posted @ 10:05...

On certain holidays (Christmas, New Year's, and Easter so far) they open up the big MCI trailer to let us make free calls. And the sound quality is just like being next door. Of course, it's about a mile away and they have a 10-minute limit, but if there's no one waiting, you talk as long as you want.

Got my borscht from Alan the other day. Haven't tried to make it yet. I need a source of hot water. Maybe I'll commandeer the coffee maker sometime soon... He also sent jerky, which is what you send to a Soldier who loves jerky. Especially when you're sending borscht.

Happy Easter! I lucked out and got the day off, but here I am at the office, because: (A) Left my key in my room and am waiting for my roommate to show up to work so I can get in, and (B) it's been way too long since I posted in my blog.

I keep trying, believe me. I can live without a constant internet connection. I used to write posts on a Word doc and paste 'em into the blog when I got online. But now, since I'm sharing a computer with a coworker, I can't even do that. I hear that back in the "rear," they have at least 30 "JAG in a bag" kits, which are designed for deployed legal types. Each kit consists of a Panasonic Toughbook, a small printer, a scanner, etc. Of course, they're all sitting unused in a room somewhere on Fort _____. Meanwhile, it's taking my buddy and I twice as much time to get anything done. They're supposedly sending another computer, but if that takes anywhere near as long as the other stuff they've sent, we'll be home before then.

posted @ 11:12...

Apparently there's fund somewhere that has just too much money in it. Beside the brigade headquarters building, there will be an Olympic-size swimming pool built. Nobody asked for one. They've just decided to put one there. And we'll be long gone before the thing is finished.

I'm told this particular pile of money is to be used strictly for improvements to our installations, and those improvements must be made to things that will not be leaving the country when we do. Maybe next they'll put in a golf course, bowling alley, and a movie theater. Several of us thought it would be a great idea to take the money they'll use to build the pool, and disperse it among the Soldiers of the brigade. Even if my share only amounted to a few bucks, I can still get more use out of that than a swimming pool.

posted @ 05:50...

"Hurry, get this area cleaned up! General So & So is coming through!"

I understand why it's important to clean up when someone important is coming through. You don't want to give the VIP the idea that you're undisciplined and/or that you work in a pig sty. Although, he'll probably walk quickly through with various other high-ranking people, and barely notice the lower enlisted that are standing at attention for him. And me may not even show. The last two times they've given us the somebody-important-is-coming warning, the VIP in question didn't actually make it to our end of the building.

Cleaning up doesn't just mean dusting, sweeping, & mopping; it also means clearing your desk of everything but the computer... and maybe a coffee cup. After all, we don't want to give the General some crazy idea that we do actual work here.

In other news, Happy St. Patrick's Day! Darn desert tan uniforms. At least I've got my green socks on. Someone attempts a pinch and they'll get a fist in their jaw. (Normally, I wouldn't advocate fighting, but this day is rife with Irish stereotypes anyway...)

posted @ 13:02...

No news on the Muffin culprit. No big deal though. Can't let the curosity distract from the mission. We must stay focused. Forgot to mention, I did get in trouble for using plastic document protectors as evidence bags. There are some lawyers without a sense of humor.

Today is the 8th anniversary of the day I met my wife. Can't believe it's been that long. Time flies when you're having fun (and a baby). The great thing is, I only have a few months left till I get to see my wife & kiddo again. He's chugging around on all-fours and climbing on everything he can. Funny, I never thought I would daydream every single day about the same thing.

posted @ 13:48...

In Search of the Muffin Man

This morning when I arrived at the office before my guard shift, I noticed some crumbs on my desk and on my chair. I didn’t think much about it at the time. Someone must have been hungry and found my chair a convenient place to have a snack, I thought. Though they could have cleaned up after themselves.

Later this morning, my coworker – who had left approximately four Otis Spunkmeyer Banana Nut muffins on his desk over night – found that his muffins had been disturbed. Not only were they disturbed, but upon further investigation it was discovered that someone had removed each muffin from its package. The individual then took a big bite out of the top of each muffin, and then secured them (with tape and staples) into their respective packages.

Since crumbs were found on my desk, I am one of several suspects. However, I was raised better than to leave crumbs everywhere. Besides, it’s not in my character to leave behind uneaten portions of a delicious muffin.

So the investigation is ongoing. Hopefully, the culprit will be apprehended soon, before any more muffin-related incidents take place.

posted @ 15:10...

I found some interesting numbers the other day in a report published by the 1st Cavalry Division, which was the dominant division in the Baghdad from the beginning of 2004 to the beginning of this year. I’m only using their name because this is all past tense, and this information doesn’t risk personnel safety. Anyway, there were a lot of things that happened over here because of them:

• Conducted 800 civil projects totaling $104 million
• Purchased over $5 million of wheat and barley for farmers
• Ordered 2,000 metric tons of fertilizer
• Vaccinated 5,000 head of livestock
• Distributed 2,500 tons of seed
• Distributed over 3,600 sheep
• Rebuilt the College of Agriculture
• Rebuilt the College of Veterinary Medicine
• Contributed $10 million to irrigation projects
• Contributed $8.3 million in grants to Iraqi businesses
• Distributed over 1,000 cans of food
• Distributed 3,500 kerosene heaters
• Distributed over 29,500 frozen chickens
• Donated over 10,000 blankets
• Rebuilt 600 schools
• Built over 350 new schools
• Gave 125,000 backpacks for Baghdad school children
• Purchased food & supplies for a home & school for abandoned special needs students
• Improved 100 medical clinics, totaling $3.7 million.
• Sponsored 14 Iraqi Police Academies
• Conducted 10,000 joint patrols with Iraqi Police & Iraqi National Guard

…and the list goes on. Keep in mind, most of the above work was done while those doing it were in danger of IED attacks, rocket attacks and small arms fire.

And just think, these figures only reflect the Baghdad area, and only for a period of one year. There are all sorts of other things going on all over Iraq. I think it’s great & all that we, the Americans, are doing all this stuff for Iraq. But I wonder how these numbers compare with federal aid for similar needs in our own country. At first glance it looks like an awful lot of money has been dumped into Iraq. Of course, while these numbers seem huge, they could be droplets compared to the help that our own people get.

I don’t feel like I’m an isolationist (usually), but I wonder how much American small businesses, American farmers, American homeless, American disabled, and American poor would benefit from piles of cash like this?

posted @ 14:54...

Iraqis increasingly turn anger on insurgents

On the surface, this is a good sign. Maybe these folks starting to think about taking ownership of their country. Of course, upon reading the article, their anger comes from the fact that insurgents are killing Iraqis, not that they're killing Americans.

“The real resistance should only target the occupiers, and no normal person should consider dozens of dead people to be some kind of collateral damage while you are trying to kill somebody else,” cleric Ahmed Abdul-Ghafur told worshippers Friday. “Everybody should speak out against such inhumane acts.”

So, in other words, "Go ahead and kill Americans. Just don't kill Iraqis; that would be inhumane."

posted @ 07:58...

An Italian journalist/hostage, who was recently freed by the insurgents, was riding in a car on her way to the Baghdad Airport. Her driver failed to stop at a Coalition traffic control point (TCP), and she was shot. Another person in the vehicle was killed. There are big signs at TCP's, saying "All vehicles must stop." There are red flashing lights, glow sticks, and Soldiers with white flashlights. There are concrete barriers and razor wire. The American and Coalition Soldiers who man TCPs are trained to use graduated levels of force to stop those who try to run TCP's. This is to guard against people with cars full of explosives, who drive right up to sensitive areas and detonate their cargo. Some drivers, even without explosives, will simply ram their cars into our guys. How were they to know who was in this car? All they knew is that there was a car speeding toward them, and it wasn't responding to the various warnings that were in place.

I don't know the Soldiers who did the shooting. But I have seen a few of their sworn statements. And while I can't comment specifically on the investigation, my impression is that there is nothing abnormal in the way these Soldiers did their jobs. Why the driver didn't stop -- or even slow down -- at the TCP is beyond me.

On a lighter note, I sometimes forget how technologically illiterate some people are, especially in the Army. As I was scanning in each page from the above-mentioned investigation, a certain Command Sergeant Major walked up and said, "What's that?" I started to explain that this was an important investigation about the previous evening's unfortunate incident... but he cut me off. "No, what's that thing you're using?"

"You mean the scanner, Sergeant Major?"

"The what?" he asked.

So I explained to him what a scanner was, how it worked, and how it's convenient for scanning documents to create PDF copies of them so they can be stored on a computer somewhere, or emailed to various people. Granted, this is a guy who's been in the Army longer than I've been alive. But I thought by now more people would know about this stuff.