A Whole Post About Toilets

Compared to the last time I was here, this place really is like heaven. To the left is a side-by-side comparison I made: the toilet that was used by my unit in 2003 and the ones we use today (bathroom is the one inside my barracks). Yes, that is a chair with a toilet seat tied to it, positioned over a hole (note the camouflage netting for privacy). Pretty disgusting, but people will get used to mostly anything if they have to. The hole in the ground was eventually replaced with port-a-potties that were cleaned out about once a week. When 50+ people are using the same 3 port-a-potties for a week, it will get funky pretty quickly. Trust me. Don't get me wrong, I still have to use a port-a-potty at work, but they are cleaned twice a day; they are decidedly cleaner that most people would expect.

I am loving the fact that the bathroom and shower room are situated inside the barracks. It gets very old to have to carry all your shower supplies, plus fresh uniforms, all the way to the outside showers. If I can find a picture of the shower we used to shower in, yes that was singular..ONE shower, I will post it next to our present day facilities. Now, THAT was disgusting. Besides the traces of fecal matter in the water, the walls were covered with a slimy substance that could not be gotten rid of. I wouldn't have DREAMED of stepping foot in their without my flip flops on, but even those were almost futile, since the drain was always clogged and there was at least 2 inches of standing water on the floor at any given time. I feel dirty just thinking about it.

I am very excited because, in two weeks, I will be flying to New York to visit my family and friends! My "R & R" is two weeks long; everyone in the unit gets to go home at one point during the deployment. I have only been here for 3 months, so it is going to suck to come back and have to stay for 9 more, but I am not complaining! Mark's R & R was scheduled for July (they picked names in a lottery for who got what month), but he turned his down because he didn't want to leave the fight so early.

P.S. I received 2 care packages yesterday, thanks Mom! Lots of good stuff in this one!!

Things That Go Bump in the ... Day

Sorry I felt like this post was a little too informative, so I had to delete it!

SOOOOOO Tired!

Today is the first day of my new shift. I need to get used to my new sleeping schedule, it has done a total 180, but I think I will enjoy working 1am-1pm. It's nice and quiet for the first few hours. I had the chance to start my Rosetta Stone Language Course (Spanish). I set up a cot in my office, in case I got tired, but I have managed to pull through so far.

I tried to sleep the day away yesterday, but was kept awake by my 4 roommates. I didn't take them into consideration when all this started and now I wonder if we're going to have "issues." I don't know when they work, because they always seem to be in the room. We each have our own bunkbed and have partitioned the room using wall lockers and shower curtains to ensure maximum privacy. That doesn't stop sounds and smells, unfortunately. Last night, I walked in my room and it smelled like potatoes. I have NO idea what that was about. Maybe one of the girls brought home a plate of food from the DFAC....I hope.

Home Is Where the Heat Is

GAH! It is hot out today. July is the hottest month in Iraq, with August following closely as the second hottest. If you stand outside, there is a little wind, but I am not exaggerating in the least when I write that the wind feels like a blowdryer is pointed at you. Unfortunately, I don't have air conditioning in my office, but the room next to me does, so I keep my door open and steal some of the cold air. It works pretty well. :)

Well, today I found out that I am switching shifts with the rest of the company (no thanks to my Platoon Sergeant, by the way)!! I hear the Omelette Station at the DFAC calling my name! I get to eat breakfast. This is what my life has come to, being excited that I get to work during breakfast hours at the Dining Facility. My new shift is 1am-1pm (5pm-5am NY time). I will no longer have the same day off as Mark, but we're on the same shift, so we will still be able to walk home from work together every afternoon. Right now, I work 12 hours a day, 7 days a week. My day off falls on the 8th day, i.e. last week, my day off was Tuesday, this week it was Wednesday, next week Thursday, etc.

P.S. I tried to find a picture of a egg frying on a sidewalk, since I talked about both the heat and eggs, but I am not as internet-savvy as I'd thought....so here is a picture of my room.

Avoid Fruits and Nuts: You Are What You Eat!

I can't really complain about the food here. It's not great...it's not terrible...it IS free. Well, the food at the DFAC is anyway. I don't eat too much of the Burger King, Pizza Hut, or Subway they have here on the base. But, the food is always better at home. Here is a list of foods (in no particular order) that I am going to eat when I go home:

1. Slice of Pizza, Plain - Alitalia's Pizza - West Babylon, NY
2. BLT w/Cheese on a Hero Roll and Yoo-Hoo - Jessen's Deli - West Babylon, NY
3. Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Sandwich and a Large Iced Tea - Jessen's Deli - West Babylon, NY
4. A Still Warm Plain Bagel w/Cream Cheese - Bagel Factory - West Babylon, NY
5. 5-pc. Chicken Nuggets w/Honey Mustard Sauce and Biggie Fries - Wendy's - Anywhere

I have lost 20 pounds in the 2 months I have been out here, and as you can see from my list, I will be gaining it all back within a week of me getting to the U.S.

P.S. This picture was taken the last time I was here, in 2003. I don't have any pictures of me out here yet. I will have someone take some soon!

Another Day, Another Tax-Free Dollar

Today was just another day at work for me (see schedule below). I am still fighting for the right to change shifts with the rest of my company. I will be working 1am-1pm instead of 1pm-1am. I sent a very detailed email to my Platoon Sergeant, telling him all the reasons he should switch me. I haven't seen him since then. I bet it pissed him off, and he'll probably say no just because I wrote him that email!

Both of my sisters are sending me care packages! I am excited. The mail room is on the way to my office, so I check the list for my name everyday on my way to work. It's always exciting when I see my name, like getting a letter at summer camp or something.

I had a day off yesterday. I read the remaining chapters of "The Shining" and had dinner with Mark at the DFAC (it was his day off, too!). Then we went to the makeshift movie theater they have here, where "JFK" was playing. That was my day off. Fun stuff.

P.S. I took the above picture a couple of weeks ago. It is one of our UAVs taking off.

Why I am Here

I was sitting in the mission office last night, watching a live feed from our UAV camera on a big television screen. At the time, we were watching some guy sitting in his backyard. A small child appeared and the man picked him up and hugged him. It made me realize that the people here are ACTUALLY PEOPLE. It makes me feel better about being here. The military really is helping the people of Iraq. I was here back in 2003 and the improvements since then have been enormous. Maybe we started off being here for the wrong reasons, but we are making a difference here. it makes me angry to see people in the States, protesting with signs, hunger strikes, yelling for the troops to come home. Sure, it would be nice to come back to the States, but Iraq is not strong enough yet. If we leave now, what will happen to Iraq's people? What did the 2500+ soldiers die for? As soldiers, we are doing our jobs. We have been trained for this. None of us had a gun put to our heads when we agreed to join the Military. When we came to Iraq, we knew full well that we may not come back alive. I don't know. Those stupid protestors just piss me off, especially the celebrity ones. Just shut up and make movies!

P.S. The "small child" I saw may have been a dog. I'm no expert :)

Cabin Fever

I think I am beginning to feel the effects of my monotonous schedule. Not to bore you, but here is my daily schedule:

• 1100 hrs (11:00am): Alarm clock goes off (I press snooze)
• 1200 hrs (12:00pm): I wake up and get dressed for the day.
• 1245 hrs (12:45pm): I arrive at my office and get my brief of last night's activities.
• 1300-1800 hrs (1pm-6pm): I sit in my office, returning emails, filing paperwork, ordering parts. Occasionally, people will pop their heads in to say hello and see how I am doing.
• 1800-1900 hrs (6pm-7pm): I walk to the Dining Facility (DFAC), which is conveniently located next door.
• 1900-0100 hrs (7pm-1am): Back to my desk, where I return more emails. My friends and family are at work now in the States, so we exchange emails too. The company that I order my parts from are also at work in the States now, so we exchange emails, as well.
• 0100 hrs (1am): I brief the incoming soldier about my day's activities and I walk home.
• 0200-0300 hrs (2:00-3:00am): I work out at the gym
• 0330 hrs (3:30am): Shower
• 0345 hrs (3:45am): Bed

That's it. EVERY. DAY. FOR. ONE. WHOLE. YEAR. Sometimes something will happen to mix it up. I will volunteer to be on the crew for the launch of our aircraft...We'll get mortared (always exciting!)...I'll sneak away to the shopette to pick up personal hygiene items...

We are getting ready to swap shifts next week. There is a debate on whether or now they will switch me, but I am fighting for it. The main appeal for this shift to me is that breakfast is served at the DFAC during it, and I will be able to have a made-to-order omelette every day. Yum!