So here I sit in the country of Qatar. Why you may ask. Well flights in Afghanistan to get out on R&R are all backed up and they were just trying to push us out. I will be headed to Kuwait in the next few hours where I will finally find out when I will get home. Things have gone a bit slower than planned. So far in the last 6 days I have had a 5 hour helicopter ride and a 3 hour C-17 ride. Still in front of me are another C-17 ride (1 hour) Commercial plane ride from Kuwait to Atlanta (15 hours) and another short plane ride from Atlanta to Bloomington. Hopefully I can cut out a leg to Chicago, we will just have to see.
I had hoped to be home by the 18th but now it doesn't look like it. I was hoping to surprise Ashtyn at school and go to Dade's last cub scout meeting but I will probably miss those. I should be home for Christmas but the way things are going I wouldn't go as far as to promise that. One good note is that the longer it takes me to get here the less time I will have to spend in Afghanistan when I get back.
Later for now
Brent
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Waiting
So the time has come where I'm so close to going on leave but for now I'm stuck in Baghram Afghanistan waiting on another plane. I say another because the 1st one is all full and delayed on top of that. So the next plane that comes in may not even be mine because all of the other people on the delayed plane may get on that one.
After almost 9 months to say that I'm a bit anxious is an understatement.
I haven't written in sometime as my access to a civilian internet connection isn't very accesible nowadays. You would think that in going to a larger FOB we would have more ammenities. Well we do have more things but internet isn't one of them.
Things in Ghazni have been pretty busy most of the time. We spend a lot of time watching unmanned arial vehicle feeds and the camera feed from our Blimp. I don't know if I ever mentioned the blimp. We have a blimp that is tethered to the base and provides a camera feed into our operations center. We are able to keep an eye on a pretty vast area with both of those platforms. Winter hasn't set in yet so the bad guys are still pretty busy. We can see the snow on the mountian tops which are at about 8k feet. I imagine the snow will be on the ground in Ghazni by the time I get back.
Speaking of when I get back. When I get back to Ghazni I should only have about 70-80 days before I am back home again.
I would really like to thank everyone that has helped out my family thus far. It is the support network that helps them out at home that helps me out here. It keeps me from worrying to much. My wife was able to move our entire household from Deer Creek back to Prairie City. I'm so excited to come home for Christmas!!!
Well that's enough for now. I hope to see those of you arund town for Christmas and New Years
Later,
Brent
After almost 9 months to say that I'm a bit anxious is an understatement.
I haven't written in sometime as my access to a civilian internet connection isn't very accesible nowadays. You would think that in going to a larger FOB we would have more ammenities. Well we do have more things but internet isn't one of them.
Things in Ghazni have been pretty busy most of the time. We spend a lot of time watching unmanned arial vehicle feeds and the camera feed from our Blimp. I don't know if I ever mentioned the blimp. We have a blimp that is tethered to the base and provides a camera feed into our operations center. We are able to keep an eye on a pretty vast area with both of those platforms. Winter hasn't set in yet so the bad guys are still pretty busy. We can see the snow on the mountian tops which are at about 8k feet. I imagine the snow will be on the ground in Ghazni by the time I get back.
Speaking of when I get back. When I get back to Ghazni I should only have about 70-80 days before I am back home again.
I would really like to thank everyone that has helped out my family thus far. It is the support network that helps them out at home that helps me out here. It keeps me from worrying to much. My wife was able to move our entire household from Deer Creek back to Prairie City. I'm so excited to come home for Christmas!!!
Well that's enough for now. I hope to see those of you arund town for Christmas and New Years
Later,
Brent
Thursday, November 6, 2008
One more day down
Today was just another day but it was special since it was my wife's birthday. If you want to know how old she is you will have to ask her yourself but I can tell you she is younger than me.
Today was another beautiful day in Afghanistan. High of 74 and will probably get down into the low 40s or high 30s. While standing outside today enjoying the weather the guys and I heard a jet flying pretty high over head. When we finally found it in the sky we were looking at a B1B bomber. That was a very cool sight.
It seems as though I have found another friend here in the camp. Our camp pet is a 5 month old dog that looks like a german shepherd mix. Hes a very cute pup, big pup. The first night I was walking by and he started barking at me now he knows me from anywhere in the camp and comes up to say hi or just lay down and hang out. You would think that a dog like that would be hyper and kind of aggressive. This is the type of dog that you could take his dinner away from. I think its probably because he is the most well fed dog in the country. He actually turns down food. I sat down this afternoon outside the door of our dining facility and watched as everyone come out. They all keep something back and toss it to him on the way out. I found out his favorite food is M&Ms. That dog goes crazy for M&Ms LOL.
Well I dont know what else to talk about so that's it for tonight.
Later,
Brent
Today was another beautiful day in Afghanistan. High of 74 and will probably get down into the low 40s or high 30s. While standing outside today enjoying the weather the guys and I heard a jet flying pretty high over head. When we finally found it in the sky we were looking at a B1B bomber. That was a very cool sight.
It seems as though I have found another friend here in the camp. Our camp pet is a 5 month old dog that looks like a german shepherd mix. Hes a very cute pup, big pup. The first night I was walking by and he started barking at me now he knows me from anywhere in the camp and comes up to say hi or just lay down and hang out. You would think that a dog like that would be hyper and kind of aggressive. This is the type of dog that you could take his dinner away from. I think its probably because he is the most well fed dog in the country. He actually turns down food. I sat down this afternoon outside the door of our dining facility and watched as everyone come out. They all keep something back and toss it to him on the way out. I found out his favorite food is M&Ms. That dog goes crazy for M&Ms LOL.
Well I dont know what else to talk about so that's it for tonight.
Later,
Brent
Sunday, November 2, 2008
107
107 is the amount of stargate SG 1 episodes I have watched. There may be more but that is all that I had on my terabyte hard drive. I have watched many other movies as well. While in iraq many of us bought a bunch of the boxed sets of movies. They are quite a bit cheaper there than in the states.
So what is in store for me now? I have the Sopranos all ready to go as well as the shield. The SHield happens to be one of Micca's favorite shows so I think I may try not to watch that until I get home. I'm thinking that may be something we can sit and enjoy together when time permits.
Nothing to adventerous has happen here. My Well diggers began digging the well today. It's a little disappointing knowing I won't get to see the finished product. It really is an experiance to work with the local people. Once they understand the hierarchy of our military structure, I think they come to view us or in the case of me as a tribal leader of sorts. It's a little wierd I don't know quite how to explain it. The Polish Captain and I are the 2 highest ranking officers here and because I am american I think those that aren't polish assume I am in charge of everything. I really am just an advisor and a resource.
In other news the LT that was suppose to show up today didn't. It seems as though he was told that the helicopter that was suppose to take him wasn't going to stop here. Well when the helicopter showed up only 2 polish soldiers got off. So that means one more day that I will spend here which is fine by me.
My big project for today was to inventory the kitchen stuff that the polish are using to make breakfeast and dinner and what not. It seems as though the Army has decided that they are going to contract KBR in to cook for us. It probably wont happen until after I leave but I have started the project in motion. I guess they need to know whats here so they know what to bring.
Another day is done and another day closer to leave :)
Later
Brent
So what is in store for me now? I have the Sopranos all ready to go as well as the shield. The SHield happens to be one of Micca's favorite shows so I think I may try not to watch that until I get home. I'm thinking that may be something we can sit and enjoy together when time permits.
Nothing to adventerous has happen here. My Well diggers began digging the well today. It's a little disappointing knowing I won't get to see the finished product. It really is an experiance to work with the local people. Once they understand the hierarchy of our military structure, I think they come to view us or in the case of me as a tribal leader of sorts. It's a little wierd I don't know quite how to explain it. The Polish Captain and I are the 2 highest ranking officers here and because I am american I think those that aren't polish assume I am in charge of everything. I really am just an advisor and a resource.
In other news the LT that was suppose to show up today didn't. It seems as though he was told that the helicopter that was suppose to take him wasn't going to stop here. Well when the helicopter showed up only 2 polish soldiers got off. So that means one more day that I will spend here which is fine by me.
My big project for today was to inventory the kitchen stuff that the polish are using to make breakfeast and dinner and what not. It seems as though the Army has decided that they are going to contract KBR in to cook for us. It probably wont happen until after I leave but I have started the project in motion. I guess they need to know whats here so they know what to bring.
Another day is done and another day closer to leave :)
Later
Brent
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Moving Again
Now that I am all settled into 4 corners it looks as though I will be going back to Ghazni for the rest of my stay in Afghanistan. To be honest even though this place is lacking in amenities... lol to think that I would refer to any of these places as having amenities. I like the remote somewhat austere environment. My biggest task is managing the contract that has a local contractor digiing a well for us. Before these gentlemen showed up at the front gate I really didn't know that digging a well was so technical. Now converting these technical bits through an interperter is a challenge. Language is the biggest challenge alltogether since I have been here. It is either Polish or Pashtun neither of which I have much knowledge in.
So now that I ahve established the needed systems here and got things going they are sending someone in for me to train up so I can leave the this company and work for the Battalion. To be honest I dont mind moving as it keeps me from geting bored and learning new tasks and working with new people always makes things interesting.
Micca has only 2 days left of work after which she plans to concentrate on getting everything moved back to the Prairie City house. We are both looking forward to settling into the B-PC community. Dade will start school after the new year and he is excited as well. He has already met his teacher and seen his classroom and his cousin Jax has been sharing his homework with him to show him where he is in school and to be honest Dade is quite a bit ahead so hopefully any problems adjusting won't be because of school work.
I can't begin to convey how much I am looking forward to getting home. My vacation/leave comes towards the end of my time hereso by the time I finish my eave when I get back here I will have less than 60 days left. Micca and I have this calculator that figures how many days I have left and the percent of time served. Today I was at 62%
Thats enough for now
Later
Brent
So now that I ahve established the needed systems here and got things going they are sending someone in for me to train up so I can leave the this company and work for the Battalion. To be honest I dont mind moving as it keeps me from geting bored and learning new tasks and working with new people always makes things interesting.
Micca has only 2 days left of work after which she plans to concentrate on getting everything moved back to the Prairie City house. We are both looking forward to settling into the B-PC community. Dade will start school after the new year and he is excited as well. He has already met his teacher and seen his classroom and his cousin Jax has been sharing his homework with him to show him where he is in school and to be honest Dade is quite a bit ahead so hopefully any problems adjusting won't be because of school work.
I can't begin to convey how much I am looking forward to getting home. My vacation/leave comes towards the end of my time hereso by the time I finish my eave when I get back here I will have less than 60 days left. Micca and I have this calculator that figures how many days I have left and the percent of time served. Today I was at 62%
Thats enough for now
Later
Brent
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
getting comfy
Well I have finally gotten settled into four corners. The camp here is quite small. It’s about 200 meters (think yards) by 300 meters with the helo pad taking up about a 1/3 of the space. When everyone finally shows up we should have about 150 soldiers here. Considering where we are this is actually pretty nice. The camp itself is an old Russian camp left over from the Russian occupation of Afghanistan.
When I say settled I should say I haven’t completely settled in since I found out they may want me to go back to Ghazni and serve as a liaison for a battalion there. I guess now would be appropriate to discuss structure so everyone will have an understanding of how things work. Almost all military forces follow the same sort of structure.
Team = 3-5 soldiers
Squad = 6-10 soldiers
Platoon = 3-4 squads with anywhere from 30-40 soldiers with a Lieutenant in charge
Company = 3-6 platoons with anywhere from 60-200 soldiers depending on the company and companies have a Captain in charge of them usually reffered to as a company commander or the CO. This is the level I am working at and is probably the most enjoyable of all levels IMO as an officer. My job here is to assist the company commander with an US Forces that he may need or assets or contracts.
Battalion = 3-5 companies and has about 300-500 soldiers in it
Brigade = 3-4 Battalions and has roughly 1000-1500 soldiers in it
I tell you all to tell you this. I am no working at the company level with the polish but I may have to go back to Ghazni and work at the Battalion level. Because it is a larger organization I would be a little more focused on doing just operational stuff and not messing with the logistics so much.
So what do I think about this place. For now I don’t think I would mind spending the rest of my tour here. We are in a fairly remote location and rely heavily on helicopters for supplies. Which makes me worry a little about the winter. The Winters here are quite severe with lots of snow that is measured in feet rather than inches. The cold will make things pretty difficult and I wonder how we will adapt. The Polish are in the process of changing their soldiers out so this is an entirely new group. Some of the challenges I see will be keeping water running. We have a small well that is our water source for showers and washing clothes. We have our drinking water brought in by helicopter and it is all bottled water. I washed my clothes the other day for the first time in the late afternoon which was a mistake. I used one of the 2 working washers if you can call them that. You have to check the washer about every 20 minutes because when it is time for the spin cycle you have to undo the plug so the water can drain. They have no pump to pump the water out. So after your laundry is done you have to go hang it up wherever you can. Problem is if you remember I said I did my laundry in the afternoon, by the time it was done it was almost dark. So I had to string parachute cord all throughout my room and hang up 2 weeks worth of clothes (remember I’ve been in transit for awhile). I had to be careful walking in my room as I literally clothes lined myself about 3 or 4 times. Another thing that I realized about our water situation. Our water smells, not bad but like bleach, we add HTH which is basically bleach to the water tanks we fill with the well. SO everything has a slight bleach smell to include my room now since it was the location for my drying attempts. I should have know better since I had already realized this issue the first time I took a shower and came out smelling like I had been swimming in a pool.
We have a camp pet. His name is Outlaw. He looks like a small german shepard. He probably weighs in at about 60lbs so not to small. I’m not one to really make friends with camp pets since they are a source of disease and what not but the first time I walked out of the command center at night and he didn’t recognize me and started barking at me I decided we should become friends. Last thing I need is our guard dog attacking me.
I ran around the camp the other day for PT. I think I may have forgotten to mention our altitude here is over 6k feet so what I considered running might have only been a very fast walk or a poor attempt at running. The altitude does have an affect.
Well that’s enough deep thought for now.
Brent
When I say settled I should say I haven’t completely settled in since I found out they may want me to go back to Ghazni and serve as a liaison for a battalion there. I guess now would be appropriate to discuss structure so everyone will have an understanding of how things work. Almost all military forces follow the same sort of structure.
Team = 3-5 soldiers
Squad = 6-10 soldiers
Platoon = 3-4 squads with anywhere from 30-40 soldiers with a Lieutenant in charge
Company = 3-6 platoons with anywhere from 60-200 soldiers depending on the company and companies have a Captain in charge of them usually reffered to as a company commander or the CO. This is the level I am working at and is probably the most enjoyable of all levels IMO as an officer. My job here is to assist the company commander with an US Forces that he may need or assets or contracts.
Battalion = 3-5 companies and has about 300-500 soldiers in it
Brigade = 3-4 Battalions and has roughly 1000-1500 soldiers in it
I tell you all to tell you this. I am no working at the company level with the polish but I may have to go back to Ghazni and work at the Battalion level. Because it is a larger organization I would be a little more focused on doing just operational stuff and not messing with the logistics so much.
So what do I think about this place. For now I don’t think I would mind spending the rest of my tour here. We are in a fairly remote location and rely heavily on helicopters for supplies. Which makes me worry a little about the winter. The Winters here are quite severe with lots of snow that is measured in feet rather than inches. The cold will make things pretty difficult and I wonder how we will adapt. The Polish are in the process of changing their soldiers out so this is an entirely new group. Some of the challenges I see will be keeping water running. We have a small well that is our water source for showers and washing clothes. We have our drinking water brought in by helicopter and it is all bottled water. I washed my clothes the other day for the first time in the late afternoon which was a mistake. I used one of the 2 working washers if you can call them that. You have to check the washer about every 20 minutes because when it is time for the spin cycle you have to undo the plug so the water can drain. They have no pump to pump the water out. So after your laundry is done you have to go hang it up wherever you can. Problem is if you remember I said I did my laundry in the afternoon, by the time it was done it was almost dark. So I had to string parachute cord all throughout my room and hang up 2 weeks worth of clothes (remember I’ve been in transit for awhile). I had to be careful walking in my room as I literally clothes lined myself about 3 or 4 times. Another thing that I realized about our water situation. Our water smells, not bad but like bleach, we add HTH which is basically bleach to the water tanks we fill with the well. SO everything has a slight bleach smell to include my room now since it was the location for my drying attempts. I should have know better since I had already realized this issue the first time I took a shower and came out smelling like I had been swimming in a pool.
We have a camp pet. His name is Outlaw. He looks like a small german shepard. He probably weighs in at about 60lbs so not to small. I’m not one to really make friends with camp pets since they are a source of disease and what not but the first time I walked out of the command center at night and he didn’t recognize me and started barking at me I decided we should become friends. Last thing I need is our guard dog attacking me.
I ran around the camp the other day for PT. I think I may have forgotten to mention our altitude here is over 6k feet so what I considered running might have only been a very fast walk or a poor attempt at running. The altitude does have an affect.
Well that’s enough deep thought for now.
Brent
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Four Corners
I made it to 4 corners. My living arrangements are ok for now. I am in a
little concrete building that is about the same size as my trailer in
Iraq, maybe a little smaller. For now I am by myself but LT Beier is
suppose to eventually join me so I will have a room mate. The FOB
including the airfield is probably about 4-5 acres so it is very small.
We will eventually have about 150 polish here and 5 americans with me
being the senior american and probably the most senior person in all.
It appears my duties will be pretty minimal so I may find myself going
back to ghazni after everything is established. I am busy establishing
computers phones and radios. Well I am here with the techs who will
eventually leave me.
The dining facilities have gotten progressivley worse since leaving Iraq
and culminated with tonights dinner. We had meatballs with some polish
salad. It was good but the selection was well there was no selection.
The nights here are getting into the 30s now but the days hit the high
70s.
I'm glad October is almost over then I just have to make it past
november then I will be super close to coming home for leave. To say
that I am a bit anxious is an understatement.
Not much else for now
little concrete building that is about the same size as my trailer in
Iraq, maybe a little smaller. For now I am by myself but LT Beier is
suppose to eventually join me so I will have a room mate. The FOB
including the airfield is probably about 4-5 acres so it is very small.
We will eventually have about 150 polish here and 5 americans with me
being the senior american and probably the most senior person in all.
It appears my duties will be pretty minimal so I may find myself going
back to ghazni after everything is established. I am busy establishing
computers phones and radios. Well I am here with the techs who will
eventually leave me.
The dining facilities have gotten progressivley worse since leaving Iraq
and culminated with tonights dinner. We had meatballs with some polish
salad. It was good but the selection was well there was no selection.
The nights here are getting into the 30s now but the days hit the high
70s.
I'm glad October is almost over then I just have to make it past
november then I will be super close to coming home for leave. To say
that I am a bit anxious is an understatement.
Not much else for now
Monday, October 13, 2008
Afghanistan Journal
Today is the 12th of October. I have now been in Afghanistan 3 days or so. I am now at Baghram. I am 1 of 3 on here on the ground trying to figure out things. We left Iraq knowing we all had to end up in Ghazni Afghanistan eventually. I planned and coordinated the movement of our equipment from Iraq which was surprisingly quite easy. We have mentioned quite a few times how everything is easier in war. Back home if I requested a plane to move some equipment it would have to be requested 6 months in advance and all sorts of deals would have to be cut and then at the last minute the misson would get canceled. The planning I did here was to easy and I always kept looking for what the problem would be. It was or has been pretty damn easy realtivley speaking.
I left Tallil Iraq, wondering and hoping that this would be my last time I ever had to visit this country. It seemed somewhat fitting that I should be leaving through the place that I came through on my in to Camp Echo. Even more fitting was the backdrop of the base itself. There is a very old temple that was built there. Supposdely it is older than the Pyramids. I don’t know for sure but it makes sense since we are in the middle of the cradle of civilization, LOL one would think that if this was the cradle they would be ahead of everyone else but this is irony at its finest.
Afghanistan sure is different in every way. It’s a different war with different people and even though I haven’t left the confines of the air base I can tell things are already different. The biggest contrast is the landscape and weather. I am totally surrounded by mountains and the high today was 79 degrees. Tomorrow it is suppose to rain. If it rains it will be the first time I have seen rain in over a month. Even then is was just a couple of sporadic drops. It has been since April since I have seen any thing approaching a significant rain.
The other big thing that I have noticed here is the lack of T-walls and bunkers. The threat of indirect fire here is almost nonexistent. Many of the force protection standards that exist in Iraq seem to be missing here, I hope it’s because they are not needed. I’m sure of that for the most part since I have been following the intelligence since I have found out we were coming here. With winter fast approaching even the the stuff that was going on earlier this year will stop pretty soon.
I have had some time here the past 3 days and began watching an HBO mini series called generation kill. It is about some marines and their trek through Oraq during the first 20 days or so. I had heard it was done very well and pretty accurate. I have to say it was extremely accurate and should be added to anyones must see list, it can get graphic and quite violent but if you can stomach it, it is worth watching. While I was watching the series there would be many times I would have to stop it because of the sounds of the airfield bleeding over my headphones. The F-15s and F-16s taking off in real time sometimes fit right in while I wastching the show. I sometimes had a tough time figuring out what was real and what was playing over the headphones as I watched. It just seems weird, I don’t know if that is irony so to say but whatever it is it was just weird.
So today I am thinking aboutu what lies in front of me and what other things I will be missing while I am over here. Ashtyn just had her Birthday and Micca will soon have hers. Drake will have his as well while I am gone but Drakes Birthday marks the home stretch fro me. You see Drake’s Birthday is the 17th of February and my Deployment date started on the 18th of March. So in seeing this major events pass it saddens me but at the same time keeps me hopeful and plodding along doing whatever it is that must be done for the day. I also have an anniversary in there which is my Micca and I’s first. Today had me thinking that now I have less than 60 days before I can take leave, and once I return I will only have about 60 days left in country. So even though I’m just barely past the half way point in this deployment I fell like things should start to rapidly come to a close. With Leave comes Christmas and if every thing lines up just right I should make it home in time for Christmas and new years so at least I will be around for that.
As usual I am all over the board in thought and what not. I will have Micca post this to my blog as I will not be able to access it my self since my civilian internet access is sporadic if not non existant. Funny thing is that if you post a comment it comes to my army email and lets me see it. The army cant stop everything
Later for now
Brent
I left Tallil Iraq, wondering and hoping that this would be my last time I ever had to visit this country. It seemed somewhat fitting that I should be leaving through the place that I came through on my in to Camp Echo. Even more fitting was the backdrop of the base itself. There is a very old temple that was built there. Supposdely it is older than the Pyramids. I don’t know for sure but it makes sense since we are in the middle of the cradle of civilization, LOL one would think that if this was the cradle they would be ahead of everyone else but this is irony at its finest.
Afghanistan sure is different in every way. It’s a different war with different people and even though I haven’t left the confines of the air base I can tell things are already different. The biggest contrast is the landscape and weather. I am totally surrounded by mountains and the high today was 79 degrees. Tomorrow it is suppose to rain. If it rains it will be the first time I have seen rain in over a month. Even then is was just a couple of sporadic drops. It has been since April since I have seen any thing approaching a significant rain.
The other big thing that I have noticed here is the lack of T-walls and bunkers. The threat of indirect fire here is almost nonexistent. Many of the force protection standards that exist in Iraq seem to be missing here, I hope it’s because they are not needed. I’m sure of that for the most part since I have been following the intelligence since I have found out we were coming here. With winter fast approaching even the the stuff that was going on earlier this year will stop pretty soon.
I have had some time here the past 3 days and began watching an HBO mini series called generation kill. It is about some marines and their trek through Oraq during the first 20 days or so. I had heard it was done very well and pretty accurate. I have to say it was extremely accurate and should be added to anyones must see list, it can get graphic and quite violent but if you can stomach it, it is worth watching. While I was watching the series there would be many times I would have to stop it because of the sounds of the airfield bleeding over my headphones. The F-15s and F-16s taking off in real time sometimes fit right in while I wastching the show. I sometimes had a tough time figuring out what was real and what was playing over the headphones as I watched. It just seems weird, I don’t know if that is irony so to say but whatever it is it was just weird.
So today I am thinking aboutu what lies in front of me and what other things I will be missing while I am over here. Ashtyn just had her Birthday and Micca will soon have hers. Drake will have his as well while I am gone but Drakes Birthday marks the home stretch fro me. You see Drake’s Birthday is the 17th of February and my Deployment date started on the 18th of March. So in seeing this major events pass it saddens me but at the same time keeps me hopeful and plodding along doing whatever it is that must be done for the day. I also have an anniversary in there which is my Micca and I’s first. Today had me thinking that now I have less than 60 days before I can take leave, and once I return I will only have about 60 days left in country. So even though I’m just barely past the half way point in this deployment I fell like things should start to rapidly come to a close. With Leave comes Christmas and if every thing lines up just right I should make it home in time for Christmas and new years so at least I will be around for that.
As usual I am all over the board in thought and what not. I will have Micca post this to my blog as I will not be able to access it my self since my civilian internet access is sporadic if not non existant. Funny thing is that if you post a comment it comes to my army email and lets me see it. The army cant stop everything
Later for now
Brent
Friday, October 3, 2008
Goodbye Camp Echo!! Hello Afghanistan!!
Today was my last full day at Camp Echo. It is sort of bittersweet. The time I have spent here has been very interesting and probably unlike most everyone else’s experience that comes here to Iraq. My daily duties very rarely had me interacting with my fellow American soldiers, most of the time I worked with my Polish, Ukrainian, and Romanian counterparts. As of the 1st of October the Polish had officially turned over their responsibility to the American forces that have overrun Camp Echo, we affectionately refer to them as the locusts. Our camp is rather small with a total population around two thousand people. While we have been here they have almost doubled the camp population, now which will go down to more reasonable numbers once all of the Polish leave as well as us. But for now they are like locusts consuming everything that had been plentiful for us in the past. The dining facility rarely ever had a line and most visitors would comment on how nice our dining facility was and the quality of food. It is not uncommon for them to run out of ice cream cookies and yes sadly, cheesecake.
Back to the Polish and the process which we call RIP/TOA which is pronounced RIP just like it sounds and TOE short A sound. It stands for Relief in Place/Transfer of Authority. It isn’t as simple as one unit leaving when the new one arrives. There is a transition period where both units operate together so the unit that has been in place can transfer their knowledge and lessons learned to the incoming unit. It’s a process that has been very effective over the years.
I have the utmost respect for the Polish Army after serving with them for the last 6 months. They do things differently and at times seem very backwards but their army was based on the soviet bloc model where all decision making is centralized, conversely the American army is a very decentralized business model if you will. Leaders at all levels are expected to make decisions that support the overall effort. This is ingrained in us from almost the beginning in basic training.
So in the beginning I said it was bittersweet. I think if I had the choice I would rather just have stayed here at Echo for my tour but with the new unit coming in I am glad that we are moving on, even if it is to Afghanistan for the winter. The weather here has been absolutely beautiful. Mid to high 80s in the day and down into the low 70s even high 60s at night. My leaving here is a milestone that helps me know that the end is somewhere in sight. The 1st of October was 6 months in Iraq for me and over halfway to being done. Over the next couple weeks I will help to move (I’m responsible for the unit movement) our equipment and personnel from here to Ghazni Afghanistan, where we will reestablish ourselves and continue to work with the Polish forces that are located there. This is no small task as we are the first that I know of to move from one Area Of Responsibility (AOR) to another on the same deployment. During the planning process I constantly heard “really”, “you are doing what”, “I”ve never heard of that”, and so on and so forth. I think an English teacher would hate this blog, my main idea tends to drift from paragraph to paragraph, but anyway, leaving here is a huge milestone because it coincides with our halfway point. We get to recapture that feeling of anticipation of doing something new and unknown again which I look forward to since it really does help the days go by faster. Things here have become mundane in that it’s the same thing with very little variation, ok here I go again off the main topic, we have these counters that almost everyone has that count days minutes seconds and meals. Why meals? Well your life tends to revolve going to work every day and your meals are mini milestones that break up the day for you, at least that’s my take. So I really feel like I am on the downhill side of my deployment. I am fortunate that I have put my leave off until the final third of my tour. If I’m lucky I will be home for Christmas. My leave is scheduled for that timeframe but because of where I will be planning travel is sometimes difficult. I should leave before the big snows but by the time I return we will measure our snowfall in feet. Ghazni and its surrounding outposts are on a high plateau. Ghazni itself sits at over 7 thousand feet. That is much higher than Denver or any other major city in the US. When I return from my leave I should have less than 60 days left.
I think almost hourly about being home and the things I am missing. This deployment if anything has helped provide perspective. It has made the decision for Micca to quit her job and have us move closer to Bushnell where Drake and Ashtyn live a no brainer. There were many reasons for that decision and we probably would have come to the same decision but this separation has probably helped it along. I really love and cherish the thought of when I come home I will come “home”. Deer Creek is a very nice community and the school district has been great but in my heart it is a place I have lived not what I would call home in my heart. It amazes me that Micca sees and feels the same way about Bushnell. Everyone has been so supportive to her and I’m pretty sure she feels the same way that I do.
This post has been longer than most and I have rambled across many topics. I hope that my thoughts and feelings aren’t to incoherent or jumbled for you to understand. I don’t know what access I will have to commercial internet so Micca will keep her Blog more updated with emails from I or she may copy and paste to my blog for me. Be sure to check her blog with updates from me. One final note I will have a new address for anyone who would like to send snail mail.
Brent Russell
101st ABN DIV (AASLT)
TF WHITE EAGLE
FOB GHAZNI, AFG
APO AE 09354
Later for now
Brent
Back to the Polish and the process which we call RIP/TOA which is pronounced RIP just like it sounds and TOE short A sound. It stands for Relief in Place/Transfer of Authority. It isn’t as simple as one unit leaving when the new one arrives. There is a transition period where both units operate together so the unit that has been in place can transfer their knowledge and lessons learned to the incoming unit. It’s a process that has been very effective over the years.
I have the utmost respect for the Polish Army after serving with them for the last 6 months. They do things differently and at times seem very backwards but their army was based on the soviet bloc model where all decision making is centralized, conversely the American army is a very decentralized business model if you will. Leaders at all levels are expected to make decisions that support the overall effort. This is ingrained in us from almost the beginning in basic training.
So in the beginning I said it was bittersweet. I think if I had the choice I would rather just have stayed here at Echo for my tour but with the new unit coming in I am glad that we are moving on, even if it is to Afghanistan for the winter. The weather here has been absolutely beautiful. Mid to high 80s in the day and down into the low 70s even high 60s at night. My leaving here is a milestone that helps me know that the end is somewhere in sight. The 1st of October was 6 months in Iraq for me and over halfway to being done. Over the next couple weeks I will help to move (I’m responsible for the unit movement) our equipment and personnel from here to Ghazni Afghanistan, where we will reestablish ourselves and continue to work with the Polish forces that are located there. This is no small task as we are the first that I know of to move from one Area Of Responsibility (AOR) to another on the same deployment. During the planning process I constantly heard “really”, “you are doing what”, “I”ve never heard of that”, and so on and so forth. I think an English teacher would hate this blog, my main idea tends to drift from paragraph to paragraph, but anyway, leaving here is a huge milestone because it coincides with our halfway point. We get to recapture that feeling of anticipation of doing something new and unknown again which I look forward to since it really does help the days go by faster. Things here have become mundane in that it’s the same thing with very little variation, ok here I go again off the main topic, we have these counters that almost everyone has that count days minutes seconds and meals. Why meals? Well your life tends to revolve going to work every day and your meals are mini milestones that break up the day for you, at least that’s my take. So I really feel like I am on the downhill side of my deployment. I am fortunate that I have put my leave off until the final third of my tour. If I’m lucky I will be home for Christmas. My leave is scheduled for that timeframe but because of where I will be planning travel is sometimes difficult. I should leave before the big snows but by the time I return we will measure our snowfall in feet. Ghazni and its surrounding outposts are on a high plateau. Ghazni itself sits at over 7 thousand feet. That is much higher than Denver or any other major city in the US. When I return from my leave I should have less than 60 days left.
I think almost hourly about being home and the things I am missing. This deployment if anything has helped provide perspective. It has made the decision for Micca to quit her job and have us move closer to Bushnell where Drake and Ashtyn live a no brainer. There were many reasons for that decision and we probably would have come to the same decision but this separation has probably helped it along. I really love and cherish the thought of when I come home I will come “home”. Deer Creek is a very nice community and the school district has been great but in my heart it is a place I have lived not what I would call home in my heart. It amazes me that Micca sees and feels the same way about Bushnell. Everyone has been so supportive to her and I’m pretty sure she feels the same way that I do.
This post has been longer than most and I have rambled across many topics. I hope that my thoughts and feelings aren’t to incoherent or jumbled for you to understand. I don’t know what access I will have to commercial internet so Micca will keep her Blog more updated with emails from I or she may copy and paste to my blog for me. Be sure to check her blog with updates from me. One final note I will have a new address for anyone who would like to send snail mail.
Brent Russell
101st ABN DIV (AASLT)
TF WHITE EAGLE
FOB GHAZNI, AFG
APO AE 09354
Later for now
Brent
Thursday, September 25, 2008
A Couple of Endings and Beginnings
Today should be one of my last days here at Echo. I am a little sad to go but at the same time ready to go. Our little Camp here was quite unique. It was very different than most of the Camps and FOBs in Iraq. The polish are leaving and in thier place will be another US army unit. Its not bad but its just not the same. Iguess if I had to describe one versus the other I would call it more relaxed with the Polish in charge.
As of right now I am waiting on permisson to ship our unit equipment. It's been a big to do. The big wigs in Iraq don't want us to take our Hummers to Afghanistan, even though the big wigs in Afghanistan want us to bring it. SO my days of work are pretyy much done bit I will sit here until a decesion is made one way or the other.
In other news My wife Micca has decided to put her profession on hold to pfinish up her college degree. That means she will be moving to the B-PC area. She will move back into the Prairie City house while we continue to try and sell it. We intend to buy a home in Bushnell when it finally sells. THe hardest part about all of this is trying to convince Dade to change schools. I think we have finally got him sold. Micca broke the news Drake and Ashtyn last night and they were really excited. Jax and Johnny are excited as well. Jax has been saving papers for Dade so he will know where they are in school.
If anyone is free the weekend of November 15th I'm sure Micca and whoever else could use a hand with moving.
I can tell you that the thought of coming home to Bushnell after my deployment has me very excited. I really appreciate all of the packages and mail and newspapers that I get. It just seems so right that I should come home to the town that has supported I and my family while I am gone.
My future ability to post may be a bit hampered so Micca is going to try and keep her page updated and update mine through email and what not. The army network doesn't allow us to view or post to Blog sites from the army network. THere are ways to get around it which Micca and I will have to do together.
I will try and post again before I leave Echo.
later for now,
Brent
As of right now I am waiting on permisson to ship our unit equipment. It's been a big to do. The big wigs in Iraq don't want us to take our Hummers to Afghanistan, even though the big wigs in Afghanistan want us to bring it. SO my days of work are pretyy much done bit I will sit here until a decesion is made one way or the other.
In other news My wife Micca has decided to put her profession on hold to pfinish up her college degree. That means she will be moving to the B-PC area. She will move back into the Prairie City house while we continue to try and sell it. We intend to buy a home in Bushnell when it finally sells. THe hardest part about all of this is trying to convince Dade to change schools. I think we have finally got him sold. Micca broke the news Drake and Ashtyn last night and they were really excited. Jax and Johnny are excited as well. Jax has been saving papers for Dade so he will know where they are in school.
If anyone is free the weekend of November 15th I'm sure Micca and whoever else could use a hand with moving.
I can tell you that the thought of coming home to Bushnell after my deployment has me very excited. I really appreciate all of the packages and mail and newspapers that I get. It just seems so right that I should come home to the town that has supported I and my family while I am gone.
My future ability to post may be a bit hampered so Micca is going to try and keep her page updated and update mine through email and what not. The army network doesn't allow us to view or post to Blog sites from the army network. THere are ways to get around it which Micca and I will have to do together.
I will try and post again before I leave Echo.
later for now,
Brent
Monday, September 15, 2008
Sherlock Holmes is on the case
I can't remember if I have mentioned this but one of my Polaris gator type vehicles was stolen a couple days ago. Since then we have gone to all sorts of extrodinary measures to find it. I have called to have convoys that have left Camp Echo inspected and many other things. Well today we got a tip that someone had seen a Polaris parked out of the way. Now there are only 5 of these types of vehicles in roughly a 1 square mile of area. 4 of them belong to me. So upon recieving this tip I run over to grab the Polish MPs and we take off to find my stolen gator.
We get to the first area and check it out and come up with nothing. Upon further investigation we determine we are in the incorrect location and speed off to what we are now sure of is the location. We get there and the gate is closed but alas it is unlocked. We let ourselves in and walk about 50 Meters and there my gator sits. Now you would think if you stole something you probably wouldn't leave the key in it but they left the key in the gator as well. The tip we had received was from someone who had changed out the ignition on this thing. So you would think if you went to all the trouble to steal it and have the ignition changed you would take the key.
Well the perp is still at large but we are hot on his/her trail. It's a very small place and we will eventually get our man/woman.
That's about as much excitment as I get these days
Later for now
Brent
We get to the first area and check it out and come up with nothing. Upon further investigation we determine we are in the incorrect location and speed off to what we are now sure of is the location. We get there and the gate is closed but alas it is unlocked. We let ourselves in and walk about 50 Meters and there my gator sits. Now you would think if you stole something you probably wouldn't leave the key in it but they left the key in the gator as well. The tip we had received was from someone who had changed out the ignition on this thing. So you would think if you went to all the trouble to steal it and have the ignition changed you would take the key.
Well the perp is still at large but we are hot on his/her trail. It's a very small place and we will eventually get our man/woman.
That's about as much excitment as I get these days
Later for now
Brent
Thursday, September 11, 2008
September 11th
Well even though today was like many other days it is still fairly significant in that 7 years ago America was attacked. I had started to write that the twin towers and the pentagon were attacked but I don't think that quite covered the scope.
For my generation this is our Kennedy assassination, we will all remember where we were when we first found out. I remember where I was very vividly. I was preparing for training that day in Albuquerque New Mexico. That days training had us responding to a WMD incident involving a dirty bomb. Instead we found ourselves prepping our equipment to be picked up by military airlift. We didn’t leave until the next day but when we did the pilot pointed to the radar scope and said, “see that?” I didn’t see anything on the radar, that was the point there were no other aircraft in the air within 250 miles.
So here I sit in Iraq on September 11th upset that I am away from my family but proud that I am able to serve my country. Many soldiers have given their lives and many fire fighters and police officers gave thiers on that day. Everyday our officers and firefighters are putting their lives on the line just the same as the soldiers here in Iraq. Of course I am a bit biased since my wife is a deputy, but it doesn’t change the fact that many of the first casualties of this war were the first responders who died that day trying to save so many others.
So today is like many others but yet it is different, and will never be the same.
Today my day started with a wake up from a soldier telling me his gator had been stolen. It is still gone and we have not been able to find it yet. I think that it may have found it’s way into a container and is on its way to Poland. I hope we find it lol. So after my wake up I got dressed and headed over to do my portion of the general’s brief. From time to time I am required to give a portion of the brief. After the brief the Polish then conducted a little ceremony in remembrance of 9-11. I thought this was quite thoughtful and in light of the Polish ceremony for our loss I came to the realization that although it was America that was attacked it was really felt the world around. I came to realize that this was an attack on all civilized nations and one of the reasons why we have so many allies in this war.
Well I think that is enough of my philosophy and insight for the day. The bottom line for me is I still believe in what we are doing!!
Later for now
Brent
For my generation this is our Kennedy assassination, we will all remember where we were when we first found out. I remember where I was very vividly. I was preparing for training that day in Albuquerque New Mexico. That days training had us responding to a WMD incident involving a dirty bomb. Instead we found ourselves prepping our equipment to be picked up by military airlift. We didn’t leave until the next day but when we did the pilot pointed to the radar scope and said, “see that?” I didn’t see anything on the radar, that was the point there were no other aircraft in the air within 250 miles.
So here I sit in Iraq on September 11th upset that I am away from my family but proud that I am able to serve my country. Many soldiers have given their lives and many fire fighters and police officers gave thiers on that day. Everyday our officers and firefighters are putting their lives on the line just the same as the soldiers here in Iraq. Of course I am a bit biased since my wife is a deputy, but it doesn’t change the fact that many of the first casualties of this war were the first responders who died that day trying to save so many others.
So today is like many others but yet it is different, and will never be the same.
Today my day started with a wake up from a soldier telling me his gator had been stolen. It is still gone and we have not been able to find it yet. I think that it may have found it’s way into a container and is on its way to Poland. I hope we find it lol. So after my wake up I got dressed and headed over to do my portion of the general’s brief. From time to time I am required to give a portion of the brief. After the brief the Polish then conducted a little ceremony in remembrance of 9-11. I thought this was quite thoughtful and in light of the Polish ceremony for our loss I came to the realization that although it was America that was attacked it was really felt the world around. I came to realize that this was an attack on all civilized nations and one of the reasons why we have so many allies in this war.
Well I think that is enough of my philosophy and insight for the day. The bottom line for me is I still believe in what we are doing!!
Later for now
Brent
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Yuck!!!!
Probably not what you are thinking. So today was a prety much normal day with a high of 118. All throughout the day I kept thinking man it's really hot today. It's the worst ever. Then it dawned on me. We have humidity today. we normally sit around 10-15 percent humidity during the day and maybe 20 at night. Today we had 30 percent humidity and it's at about 40 percent right now. I know I know that's nothing in Illinois but damn it makes a huge difference here.
I went to chow tonight to be greeted by the 10 mountian jazz band. All army divisions have there own bands and this was suppose to something nice for dinner, which I suppose it was.
I posted another video. I made it for Micca. It's mostly pictures of me from this deployment but has some of our family and some of just us in there as well. It's uses a song that she likes.
Enjoy
Later,
Brent
I went to chow tonight to be greeted by the 10 mountian jazz band. All army divisions have there own bands and this was suppose to something nice for dinner, which I suppose it was.
I posted another video. I made it for Micca. It's mostly pictures of me from this deployment but has some of our family and some of just us in there as well. It's uses a song that she likes.
Enjoy
Later,
Brent
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Check out my video!!!
Ok I have to admit I pretty proud of myself for busting into the whole YouTube video thing. I have been messing around with video and stuff for awhile but I think I've got it pretty well figured out now. The link on the right hand side of the page has two clips. They are both the same but they are of different quality. I wasnt sure if I would ever get the good quality one uploaded so I uploaded the same video in a smaller format. Anybody using cable should be able to watch the better quality one no problem.
I have lots of video but it takes forever to cut it and and music and effects. It's time consuming but it's a nice distraction when I have extra time. So do me a favor and let me know what you think of my new hobby. I will try to do more but it takes a long time to upload. The high quality one took almost 3 hours to upload. I will do what I can.
Later for now
Brent
I have lots of video but it takes forever to cut it and and music and effects. It's time consuming but it's a nice distraction when I have extra time. So do me a favor and let me know what you think of my new hobby. I will try to do more but it takes a long time to upload. The high quality one took almost 3 hours to upload. I will do what I can.
Later for now
Brent
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
I'm all out of topics......
I'm out of things to write about. I've got the usual stuff to say, such as I miss my wife and kids.
The thing that think about most while over here is what things will be like when I finally get home. I see pictures of the kids and can't believe how much they are changing. Drake is growing like a weed or appears to be and Ashtyn isn't far behind him. Both of them will be taller than Micca before long. Poor dade will be the short one for quite awhile still. Eventually Micca will be the shortest one in the family. Drake has started his Freshman year and it really bothers me that I can't get daily updates on his progress and how he is doing. He's never been one to write much so I get updates from everyone that talks to him. Ashtyn is becaoming the internet wiz which scares me a little. I will have to discuss internet safety with her when I get a chance.
It's funny how things I hear and see everyday are commonplace here but would be out of place or downright odd if you heard or saw these things at home. For instance we have Armed forces network TV which is a network put together by the department of defense that is a compilation of all differetn kinds of TV. We don't have commercials like you think of commercials they are more like public service announcements. They cover everything from the different types of powers of attorney to the difficulties of deployments on marraige. The big one I see now is the push to have people seek help for PTSD rather than try to hide it. The military is making the illness more mainstream and is getting rid of the stigma associated with it.
I thought the heat was starting to break and we were headed for fall but after a rather cool high of 118 yesterday we were back up to 122 again. I'm sure when I'm writing from Afghanistan in January I will be wishing I could have the heat back.... LOL. As the syaing goes when the soldiers stop complaining then you know there are really problems.
Well thats it for tonight
Later
Brent
The thing that think about most while over here is what things will be like when I finally get home. I see pictures of the kids and can't believe how much they are changing. Drake is growing like a weed or appears to be and Ashtyn isn't far behind him. Both of them will be taller than Micca before long. Poor dade will be the short one for quite awhile still. Eventually Micca will be the shortest one in the family. Drake has started his Freshman year and it really bothers me that I can't get daily updates on his progress and how he is doing. He's never been one to write much so I get updates from everyone that talks to him. Ashtyn is becaoming the internet wiz which scares me a little. I will have to discuss internet safety with her when I get a chance.
It's funny how things I hear and see everyday are commonplace here but would be out of place or downright odd if you heard or saw these things at home. For instance we have Armed forces network TV which is a network put together by the department of defense that is a compilation of all differetn kinds of TV. We don't have commercials like you think of commercials they are more like public service announcements. They cover everything from the different types of powers of attorney to the difficulties of deployments on marraige. The big one I see now is the push to have people seek help for PTSD rather than try to hide it. The military is making the illness more mainstream and is getting rid of the stigma associated with it.
I thought the heat was starting to break and we were headed for fall but after a rather cool high of 118 yesterday we were back up to 122 again. I'm sure when I'm writing from Afghanistan in January I will be wishing I could have the heat back.... LOL. As the syaing goes when the soldiers stop complaining then you know there are really problems.
Well thats it for tonight
Later
Brent
Monday, September 1, 2008
ok this place sucks
LOL I have come to the conclusion that this place sucks. It's only taken 5 months for me to figure it out. Well ok not really I think I might have figured it out in the first 10 minutes. I was probably a little bit biased considering all of the media about this place and the drive up here didn't help the reputation either.
What is going on, nothing is going on, I guess I should be careful about making a statement like that. Ramadan started today. I'm sure Al Queda will make an attack this month but they haven't been targeting us. It's the poor Iraqis who will pay the price.
Hmmmm not much else to add my life here is pretty boring.
Later for now
Brent
What is going on, nothing is going on, I guess I should be careful about making a statement like that. Ramadan started today. I'm sure Al Queda will make an attack this month but they haven't been targeting us. It's the poor Iraqis who will pay the price.
Hmmmm not much else to add my life here is pretty boring.
Later for now
Brent
Saturday, August 30, 2008
nothing is something?
It’s been a few days since my last post and to say that I have been busy has been an understatement. Who would have ever thought that we would be training in Iraq to get ready for Afghanistan. The Special Forces that are located here have been kind enough to take some time and train us up on some skills that have gotten quite rusty since we have been here. We have been working on shooting and some close quarters combat stuff, along with reacting to enemy contact and IED recovery drills. It’s something you hope you will never use but thinking it will never happen is what gets people in trouble. I rather be prepared and never have to use what I know than ill prepared and will probably be one of the most dangerous times in my life.
The Taliban are on the run and by the time I get there snow will be about ready to fall and the bad guys go home for the winter. Where I will be is going to be about 7k feet which is about 2k feet higher than Denver.
Along with training I somehow weaseled my way on to an MI-24 HIND helicopter flight. This helicopter is pretty cool and when armed is one of the most feared helicopters in the world next to our Apache of course. Unlike our Apache this gunship is made to carry 6 guys in addition to the pilots. So I was lucky enough to snag a ride.
I would love to post more pictures but each picture has been taking almost 20 min to post. My internet connection upload is very slow.
The weather here is about the same. We have seen a little reprieve in the heat as it only hit 118 today. The highest I have seen it was 125. My thermometer is in the shade so in the sun the temps are easily in the 140s. It’s almost painful.
The Taliban are on the run and by the time I get there snow will be about ready to fall and the bad guys go home for the winter. Where I will be is going to be about 7k feet which is about 2k feet higher than Denver.
Along with training I somehow weaseled my way on to an MI-24 HIND helicopter flight. This helicopter is pretty cool and when armed is one of the most feared helicopters in the world next to our Apache of course. Unlike our Apache this gunship is made to carry 6 guys in addition to the pilots. So I was lucky enough to snag a ride.
I would love to post more pictures but each picture has been taking almost 20 min to post. My internet connection upload is very slow.
The weather here is about the same. We have seen a little reprieve in the heat as it only hit 118 today. The highest I have seen it was 125. My thermometer is in the shade so in the sun the temps are easily in the 140s. It’s almost painful.
Monday, August 25, 2008
I may have used this before but Damn it's hot!!!
Today was the hottest day yet. I have told some people in emails tha we were lucky in that it had only been hitting 110 or so. We weren't so lucky today. Today hit 125 in the shade. Of course I spent most of it outside in the sun. It was probably 140 or so in the sun. Somebody is going to have to remind me what's so great about this place. It was just stupidly hot. Get this it rained for about 2 minutes. I was perplexed to see water hitting the ground and the HMMWV (High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle)I thought someone was throwing water over the T wall at me.
This week should be better than most as we are training up and refreshing our skills before we head off to Afghanistan. The local SPecial Forves team is coaching us along. We are starting at 0600 and getting done about 0900 before it gets to hot. LOL it was 110 by 0930 this morning.
In the states we are so controlled in our training, over here we are free to do pretty much whatever we want as long as it is safe. For example in the states we aren't allowed to even handle ammo most of the time unles we are getting it and going to our firing position on the range. Here we have loaded weapons a lot of the time, and always have ammo on us. At a minumum I have my 9MM and 2 15 round magazines. When I'm out on a mission well lets just say that I have to use the word thousands to describe the amount of ammuntion we are carrying, not to mention the grenades and flares and rocket launchers. Bottom line is if we engage the bad guys we win. They don't want to go toe to toe with any american force. You shoot 1 round we shoot enough to make you stop. If you happen to be shooting from a building and are hiding well that what the rocket launchers are for lol.
So are training is fun, well for me it is. I'm pretty sure that some of the other rather be behind thier desks. Me, well I generally look for an excuse to get out from behind it. Some days I'm a softy and the heat gets the best of me but most of the time I rather be out an about.
Not much else to report. The coming days will bring a lot of changes as the polish begin leaving and this place turns over to an all american camp. I will talk more about that later.
Later for now,
Brent
This week should be better than most as we are training up and refreshing our skills before we head off to Afghanistan. The local SPecial Forves team is coaching us along. We are starting at 0600 and getting done about 0900 before it gets to hot. LOL it was 110 by 0930 this morning.
In the states we are so controlled in our training, over here we are free to do pretty much whatever we want as long as it is safe. For example in the states we aren't allowed to even handle ammo most of the time unles we are getting it and going to our firing position on the range. Here we have loaded weapons a lot of the time, and always have ammo on us. At a minumum I have my 9MM and 2 15 round magazines. When I'm out on a mission well lets just say that I have to use the word thousands to describe the amount of ammuntion we are carrying, not to mention the grenades and flares and rocket launchers. Bottom line is if we engage the bad guys we win. They don't want to go toe to toe with any american force. You shoot 1 round we shoot enough to make you stop. If you happen to be shooting from a building and are hiding well that what the rocket launchers are for lol.
So are training is fun, well for me it is. I'm pretty sure that some of the other rather be behind thier desks. Me, well I generally look for an excuse to get out from behind it. Some days I'm a softy and the heat gets the best of me but most of the time I rather be out an about.
Not much else to report. The coming days will bring a lot of changes as the polish begin leaving and this place turns over to an all american camp. I will talk more about that later.
Later for now,
Brent
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
My 14th annual 21st B-day
So my 35th Birthday is spent in Iraq. It's not that big of a deal, I hate missing those other important days like the kids Birthdays and anniversaries, my own and my parents. What I miss most is just getting together with family and visiting and catching up on whatever.
Today has been like most other days. I went into work and found my door decorated with ballons and and a sign saying happy birthday. A little later that day all of the polish officers that live work in the building, its about 10 or 11 crowded into my office and sang happy birthday to me in Polish. They gave me a book as well which is written in Polish and English that talks about all of the things the Polish military has been involved in. It was really kind of neat. The Polish are very hospitable and go out of there way to help us celebrate our holidays such as Memorial Day and our Independence day. It is really a neat place to be when you think about it.
My fellow Illinoisans gave me a card which I will post a picture of if I can get it to upload. On the front it has puppies eating a cake which is kind of an inside joke. We tend to use puppies a lot when we are emphasizing things. For example "man my stomach is messsed up I left a bowl full of puppy S*&t, or another one that seems to be common when we are talking about detainees we often say he was as soft as puppy S&@t.
So not much else to say. I had some ice cream from the Dining Facility for my Birthday but then again I have that almost every night. I was hoping for a taco salad from the taco bar but instead I ended up with a crushed taco mess for dinner. Much to my dismay I realized to late we were out of lettuce once again.
Thank You for all of your emails wishing me a Happy Birthday it's nice to know that people still remember who I am, LOL!
Later and good night from Iraq
Brent
Today has been like most other days. I went into work and found my door decorated with ballons and and a sign saying happy birthday. A little later that day all of the polish officers that live work in the building, its about 10 or 11 crowded into my office and sang happy birthday to me in Polish. They gave me a book as well which is written in Polish and English that talks about all of the things the Polish military has been involved in. It was really kind of neat. The Polish are very hospitable and go out of there way to help us celebrate our holidays such as Memorial Day and our Independence day. It is really a neat place to be when you think about it.
My fellow Illinoisans gave me a card which I will post a picture of if I can get it to upload. On the front it has puppies eating a cake which is kind of an inside joke. We tend to use puppies a lot when we are emphasizing things. For example "man my stomach is messsed up I left a bowl full of puppy S*&t, or another one that seems to be common when we are talking about detainees we often say he was as soft as puppy S&@t.
So not much else to say. I had some ice cream from the Dining Facility for my Birthday but then again I have that almost every night. I was hoping for a taco salad from the taco bar but instead I ended up with a crushed taco mess for dinner. Much to my dismay I realized to late we were out of lettuce once again.
Thank You for all of your emails wishing me a Happy Birthday it's nice to know that people still remember who I am, LOL!
Later and good night from Iraq
Brent
Sunday, August 10, 2008
My trip to Baghdad
I returned yesterday from my Trip to Baghdad. I left late Wednesday night/ early Thursday morning. The Chinook came in about 1230 or so and picked us up with about 50 other people. All helicopters fly in pairs just in case they have problems. We landed at a couple of other places before we made it into Liberty pad which is one of the landing spots for camp Victory. The flight was pretty uneventful for the most part except for when they decided to dump some flares. Now as I understand this is a fairly common practice. They use flares to fool heat seeking missiles. Now no one shot at us but sometimes when they fly over certain areas they use the flares just in case. Anyways it was a surprise to most of us on the helicopter.
So we made it into Bagdad pretty late and went to bed not long often getting settled. I should add that we (one of the other members of the team) stayed with some of our Ukrainian acquaintances. That was very convenient otherwise we would have had to worry about a vehicle and getting around. They took care of us for the duration of our stay. Now camp Victory is one of if not the largest military Camp in Baghdad. There are at least 2 other large camps in Baghdad not to mention the green zone. It is huge compared to my little camp Echo. Camp echo is about 1.4 miles around camp victory is 29 miles around.
While I was there I got visit the big PX (think Walmart) but didn’t buy much. I bought some body soap for one of the guys since our little PX (think convenience store). I couldn’t really buy a whole lot since my whole purpose for being there was to get new armor plates for our new bullet proof vests. Each plate weighs between 6-9lbs and I had to carry 10 of them home plus all of the clothes and stuff I already had.
While I was there I got to visit Saddam’s Palace. The Military has turned it into a very large office building. In the hallways they have built 8 foot walls and made office space out of those because the hallways themselves are almost 30 ft wide. My pictures just don’t do anything there justice. I needed a wide angle lens because everything is so huge. There are only 3 floors but each floor is double the average floor of any building.
So nothing else was to spectacular I hopped on a Blackhawk for the ride home at about 1030 last night the ride was only 40 min but it was kinda of hellish. Metal seats with canvas strung between the bars, but that’s typical of almost all cargo type aircraft. The seats are meant to be stowed so they can carry stuff if need be.
So I made it home in one piece not that I expected any issues.
On another completely different note. My picture of what is this. Well I was told the wrong thing so my clues are a little off. It is a big tower that they use to look into the city. It’s stuck and not working right now lol.
Later for now,
Brent
So we made it into Bagdad pretty late and went to bed not long often getting settled. I should add that we (one of the other members of the team) stayed with some of our Ukrainian acquaintances. That was very convenient otherwise we would have had to worry about a vehicle and getting around. They took care of us for the duration of our stay. Now camp Victory is one of if not the largest military Camp in Baghdad. There are at least 2 other large camps in Baghdad not to mention the green zone. It is huge compared to my little camp Echo. Camp echo is about 1.4 miles around camp victory is 29 miles around.
While I was there I got visit the big PX (think Walmart) but didn’t buy much. I bought some body soap for one of the guys since our little PX (think convenience store). I couldn’t really buy a whole lot since my whole purpose for being there was to get new armor plates for our new bullet proof vests. Each plate weighs between 6-9lbs and I had to carry 10 of them home plus all of the clothes and stuff I already had.
While I was there I got to visit Saddam’s Palace. The Military has turned it into a very large office building. In the hallways they have built 8 foot walls and made office space out of those because the hallways themselves are almost 30 ft wide. My pictures just don’t do anything there justice. I needed a wide angle lens because everything is so huge. There are only 3 floors but each floor is double the average floor of any building.
So nothing else was to spectacular I hopped on a Blackhawk for the ride home at about 1030 last night the ride was only 40 min but it was kinda of hellish. Metal seats with canvas strung between the bars, but that’s typical of almost all cargo type aircraft. The seats are meant to be stowed so they can carry stuff if need be.
So I made it home in one piece not that I expected any issues.
On another completely different note. My picture of what is this. Well I was told the wrong thing so my clues are a little off. It is a big tower that they use to look into the city. It’s stuck and not working right now lol.
Later for now,
Brent
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Don't let the cold water burn you
Thats what one of the ukrainians said I was on my way to the shower. I thought man he screwed that up, thinking he got his English all mixed up. I thought he was telling me the Hot water was really hot.
I step into the shower and now I'm a little cautious so I turn the shower on all cold which is always at least 85 degrees or so, the cold water is never really cold. They fill up these big plastic tanks that are 10-15 feet tall and 10 feet weide. They fill them almost every day which is important to the story.
The Cold water comes out and almost scalds me. Come to find out the water didn't get filled today so the low level of water combined with 2 days in the sun made it a nice hot water heater. It wasn't really scalding but it was about as hot of a shower as you would want to take.
Now this isn't my first experiance with this type of thing. When I was in Kuwait many years ago the cold water would get so hot it would scald us. We then got smart and turned off the breakers on the hot water heaters which were inside our little trailers. We then had a cold water reservoir in which to shower with.
Since I'm talking about water. I guess I should give another clue to my picture I took. So there it is... the clue that is "water"
Well I've got my new body armor. I took a break to type a little. Everyone set up thier armor a little bit differently depending on how you work and what you do. There is a lot of trial and error so it takes some time to lace in all of the ammuntion pockets and first aid kits and what not.
When I'm done I will take a picture of my armor and the next time I wear it I will post another picture of me. It's not much different but it is a little lighter and a lot more comfortable. The big thing I like about this one is it comes in a long size. Before I use to joke that my body armor looked like a halter top. It didn't really even cover my belly button. This one comes all the way down to my belt line.
Well anywasy back to my toys.
Brent
I step into the shower and now I'm a little cautious so I turn the shower on all cold which is always at least 85 degrees or so, the cold water is never really cold. They fill up these big plastic tanks that are 10-15 feet tall and 10 feet weide. They fill them almost every day which is important to the story.
The Cold water comes out and almost scalds me. Come to find out the water didn't get filled today so the low level of water combined with 2 days in the sun made it a nice hot water heater. It wasn't really scalding but it was about as hot of a shower as you would want to take.
Now this isn't my first experiance with this type of thing. When I was in Kuwait many years ago the cold water would get so hot it would scald us. We then got smart and turned off the breakers on the hot water heaters which were inside our little trailers. We then had a cold water reservoir in which to shower with.
Since I'm talking about water. I guess I should give another clue to my picture I took. So there it is... the clue that is "water"
Well I've got my new body armor. I took a break to type a little. Everyone set up thier armor a little bit differently depending on how you work and what you do. There is a lot of trial and error so it takes some time to lace in all of the ammuntion pockets and first aid kits and what not.
When I'm done I will take a picture of my armor and the next time I wear it I will post another picture of me. It's not much different but it is a little lighter and a lot more comfortable. The big thing I like about this one is it comes in a long size. Before I use to joke that my body armor looked like a halter top. It didn't really even cover my belly button. This one comes all the way down to my belt line.
Well anywasy back to my toys.
Brent
Sunday, August 3, 2008
August
So August is here and another month has gone by. I know I have discussed this a bit but the months and days that are in the past seem to have flown by. When I look ahead it still seems like a long road. I have been here for 4 months and been married for 5. My poor wife is holding down the fort but I know it's tough for her.
August is suppose to be the hottest month much like back at home. You may be interested to know that our latitude here is similar to that of Georgia. Georgia is warm but not this hot. So far our hhottest dat has been 121. I hope we don't see the 130s that we are being promised. My little trailer air conditioner won't keep up when it get's that hot. The last couple days it's been freezing up on the inside because it is working so hard to keep it cool. If you call cool 84 degrees. But in comparison to 120 84 seems pretty damn cool.
Today was the 2nd time I have been to our laundry only to be told my laundry can't be found. Today was my last day of clean underwear, lol I will figure something out for tomorrow.
People are now starting thier mid-tour leaves. We have one on the way back and one more left the other day. One more leaves next week. Micca and I have decided that I am going to wait until Christmas. We figured I would do a long stretch and take it towards the end of my tour so it won't seem as long when I leave again. Being home for christmas will be special at least being home around then. Sometimes it's hard to predict the flights and what not.
NOthing witty tonight just my boring life in Iraq.
Brent
August is suppose to be the hottest month much like back at home. You may be interested to know that our latitude here is similar to that of Georgia. Georgia is warm but not this hot. So far our hhottest dat has been 121. I hope we don't see the 130s that we are being promised. My little trailer air conditioner won't keep up when it get's that hot. The last couple days it's been freezing up on the inside because it is working so hard to keep it cool. If you call cool 84 degrees. But in comparison to 120 84 seems pretty damn cool.
Today was the 2nd time I have been to our laundry only to be told my laundry can't be found. Today was my last day of clean underwear, lol I will figure something out for tomorrow.
People are now starting thier mid-tour leaves. We have one on the way back and one more left the other day. One more leaves next week. Micca and I have decided that I am going to wait until Christmas. We figured I would do a long stretch and take it towards the end of my tour so it won't seem as long when I leave again. Being home for christmas will be special at least being home around then. Sometimes it's hard to predict the flights and what not.
NOthing witty tonight just my boring life in Iraq.
Brent
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Reprieve
The last couple days have seen a reprieve in the heat. Today and yesterday only got up to 108. I know 108 LOL!!
Not much to report on when it comes to the war. It's pretty much as the news reports it. Things are very quiet around here. Baghdad had a large bomb go off and injure lots of civilians. Thats about all they can to do to us anymore. We find most of the IED's and the ones that go off don't usually hurt much.
My biggest battles are with the contractors. I sometimes wonder if they remember who the customer is. I get so upset with them. When you ask them to do something you have to fill out a form and wait and wait. I've finally just start getting almost mean. I hate to resort to that type of tactic but when everything else fails I can get upset like anyone else it just takes me awhile to get going. I got upset enough to remind one of the guys that we wear the guns and yuo work for us and if don't want to do te job then get out of the way so I can. Don't get me wrong most of them are great but damn there are some I would like to strangle.
On the other side of the coin I really appreciate the packages I get from the BSSG. Although I am trying to watch my weight I few snacks don't seem to be hurting me. It's always nice to get things from home. Kind of stinks on those days where mail shows up and you get nothing. I almost always have something.
Not much else to report. If anyone is interested in an older home in Prairie City talk to my dad. My old home lost it's renter and I've decided to put it up for sale. Between being the Mayor and the mowing man Dad is a very busy guy. Just like any house it needs kept up and I'm not around to do it so I might as well get it sold. Micca and I will most likely build a house once I get back. We have the plan all picked out. With all of the housing lending mess going on we will have to see what the market is like when we get home.
Ahhh yes almost forgot a clue for the picture.
It is something the Iraqis could use, it's not military equipment.
Later for now
Brent
Not much to report on when it comes to the war. It's pretty much as the news reports it. Things are very quiet around here. Baghdad had a large bomb go off and injure lots of civilians. Thats about all they can to do to us anymore. We find most of the IED's and the ones that go off don't usually hurt much.
My biggest battles are with the contractors. I sometimes wonder if they remember who the customer is. I get so upset with them. When you ask them to do something you have to fill out a form and wait and wait. I've finally just start getting almost mean. I hate to resort to that type of tactic but when everything else fails I can get upset like anyone else it just takes me awhile to get going. I got upset enough to remind one of the guys that we wear the guns and yuo work for us and if don't want to do te job then get out of the way so I can. Don't get me wrong most of them are great but damn there are some I would like to strangle.
On the other side of the coin I really appreciate the packages I get from the BSSG. Although I am trying to watch my weight I few snacks don't seem to be hurting me. It's always nice to get things from home. Kind of stinks on those days where mail shows up and you get nothing. I almost always have something.
Not much else to report. If anyone is interested in an older home in Prairie City talk to my dad. My old home lost it's renter and I've decided to put it up for sale. Between being the Mayor and the mowing man Dad is a very busy guy. Just like any house it needs kept up and I'm not around to do it so I might as well get it sold. Micca and I will most likely build a house once I get back. We have the plan all picked out. With all of the housing lending mess going on we will have to see what the market is like when we get home.
Ahhh yes almost forgot a clue for the picture.
It is something the Iraqis could use, it's not military equipment.
Later for now
Brent
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Another day in Iraq
Didn't know what to title this today so it is just another day in Iraq. I posted a picture of my corn. I am going to replant here shortly.
Yesterday was an ok day. Micca had emailed me because she was having issues with our insurance. Sometimes they can be so dumb. I have to say I have very good health insurance and almost never pay for anything. But nonetheless I had to call them and explain thier system to them. They concided they had made a mistake and would call and have the bill paid. It seems that health insurance companies have forgotten they are providing payment for healthCARE!! I think the insurance companies have forgotten that operative word. Anyways it's taken care of, hopefully we won't have any more issues.
I've had a couple of guesses on my what is it picture. I will give another clue here shortly.
Now that 4 months have gone by and we are getting into the groove I think a lot of us are pretty much just grinding the days out. What I mean is for awhile we were exploring the limits of what we should do and what we could do. Now we know what has to be done and we get our jobs done but most of the estra stuff is just kind of pushed to the side. I'm excited about our change in mission. It will all be new again and will help the last 4 months go by hopefully just as fast.
Well I can't think of much else to say hopefully I will have more to talk about tomorrow.
Yesterday was an ok day. Micca had emailed me because she was having issues with our insurance. Sometimes they can be so dumb. I have to say I have very good health insurance and almost never pay for anything. But nonetheless I had to call them and explain thier system to them. They concided they had made a mistake and would call and have the bill paid. It seems that health insurance companies have forgotten they are providing payment for healthCARE!! I think the insurance companies have forgotten that operative word. Anyways it's taken care of, hopefully we won't have any more issues.
I've had a couple of guesses on my what is it picture. I will give another clue here shortly.
Now that 4 months have gone by and we are getting into the groove I think a lot of us are pretty much just grinding the days out. What I mean is for awhile we were exploring the limits of what we should do and what we could do. Now we know what has to be done and we get our jobs done but most of the estra stuff is just kind of pushed to the side. I'm excited about our change in mission. It will all be new again and will help the last 4 months go by hopefully just as fast.
Well I can't think of much else to say hopefully I will have more to talk about tomorrow.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
1/3
Today’s post is titled 1/3 because yesterday was 4 months since I have left home. I Have mixed feeling about the time. Part of me thinks it has gone by very fast and then when I look ahead it seems to have gone so slow. No matter what it’s a year and that’s a long time.
So yesterday and today were a little weird. We had clouds. I was walking to my office thinking how hot it was going to be and thought things looked odd. I took off my sunglasses and decided it wasn’t the dust in the air and then looked up and saw clouds. They were trying to block the sun but not quite getting the job done. It made things look weird though.
As much as I complain about the heat I much rather have it hot than cold. From what I have read about where we are going I am going to be in for a rude awakening. Ghazni is located in between Kabul and Kandahar on a high plateau. It sits at over 7000ft in the mountains. From what I have read it gets the most snow and the coldest weather in all of Afghanistan. Talk about extremes lol.
Not much else to report I have started growing the corn. My Aunt sent me some chia pots and I converted them to corn starter pots. The plants are doing well they are about 4 inches high. I have to water them as many as 4 times a day. I am hoping that I will have corn before I leave. I will take pictures soon and post.
Now I took a picture of a very interesting object the other day. There was much speculation as to what it was around the camp for about a week. I thought I would start a contest. I will think of a prize. I’m not going to give any hints to begin with. So scroll to the bottom and take a look and post a guess of what the item in the picture is. If no one gets it in a couple of days I will start to give out hints.
Later for now
Brent
So yesterday and today were a little weird. We had clouds. I was walking to my office thinking how hot it was going to be and thought things looked odd. I took off my sunglasses and decided it wasn’t the dust in the air and then looked up and saw clouds. They were trying to block the sun but not quite getting the job done. It made things look weird though.
As much as I complain about the heat I much rather have it hot than cold. From what I have read about where we are going I am going to be in for a rude awakening. Ghazni is located in between Kabul and Kandahar on a high plateau. It sits at over 7000ft in the mountains. From what I have read it gets the most snow and the coldest weather in all of Afghanistan. Talk about extremes lol.
Not much else to report I have started growing the corn. My Aunt sent me some chia pots and I converted them to corn starter pots. The plants are doing well they are about 4 inches high. I have to water them as many as 4 times a day. I am hoping that I will have corn before I leave. I will take pictures soon and post.
Now I took a picture of a very interesting object the other day. There was much speculation as to what it was around the camp for about a week. I thought I would start a contest. I will think of a prize. I’m not going to give any hints to begin with. So scroll to the bottom and take a look and post a guess of what the item in the picture is. If no one gets it in a couple of days I will start to give out hints.
Later for now
Brent
Thursday, July 17, 2008
PIC!!!
PIC is done!!!
Today was an interesting day and one that I won’t forget anytime soon. Today was PIC (Provincial Iraqi Control). Today was a significant day because now this providence is responsible for its own security. It doesn’t mean we are leaving or going anywhere but it allows them to take charge of most things. The U.S. and Coalition forces won’t go anywhere for awhile but it is a monumental step for Iraq becoming independent.
My task for the day was to escort Rear Admiral Buss throughout the day’s events. We had a plan all set in place for how things were to go off, but that all changed once all of the general officers hit the ground. Their helicopters arrived at about 0745 and on them were Lieutenant General Austin (3 star) Major General Oates (2 star) and Rear Admiral Buss (1 star). They also had an ambassador of sorts. I guess once you become an ambassador you retain that title forever. So what she was an ambassador of I don’t know. With Admiral Buss was a British officer, I only remember his first name it was Nick. Nick had all of the paperwork that had to be signed by the governor and General Austin.
As they all got off the helicopters I was thinking man that is a big dude. The big dude was the “Big Dude”, it was General Austin. He’s tall black man that would not be out of place as a NFL linebacker. General Oates and Admiral Buss were both about 6’2” and General Austin made us all seem small in comparison. I wonder how General Petraus feels when he is standing around with these guys. Petraus is on the short side at only 5’4” or 5’5”
So the day starts out with me introducing myself to Admiral Buss. He is a very personable man and was very easy to keep happy. Some general officers are very high maintenance, I was thankful he was not. I found out that Admiral Buss was a fighter pilot and we talked about the irony of bombing something then becoming responsible for fixing it.
The original plan was to go to city hall and sign the documents and eat lunch. The actual plan had us go down to the center of town and participate in the ceremony which included a parade and some demonstrations of the police and army capabilities. We all then headed to City hall and had lunch.
There are many things that I will remember about today. Oddly enough the announcer for the ceremonies and the parade will stick in my mind. I say oddly because I only understood about 2 words the entire time. The thing I will remember is the pitch and the fervor in his voice. He had me excited and I didn’t know what the hell he was saying. The overall enthusiasm by the participants and the crowd was very tangible. You could tell this was a big deal for them and meant a lot.
It was really an honor to be there and part of something I believe to be a significant event, and milestone in Iraq becoming an independent stable nation.
As usual it was hot, very hot. By the end of the day you couldn’t touch anything without burning yourself. I had taken my glove off for some reason and grabbed my pistol to clear it and almost dropped it because it was so hot. It’s odd that you have to wear gloves because everything is to hot to touch. Bare metal is really unbearable to touch, even if it is in the shade. If it is in the sun it is downright painful and can cause burns.
I could write a small book on today but honestly I am tired and think for the first time in a long time I will sleep well tonight. I can count on one hand the time I have been asleep before 2400.
Today was an interesting day and one that I won’t forget anytime soon. Today was PIC (Provincial Iraqi Control). Today was a significant day because now this providence is responsible for its own security. It doesn’t mean we are leaving or going anywhere but it allows them to take charge of most things. The U.S. and Coalition forces won’t go anywhere for awhile but it is a monumental step for Iraq becoming independent.
My task for the day was to escort Rear Admiral Buss throughout the day’s events. We had a plan all set in place for how things were to go off, but that all changed once all of the general officers hit the ground. Their helicopters arrived at about 0745 and on them were Lieutenant General Austin (3 star) Major General Oates (2 star) and Rear Admiral Buss (1 star). They also had an ambassador of sorts. I guess once you become an ambassador you retain that title forever. So what she was an ambassador of I don’t know. With Admiral Buss was a British officer, I only remember his first name it was Nick. Nick had all of the paperwork that had to be signed by the governor and General Austin.
As they all got off the helicopters I was thinking man that is a big dude. The big dude was the “Big Dude”, it was General Austin. He’s tall black man that would not be out of place as a NFL linebacker. General Oates and Admiral Buss were both about 6’2” and General Austin made us all seem small in comparison. I wonder how General Petraus feels when he is standing around with these guys. Petraus is on the short side at only 5’4” or 5’5”
So the day starts out with me introducing myself to Admiral Buss. He is a very personable man and was very easy to keep happy. Some general officers are very high maintenance, I was thankful he was not. I found out that Admiral Buss was a fighter pilot and we talked about the irony of bombing something then becoming responsible for fixing it.
The original plan was to go to city hall and sign the documents and eat lunch. The actual plan had us go down to the center of town and participate in the ceremony which included a parade and some demonstrations of the police and army capabilities. We all then headed to City hall and had lunch.
There are many things that I will remember about today. Oddly enough the announcer for the ceremonies and the parade will stick in my mind. I say oddly because I only understood about 2 words the entire time. The thing I will remember is the pitch and the fervor in his voice. He had me excited and I didn’t know what the hell he was saying. The overall enthusiasm by the participants and the crowd was very tangible. You could tell this was a big deal for them and meant a lot.
It was really an honor to be there and part of something I believe to be a significant event, and milestone in Iraq becoming an independent stable nation.
As usual it was hot, very hot. By the end of the day you couldn’t touch anything without burning yourself. I had taken my glove off for some reason and grabbed my pistol to clear it and almost dropped it because it was so hot. It’s odd that you have to wear gloves because everything is to hot to touch. Bare metal is really unbearable to touch, even if it is in the shade. If it is in the sun it is downright painful and can cause burns.
I could write a small book on today but honestly I am tired and think for the first time in a long time I will sleep well tonight. I can count on one hand the time I have been asleep before 2400.
Friday, July 4, 2008
Fireworks
Thnakfully no fireworks here, no rockets red glare or bombs bursting in air. Things are quiet at camp Echo tonight.
The 4th of July is like most days here. I did get an award along with the other 10 people that came here with me. We were awarded the Multi-National Central South Coalition Service Medal.
Not much to report at the moment. It is July and its not significantly hotter yet. It gets about 120 everyday. As I write now it is 2200 or 10:00 P.M. and it is 94 degrees. It will drop into the mid to low 80s tonight and heat up pretty quick.
Sorry I don't have much more to talk about. I hope everyone has a safe and happy 4th of July
Brent
The 4th of July is like most days here. I did get an award along with the other 10 people that came here with me. We were awarded the Multi-National Central South Coalition Service Medal.
Not much to report at the moment. It is July and its not significantly hotter yet. It gets about 120 everyday. As I write now it is 2200 or 10:00 P.M. and it is 94 degrees. It will drop into the mid to low 80s tonight and heat up pretty quick.
Sorry I don't have much more to talk about. I hope everyone has a safe and happy 4th of July
Brent
Monday, June 30, 2008
PIC
PIC= Provencial Iraqi COntrol. I have talked about this a little bit. Today was suppose to be the day. But i guess it wasn't meant to be. The weather was abd in Baghdad so the Priminister couldn't make it here and he wouldn't allow everything to be signed without him being here to participate. I guess somehow if he wasn't here it would give this govener (spelled wrong I know) more power than what he should. Don't ask me the specifics I just know that it wasn't going to happen.
We were all very much looking forward to this. There has been an enormous amount of time and planning that has gone into this. Our little camp has swelled by about 300 people just for this event.
My job for the day had me escorting a 2 star marine general around. He didn't make it because of the weather either.
So the whole event is a bust :( We will have to wait awhile since our turn has gone by. There is another providence that will be turned over very soon and we have to wait until that is done. We can't do these things at the same time because of all of the resources that have to be devoted to security. I just wouldn't be a good thing if we were handing things over and the event took a rocket or mortar round. The news coverage just wouldn't be favorable.
Since I have been here you can really notice the difference in the security situatioo. Amarah (probably spelled wrong to) was taken over with very little resistence. We were prepared for the worse. The difference is the populace. They are tired of all of the crap. They want the bad guys out of their country and they know we will take care of them. There is a element of trust not only in us but in thier own countrymen. They believe in themselves whhich turns the tables on the bad guys and all of thier propaganda.
I have been quiet for awhile busy with this and trying to provide support to my family back home. Micca's grandmother passed away this last week. It has been very difficult for all of us but mostly Micca has had to deal with the brunt of it. I give what support I can but it's just not the same as a reassuring hug or squeeze. I hope this is the worst thing that gets thrown at us because it was a toughone.
I would like to thank everyone for the help and support during this time. I owe a special thank you to my sister who was so kind as to take time off to take Ashtyn and Drake back and forth so Micca didn't have to worry about it. It's so comforting to know that thier are people back home willing to help me out when it's needed.
Thank You!!
Brent
We were all very much looking forward to this. There has been an enormous amount of time and planning that has gone into this. Our little camp has swelled by about 300 people just for this event.
My job for the day had me escorting a 2 star marine general around. He didn't make it because of the weather either.
So the whole event is a bust :( We will have to wait awhile since our turn has gone by. There is another providence that will be turned over very soon and we have to wait until that is done. We can't do these things at the same time because of all of the resources that have to be devoted to security. I just wouldn't be a good thing if we were handing things over and the event took a rocket or mortar round. The news coverage just wouldn't be favorable.
Since I have been here you can really notice the difference in the security situatioo. Amarah (probably spelled wrong to) was taken over with very little resistence. We were prepared for the worse. The difference is the populace. They are tired of all of the crap. They want the bad guys out of their country and they know we will take care of them. There is a element of trust not only in us but in thier own countrymen. They believe in themselves whhich turns the tables on the bad guys and all of thier propaganda.
I have been quiet for awhile busy with this and trying to provide support to my family back home. Micca's grandmother passed away this last week. It has been very difficult for all of us but mostly Micca has had to deal with the brunt of it. I give what support I can but it's just not the same as a reassuring hug or squeeze. I hope this is the worst thing that gets thrown at us because it was a toughone.
I would like to thank everyone for the help and support during this time. I owe a special thank you to my sister who was so kind as to take time off to take Ashtyn and Drake back and forth so Micca didn't have to worry about it. It's so comforting to know that thier are people back home willing to help me out when it's needed.
Thank You!!
Brent
Saturday, June 21, 2008
"Granny"
Granny….. She has left us now :( I had the privilege of knowing her for only a short time. But in that time I can see where my wife got a lot of her attributes. Knowing that she is hurting so badly right now hurts me so deeply because I can’t be there to comfort her. In some strange way it helps a little to write about it. I know how deeply this will impact not only my family but all of the families that are associated with the VanDykes. She was such a strong person fighting until the end. She had to let everyone say their goodbyes. Shortly after the last family member stepped in to say good bye she then left this world.
There just doesn’t seem much more to say. This is one of the many things that service members go through every day. We miss so much. But in some strange way I think we learn better than anyone how precious life is and how our time with our loved ones is so limited. We don’t take those simple things for granted. I will be better for being gone, and so will everyone else that is close to me, only because we will work hard to make up for lost time and then some.
But just because I will be a better person in the end doesn’t mean I would volunteer to do this. I’m very Proud to serve my country, this is an example of how my family serves with me.
Granny is such an awesome person. She will never be gone. Every time I look at my wife I will be reminded of granny. She has had such a profound effect on all of those around her that everyone that has been around her will take a piece of her with them. In the case of wife I think she has more than most. If you knew both of them you would know exactly what I am talking about.
Goodbye Granny………..
There just doesn’t seem much more to say. This is one of the many things that service members go through every day. We miss so much. But in some strange way I think we learn better than anyone how precious life is and how our time with our loved ones is so limited. We don’t take those simple things for granted. I will be better for being gone, and so will everyone else that is close to me, only because we will work hard to make up for lost time and then some.
But just because I will be a better person in the end doesn’t mean I would volunteer to do this. I’m very Proud to serve my country, this is an example of how my family serves with me.
Granny is such an awesome person. She will never be gone. Every time I look at my wife I will be reminded of granny. She has had such a profound effect on all of those around her that everyone that has been around her will take a piece of her with them. In the case of wife I think she has more than most. If you knew both of them you would know exactly what I am talking about.
Goodbye Granny………..
Thursday, June 19, 2008
A sad day
Well the last couple days have been pretty hard. Micca's Grandmother "Granny" as everyone calls her has been pretty ill. To top it all off she fell and broke her hip and now everything seems to be coming to an end.
I know everyone thinks how horrible it is that I am over here when things like this happen but it's not I you should feel sorry for, it those people that I leave behind that I am such an integral part of thier life. I hurt because I know it hurts that I am not there for them in time of great sadness or for celebrations.
I live with people who all have the same problems and we can lean on each other. When I am gone there is no one to replace me.
My wife is such an incredible person she always feels like she isn't doing enough. I worry about her because I think she does to much. She works third shift and often only gets a few hours of sleep because there is always t-ball practice or a dinner or reunion or b-day party or whatever. She worries about me not coming home but I often worry about not having her to come home to. Did I mention she is a Police Officer to be more specific a Deputy. It's not like her back up is down the block or even in the same city.
Everyone calls the soldiers heroes, I don't hardly feel deserving of the title. It's my family that are the real Heroes, they are the ones that are left behind to take care of whatever it is that I have left. Whatever support I may have given is now gone and not easily replaced. My life here is easy by comparison.
Drake, Ashtyn, Dade and Micca are my Heroes. My Dad and Mom and Sister rate right up with them too. They are all sacrificing so much while I am gone.
Today is by far the low point in my deployment, I feel so bad for being gone, not there to share and to support my family when they need it. I think this has got to be the one of the worst feelings.
Ok enough about me, as bad as I may feel I always try to look on the bright side and think well at least I am here to feel something. Morbid? It may be but being here and seeing and knowing first hand about war makes you different. Different how I don’t really know. You become numb to some feelings or maybe you just learn how to suppress your thoughts and feeling so you can function. It is so easy to think about the what if. There is always two sides to the what if. It’s a combat zone you live in some fear but it is mostly suppressed. The two sides of the what if start when you hear of someone being killed by an unlikely event. The bad guys shoot rockets every once in awhile. Sometimes they hit people. I know I’m rambling here some what but I think I have a point. If you think about that being you, you will go crazy the way around that is to think about how it was just an unlucky event and how the chances of that are so incredibly small that it won’t happen to me. The thing is, is that it does happen. So where was I going with all of that I don’t know I think I am talking about coping and how just being here can be stressful without you ever knowing it.
Well enough of the introspective thoughts.
“Granny” she started this whole entry today. She is one of the strongest willed, opinionated people I have ever known. Micca told me early on that Granny ruled the roost. It didn’t take me long to realize that she was right. She made no bones about speaking her mind lucky for me I make a good first impression. I’m sure I underwent some scrutiny but I passed the “granny test” She is the focal point of the family make no doubt about that.
Well this post has taken me all over the map hope you could follow it.
Later for now
As always I’m Brent!!
I know everyone thinks how horrible it is that I am over here when things like this happen but it's not I you should feel sorry for, it those people that I leave behind that I am such an integral part of thier life. I hurt because I know it hurts that I am not there for them in time of great sadness or for celebrations.
I live with people who all have the same problems and we can lean on each other. When I am gone there is no one to replace me.
My wife is such an incredible person she always feels like she isn't doing enough. I worry about her because I think she does to much. She works third shift and often only gets a few hours of sleep because there is always t-ball practice or a dinner or reunion or b-day party or whatever. She worries about me not coming home but I often worry about not having her to come home to. Did I mention she is a Police Officer to be more specific a Deputy. It's not like her back up is down the block or even in the same city.
Everyone calls the soldiers heroes, I don't hardly feel deserving of the title. It's my family that are the real Heroes, they are the ones that are left behind to take care of whatever it is that I have left. Whatever support I may have given is now gone and not easily replaced. My life here is easy by comparison.
Drake, Ashtyn, Dade and Micca are my Heroes. My Dad and Mom and Sister rate right up with them too. They are all sacrificing so much while I am gone.
Today is by far the low point in my deployment, I feel so bad for being gone, not there to share and to support my family when they need it. I think this has got to be the one of the worst feelings.
Ok enough about me, as bad as I may feel I always try to look on the bright side and think well at least I am here to feel something. Morbid? It may be but being here and seeing and knowing first hand about war makes you different. Different how I don’t really know. You become numb to some feelings or maybe you just learn how to suppress your thoughts and feeling so you can function. It is so easy to think about the what if. There is always two sides to the what if. It’s a combat zone you live in some fear but it is mostly suppressed. The two sides of the what if start when you hear of someone being killed by an unlikely event. The bad guys shoot rockets every once in awhile. Sometimes they hit people. I know I’m rambling here some what but I think I have a point. If you think about that being you, you will go crazy the way around that is to think about how it was just an unlucky event and how the chances of that are so incredibly small that it won’t happen to me. The thing is, is that it does happen. So where was I going with all of that I don’t know I think I am talking about coping and how just being here can be stressful without you ever knowing it.
Well enough of the introspective thoughts.
“Granny” she started this whole entry today. She is one of the strongest willed, opinionated people I have ever known. Micca told me early on that Granny ruled the roost. It didn’t take me long to realize that she was right. She made no bones about speaking her mind lucky for me I make a good first impression. I’m sure I underwent some scrutiny but I passed the “granny test” She is the focal point of the family make no doubt about that.
Well this post has taken me all over the map hope you could follow it.
Later for now
As always I’m Brent!!
Monday, June 16, 2008
Another day in the city
Today was another day where I had to take the Colonel into the city. Today we went to the police headquarters in the city. It was a little drive about 10-15 minutes. It's always nice to get out but there is some stress involved you never let you guard down. TOdays meeting had the head of the Iraqi army the head of the Polish Army and the chief of Police for the city. The Iraqi army is right outside our camp. So we stop in the Iraqi army compound to pick up the Iraqi general. We don't really pick him so much as meet up with his convoy. So once our convoys are together we take off into the city. We get there without incident and the Colonel takes off inside. We wait outside in the sun for the next 2 1/2 hours. Now our Hummers have air conditioning but all that does is keep it from turning into an oven. The meeting goes well they have a lunch and lots of information is exchanged. We head back in and I go to work for the rest of the day. When I get there I found 15k worth of office supplies have been dropped off in my office. They get sorted but thats about it. I'm beat and done for the day.
Later
Brent
Later
Brent
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Money Money Money
Hey everyone,
I know I know my time between posts seems to be getting longer and longer. I guess I have gotten settled into a routine and there doesn't seem much worth writing about. So why did I title this Money Money Money. Well the government has a program that we buy goods from local vendors to support our misson. We can buy everything from pens and paper to computers and many other things. So today I picked up 20k dollars in cash. This may seem odd but in a worn torn country like Iraq the american dollar is still king. By spending money in the iraqi economy it is one small way to help infuse money into thier economy. It's really scary how much cash we use over here. We are all use to credit transactions and bank transfers. It's kind of wierd to see a contractor paid to build a building in cash. It's not uncommon to see transfers of more than $200-$500k.
You can rest assured there are very tight controls on the money. It takes 2 people to complete any transaction and 3 to request the money. Give me a credit card any day it's much easier.
Well the temperature over here has seemed to hold at about a steady 110-115 everyday. Some of the hotter days have gotten into the 120s. We are told that 140's in the summer aren't uncommon. I'm not looking forward to that. I've asked some Iraqi's how they deal with the heat. They say they go find some shade and air conditioning lol.
PIC, I think I've talked about this before. It is Provencial Iraqi Control. That is when we give a providence over to the Iraqi's to manage. We still stay here but we don't intervene unless we are asked
Our Providence will soon obtain PIC, which is a big deal. People talk about how little progress we are making, I can honestly see the light at the end of the tunnel. Now I'm not saying we will be ready to leave any time soon but I think things will start to look a lot more like they do in Germany.
I could go on and on and get on my soapbox but I will save that for some other day some other time.
On a completley different topic my step son just turned 6 which if you had asked him a day after his 5th birthday he would have told you he was almost 6 then. I'm sure he's telling everyone now he's almost 7. In just a short time Dade will have his Bday party My sister along with her boys and lots of the family will be there as well. Oh I forgot to tell you that they are having the Bday party at a go cart track. It's days like today where I really want to be home. I want to be home every day but it's days like today that I want to be home even more.
Well I hope everyone has fun today and the weather holds out. Micca is going to try and skype me in for some of it we will see how that goes.
Later for now
Brent
I know I know my time between posts seems to be getting longer and longer. I guess I have gotten settled into a routine and there doesn't seem much worth writing about. So why did I title this Money Money Money. Well the government has a program that we buy goods from local vendors to support our misson. We can buy everything from pens and paper to computers and many other things. So today I picked up 20k dollars in cash. This may seem odd but in a worn torn country like Iraq the american dollar is still king. By spending money in the iraqi economy it is one small way to help infuse money into thier economy. It's really scary how much cash we use over here. We are all use to credit transactions and bank transfers. It's kind of wierd to see a contractor paid to build a building in cash. It's not uncommon to see transfers of more than $200-$500k.
You can rest assured there are very tight controls on the money. It takes 2 people to complete any transaction and 3 to request the money. Give me a credit card any day it's much easier.
Well the temperature over here has seemed to hold at about a steady 110-115 everyday. Some of the hotter days have gotten into the 120s. We are told that 140's in the summer aren't uncommon. I'm not looking forward to that. I've asked some Iraqi's how they deal with the heat. They say they go find some shade and air conditioning lol.
PIC, I think I've talked about this before. It is Provencial Iraqi Control. That is when we give a providence over to the Iraqi's to manage. We still stay here but we don't intervene unless we are asked
Our Providence will soon obtain PIC, which is a big deal. People talk about how little progress we are making, I can honestly see the light at the end of the tunnel. Now I'm not saying we will be ready to leave any time soon but I think things will start to look a lot more like they do in Germany.
I could go on and on and get on my soapbox but I will save that for some other day some other time.
On a completley different topic my step son just turned 6 which if you had asked him a day after his 5th birthday he would have told you he was almost 6 then. I'm sure he's telling everyone now he's almost 7. In just a short time Dade will have his Bday party My sister along with her boys and lots of the family will be there as well. Oh I forgot to tell you that they are having the Bday party at a go cart track. It's days like today where I really want to be home. I want to be home every day but it's days like today that I want to be home even more.
Well I hope everyone has fun today and the weather holds out. Micca is going to try and skype me in for some of it we will see how that goes.
Later for now
Brent
Sunday, June 8, 2008
It's been a few days(have I used that title before)
So not a lot has happened in the past few days but remarkably the week flew by. Te most interesting thing I had to deal with was an Iraqi Police chief who wanted to know the status of some weapons that were turned over to the Americans between 2 and 4 years ago. The conversation was very interesting to say the least. My interpreter has a very thick accent and as interpreters go isn’t the best of the lot. So the Police chief wants me to tell him that we received the weapons which I am not going to do since odn’t have any thing saying we do. In all likely hood those weapons were turned over to the American forces but the likelihood of finding the paperwork is close to zero especially after 4 years in the case of the one. He went on to try and make me feel bad and say that one of his officers would be punished if I didn’t provide documentation. Those of you that know me may or may not know that as soon as someone try to threaten me or leverage something against me, well you might as forget about me bending whatever rules I may be bound by. There are grey areas that we all learn to work in but as soon as someone force me there or tries to, things suddenly become black and white.
Not much else is going on. Iraq is pretty quiet for the most part. You have your spots of violence and what not but then again so does the US, ours just isn’t to the same degree.
I had to confiscate a polaris from a group of people that work for me. I guess they were going 42km in a 15km zone and the polish MPs stopped them and gave them a ticket. Not a real ticket but one that lets you know you were wrong. A copy of these tickets goes to my boss who wasn’t to happy. In all honesty I don’t feel bad at all for taking the Polaris from them. They had been warned a couple of times and now they have to pay the price and walk.
The last couple days have been pretty dusty so it has only gotten up to about 99 degrees or so. I was asked to give an update on the plants. Well I haven’t attempted to grow the corn as of yet. The daisies that Dade sent me sprouted just fine but the heat nailed them. I am now attempting marigolds. I am trying to keep them inside and then let them catch the morning sun and take them inside for the afternoon. We will see how that works out. The 3 plants that mom and dad sent me initially are all dead except for the one. It lives inside with me and I try to open my window to give it some sun but I’m afraid I will kill it to if I put it outside. These plants don’t die from lack of water they die from the heat. We kept them pretty well watered but the heat just kicks their butts.
On another note the 11 of us are anxiously awaiting information about our mission in Afghanistan. We know we will be working with the Polish again that is why we are moving. They are leaving here and moving all of their troops to Afghanistan. We will be going to camp that isn’t as well developed as what it is here and we will be at about 7000 ft above sea level. It looks like my deployment will be full of sand and snow. Don’t know who I made mad enough to make me spend my summer in Iraq and my Winter in Afghanistan. My thermometer will make the trip with me that’s for sure.
I will keep every one as up to date as possible on my move but as usual I probably won’t be to detailed.
Later,
Brent
Not much else is going on. Iraq is pretty quiet for the most part. You have your spots of violence and what not but then again so does the US, ours just isn’t to the same degree.
I had to confiscate a polaris from a group of people that work for me. I guess they were going 42km in a 15km zone and the polish MPs stopped them and gave them a ticket. Not a real ticket but one that lets you know you were wrong. A copy of these tickets goes to my boss who wasn’t to happy. In all honesty I don’t feel bad at all for taking the Polaris from them. They had been warned a couple of times and now they have to pay the price and walk.
The last couple days have been pretty dusty so it has only gotten up to about 99 degrees or so. I was asked to give an update on the plants. Well I haven’t attempted to grow the corn as of yet. The daisies that Dade sent me sprouted just fine but the heat nailed them. I am now attempting marigolds. I am trying to keep them inside and then let them catch the morning sun and take them inside for the afternoon. We will see how that works out. The 3 plants that mom and dad sent me initially are all dead except for the one. It lives inside with me and I try to open my window to give it some sun but I’m afraid I will kill it to if I put it outside. These plants don’t die from lack of water they die from the heat. We kept them pretty well watered but the heat just kicks their butts.
On another note the 11 of us are anxiously awaiting information about our mission in Afghanistan. We know we will be working with the Polish again that is why we are moving. They are leaving here and moving all of their troops to Afghanistan. We will be going to camp that isn’t as well developed as what it is here and we will be at about 7000 ft above sea level. It looks like my deployment will be full of sand and snow. Don’t know who I made mad enough to make me spend my summer in Iraq and my Winter in Afghanistan. My thermometer will make the trip with me that’s for sure.
I will keep every one as up to date as possible on my move but as usual I probably won’t be to detailed.
Later,
Brent
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Nothing much
Well not much has been going on. It's been hot as you can see by my thermometer. THat has been one of the best things sent to me. It has a button that you can see the maxium and the minumum for the day. I'm always catching people checking it. I don't mind thats why I put it out there.
Today I might have ruffled some feathers but we have had this on going issue with control of some armored suburbans we have. KBR which I am sure most of you have heard of is a huge contractor for the military and this camp is no different than most we have a large contractor presence over here. They have been giving me a problem saying that they own these vehicles which they sort of do but we get to tell them how they are being used. Well I tried to work things at the lowest level but lets just say some people are being less than user friendly. Soooo I went to to see the head of KBR at camp echo. My problem was no longer a problem after talking with no kidding his name is Rambo. I went back to the shop where they give out the vehicles to make sure they had gotten the word and guess what problem solved. Feathers were ruffled but oh well they had thier chance to resolve the issue at thier level.
THe funny thing about KBR is they sometimes forget who they are working for. The Army has them here to serve us. Sometimes they forget that and we have to remind them of that. To say that there is some comtempt for them might be a slight understatement. Any time you ask them to do something it seems like you have to renegotiate thier contract. It's like having a union in a warzone. Don't get me wrong the vast majority will bend over backwards but it is the mid level managers that I wanna shoot sometimes.... we do carry guns here too, of course I am just kidding but the thought has crossed my mins a couple of times.
They have this area that is the KBR compound which they control access to with an unarmed iraqi dude who is there to keep other Iraqis out. Well they like to stop the soldiers going in too. Well now that I know what they are there for I'm kind of an asshole. I know where I am going and who I am seeing. So I just walk by and ignore the liitle guy or guys that are trying to stop me. They sometimes follw me in but it's kind of comical and has become a game of sorts for me. One day I might find one that is froggy but Ive yet to see one over 5'4" and 140lbs. I'm at leat 6'2" and 190. I don't think any one of those guys is going to try and stop me lol.
Well thats I have for now.... sorry I'm so boring these days
Brent
Today I might have ruffled some feathers but we have had this on going issue with control of some armored suburbans we have. KBR which I am sure most of you have heard of is a huge contractor for the military and this camp is no different than most we have a large contractor presence over here. They have been giving me a problem saying that they own these vehicles which they sort of do but we get to tell them how they are being used. Well I tried to work things at the lowest level but lets just say some people are being less than user friendly. Soooo I went to to see the head of KBR at camp echo. My problem was no longer a problem after talking with no kidding his name is Rambo. I went back to the shop where they give out the vehicles to make sure they had gotten the word and guess what problem solved. Feathers were ruffled but oh well they had thier chance to resolve the issue at thier level.
THe funny thing about KBR is they sometimes forget who they are working for. The Army has them here to serve us. Sometimes they forget that and we have to remind them of that. To say that there is some comtempt for them might be a slight understatement. Any time you ask them to do something it seems like you have to renegotiate thier contract. It's like having a union in a warzone. Don't get me wrong the vast majority will bend over backwards but it is the mid level managers that I wanna shoot sometimes.... we do carry guns here too, of course I am just kidding but the thought has crossed my mins a couple of times.
They have this area that is the KBR compound which they control access to with an unarmed iraqi dude who is there to keep other Iraqis out. Well they like to stop the soldiers going in too. Well now that I know what they are there for I'm kind of an asshole. I know where I am going and who I am seeing. So I just walk by and ignore the liitle guy or guys that are trying to stop me. They sometimes follw me in but it's kind of comical and has become a game of sorts for me. One day I might find one that is froggy but Ive yet to see one over 5'4" and 140lbs. I'm at leat 6'2" and 190. I don't think any one of those guys is going to try and stop me lol.
Well thats I have for now.... sorry I'm so boring these days
Brent
Sunday, June 1, 2008
false alarm
So yesterday and today have been pretty quiet. Same old stuff just different days. It is routinley hitting 115. It's amazing how many people stop to look at my temp gauge.
Yesterday I was typing away. It was about 1800 and I know this.... well because well you will see. I had finished up my reports for the day and was checking the internet for whatever it isn't important here, when I hear the CRAM (Counter Rocket and Mortar) alarm go off. Now we haven't heard it very many times since we have been here so needless to say in about 3 seonds flat I'm in the Bunker. I am very close to the bunker there is only one trailer between the Bunker and I. You would be surprised at how much jumps through your head in 3 seconds.
What is that?
That's the CRAM Siren
Are you sure?
It's in the middle of the day they don't usually shoot at us in the middle of the day
OH S*&% I better go to the bunker
No one else is running to the bunker
Umm was that the CRAM siren?
Yes of course it was the Cram Siren
Now I'm inn the Bunker
Hmmm odd no onelse is here
Did they change the siren and not tell me?
Damn i bet I lost a lot of cool points
I wonder if I can get out of here without anyone seeing me
Damn Polish dude.... he doesnt count ..... made it
So I say to one of the guys as nonchalanty as I can so what was the siren for today... leaving it as ambigous as possible. He calmy replies you ran to the bunker didn't you.
It's at theis point I could A. say no or B. Fess up. I took option B and busted myself out. He admitted he started to run but didn't see anyone else moving for the bunkers so he played it off too.
Come to find out they had published an announcement on one of our 3 computer systems, just so happens it is the one I check the least lol.
Hope you got a decent laugh I did!!
Brent
Yesterday I was typing away. It was about 1800 and I know this.... well because well you will see. I had finished up my reports for the day and was checking the internet for whatever it isn't important here, when I hear the CRAM (Counter Rocket and Mortar) alarm go off. Now we haven't heard it very many times since we have been here so needless to say in about 3 seonds flat I'm in the Bunker. I am very close to the bunker there is only one trailer between the Bunker and I. You would be surprised at how much jumps through your head in 3 seconds.
What is that?
That's the CRAM Siren
Are you sure?
It's in the middle of the day they don't usually shoot at us in the middle of the day
OH S*&% I better go to the bunker
No one else is running to the bunker
Umm was that the CRAM siren?
Yes of course it was the Cram Siren
Now I'm inn the Bunker
Hmmm odd no onelse is here
Did they change the siren and not tell me?
Damn i bet I lost a lot of cool points
I wonder if I can get out of here without anyone seeing me
Damn Polish dude.... he doesnt count ..... made it
So I say to one of the guys as nonchalanty as I can so what was the siren for today... leaving it as ambigous as possible. He calmy replies you ran to the bunker didn't you.
It's at theis point I could A. say no or B. Fess up. I took option B and busted myself out. He admitted he started to run but didn't see anyone else moving for the bunkers so he played it off too.
Come to find out they had published an announcement on one of our 3 computer systems, just so happens it is the one I check the least lol.
Hope you got a decent laugh I did!!
Brent
Friday, May 30, 2008
2 months in Paradise
Well it might have been 3 months being married yesterday but today was 2 months in country. It seems to have gone fast but the 10 months ahead seem like they will take forever. There is some new news that will break it up for us. The Polish will be leaving Iraq in October and focusing thier efforts in Afghanistan. Since our whole misson here is to be the liasons for the Polish forces we will be going with them. So I will probably take my leave in October and when I come back I will be going to Afghanistan.
I don't have many details and this move isn't a done deal but it looks like veryone has blessed off on it. So it looks like I will get to spend the Summer in Iraq and winter in Afghanistan. THe best of both worlds right? This is truly a unique opportunity to serve in two theaters on one tour. I will update everyone as I learn more.
So its Friday! The only way I was reminded of that around here was we had Pizza at dinner time. Other than that the days don't matter much. I do sleep in on Sundays but I still do the same amount of work.
I was chatting with Micca tonight and she said she loves when I blog about us, she says its like a love letter. My days here are full of work but it's always interspersed with thoughts of home. Drake, Ashtyn and Dade are the first things that pop in my mind when I see kids or anything that reminds me of kids. It doesnt take much to get me thinking about Micca. We have so much in common which isn't uncommon with married couples that have been married for awhile. We came into the realationship thinking so much alike and had so much in common already.
Well I'm full of random thoughts tonight why I don't know. I guess I'm a little homesick... is that ok for a grown man?
Later for now,
Brent
I don't have many details and this move isn't a done deal but it looks like veryone has blessed off on it. So it looks like I will get to spend the Summer in Iraq and winter in Afghanistan. THe best of both worlds right? This is truly a unique opportunity to serve in two theaters on one tour. I will update everyone as I learn more.
So its Friday! The only way I was reminded of that around here was we had Pizza at dinner time. Other than that the days don't matter much. I do sleep in on Sundays but I still do the same amount of work.
I was chatting with Micca tonight and she said she loves when I blog about us, she says its like a love letter. My days here are full of work but it's always interspersed with thoughts of home. Drake, Ashtyn and Dade are the first things that pop in my mind when I see kids or anything that reminds me of kids. It doesnt take much to get me thinking about Micca. We have so much in common which isn't uncommon with married couples that have been married for awhile. We came into the realationship thinking so much alike and had so much in common already.
Well I'm full of random thoughts tonight why I don't know. I guess I'm a little homesick... is that ok for a grown man?
Later for now,
Brent
Thursday, May 29, 2008
A couple of guys like me
Today was like most other days, hot and sunny thats no big surprise. I took care of the usual issues and even got a few more things done than usual. The new Special Forces guys came in and we got to talking and they mentioned they had brought a couple of chemical guys. So I got to meet a couple of guys that were doing the job I had back in the late 90s. It was pretty cool to be able to talk about my career field with others that had some similiar training. Until they showed up Loren and I were probably the only two chemical guys in 300 miles. We are a rare breed and it's not that often you get to chat with peers and what not.
Other than that not much else to talk about. Tomorrow is friday I think. It's Pizza day on Friday's I think. The days all run together and the best thing I can do to pass the time is stay busy. I don't seem to have any shortage of work so staying busy shouldn't be to hard.
Another day in the book and today is 2 months in country as well as 3 months being married. Poor Micca marries me and then I run off. I'm pretty sure she knew what she was getting into but didn't realize how difficult it would be for us to be apart. She is quite the woman but like most struggles with my absence. I miss her and the kids dearly and really would rather be home than here any day. Micca and I joke around alot but I know we use that to cover up the pain we both feel. Those of you who don't know us really would have a tough time understanding how inseperable we are in our free time. Even when we have to do seperate activities we will try to be together when we are doing them. I use to drive to go get the kids and Micca didn't have to go because she needed to sleep since she works thirds. Often she would just ride and sleep on the way. Ok enough about that, but you can see where my mind is most nights.
Brent
Other than that not much else to talk about. Tomorrow is friday I think. It's Pizza day on Friday's I think. The days all run together and the best thing I can do to pass the time is stay busy. I don't seem to have any shortage of work so staying busy shouldn't be to hard.
Another day in the book and today is 2 months in country as well as 3 months being married. Poor Micca marries me and then I run off. I'm pretty sure she knew what she was getting into but didn't realize how difficult it would be for us to be apart. She is quite the woman but like most struggles with my absence. I miss her and the kids dearly and really would rather be home than here any day. Micca and I joke around alot but I know we use that to cover up the pain we both feel. Those of you who don't know us really would have a tough time understanding how inseperable we are in our free time. Even when we have to do seperate activities we will try to be together when we are doing them. I use to drive to go get the kids and Micca didn't have to go because she needed to sleep since she works thirds. Often she would just ride and sleep on the way. Ok enough about that, but you can see where my mind is most nights.
Brent
Monday, May 26, 2008
Memorial Day
Alright lots of stuff happened today.
The day started out with my group of guys doing a presentation for our fallen soldiers. It was done before our first meeting of the day and went off pretty well. I have posted pictures of the display that we put together. We each placed an item on the table as the COL read the narrative. We took the display to the DFAC afterwards and it was amazing at how many people stopped to look and read about the display.
After our presentation the Polish put on their presentation to honor our Memorial Day. I thought that was quite nice. The Polish really are quite gracious hosts and are very accommodating and understanding. I am very fortunate to be stationed here at Camp Echo as part of the multinational division. The things I am exposed to on a daily basis is astounding. The challenge of working through the language barriers and accomplishing a military mission is quite rewarding.
After the Polish ceremony for our Memorial day I took a trip over to the flag pole and began to flay the flags my dad had sent me. I have been waiting for this day thinking that there is no other day that better represents what our flag stands for and the sacrifices that have been made. It is a significant day and that’s what I was looking for. I took each flag and raised it up all the way then down to half mast, tied it off then saluted and began to prepare the next flag. This took me about an hour but I enjoyed it and felt so proud every time I raised our flag. It may only be a symbol but the history behind the symbolism is what makes it so great. To fly those flags on Memorial Day brings a lot of that history to light. I think I could go on and on but It’s getting late and I still have more to write about.
After my flag flying, I began to work on the deck project and worked on it most of the afternoon. It is nearing completion and should only take a couple more hours. I don’t know if it will ever really be done. I think this is something like an adult tree house and I’m sure we will continue to make improvements as time goes on. Now a funny story occurred while we were working on our tree house… I mean deck. Now some days they make announcements that there will be controlled detonations which usually involve one or two big booms for some ordnance the EOD guys have collected. Well today we are standing on top of our trailers and here the first one go then another and another. Difference here is we can see the blast and there are several. We then see some dust kicked up between us and the helicopters which are about 600 meters away. We do a quick assessment and decide that isn’t right and decide to unass the project and hit the bunker. We continue to hear a series of thumps and explosions. We come to find out that the Polish were doing a mortar demonstration. Controlled det does not equal a mortar demonstration. You would think they would make that a little bit more clear. So we give ourselves the all clear and go back to work. Others start grilling and everyone breaks open the near beer.
In the end we had a little Memorial day celebration. We had steaks brought in from Baghdad and although they weren’t as good as the ones from home they are the best I have had in a couple months.
The day started out with my group of guys doing a presentation for our fallen soldiers. It was done before our first meeting of the day and went off pretty well. I have posted pictures of the display that we put together. We each placed an item on the table as the COL read the narrative. We took the display to the DFAC afterwards and it was amazing at how many people stopped to look and read about the display.
After our presentation the Polish put on their presentation to honor our Memorial Day. I thought that was quite nice. The Polish really are quite gracious hosts and are very accommodating and understanding. I am very fortunate to be stationed here at Camp Echo as part of the multinational division. The things I am exposed to on a daily basis is astounding. The challenge of working through the language barriers and accomplishing a military mission is quite rewarding.
After the Polish ceremony for our Memorial day I took a trip over to the flag pole and began to flay the flags my dad had sent me. I have been waiting for this day thinking that there is no other day that better represents what our flag stands for and the sacrifices that have been made. It is a significant day and that’s what I was looking for. I took each flag and raised it up all the way then down to half mast, tied it off then saluted and began to prepare the next flag. This took me about an hour but I enjoyed it and felt so proud every time I raised our flag. It may only be a symbol but the history behind the symbolism is what makes it so great. To fly those flags on Memorial Day brings a lot of that history to light. I think I could go on and on but It’s getting late and I still have more to write about.
After my flag flying, I began to work on the deck project and worked on it most of the afternoon. It is nearing completion and should only take a couple more hours. I don’t know if it will ever really be done. I think this is something like an adult tree house and I’m sure we will continue to make improvements as time goes on. Now a funny story occurred while we were working on our tree house… I mean deck. Now some days they make announcements that there will be controlled detonations which usually involve one or two big booms for some ordnance the EOD guys have collected. Well today we are standing on top of our trailers and here the first one go then another and another. Difference here is we can see the blast and there are several. We then see some dust kicked up between us and the helicopters which are about 600 meters away. We do a quick assessment and decide that isn’t right and decide to unass the project and hit the bunker. We continue to hear a series of thumps and explosions. We come to find out that the Polish were doing a mortar demonstration. Controlled det does not equal a mortar demonstration. You would think they would make that a little bit more clear. So we give ourselves the all clear and go back to work. Others start grilling and everyone breaks open the near beer.
In the end we had a little Memorial day celebration. We had steaks brought in from Baghdad and although they weren’t as good as the ones from home they are the best I have had in a couple months.
Sunday, May 25, 2008
It's been awhile
It's been awhile since my last post. I realy do appreciate the comments and feedback. For those of you that post thank you, it kind of gives me incentive to keep on blogging.
Since my last post on went on a RECCE flight. It's basically a recon flight don't ask me what it stands for. we flew up by Najaf and I was really surprised by how lush and green a lot of the places are. There is still a lot of desert but you would be surprised at how green some of the places are.
The helicopter I was riding in was a russian made MI-8 HIP but flown by my Polish partners. It is basically the thier version of our big cargo helicopter. It was a decent flight about an hour and let me see quite a bit of the country.
It was neat to see the kids and adults waving at us as we flew by. I'm sure there were lots of mean looks too but those are harder to see than the excited hand waving.
We also had a range for all of my unit. That was pretty uneventful but quite hot. Yesterday hit 116 and today was quite dusty. Today was a slower day and I worked on our deck and got it about half done. I should finish it up in the next couple of days.
I have officially been gone from home for over 2 months, it seems to have gone fast but at the same time the end seems so far. I will have been married for almost 3 months and 2 of which I will have been gone. My Wife Micca is so awesome. She did tell me that I had to make all of the phone calls for the rest of the time when I get back. Everyone is so supportive of me, but it is the families that are left behind that really need the support. I have my friends and battle buddies to talk to every night whereas Micca really has no one. I mean she has family to talk to but it just isn't the same.
I have quite a few pictures to post so I will get to doing that. Well its late now so maybe tomorrow :)
Since my last post on went on a RECCE flight. It's basically a recon flight don't ask me what it stands for. we flew up by Najaf and I was really surprised by how lush and green a lot of the places are. There is still a lot of desert but you would be surprised at how green some of the places are.
The helicopter I was riding in was a russian made MI-8 HIP but flown by my Polish partners. It is basically the thier version of our big cargo helicopter. It was a decent flight about an hour and let me see quite a bit of the country.
It was neat to see the kids and adults waving at us as we flew by. I'm sure there were lots of mean looks too but those are harder to see than the excited hand waving.
We also had a range for all of my unit. That was pretty uneventful but quite hot. Yesterday hit 116 and today was quite dusty. Today was a slower day and I worked on our deck and got it about half done. I should finish it up in the next couple of days.
I have officially been gone from home for over 2 months, it seems to have gone fast but at the same time the end seems so far. I will have been married for almost 3 months and 2 of which I will have been gone. My Wife Micca is so awesome. She did tell me that I had to make all of the phone calls for the rest of the time when I get back. Everyone is so supportive of me, but it is the families that are left behind that really need the support. I have my friends and battle buddies to talk to every night whereas Micca really has no one. I mean she has family to talk to but it just isn't the same.
I have quite a few pictures to post so I will get to doing that. Well its late now so maybe tomorrow :)
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Anything new?
Well not much has happened since my last installment. Things here are still relatively quiet.
We have commenced working on our project. We are building a deck on top of 3 of our trailers. The wood was beginning to rot and what not so we decided we would do something with it before it went to waste. I'm fairly excited about it. Its kind of like an adult treehouse. There is 3 of us really working on it and I think once the first installment is done I think it will grow and grow. There are plans to put a driving platform so we can drive golfballs from it. I don't know how well that will go over if we hit something we shouldn't.
I know some people who read this might think man these guys have a lot of time on thier hands. and to a certian degree you are right. We work 12-16 hours days and have 3 or 4 hours to kill a night so that starts to add up after awhile when you concentrate on something.
Not much else going on today was a busy day for me. I have been trying to email Ashtyn and Drake daily and it's not until right now that i realize I missed a day. I'm looking forward to summer since I should get to chat with them a little more often. Micca is looking forward to summer as well. She hasn't got to spend a whole lot of time with Ashtyn and Drake and the Summer makes thier schedules a lot more flexible so they can come over and hnag out at thier other home. Knowing Micca she will have all sorts of stuff planned out for them.
Not much else to say. I will take some progress pictures of the deck over the next couple of days. It won't take long now that we have part of it framed up.
Later
Brent
We have commenced working on our project. We are building a deck on top of 3 of our trailers. The wood was beginning to rot and what not so we decided we would do something with it before it went to waste. I'm fairly excited about it. Its kind of like an adult treehouse. There is 3 of us really working on it and I think once the first installment is done I think it will grow and grow. There are plans to put a driving platform so we can drive golfballs from it. I don't know how well that will go over if we hit something we shouldn't.
I know some people who read this might think man these guys have a lot of time on thier hands. and to a certian degree you are right. We work 12-16 hours days and have 3 or 4 hours to kill a night so that starts to add up after awhile when you concentrate on something.
Not much else going on today was a busy day for me. I have been trying to email Ashtyn and Drake daily and it's not until right now that i realize I missed a day. I'm looking forward to summer since I should get to chat with them a little more often. Micca is looking forward to summer as well. She hasn't got to spend a whole lot of time with Ashtyn and Drake and the Summer makes thier schedules a lot more flexible so they can come over and hnag out at thier other home. Knowing Micca she will have all sorts of stuff planned out for them.
Not much else to say. I will take some progress pictures of the deck over the next couple of days. It won't take long now that we have part of it framed up.
Later
Brent
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Very very very full day
Well tell us Brent how full was it? Well let me tell you. We started out the day heading out to a mortar range. The Polish were training the Iraqis on how to use mortars. Now let’s just say that Headquarters in Baghdad was a little leery of this training. Most of the time when we are attacked it is IEDs or indirect fire which includes rockets and mortars. Now we aren’t accusing the Iraqis of using things against us but they have bad apples just like we do. So teaching them the right way to do indirect fire makes everyone a bit nervous.
The Polish did a good job of showing them the ropes and I hadn’t seen a 60 mm mortar fired before so it was interesting to watch. Once that was over we headed back to Camp Echo. Convoys are always an interesting thing and I got to do a little bit of aggressive driving. There was one truck in particular that didn’t want to stop so I played a little chicken he got the idea and stopped but it’s always a little exciting to have things like that happen.
We made it back to Camp Echo and unloaded the truck. Now you just don’t jump in a truck and drive off like you do your POV (privately owned vehicle) We do what we cal pre combat checks. It’s basically going down a checklist to make sure you have everything and that it is packed where you know it should be and where you can get to it if need be. From water and food to the stretcher. We have to have the radio frequencies we will be using and make sure we know the route. The list is quite extensive and when you get back you have to put stuff away. It ell you all of that because upon our return we found out we had to go to a ribbon cutting ceremony at a school. This was of course after we had unloaded almost everything.
So we load everything up and head back out with our Colonel and the Polish general. We go down into the city and end up taking over several streets and the helicopters keep flying overhead. We make a pretty big presence when we show up. There are kids everywhere. Some are more obnoxious than others. They want candy and water and whatever we will give them. We had a bag of suckers. LOL if orgot this part. On our way into the city or through the city we are hauling butt doing 40 or so and the kids are always waving and what not and I start chucking suckers. It made me think of being in a parade except we were doing 40 MPH. I was doing a hell of job leading the little suckers. You have to take into account when the sucker leaves your hand its already doing 40 plus what I add. I’m sure there is some pissed of parent because a kid has an imprint of a sucker in the side of his head.
So anyways we finished at the school and headed back. Wait…. Forgot to mention the haphazard wiring all through the city. OMG!! No wonder they don’t have power half the time. We are rolling through the inner city and our radio antennas are bouncing under all of these power lines and what not. I was worried we were going to rip them down. I’m quite sure we broke a few but we didn’t leave the city wearing any around our turrets.
So back to Echo, the AC died in our Hummer…. Not that it really helps that much, we get back and I drop off my hummer to be fixed and the power goes down to part of our camp. This is fairly normal when it gets hot. SO Now that I am back I can’t get my paperwork work done since the power grid is down. Well I do some odds and ends and the power comes back I finish my paperwork and decide I should go do PT. I go run a couple of miles run through the chow hall and then work on my deck , which we are building on top of our trailers. SO that was my day. Busy very busy.
My internet has been out so this was actually yesterday (Monday)
check the bottom for pictures
The Polish did a good job of showing them the ropes and I hadn’t seen a 60 mm mortar fired before so it was interesting to watch. Once that was over we headed back to Camp Echo. Convoys are always an interesting thing and I got to do a little bit of aggressive driving. There was one truck in particular that didn’t want to stop so I played a little chicken he got the idea and stopped but it’s always a little exciting to have things like that happen.
We made it back to Camp Echo and unloaded the truck. Now you just don’t jump in a truck and drive off like you do your POV (privately owned vehicle) We do what we cal pre combat checks. It’s basically going down a checklist to make sure you have everything and that it is packed where you know it should be and where you can get to it if need be. From water and food to the stretcher. We have to have the radio frequencies we will be using and make sure we know the route. The list is quite extensive and when you get back you have to put stuff away. It ell you all of that because upon our return we found out we had to go to a ribbon cutting ceremony at a school. This was of course after we had unloaded almost everything.
So we load everything up and head back out with our Colonel and the Polish general. We go down into the city and end up taking over several streets and the helicopters keep flying overhead. We make a pretty big presence when we show up. There are kids everywhere. Some are more obnoxious than others. They want candy and water and whatever we will give them. We had a bag of suckers. LOL if orgot this part. On our way into the city or through the city we are hauling butt doing 40 or so and the kids are always waving and what not and I start chucking suckers. It made me think of being in a parade except we were doing 40 MPH. I was doing a hell of job leading the little suckers. You have to take into account when the sucker leaves your hand its already doing 40 plus what I add. I’m sure there is some pissed of parent because a kid has an imprint of a sucker in the side of his head.
So anyways we finished at the school and headed back. Wait…. Forgot to mention the haphazard wiring all through the city. OMG!! No wonder they don’t have power half the time. We are rolling through the inner city and our radio antennas are bouncing under all of these power lines and what not. I was worried we were going to rip them down. I’m quite sure we broke a few but we didn’t leave the city wearing any around our turrets.
So back to Echo, the AC died in our Hummer…. Not that it really helps that much, we get back and I drop off my hummer to be fixed and the power goes down to part of our camp. This is fairly normal when it gets hot. SO Now that I am back I can’t get my paperwork work done since the power grid is down. Well I do some odds and ends and the power comes back I finish my paperwork and decide I should go do PT. I go run a couple of miles run through the chow hall and then work on my deck , which we are building on top of our trailers. SO that was my day. Busy very busy.
My internet has been out so this was actually yesterday (Monday)
check the bottom for pictures
Saturday, May 17, 2008
So what is missing
So I wrote my sister today and got to typing about how I was missing my kids and hers and it dawned on me I haven't talked to or interacted with a child in almost 2 months. I've seen them standing on the side of the road waving but that is about it. It's just one more thing that I find that I am missing over here.
I say this stuff not lucking for sympathy but just to provide perspective.
As I type this it seems the dust is rolling in. It rained for a few minutes this morning but only enough to clear the air amd make some paste, it's not really mud lol. I have managed to still run even though it is dusty. I have been running indoors on the treadmill. I found out that my heart monitor that tells me my pulse on my watch also talks to the treadmill and puts it on the display rather than having to hold the hand grips to get my pulse.
I think I have talked about the Maintenance team I ave worked with before. They are from Alabama and will leave here in a few days. They only spent 10 months in country since the Army is only deploying the Guard units for a year total. Most units will train for a month or 2 before they leave. I got a whole week of training... well it was more of a processing lol. I get to spend my year here. I prefer the year here to 2 months training then 10 months here. It is nice to be all settled in and know what I'm doing.
Acronym of the day is MWR Morale Welfare and Recreation. It is a term that is used quite often in the Military and it is just what it says.
Later,
Brent
I say this stuff not lucking for sympathy but just to provide perspective.
As I type this it seems the dust is rolling in. It rained for a few minutes this morning but only enough to clear the air amd make some paste, it's not really mud lol. I have managed to still run even though it is dusty. I have been running indoors on the treadmill. I found out that my heart monitor that tells me my pulse on my watch also talks to the treadmill and puts it on the display rather than having to hold the hand grips to get my pulse.
I think I have talked about the Maintenance team I ave worked with before. They are from Alabama and will leave here in a few days. They only spent 10 months in country since the Army is only deploying the Guard units for a year total. Most units will train for a month or 2 before they leave. I got a whole week of training... well it was more of a processing lol. I get to spend my year here. I prefer the year here to 2 months training then 10 months here. It is nice to be all settled in and know what I'm doing.
Acronym of the day is MWR Morale Welfare and Recreation. It is a term that is used quite often in the Military and it is just what it says.
Later,
Brent
Friday, May 16, 2008
Pushing up Daisies
Ok maybe not the best title in the world, but Dade picked out and sent me some daisies to grow. They have just started to push trough. I will post some pictures tomorrow I hope.
Today was really dusty. The dust storms come and go. I did PT inside today. I have really been doing really well about running every day. I ran 4 miles on the treadmill and would have ran further but we are only allowed 30 min on the treadmill and mine would only get up to 8 miles an hour. I ended up going for a little longer than 30 minutes so I could get my 4 miles in.
Well I have definitely gotten settled in. We are talking about a building project around our trailers. Actually we are talking about building on top of our containers. You see every night we gather on our steps and sit and chat kind of like you would do on a porch. Well we have plenty of lumber so we are going to build a deck on top of 2 of our trailers. I will keep everyone updated as we go and I will take plenty of pictures. We plan on making a planter up there as well and that’s where I will probably plant the corn.
Later,
Brent
Today was really dusty. The dust storms come and go. I did PT inside today. I have really been doing really well about running every day. I ran 4 miles on the treadmill and would have ran further but we are only allowed 30 min on the treadmill and mine would only get up to 8 miles an hour. I ended up going for a little longer than 30 minutes so I could get my 4 miles in.
Well I have definitely gotten settled in. We are talking about a building project around our trailers. Actually we are talking about building on top of our containers. You see every night we gather on our steps and sit and chat kind of like you would do on a porch. Well we have plenty of lumber so we are going to build a deck on top of 2 of our trailers. I will keep everyone updated as we go and I will take plenty of pictures. We plan on making a planter up there as well and that’s where I will probably plant the corn.
Later,
Brent
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Wednesday??
Wednesday..... well I made it through most of the day thinking it was Tuesday. How does that happen, well the days really do run together, I don't have any other explanation.
Today I had to take the Colonel into town. We went with 6 other HMMWVs and even had to take an unexpected detour. There was a traffic jam in front of us. We don't stop so we made a u-turn and went another way. Our Detour made me a bit nervous because the first thing that runs through your mind, is was this done on purpose. We know the enemy tactics for the msot part and they aren't that well organized but you have to be on the edge. I was driving today and had fun being aggressive. There really is no feeling like flying through the city streets with everyone diving out of the way and if you don't you make them. It's not an ego thing it's a safety thing. If you don't forse them then they might do something to get your buddy. All the same it's a pretty big rush.
So we got the COL to his spot and the Polish General was also with us. We gave away some ambulances to the hospital and then we got out of there.
All in all it was an uneventful trip but thats the way we like them.
The other night I was eating dinner, and of course there is the usual shenanigans that go on. People get up to get something to find thier drink missing or soemthing like that. On occasion whole cheesecake slices get swiped if you arent careful. Well bob was sitting across the table but down a seat or two just out of my reach. He had been taunting me about going to get some cheesecake and wasn't going to get me any. When he came back I made the long reach to stab a piece of cheesecake. He intercepted me and disarmed me of my fork he then proceeded to snap my plastic fork on the table and toss it on my tray. It was all done very nonchalantly (i know i spelled that wrong) I then pulled out my sppon and finished my salad.
It was all too funny.
Later for now,
Brent
Today I had to take the Colonel into town. We went with 6 other HMMWVs and even had to take an unexpected detour. There was a traffic jam in front of us. We don't stop so we made a u-turn and went another way. Our Detour made me a bit nervous because the first thing that runs through your mind, is was this done on purpose. We know the enemy tactics for the msot part and they aren't that well organized but you have to be on the edge. I was driving today and had fun being aggressive. There really is no feeling like flying through the city streets with everyone diving out of the way and if you don't you make them. It's not an ego thing it's a safety thing. If you don't forse them then they might do something to get your buddy. All the same it's a pretty big rush.
So we got the COL to his spot and the Polish General was also with us. We gave away some ambulances to the hospital and then we got out of there.
All in all it was an uneventful trip but thats the way we like them.
The other night I was eating dinner, and of course there is the usual shenanigans that go on. People get up to get something to find thier drink missing or soemthing like that. On occasion whole cheesecake slices get swiped if you arent careful. Well bob was sitting across the table but down a seat or two just out of my reach. He had been taunting me about going to get some cheesecake and wasn't going to get me any. When he came back I made the long reach to stab a piece of cheesecake. He intercepted me and disarmed me of my fork he then proceeded to snap my plastic fork on the table and toss it on my tray. It was all done very nonchalantly (i know i spelled that wrong) I then pulled out my sppon and finished my salad.
It was all too funny.
Later for now,
Brent
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
A busy day
So today was a busy day. I seemed to have non-stop visitors for one reason or another. My Polish counterparts needed me to help write some awards they had to do in English.
So today I helped the Armenians, Romanians, Ukranians and Polish. Guess I'm living up to my titile of multinational advisor.
I have to say that when I woke up today I jsut wasn't in a very good mood. That is one thing that I have noticed here is how my emotions are somewhat amplified. For those of you that know me I don't get to excited or mad or whatever but internally I was in a pretty bad mood this morning and didn't know why. I wasn't even going to go for a run but I decided that I should, physical activity is always good for a bad mood.
After my lunchtime run I seemed to feel better and I got to chat with Micca a bit. My lunchtime run was ok. I told myself today that I would have to remember to tell everyone how during my run as I was going out around our airfield I almost got blew over by one of the Hind helicopters. It keeps things from getting to boring sometimes.
I have a counter on my computer that counts down the days and tells me how many minutes, hours, days, weeks and even how many meals I have left here. My point here is that I looked at it today and noticed I had made some measurable progress. It display your time in a pie chart with the time you have spen uncovering a nice picture of the ocean and beach and your time left is represented by a desert landscape, lol imagine that.
OK time for word or rather acronym of the Day!! HMMWV = High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle, often reffered to as Hummer. It is really the workhorse of the ground forces and as of today it takes pretty much a tank round to blow one up. They have turned into heavily armored vehicles. If it is small arms fire your best bet is to just stay inside, It spider the glass but bullets wont come through. In fact the doors are so darn heavy that they will make you want to cry if you get something shut in it. I was stting half in the HMMWV with one lef hanging out messing with some radios. Unbeknonst to me I was on a slight incline that made the door swing close on my leg. Man did that hurt. Its like a vault door closing.
Thats it for tonight, tune in tomorrow for more adventures lol
Later,
Brent
So today I helped the Armenians, Romanians, Ukranians and Polish. Guess I'm living up to my titile of multinational advisor.
I have to say that when I woke up today I jsut wasn't in a very good mood. That is one thing that I have noticed here is how my emotions are somewhat amplified. For those of you that know me I don't get to excited or mad or whatever but internally I was in a pretty bad mood this morning and didn't know why. I wasn't even going to go for a run but I decided that I should, physical activity is always good for a bad mood.
After my lunchtime run I seemed to feel better and I got to chat with Micca a bit. My lunchtime run was ok. I told myself today that I would have to remember to tell everyone how during my run as I was going out around our airfield I almost got blew over by one of the Hind helicopters. It keeps things from getting to boring sometimes.
I have a counter on my computer that counts down the days and tells me how many minutes, hours, days, weeks and even how many meals I have left here. My point here is that I looked at it today and noticed I had made some measurable progress. It display your time in a pie chart with the time you have spen uncovering a nice picture of the ocean and beach and your time left is represented by a desert landscape, lol imagine that.
OK time for word or rather acronym of the Day!! HMMWV = High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle, often reffered to as Hummer. It is really the workhorse of the ground forces and as of today it takes pretty much a tank round to blow one up. They have turned into heavily armored vehicles. If it is small arms fire your best bet is to just stay inside, It spider the glass but bullets wont come through. In fact the doors are so darn heavy that they will make you want to cry if you get something shut in it. I was stting half in the HMMWV with one lef hanging out messing with some radios. Unbeknonst to me I was on a slight incline that made the door swing close on my leg. Man did that hurt. Its like a vault door closing.
Thats it for tonight, tune in tomorrow for more adventures lol
Later,
Brent
Monday, May 12, 2008
The day after Mothers day
I don't have much to say today. I decided to post a copy of the letter I sent to Micca.
I sent a letter to Ashtyn's class today in response to all of thier questions and comments.
Well when I say letter I should clarify and say email. I figured if I mailed them back today it probably would't get there until after school was out.
Although things seem to be coming quicker now. The dust storms haven't been as frequent or severe so the convoys can move a little more freely. Nobody moves without air cover. They always want to make sure that the MEDEVAC helicopters can pick someone up if need be and it's always nice to have the guys that can shoot back available too.
Well now that I thik about it I do have a little something to write about. The people that do the Maintenance on the american vehicles that we have loaned to the Polish are getting ready to leave. Their replacements are here so the end is in sight for them. I'm happy for them but very jealous at the same time. I can tell they are so very anxious to go home. The nearest I can describe it for an adult is if you can remember back to christmas time when you were 8 or so and how the days would never end. Well that is how it gets when you get near the end of a deployment. You also start to worry more. All of the what if scenerios that you put in the back of your mind coming rushing forward, you get the feeling that somehow someway the stars will line up against you getting home. It is the greatest amount of anticipationyou will ever have in your life.
Later for now
Brent
I sent a letter to Ashtyn's class today in response to all of thier questions and comments.
Well when I say letter I should clarify and say email. I figured if I mailed them back today it probably would't get there until after school was out.
Although things seem to be coming quicker now. The dust storms haven't been as frequent or severe so the convoys can move a little more freely. Nobody moves without air cover. They always want to make sure that the MEDEVAC helicopters can pick someone up if need be and it's always nice to have the guys that can shoot back available too.
Well now that I thik about it I do have a little something to write about. The people that do the Maintenance on the american vehicles that we have loaned to the Polish are getting ready to leave. Their replacements are here so the end is in sight for them. I'm happy for them but very jealous at the same time. I can tell they are so very anxious to go home. The nearest I can describe it for an adult is if you can remember back to christmas time when you were 8 or so and how the days would never end. Well that is how it gets when you get near the end of a deployment. You also start to worry more. All of the what if scenerios that you put in the back of your mind coming rushing forward, you get the feeling that somehow someway the stars will line up against you getting home. It is the greatest amount of anticipationyou will ever have in your life.
Later for now
Brent
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