Tour of the Area

I got to be part of the 9th Division Commander's personal security team as a couple of his advisers went out with him on an inspection of a few of the division's checkpoints. I was the gunner in one of the two Hummers that had Americans, but I was able to snap a few pictures along the way. It was a long trip, so long that the other gunner thought that we had passed the border into Syria! But it was a good break from the monotony of FOB life, so we were happy for it. We didn't get to do much talking with anybody, for a while I was sure that the only people awake in my vehicle were me and the driver, (I only knew the driver was awake because we didn't crash). Any way here are some pictures:

These are driving along the Tigris river, maybe someday I'll buy a house here!

This is one of the Iraqi Hummers, notice two weapons where there is normally only one.

41

41 days to go! We turned in the first of our equipment today, it actually went a lot easier than I thought it would. We've been busy planning, preparing, and conducting training for our counterparts, in addition to getting ready for redeployment. It's been fun training our guys but I have to wonder how much they are going to retain and use to train new soldiers that come in. To illustrate my point, we had training on the A/C system on the Hummer. The guy that did the training for us was pretty nice, we talked during the ride to the Iraqi side, and he was telling me that he was here about a year ago with a different unit and he provided training to some Iraqi's then as well. When we got to the unit to do the training, he looks at me and says, "this is the same spot I did training in a year ago!!" Imagine that...

It's good to be on the list. A few weeks ago our female Captains were both on leave, and I was tasked with picking up on their mission when they left. I encountered a problem when I tried to get into one of the Iraqi facilities to speak to some people there - I wasn't on the list. I couldn't access the building because I wasn't on the access roster. So I asked who controls the list, naturally the person that controls the list happens to be in the building I am trying to get into. This person happens to be an American, and the guards, God bless them, are Iraqis just trying to do their job. So through the use of my interpreter, I ask them how is it possible for me to get on the list if I cannot go see the man that puts people on the list? They still wouldn't budge, so I told them that the American was expecting me and that even though I was not on the list I had an appointment to see him. They let me in after that, but it turns out the guy wasn't even there, and I'm pretty sure that the guards wouldn't believe me if I kept showing up with "appointments" so I waited a couple of days to try again. This time the guy wasn't there again, but one of the other people in the building, the one who is responsible for typing the list assured me that she would add my name to the list so that I wouldn't have to be harassed by the guards any more. So my name gets added to the list, just in time for our Captains to come back from leave, and just as the guy that signs the list gets fired and moved to a new spot, rendering said list obselete...

Anyway, just over a month to go, we still have some training to do, this week we are training the mechanics on vehicle inspections, and how to use the 5 ton wrecker to recover vehicles. It should be fun!

90 Days To Go

Well, we are starting to wind down now, in days, not work. We have a new Team Chief, she's pretty cool, but Powerpoint intensive. And she likes meetings. We have two a day and we are now having to update slides daily to be briefed to our Battalion commander, who by the way refuses to accept the answers that we give him, there's got to be something better in his mind. I have been working hard to gather information on the Iraqi maintenance and supply system for him. We are working with the 9th division, but the information that he wants is much higher than that. I am working to find specific problems, kinks, if you will, starting from the Division and working all the way up to the Ministry of Defense. I really don't know what the Battalion commander expects to change, the MOD has Generals advising them and these people have been working with them for years. We have less than 90 days do somehow overhaul the system. At least the days will go quickly!

Frustrated...

We have about four months left of the deployment, yet I can't see the light at the end of the tunnel. Our team leader went home this week for "medical" reasons, so he won't be coming back. Now our team has some extra stress, but we'll work through it. We found out that we will not be replaced by anyone when we leave, so I informed the Iraqi guys I'm working with about what will happen. I want to give them some training that will enable them to be a better unit, but still it seems that all they want is whatever free parts and equipment they can get. I try to tell them that when we leave that's it - they may never work with Americans again. There is one person, Lieutenant Ali, that has his head on right. He wants his Soldiers to learn how to fix the air conditioning on their Hummers because summer is coming. Something simple like this will leave a lasting impression and better his maintenance facility. He didn't ask for tools, parts, or anything else. All he wants for his unit is knowledge - I love it! Everyone else though, seems like all they can say is gimme gimme. I can't blame them though. Their supply system is full of corrupt leaders that demand payment before they release any parts or supplies that they have on hand. Maybe some day they will figure it out.

I'm also fed up with being away from my family. I miss them so much! I miss being home, I miss life itself. I had a dream last night where I was in my Hummer with LT Ali and I took a wrong turn on my way to his shop. We were driving down a dirt road surrounded by green fields (should have known it was a dream at this point) dotted with sunflowers and other patches of flowers that were red and purple and white. We turned a corner and came down a hill and saw a lake that was the deepest blue I'd ever seen, there were trees all around it that were had a light coating of frost like it had already been spring but there was a last effort of winter to leave its mark, and I said to myself I'll have to go back to my room and get my camera because it was the most beautiful scene ever. I can't put into words how pure this place seemed. Then a knock on my door brought me back to reality and I realized that I was still in Iraq. I'm still disappointed. Maybe I'll get back there tonight...

Back To The Suck

Iraq had a nice welcome back for me, this being my first week back since R&R (which was awesome!). We had to move buildings to make room for another team that was going to live where we were previously living. It was kind of a good thing though, because it allowed me to get rid of a lot of clutter. Anyway, while we were moving to our new building we found out that there was a car bomb somewhere on the Iraqi side of the camp! There was also a bomb found on a car belonging to one of the Iraqi officers. Luckily it was found by the guards at the gate before it could be detonated. Everyone ended up being safe, so it wasn't a big deal, it just was a quick reminder that I am back.

I went to visit some of the guys that I had been working with, we talked for a while, they told me that I must stay for dinner, so while we waited we went and played some ping pong. I haven't played since I was young, so I was a little rusty. I needed to shake it off quick because these guys were pretty serious about the game! It was fun though, and it helped to work up our appetite.

This week we'll be getting busy trying to make their automated parts requests work and I'll be putting a transmission class together, plus unpacking the rest of my stuff in the new room.

Go Vikes!

So I got to watch the game last night while I was waiting for my flight to Baghdad so I can get to Kuwait and start leave. It was nice to see the Vikings win, especially over the Cowboys, although I would like to have seen them beat the Packers a third time this year...oh well.

Earlier this week I had the opportunity to give a class to about 20 Iraqi mechanics on the Hummer's electrical system. I took two hours on two consecutive days, the first being class room and the second a hands on portion of the troubleshooting steps we covered the first day. I think I made some bonus points because I was able to acquire the technical manuals they need in Arabic, although it looked like about half of them couldn't read once we opened the books up. The class was specifically on the alternator and charging system on the Hummer with some basic battery maintenance thrown in there. We didn't have electricity for the first part of the class so I couldn't show them the illustrations that I wanted. It finally came on about half an hour after I started so I quickly reviewed with pictures this time and it seemed to help them understand what I was talking about (actually what the interpreter was talking about on my behalf). The second day, only about a third of the people from the first day showed up, but they all seemed very interested in learning so I didn't mind. All in all it was a good experience, I learned a few things that I'll do differently in the next class (more pictures!) and hopefully they learned a couple of things that can help them. The next class that the Iraqis requested was on the Hummer transmission. I'm already excited about it, although I'll have to wait a few weeks while I'm on leave. Hopefully I see most of you soon!

Update! Here are a couple of pictures from the range where I got to shoot an AK-47

For The New Year

Happy New Year everyone! This one has gone by surprisingly (and thankfully) fast. To celebrate the event we had a bonfire, which was constructed of pallets stacked to make a 15' tower. We also threw some smoke grenades and grilled steaks and burgers. Not bad for the middle of nowhere in Iraq. Earlier that day I was a bit disappointed. I had invited some of the Iraqi guys over for pizza because they had never had it before. I went and picked up 5 pizzas from Pizza Hut (yes there is one here) and brought them back anticipating a great lunch and hoping to build a stronger relationship with the Iraqi guys. Sadly though, something must have been lost in translation because nobody showed up and I was stuck with a ton of pizza by myself. The Iraqis are busy prepping a bunch of their vehicle for a parade in Baghdad later this week. The only bad part is that the tanks they are driving are from the 1970s and there aren't many parts to repair them. Hopefully they at least make it the length of the parade route without breaking down!

I will be coming home later this month, so I am very excited for that. I can't wait to see Melissa and Isaac and Luke! I'll even get to see Lola so that's cool too. One thing I want to do while I'm home (besides not freezing to death) is go ice fishing. I haven't done that in such a long time, and I think the boys would enjoy it, so if anyone knows a good spot to go please let me know!