My Life.: Travel

Cesar jr.

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 13:00:32 GMT

I just want to say that even after all these years have gone by I'm still very upset at my ex-wife who kept my son away from me for all those years. I never knew where he was or what he was doing. She moved around so many times and I was never allowed to have any sort of contact, much less have any kind of relationship with him. So it's funny to me that when a parent who blatanly disregards a court order and decides the out come of whatever life she has planned and the tables are turned they are the first to yell "I can't control him he needs a male to influence him". So when the child becomes a burden to that person then the flag is raised and the search for the dad begins and ends in a matter of minutes. I just find that mind blowing after 8 years of being missing all she had to do was pick up the phone and call my mother and presto the information was there. Don't get me wrong the child support was always there on time every month but since the other parent was not playing by the rules the attorney just told me to file a missing person's report and have it on file in the event he ever pops up. So I was really shocked to finally hear from him and shortly after that a visit to Texas from Washington. So below are some pictures of him during his first visit and also when he decided to come and live with me in Texas. He's a good kid and he will do well in life as long as he continues to push him self and listens to his old man who will try his best to help him in life.

My Baby.....

Sat, 05 Jul 2008 13:31:13 GMT

I can’t post a blog without saying something about my favorite “Turd”! My little girl is getting so pretty and getting so big she looks more like her mommy everyday. When she looks at me with that “I Love you daddy” I melt! She is forever going to stay my little 3 year old.

Julian's Car.

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 14:35:10 GMT

I wanted to post some pictures of Julian's car before and after we did the repairs. He was so proud of his car but the dam thing was such an ugly purple color. Now it looks so much better in gray he looks like such a big boy standing next to his car. I remember like it was yesterday when I taught him how to ride his first bike. I found a picture of him showing me his cool trick on his bike when he was just a little guy. He was so cute riding up and down the street showing off his new tricks to his mom and I. Love that Kid....

My Pet Rock

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 10:33:58 GMT

I was sitting in my room and realized that I am going insane looking at these four walls at night without anyone to talk to but my own shadow. So I decided to adopt a pet while I’m out here! His name is Rocky, my pet rock. He likes to sit and watch T.V. all day and when he’s bored he likes to play “Let’s see who blinks first and he always wins! He’s good!!!! Sometimes he just sits there and stares at me for hours without saying a thing it's kinda creepy.

Mosul

Mon, 05 May 2008 07:26:56 GMT

When I first arrived at the Airfield in Mosul, Iraq it hit me like a ton of bricks on the head. What the hell I’m I doing back in this hell hole. And the answer to that question was as clear as the night sky as I looked at the equipment. The Tanks were damaged and the systems needed some work so off to work we went to get things in order. But to be honest I really do not like to be out here! Below are some pictures of my room when I first got here and after I cleaned it up a little.

Mosul, Iraq

Sat, 19 Apr 2008 10:02:45 GMT

I have been in Mosul a week today! I'm out here supporting 1/8 Infantry out of Ft Carson Colorado making sure their M1A2 SEP Tanks are up and running.

Alabama

Thu, 12 Jul 2007 01:13:23 GMT

Just enjoying the business trip to Alabama. The people here are very friendly and I love the way they speak it's very southern! I am sitting in my hotel room here in Anniston taking the time to update my blog since I have not done it in a while. Today we inspected several M1A2 tanks and signed off on them to be shipped over sea's to Iraq. The guys we are working hand in hand with are really funny they keep cutting up on each other apparently it's their favorite pastime. I spoke to Tami a few hours ago and she was taking the kiddos to see the new Harry Potter movie. I guess they wanted to see it at mid-night but she said unless you are getting up at 5 a.m. to get ready for work sorry kids not happening. She is a funny lady!!

Waiting

Mon, 30 Apr 2007 08:30:24 GMT

Just sitting here in the hotel waiting and pacing around for the flight home.

Timeline.

Sun, 29 Apr 2007 11:53:27 GMT

Going home finally! Got to love that travel seen lots of things and I am ready for my long trip home.

Basic

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 03:00:43 GMT

Once again I am reminded of how small the world we live in really is! The other day I was walking out of the mess hall after eating breakfast with Chris and as we were walking over to out truck I walked past a civilian who looked familiar but I could not place the face. That night I went to take a shower after spending two hours in the gym working out and as I was walking in the same guy was there walking towards the door. I looked straight into his eyes and I knew exactly who he was! I asked him excuse me your last name would not happen to be DeJesus would it? He looked at me for a second and said yes it is with a look on his face trying to figure out where he knew me. He asked do I know you? I said you sure do “Drill Sergeant!!” He looked surprised and asked were you one of my soldiers? I said sure was and then he asked “Was I mean to you? Because you look like you can kick my ass!” I laughed and said, "Hey it was training all training no hard feelings here". We spoke for a while and he said he just got out of the army after serving 26 years. He started working for a company from Texas and they sent him out here to the Middle East. He just arrived a week ago and it’s his first trip out here as a civilian and he said it’s a little odd. I guess he keep’s looking for his weapon and then realizes that he does not have to carry one anymore. I guess old habits are hard to break!

The Kids in San Diego with cousins...

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 09:39:05 GMT

Here is a picture I found of my kids with their cousins from a few years back in San Diego, California.

Congress!

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 09:05:37 GMT

So there I was just watching the news the other day and the news report was talking about congress holding up the funding for the soldiers as a pressure play for the president to start sending the troops home. I know he will veto the bill but it still chaps my ass that congress with their new liberal speaker is holding up funding for soldiers out here. So here are some pictures some guys posted when they heard the news. This series is called “Military Cutbacks”……Enjoy.

Funny....

Wed, 21 Mar 2007 03:14:54 GMT

I saw this poster and laughed my butt off!!!

Here are some funny Quotes.

Sat, 17 Mar 2007 12:43:23 GMT

1. Do not walk behind me, for I may not lead. Do not walk ahead of
me, for I may not follow. Do not walk beside me either. Just leave
me the hell alone.

2. The journey of a thousand miles begins with a broken fan belt and
leaky tire.

3. It's always darkest before dawn. So if you're going to steal your
neighbor's newspaper, that's the time to do it.

4. Don't be irreplaceable. If you can't be replaced, you can't be
promoted.

5. Always remember that you're unique. Just like everyone else.

6. Never test the depth of the water with both feet.

7. If you think nobody cares if you're alive, try missing a couple of
car payments.

8. Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their
shoes. That way, when you criticize them, you're a mile away
and you have their shoes.

9. If at first you don't succeed, skydiving is not for you.

10. Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach him how to
fish, and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day.

11. If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was
probably worth it.

12. If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.

13. Some days you're the bug; some days you're the windshield.

14. Everyone seems normal until you get to know them.

15. The quickest way to double your money is to fold it in half and
put it back in your pocket.

16. A closed mouth gathers no foot.

17. Duct tape is like 'The Force'. It has a light side and a dark
side, and it holds the universe together.

18. There are two theories to arguing with women. Neither one works.

19. Generally speaking, you aren't learning much when your lips are
moving.

20. Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.

21. Never miss a good chance to shut up.

22. Never, under any circumstances, take a sleeping pill and a laxative on the same night.

Moving Again

Tue, 06 Mar 2007 16:23:03 GMT

Have to move location in the next few days heading out to Egypt. I can't wait, yet another country that smells like a dirty sock!

My Aunt Alex.

Sun, 25 Feb 2007 11:08:43 GMT

I spent some time talking to my favorite aunt this morning . I took some time off to send out some reports and reply to some e-mails and I was sitting there I realized that my aunt Alex had sent me a text. I love my aunt very much, growing up her and I got along very well, we both share a Birthday thats is only a day apart. We have a 10 year one day difference in our age. She's my mom's only sister and she is a funny person always making jokes and cracking people up. Growing up around her was fun, one time my parents took a vacation to Mexico for a few weeks and we were told that our aunt Alex was going to watch over us. After thinking back as an adult I often wonder why they did not take us to Mexico on vacation but that another story. I just remember being cared for by my aunt and how different it was to experience how kids should be treated. I recall her making snacks and me asking what are “snacks?” she said its food to hold you over till lunch or dinner. It was crazy food before dinner? I was confused very confused! Sometimes I have a hard time remembering things about my childhood somethings are clear as day and some not so much. But I can tell you over that summer vacation my parents took I could remember the smell of the grass in Balboa Park when my aunt took us bike riding and the way the wind felt when she allowed me to go outside and play with my bike without yelling at me and telling I had to do something before I was allowed outside. For those of you that don't know about me I was raised by my two uncle's, my mom worked a lot she was up early and came home late so I was pretty much raised with an iron fist. So with that said it was a breath of fresh air to be able to be given that bit of confidence that I would not get into trouble and that I would do the right thing by my aunt. Like I said before I enjoyed that vacation not because they did not take us, but because they left us behind. I remember telling my aunt Alex that I thought she would make a good mom when she got married and had kids. When she did get married, she married a very nice gentle person. My uncle James is a cool guy but the first time we met it was at a picnic and when he ate some tacos he got some guacamole sauce on nose and I thought it was funny. He was in the navy and when ever he went on trips he always seemed to remember us and would send letters and postcards to us and I thought that really nice. They have three kids Hector, Gabby, Ari, my cousin's. I remember Hector walking around when he was really small telling people what time it was with his little watch as for Gabby they moved to Guam for a while and I did not get to spend a lot of time with her or my cousin Ari. I miss both my aunt and uncle very much and when I get home from being out here I am going to take a trip to Vegas to spend some time with them and my cousin's!

Time.

Sat, 24 Feb 2007 16:09:41 GMT

Camp Taji, Iraq

To my wife.

Fri, 23 Feb 2007 17:12:11 GMT

I do not think much, I do not think often but when I think, I think of you!

Having Lunch.

Thu, 22 Feb 2007 15:55:15 GMT

Chris and I went to lunch this afternoon after we got done working on a couple of components that one of the units brought to us this morning. It sounds pretty boring doesn't it? Well let me finish the story as we were walking towards the mess hall a few rounds went over our head and without disclosing how far or where they landed in the case a piece of shit insurgent is reading this website. Let's just say it was danger close! When we heard the whistling sound of the round flying over all we could do was hit the ground like everyone else and pray that it didn't land on top of us. Good thing these bastards don't have good aim! We usually get hit like this a few times a week lot's of "shoot and run" kinda thing since they will not stay and fight they love to run away. And sometimes when you hear weapons fire go off in the middle of the night from the towers we have a saying “When you hear a 50 cal. rounds go off thats another insurgent getting his wings” or like the motto a soldier from a unit out here said to me “Why run, your only going to die tired!” it's our sniper motto he said. Anyway it was a pretty eventful day for us civilians out here.

Firefight.

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 15:22:47 GMT

Here I am once again adding an entry that might upset some people. The guys came back and luckily no one got hurt they engaged and were able to secure the area that was attacked the day before. Apparently the insurgents were able to detonate a car bomb right next to a fuel trailer that was located right next to the police station. The unit that was attached to the Iraq police took fire from the back of the station and when they engaged the back wall the Iraqi police were tasked out to guard the two gates and when the shit hit the fan they ran like a bunch of cowards allowing the vehicle to enter the site and be detonated. Apparently the bomb took out most of the police officers that were running away and ¼ of the building. It damaged nine hummers and we lost two guys during the blast. When the fight went from them blowing things up with car bomb to a one on one engagement with our guys the out come was a little different. The soldiers surrounded the area and locked it down before anyone that was involved in the bombing could get out. They counted 76 insurgents that actually hit the police station and before they ran into building to hide the infantry was able to neutralize 27 of them. I guess three groups ran into different buildings and while they were shooting rpg's (rocket propelled grenades) and small arms fire from the windows a few apache gunships flew into the area and leveled the buildings to a pile of bricks. The remaining insurgents made a break for it and the units were there to engage them as they were running out. The guys from our shop said that so far they are still bringing in detainees that were questioned after the engagement and the army believes that they gave the insurgents aid during the fight. I really don't know exactly what they are going to do with these guys but I'm sure whatever they do it will probably be pretty bad considering they aided the enemy. As for the guys we work with they all came back in one piece with no injuries but a lot of them said that it was surreal. They were not being cocky or saying this like they were when they left to reinforce the troops that were already on the ground. Most all of them were pretty quiet and felt relieved that they were back inside the base one of the guys spoke to me and Chris and said “ That was the most intense thing I have ever done in my life!”

Alarm...

Mon, 19 Feb 2007 17:05:54 GMT

Feb 19, 2007

Today was yet another bad day for us out here. Apparently a Iraqi Police station got hit by a car bomb killing several police and wounding a lot of civilians. They set off the alarm and the units out here were sent out to support the units that were engaging the insurgents. Part of their mission was keeping the police station from being raided. I guess from what I hear the few Iraqi police officers that were left just dropped their weapons and ran away when they started taking fire from the insurgents. Leaving the military police and infantry hanging out to dry, surprise, surprise. Sometimes this place makes no sense to me we are out here trying to help and keep order and the people that we are protecting have no back bone. And here I am once again in the middle of it watching the young guys that I work with day in and day out get their gear on while getting briefed on the mission they are about to take part of. As I watched them throw on their body armor and get ready by checking batteries and scopes and ammo, all I could do is pray that they all come back without any causalities. Some of the guys were pretty cocky saying things that young men say when they have never been fired on. It's normal it's just all the adrenaline pumping, you say things to keep you from dealing with whats about to happen. The older guys were a little more calm and cool some of them came up to me and asked me for advice. All I could say was keep you head down and aim center mass when you get a target and everything else will come naturally you've trained to keep each other safe so don't forget about the person next to you. It all came to a head when the chaplain entered the bay and all of the guys looked around at each other and you could see that now it was personal. The chaplain asked them to take a knee while he said a prayer and ask God to watch over them and ask the men to hold fast and keep each other out of harms way. It was all very moving and when they loaded up on the hummer I looked at all of them and smiled and told them “ you guys be careful out there” as they drove away I felt guilty that I was not allowed to head out with them, it was hard to see those guys leave. They are going to be out there for 3 to 4 days and myself and Chris are going to be taking care of their work load while they are gone. I see these young soldiers out here and the things that they have to do and the things that are happening day in and day out and I can't help but feel proud of them. I hear what the media is putting out and that certain groups protest against this or that or politicians dancing around their votes to attack a few years ago and now saying that it was wrong. But what right do they have to make that kind of judgment they need to be here experiencing it first hand and then maybe they can go home and make comment's that are backed by facts.

My Stuff.

Sat, 17 Feb 2007 16:56:56 GMT

My wife and kid's sent Valentines Day's gifts and I have them in the office.

Another Joke

Sat, 17 Feb 2007 02:26:10 GMT

A man is lying in a hospital bed with an oxygen mask over his mouth. A young nurse enters his room to sponge his face and hands. "Nurse," he mumbles from behind the mask, "Are my testicles black?" Embarrassed, the young nurse replies, "I don't know Mr. Jones, I'm only here to wash your face and hands." He struggles again to ask, "Nurse, are my testicles black?" Again the nurse replies, "I can't tell. I'm only here to wash your face and hands." The head nurse walks by and sees the man getting a little distraught, so she marches over to find out what's wrong. "Nurse," he mumbles, "are my testicles black?" The head nurse whips back the sheets, pulls down the man's pajamas, moves his penis out of the way, has a good look, pulls up the pajamas and says, "There's nothing wrong with them." Frustrated at this, the man pulls off his oxygen mask and asks again, "I said, are my test results back?!"

Joke.

Sat, 17 Feb 2007 02:09:53 GMT

Something to lighten the mood:

Last Tuesday, as President Bush stepped off the ‘Marine One’ Helicopter in front of the White House, he was carrying a baby piglet under each arm.

The squared away Marine guard snaps to attention, Salutes, and says: “Nice pigs, sir.”

The President replies “These are not pigs. These are authentic Arkansas Razorback Hogs. I got one for Senator Hillary Clinton, and I got one for Speaker of The House Nancy Pelosi.”

The squared away Marine again snaps to attention, salutes, and says, “Excellent trade, sir.”

Wake Up Call.

Thu, 15 Feb 2007 16:16:32 GMT

Wow, Today was rough! It's 2:06 pm here in Iraq and I just got off the phone with my wife. I usually wake her up at this time to get her going in the morning it's 5:06 am there in Texas. I was driving back to work today after having a light lunch and during our commute I heard a very familiar sound that was coming up fast and hard to our left. I looked over and there was two Bradley' fighting vehicles barreling down the road with three hummers blocking the intersections and you can tell by the way the soldiers got out of their vehicle that something was wrong. As they blew past us they made a hard left into the medic station and thats when I knew that they had wounded. I pulled into our area that is located across from the medic station and about 3 minutes later we heard the medi-vac fly in and load up and take off as fast as it came in. I try not to think about the fact that every time I hear that helicopter land there that are is one more soldier that stood in hards way. About half an hour passed and some soldiers came in and turned in some electronic components that needed to be repaired by the unit we are here supporting. Acccording to one of the soldiers they were in the ballation area when the fire fight took place and heard the soldiers engage the enemy and they said it lasted about half an hour and during that time a platoon sargent was wounded, he took a shot to the head. The guys said that's who was in the bradley storming down the road, a sniper got lose in the perimeter and got a lucky shot off but the soldiers on the ground were able to neutralize the sniper. A few hours later the same guy's came back to pick up their components after we repaired them and they informed us that the soldier was moved to Balad and he was not going to make it and that he was on life support. It's sad to think he woke up this morning and had breakfast in the same mess hall that I did he went to work and got into his bradley and moved out on patrol and his number was up a day after he called his wife and said I Love You and wished her a Happy Valentines Day!

Walking on Mars..

Wed, 14 Feb 2007 20:18:41 GMT

We had a hell of a Valentines Day out here! My first mistake of the day was that I woke up thinking I was in bed with my soft,warm wife until I woke up and realized that It was my pillow smiling back at me. My second mistake was that I got up took a shower and went to work only to step outside into a sand storm. It really was not that bad it just looked like we landed on Mars for a few hours. My third mistake was that I waited four days before Valentines and tried to arrange a flower delivery for my sweetheart and I have been trying the last few days to contact a florist in the states so I could send my wife some flowers but between the dropped calls and the “can you please wait I am putting you on hold” I pretty much just gave up and called my wife and broke the news to her. I'm sorry Honey I will make it up to you when I get home! I also tried sending some flowers online but the Internet is so slow it times out before I can finish the transaction! Man I really do hate Iraq!! Anyway I am posting this blog entry with shame due to the fact that I could not complete mission Foxtrot Delta (Flower-Delivery.) due to unforeseen complications...

Taking a Walk....

Tue, 13 Feb 2007 16:34:24 GMT

I went out for a walk a few days ago and took my camera out and took some snapshots around the post as the sun was setting. I found out the other day that I will be leaving Iraq and going home in a few months after completing 7 months out here. I am glad that they cut the second part of the contract off and that myself and Chris will be leaving before it starts getting really hot! We arrived in Iraq and hit the ground running and have been up to our eyeballs in work. But when there is downtime I like to take some time alone and walk around with my thought's it helps me relax and sometimes I am able to express myself in pictures. I know it sounds pretty artsy fartsy but being out here in ugly Iraq you find things to do to take up your time.

New Tanks for Iraq.

Thu, 08 Feb 2007 02:35:15 GMT

I been thinking maybe we need to send a division of these new tanks to the middle east to hold down all the cities and stop the wave of insurgents coming in from Iran.

Letter to my wife.

Sun, 04 Feb 2007 18:43:08 GMT

I refer from time to time to my very sweet wife when I blog. I do not often go into great detail about our life together in this forum as I try to tell her directly how I feel. Today however I will take the opportunity to talk somewhat about this unusually good woman. My wife is a beautiful woman. Much like a glass of cold ice water on a hot August day or an Indian Paint Brush among the Dallas Grass. She is giving and charitable in our marriage and in life. She loves me and I love her. That may sound silly to some but not to anyone who has had to endure a loveless relationship. This is the good mortar that lets us lay the bricks of our future, secure in the knowledge that our love is not a passing matter of whimsy. Her love surrounds me, keeps me warm, and makes life worth living. She is intelligent, much more so than I, though she does not oppress me with stinging wit. She likes to have her feet rubbed… and I like to rub them. She is respectful of my feelings and I try to be respectful of hers too. I love her as the sun loves the day and the moon loves the night. I love her as the sea loves the shore and the wind loves the trees. She is the great joy of my life. She is my past, present and future. She is my hope for brighter days and warm nights. She is the woman of my dreams!

My Birthday

Sun, 04 Feb 2007 13:09:03 GMT

It's official! Today is my Birthday and I feel like an old man. I'm going over to the medic station and see if they will issue me a walker and maybe I can con them into throwing in a seven month's supply of Depends. I went to have lunch at the mess hall and I sat there like an old man and drank coffee and complained about people while sucking on some bread. Later that afternoon I took a walk over to the mens room and realized that I did not have to go (See Alzheimer's kicking in!). And to make the day even worse I was typing up some reports to send back to General Dynamics and I put on my ipod so I could listen to some music and I realized that it was really loud! I really do hate getting old.....

My Birthday is coming.

Wed, 31 Jan 2007 17:39:07 GMT

I feel really old today! I just realized that my 36^th Birthday is on Sunday. I was at work repairing a FCEU (Fire Controls Electronics unit). It’s basically a computer that is pretty beefed up and has lots of circuit cards with ballistic solutions and fire control data that allows the tank to fire its main gun and engage several targets while on the move. And as I was replacing the wiring harness and mother board I had a flash of when I was in kinder garden. And that made me feel even older, but then I thought about it and my beautiful wife is three years older than me but many people think I look older than her. So after making that statement I am screwed! I will always be the old Mexican dude that lives with the hot young blonde next door. I Love that woman, and even when she gives me the angry puppy look.

The Look

Mon, 29 Jan 2007 16:45:55 GMT

I was surfing the web and I ran into this photo that reminded me of the look my wife gives me when she gets really mad at me.

Weapons.

Sun, 28 Jan 2007 13:14:39 GMT

One of the units out here went out on a mission and raided a few homes and found some bad guys and several weapons that they were hiding in the area. Here are some pictures of some of the weapons they found after a night of operations. I could not believe the quality of some of these weapons!

My Walk.

Thu, 25 Jan 2007 16:16:40 GMT

I went for a walk this morning with my camera and took some snapshots of the area. The sun was coming up and I was able to capture this image of a guard tower in an undisclosed area of the base. I though it was a nice picture! This place feels like a prison sometimes and after a few months of being out here I am ready for a break. I am coming home in March after being out here for 6 months I will be taking a few weeks off and I will probably do nothing but sleep on my warm soft bed next to my warm soft wife for the whole entire time I’m at home. Sleeping out here can be a challenge and at times a little scary. Between the mortar attacks the artillery shell’s going out and the Apache Gunships and Blackhawks that are constantly flying over shaking up my room it makes it a little hard to fall into a soft slumber. It’s more like a "hard " I better get to bed before the sun comes up and I have to do this all over again. There has been a lot of action the last few days in Baghdad and the units out here have been plenty busy. After that Blackhawk went down the other day with the four Black water contractors that were executed the Army has really put the squeeze on the insurgents. When I visit the mess hall I see all these soldiers and at times I just feel like getting a uniform back on and head out with them. But I think at this point in my life I would be more of a hindrance to them than help because I’m old and slow. I’m just an ex-soldier turned civilian trying to make a difference out here for the troops.

Funny Stuff.

Wed, 24 Jan 2007 03:03:32 GMT

SIGNS YOU'VE BEEN IN IRAQ TOO LONG

# When mortars land near your compound and you roll over in bed and think "still way off, I got another 5 minutes"

# When you start humming with the Arabic song playing on the radio on the shuttle bus

# Every woman that reports to your unit starts looking attractive

# Every guy that reports to your unit starts looking attractive

# You walk an extra 6 blocks to eat at the KBR (contractor run) dining facility to have the exact same food they are serving in your dining facility because you think it tastes better

# You actually volunteer for convoy security duty because you still haven't seen the country yet

# The contractors have more fire power than the military combat units. (This is true)

# You've spent $200 dollars at Haji mart on DVDs buying Basic Instinct, 9 and ½ weeks, and Body of Evidence just for the sex scenes

# You drink the water from the tap because you want to drop 20 pounds in two weeks

# Driving around in SUVs with weapons pointed out the windows and forcing cars off the road seems very normal to you

# You can put your body armor and helmet on in the dark in under 5 seconds

# When the organization you work for has changed its name more than 3 times

# When you can actually talk to people in the United States on a cell phone, yet you can't get people on their cell phone a block away

# When you actually get excited to get a package that contains 3 pair of socks, 12 bars of soap and a Victoria Secret Catalog

# When you start to enjoy the rocking of the trailer every time the MEDEVAC choppers fly over

# You see celebratory fire going over the compound at night and think, "wow the colors are so pretty" and want to fire back

# Your idea of sex is 20 minutes of Instant Messaging with your wife on the computer, OK, 10 minutes, who are you kidding?

# You wake up and think Baghdad, I am still in friggin Baghdad

# You make the new guy show you his count down timer just to make you feel better about your time you have left in country

# You're in the Army and you start saying Ooorah

# You're in the Marines and you start saying Hooah

# You only notice the stench of Haji funk when its not there

# You forget there are other colors than brown that can be found in places other than power point slides

# The temp drops down to 102 degrees and you shiver while reaching for your Gortex jacket

# You have noticed a change of season, from long, hot and dry to short, cold and wet.

# When you call home and your kids ask "Who is this?"

# You call home and your wife says hello Bill (your name is Sam)

# When you go on R&R, you duct tape your child to the roof of your car, hand him a pellet rifle, and assign him a sector of fire for the ride to "The Olive Garden."

# When you can comfortably shave and brush your teeth using bottled water, but don't mind showering in the "non-potable" local water.

# When some of the contractors wear their DCUs (Desert pattern camouflage uniform) more properly than some of your soldiers.

# When 12 hours is a short work day

# When, During the BUA, "DIV asked MNSTC-I for the FRAGO that MNC-I was supposed to publish, but couldn't because MNF-I hadn't weighed in, since they were too inundated with MOD and MOI war-gaming the JCCs within the ISF to square us away!" is a valid comment and generates no questions.

# When you have your opinions printed in the STARS and STRIPES more than 3 times

# When you step into any office and there are 6 colonels, 12 lieutenant colonels, 15 majors, and 8 captains supervising the work of 1 sergeant

# When you end every phone conversation with "Out"

# When the weapon buyback program has become so successful that you have issued the same AK-47 to the Iraqi army 3 times

# When you can actually tell the difference between the sound of an exploding car and an exploding mortar

# When on R & R you tell your wife that your weapon status is Red and your looking for the clearing barrel

# You yell at the FNG for shouting incoming when the rounds don't impact close enough to hit your tent with dirt

# You know that you need to run inside immediately after any win of an Iraqi sports team to keep from being hit by celebratory fire

# You never worry about oversleeping because if the morning call to prayers doesn't wake you, the daily 0430 mortar attack will (most mornings)

# The highlight of your shopping experience at the PX is to see that they got in a new shipment of Gillette razor blades

# When you send out your laundry and your whites become grayer, your blacks become grayer and your DCU's become grayer - makes it easier to sort loads...

# You get offended by people wearing clean, pressed DCU's

# You decide that it is a better course of action to pull your blankets over your head than put on your body armor during a mortar attack - the woobee will save you and at least you are comfortable

# You make a contest out of seeing who can wear their uniform for more days before becoming entirely disgusted with themselves

# A rocket or a mortar really isn't a big deal until the crater it leaves is big enough to trip over in the dark on the way to the latrine

The War.

Tue, 09 Jan 2007 03:04:34 GMT

I have been working lots of hours and have not been able to update the site. So I am sorry for not being on the ball with the situation out here. For those of you that know that I am out here in the thick of things getting the job done and keeping my head down. The last few weeks have been quite a challenge for me. There has been a lot of activity outside the wire and lost of things have been going on that I can’t discuss over the internet. As all of you have heard they executed Sadam Hussein about a week ago and let me tell you all hell broke loose out here. There are people here that were glad that he was gone but some of his followers did not like the fact that he was punished for his crimes against humanity. So here we are, once again having to deal with radical Muslim’s that hate us for who and what we are. I watch the news and I see the media talk about this war and what should be done with this or that and how it was a mistake to get involved in the first place. But for what ever reason we are here weather it is for money or peace or just pure necessity to get a handle in the region we are here and soldiers are dying. I see the troops in the mess hall and I walk among them and work with them everyday and I see the dedication and their loyalty to each other. It’s hard to think about it like that when you are not involved in the situation and are being fed the Medias view or some politician trying to tell you what he or she thinks. The point is that there are young American soldiers out here doing a great job and making hard decisions that cost soldiers to get hurt or die. We as Americans need to realize that we need to stand behind our soldiers and generals and allow them to asses the situation and act accordingly. And another thing this whole Iraq assessment that is being done in some office in the capital is kind of odd. How can some politician at the capital know of anything that is going on over here. Things like this really chap my ass! Yesterday I heard a several Stryker vehicles honking their horns and moving pretty fast towards the medic station. I heard a large explosion about 15 minutes before they were ripping thru the base, so I was curious and I drove to the medic station that is located right across the street from our building. I parked right next to the five Stryker vehicles and asked a young soldier what happened? He said another vehicle hit an IED! He said I saw the whole thing! It was like the whole road just blew the hell up! It flipped the Stryker completely over and landed on its top. He said we got the trigger man but it was scary as hell when it went off. I looked around at all the guys and you can see that they were all ok just a little adrenaline pumping because all their eyes were bright and scanning around. One of the nurses came out and informed the guys that their buddies were going to be ok. Some bruised ribs broken bones but everyone was going to make it. You could see the weights being lifted off their shoulders and they all looked around and nodded to each other.

Missing My Wife.

Thu, 09 Nov 2006 18:38:00 GMT

I was at work today and a soldier wanted to have his picture taken on top of a tank so I took some pictures of him to send to his Grandpa. He wanted to thank me so he took some pictures of me in return he said "send these to your wife!" So here they are with a few captions. I Love you turd!