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
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
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
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