Monday blahs

Any time you go back to work after spending a few days on vacation is not something you look forward to. In fact, it downright sucks. The piles of work on your desk, the tons of email to filter through, the off looks from people who ask if you had a good time but are secretly upset at the fact that they were forced to pull your load for the last week while you were drinking beer someplace free of incoming rounds. After tasting a bit of freedom, returning to the confines of the IZ is a bit depressing. The walk to the trailer seems a little longer, the food in the DFAC is a little blander and the body armor (now with all of the gear strapped back on it) is a lot heavier. I know it will pass after a few days of getting back into the swing of things, but it still sucks. I’ll keep my eye focused on the day to day operations and keep my 2 week leave at the end of the year as my goal to work for.

Ramadan started a few days ago but I didn’t really notice much when I was on pass. However, here in the IZ I am witness to more individuals of the Islamic faith and I interact with them on a daily basis. The biggest visual indicator of the start of Ramadan is the sleeping Iraqis around the bases. It’s not uncommon to find a row of blue jumpsuit clad individuals racking out under a date tree in the heat of the day. I see them lounging about and quite frankly, I’m jealous. I would LOVE to nap during the hottest part of the day! But, after you find out that they are napping because they haven’t had any food since sunrise and are lacking the energy to do a lot of manual labor, you tend to recheck your envy. Did I also mention that they cannot have water? Might not sound like much, but go park your butt in the heat of 112 degree sunlight for a few hours and see how long it takes before your mouth feels like it has a sock stuck in it (interestingly enough, the word “Ramadan” is derived from the Arabic for no rations and intense heat). Not only must they refrain from eating or drinking from sun up to sun down, they must also obtain from lying, stealing, lust, greed, gossip and sex. They do this for three 10 day periods which equates to a month of self reflecting making this the most blessed month of the Islamic year. They can feed themselves when it’s dark out which is why most of the Iraqis we work with will come into work tired or lethargic from having to get up early or stay up late in order to eat.

In an attempt to be culturally sensitive, the military has sent out emails to the masses informing us of the ins and outs of Ramadan so that we may better understand the religious rituals that the members of our host nation observe. It is rude to chew gum, drink water or eat in front of folks who are fasting for their religion. To me, that seems like common sense, just like it is impolite to wave a jelly doughnut in front of the cast of a Richard Simmons work out video (and quite possibly dangerous). We are also suppose to be sensitive to the fact that they could be a bit irritable due to lack of sustenance which again is understandable because I myself get a little cranky when my stomach is grumbling from a missed meal. It will prove to be a trying month to deal with our Iraqi counterparts to make headway on the whole “transition” thing, but I think we’ll get through it with a little patience. Okay, maybe a LOT of patience.

Now if I can only get higher ups of the Christian faith to adopt the whole “nap for a month” gig...



Interesting overheard conversation of the day:

Person 1: “This mint toothpick is very good.”
Person 2: “Would you say that there is a party in your mouth and everyone is invited?”
Person 3: “I don’t want to have a party in my mouth.”