A third of the way - 6/14/07

A third of the way – 6/14/07

 

Today is the 6 month mark of my reactivation into the US Army.  Wow.  A whopping 151 days have past since I showed up at Benning to begin my re-initiation into the big green machine.  This also marks the one third mark of my total activation time.  Well, technically I have 545 total days to serve and only 365 total days to spend in Iraq, but it’s not like I’m counting or anything (my spreadsheet donut takes care of that).  

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I miss having my laptop.  I’ve been unable to write about the exciting days I’ve had.  Okay, maybe I’m being a little presumptuous that they will be exciting to the masses, but any change in the routine is worth writing about.  Just to bring everyone up to speed, here is a brief description of the things I’ve experienced these last few days sans laptop (in bullet format):

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1.  How it feels to be a Captain in the US Army given the responsibility of guarding a row of helmets during a change of command ceremony (in fact, there were two captains on this detail, which got chuckles from just about everyone, especially the enlisted folks).

2.  Was almost crushed trying to move a wall locker by myself in my room (Super huge! Not me, the wall locker).

3.  Unloaded and loaded 72 magazines of rifle ammunition to relieve tension in the springs (that’s almost 2200 rounds).

4.  Just missed witnessing the accidental shooting of a LTC by a LTC (he shot himself in the leg with his pistol when he tried to clear his weapon at the chow hall).

5.  Helped in-process my new boss (jury is still out how he’s going to work out).

6.  With the blowing up of a mosque in the north (go watch the news), the 1 day tally of mortar attacks in the IZ has reached a record number.  

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Talk about excitement! 

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Thursdays are normally a “morale night” with my team.  It’s pizza night at the PX and Pizza Inn makes a mighty pie.  One downfall of writing comments on blogs is that it’s hard to portray the sarcasm.  Pizza Inn might make a good pizza back in the states (I don’t know because I’ve never strayed too far from the “Papa”), but here in Iraq, when you are craving a good slice of pepperoni and sausage pizza, the “Inn” is “Out”.  It’s quite possibly the worst pizza I’ve ever eaten.  I can’t even begin to detail the downfalls of their pies.  For something that is supposed to be a morale builder, it actually steals what little morale I have.  Although I complain about it, it’s just one more thing that I’ve tried to learn to accept about the IZ.  Sure, there are comforts here, but they are just enough to tease you into thinking that things aren’t so bad.  Go grab a Coke from the cooler at the mess hall?  It’s Coke canned in Kuwait which tastes weird.  How about some milk for your Raisin Bran cereal in the morning?  Sure, but you only have two varieties to choose from: goat or shelf stable.  How about a nice shower to wash away the dust of the sand storm?  Only if you want to smell like sulfur for the rest of the day.  How about a nice poop on a flushing toilet?  Yeah!  Oh wait, if there is no water, then your mess just stays in there, for days sometimes, which makes your hooch-mate really angry.  Overall, things really aren’t that bad here, but things are also not so good.  As someone pointed out to me, maybe it’s all just a way of making me appreciate the things I take for granted every day back home.  

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Due lots of work, we’re forgoing the anti-morale pizza night.  I’m not sure if this makes me happy or sad.  

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For the record, I will never take a reliable toilet for granted... as long as I shall live.  

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Interesting fact of the day:  Today is Flag Day and also the Army’s birthday.  So, first go dust off your stars and stripes run her up the pole, and then go eat some cake.  It’s the American thing to do.