Almost ready for R&R

Well, it's been a while since I blogged.  I'm getting ready to go on R&R so I'm trying to get all my projects in order before I go.  So what's happened since the last time I was on here:

 

WAR EAGLE!!!  Yep, I got up in the middle of the night to watch the Auburn Tigers put a whoopin' on the Gamecocks.  Of course everyone was tired of me talking about it so they had to haul a fellow Auburn Man in from Qalaal House to talk football with me just to get it out of my system. 

 

 

 

Had another round of outside the wire site visits.  I met with my LNQA, KTR and District Minister of Education at one of my project sites.  The District Minister of Education was a little upset that we didn't let him know we were coming.  I guess the part about not giving people the advance notice to round up the local taliban never crossed his mind.  Of course, a few days later the LNQA failed his CI Interview and had to be escorted off the base.  He's no longer allowed on the FOB.  I don't know if the interviewer was being over cautious or right on the money, still working that issue.

 

 

 

 

 

 

COL Magness came down for a visit.  Project reviews and tours.  All went well, nothing to exciting to say.

 

 

 

Dinner tonight was provided by an Afghan guy that we know who owns the bakery.  They made rice, bread, vegetables and goat.  It was excellent!!  I'm not sure how the goat was made, but it was probably simmered somehow all day because it was really tender.  So far my stomach has handled everything Afghanistan has thrown my way, hoping tomorrow won't be any different :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

HOME FRONT NEWS:

 

For those of you who have kids, you probably know what the "Elf on the Shelf" is.  If you don't know what it is, it's basically an elf that sits on a shelf.  Every night he returns to Santa to let him know if you have been good or bad and returns to a different shelf the nexdt day. 

 

The elf that visits our house is named Fisbee.  My son has seen Fisbee as a direct challenge to his free-wheelin' good spirit.  The first night he was a little weary of Fisbee, but willing to accept that Santa's good will lay through this elf.  The next night, he started yelling at the elf to go to sleep and quit watching everything he did.  The third night, he had it all figured out.  He told Katy, "You know what I think?!?!?!?!  I think that is not even a real elf, it's just decoration!!" 

Thanksgiving Weekend

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving.  I worked for about 8 hours, ate the traditional Thanksgiving meal for lunch at the DFAC and grilled steaks, chicken, burgers and hot dogs for the office in the evening.  Overall it was a pretty good day.  I also got a hum-vee so I had to take it out for the initial spin.

Friday was back to business as usual, even the local insurgents obliged by lobbing in a round or two to wish us a Happy Thanksgiving Weekend. 

Thanksgiving was great and all, but the highlight of the weekend was Auburn taking down Alabama in the Iron Bowl!!!!!!  I even convinced LTC Staggs to let me fly my Auburn flag on the compound flagpole to celebrate.  No, the area office engineer didn’t appreciate (Bama Fan), I don’t really understand why though.  When the wind came up and had those beautiful Tiger Eyes flapping in the breeze, not even the local Auburn fans couldn’t help themselves.  They had to come by and look for the person who was flying the Auburn flag.  It was definitely a treat talking some Auburn football with other Auburn fans.  Of course, I had to explain to the office the origin of “War Eagle” and other Auburn traditions.  Alas, I could go on forever about my love of Auburn, but I’m sure none of you will want to hear it.  Especially the Gamecock fans that have the unfortunate privilege of facing the Tigers next weekend.  WAR EAGLE!!

Site Visits

We toured sites on Sunday.  We landed at a small COP to check on an ANP project that I have.  It was our first time landing there and we weren't quite sure we were actually at an American base.  After coming out of the landing area the only people we saw were Afghan National Army and their camp.  Had the base been taken over and we didn't know?  The next wave of people we hit were Jordanians.  At least now we were feeling a little more confident that we might possible see some US Forces at some point.  A couple of guys and I went to check on the site which is outside the COP but in an adjoining compound while the others went to make contact with the Mayor Cell to find out who we need to let know that we will be landing at their site in the future.  All went well and we survived :)

Next we flew over a road project trying to locate the equipment that had moved to site.  Supposedly the KTR had mobilized, had their camp fired on by Taliban, put under seige by ISAF, had their survey crew kidnapped and their second survey crew denied access to the area by the local COP.  I didn't see any sign of their equipment on the road and I still don't know if the KTR is telling me the truth or not.  According to the local COP they have not had contact with them.  And the saga continues...

See below for required attire when you roll with the Corps.

We finished off the trip with a landing at a nearby FOB then back home.  Another harmless day of travel.

Not much else going on other than work.  Got a package of ACUs and coffee from my FJFD friends and Pat.  Thanks to Bill for sending it out.  It really made my day.  We've had a peppering of incoming rounds over the last few days.  I also got a package from Christian's pre-school class.  They sent me their hand turkeys with a sign that said "We Put Our Hands Together To Thank You For Serving Our Country".

  

HOME FRONT NEWS:

Katy had to take the babies to get their hair cuts.  They did good of course.  However, they discovered a new game.  Christian was the sylist and Lily was the customer.  After seeing how Lily ended up, I hope she didn't leave him a tip.  Needless to say their momma wasn't too happy.

HOPE EVERYONE HAS A GREAT THANKSGIVING!!!

Cooking out and Controlled Detination

I forgot to mention that I got a package from Katy yesterday.  Besides a few toiletry items it was filled with candy and my favorite, cans of frosting!!  Not that I need the frosting, but It's soooo good when it hits your lips!!

 

Finally cooked the steaks that we traded for a couple of weeks ago.  We got the fire going with some scrap wood and charcoal.  Then I cracked my Becks near bear, lit my cigar, threw the steaks on and it was just like cooking in the backyard..........Except it wasn't....it was in Afghanistan :)

 

 

 

Above are a couple of pictures from the controlled detonation that they had today.  They blew up a ton of explosives today.  I was out on a site right after lunch when these pictures were taken.  I don't know how far away I was, but the percussion was pretty substantial.  A few hours later they had some more detonations but I missed the announcement.  So they went off, shook the building, and I headed to the bunker.  One of the Force Pro guys asked where I was heading...to the bunker of course.  He clued me in so that was my "DOH" moment of the day.  Just part of doing business over here.

 

 

 

 

 

I've attached some pictures of my room and office.  It's pretty good.  I'm definately not complaining.  If you're thinking about coming over, don't think that all rooms are single rooms.  I don't know if all the FOBs have single rooms but this one does and so does Ghazni.  Though Ghazni's accomodations aren't near as nice.  Below is a picture we took when we landed at Ghazni.  Dennis, I've got the bear safely to Shank!!

 

 

 

If these pictures appear distorted, just check them out in the photo gallery. I'm not all that great at resizing them. 

 

In case you're curious on how we stare down contractors to let them know we're not happy with their performance see below.  I'm the bearded one of course!

 

 

 

Eid is over

Yesterday we had a cook-out at the contractor who sacrificed the sheep.  And of course it was really good!!  We had nan, a flat pretzel bread, sheep and chicken kabobs, eggplant spread, a spicy tomato spread, onions, and their excellent sausage patties.  To finish it off, Turkish coffee. 

 

After asking about how they made their bread we got a tour of their kitchen, dining room (tea was dispersed), one of the TV rooms, a guest room, the open office and then back to the project manager's office where we got more coffee.  I was bouncing off the walls by the time we were through.

 

I got a picture of their oven the use for making bread.  It's a brick oven in a connex.  So, when they get ready for the next job they just pick it up and move on.

 

We also watched the Afghans learn to fly helicopters.  Some didn't seem to get to far off the ground and others have been hitting the landing area and tearing up the concrete.  Since rotary wing project is ongoing, the contractor isn't too happy about his concrete getting messed up.

 

I guess Eid is officially over.  The Taliban celebrated the end of Eid by launching a couple of explosives into the FOB.  It was one of good ones, it shook the building and was probably 200 - 300 meters away.  I guess they're back in business before winter hits.

 

If you're getting tired of my babble shoot some topics my why and I'll check them out and let you know what's going on. 

 

HOME FRONT NEWS:  Lily has finally reached the booger eating stage.  Katy caught saw her in the back seat sneaking a quick snack and told her, "Lily!! Don't eat that, they're nasty!!''  Of course Lily replied with a, "No momma, they're yummy to my tummy!!"

 

Christian may have had the comment of the year the other day.  He told Katy that he was "brave and not afraid of anything.......not evan a SHARK or an EVIL WOMAN!".

 

I hope he wasn't talking about his momma.

EID Sacrifice

 

Today we attended the EID Sacrifice at the compound of one of our Turkish contractors.  When we got there they gave us candy to sweeten our breath and gave us an oil cologne to fragrance our body.  In the above picture was the handlers bringing the sheep over to the sacrifice area.  They decorated them with ribbons.  They took the sheep to a corner and put the ram on the ground near a shallow pit.

 

 

 

 

They chanted over the Ram and then the Iman (?) sacrificed the ram.  Once it bled out they moved the sheep in behind it and sacrificed it as well.  After that it was Happy EID to everyone. 

 

Tomorrow we are invited to the cook-out where we will eat the sheep.  Not to bad of a deal if you ask me.

Rollin' with the Czechs

It's been a busy last couple of days; getting people in the gate, running out of water, getting water, server down, generator down, server up, server down; no worries.

 

I've been getting to know one of my Afghan contractors.  They are celebrating EID this week, which is kind of like their Christmas celebration.  He lived in this province and his family moved to Pakistan when the Russians invaded this area.  He attended university in Pakistan as well and is a civil engineer.  His family eventually moved back to this area.  The taliban took over and at some point burned the girls school where they lived.  They then moved to Kabul so his sisters could go to school and it's safer.  He said that's why Kabul is so crowded; everybody is moving there because it is safer and there are opportunities to go to school.  Most people definately have different life experiences than what we are used to.

 

We met with the Czech contingent that stays on the FOB.  We try to coordinate our visits to our sites with them when they are in the area of our projects.  They have their own missions they support and typically run 14 - 18 missions to the area during the week.  They check on schools and humanitarian efforts they are supporting and work with the ADT that operates out of Shank.  Fortunately they will let us convoy with them.  The bad part is that at times, depending on the area they are visiting, they will not let us go because Americans aren't readily welcomed.  The Czechs have their own problems as well, when visiting schools and town centers children will occasionaly throw rocks at them.  We were told that if the ANP is with them they will throw rocks at kids and chase them away.  Probably need to get those kids in school!!

 

Meeting with the Czechs reminded me of a story of my Great Great Great Grandfather, John Brchan, who immigrated from what is now the Czech Republic.  When he was old enough to serve in the army he was taken from a dance floor at a local gathering (the czech we met with said that they were either ending conscription service or changing how it works and the rank structure).  He served 10 years in the army as a mule overseer and had charge of the pack animals and about 20 men.  During his time of service he fought against the Italian Geribaldi.  His mess kit consisted of a spoon in which he used to eat out of a common pot.  His family paid for his rations, so if they didn't send the money, he didn't eat.  Things have definately changed.  I hope Katy would choose to feed me over buying a new pair of shoes or an outfit!!

 

HOME FRONT NEWS:  Lily spilled some milk and Christian decided to help Katy clean it up.  When they were on the floor he looked at her and said, "Let's say dammit....dammit!".  Yep, he learned that from me.

Escort Business

I've spent the last couple of days playing escort to some contractors.  I think I've got this business of heading out to the gate figured out.  Tomorrow I've got to figure out if we have enough room to easily manuever the M-ATV through the barries, then we'll be riding in style.  The pick up yard is basicall part parking lot, shanty town and zoo, depending on the time of day. 

 

 

 

Finally got a haircut yesterday.  Since my beard was looking like I could hide some trolls in it I decided to let the man trim it.  Haircut and beard trim all for the low price of $8.  Sure beats Sports Clips, you only have to find your way to FOB Shank, Afghanistan.

 

Had some Nan and Chi after that and listened to the Afghan interpreters talk about politics.  They were Afghans that left at some point and have come back to work here as interpreters.  They laid out how the positions were bought and how the tribe system kind of works.  They feel like most people here don't feel like getting an education and would rather play with AKs.  Hopefully that's not the case, but it'd take a lot to convince them otherwise.  However, until the taliban situation is under control all our Afghan contracts leave around 1600 to make sure they can get back home before dark falls because it is too dangerous to be out after dark.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I took a picture of a C-17 flying in over the base.  They normally land and take off away from the base, so this vantage point was pretty cool.

 

We celebrated Veteran's Day by flying some Corps flags over the compound for us to take home.  Oher than that it's business as usual over here.

Kabob Cook Out

Well today has definately not been a quiet day.  It started off around 0630 with the announcement over the giant voice system that the heavy weapons range was going hot.  Now, that's not unusual.  What is unusual is that the person making the announcement sounded like he was from West Alabama.  How do I know this??  Experience.  When my wife and I first started dating it took a couple of months for us to communicate effectively.  We've always had the language of love going on, but with my midwestern accent and her Alabama accent; it created some challenges.  My mother-in-law.......I'm not even sure she understands half of what I say now.  On occasions she still reminds me to talk slower.  My point is, I know it when I hear it.

 

This was followed by a couple of incoming rounds hitting pretty close to us a couple of hours later.  I guess we can't peacefully slide into EID next week.  I'm not exactly sure what EID is other than it is a holiday.  We have been invited to watch a sacrifice one day and eat it the next.  If that's not a plan for a party, I don't know what is!!

 

The LT and I went outside the base today to get some contractors on.  That was interesting considering neither of us were exactly sure what we were doing.  I guess no matter what you do, there is always a first time to do it.  We managed our way through without any major incidents.  That's a Good Job in my book.

 

The Czechs have taken to driving tanks around the perimeter.  They definately don't have the same mentality as the Jordanians.  The Jordanians will mosey around the perimeter at about 10 mph.  The Czechs, get the hell out of their way.  They've got those things flyin'.  I think they send an armored truck one way and the tank the other to see who can make the lap around the perimeter the fastest.

 

 

 

Yesterday at the refueling job site the KTR had a couple of sheep staked out on the site.  Today, well, see above.  It was sheep kabobs for all!!  They had a milestone celebration and invited us out to partake in kabobs and nan.  It was really good.  I added a picture of them preparing the meal.  If you are concerned about the cleanliness of the facility where your food is prepared, you might not want to look.  It's a little dark because I didn't use the flash.  Unfortunately if you take a picture at night with the flash on all the dust particles make the picture look like it's snowing.

 

Well, that's pretty much it for my thoughts on the day.

Quiet Couple of Days

Other than being busy with work it's been a quiet couple of days.  No incoming, no outgoing and no one dying.  However, there was a memorial service at the compound across the street for one of their soldiers.

The biggest issue over the last couple of days is getting people on the FOB for the new projects we are starting.  To be escorts or unescorted the local nationals need to go through background checks and interviews, plus whatever classes they might need for escorting.  It can be a lengthy process so it makes it hard to get jobs started.  For now we have to go to the gate, search their vehicles and escort them while on the base.  We are running out of manpower so we all have to start helping with the entry process.  Lucky us.  I guess I'll just stay close to the guys with the guns.

I wish I had more to report, but just another day at work.  I have some guys taking geotechnical samples by some primitive methods, I'll try and get pictures before they finish up tomorrow.

HOME FRONT NEWS:  Christian may have finally believed that the ship has sailed on him getting a brother.  He told Katy that the cherub sitting on a gazing ball (The Crapping Cherub) in the front yard is now his brother.  .......  That or he is trying to make us feel sorry for him that he has to have a statue for a brother.  Either way, there's no more children in my future!

Site Visits

 

 

It's been a pretty busy weekend.  Went to the PX on Saturday for the first time.  They only allow 4 people in at a time and only had basic items:  soap, toothpaste, chips, socks, shaving cream, smokes and chew, and some aspirin.  Not to much to choose from.  We stopped at the Afghan bakery and had some Nan and Chi.  Besides Corps projects there are a lot of other projects where we are paying Afghans to build things like water towers, wells, green houses, etc.  One of the local Afghans that visits us was at the bakery telling us about how the Taliban tried to blow up some of the green houses he was building.  They damaged 4 of the 6, but not to the point that they can't be repaired.

About 1740 another explosive got lobbed onto the FOB.  It was pretty loud so it must have been nearby.  The warning crew did a much better job today, they sounded the alarm within a minute!!  I spent the rest of the evening messing with the GPS I got from our supply and getting ready for our site visits.
This morning we loaded on to a MI-8, an old Russian Helicopter, and did some site visits.  I added a bunch of photos in the photo section.  I tried to get them into a folder but I apparently hit the wrong button so they are lumped in with the rest.  Our day consisted of flying to a FOB and dropping off a couple of people, fly to a site and circle while we took pictures, fly to another FOB and got out to inspect a site, fly to another FOB and meet with the Corps office and look at projects, fly to a road project and circle and take pictues and come on back home.  It was pretty fun hanging out the door and takin pictures.  Well, it was more like holding onto the door handle, sticking my arm and head out and praying I didn't fall :)  But, the pilot held a nice steady path so all was well.  I added some photos of random houses and things I saw along the way.  Hopefully on the next trip I will have the camera setting fixed so I can get some better pictures.  Oh, I also marked the FOBs with the GPS in case I ever get lost I can find some friendly people....that's the plan anyway.

We got back in the afternoon, caught up on some work and relaxed.  The day kind of wore everybody out.  AND, to welcome us back the artillery decided to give us a flare show and send fired off some rounds.  It's always better outgoing than incoming.

HOME FRONT NEWS:  Katy caught Christian dragging blankets and pillows into the living room.  When she went to investigate she discovered the couch piled high with blankets and pillows.  Perched on top was the small child rocking chair we keep in the kitchen for Lily.  When Katy asked what he was doing he replied that he was making Santa a bed, hoping that when he came he would spend the night.  To top it off, he was on his way to get some milk to put up by the rocking chair.  Lucky she caught him when she did!!

How do we spend our downtime?

Well, today's Friday!!!  Which means we work a half day and it's the weekend!!!!  Just kidding.  It means we work about 8 hours and we still have to work the weekend.  But, it's not that bad. 

 

The Taliban or insurgents or whatever you want to call them decided they had left us alone long enough and sent another explosive into the base this morning.  It must have been on the other side of the base because we could barely feel it.  So off to the bunkers.  They must have some new guys manning the "Incoming Incoming Incoming" horn because there was a 5 minute lapse between the boom and siren.  I'm sure they'll get the hang of it soon.

 

So, how does someone on a FOB spend their afternoon off you might ask?  Well, we take a list of what we think we need.  Today's list is:  Laundry pick up, Coffee maker is broken so we could use a new one, it'd be nice to have AFN so let's look for a satellite, we need a new series to watch and maybe a trip to the PX.

 

Laundry pick up was not a problem.  Swung by the PX but there was a line and nobody needed anything bad enough to wait.  Since we were over there it was a trip to the coffee shop for smoothies.  Our RE, Maung, knows some people at the Mission Essential Personal building so he thought we might get a coffe maker there; even though he still owed them a favor.  After about 8 minutes he came out with 3 bags of steaks.  What an unexpected surprise!!!! The only thing they wanted in return was a freezer.  A promise was made, now we have to figure out how to find one.  Oh, unfortunately they just gave away a coffe maker.  Not good there. 

 

Next stop was the dvd stores.  Yep, it's Friday so most of them are closed.  Couldn't find anything we liked so we'll have to make a trip back tomorrow.

 

Maung also thought he had a lead on an unused AFN satellite.  We stopped and climbed around it.  What do you know?!  The cable wasn't hooked up.  After tracking down the person it belonged too he decided to give the satellite and descrambler to us.  I think he did it because he was sick and just wanted us to leave.

 

So, to get the satellite we had to borrow a gator and get it down from the bunker.  All went smoothly.  Got the thing set up and now we're just waiting for the activation to kick in within 24 hours.  If all goes well we might get to watch some football this weekend.

 

The final official act of the evening was attending escort training.  I can now "officially" escort local nationals around the base. 

 

HOME FRONT UPDATE:  Christian walked back home from playing at his friends house across the street. 

 

He walked in the house looking sad and said "I messed up my new outfit!!!!" 

 

Katy:  "How'd you do that?"

 

Christian:  "Pee!!..... I was pee walking."

 

I can only imagine what the neighbor's saw!!

A Turkish Dinner

The highlight of the day was definately eating dinner with one of our Turkish contractors.  Honestly, I'm surprised I can even get close enough to the desk to type.  We took some pictures but I'll have to add them tomorrow.

 

We ate at their compound.  They have over 400 people working for them.  The compound is self-sufficient; it's own DFAC, laundry, housing, security, etc.. 

 

We were served chicken and beef kabobs, sausage patties, Turkish pizza, a tomato salsa, an eggplant dip/salsa, pita bread, sesame bread and another type of bread.  All made by their chef at the DFAC.  The DFAC manager made sure that as soon as something came off the grill our plates were full again; when you thought you had enough more just magically appeared on your plate.  We were finished off with some coffee and baclava from a Turkish bakery in Kabul. 

 

The rest of the day paled in comparison.

 

HOME FRONT NEWS:  The following is a conversation Katy, Sera and L'man had at the house last night.

 

Christian:  Mama, how many childs do you have?

 

Katy:  (jokingly) 12

 

Sera:  No mama, you only have 4.

 

Katy:  I only have 3!!

 

Sera:  What about Daddy!?!

 

Katy:  He's not a child, he's older than me.

 

Sera:  Well....you treat him like child....you fix his food and do his laundry and stuff...

 

I don't even know how to respond to htat.  Disagreeing won't do any good, besides, I'm not even there to defend myself!

Need a beer

I added a couple pictures of a C-17 taking off a few days ago.  It's pretty cool how fast they can climb and bank for such a big plane.  I know it's not big compared to something like a C-5, but it's almost the biggest plane that lands here.

 

Today was one of those days where every time I turned around my problem child was needing something.  I need to get more people on base, can you sign these?  My CAC has expired, can you write an LOA and tell me where to go?  I don't have any signed submittals (4025R), can I get a copy of all the transmittals; better yet a scanned copy?  (Me:  "What happened to them?"  KTR  "UMMM, I don't know??"  Me:  "You lost all of them, even the ones I just gave you?"  KTR:  "Umm....Maybe....no....I don't know.")  I'm sorry we have boulders in our backfill, we didn't know you'd notice.  I'm sorry I don't have a hard hat on, I'm not really in the job site, just on the job site.

 

I think they were trying to keep me occupied because I was trying to write a couple of serial letters on poor safety and job performance.  They're not done but I haven't given up yet!!  It's only 2100 so I have a couple more hours to get them done.  OH NO, they just sent me another email asking for something else!!

 

OK, thanks for listening (reading) to my venting.  To those of you that know me; it's been a month without my kegerator and today's the first day that I have really missed it.  Whoever picked 03 NOV on the board wins the cash.  Though I doubt any of you would have thought I would have lasted this long.

 

On a more serious note.  We have a local that works for us as an interpreter and escort, as do other units throughout the FOB and Afghanistan.  Most on the FOB sleep in one of the tents on base.  However, our's sleeps on our compound and uses are facilities, which are probably the best on base.  He was asked to help out by going outside the wire on our projects in the area and interpret when we inspect.  He politely declined because he is from this area and doesn't want to be seen helping us because of the insurgents/Taliban in the area.  Unfortunately most Afghans that work with us are in the same situation.  Most seem to enjoy working with us and enjoy the job.  Maybe it's the money and having a job, maybe it's a chance to build back their country, or maybe the chance to earn a visa to the US.  Whatever the case, it has to be a difficult decision to work for us.

 

It looks like I've been slacking on pictures so I'll try to get some more posted soon.

A day of surveying

Well, not a whole day but it took part of the morning.  Part of working with Local Nationals is that they usually aren't allowed to bring electroncis on base.  So, a GPS is out of the question.  In order to get the rest of our compound laid out I had to track down the Air Force team in charge of the Master Plan and convince them to come out and survey before their flight left. 

 

The hard part about coordinating activities here is that there is a turnover and travel plans and priorities aren't always known.  Also a lot of people don't have email or phone so the best thing to do is track them down and barter for services.  My best bartering tool is probably the fact that I have a truck.  I can give people a ride if need be. 

 

Other than that, nothing too exciting today (which isn't a bad thing considering the alternative).  I learned that it takes 2 people about 30 minutes to mount a 50 cal. on the M-ATV, learned a little more about surveying, that VA politicians will leave messages on my phone in the middle of the night and the Turks consider Dates candy.  I would have preferred some chocolate!!

 

HOME FRONT NEWS:  Katy took the kids to Wal-mart.  She got everyone inside (which can be pretty hectic) and asked Christian "Where are your shoes??".  He said, "Well..... I must confess..... I left them in the car".  At least he was honest about it.

Afghan Hands Program

Today our OIC, Navy LCDR Grant, left to work on his original mission, the Afghan Hands Program.  LCDR Grant is a Charleston native and USC alumnus; it was nice to have someone around to talk about home with.  Plus, he is a really good person and mentor to the military members of our office.

 

His role in the Afghan Hands Program, village stability coordination cell, is to work on quick impact projects in remote areas.  He learned Dari and studied Afghan culture to prepare for his mission.

 

Here is a part of his outgoing message to the office reiterating the importance or our role in Afghanistan: 

 

"What I want all of you to know is that I value the USACE mission here in Afghanistan.  It is extremely important that the Corps of Engineers succeeds, because it occupies a very important role in the counterinsurgency strategy.  COL Magness understands that role and what you’re doing is more than just projects, it is about winning hearts and minds through words, deeds, and images to quote Maj Yandura.  Always keep that in mind as you conduct yourselves with the Afghans, whether contractors, laborers, village elders or government officials."

 

Starry Night

No clouds in the sky tonight.  The sky was full of stars.  Even the Milky Way was visible.  The mountains, sky and scenery is all wonderful to look at, too bad there's people on the other side of the fence waiting to kill anyone who wants to help rebuild and provide some order.

 

On a different note, our Corps force protection had some excitement this morning.  I had some surveyors coming on the FOB this morning to survey a project.  The process to get on is they have to have ID, can't bring on electronics, have to search vehicles, and have to pass through other security.  While checking out the vehicle one of the Force Protection sergeants noticed that the blocks they brought to set on the ground to level their equipment were still wet.  They said they were just made yesterday.  He picked one up and the corner came off exposing a bag of opium mixed with tobacco.  Some people mix opium into a dip and chew it to get high.  Of course the rest of the blocks were busted and everyone denied knowing it was there.  That'll be a fun letter I'll get to write tomorrow, "Sir, Please tell your workers to try to not smuggle any more drugs onto our FOB.  If they do, we will be forced to put you on our black ball list.  Have a nice day.".

 

WAR EAGLE!!!!  Enough said.

 

Had another pre-con with an Afghan company.  First time being a prime and using QCS.  They're a small company that has done some subcontract work on Corps jobs so they kind of know what we expect.  However, they'll have to be drug through the process.  Hopefully we can get them trained so they'll be more prepared for their next job.

 

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!  Sera is trick-or-treating as a vampire, Lily as Snow White (though she said a Kitty Cat when I talked to her today) and Christian as either Iron Man, Indian Jones, Superman or Spiderman; whatever mood strikes him at that moment.  Sera asked how we were celebrating Halloween.  I told her that they don't celebrate it over here and she had an extremely hard time putting coping with that fact.  Once she could breathe again she asked "Aren't there any kids over there?".  I assured her that there were but unfortunately they were denied the joys of Halloween.  And me?  Well you guessed it, a Corps employee!!

Snow Capped Mountains

FOB Shank is a black out base.  When the sun goes down there aren't any exterior lights and the windows are blacked out.  Up until last night we had the moon to help light things up.  But, with the clouds rolling through you could barely see a couple feet in front of ya.  The sun was shining this morning so we got to see the snow that the fell on the mountains last night.  I guess it's only a matter of time until we get some.  Maybe we'll get a chance to go sledding :)

 

The view of the mountains was short lived.  We got a wake up call at 0640 that sent us to the bunkers.  Luckily I'm an early riser and I was already in the office.  Most were in the shower or just getting up.  It's a little chilly to be heading outside straight from the shower.  As long as I have a cup of coffe it's all manageable!!!

 

We had a weekly project meeting with one of our Turkish contractors.  They had some Turkish pizza and bread for us.  The pizza was really good.  It's on thin, floopy dough with mincemeat, garlic, tomato, red pepper, parsley and a few other things I imagine.  It's nice to get a little change from the normal DFAC food.

 

HOME FRONT NEWS:  Little Man informed Katy that he was ready to go back to Disney World.  He missed it.  Katy told him that she would love to go back to and asked if she could go with him.  He got a big smile and said, "Yep.  I'll drive.  And don't forget to give me the car keys!!". 

 

I talked to Lily on the phone today while they were watching Sera cheer at the Pop Warner football game.  She got on the phone and said, "Hi Daddy.  I'm playing with that girl and that girl and that girl.  Bye Bye Daddy.  I love you.".  I guess next time I better say something exciting so I can compete with her playmates. 

Rain!!

The photo is me gettin my M-ATV certificate.

Well, a little bit of rain.  It's cold, dark and windy today and then we got some sprinkling action.  I doubt it was enough to knock the dust down, but we'll see tomorrow.  This whole area is desert-like with waddies running through it.  There are a bunch on the FOB as well.  I was told this afternoon that when they got a big rain in the summer the waddies filled up and people were tubing down them.  Sounds like fun, unless you tube right out of the FOB!!  That wouldn't happen but it'd be kind of funny at first.  I'll take a picture of a waddie so y'all know what I'm talking about.

 

I forgot to mention that we ran out of water sometime 2 nights ago.  It was not a good feeling when I hit the shower handle yesterday morning and nothing happened.  I went out to the pump house to see what was going on because the relays on the pumps have a hard time pulling in when needed.  The pumps were fine, just no water.  We finally got some about 6:30 that evening.  Hopefully that won't happen again for awhile.  Trying to get water at the last minute is like trying to get a last minute to the Iron Bowl this year, it's gonna cost ya.

 

Also, I just got done helping disable the fire alarm panel in the bunk house.  Electricity isn't really their thing over here.  There aren't to many Afghans proficient in electrical installation.  Panels tend to spark, wiring not correct, people getting shocked, etc....  We found the sensor causing the problem, but I'm sure we don't have any spares.  It'll have to be worked on tomorrow, along with labeling the circuit breaker panels, labeling the wires, etc, etc.....

Another Busy Day

Another busy day.  Pre-con most of the morning, a Clif Bar for lunch, M-ATV training, catch up on email, more incoming so head to the bunker and some night M-ATV training.

 

We had a pre-con with an Afghan construction company who is doing their third job for the corps.  Their first job was kind of disaster.  It was one of the first ANP HQ built.  So it was the first iteration of plans, they didn't know how the corps worked and it was on the side of a mountain.  However, they have seemed to learn from it and were pretty knowledgeable in our system.  One of the challenges is getting people on base daily and the other is that we typically don't allow Afghans to stay in Man Camps on the FOB.  Hopefully we can get some security issues straight so we can get the job started and stay on time. 

 

The adviser of the company that attended the pre-con spoke pretty good english (as did the QC Manager).  When we mentioned that fact he said that we got his masters in the US.  He had a degree in agriculture, came to Michigan State and got a M.Ed.  He's 66, so he was in the US in the mid 60s.  We asked if he still kept in contact with anybody in the US and he said that with all the civil wars that have happened he has lost everything, even the papers that he had addresses written on.  It has been a struggle for people to get educated and learn a skill.  We require our contractors to recruit, hire and train local Afghans.  They have to try to hire from the trades schools in the province that they are working to help build the skilled work force.

 

Driving the M-ATV with the DVE is pretty cool and it takes some getting used to.  It's hard to tell elevation changes on the screen so when you drive down into a waddie you hit the bottom before you realize it. It's pretty fun though.  It's a little easier driving with it at night because it seems to pick up the heat differences better.  Since I didn't crash it I guess I can say that I saved the taxpayers a million dollars this week :)

 

We have a good sized blimp that is anchored over the FOB.  It's our eyes in the sky.  Unfortunately, the Area Office and Resident Office are next to where it is anchored and the Taliban tends to target it occasionally.  This afternoon they lobbed some explosives into the compound and got pretty close to it.  It was loud enough to shake the building a little.  The IED teams also had a big controlled detonation just outside the FOB this afternoon.  When they find an IED they leave it in place and blow it up, which tends to throw a lot of smoke in the air.

 

HOME FRONT NEWS:  My son is now harrassing his sisters in a whole new way.  He'll hid on the stairs and grab them as they walks by.  He then starts to sing "I'm a grump ol' troll who lives under the stairs!".  I feel sorry for him when Lily gets a little older and her and Sera can gain up on Christian.

M-ATV Training

Spent part of the afternoon and evening driving the M-ATV.  I posted 3 pictures in the photo bucket.  That thing is awesome!!!!  You can drive up and down waddies (that's what they call the dry river beds) without any effort, over rocks, around obstacles and it flies for it's size.  Unfortunately they are a little out of my price range so I won't be getting one any time soon.

 

The base is getting kind of crowded as new troops arrive in preparation for the current ones leaving.  There is a big increase of C-17s coming and going and Apaches flying around.  Unfortunately, it impacts the line to the DFAC.  It wouldn't be so bad if I didn't get a little angry when I get hungry.  But, I've adapted, I carry beef jerky around with me to snack on in case of emergencies.  JACK LINKS - it's premium cut, slow cooked and mesquite smoked, AND it FEEDS YOUR WILD SIDE!!  It's also the only kind that the DFAC stocks so there isn't much of a choice.

 

I believe the PX was closed again today with a sign saying "Too Few Items to Sale".  Day 4 and counting I think.

 

One of the sergeants on our Force Protection team gave our Local National interpreter that works for us a bike to ride on the FOB today.  I don't know if he has ridden a bike before, I think he has.  They were giving him a lesson on how to ride it anyway.  You could tell he was pretty happy and excited by the grin on his face.

 

The kids must have been good last night so there isn't any news there.  We had an incoming round this morning which is kind of unusual.  Tomorrow I have a meeting with an Afghan contractor from Kabul.  I'm looking forward to meeting them and curious as to how they operate.  They haven't done Corps work before but I got them on to QCS and have been trying to teach them the process.  Part of the job is to teach them some of our construction process and help them succeed.  I'm looking forwared to it!

 

The Turks Sacrificial Lamb

I got to learn and operate the comms in the M-ATV today.  It's some pretty cool stuff.  We also learned a little bit more about the DVE (Driver Vision Enhanced) system and saw some videos of it in action.  It's looks like it's going to be fun.  I'll try to video it, so you can see it in action.

 

It's been a long day of training and trying to get new projects up and running so I just have a quick story for tonight.

 

One of the projects we have is the building of a Rotary Wing landing and maintenance area.  It's a pretty big project, lots of concrete.  A Turkish firm won the bid on this project and set up camp.  When I say set up camp I mean they pretty much have to live and work on their site until complete.  They put up perimiter fencing, build DFACs, have bunk houses, security guards, office trailers, dig wells for the batch plants and put up the batch plant.  Once everything is established and it's time to get to work there is only one thing left to do.  Gather up all your concrete equipment and sacrifice a sheep.  Now, that is taking construction to a whole new level!!

 

My Water Truck is Better Than Yours

 

 

In case you ever find yourself wandering around, lost in thought, contemplating the virtues of life and you look up to see a brightly colored truck in front of you.  I'll give you a hint; you're not in Kansas, you're in Afghanistan.  Seriously,  these guys rock out to a completely different artistic style.  I think they call them Jingle Trucks.  Some guys have tassles hanging from the mirros and bumpers.  One guy driving a drum roller had important Afghan people (I assume) plastered on the upper windows of his cab and pictures of women around the bottom. 

 

I also added a couple of picures of the Logar Resident Office and barracks.  We can crawl to work if need be and sprint to the bunker as the need arises.  The bunker did get used this afternoon but I didn't hear anything so I have no news on what happened.  I also added a picture of the Area Office across the road.  Oh, and yes those are trees in the foreground.  I think the Afghans laugh at us for trying to grow trees, but, I think we can do it.  If not, we'll throw them in the fire pit and roast something.

 

The picture of the M-ATV is my version of the Jingle Truck.  It's a little drab by traditional standards, but what it lacks color in makes up for in performance.  I'm taking a class on driving it this week.  Classwork up until Wednesday, then we get to drive in the day and night on Wednesday.  Thursday we get to drive in the day and night with the VDE, which is a thermal imaging type screen that you look at to drive.  At a minimum the M-ATV will go 65mph, up inclines and declines of 60% and can handle driving on the side of a 40% slope.  If all goes well, come Thursday evening I won't have flipped, got lost, drive through the perimter or crash into a Jingle Truck. 

 

HOME FRONT NEWS:  Travelling with 3 kids in the car can be challenging for parents as well as the kids.  Sera, being the oldest is usually called upon to help out with the babies.  Sera is a sweetheart and loves the babies, but she does have her breaking point.  Well, on the way back from Alabama Christian got Sera to that point.  She had enought and yelled at him "IF YOU DON'T STOP I'LL BRAINWASH YOU UNTIL YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT'S UP!!".    I'm assuming he backed off, but I won't know until I talk to him.

Cold Weather Gear has Arrived

 

Here are some pictures from the other day when I was out looking at some job sites.  As you can tell, it's brown and there is a lot of dirt.  It has been really clear the last couple of days so you can actually see the mountains and villages really well that are around us. 

Yeah!!!  My other duffle bag finally arrived.  It's been pretty cold here at night and in the morning and I didn't have any of my cold weather gear.  I've been in the south too long and I have a little harder time adjusting to the cold weather now, that and I just don't like it.

WAR EAGLE!!!  Didn't get a chance to watch the game last night but I did get up to watch some to gamecast of it.  I fell back asleep sometime in the 2nd quarter but got a great news when I woke up!!

Hopefully tomorrow I'll start M-ATV training.  Somehow I'll have to get my project work done as well.  I guess it shouldn't be too hard since there isn't much else to do.  I usually get up around 5:30, get breakfast and get to work around 6:30.  Typically I'll work until around 6:30 that evening.  Do some errands and eat.  Around 8 a few of us usually will watch an episode of a series and then I'll blog or catch up on work email or do some work training.  Nothing too exciting.

A few of the jobs I got going on the FOB are a brigade headquarters, relocatable troop housing and building the new area office.  Some of the other projects on the FOB are new rotary wing landing and maintenance areas and a fueling compound.  Outside the FOB we are building roads, relocatable housing on some smaller FOBs, ANP stations and training centers.  There is no infrastructure on the base so all the projects have to have stand alone utilities; water tanks, septic tanks and generators.  The first part of the base is the standard 110V power like in America.  The new structures that we are building I think will eventually be taken over by the Afghan Army and so all the power and receptacles are European Standards.

HOMEFRONT NEWS:  Katy and the kids went down to Alabama for the weekend.  On the way down Katy stopped at a truck stop to get some gas.  When she was getting the kids out to go in the truck stop Christian decided he was going to test out the emergency pump shut off.  He succeeded in shutting down the pumps to the whole station.  Katy said the attendant was able to get everything back up and running quickly so a riot didn't ensue. 

That's about it for tonight.  There are some interesting things here that I will write about, just need to find out some more information before I post it.

Settling In

I've been getting settled in over the last day or so.  We stay pretty busy working so there hasn't been much time to explore yet.  Here's a rundown of what I know so far.  There are 3 gyms and 3 DFACs, the majority of the tents have been sprayed with an insulating foam (I'll get some pics), there are ANA, Jordanians, Czechs and Americans on this base, there are local Afghani shops on base, it's a blackout base and the laundry is free.  I probably know more but I have to save some stuff for later.

DFACs - The DFACs are basically two big, arched white tents.  They are probably about 50' wide with one tent about 50' long and the other maybe a 100'.  There is a short order serving line, a meal serving line, a salad and sandwich bar, drinks and ice cream/dessert spot.  The salad/sandwhich bar and snacks are available 24 hours a day and meals are served breakfast, lunch, dinner and midnight.  The meal tonight was steak, lobster, fried shrimp and vegetables.  I ended up having fried shrimp, the steak looked kind of tough.  There is plenty of food available and it's kind of hard to hold back at times. 

Tonight a couple of guys and I went to a bakery on base that is part of the little local Afghan strip of shops (the resident engineer was stationed here with the air force for 6 months so he knows all the places to go).  This place looked pretty sketchy from the outside (as most of the places do).  You walk in to a little holding area where a couple of guys are in a window.  You just tell them what you want and go have a seat.  Now, I say it's a bakery, but as far as I know they only serve nan (plain, garlic or cinnamon and tea.  Nan is a baked flat bread that the Afghans eats as a staple with their meals.  The seating area has a couple of round tables with chairs, a couple of couches and a bench.  The best part is that the there are three fluorescent lights illuminating this place, one red, one green and one yellow.  It feels like you're in a club.  Local nationals that work on the base hang out here as well.  The Afghans were really nice, the bread is awesome and the tea is really sweet.  The nan, tea, hanging with the locals and their cloud of smoke could be yours for the low price of $1.  Not to bad.

Made it to Shank

The first picture is of my bunk house at Qalaal House, the second is Kabul, the third is look back through the pass to get to Kabul and the last is a community near shank.  All the houses and fields are surrounded by walls.

Something I meant to blog about yesterday but I forgot.  The Corps hires nationals to do things like clean the barracks and offices and to cook and work in the DFAC.  They also provide security and work as inspectors on our jobs.  We pay them pretty good money for over here.  It provides some of them the skills they need to better building back their country, a good income and compensates them for risking their lives to work for us.  To my point, one of the cooks was a jet pilot for the Afghan Army but now works for the Corps as a cook.  First, I didn’t know that Afghanistan even had jets.  Second, that’s just plain crazy.

It’s been a pretty busy day.  I had to get up early and get all my gear out to the compound so it could be loaded for the trip to the airport.  We drove by the US Embassy on the way out.  

OBSERVATIONS ON THE TRIP TO THE AIRPORT:  The houses were even worse shape than I remembered.  It looked like a pretty bad place outside the green zone.  A lot of people living in tents.  I did see some horse drawn carriages racing down the street trying to keep up with the traffic.  I also saw some dudes riding around in the back of trucks with guns.  They weren’t insurgents, I think they had something to do with the local police.  The Afghani National Police has a lot of different factions, some more professional than others. 

OBSERVATIONS ON THE FLIGHT:  I actually saw some water!  There was one lake or reservoir on the other side of the mountain from the Green Zone.  There are a ton of houses in Kabul.  I don’t know how many people live there, but they are packed in tight.  I also saw some houses in some strange places on the way to Shank.  Once outside the city most of the houses were built along river beds in the ravines of the mountains.  One valley had one house in it along a small river bed, I’m not even sure how that person gets to their house.  I didn’t see any roads and it was in the middle of nowhere. 

FOB Shank is a pretty big base.  It’s real congested at one end and pretty wide open at the other.  That’s where the runway is and where we are also building some of our projects. 

Well, I think I’m calling it a night!

What Is That Smell???

After dinner I started smelling a kind of stinky feet type smell while in my room.  I didn’t think too much of it, I was going to go work out and it was probably my roommate that smelled anyway.  I would smell it every now and then while I was on the treadmill and I thought, hmmmm, maybe it was me.  Oh well, I was gonna shower after this anyway.  So I showered and noticed that my bandage on the small pox shot was coming off.  I got back to my room and kept smelling this smell.  My roommate was in here again and I thought, well, maybe it was him.  I sat on my bed and the smell was getting worse.  I’m sniffing around and caught a huge whiff right where my small pox shot was.  I took the bandage off and man, that thing stunk.  So I cleaned it off and rebandaged.  If my whole body was full of those smelly pox I’d have to wear a gas mask or something.  Being a small pox victim must be a hard life.

A couple friends and I had to make up some training today that we missed from last week.  It was kind of fun being the peanut gallery and watching all the people that just got here yesterday afternoon try their best to stay awake.  Also, by this point I knew most of the presenters and personal people in charge of the briefings so they didn’t mind the heckling too much.  They’ll probably be glad to see me go tomorrowJ

My boss keeps emailing me new assignments and updates.  I think I better hurry up and get down there before he assigns anything else.  One of my projects is ongoing and I’ll be getting into the middle of it.  The other 3 are just getting started.  It’s going to be interesting dealing with the contractors.  One company is from the Turkey and the other three are from Afghanistan (with 1 having Asian backing I think).  I’ve already been exchanging emails with them and the English is what you’d expect (wrong use of words, wrong tense, etc.  One email even referred to me as “your excellency”)  communication and culture are going to be things to overcome.  Should be fun.

I’ve said my good-byes, packed up my things and took care of the last minute errands.  Off to bed and anxious to get on with the next move.

The Mongolians

Camp Eggers is home to an army of multiple nations.  It’s interesting seeing the different uniforms and figuring out what country they are from.  Every time I go over there these big Asian looking dudes with AK-47s are coming in from patrol.  They look mean, or maybe they are just mad because they drew the short end of the stick and have to do all the bad patrols.  We thought maybe they were Koreans, they were too big to be Japanese, we just didn’t know.  Well, we just figured it out yesterday.  They are Mongolians.  If Ghengis Khan had a bunch of these dudes following him around it’s not surprising they once controlled most of Asia.  I wonder what they would think about the Mongolian Barbecue day at the Ft Jackson O-Club. 

An expansion on Afghan culture from yesterday.  I keep forgetting not to use the bathroom in our dorms around lunch because that is when the local national cleaning lady finishes cleaning the restrooms.  It takes a while to air out.

I hit up the ACU dump box trying to find me a pair of ACUs to wear so I won’t stick out so much.  I found a pair of pants and a shirt I thought I could squeeze into.  Well, no go on the shirt.  So I’ve got the patches, hat, and a pair of pants.  Almost to the point where I can blend in.

My co-worker from Ft Jackson, Patricia, arrived today.  It was good seeing a familiar face and catching up on the news with her. 

I got a roommate today.  Almost made it out of here without having one.  Just two more nights and I’ll be on my way downrange. 

Not much going on tonight.  Outta here.

Singing the Auburn Fight Song to 200 co-workers and Afghani Culture

The comments from a couple of posts ago made me realize that not everyone has read some of the same briefings as I have on Afghani customs and cultures.  But first, the House meeting.

Every Sunday the Colonel has a house meeting were outgoing awards are presented and new people are harassed.  Part of the harassment usually entails standing in front of the 200 or so people at Qalaal House and state who you are, where you’re from, where you’re going, what you’re doing and something that is supposed to be embarrassing.  In the past it has been things like saying a nursery rhyme, saying why you are famous, or singing a short children’s song.  Tonight the Colonel played into my strengths.  First, he was going to give me a microphone and make people listen to me.  Second, he said we had to sing the fight song of either the college or high school we went to.  My mike time “My name is Chris Zell.  I am coming here from Ft Jackson by way of Columbia, SC.  (Spattering of cheers from the army soldiers who went through Ft Jackson, part of my plan)  I’m heading down range to Shank to do some project engineering.  I come from a school where the football team tends to score like a basketball team.  Now, don’t get upset if I mess up a few words because I’m usually singing this with a drunken mob.  SING FIGHT SONG HERE”  If I can brag on myself for a second, this was probably the best rendition of the War Eagle Fight Song ever heard in this part of the world.  It was sung loud and true.  And yes, I received a rousing ovation!

Some Afghani cultural items. 

-Yes, Afghanis use their left hand for rear end hygiene purposes.  It is considered an insult to use the left hand with dealing with them.

- Bathing seems non-existent.  The odor is noticeable for quite some distance.  The security force on this compound are required to bathe when they get here because they share our DFAC and it was becoming an issue. 

- They tend to hold a hand shake for a very long time and stand very close when conversing.  They greet with kiss on the cheek and an embrace.

- The soles of feet are considered dirty.  Do not ever show the sole of your foot to them, it is considered an insult. 

- Man-Love Thursday.  I shouldn’t have to explain this, the saying is “A man is for fun and a woman is for having babies”.  I thankfully haven’t witnessed this but others have.

- Afghans tend to be more lax with time.  They’ll get there when they do.  They will socialize and take their time before getting to the business at hand, if they do.

-Afghans are very honorable in that they have a set of rules that they live by and honor.  If they invite you to their house they will spare all they have, they tend to give gifts, and will make sure harm doesn’t come to their guest.  On the flip side if they feel dishonored, they will seek revenge.

- They have a saying “God Willing” that is used if they don’t want to say no or to explain something that has happened, “God’s Will”.  They tend to live for the moment and don’t make future plans.  They will be here tomorrow, God Willing.  It comes into play in our contracts because if you pay too much up front they may take off before the job is complete.

Most of the Afghans around the Green Zone have been “Americanized” as far as they are more used to the way Westerners act.  They aren’t as offended as the Afghans that are downrange and in more rural settings.  It’ll be interesting how true some of this becomes when I get downrange.

Game Day in Kabul

Sometimes it’s hard to remember what day it is over here, but when your watch says it is Saturday…..WOO HOO!  Now, the routine is not the same.  Here you have to go to work, eat dinner, take a nap, and wake up sometime in the middle of the night to watch your game.  AND no beer is involved!!  I guess as long as Auburn keeps winning I don’t have to worry about drowning my sorrow in beer.  WAR EAGLE!!

GAME DAY OBSERVATIONS:  1.  Ole Miss will now be the Rebel Black Bears?!?!  I would have thought that they could have picked something a little more fierce, you know what I mean if you’ve seen the pictures.  2.  Is the Chicken Curse broken?  Can the Gamecocks follow up last week with a win over the Wildcats.  3.  Once again, I have no beer on game day L

I am still in Kabul.  My movement to Shank has been pushed to later in the week.  I guess I’ll hang out here and try to finish up some training I have to do. 

I passed my driving test this morning.  Not much to it.  I had to drive one of the up-armored vehicles around the green zone.  I got to practice my aggressive driving and found out taking speed bumps too fast in one of these vehicles is not good for your head.  The hardest part was trying to drive with all the ballistic gear on.

HOME FRONT UPDATE:  Just got off the phone with Katy.  Katy and the kids are off to the state fair when Sera gets done cheering at the football game.  Apparently Sera hit Katy up at a weak moment last night and convinced her to take them to the fair.  I’d have to have quite a few beers in me before I agreed to something like that!

The Milk Has Arrived

Things were getting desperate around here.  The DFAC was down to the last of it's milk, and it was strawberry milk.  I'm not a big milk drinker so I wasn't bothered to much by this catastrophe, but I couldn't help thinking that if I had a few cartons of milk stashed I could have made some money.  Besides, we still had ice cream (which is the best form of milk anyway) and if you were really desperate you could melt it and add it to your cereal.  But at lunch today I sat down at a table outside and realized I was surrounded by pallets!!  It's been almost a week now since the Pakistani's opened the border and we're just getting some of the supplies.  I can only imagine what it'll be like at Shank if the borders are closed again.  As long as we've got water, bacon, trail mix and those awesome cookies they have I imagine I'll survive.

Unfortunately I caught either some sort of cold a couple of days ago or the small pox vaccine has kicked my butt.  I'm finally coming back around and am feeling pretty good.  My vaccinated shoulder is nice shade of red and really hot.  I changed the bandage yesterday and it is one huge blister looking thing, I'll spare you the details.  Just remember to pass on this vaccine unless it is really needed.  Which reminds me, I have to get another anthrax shot Monday, that'll be fun.

Not much for me to do here since I won't be working here.  I had to take a few short classes, met the Chief of Construction and a few other people in the construction office up here, got my intel breifing for the area I'm going to and was issued my cell phone and personal locator.  Tomorrow I will be taking a driving test and I should be set to ship out on Sunday.

I went over to Camp Eggers today to browse the Bazaar.  They had Afghan rugs, DVDs, pottery, jewels/stones, places to get suits made, electronics, stone mosaics and old war artifacts.  Of course when I told Katy that I went the first thing she asked was what I bought her.  At one of the tables they had old knives, guns, swords, AND some sort of Viking looking helmet (I'm assuming it was Mongolian or something along that line).  It was awesome!!  I know I could design a Halloween costume around that.  I didn't buy it because I figured it was probably made in China.  :)

Qalaal House is pretty small.  It only takes a few minutes to walk around the entire complex.  It's pretty comfortable though.  The main building used to be the Iraqi Embassy.  It has a lot of huge pine trees on the compound that were planted by the Russians when they occuppied this area.  We have a DFAC, gym and a bunch of stacked conexes that serve as bunks and offices.  The complex is guarded by an Afghani security firm.  They also handle all the security of the local construction and service workers admitted onto the compound.

HOME FRONT UPDATE:  Every time I talk to Sera she asks if I still have enough toilet paper.  She is very concerned that I might have to indulge in the local customs.