think he must have had good intel about the stuffing. He spent Thanksgiving afternoon doing martial arts training. Nothing like intense pain, a vulcan death grip, and 2,000 situps to kill a holiday.

When I arrived there was only smoked Hawaiian Turkey left! I had never heard of this and there is a good reason it's not popular on the main land. When you grow up as spoiled as I am by incredible Mothers, Step-Mothers, Mother's you adopted and friend's mothers you find it hard to eat anything but the very best on this most special of days. So instant mashed potatoes, and powdered dressing that will not leave the shape of the scooper is just going to set you off a bit. I'll spin this that, I'm thankful for all the good food I've had in the past.

The next highlight were the decorations. Look, the staff at the chow hall really gave it their all. They put in a lot of effort. Being largely composed of foreign nationals from India, the Phillipines, Indonesia, etc, and wonderful and good people at heart, they did their very best to make us feel at home. Their home. We had a Hawaiian themed Thanksgiving. Nothing quite like an exotic smorgasboard when you are 7,000 miles from home and missing it terribly. (More blog photos to follow)

In order to salvage my meal I had a large bowl of ice cream. Another great thing to be thankful for. All of our ice cream is Baskin Robbins. OK, so we only get 4 flavors but hey, war is hell. I went with vanilla just to punish myself. If Dave was suffering then I should at least make an effort.

On this odd Thanksgiving I was thankful that this will hopefully be my last Thanksgiving OCONUS. I was thankful that there are so many good and wonderful people back in the states having an awesome thanksgiving. And most of all, I was thankful that in a mere 66 days I would be joining those awesome people.

Say What?!

A good sense of humor is what keeps you from going crazy in stressful environments. A sense of humor is supposed to be a sign of high intelligence. If that's so I'm in the presence of genius. Judge for yourself.

Hmmm

"How do we get more Hummers"

Major D. J. Fennell Responding to notification that most HMMWVs that operate inside the wire will be sent back to the states.





Imagination

SSgt: A good imagination helps make the deployment go faster.
SgtMaj: In that case, the majors have only been here for two days.
CO: And the SgtMaj has been here for two years.


A discussion on the imaginary adventures of the "lifeguard", Major F's imaginary engagement to her, and subsequent imaginary break up.



Pissies

"...Everybody else is getting pissy because they have nothing better to do."

LtCol C.J. Schorsch



You Can't Get There from Here

"It's 20 minutes to the start of the game and we're over 7,000 miles from the stadium. We should have parked closer."

Major F at 0200 as we walked into the Group HQ building slightly late to watch the CSU v CU game with other alumni.



Death, Lifting and Nutrition

CO: There is a dietitian at group who can consult with our Marines or with us if we need her.
Major F: Well, she can talk to us but I'm not following any guidance until I know what she can bench.
SgtMaj: Well, she might be able to tell us which foods we're eating are going to kill us.
CO: We are all going to die.
Major F: But we don't all get buried massive!
CO: I think most people want to be cremated.
Cox: Sir, they would never be able to put out the fire.



Don't Try Suicide

"I don't know how these suicide bombers live with themselves."

Major Cox



Incoming

"Those poor bastards barely get the round in the tube before they're running for the hills. I feel bad for them. I almost wish they'd hit something just to boost their self esteem."

Maj F on the enemies poor shooting while he was visiting TQ.





Mate??

"Sir, I wanted to fork you so bad, but you saw it coming."

Sgt W in reference to a chess game he lost with Major Cox....thank god.



3 Will Get You Five

'Around here, if you ask three different people you get five different stories.'

Sgt Maj expressing frustration on changing dynamics at Al Assad



Pregnant
"Sir, did you hear I knocked my wife up? Now I'm sure she can't get knocked up by somebody else."
Anonymous and rightly so.



Japanese

"My gosh! did my Grandfather have it great living in a Japanese concentration camp for three years during WW II. He never had to phone home."

Anonymous after his wife's discovery that he had not shared the same trivial story Major Cox shared with his wife.



Groundhog Day


Fennell: Is it Friday?
Cox: It's Saturday.
Fennell: It doesn't feel like Saturday
Cox: Every day is like Saturday here.
Fennell: Now, you should ask yourself, ...what’s Saturday like?



A conversation on calendar confusion.

When Mars Attacks

This Happened quite a while ago. It was quite a bizarre day. This storm blew in thick and heavy. It was certainly the worst storm we have had. According to the records this is the worst year for dust storms in the past 60 years.
Dave and I took the opportunity to go outside and play. The colors in this photo are exactly the same as it appeared in person. The intense portion of the storm lasted a couple hours but we were socked in for a good 12 hours. Within 30 minutes of this thing hitting there was a thick layer of dust on every surface. We wore face masks as you could see dust in the air inside our huts.
What a great time. I learned how to use the timer on my camera to take this. Managed to survive this unprovoked attack by the desert with the help of face masks and goggles. It was a near thing.

Take a free ride

I know I don't post very often but then there isn't much new happening. Yesterday was different. I had to leave the wire and conduct a little recon. I got to take a ride on one of the Marine Corps newest and priciest toys the MV-22 Osprey. $68 million dollars per copy. Quite the ride. This aircraft takes off and lands like a helicopter then flies along at a breezy 246 mph. It is basically twice as fast as a helicopter. It was a great flight.
Kind of cool to get to ride on one. When I was entering the Marine Corps with a flight contract in 1985 they told us that we would be among the first young pilots to be flying this as it would be replacing the 1968 designed CH-46 helicopters. Twenty some years later we still have CH-46s and the Ospreys have just come into use in the active forces. I love it when a plan comes together.

The gods must be angry.

In fact they must be pissed because I was hit by several drops of moisture falling from the sky as I walked into the chow hall this morning. Dave, mentioned that it is called rain which I vaguely recall. We looked up on the internet and this area gets .1" of rain per year in September. I guess that's what makes it fall because it's still 114 degrees. Not exactly football weather.
People are promising it get's cold and that their is no intermediary cool enjoyable period between searing and freezing. That just figures. This deal just keeps getting better. Is it any wonder that the Arabs have so many problems. Everything that lives here is ticked off. Camel spiders, scorpions,....well, that it. OK, so not much is stupid enough to live here but the things that occupy this hell are pretty unhappy.
But, not me. I continue to be in good spirits. We workout, do our jobs, and make the most of the opportunities we have for fun. We mock everything that annoys us and refuse to complain. In fact if you complain, you will be mocked for that.

Das Garten

It's been quite a bit hotter lately. We are now up into the 1-teens. It's shocking how much hotter 114 is than 108. 108 actually seems comfortable. When it dips down to 103 we generally hang out under the cammie netting and enjoy the evening. This usually happens around 1730 or 1800. It's a great time of day. I'll try and attach a picture of one of my favorite hangouts the motor T/utilities section. These guys have basically built a German Bier Garten with no Bier and no Garten. OK, so it's a dive. We play a lot of chess, boggle, etc around their table.
This is an early photo and they've done quite a bit of work since this. I'll update with a current photo tomorrow.
Industrious and motivated are just two of the fabulous characteristics present in these Marines. They are an amazing bunch and they would simply astound you at how typically Marine they can be one minute and how shockingly unique and excellent they are the next. I think they mirror the greatness of our country's peopla and much as everyone worries about the next generation, I can safely say, sleep well.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

Ok, so there's no snow and no decorations but there is so much dust it looks a little like a blizzard. This is the third day of heavy dust. Flights are mostly shut down for visibility. This is the worst day by far and this evening especially. You couldn't see the sun after 1730 because the dust is so thick. Past 200 yards you can only see vehicles if they have headlights on. It varies quite a bit from moment to moment but it is quite strange. The lingering 100+ heat disabuses you of the notion that it is the season. I don't think Christmas is allowed here. That didn't stop me from saying Merry Christmas to the African guards at the entrance to the PX. They gave me a big laugh and a smile and wished me the same.
Speaking of the guards, I remember a little Swahili from my buddy John Humphrey. Jambo Mzee is a big hit with them. Mambo is more hip, it means, "Wasssup?" The best response of course is, "Poa" which means cool. This said while dripping sweat down your sleeve and on to your pinkie then onto the ground. I'm pretty sure you could almost track me by it.

A real life saver

So Dave, Casey (Capt McKinney) and I are doing the usual. 0500 rise and shine. 0600 hike to chow. 0700 heading up the hill to the site, when what to our wondering eyes should appear....
Some people here have trucks. Very beat up white rental chevy luv king cab trucks. If you are really important you have a blazer. The official car of OIF. Anyway, the people with trucks some times take pity on your trudging soul and offer you a ride. The hike from the chow hall to the site is about a half mile. This means it takes a fully loaded marine (by loaded I mean full from the smorgasboard) about 10 minutes to waddle up the hill. We are about 5 minutes into our walk when a truck stops and I hear a rather unusual voice ask if we need a ride. "No, ...." my stock response begins to kick in, "...we are just up the..." Dave's head makes a lightning move so fast his nose broke the sound barrier causing a whip crack. Casey winced, thinking we were taking incoming sniper fire. "We'd love a ride!" Somehow, without use of vision, Dave's spider senses detected that the driver was not only female, but attractive. On this base those two characteristics make you legendary. We had heard rumor's of said life guard but discounted them as being a desert mirage.
So we pile into her truck for a 2 minute ride. Being the senior member, I'm up front(rank hath it's privileges). So I make a little conversation asking how long she's been here and where she's from and what she does here. 10 months, Texas, lifeguard. The lifeguard. Capt McKinney of course new this being the tri-athelete in the bunch but tactfully kept his mouth closed on the topic so he could gloat later.
Dave however, being single and in full targeting mode says, "Oh, you're THE life guard, we've heard all about you!"
She replies good naturedly, "I don't even want to think about what you've heard." She knows her fan club includes every male swimmer on the base. Her save rate is astronomical from guys who've never even had a glass of water trying to impress her with their kick turns and forgetting they can't swim. Don't they know lifeguards use those dang mask things now?
Dave: "Oh, it's all good. And you're athletic, cute, and have an accent!" Stunning grasp of the obvious.
Casey and I are now looking for ejection handles but they haven't put them into trucks yet.
She and Dave banter on good naturedly for the next 30 seconds. Dave of course can't get a phone number because no one has one, not even a cell. "We'll see ya'll at the pool," she calls with a wave.
I can't believe this guy has a date with a life guard! I think they may even be engaged, I'm not sure. It was all a blur. Lucky for Dave Base Order 5100.1g paragraph 6.b.7.i states, "no fun" And they are serious. Married couples have to apply for a waiver to live together and after careful review we found no documentation authorizing them actual physical contact, they just get to live together. Whatever happened to China Beach?

DISCLAIMER: Actual events may not be as dramatic or bizarre as portrayed in these stories. If accurate, they would be unreadable.

Camp Cupcake

Here is an article I ran across about this base. http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.printable&pageId=44196
It's fairly accurate. Like most news story it doesn't match up perfectly with reality but it's a little dated.
Here are a few comments.
I think we only have one pool. If you have a pool in Iraq it better be indoors or it would look like a mud bath. If it's indoors it's got to have a/c or it's uninhabitable. The pool is here for the troops but also the contractors. The contractors live here for a lot more time than many of the troops and some kind of recreation is fairly important to your sanity. You can't exactly drive out in the town to try out there amenities. The contractors are essential to getting the job done over here so they get taken care of as well.
It is a big base and so can support things like an all night coffee joint. I think it's a Boca Java, not sure I've never been there. We have a pizza hut and it's decent (haven't been there either but I had a slice that the troops bought the other night and it was good. We have a Burger King, I heard you should skip it. The PX is stocked, I'm not sure most of you would shop there as the selection is limited and it's always at least 90 degrees inside. I have no idea if we have a Baskin Robbins as the chow hall serves ice cream two meals a day.
Al Asad is clearly not the front line. Those of us in the wing don't make that claim. We admire and respect those who have it harder than we do and we make sure we deliver the best possible air power the moment they need it. It's our only reason for existence.
We make the grunts as comfortable as possible given there forward locations. I know their facilities are constantly upgraded and improved like every spot we have in this country. I notice the grunts don't complain when they get sent here for a day or two to enjoy the vast expansive luxury that is my daily life. Before you know it people from the states will be flocking here for vacation....not.

Weeks fly

Is it Friday already? Time really flies when there is no such thing as a weekend. Sort of like the movie ground hog day. Dave was confused the other day about whether it was Friday or Saturday. I informed him it was Saturday and that it didn't really matter, every day was like Saturday. He then pointed out that it was very important to ask yourself, "So, what's Saturday like." We howled It's now one of our mantras. It's a common question so we always give our stock answer.
I was going to try and post some photo's up but the bandwidth is so bogged down right now it's not possible to upload a picture. Oh the joys or pseudo-connected to the internet. Will get some up Sunday.

7/25/08 Wrap Up

We got to site very much looking forward to a little cool down in the a/c but our generators were down. They came back up in an hour or so. I wandered over to the radar shop while Dave pounded his head on the shelter wall giving him 3rd degree burns on his forehead. To tell you the truth he got such a bad haircut last week it doesn't really mess with his looks that much. I promised him next time I would execute the barber before he could cause such damage. We're battle buddies (an army term we deride constantly) and I'm blood sworn to protect him from such fashion faux pas.
At the radar shop they have a guitar so I got a little a/c and played a quick song. When I went back to our space the power was up and life was beautiful again. Inspected the sign SSgt Martinez made for our site gym. It reads "Pain Train" "weight over form--bury me massive" I love it. I've now joined the club where I help Dave torment the CO and SgtMaj. I've moved up from victim to apprentice. Nice.

Afternoon was busy with lot's of actions and events coming in over e-mail or in person.
Worked on command and staff for about an hour as well.
At 1830 we departed in the CO's vehicle for dinner. I went light on dinner and had a chicken breast, some greens and carrots and a couple bowls of salad with another bottle of water. I was a bit quiet at dinner tonight because the leg workout and mid day walk were somewhat taxing.
There was a dart tournament tonight at 2000 but we got home at 1930 and I was feeling exhausted. Checked a couple e-mails then went to shower up. Now I'm writing this to you and getting ready to crawl in to bed as I'm very tired. It's 2105.

So that's a somewhat typical day. Just like Colorado the weather doesn't seem to change much. Sunny and warm again!

7/25/08 Workout

1030 we caught a ride back to the huts (We live in wooden boxes called SWA huts) because the command element CO, SgtMaj, Dave and I were going to the Main Gym for leg workout. Most days we work out on site because it's good motivation for the troops to see us sweat up there. We have no equipment for a leg workout though. Ran the half mile to the gym from the huts and Dave proceeded to kill us with various leg exercises. I almost fell down the stairs after going up to the aerobic machine area to chat with a fellow Marine. Sudden onset of spaghetti legs almost killed me but I recovered in time to make it look like I was merely drunk. Finished up with a little ab workout. Drank a bottle of water before workout, one during, and one on the 2.0 mile walk back to the site after workout. I guess we got back up to the site at about 1200. CO and SgtMaj separated from us at the gym and we didn't see them again until late afternoon. Walk back was kind of nice because while it was around 110, we were in shorts and T-shirts and got some sun on our legs. Dave complained the whole way while I insisted it wasn't that hot. He told me he was pretty sure we were both dying on the side of the road and mumbling at each other and were only imagining that we were still walking back to the site. We laugh nonstop. We are going to be like brothers after 7 months.

Cooled down at site, checked e-mail and changed over to uniform for chow. Have to be in uniform everywhere on base except gym or running. Chow was the best lunch yet. Mexican day. Don't think I've forgotten how good Chipotle is but it's just not on the near horizon. Rice, beans, chicken, queso sauce, tomatoes, sour cream. Filled my whole plate and drank another bottle of water and had a coke for desert. Mmmmmmm Coke with ice. Finished chow by 1330 which is when they are closing up.
Hike back up to site (.5 miles) was brutal. It was just scorching but again, I insisted that it's nice out. Dave threatened to do me bodily harm except that would cause his body temperature to increase further. He also informed me that he didn't have time to fill out form SF 387-424 authorizing him to dig a hole or get it approved by the base configuration committee so he had to settled for flipping me off which still violated several of the 56,000 base orders and could result in fines up to and including death. I told Dave of his violation and threatened to shoot him if he persisted but it was just too nice a day to mar with violence.

7/25/08 Morning

I usually wake up a time or two to go to the bathroom. We hydrate so much it can't be avoided. I think I drink 7 or 8 litres of water a day. I'm sleeping quite well, now that I'm adjusted. I'm quite exhausted by the days.
Today the alarm went off at 0500 and I snoozed it until 0530. Got dressed and met Casey (Capt McKinney a main character) as he pounded on my door to let me know I was running late. We hand our bags off to the bus that takes the troops up to the site for crew change. We aren't allowed to have bags or gear in the chow hall because it's too crowded and their are safety concerns for bomb plantings. Dave(Major Dave Fennell another character in more ways than one), Casey and I walked 1.5 miles to DFAC 3 (chow hall three DFAC means Dining Facility the Marine corps tries to complicate everything as much as possible). I had scrambled eggs with salsa and two pancakes, a bottle of water and some grapefruit juice. Oh, and a biscuit with strawberry jelly. Good biscuit, just like my beloved McDonalds.
Walked up the hill to the site and checked e-mail. I think I was there by 0700. CO and SgtMaj showed up about 0730. Routine morning start up with e-mails, messages, reports, task reviews etc. Played a quick game of chess over in the Motor Transport and Utilities section. Brought out my big board to play they had a chintzy one so they are holding onto it for me. Beat Sgt Clark but told him not to let it happen again. Provided learning points and instruction on errors and made him do 150 pushups. Checked out the rest of the areas and chatted with the troops. Weather quite nice at this time of day. Temperature just above 90. But no humidity! Had a meeting with the CO and discussed space arrangements going forward when our counterparts depart shortly.

Evening 7/24/08

Was studying command and staff and trying to complete my assignments last night....late. Behind as usual. Taking a masters course and helping command a squadron in a war zone is a tall order. Internet connection plays hell with my discussion posts because it's so slow and it's hard to get all the reading done. Got finished around 2300 (Sorry, I'm going to use military time) Skipped the shower which is totally disgusting when you are sweating 4-5 litres a day but no one complained. Showers and heads are in trailers. They are quite tiny. I can barely walk between the sink and the shower stalls. I think you could put two of these showers in our shower stall at home. I'll get a photo for you eventually. They have an a/c in the trailer so it's not too bad. Just skipped it as I was too busy.
Fell asleep quickly a little after 2300, I believe it was 2302.

Nice Gap

So a lot has happened since I left work.
We trained up at the Squadron area there in Denver. We spent a week shooting in Wyoming which was a blast even though it was warm most of the week it turned very cold and rainy on the last day of shooting. It was the day tornadoes destroyed parts of northern Colorado.
The troops had tons of classes in everything from first aid to convoy operations and spent half of every day getting proficient at our technical MOS.
We completed training and had a weeks vacation and then another week of very little to do which ended with the long 4th of July Weekend.
Immediately after the 4th we moved to Miramar in sunny San Diego. We got some shots, trained in the Humvee escape trainer and then departed the country.
Getting to Iraq is half the fun apparently. I'll have more posts on all this later as I catch up.
So now, I will post some recent happenings and gradually fill in some of the missing details. Some of this may be boring so I'll give you some labels to help you decide what to read and what not to read. [Routine] [Funny] [Interesting] etc. You get the point. This is my way of sharing what's going on so like my guitar playing, I'm not getting paid so you don't have to like it.
And now, on with the show.

Last Day at Work

It is my last day at work before going to the Marine Corps full time to train for deployment to Iraq this summer. Yesterday was my going away luncheon and it was great to have five tables of folks at Hooters to have hot wings and say goodbye. I certainly work with a great bunch of people who are all making great contributions to our defense of freedom in their everyday jobs. I'll be looking forward to getting back to "normal" life next March.
This blog will serve as my journal and a way of sharing my everyday life and random opinions with all of the people who have asked me to keep in touch. I'll use e-mail as well but some of it may just be pasted from the blog to allow me to keep up with the vast hordes of my loyal fans ;-)
I work in security with my civilian capacity so Operation Security (OPSEC) will be observed by default. I will not give specific dates or places and can not send it to you via e-mail or over the phone so don't ask.
Blogging will be an interesting new adventure while I'm on my interesting new adventure.