Should have read the fine print...

Home…

2010-04-12T21:52:00.001-07:00

The year plus odyssey is over, and I am back at home, typing this on my couch. I cannot believe it is over – almost hard to believe it actually did happen.

The last day in the Yem was nice, though as one would expect it dragged. I stayed up all night my last night, and then slept until mid-day so my sleep schedule would not be too screwed up. A last shower, final packing, and restless pacing while the minutes ticked away. Then, one final evening over at Brit’s house with some guests – a nice glass of 15 year old scotch, a final dinner at Al Fakher with the usual Yemeni cuisine… Salta – a stew, Bint-al-Sahn, a bread soaked with honey, and some Gahwa – a special Yemeni coffee.. then off to the airport. The usual chaos at the airport – and fighting the last round of moochers as everyone who touches your suitcase wants a tip of some sort.. they call out ‘Sadeek’ (friend) but I know enough to ignore them. A final bit of indignity, as the security at the gate gets semi-medieval on me (I had to remove belt, wallet, shoes – all VERY unusual for Yemen). It was pretty much obvious harassment – a tit for tat since Yemenis coming into the USA get pretty tight security – so I sucked it up and dealt with it. And then, at 11:59pm local on Sat April 3rd, Lufthansa flight 653 took off, and my time in Yemen was over!

The flights over (with a stop in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and changing flights in Frankfurt) were nice, as I was in Lufthansa business class – strange going from the chaos of the Yemen airport to the smooth, cool Teutonic efficiency of the Lufthansa flight crews. The seats were those things that fully reclined, so it was bliss. Not the usual sitting in the cheap seats, crammed in like sardines.

I landed back in the US around 4pm on Sunday the 4th. The first stop was immigration, and my own country gave me a special welcome. The officer at immigration put my passport in a clear plastic envelope, called another guard over, and I was escorted to a side room for extra attention. I sat in the ‘special’ room with a bunch of non-US citizens, waiting 25 minutes until I was called in to get cleared. I was steaming mad, but managed to bite my tongue. I half expected special treatment since my last stop was Yemen, but this was more than I expected.

The next stop was Navy Mobilization Processing Station (NMPS), Gulfport, MS. Here, I was medically checked, attended some lectures, and received my ‘DD-214’ – the form which marks my discharge from active duty. There were 8 in my group, all returning from a year overseas, and the process at NMPS is pretty much fixed… so there was a lot of waiting. The first day was done by lunch time, and it was a lot of lectures that lasted 15 minutes – but were booked for one hour. Day two was the same – done by 11ish. Frustrating as all hell. Alas, had a bit of a situation at home, and was able to get them to get me through the last couple of steps on Tuesday pm (and they could have EASILY done the rest of my group, but that is not the process and they would not do it!). And, I was able to make it home that night.

I also had to make a stop at my local reserve center and that process took less than an hour – pretty much a total waste of time. I can’t believe that they were going to fly me to Fort Worth, TX for a day just for an hour of that – am REALLY glad that I changed that! So, I am now on terminal leave, and will be off of active duty later this week. I can resume my reserve activities when I please, but I think I will wait a couple of months… Per law, I do not have to return to work for up to 90 days, but I have already stopped in, and am actually looking forward to going back.

And so far, it has not been that big of an adjustment returning home, even though I have been gone over a year. Am sure there will be a bit of friction, but in some ways if feels like I never left…

I’m outta here!

2010-04-02T18:33:00.001-07:00

Down to the last day in Yemen – or zero and a wakeup in mil speak. The Q tip box is down to one, and I am done with work. Am now adjusting my sleep schedule to align with the US, so it is after 4am now and I am down to less that 24 hours. (and am hearing my last morning prayer call…gonna be strange now NOT hearing them!) It would be fair to say I am getting excited – hard to believe that the end of my time in the Middle East is here.

The last week has been a good finish. Thought I have liked many aspects of my job, there are many that I am eager to leave. This week has been an excellent reminder of both. In some ways, it is hard to leave now that I have a lot of projects on the road to completion, but… I think the family deserves a bit of time as well. And, I feel comfortable turning it over to my replacement, so it is not like the US Navy is abandoning the Yemenis. And finally, am tired of the Army, CENTCOM, and other factors which add aggravation for no good reason. It is time to go.

For my last post from Yemen, a collection of random photos from the last couple of weeks. I am going to finish packing, chat with the wife, get some sleep, then head to the airport! Alas, not home, but at least I will be in the US and it should be less than a week ‘til I am home for good.

My wheels for my last three months – a Toyota Land Cruiser GXR V6. A VERY nice ride…though no armor – just a Hertz rental

Drinking tea with the Chairman of the Yemen Coast Guard, and his aide / my good friend Amen after they hosted a good bye lunch for me. These guys work really hard to make things work despite budget cuts and other issues… though they get labeled as ‘spies’ since they work well with the US and UK.

Picture with Kohei, the First Minister at the Japanese Embassy, at Yemen Coast Guard HQ. He is another good friend who I will miss. Oh, and his wife makes KILLER sushi.

One last shopping trip to the old city and ‘Ali Baba’s’. Lots of jewelery, but will miss NOT cheeks full of qat… nor the green funk in the teeth when they talk with you!

Driving home in the rain during my last week, streets are flooded again since there is no storm sewer system here.

At the ‘Bab el Yemen’ (Gate of Yemen) – the entrance to Old Sana’a – with my friend and shopping guide, Mohammed. This was my last trip into Old Sana’a – like the land time forgot – a functioning market and it has been a settlement for over 2500 years!

Aden harbor – the USS Cole was moored at the ‘buoys’ on the right side of the picture. The bombing led to the formation of the Yemen Coast Guard in 2002, and eventually to my duty here.

Entering the US Embassy compound at sunset recently… (just the wall and part of garage visible) – but seems sort of symbolic for my last post from Yemen.

A year later…

2010-03-30T01:50:00.001-07:00

A year ago today, I left on this little adventure. Now here I am, a ‘single digit midget’ in Yemen, packing up and getting ready to fly back to the US for one last week of Navy fun. At 7:04 pm tonight, for the last time I did the usual ‘where was I on the 29th at 7:04pm local time…’ and a year ago I was taking off for the first stop on the process. I still remember it well. And, now the Q-tip box is down to a handful!

Before I was called up, I could not have told you where Sana’a was, and I could not have placed Yemen on a map accurately (I would probably have guessed somewhere in Africa…). A year later, I find myself living in Sana’a, able to drive myself around and navigate a strange city at night, converse in Arabic (barely), and function in an embassy with foreign militaries and the US State Dept . And, I find myself as a key expert on the status of the Yemen Coast Guard and Navy, and am furiously working out their support plans for the next six years. All of this was not anywhere on my plan, nor was it in my mind a year ago. And though it is interesting and makes for some good stories, most of it will be moot as I go back to my normal career.

The last couple of days have been good and busy, which is making them go quickly. Still, I expect the last two or three to crawl by, as there is a weekend in there and I will have handed off my job. Also, my grad school classes wrap up tomorrow with my last exam, and I have finished all but one book – which I am saving for the plane to Gulfport. And, to top it off, I am all but packed – every day I get home from work now I pack away my suit, so there are only a couple of things left hanging in my closet…

It is difficult to comprehend the end of this experience – a year of living a totally different life in a totally different place. However, though I am not likely to volunteer to do this again, I am glad for the experience – has been very educational and a bit of a life changer. Also, it has been nice financially (a year of living life without paying much in the way of taxes) and as I have often stated, was a nice break from the routine of corporate America. Finally, I think it has not harmed the kids much, and my marriage has survived intact – indeed, strengthened in some ways. However, am ready to be home, and am counting down the hours.

The donut of despair, looking pretty green!!!!

The home stretch

2010-03-11T11:45:00.001-08:00

It is hard to believe, but my time in Yemen (and on this mobilization) is starting to wind down. After almost a year of being away from the family, it is difficult to imagine returning to my life. Yet, the time is drawing close. Still a longer period than all but a couple of separations, but in the context of this one, is starting to be short. Off to Bahrain and the Navy HQ this week to ‘check out’, and then I will bring my replacement to Yemen for a couple of weeks of turnover, then off I go – back to the US! Yes, I have to spend a week in Gulfport, but that should not be too bad.

The Q-tip box is starting to look pretty empty!

Have been keeping busy – guests from Bahrain, trips to visit Yemen Navy and Coast Guard bases…. Was down in the city of Mukalla earlier in the week - a nice seaside town. Well, it was a nice town, but it has fallen on hard times and has that stale, run down feel. Hotels should be booming, but instead are vacant. The whole town feels like a ghost town. It is too bad, since it is a nice place. Aden feels the same way, though at least Aden has hints of life to it – last time I was there a cruise ship had pulled in and there were busloads of Euro tourists on the beach of the hotel. Not so in Mukalla.

Holiday Inn, Mukalla. Alas, though at the peak of the tourist season, the place was pretty much deserted.

Beach view at the other nice beachfront hotel – again, deserted. Not exactly a good sand beach, but great for boating, fishing, and snorkeling – and it has a nice pool.

Old gatehouse in Mukalla – was in a ‘park’ and had spotlights to illuminate it at night, but hard times have led to the lights falling into disrepair and the house itself is slowly falling apart

And as I have been reflecting on this time ending, am starting to realize that though being away from home and family sucks, I really enjoy my job here. I am pretty much autonomous – Bahrain does not really pay attention to what I do, I have a lot of freedom of action to do what I think is right to build our relations with the Navy and Coast Guard of Yemen, and I get to be a diplomat. I was at the Japanese First Minister’s house this week for a sushi dinner, and there were people from UK, France, Japan, China, Germany, the EU.. In a month, back to the corporate world, with lots and lots of oversight and processes, quality improvement programs, and all of the the other mundane crap that I have been able to avoid the last year.

Things I will NOT miss – Yemeni cabs, and the ubiquitous ‘Dshka truck’

Things I will NOT miss II – dudes with BIG wads of qat in their cheek driving a motorcycle, yellow and black curbs, barbed wire, and concrete barriers

Things I will NOT miss III – beggars. Though this one is cute – and I foolishly give a buck now and then. Alas, they camp out at the same intersections every day, and if you give once….

Rick’s Place

2010-03-03T19:53:00.001-08:00

Our group has been into Casablanca lately… Besides being a great movie, I like the fact that when it was filmed and released, it was early in the days of WWII, when the outcome was far from certain. That, and many of the actors had escaped from the Reich…sort of forget that now.

Just came back from Aden, and we were joking that it is sort of like Casablanca in the movie. There is one main hotel there, and while we were there, were people from a dozen nations there, all on different business. Not a lot of secrecy or skullduggery, mind you.

J.B., from the French Navy, working with the Yemen Coast Guard

On the good news front, I have been in the Middle East for 300 days now (minus, of course, leave and travel to the US), and what is even better, only 50 to go!

With buddy Ron on the pier in Aden, Feb 2010

A friend from USCG visiting from the US. I sent this pic to his wife – she was digging out their house in DC from a third snowstorm in two weeks! He was in Yemen after spending time working on Haiti – my only guest who thought Yemen was pretty nice!

Yemen oddities – passed an actual street sweeper (truck) today on the road – usually they have Somali men working the side of the road with brooms. To add excitement, they often work at dusk or at night, and they rarely wear anything reflective… keeps your reflexes sharp!

Also see police stopping people for riding motorcyles without helmets, yet on the next block you will see a family of FIVE crammed on to a little motorcycle, including small kids – no helmets. The way people drive here, that is INSANE!

There is also no EPA here. My personal fave is the ‘smokescreen’ – will be driving up a big hill at night and a big truck will be climbing it in front of me, and a combo of it belching smoke – literally laying a smokescreen – and no working tail lights make it a surprise to suddenly find yourself quickly approaching the back end of a big truck… Again, reflexes are key.

Interesting little situation – huge lines at gas stations yesterday. The government raised prices a bit a couple of weeks ago (I paid 1300 Yemeni Riyals for 20 liters of gas – which works out to about $1.16 a gallon – it used to be $1.07) Apparently most of the gas stations here are owned by a few families, and they were mad that the government did not give them a cut of the increased price, so they went on strike as a protest… Price does not seem like a lot, but much lower standard of living here, and it is the principle. However, lots of outside pressure to reduce subsidies…

Also met an exec from the local Coca-Cola factory. We discussed the cans – they use the old-style pull tabs here – not the style in the US where you push in the cover and drink. It was a deliberate decision – cans here get dirty apparently, and with the kind we have, the top gets pushed into the soda when you open it – here you pull it off. Of course, it is more stuff to litter with.

Groundhog Day

2010-02-13T19:11:00.001-08:00

Like the movie….

One question I get once in a while is ‘what do you do in the evening’. Answer - not too much. There are social gatherings every now and then, and we go and dine out once in a while… But a lot of time is spent in the apartment. I don’t really watch TV much, but I do read a lot, and and spend a fair amount of time on the computer. Am taking some grad school courses at Naval Postgrad school – learning about space and satellites. Just learning about the sun – amazing how much we still don’t know about it. As far as reading, I was never interested in stories about sailing ships – not my cup of tea. However, on a whim, I ordered ‘Master and Commander’ (book, NOT the movie) and read it while in Ft Jackson and I loved it. It is the first of a series of 20 books (plus an unfinished 21st story) so I ordered the whole set and I just finished the last one. I also squeezed in the Horatio Hornblower series, ‘Six Frigates’, and am now reading a biography of Lord Nelson.

Got a bit of perspective recently. Had a business guest, a retired US Coast Guard guy here to help with the Yemen Coast Guard. As I was driving him from the airport to the hotel, he noted that Yemen was pretty nice. Given that he has spent a lot of time in Africa and Haiti, I see his point. Yemen is third world, indeed, but nothing like places he has been. Though there is poverty here, there is also civilization – people are not starving here (in general).

Typical Yemen mom-n-pop shop – no Wal Mart here. There are stores, small manufacturing shops, auto repair, etc.

One interesting thing is the dependence of propane tanks – like the ones on gas grills. Apparently, there are no gas pipelines here, so everyone has those tanks – though Home Depot would NOT accept any of the tanks here – they are beat up. You see people rolling them down the street rather than carry them… The gas comes from a region of Yemen to the east of Sana’a and apparently the local tribes cut the road so there was a shortage. People set there gas tanks in lines at the filling locations, and there were lines 100 tanks long, waiting for resupply. The government finally opened the road, and supplies have resumed.

Typical Yemen street scene – dude on a crotch rocket (sort of rare) with no helmet; white Toyota has a propane tank in back, truck in right lane full of propane tanks, and the dude standing in the red Toyota – plus the friggin little taxi-bus – those things are like cockroaches!

Closeup of white Toyota with propane tank sitting in the back

Truck full of propane….

I am also asked about the clothes the women wear here – are they forced to dress like that? Answer – no. Though a conservative state, it is also fairly open – there is no Taliban-like body here enforcing rules. Women have a choice – there are no laws to prevent them from dressing Western style, for example. However, they are raised wearing the local clothes, and custom and social norms drive their dress. It is much more liberal then neighboring Saudi Arabia, where women are held to much tighter rules. Women – even western ones – are not allowed to drive there. Here, however, women can work, drive, etc.

Speaking of driving… am used to it – not quite crazy as a local – but much more comfortable. Indeed, bigger issue is idiots on the road – not the craziness. Did get a bit cocky and on two consecutive days, I scraped my car (once on a stationary car trying to squeeze through a gap, and once on a concrete barrier). But, had a great drive home on Thursday – gorgeous sunny day, had the sunroof and driver window open, driving down the ‘Silah’ (parkway / culvert), cranking some Kings of Leon and Green Day… first time I have ever really opened the window for any length of time (beggars usually too annoying – they tap the window as it is – don’t want them sticking hands in car… but no beggars on the Silah!)

Driving in the ‘Silah’ – a US-funded drainage culvert that runs through the heart of Sana’a – and it doubles as a parkway

Finally, am starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. My relief should be reporting to Ft. Jackson today, and if all goes well (i.e. he does not get disqualified medically or get snagged for The ‘Stan) I should be home for good in eight weeks. Inshallah!

The ‘donut of despair’ is getting mighty green! 322 down, 54 to go!

Reflections on the last 365

2010-01-28T11:20:00.001-08:00

First, not a lot to talk about in Yemen – business as usual. Haiti has rightfully knocked Yemen out of the news, and things are “normal” here. Not a lot to say about the job – sort of like the movie ‘Groundhog day’, actually. Only interesting bit is it rained earlier this week – pretty hard – and Sana’a is not set up for lots of rain – no storm sewers or anything. So, the streets become little rivers, with the rain washing away the accumulated dust, dirt, grime, and trash – most notably plastic baggies (qat is bought EVERY day – has to be fresh – and is sold in one-person portions in plastic baggies, and most of them end up in the street!). Though the roads were a bit slick, the normally psycho drivers were more cautious and sane than usual, and the rain kept the beggars off of the street corners, which was pleasant.

Typical street front in Sana’a, with a few puddles from rain the night before. Usual sidewalk, creative parking, and metal shutters on some of the closed shops.

One question that might come to mind – the Prez says we will not put troops in Yemen, yet here I am. Simple clarification – he means combat troops – I am most definitely not that. Instead, my mission is to represent my HQ here with the Yemen Coast Guard and Navy, and to assist in equipping and training them. That is all.

Breakfast at Yemen Coast Guard HQ – great food and hospitality

Starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel now. First, crossed the 300 day point a few days ago – less than 80 to go. Still not an inconsiderable time – longer than all but two of my navy deployments – but relatively it is pretty short. I have written my end of tour evaluation (aka fitness report in Navy speak) and my end of tour award (you write your own…) which is a good thing. I also have my plane ticket out of Yemen – it is to Gulfport, MS, not home, since I have to go and demobilize – but it is another concrete reminder. And, instead of taking the military charter from Bahrain, am on United / Lufthansa flights – in business class no less. Going home in style!

But, has been a long an interesting 365 days since I received the call that fateful January day. In one week, my replacement starts the process at Gulfport, which is yet another step in the process. As I swap notes with him, it makes me think back to what I was going through just over 10 months ago. Frankly, am glad NOT to be there….

Where I was a year ago on Jan 28th… ok, I don’t miss that!

The view a year later – never would have imagined this!

So, at 8:04 local on Friday night here in Sana’a, I am going to enjoy a nice glass of Johnny Walker and reflect back on that fateful day last January – remember the feelings of the phone call, the dread, telling the wife, telling the children at dinner that night – their questions (a whole year?) – and the realization of all we would miss together for that year plus. The two months of counting down, leaving home, and all of the stuff I have done since – all things that I would never have imagined 365+1 days ago. But, besides the being away, it has been a great experience. And, of course, tomorrow also marks the end of month TEN away, two 1/2 to go!

Back in the Yem’

2010-01-09T07:58:00.001-08:00

Am back in Yemen for the home stretch – the last quarter of my 13 month odyssey. The remainder of leave was very nice, and though it was not easy to leave home, it was much easier than the first time. It also made me look forward to coming home for good – 15 days at home was long enough to get into a groove and realize how much I miss family life. I also stopped in at my employer and talked about me returning to work. Though I will not get my EXACT job back (they had to replace me and it made zero sense to put an ‘interim’ person there for a year plus!) I will get a position – just not sure what yet. My visit was intended to get the ball rolling.

The trip back was not too bad. The Army had me booked for a 7am flight to Atlanta to catch the charter back to Kuwait, but I decided to change it to a 1pm flight instead. Though I was technically supposed to be in Atlanta at 1pm for a muster, I took a small gamble that there would be no issue with me arriving at 4:30 pm instead – and I was correct. Instead of hanging out in Atlanta airport from 10:30am to 9pm, I was able to see the kids off to school and get dropped off at a civilized hour – and only have to wait a few hours in Atlanta. Also, it turns out there were two charter flights that day – I was booked on the second, less full one – had an aisle seat with the middle seat open! Much nicer than the jam packed flight on the way home. We stopped in Shannon, Ireland for fuel, and then landed in Kuwait at 10pm local. Since I had a 7:45am commercial flight to Bahrain, I lobbied to be left at the airport rather than take the two hour bus ride back to the Army camp, then turn around and hop another bus back to the airport, but… that was too hard for the Army weenies to understand. So, the bus left the airport at 11:30pm, arrived at the base at 1am, and I scrambled to catch the 1:30am bus back to the airport, arriving at 3:30am. I hung out in the airport with some other Navy friends until our 7:45am flight.

Summary – I loathe the Army and am sooooo glad that I should never ever have to deal with that organization again! Or, to paraphrase the Army slogan, ‘There is Stupid, and then there is Army Stupid’. Indeed!

Navy did not exactly thrill me, either – they had me stop over in Bahrain on the way back from leave before heading to Yemen. At the time (on Sunday – three days earlier) it seemed prudent, since the embassy was closed, but by the time I was checking into my flight at Kuwait International on Wed morning, the embassy was open and there was really no good need to stop in Bahrain. However, I cancelled the second leg of my flight (to Sana’a, Yemen) and did indeed report to the HQ, just to find that it was in fact OK for me to go to Yemen. Net result – I spent one night in Bahrain (pretty much just caught up on sleep) and then caught a flight to Yemen the next day. Just a bit of hassle.

As I have been telling somewhat concerned family and friends, despite all of the news time being spent on Yemen, nothing has really changed here, except the government here launching a few attacks on AQ. Though that is significant, the rest of the story is old hat. And, just to give a bit of faith in your government and military, all of the stuff the talking heads and ‘experts’ (most who have never been here!) are saying is stuff that has been long known and been working. We know AQ is here, we know there are issues with the country, and we know that we have to help. All of the talk of increasing aid was mostly a done deal before Yemen became newsworthy. Indeed, even the visit by Gen Petraeus was planned before the Xmas incident – it just had to be postponed due to a schedule conflict. So, the news makes it seem like we suddenly realized that Yemen has issues and we should focus on it, but in reality we already were well aware and working it. Unfortunately, it also means that lots of people in DC, the Pentagon, and our big HQ in Tampa will start thinking that they need to ‘help’ us more, which usually means more short-notice taskers that add little value. And my first full day back validated that – they had us come in over our weekend (on Friday – which is our Sunday) so we could have a document in their e-mail on Friday morning in the US (Tampa) so they could look at it and process so they would not have to come in over their weekend. (we are 8 hours ahead of Tampa….) Pricks….

Finally, a couple of signs that my tour is drawing to a close. First, after I leave here, I have to spend a week in Gulfport, MS to ‘demobilize’ (transition off of active duty) then I have to spend a few days at my reserve center to become a reservist again, and then finally home! A year ago, I drilled in Fort Worth, TX so I went through there in March, and my orders had me going back there after Gulfport. However, since then, I changed reserve units / centers to one within an hour of my house. I was able to lobby the Navy to change my orders to send me there for the last few days instead of Ft Worth, so the net result is that I will arrive home almost a week early. It saves the Navy money, too – one less plane ticket, and no hotel bill. Can’t imagine the Army applying common sense like that.

Secondly, I booked my ticket from Yemen to Gulfport today! I now have an exact time and date – makes the end very concrete. So, still lots of work to do in the next couple of months, but I see the light at the end of the tunnel now!!!

Army Stupid, but home for the Holidays

2009-12-25T10:58:00.000-08:00

Am posting on holiday leave from home, enjoying the cold weather and the chaos that is my home. Had a great Christmas and New Year's - was a blessing to be here - and now am just enjoying the remaining day of vacation with the family. My parents flew out on Xmas day - somehow avoiding the 'blizzard' that hit much of the country - and spent a couple of days, which was a nice touch. Les and I were even able to get away for a night to relax and recharge. So, all in all, has been a great time.

Being home on leave reminds me of being on vacation, actually. You know that feeling where you are really enjoying yourself, yet you know in the back of your mind there is a clock ticking and in a few days, you will be getting back on the plane for reality. I want to fully reintegrate with the family, etc, but everyone knows that in a few days, I am back in Yemen and we will have to endure another three months of this. However, the upside is that this is the final goodbye - have done three of them already (two more than most people get!) so should not be so bad.

Another interesting side to this is that this leave is the longest I have been at home in many many years - cannot recall the last time I was at home for 15 consecutive days. Though Les and I are glad to see each other, going from 9 months of separation (with two visits in there) to 15 days of togetherness has not been entirely frictionless... On the balance though, it has been a great two weeks.

Getting here was a pain. The Army motto 'Army Strong' should be 'Army Stupid' - because the Army rises to a whole new level of stupidity. The Army runs the theater leave (R&R) program, and it is designed for folks in Iraq and Afghanistan. Basically, I left my apartment in Sana'a mid-day on Thursday the 17th. A Gulf Air flight to Bahrain, followed by another to Kuwait International was step one. After arriving at Kuwait, a bunch of us were met by an Army dude who loaded us on to busses to Camp Ali Al Salem where we spent the next 22 hours wasting a LOT of time, in true Army fashion. Then, a charter flight to Atlanta, via Leipzig, and then a Delta flight home - I arrived home at 3pm on Sat the 19th (EST) - almost 58 hours from door to door versus the normal 20 or so hours via commercial airlines. I also got very lucky. The Army books a commercial flight for you from Atlanta to home airport - I was booked for a 6pm flight - but I called from Kuwait and moved it up to noon (we arrived in Atlanta at 8:30 am...). A good thing I did it early, because when we landed, a snowstorm had closed airports from VA to New York, and the rebook lines were HUGE! As it was, my airport was still open, and my completely full flight made it on time.

Finally, I have noticed that Yemen has been in the news a lot since I have been home - very interesting hearing about it. Suddenly, my job makes for good party conversation, as nobody really knows about Yemen (nor did I know anything until a few months ago....). Just read some news that the embassy is closed today due to some threat, so maybe I will not be going directly back to Yemen. We'll see... will be an exciting last few months there, that is for sure.

It’s not just a job…

2009-12-13T08:10:00.001-08:00

It’s an adventure! Ah, the old Navy recruiting slogan – still my fave after all of the years. The latest is something like ‘ a global force for good’ or something silly like that – does not motivate me. Sounds like a weak ass Madison Avenue campaign – Don Draper would have gagged on it.

After experiencing rain TWICE in Bahrain in the space of a week, I came back to Sana’a in early December and landed at the end of a pouring rainstorm. Alas, has not rained since, but it was a nice change of pace. Have been out and about a lot since getting back, so will share a few adventures.

The hills around Sana’a – rugged, and very interesting. But, off-limits! I had pulled over to take these pics and as I was wrapping up I noticed a soldier (with an AK 47 assault rifle!) approaching my vehicle from behind. I quickly took off!

Sunset in Aden. A couple of days in Aden in early December was a nice treat – a warm climate – spent some time on the beach in shorts and a t-shirt. It was snowing back home in the US!

The Old City, Sana’a

Have been keeping busy since getting back from Bahrain. A couple of groups of visitors –between picking up, dropping off, and my own flights, I have been at Sana’a international airport 7 times in the last ten days. Besides hosting the guests here, I took them down to Aden to spend some time with the Yemen Coast Guard (YCG). The YCG treated us to a very nice traditional Yemeni dinner – at a nice outdoor restaurant right on the water. It was fire-baked fish plus a lot of breads and dips – all eaten with hands – and some delicious local honey. It was messy, but delicious.

Also took guests down to the Old City in Sana’a. There is a big market there (the souk), and can buy a lot of interesting stuff there. I bought some scarves for the wife, as well as a Jambiya (curved dagger) plus belt for myself.

The Jambiya Shop

At the Jambiya shop – putting the finishing touches on the belt. The man is wearing the traditional ‘thobe’ and sandals as well as his own belt and Jambiya. If you look closely, you can see a big bulge in his cheek – that is ‘qat’ – the local narcotic plant

Usually I take a local along, but today went down with my bud from Bahrain alone – he speaks Arabic so I felt fine. We did some shopping, and also we toured this old hotel – was built in a really old building and renovated to be a hotel. There was a rooftop coffee shop so we had some coffee while sitting outdoors overlooking the old city. Very nice. It was a bit spooky, as our guide led us through some narrow back alleys to get there, but all turned out fine. We also walked through a ‘qat’ market – qat is a narcotic plant that the locals chew. It is grown here and has to be chewn while fresh – the chemical in the plant decays quickly. So, it is bought fresh every day by the vast majority of the people in Yemen. The early pm is focused on chewing the qat – less work gets done then.

I had sort of thought I was anonymous in the big city, but am mistaken. I went to the Old City in late Oct with some guests, and we used a local guy to be our guide. They take you to shops after you tell them what you want to buy and they supposedly get you ‘good prices’. I tipped the guy nicely. I just went back in early December and I was not in the souk for more than a minute when the same guy found me and acted as my guide. (I had tried calling him to have him meet us, but he did not answer). The souk is a BIG place – though you do have to enter through one gate. Still, I thought it was freaky that he found me so fast. Then today, I had tried calling him for my visit but he did not answer. Again, not one minute in to the souk, a young boy came up, called our names (my friend from Bahrain used the same guide as I before), remembered an eerie amount of detail from the Oct visit, then proceeded to guide us. (he was a friend of our normal guide, who was home sleeping at the time apparently). The kid even waited for an hour while we toured the hotel and had coffee. Again, sort of spooky…

A few more days in the Yem, then home for R&R leave! The only downside is that I have to use the Army R&R program, so instead of flying directly home, I take a flight to Kuwait, and there go to an army base, get my uniform on, and hurry up and wait for a day or so until my military charter carries me home. Upsides are 1) it is free and 2) travel days do not count as leave – so I get 15 full days of leave at home. So, for a few extra days of leave (in effect) and saving $2200 on a ticket, I have to deal with Army BS a bit – including sleeping in a tent in Kuwait. Well worth it. Besides, will be able to razz the Army weenies about their recent loss to Navy in football…

Chillin’ in Bahrain

2009-11-27T11:59:00.001-08:00

In all honesty, sort of bored, actually. Am enjoying being back here – much more convenient than living in Sana’a, and my 15 minute walk to / from work is a relaxing break instead of the 30+ minute stressful commute. And oh my goodness, the choices in food – within 100 or so yards of the HQ is the ‘Freedom Souq’ – a building containing about every fast food place known to man, a small grocery store, a package store, a Target-like store, a gym, a barber… And if the food choices there are not enough, just off base is a street full of restaurants, a STARBUCKS!!!, and then about all US chains are here (Chilis. TGIF, Bennigans). I cannot say I have been eating healthy, but I have been eating well!

Of course, to balance it, I have been running a lot – ran almost an hour last night, then got up and did a 3K fun run at 6:30 am today. Nice being able to run outside – at the embassy it is either a treadmill or laps around the compound – 2 laps to the mile. Since the compound is on the side of hill, you are always either running uphill or downhill… 7200 foot altitude makes hills a challenge.

All that goodness aside, I am bored at work – staff work is dull now. But, have a new perspective – the job I do here has little if any impact on my future. From a Navy perspective, in five months I become a reservist again and this year interlude will have little effect. The two normal measurements of a tour’s success, the evaluation (FITREP in Navy jargon) and end of tour award will likely be average unless I either kill somebody or save somebody’s life. And, since I work in podunk Yemen, far away from the HQ, I am not on the Admiral’s radar screen, so expect both actually to be slightly below average – just the way it is. So, I will work hard and do my best, but will not kill myself. Instead, I will have some fun and improve myself (education, fitness) .

And, this year is basically a year off the corporate ladder – though I am not 'in play’ and losing ground slightly to my peers, I do have a pretty good excuse and it should not be held against me. Basically, this is a year break from the rat race. Mind you, that is me straining hard to find a silver lining to this – on the other hand will have missed 1/3 of youngest daughter’s life to date. When I left, she was sleeping in a crib and wearing diapers –now she is potty trained and sleeps in a bed. Amazing how fast they change at that age…

Finally, a couple of Bahrain pics – nothing exciting.

The skyline in Juffair, near the base, looking to the north. Note there are at least five cranes visible, and the dark building on far right is also under construction. Oddly enough, the gas station in the foreground has been ‘under construction’ since I arrived here in April. There are only a couple of gas stations in Juffair… sort of a pain. Also, I used to live back in this area – if you look closely in the center there is a sign for ZUBARA PLAZA II – I lived next door to that for about 4 months. Less than 10 years ago, this was all ocean.

Turning around, looking to the south – mostly completed buildings. ‘American Alley’ is about a block in that direction, then the base. Mostly apartment buildings.

The ‘Donut of Despair’ – a graphical depiction of my time complete and time remaining. Not quite 2/3 yet, but getting close. NOT that I track this in Excel or anything… After tomorrow is done, I will have completed EIGHT months of the deployment, with 4 1/2 to go.

A bit of a break

2009-11-20T12:06:00.001-08:00

Am on a bit of a break from The Yemen and am relaxing in a hotel in Bahrain. Am here to cover for someone who is on leave for Thanksgiving, so am working in the old office again. Sort of strange to suddenly be back in the old job, but at the same time a bit has changed since I left. After 10 weeks in Sana’a, Bahrain is a pleasant treat. It is sooo nice to walk to work again, and to be able to shop and dine without issue. I am in Juffair – a new neighborhood in Manama, Bahrain that was mostly reclaimed from the sea in the last decade and is currently a mix of new 10-15 story apartment buildings plus restaurants and stores – that or cranes building new complexes. On the other hand, Sana’a is all older buildings, with a bit of new construction and modernity, but it has been settled for well over 1500 years…

I lived in this building during most of my stay in Bahrain. You can see a newer building going up behind it, and the open lots in the foreground will soon host construction as well. A decade ago, this was all ocean.

Sana’a - a mix of worlds – the latest cell phone billboard and a bunch of men with picks and shovels hoping to be hired for day labor

I love this building – a mix of classical Yemen architecture and modern conveniences

The small USMC det at the embassy (they guard it) threw a USMC Birthday ball recently – celebrating the 234rd B-day of The Corps. It was the social event of the season, and was a really good time. It was professionally catered, and they even found a DJ who had western songs. (NOT Country Western…) It was a good time.

Dancing the night away at the USMC Birthday Ball.

I read a really good book called ‘The Candy Bombers’ a few months ago, is a good story about the Berlin Airlift and how the experience transformed the relationship between the US and Germany. One of the pilots took to dropping candy to the kids of Berlin, and it eventually expanded to a large scale, organized operation. My tiny version thereof is to give Lego kits to kids here. I bought 25 kits (<$5 each), and then for some reason Lego shipped the order twice… (Since shipping them back from Yemen would cost more than the value of the order, I opted to keep the second order as well.) I have been handing the kits out to kids on the street – especially the ones at work selling bottled water, etc. They are generally confused by the gift – English writing and they probably have never seen Legos before! Am just hoping they don’t open the kits on the sidewalk and lose all of the pieces… Mind you, they probably need other things more, but it is my very little attempt to improve the lives of a few Yemenis.

Lego kits for distribution

That’s about it – not a lot of new and exciting stuff to post. A few more days here, then back to the Yemen for a bit, then 17 days of R&R leave at home over the holidays! Then I come back to Yemen and will have about three months left before this is year of fun is over. Though not quite at the 2/3 point, it is nice to be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel!

It just keeps getting better….

2009-10-30T10:38:00.001-07:00

My first blogging from Yemen. For one, I am hesitant to say too much in an open forum like this – never know who is reading it. That, and I finally have internet in my living quarters – after 45 some days here. It was difficult being isolated that way – yes, I could use it at work – but not the same. Plus, it was the primary communication path with the wife – hour-long daily chat sessions and free phone calls via Skype. Without that, we resorted to daily e-mails and occasional text messages and phone calls, though at $3.49 a minute, we did not do that much. Not the same. Of course, in the last month we both got used to having that hour each day free, so some adaptation is necessary. A very minor cloud on a big silver lining!

I also finally received my rental vehicle. I had been using a mix of bumming rides, taking a shuttle, and borrowing a vehicle from the office. Now, I have wheels – very nice at that – and my new ride has a functional CD player in it – so this morning I was cranking The Beatles. (side note – was enjoying new found internet to look for Rubber Soul and Sgt Pepper’s… on iTunes and they are not there yet – foiled!) So, the little things in life. And, am actually getting somewhat used to driving. The locals are still crazy, but there are some basic rules and I have sort of figured them out.

Strangely enough, am really starting to like Yemen. It is a ruggedly beautiful place, and the people are growing on me. To make very broad generalizations (being such there are numerous exceptions) my impression of a lot of the Middle East is that too many people over here have had too much money given to them without a lot of work. Not so the Yemenis. Also a land of strange contrasts – lots of dangerous things on the streets, (drivers, see below) but at the same time police here are cracking down – saw police on street corners checking people for seat belts…

One way to travel – in the trunk! Not the first time I have seen this… (mind you, I have done this – but only for a short distance to sneak into a drive-in – and we had the trunk closed!)

Usual scene at ‘stoplights’ – while you wait, people try and sell you things – boxes of tissue and water bottles being the most common, but toys, newspapers, etc… Also beggars. Often little kids, and they walk between lanes of traffic – that start moving with them still in the middle.

The Saleh mosque, recently constructed and named after the president. This picture does not really capture the beauty of the place

Though this is a new mosque, I was in Old Town last week and my ‘guide’ pointed out one of the two oldest mosques in the world – is over 1400 years old and still is being used. I will have more to talk about when I go shopping in Old Town again in the near future.

That’s about it – month SEVEN is done, with just a smidge over 5 to go. I just swapped e-mails with the guy who will be taking my place, so am starting to feel short… and the Q-tip box (#2) is already missing two dozen – another visible sign of progress.

A brief taste of civilization

2009-10-13T06:57:00.000-07:00

I am on a plane heading back to my home away from home in Yemen. A short-notice trip back to the US for a conference and then a long weekend of leave is over, and am on the second of five flights on the 36 hour marathon back to Sana'a. Delta has in-flight WiFi so I can blog from 35,000 feet - which is nice.

I was tapped to go to a conference in Tampa for a week. Tampa happens to be home to the US HQ for the Middle East, also known as US CENTRAL COMMAND or CENTCOM for short. The Navy's HQ for the region is Bahrain, but most of the other services have their HQs back in the US. There are pros and cons to each approach. I met some of the Navy guys at the main HQ and one of them was showing me this PowerPoint illustrating the status of the naval forces in the area and I had to hold in a laugh, since it was something they asked Bahrain to do for them when I was there. We thought it was a stupid request but did it, so it was interesting seeing how the home HQ was proud of their creation... and being very familiar with the Iraqi Navy, it was fun to pick it apart, as the guy had never set foot in Iraq nor actually seen the Iraqi Navy...

After the conference, I flew home for the three day weekend and am now heading back to Tampa to catch my flight back to Yemen. Two flights to get back down to Tampa, just to catch a flight to DC to hop the bird to the Middle East. I called United to see if I could fly direct from home to DC rather from home to Tampa (via Cincinnati) and then to DC, (and leave home at 1pm instead of 4:30am) but it was $657 extra for that option.... so here I am on leg 2. Minor upside is that on the first flight, I happened to sit next to one of the ESPN football personalities so was able to talk a bit about the MNF game and the Wildcat offense. On this trip, I was home for two MNF games, which was a pleasant treat - plus ESPN and all of the hype that goes with it. Now back to Orbit TV and one NFL game a week on Sunday, and no ESPN or MNF. But, I can watch all the soccer I want...

It was great to see the family again and catch up on honey-do projects. I surprised the kids this time, and the way it worked out I was able to surprise each of them individually. It was tough to leave again, but I know this was an extra special bonus and I have leave coming up in a couple of months, and am past the halfway point, so... (and, have started working the second Q-tip box!). Plus, I know what I am going back to in Yemen, now - no surprises or unknowns - so it is just going back to the same old job. When I left from my leave six weeks ago, Yemen was a vague unknown. So, any stress is gone.

We did not do too much - a bit of shopping, dining out, took the kids to the beach (it was too cold...), and went to a party at the in-laws - was nice to see everyone again. Again, some house projects to take care of, and I think I took care of everything reasonable.

Starting the approach to Tampa, so am going to sign off. A last few hours of civilization to savor before heading to the Middle East.

Driving – it is like Outback …

2009-10-05T18:34:00.001-07:00

The restaurant that is – the chain with the ‘no rules…’ motto. That pretty much sums up driving in Yemen. If there are rules, they are NOT enforced. In all truth, there is no ‘drivers license’ process here – if you are old enough to sit in a car and drive, you can drive here – no test, no license. Just get in and drive.

The first few days here were VERY intimidating. Though Bahraini drivers are crazy by Western standards, they are absolutely tame in comparison to the Yemenis. I have to drive across town to get to where I work everyday – 30 minutes on a good day, more like an hour on a less good day – so it is not like Bahrain where I walked everywhere. It was a mix of shock – seeing how they drive here – and the normal worry of having to learn a new city and how to get around – in a place where there are few streets signs. Oddly enough, most streets have several names anyhow, so maps and street signs are rarely in agreement.

The biggest wild card is the taxis. Not only are there normal cabs, there are zillions of mini-buses (think a VW microbus, though made by Toyota) that drive around with the right rear slide door open. They drive around and pick people up and drop them off randomly – and they are very aggressive drivers.

Typical mini-bus… they randomly change lanes to keep things interesting

Stoplights and lanes. Two things that as an American, you tend to obey. Not so here. When stoplights work, they are pretty much ignored. Lanes? Ha! A common technique is for drivers to straddle the lane marker so as to leave their options open. Weaving back and forth (no signals or checking blind spot!) is also common. So, just because the car in front of you is in the other lane, it does not mean you can assume it will stay there. Drivers here tend to use their horn a lot – one common technique is a quick tap as you come alongside another vehicle so they know you are there. For lane changes, I learned the ‘mirror, signal, blind spot, and then change lanes’ method in school – here it is ‘change lanes, listen for someone honking if they are in your blind spot’.

But, like everything else in life, you get used to it.

Life in my new home.

2009-10-04T11:21:00.001-07:00

My leave is long over – it was a GREAT time – and I am back in the Middle East. After a few days in Bahrain to wrap things up, I moved to Sana’a, Yemen to complete the rest of my tour. I am working at an Embassy, and now work with the Yemeni Coast Guard and Navy. This was my original set of orders – I knew the day I received the call that I was coming here, though Bahrain put me on Iraq to fill a gap.

Scenic Old Town Sana’a, Yemen

Where is Yemen? Frankly I did not know much about the place until I arrived. I did know that USS Cole was bombed here in 2000, and that a lot of the folks in Gitmo come from here. It is on the end of the Arabian peninsula and shares most of its border with Saudi Arabia and a bit with Oman. It has a long coastline, with both Red Sea and Gulf of Aden coasts. And, there is a straits here – right across from there is Somalia. The waters in question are currently a hotbed of piracy – Somalia is best qualified as a failed state, so piracy is a way to make money and there is really no central government to stop people.

Yemen is rather mountainous, and Sana’a is 7200 feet up, so despite being south of Saudi Arabia, it is actually pleasant here year round. The altitude has also affected my workouts – much harder to run with the thinner air – but am starting to get used to it.

If you watch right news, you might hear about Yemen in the news. There is a bit of a war going on north of here – the government is in a fight with rebels. There is also a secessionist movement in the south part of the country (it used to be an independent nation), and Al Qaeda calls this place home as well. Very interesting…

Am slowly adapting to life in Yemen. Like my first few days in Bahrain, am getting used to it. Yemen is different in a LOT of ways. It is a much more conservative country – certainly no clubs or bars here – and the dress codes for the population are much more strict. Also, there is a bit more of a threat here than in Bahrain – Al Qaeda tends to hang out here and there are periodic attacks on the embassy and other Western facilities. So, all of the normal security briefings take on a much more relevant sense than one for Bahrain, for example.

One of the big changes in working in an embassy. At a military command, you are pretty much surrounded by military people with a smattering of civilian workers. In an embassy, however, most of the staff is civilian – a lot of Dept. of State and USAID workers, with a small military group. Thus, the politics and norms are different from that of a military post. Not better, not worse – just different and I have to learn the politics. Slightly more complex than a pure military place,..

One of the more interesting aspects of life here is the ‘highlight’ of the week – the one hour per week when the embassy commissary (store) opens. It essentially just sells booze - lots of it. Though you are limited to how much you can buy, it is still quite a lot. Given the security situation, folks tend to hole up at night – not

I have not interacted too much with the locals yet, but the seem very interesting. As a traditional Muslim country, Yemeni women dress from head to toe in a robe – usually black. There is a small slit for the eyes, and that is it. The men tend to dress in a white robe and sandals with a wool sport coat (essentially) over it, sometimes with a head dress. They also wear a decorated, wide leather belt and in the belt they wear a ‘jambiya’ – a curved dagger in a decorated sheath.

Yemeni men in traditional clothing

The BIG thing for the Yemenis is QAT – it is a plant (grown here) that they chew and it apparently is some sort of narcotic. The start chewing in the afternoon and that is pretty much their afternoon. It has to be bought fresh every day – the key ingredients dissipate shortly after harvesting – so it has to be fresh. It is sold in cellophane bags, and there are literally billions of discarded bags on the streets – everywhere.

Channel Fever, Baby!

2009-08-20T10:26:00.001-07:00

On deployments in the Navy, one of the ‘issues’ with coming home is ‘channel fever’. As the boat gets close to home, excitement rises and usually the last night at sea you have a hard time sleeping. Am there.

Also completed a last trip to Iraq. Was a good time, as I attended another Iraqi Navy ceremony (Iraqi Navy day) and said goodbye to a few friends I have made in their Navy. Sort of bittersweet – just getting to know them and it is time to move on. We then went up to Baghdad for a day, then up north to Balad airbase. The trip also marked my last rides in Army Blackhawks (helo) and C-130s (a good thing!)

On both C-130 legs, the planes had issues and had to sit for while, engines running, to cool the engines down. While the engines are too hot, they cannot run a/c packs, so the normally stifling back end turns into a sauna. In body armor and helmet, it IS literally a sauna – sweat just pours off of you and soaks your clothes. (nobody passed out on either flight, however). I was a bit nervous after our takeoff for home was stopped and we went back to the ramp to sit, but after about an hour and twenty, we rolled back out and took off for home.

Today I went outside on the way to work and noticed three unusual things - (1) real clouds in the sky – even covered the sun (2) they brought oppressive humidity – 100F plus 80%+ humidty = sauna… and (3) a pack of about 14 dogs crossed my path. They ignored me, however. It is hotter in Iraq – was 120+ my last day, but the humidity here kills. That, and it is Ramadan now => no shorts, and short sleeves are frowned upon. My clothes are pretty sweaty after a 20 minute walk in that kind of heat.

Yours truly in an Army Blackhawk Helo over southern Iraq

The coffee guy. He had one cup and everyone would drink from the same cup. Local tradition – but I passed, not wanting to get H1N1 the same week I am supposed to fly home!

Parade is over.

The parade, including girls throwing rose petals

Included a boat parade and swimmers!

Leaving Umm Qasr, Iraq – the ditch below is the Iraq-Kuwait border (Iraq side)

At Camp Victory in Baghdad on a lovely summer morning

Inside opulent Al Faw Palace, now US HQ

One of many CHU-towns on base

Late afternoon over Baghdad. Earlier in the day, explosions rocked the city, but we were on the other side of town and did not hear

Night test-fire of a CRAM gun – originally on ships to shoot down incoming missiles, they now are mounted on bases to shoot down incoming rockets and such. VERY loud!

Lego-man and I chillin, drinking coffee at Balad airbase in Iraq – my last morning in Iraq. It was over 100F at 7am, too…

Planes, helos, and MRAPS

2009-08-01T11:32:00.001-07:00

Traveling in a Iraq is not an easy mission – cannot simply get a commercial flight in to Baghdad International Airport (BIAP) (I did check Kayak…), nor can you hop in a car and drive across town to pick your friend up from the airport – is just a bit more complicated than that. Well, they are starting commercial air service between Bahrain and Baghdad, but sort of hard to travel with body armor and a 9mm on a commercial flight…

Color- coordinated luggage and protective gear – stylish yet effective

Wrecked Iraqi tanks outside BIAP – now just a tour stop

I generally travel with a ‘DV’ – aka a distinguished visitor – so I see the higher end side of things. DVs generally don’t have to wait for hours for a flight, or hope space is available – they show up and the airplane or helo is waiting. VERY nice. People cater to you. I saw a bit of what life was like without the DV edge when I went out to the OPLATs in May – still very nice, but the schedule is not tailored to minimize your waiting time, nor is customer service a goal.

For example, getting to Baghdad – we took a low-end biz jet – a little six seater – from here to BIAP (Baghdad Int’l Airport) – a nice direct flight. We also took Army Blackhawk helos to get around the country. Though weather was a problem on one day, generally the DV shows up and the helo is there waiting.

On Blackhawks, there are good seats and bad seats – and it pays to know the difference. On a couple of the flights, I was in the worst seat – rear right side. If they have the ‘passenger’ windows off, your are essentially directly in the wind blast and it can be pretty heinous. Sort of like sticking your head out of a car window at 120 mph. Simple rule – don’t turn your head – as long as you are looking straight ahead you are ok, but turn your head and wind blows your mouth open and spit flies and your nose runs and it blows all over… just face forward. You figure that out quickly.

Great view … with a price. I held on to the camera for dear life. Iraq, just north of Baghdad.

Mind you, there is a hierarchy of DVs. Baghdad is a popular place – lots of higher ranking DVs to bump you. For example, retired 3 and 4 stars, current 3 and 4 stars, CODELS – aka Congressional Delegations – even celebrities – one plan to go to Baghdad was thwarted because Colbert was there to tape his show and it tied up a lot of assets. Stuff happens.

However, not every trip is great. We had to take a regular C-130 shuttle down to an airbase in south Iraq, and then I was able to appreciate the crappy side of travel. First, you had to be there three hours before flight time, so I was dropped off at the terminal to camp out while the rest of our group did meetings. NOT like an normal terminal – no food service or entertainment, just a room of plastic chairs and a crappy TV. Only upside was free bottled water. Lots of dudes sleeping on the concrete floor, waiting to get on other ‘space A’ flights (hoping to get on a plane…) Of course, the plane was late, so after I had made a bunch of frantic phone calls to get the boss there for the flight, we sat… and sat. There was a dining facility a couple hundred yards away, but they did not want us leaving the terminal because the flight was due ‘any time now’. I ended up running (literally…) over to grab some snack food and Gatorade, just in case.

That is one thing we are crappy at as a military – treating people like human beings when traveling. It is amazing what we expect people to put up with.

SO, after a lot of waiting and a lot of misinformation, plane arrives and we file out in a line to board – in full body armor w/ helmet – and carrying your own baggage. Seats in back of a C-130 are NOT like a commercial airliner – essentially long benches so you sit sideways facing the other bench. Benches (really, web strap bench – sort of like 1970s lawn chairs) were so close together that you had to negotiate with the person sitting across from you where to put legs – not enough leg space to sit directly across …. And you load up, sit down, strap in, and wait for almost an hour in the steaming hot back end of the C-130, no wind / no A/C, sweating your ass off in full body armor and helmet on a hot summer Baghdad day. We finally took off, and it got a bit cooler – but still very sauna like. Managed to doze / listen to Ipod, though was still sweating. We were smart enough to grab water, so we were OK. But about 45 minutes into the flight, this big Army dude stands up and then his eyes roll back into his head and he collapses due to heat and dehydration. A corpsman comes jumping through to take care of him – the only good side being we had to stand to get out of the way – which was good because my ass was killing me due the the web seat. I donated my remaining water bottle to him, and he woke up and felt better. We then touched down (more on that later) in Basra to drop some folks off and pick others up – same sauna like effect sitting in the 120 heat. Then on the second hop, an Army dude sitting right across from me – who was complaining of a headache due to not eating all day (it was 1pm) – was looking really bad. We gave him the rest of our trail mix and Gatorade. Thought he was ok – until he threw up into the trail mix bag. Luckily, it was contained. Just then, we started out decent into Tallil airbase – and I mean DESCENT. They don’t fly nice gradual flight paths – it felt like a roller coaster – must have dropped like a rock because the pullout felt like to bottom of a roller coaster for about 30 seconds – that heavy feeling in your stomach... That, the stifling hot air, and the guy yakking right next to me did not help my stomach… but no sympathy yakking. And, there was an Army LtCol – a Medical dude – sitting two seats away – and he didn’t do jack… The more I deal with the Army, the more I have negative to say…

Last interesting ride was in an MRAP – and I talked about that a few posts ago. A big armored truck. A bit more real, as convoys still get hit, but this was a short, uneventful trip.

One small field of vehicles – taken from a UK vehicle

Finally, sometimes you get awed by the scale of the whole thing. Were driving about one of the bases and there were fields full of Hummers, tanks, and assorted armored vehicles – hundreds of them. Then, there were even bigger fields of the scrapped remains of the old Iraqi army - acres and acres of scrap trucks, tanks, cars, artillery – even jet planes – just bulldozed into piles . It was amazing how much junk there was.

Even the Army can have a sense of humor - once in a while (read the Camp Slayer sign…)

Close, yet so so far

2009-08-01T11:06:00.001-07:00

Passed through the monthly ‘what I was doing X months ago at 12:04’ point – which means it has been just over six months ago that I received the phone call, and have been away from home four months now. Was not doing anything exciting, just walking out of the grocery store on the way home – which is symbolic in a way of this tour. At first was now new and exciting, now it is just a job. Strange how you get used to things, but this seems like my ‘normal’ life now… though only have been in Bahrain three months. The upside for me is that in a few weeks, I am done in Bahrain and after a few days at home, I get to live a new existence for the rest of the tour – breaks it up nicely.

Older three kids are at their grandparents for a few days, and Les’ sister took the youngest for the weekend, so Les was able to experience a bit of solitude – good for her. I think my biggest issue going home will be losing the total control I have over my time right now – I pretty much do what I want when I want. (Obviously, I have to go to work and all, but the rest of the time is mine – no kids, housework, etc). That and the chaos – a solitary apartment is quiet and orderly – no kids fighting / crying / yelling, etc. Conversely, Les will have to deal with me intruding on her order and discipline at home. Still, I look forward to going home.

Things are still going well with the homefront. Have evolved from phone calls to Facebook chat. Not sure why – I think chat is a lower bandwidth activity – you can chat and yet be doing other things that you could not do on phone. We don’t chat every day, but some days it is twice a day – up to a couple of hours – so the contact is pretty good. Or, there will not be a lot of catching up to do, as I am pretty much in the day to day loop. Also still Skype home to the kids once a week, but other than saying ‘hi’ they are really not into it. Good that they are getting independent.

Starting to pack and ship my ‘extras’ – stuff that I have bought out here and cannot fit in my suitcases. A downside of my next stop is there is not a lot of civilization – no UPS / Fedex store nearby like here, so no shipping / receiving stuff. I came over with just two duffel bags and a back pack, but have added a few things – mostly clothes. And, where I am going, wearing a uniform will be a rarity – I will be normally in business attire (or at least business casual). Translation – everything I brought here I am pretty much sending back.

That’s about it – about to the 1/3 point, which feels good yet still hard to believe have to do this much twice again. Oh well, I know that I could have it far far worse over here. I still have an Iraq trip posting to finish, so a flurry of activity then things may be pretty quiet on the blog front – not really sure I want to blog from my next location.

Random Musings

2009-07-26T10:51:00.001-07:00

When I was first talking to my sponsor about coming to Bahrain, I was sort of taken aback by the discussions of ‘walking 15 minutes to work’. Not the distance / time aspect, but I sort of had this vision of walking through a Hollywood-esque ‘Arab city’ with teeming back alleys, crowds, etc. Admittedly, there are portions of Manama that are a bit like that, and my first apartment required me to walk through some. However, my current living arrangement reminds me a lot of college, in an odd way. As I have stated in prior posts, the biggest dangers are construction sites and crazy drivers.

Ramadan is coming up – a month long Islamic religious observance that is in the ninth LUNAR month of every year, so the date on our calendar changes every year since it is NOT based on the lunar year. (it moves up about 10 days each year). Basically, all Muslims (with a few exceptions – e.g. pregnant women) must completely fast from sunrise to sunset and be spiritually pure. No smoke, no whoopie - cannot even drink water. There are also more prayers, etc. From a US perspective, it means that our counterparts here work till mid-day at the latest, then the go home and rest and pray. Thus, it is good not to plan much during this month, which this year happens to start on Aug 20th or so. The upshot for me is a lot of meetings, visits, etc get crammed into my last few weeks in Bahrain… so much for coasting. On the upside, my shot at going home for a week off is looking better – a big upside as the ‘days away from home’ counter ticks past 120.

As visitors to an Islamic country, we generally do not have to follow these rules, but policy here is to maintain a low profile, dress conservatively (long pants, no shorts / swim trunks off base – even for exercise – which will be tough because August is toasty here), and no public consumption of food or drink – even water. Apparently the law is pretty strict – last year a couple of guys from India working construction were busted drinking water in public during the day and were arrested and deported… It is only a month.

Other than that, not much to post – no travel in July, and the job is just a job – nothing blog-worthy. Have been learning about my next duty station and it is just a bit less civilized than Bahrain. Frankly, I may not blog a whole lot about my next stop ‘til after I leave… To share a bit of gallows humor, the guy who covers the country from Bahrain – who travels there quite a bit – and I are working on our ‘last words’ just in case we end up on one of those videos with a bunch of guys in masks and AK-47s shouting ‘Allah Akbar’ as they cut a hostage’s head off. Always good to have those words rehearsed, just in case – you only get one shot at yelling them. Again, mostly gallows humor, but there are still plenty of places in the world where evil people live.

Day 100 has come and gone

2009-07-10T11:19:00.001-07:00

With only 280 or so to go… Well, it seemed like a big milestone at the time… The Q tip box is getting emptier, but there is still a long long way to go. On the upside, I have a good shot at getting back home for a few days later in the summer, so life is good.

My newest friends – the ‘mad dogs’ of Bahrain. Actually, they only bark when you approach them – and I just generally bark back and keep walking on my way.

Am well past the halfway point - in my stay in Bahrain. Have made a bunch of new friends, including the neighborhood wild dogs. There are open fields all around my complex (by fields I mean sand and rock – not grass) and the dogs hang out there once in awhile. The first time I saw them, it was still dark as I was trudging to work to catch a 6am flight to Iraq, so it was a bit spooky… Now I know they are there and as long as you do not get too close to them, they ignore you.

Just protecting the mama…

Still cannot get over how much construction there is here. The part of Bahrain I live in is a suburb of Manama called ‘Juffair’. The land around where I live was reclaimed from the sea (i.e. they dumped a lot of sand and rock on the ocean floor to make new land), and it is CRAZY how much construction is going on here. There are at least eight cranes / new buildings going up within a block of my place, and pretty much everywhere you look there are several cranes. Of course, I hope this place is not near a fault line, as the combo of reclaimed land and local construction practices would lead to a lot of piles of rubble with even a mild earthquake (just my opinion….). Not much OSHA here, for sure – the sidewalk I take to work has been ripped up for construction for the better part of a month, and there are no barriers or anything. I also walk by a construction site – a new 15 story building being built next to the sidewalk – and there is nothing protecting people on the ground from falling debris / tools / work materials. Needless to say, my head is on a swivel walking by… Finally, one of the many construction sites had a little accident – they poured the second floor concrete slab and later that night it collapsed. Luckily, nobody was injured, but could have been a mess had it happened during the day.

But, that’s about it for me. I have one more post on my last Iraq trip, and then things will be quiet for a while as my July Iraq trip was cancelled (boss needed to be elsewhere) and my life is pretty much in ‘Groundhog Day’ mode. I’m just keeping busy between the job, working out, reading, school (Arabic class and a graduate class at Naval Postgrad School about space / satellites) and a bit of social life. Nothing blogworthy…

The one where I talk about what I was doing X months ago at this date / time…

2009-07-03T08:23:00.001-07:00

Sort of. Actually what I was doing at 7:05pm June 29th was sort of dull – walking back to my apartment from work / spinning class. (my new hobby). Headed to same bar I went to on my last ‘this date’ post for a going away party – six guys from our group are leaving and we had a little shindig for them. I did not drink this time…

BUT, what I was doing exactly 5 months and one day after I received the call was pretty cool. I had taken a USAF biz jet from Bahrain to Basra, Iraq to pick up three folks – one Brit and two Iraqis – to take back to Bahrain. Very cool in that I was the only passenger in a six seat biz jet on the flight up – my once in a lifetime ‘Trump’ moment. Almost as cool was the flight taking off from Bahrain as soon as I was ready – no waiting as a pseudo-DV. Anyhow, we land in Basra (an hour early) and the place is essentially a ghost town – just three Iraqi airfield workers who were there to see if we needed gas and they knew nothing about our passengers to be.

Ghost town, Basra International Airport. Just to the right of this is the deserted commercial airline passenger terminal. Langoliers, anyone?

The two pilots also knew nothing – and it was their first time in Basra. I tried calling, but my cell phone would not call reliably, and the Iraqi's cell phone was not answering. NOT a warm fuzzy. So, I walk over to the air traffic control tower – past the ubiquitous Ugandan security guards – and wander around the mostly deserted building to the top of the tower and find two Iraqis working – a control tower for an essentially deserted airfield. They knew nothing either, as did the two US guys who showed up. I then wandered back to the jet and the Brit had shown up, and he had a bit of news about the Iraqis…so we waited, for a good hour. Again, cell phones would not work, though I was able to send / receive texts from the wife nicely! But, the Iraqis did show up – pretty much on time. We hopped on the plane and had a nice night flight out of Basra. A couple of notes about that. First, you don’t take off from Iraq like you do elsewhere – there is a lot of maneuvering until you get up to a safe altitude – still folks out there with Surface to Air missiles…. Second – Basra at night looked like any US city from the air – though I did notice some rolling blackouts as the strained Iraqi power grid struggled with 120 heat and a lot of a/c units.

My ride, getting fueled up, in Basra, Iraq. The Brit had arrived by this time, so I was greatly relieved at this point.

The other interesting part of the day was that is was ‘Freedom Day’ in Iraq – our troops pulled out of the cities, and there were celebrations in many places. Side note – there was some mixup on the date – Iraqis thought we would be out 12:01 am on the 30th (midnite on the 29th) – we thought it meant 11:59pm on the 30th – a 24 hour difference. Once we realized the mixup, we honored the Iraqi understanding.

Not as ominous as you may suspect – just an oil well in southern Iraq burning off natural gas. Natural gas comes out with the oil normally, and since they have no easy way to collect, process, and transport the gas, they just burn it – you see it all over. Common practice – Nigerian oil platforms will burn off some 850 BILLION cubic feet of gas in a year – enough to heat every home in the US for the month of January!

Back to the rest of the week… once I got the Iraqis to Bahrain, I had to manage their events for their three day stay – ALL aspects of it – customs, visas, hotels, pay, meetings, tours, translators, etc etc. Not rocket science, but a lot of pesky details. And, I had to drive them around as well – made me a bit nervous as I had not driven in Bahrain yet… but it turned out well. Sort of fun, actually, first time driving a car since late March.

Had a nice dinner with my Iraqi counterpart – with a translator to help. (he is starting to learn English, and I am starting to learn Arabic, so we could say a few words to each other – mostly greetings and small talk). We had a lot of similarities – about the same age, same rank, he has three boys about the same age as my older three who love soccer…. he is a head coach but can never find enough time to do it regularly… I can relate.

Why are we hosting folks from the Iraqi Navy? Simple – it is called ‘Theater Security Cooperation’ - it is my job. For a variety of reasons, it is good to have regular interactions with Navies around the world. You build relationships with your counterparts, work together in exercises, train together, swap people (e.g. have foreign sailors come ride your ships and vice versa), and just get to know each other. Then, if something bad happens (natural disaster, conflict, etc) in the area, you have counterparts you personally know that you can call and work with, and your Navies can work together. Always good to have a personal relationship – same reason in my civilian job it was good to travel to see my customers once in a while. Phones and video teleconferences are useful, but it easier to work with someone after you know them personally and have had a couple dinners together to get to know each other. And frankly, some problems are easier solved in a room face to face, rather than over weeks of painful group meetings…

Anyhow, as the US pulls out of Iraq over the next couple of years, we are working to transition the relationship from trainers (and invaders) to regional partners. That is the gist of my job for the Iraqi Navy. And, it is incredibly cool… just had a US ship (minesweeper) do an overnight port visit in Umm Qasr, Iraq and am planning lots of things like that in the future. And no, it is not about the freakin’ oil. Yes, we want stable oil sources (as does the rest of the world..), and a stable Iraq helps there, but if you read the news about the recent oil contracts let by Iraq, you will notice that US companies get no favors – was a process driven by business and business only. (and, if you read a bit more, a Chinese company just bought a Brit company that has oil contracts in northern Iraq… not exactly something we would allow if we were pulling the strings in Baghdad!). It would be nice if Iraq turns out to be a nice stable friendly democracy, but the fact is it will turn out how Iraqis want it to turn out…

Finally, did anyone catch the subtle ‘Friends’ reference in the title?

Maa Salaama!

Evil Disneyland

2009-06-25T21:14:00.001-07:00

The title refers to the vibe I received while touring Camp Victory / Camp Slayer in Baghdad. These two bases are adjacent to Baghdad International Airport (BIAP) and are on the outskirts of the city. Saddam apparently built this area as sort of a Camp David – a retreat for him and his Baath party faithful to get away from Baghdad periodically and ho’ it up. Sort of like Disneyland, he had his crews dig some artificial lakes, built some pretty cool buildings around the periphery, added palm trees and other greenery, and created a very artificial environment. However, Walt and Co just empty your wallet – Saddam took it a couple of steps further.

You can see the downside of being a terrorizing dictator in that nobody is willing to say your ideas are dumb. For example, Saddam built a building for his personal ‘attendants’ not too far from Al Faw Palace. Looks reasonable from here….

Of course, if you zoom in, you can see the ‘detail’ in the railing – hearts and Saddam’s initials. I guess if you are going to be crazy, be bat-shit crazy – no need to go half assed. Sort of suspect his concubines were not going to make fun of it, nor would his buddies…

However, Saddam did not just think of himself, he also build a ‘ho palace for his sons and Baath party faithful. It is now known as the ‘Perfume Palace’. One way to keep the party faithful to you.

A slightly more scenic view, showing some of the waterworks constructed

Mind you, not every building was left unscathed during the war – though the number of pristine palaces makes one wonder if some Army staff was already planning future HQ’s and told the USAF ‘don’t bomb that one’… But some they did - the one below was where they made the opening strike when they thought they could take out Saddam and Co…

Hmm.. doesn’t look too bad… maybe a few touch ups…

Except this side was sort of destroyed – and so was the other

No tour today.

My personal fave was the ‘Victory over America’ Palace – built surrounding the ‘Victory over Iran’ Palace. It was under construction when the war broke out, and was never finished. Oh, and those cranes apparently belong to a French construction company (go figure…) and they want the US to pay to ship them back. It has been six years, and they are still there..

Not quite finished…

However, in the truly insane department, there is ‘Flintstone Palace’. I heard a couple different versions of WHY he built it, but first, apparently Saddam and his grandkids loved ‘The Flintstones’. So, he built them a replica Flintstone village to play in. The link above describes it far better than I will… The alternate story goes as follows: a couple of Saddam’s daughters fled Iraq with their husbands to Jordan – they might have coughed up some details of Saddam’s WMD program if I recall correctly. After a while, the wives grew homesick, and pined to return to Iraq. Of course, Saddam promised them amnesty… and so the silly husbands believed it. Shortly thereafter, Saddam executed the husbands, and to repay the grandkids for killing their dads, he built this. (the part about the dads is true, not sure about the palace part – but it has a more evil ring to it)

A distant shot – the link above has some better shots. I did walk around it and it is pretty cool, in an insane way. Yabba Dabba Doo!

No trip to Evil Disneyland would be complete without a shot in front of the guy who created it.

And to top it off, inside Al Faw Palace. Looks fantastic from a distance. Lots of marble and columns and beautiful ceilings and chandeliers.

There are some other nice buildings – friends work in a palace now known as ‘The Juicer’ since the roof looks like one of those paid-for-TV juicer things. Nice on the inside, very big doors. And, I took a pic inside Al Faw palace (above). Again, the Disney vibe is there too – got me thinking of the Contemporary resort – looks nice from afar, but get close and u can see that it is just facades and average quality – not real extravagance. Same here – get close, and you see crappy workmanship and shoddy quality. And, of course, I got to use Saddam’s porcelain – very nice – but still just a toilet functionally. Sad to see all of this opulence knowing full well that he was starving his people at the same time. Every Iraqi I have met and spoken with has been very nice. They are grateful that Saddam is gone, frustrated that it took us a few years to figure Iraq out, and excited that we are leaving (but a bit nervous as well)

130 in the shade…

2009-06-21T11:27:00.001-07:00

I exaggerate a bit, but not much. Had I been able to take a picture, the thermometers (saw more than one) were reading that it was awfully hot in southern Iraq last week. The round thermometers in question went from –20 to 120, and the needle on these was at least the equivalent of about 10 degrees PAST the 120 mark. In the shade… And in true guy storytelling fashion, that is a no shitter.

Cool little oddity – all of the port o potties over here (aka latrines) have squirt sanitizer holders on them (though many are empty or do not work). But it was interesting to squirt the stuff on such a day – it came out really really hot (120F plus) but then as the alcohol evaporated, it turned cool. Was interesting at the time…

Also some other odd meteorological phenomenon. First, I have NEVER seen a cloud since arriving in Bahrain. Lots of dust and haze, but never a white fluffy cloud. That streak ended flying up to Baghdad last Saturday, as there were plenty of clouds in the sky over Iraq. Then, I came back to Bahrain and happened to see clouds here, too. Just a few, and they came with awful humidity. I thought the heat in Iraq was bad, but this was hot and thick air – like walking through soup. Sweat did not evaporate. Have weathered the worst of a summer in Florida, and Florida is just a mild spring day compared to this.

One more interesting weather story. Was later in the 120+ day and as we were touring, dark rain clouds appeared and there was thunder. Was hoping for a nice rain, but instead it was just a few drops. Then the wind whipped up and first it blew smoke from the garbage dump fire (they burn the trash just off base) into our faces, then a wall of dust appeared and blotted out visibility. All in the space of a minute or so. It was not a true dust storm, but it was still pretty cool. Probably a good thing that it did not rain harder, as it would have been a mess.

In Bahrain, you can sort of dress for the weather – I wear shorts and polo shirts to and from work, and while at work am usually not outside for long – only walking between air-conditioned buildings. Even Iraq has its fair share of air conditioning – the CHUs have a/c units – but there are times when there is no a/c. Plus, besides wearing full uniform (long sleeve shirts), there are times when you need to ‘cowboy up’ and put on body armor and the helmet. The body armor, though protective, does a great job at trapping heat as well. So, even a short stint in armor (e.g. a 45 minute helo flight) leads to a sodden shirt and t-shirt. That happened enough to where we had salt stains on our uniforms around the edges of the body armor. Still amazes me that folks live and work like that all of the time.

I have one more heat-related story, but it will go on a transportation entry. (plus, am waiting for some pics from a guy who went with us on the trip). More to follow – with pictures!

Gimme Shelter… An Engineer / MBA view of life on a base

2009-06-19T09:50:00.001-07:00

Mind you, this is just my observations as a recent civilian / MBA – I quote no official numbers or positions here!

I was on several different major bases and was surprised by the commonality. I guess common problem => common solution. (that, and one contractor in Iraq doing this). Most troops – at least on major bases – live in CHUs – containerized housing units. Like the CLUs I mentioned on the OPLATs – just a different name. A typical CHU contains 2-8 bunks (depends if it has a dividing wall, etc), as well as foot lockers, maybe a bit of furniture, a TV and any other personal effects… The vast majority are ‘dry’ CHUs – which means if you want to shower or use the restroom it is a walk. The ultimate luxury is a private ‘wet’ CHU (containing shower and toilet) – and those are extremely rare. Maybe a commanding officer or general gets those.

Bases generally have several clusters of housing in an area – analogous to city blocks – and they generally have catchy names such as ‘Dodge City’. There are bus services on the base that transport folks around (bases are rather large – small cities) and besides that there are fleets of Chevy Suburbans and Expeditions and Fords and Toyotas and Land Rovers up the wazoo – not to mention HMMVWs, MRAPS, Strykers, and other large military vehicles, plus trucks to carry food / water / sewage / oil / etc etc. You need to be careful when walking.

A quick web search estimated that costs for just the CHU container is around $2000 (used), then insulate it, put some internal walls and floor in, add doors, windows, and electricity, and a couple of AC units and lights / switches / outlets, then top it off with beds and furniture –> you have a CHU. I am guessing upwards of $15,000 each. Then, load it on a ship, transport to a port in Iraq or Kuwait, convoy it to your base, install it on concrete pads, connect it, and you have the start of a CHU town. Install a bunch, add in the a couple latrines and shower CHUs, surround it with T-walls, connect water / sewage / electricity, and you have the town. So, say there are 150,000 US troops in Iraq, and twice as many contractors, put 5 people in each CHU (for math), and I get in the ballpark of 100,000 CHUs in country. When we depart, do we load them all up and ship them back? Or leave them for the natives. I have no idea.

T-walls are there for protection against ‘IDF’ – indirect fire such as mortars and rockets. The bad guys still shoot them at bases, so the walls are a good thing. Though the T-walls will not protect against a direct hit, they do protect against near misses. There are also T-walls inside the towns, so though you don’t have a great view, you are reasonably safe. The big base, small rocket theory applies. There are also shelters nearby, so there are safe spots – presuming that you get enough warning.

A typical ‘CHUTOWN’ on Camp Victory, Baghdad, Iraq. T-walls surround it, gravel to keep the dust down (though it is a pain to walk on), and inside there are rows of trailers for living, common shower units, and latrines.

A slightly nicer CHUTOWN – I spent two nights in one of these CHUs with seven of my closest friends.

That is the housing. Each base also has one of more ‘DFACs’ - dining facility. These are big open buildings staffed by KBR or some other contractor, and is where you get your meals. Imagine a Home Depot or similar ‘big box’ store. Your ID is checked (and they check to see if you have a weapon – needed to get in some of them!), you scan your ID, wash hands with soap and water (required) then enter, grab tray, plate, and plastic ware, then proceed into a smorgasbord. It is cafeteria a la carte serving, and you can grab AS MUCH as you want, no charge. There is incredible variety – a normal food line, fast food, mexican bar, indian bar, salad bar, pizza/pasta, fruit… Hard part is stopping. Then, there are coolers and drink dispensers – juice, soda, gatorade, and bottled water of course. And, to top it off, there is always ice cream and a really nice dessert bar. Once you have your food, there are tables galore – one of the DFACs on Camp Victory serves 10,000 lunches a day, for example. Very easy to put on pounds if you are not careful.

All of this is contracted out. I spoke with one of the workers – a very nice man from India who has been in Iraq working for a variety of contractors for over five years now. He is actually heading home for the first time in five years later this summer – going to see his family that he left behind. He tried to explain the game of Cricket to me as we watched some of his friends play – I quickly gave up trying to understand the rules.

Indeed, that is one of the tricky things about accounting this war. Yes, we have 150K or so troops in theater, but there have to be at least 2-3 times that in contractors. For example, that DFAC needs people to cook food, serve it, clean up, and handle trash. Someone has to truck that trash around base and collect it. Someone else has to truck the food in from a warehouse, and that food gets there in a convoy from a seaport somewhere, so you need drivers plus security.. It all adds up. Unlike prior wars, the Army does not do all of that – contractors do. Lots of talk of those KBR guys making tons of money, and they probably do, but it actually makes sense financially. Yes, they cost more than a soldier, but it really is a one time cost – are not paying for the training, care and feeding, medical, or retirement for that contractor – just an hourly wage. Once we are out of Iraq, the Army is not paying that persons wages and benefits for the next 15 years plus another 40 years of pension. AND, politically, contractors are not the same as having soldiers on the ground – makes that troop count lower. Imagine having 500,000 troops in Iraq…

That is just food and shelter. Of course, there is sewage and electricity – presume that we have built sewage treatment plans and have generators up the wazoo. (which require fuel…) For water, bases seem to have built water treatment plants. On Camp Victory, I saw a US built bottled water plant – much cheaper to import a few pounds of plastic beads, make bottles here and fill them locally rather than ship empty or full bottles from the US. Next to the plant was an open field that had to be at least 10 acres and it was covered with pallets of filled water bottles. I can see why – in the heat I went through a good 5 or 6 one liter bottles of water a day, not to mention juice, coffee, soda, and Gatorade.

There are also rec facilities for the troops on base – a PX complex (stores) where you can buy a lot of common goods – sort of like a small Target. Also fast food restaurants (expensive - a Whopper was $6.50 at one I noticed…), computer lounges, libraries, gyms, movies, etc etc. Stuff to keep folks busy. You can also buy internet service – most everyone has a laptop – costs $80 - $88 per month depending on the base. Roomies often split the cost, so keeping in touch with home is easier than ever before. Is going to be interesting to see what happens when the troops pull back out of the cities by the end of the month and hand things over to the locals. I think that US troops will not be able to do much without an invite from the locals, so there are going to be a lot of bored soldiers here.

That is my MBA view of life on a base in Iraq. Again, these are major established bases – not the more spartan forward operating bases. But, all in all, though not exactly private or convenient, life on a base is not that bad. However, I am glad to be back in my apartment here with a private bedroom and bathroom!

Moving on – eventually… plus Fodor’s Guide to Iraq, part 1

2009-06-17T10:01:00.001-07:00

My nomadic existence continues – sort of. Besides that fact that other than some fortunate red tape I would be in Kabul right now, my original orders had me going to a ‘liaison officer’ role in a different country. The folks I work for now in Bahrain opted to use me to cover Iraq from the HQ instead, which is a pretty cool job. However, a couple of factors have conspired against me, and it looks like I am going to end up going to country ‘X’ as originally planned. Not for several weeks, however.

Alas, I will be pretty much the only US Navy person in the country at times, and country ‘X’ is a just a bit more conservative than Bahrain. Of course, Bahrain surprised me recently – I was going to a video site (NOT porn…) and this is what popped up:

Site Blocked

This web site has been blocked for violating regulations and laws of Kingdom of Bahrain.

I cut and pasted the English text, but there was Arabic too. Hopefully the secret police don’t show up at my door – and good thing I am not an internet porn addict.

I just completed a several day trip to Iraq and will be documenting it over the next several posts. Too much for one post, though not enough pictures unfortunately. Part of it is that many of the areas I was at are sensitive enough that photos are forbidden, and part was that I was in a hurry a lot of the time. Lots of interesting modes of travel, with today being the most interesting – did my first convoy ‘outside the wire’ in an MRAP (a big armored truck). It was a quick convoy and there were no issues.

Sunset over Baghdad – headed home to Camp Victory after a day trip to somewhere north of the city. The haze in the air is a leftover from the morning ‘sandfog’ that delayed our planned morning trip until the afternoon – visibility was too low.

Legoman in Baghdad – at Camp Victory looking across the pond at Al Faw Palace. Earlier in the day – haze has cleared quite a bit.

More posts to follow in the next few days – titles to include ‘planes, helos, and MRAPs’, ‘130 in the shade’, ‘Evil Disneyland’, and ‘Gimme Shelter’

The Heat is On!

2009-06-03T11:17:00.001-07:00

Spoiler – kind of a dull, rambling post.

Summer is coming, as temps here have regularly climbed over 100F during the day. My friends in Iraq have reported temps of over 110F, and that was in May. Soldiers in Iraq wear the helmet and the body armor everywhere – combat soldiers even carry more stuff. Keep that in mind if tempted to complain about a ‘hot’ day in the US.

One thing I have noticed about Bahrain is that I cannot honestly recall seeing a cloud in the sky since arriving here, let alone a raindrop. Walking to work this morning before 6am, the sun was already up and even this early it was really hot. I went for a run once I got to the base – did about 25 minutes at a reduced pace – and I was drenched in sweat and I did not feel that good. Gonna have to start hitting the treadmill for a while.

Started to get into a groove here, between work and the family, so the mild ups and downs of the last few weeks are mellowing out. If you know that feeling when you transition jobs – for a spell you are not fully functional, so it is a bit frustrating and not necessarily rewarding. Well, last week I started hitting on all cylinders and though it meant longer days, it felt good. One of my pet projects was working a part of a visit of some Russian Navy folks to the HQ, and I was able to sit in the meeting and observe – pretty interesting stuff. And, busy days mean fast days.

My latest analogy to this experience is that it is like a half-marathon, one that I didn’t want to run, but now am plugging along. Just passed the marker for mile two, and I know that there are 11 more miles to go. (give or take a bit). Though that could be discouraging, instead I am focusing on getting my second wind, getting in a good rhythm with work, my family, my wife, and myself. But then, there is the Q-tip factor. When I got here, I bought two 180 ct boxes of Q-tips… 360 Q-tips about corresponds to the number of days here (at one per day). So, every morning I get a clear visual reminder of how many days are left – and that I have barely made a dent in the time.

Like the sands through the hour glass…

Speaking of the wife… Being away from the wife is not an easy thing. Unlike many reserve couples, Leslie and I dated and were married when I was on active duty, so she at least had an inkling of what a deployment was – though then my longest absence was four months, and she was not taking care of a house and four kids. In a darkly humorous way, we call this our ‘trial separation’. Of course, she would get to pawn the kids off and have some alone time periodically if it was a real one, but she would not get to spend ALL of my pay… so there are tradeoffs. But the bleak reality is that many couples fail even without this kind of extra stress – stuff happens. Dark humor aside, we have figured out a contact rhythm that works for both of us. We have regularly scheduled phone calls (sometimes video calls so the kids can say ‘hi’), and then a mix of e-mails and Facebook chats or messages / posts, and the occasional random call here or there. She is getting really good at posting pics of the kids at events, usually the same day, so I can talk to the kids and get a reasonably real-time download from them. So, at the 66 day point, things are as well as can be expected.

I celebrated the ‘4th anniversary’ of my notification day on the 29th, and it was not what I would have imagined back in Jan. Started off with brunch at the Radisson Diplomat hotel. I figured it would be a nice, somewhat staid brunch (lots of Brits here, which reinforced that image). Wrong. It was a champagne brunch with a band, dancing, and a lot of drunk Brits and Americans. Many in skimpy dresses…. Champagne is always tricky to judge, and the wait staff never let your glass get more than 1/4 empty before they refilled it. An interesting experience. Then, that evening, we had a going away party for one of the guys in the group at a bar that is about 1/2 block away from my apartment. More Guinness, and some shots…

Fill ‘er up… liquid headache. No General Order #1 here.

Finally, another callout to neighbor Kim D. I hit iTunes for some fresh music, and given my positive experience with Keith Urban, I grabbed an iTunes recommendation – Do I by Luke Bryan. Yeah, exactly the kind of song I need to hear out here…NOT. You get collateral blame for that one… at least for suggesting the genre. Next time I will preview the song first. Luckily, some New Found Glory made up for it…

Will be a quiet posting time for the next couple of weeks. Lots of interesting stuff on the job front, but not really blog-able just yet.

More on the OPLATs (Oil Platforms)

2009-05-27T13:28:00.001-07:00

First, this blog is just my little view on the GWOT. Though the folks on ABOT have it rough by Bahrain standards, they are not in Baghdad or out in the boonies in Afghanistan, fighting the Taliban every day. However, I do not see the latter, and I suspect that most people think of those sorts of folks when they think of the war. I am just showing another part of it… not saying it is worse or tougher than other parts… Also, I am very careful not to release anything that is even remotely sensitive. Though I show a lot of the oil platforms, they get plenty of time in the press – Discovery Channel did something about them not too long ago, and WSJ / NPR were just there. You will NOT see pictures of airbases in Kuwait, for example, nor will I talk about future travel or plans or anything like that.

More on the OPLATs. A logical question would be about services – electricity, water, sewage, trash, etc. Diesel generators make the power, reverse osmosis plants make fresh water, the ocean handles any sewage, and trash is hauled away regularly by a vendor who also brings food and supplies (and sometimes water). Dumping sewage may seem harsh, but ships do that normally… Indeed, if you look VERY carefully at the photos of the deck we built, there is a hole in the steel deck near the back left corner – that is where the washers will drain – straight out to the ocean. What is less appealing is the use of the ocean as a trash receptacle – lots of those empty plastic water bottles that are sooo common out here just floating on the ocean. You sort of expect it from the locals, but not Americans trained by years of public education and public service ads on TV. Can image that old Native American in that commercial with a tear in his eye.

Now, a few more pics to share the experience.

Gone fishin’ – an oil worker taking a break from the day – fishing from the catwalk. No poles, just a spool of fishing wire wrapped around a board, a hook, a weight, and bait. Plenty of fish around to catch – saw many different kinds. The feed on our food waste (and toilet waste), and they are protected from the fishing ships.

Looking down from the rusty stairway – ocean is about 50 feet below. I hate heights, and this stairway took some getting used to – especially at night.

Life in a CLU. Storage lockers are also in the room. This is a ‘dry’ CLU, so you have to walk to use the restroom, shower, etc. Thus, the wise person does not drink a lot before going to bed. The occupants of this one recently left the platform and I had it all to myself.

CLU town. You can see a bunch of CLUs stacked up – platform space is at a premium, so stacking is the solution.

Transportation – US Navy RHIB (rigid-hulled inflatable boat). To / from the oil platforms to the ship that lands the helo. A helo landing on the back of a US Destroyer (which is moving) is a bit more exciting than landing on the ground.

Money shot – while we were working on the laundry (between the two containers), you could hear the oil flowing through that big pipe in the foreground, filling the tanker ‘Grand’. At night, the pipe was warm – fresh oil from Iraq

Desert Hawk – Transportation to / from oil platforms. Alas, no United miles.

Lego man – in Iraq. My oldest son gave me one of his Lego soldiers right before I left, so I have been capturing pics of him where I can. So far, have shots of him in Germany, Kuwait, Bahrain, and now Iraq.

Other than that, ‘celebrated’ my first month complete here – only 10.5 to go. I have found that it is much better to focus on the ‘glass partially full’ than the big empty part on top. More on that in the next post.

Fill ‘er up! And a reminder…

2009-05-21T10:51:00.001-07:00

Spent the last couple of days on “ABOT”, also known as Al Basra Oil Terminal. This terminal is Iraq’s other oil terminal in the Northern Arabian Gulf, and ABOT is the key to Iraq’s economy. (I wrote about KAAOT a few weeks ago – KAAOT is interesting, but is older, less capable, and a much smaller piece of the pie.) ABOT, however, is where Iraq makes the money – well over half of the Iraqi economy flows via ABOT.

ABOT is really just five ‘big’ platforms linked together by a long catwalk, all together about 3/4 of a mile long. It is simply a filling station for tankers – two big pipes from the Iraqi oil fields rise from the ocean floor and supply the terminal, which can berth four supertankers simultaneously. It houses several groups of people, including Iraqi sailors and marines who protect it, US and British sailors and coast guardsmen who also protect it, and the folks from South Oil Company who run the oil operation – and fish a lot. There are also ships from all three nations in the area who keep the seas around the terminals safe.

Living conditions are a bit austere. Construction is based on shipping containers – metal boxes 8 feet by 7 by 20 or so. On ABOT, they are living containers (add a door, 2-6 bunks, an A/C unit, electrical wiring / lights, and some lockers –> a CLU – containerized living unit), dining rooms, meeting rooms, fitness centers, bathrooms, and even an internet cafe. There is a decent amount of gym equipment, and folks even jog (0.7 miles one way). For short periods, it is not bad, but am not sure how they do it for months at a time. It often reeks like oil – go figure –and it gets VERY hot and humid. For them, Memorial Day will be just another hot sticky day in the Gulf.

ABOT, from the South Platform. Tanker ‘Grand’ is filling on the left (notice how much red is showing), empty berth across from her (filled that night), and then two tankers in the background, one on each side

Tanker ‘Grand’ the next morning, fully laden with almost 2 million barrels of crude oil – over $100M for Iraq

‘Grand’ leaving that afternoon, coming soon to a gas pump near you!

Early the next morning, a new tanker arrives (and there a several more waiting a few miles away…)

‘Samho Dream’ – high and dry – mooring to ABOT

Sunrise in the Northern Arabian Gulf (NAG) – 280 sailors on a US Milius on month seven of deployment – protecting ABOT

My bud from Ft Jackson (the one in the pic at Frankfurt) is stationed on ABOT and is sort of the ‘maintenance manager’. He works with the Iraqi facility managers and a very small contingent of Navy Seabees (construction workers) who are assigned to try and make conditions better for the folks stationed there. He tends to get very hands-on… One of his projects was to create a central laundry facility, and he managed to secure a space for it – but needed the space cleared and a deck built. Rather than wait for free bodies… he enlisted me and the Royal Navy Captain who runs the place. A few hours (and many many bottles of water and Gatorade) later we were done with the deck. Next, the Seabees will run electricity and plumbing, and then it is a simple matter of installing the seven washer / dryer units. Voila – quality of life improved.

Sweeping down the area – between two containers – after moving a bunch of junk out of the way

Platform CO sawing planks – he loves carpentry, and it was a nice break from meetings

Yours truly fastening the planks. Much nicer than sitting on the computer, though my shirt was drenched with sweat.

The compete platform. Hardly flawless, but it is done!

So, next time you fill up you car / van, take a moment to think of the sailors and coasties sweating on the platform in the NAG. Then, add a prayer for Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Michael J. Pernaselli, 27, Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Christopher E. Watts, 28, and Coast Guard Petty Officer Third Class Nathan Bruckenthal, 24, all from USS Firebolt, who were killed on April 24th, 2004 while protecting KAAOT. Terrorists rigged a couple of fishing vessels with explosives and sent them towards the platform. As the US boarding party approached one of the vessels, it exploded – killing the three young men.

Sandfog, Blackouts, Locust, and the letter “B”

2009-05-16T02:11:00.001-07:00

The above describes my ‘Sunday’ (Saturday here due to the fact on the Islamic calendar, Friday is the ‘gathering day’ when Muslims gather at the mosque at noon, and Saturday is the sabbath / rest day. Still getting used to that – most notably on Thursdays which mark the start of the weekend. OK, sort of like college… but without the quarter tappers at Schooners.

Sandfog – woke up and started my commute and it was foggy out. Not pea soup, but definitely a fog. It is sand – am guessing from sand storms in nearby Saudi Arabia (or Iran). It is NOT sand like beach sand – more like talc – very very fine. No issues breathing, only rarely did I get a taste of sand, just different. It did cause me to cancel my morning jog and instead I hit the treadmill in the gym. There is a nice jogging path over a large bridge which gives an excellent view of the harbor – wanted to see the aircraft carrier which pulled in yesterday. Maybe tomorrow.

Blackout - went in to work (we work 7 days a week, though not necessarily full days on weekends) and shortly thereafter the power went out. It was scheduled – sort of –and since it is sort of hard to do work on a computer without electricity, I opted to take the rest of the day off.

Locust - carrier and support ships in town –> thousands of sailors expected to hit the base / town for some liberty. Do not want to be around for that. Expect the shops on base to be cleaned out, so I stocked up on everything I need this morning.

Letter ‘B’ – I listen to the iPod on the ‘commute’ to work, and normally listen to new stuff. (Kim D – I even downloaded a Keith Urban song). However, today I gave Katy, Nickelback, Green Day, et al a rest and picked some oldies – Bruce Springsteen (Tunnel of Love album) on the way in and the Beatles (Abbey Road, Revolver, and Magical Mystery Tour) on the way home. The iPod was nice to me on the way home - Abbey Road is not an album that shuffles well – and picked some good, upbeat stuff. ‘Good Day Sunshine’ came on and it was the perfect song, and I was bopping down Juffair Ave grinning like an idiot.

Finally, am trying to take that goofy ‘Adult’ warning off the page. However, my browser is too smart for its own good and assumes that since my ISP is in Bahrain, I can read Arabic… this is what I see…

تحذير بشأن المحتوى

قد تحتوي المدونة التي توشك على عرضها على محتوى يناسب البالغين فقط. بصفة عامة، لا تقوم شركة Google بمراجعة ولا اعتماد محتوى هذه المدونة أو أية مدونة أخرى. للحصول على مزيد من المعلومات حول سياسات المحتوى، يرجى الاطلاع على بنود الخدمة الخاصة بـ Blogger

Not for most sites – but all of the instructions on Blogger are in Arabic. I have not tried that hard to fix it yet..

OK – enough of my rants – expect to have some more interesting stuff to post soon – will spare you the details of life in Bahrain for a while.

Almost a quickie divorce…

2009-05-16T01:41:00.001-07:00

From Bahrain, that is… Last post I was talking about settling in, and first thing Sunday morning (our Monday) I was shown a list that had me (along with some friends) re-assigned to Afghanistan. Needless to say, that was a bit disconcerting… For the next 36 hours, I planned my move, figured out what I would have to ship home (pretty much everything I have bought in the last three weeks), and did some research on the SIPRnet (classified version of the internet…) and figured out who I would be working for, etc. Biggest downer, MUCH bigger than the loss of creature comforts, would be working on a frigging Army staff for Army weenies. As I have stated before – nothing against the people, I just loathe the way the Army works. Best way to describe it – imagine being a senior in college and suddenly you transfer to a new college and everyone is treated like a second grader. (If you grow up with it, it is normal, I guess…) The teachers are not bad, but there are just stupid rules. One example from Ft Jackson (though I could list MANY) – one morning we were in training (a day of Power Points, indoors) and the usual containers of coffee were not there. I asked where they were, and the Army response: ‘it’s going to be hot today – don’t want you drinking coffee because you might dehydrate’. Seriously… sitting indoors, in an air conditioned classroom. However, since the instructor was about an hour late (more great Army planning) I managed to go to the chow hall to get some. And, later in the day, common sense did prevail and coffee was restored.

OK – to close the story - so I was pretty much resigned to go when I received a call COB on Monday and the orders were cancelled and I am staying here. As it turns out, we were supposed to be grabbed BEFORE we left Ft Jackson, so I should be in Kabul right now. However, the request was lost in the shuffle, and the list I was shown was the re-request. Sometimes red tape is a good thing. Or, as Bill Adama would say, sometimes you gotta roll the hard six…

Will have some more stories in the next few weeks as the job continues… One very minor bit of interest, saw Christian Slater, Kal Penn, and two there dudes at the ‘Freedom Souq’ this week – there on a USO tour, signing autographs. Not Megan Fox, Anne Hathaway, or even Marisa Tomei. War is hell…

Meanwhile, something I have not really talked about – how is the family doing? Generally fine is the answer. I think the kids, like their parents (esp. the father) are genetically introverted, though the boys have been riding their bikes like crazy with their neighborhood friends. The girls are fine as well. I Skype home (video call) a couple times a week, but the only one who really enjoys that is Mackenzie, the soon to be 3 year old. Other than that, I Skype phone home (call the land line or cell phones) – was paying 2 cents a minute, now signed up for $53 for an entire year to call any line in the states, pretty much unlimited. That, plus my local cell phone (6 cents a minute to call home) and I pretty much can call home whenever I want, as much as I want. I called too much at first, to be honest – it was so easy - but we have started to work a routine.

Day 15 in Bahrain

2009-05-09T07:49:00.001-07:00

The Honeymoon is over in Bahrain, and am settling into a one year marriage with this place. First week was a bustle of incoming information, setting up house, and exciting travel… week 2 was settling into routines, actually doing my job, and just plain living. Am now starting week 3…

Question 1 – what the heck does a staff officer do? Snarky answer – I staff issues. Really – let’s say the boss wants to travel to X place, visit with Y and Z, and talk about A, B, and C. Someone arranges all that, ensures materials are ready to brief those points, and then someone has to keep track of all the action items generated, assign them, ensure they are completed, and report out to the boss. Or, let’s say General D wants to know about item E and get F done and wants it yesterday. Someone has to research, get the answer reviewed, make plans to do F, and assign someone. Same. A lot like my last job, actually – typical middle-management stuff. I have no financial responsibilities, unlike my last job, but I have more informational responsibilities – I am supposed to become the resident expert on country G so I can be a ready resource for the boss. Still working that. The rest of it is old hat, just have to (re)learn the quirks of the Navy and who all of the folks are I have to interact with. And, of course, military protocol – have already pissed off a Royal Navy Captain, unintentionally…

Life in Bahrain itself – at least my small portion – is also becoming routine. My commute is much more relaxing, as I walk each way – a bit more than a mile each way. With the Ipod, it is actually very relaxing – other than playing ‘Frogger’ for real trying to cross a few major intersections. Right off base is ‘American Alley’ – a few blocks that reminds me a bit of ‘the Center’ – pretty much every US fast food place that you could think of, Chili’s, and a Macaroni Grill is going in right now as well. There is also a Starbucks, and though I did stop there once, it is much cheaper to buy it on base.

A bit of the commute, and crazy intersection 1 – but it is only 6am, so it is relatively quiet. No crosswalks, no red / green men, no ‘pedestrians in crosswalk have right of way’ signs – real life Frogger.

Another part of the commute

Another part – ‘Suicide Squeeze’ – notice the lack of sidewalks

‘American Alley’ – a bit of the West in Manama

I show up to base pretty early – usually before 6 am, and put in a 12 plus hour day, 7 days a week. Mind you, I do fit lunch and some workout in there as well – working for a USMC Colonel, PT (physical training) is pretty much expected. The base itself is pretty much self-contained – about every creature comfort one could need is in the ‘Freedom Souq’ – kind of like a small mall on the base, has a food court, O-club, two stores, barber, dry cleaner, a pretty nice gym, etc etc. Pretty much everything you could need – I generally eat all three meals there since I am on base at meal times. Food is pretty cheap - $3 for a nice big salad, some fruit, and a bottled water – and had some fish the other night for another $2. Why buy food, schlep it a mile plus home, cook, and clean up, when I can just pay $4-$5 for a nice meal.

The blog will be quiet for a few weeks, as life will be routine for a variety of reasons. Expect more interesting stuff next month, however.

Hey Mom! I’m on TV! (in Iraq…)

2009-05-02T09:57:00.001-07:00

I’ll explain the title in a bit… One of my mental quirks, to which at least one prior and one current girlfriend / wife can attest to, is this thing I have with dates / times. For example, two months to the minute I received the call for duty, I was sitting on the tarmac taking off for the first stop in my deployment and I was looking at my watch reflecting on that. Well, exactly a month later, at 12:04 pm EST (7:04pm out here) on 29 Apr, I was having dinner with a Navy admiral, his aide, and the guy I am relieving in the chow ‘hall’ of an Iraqi oil platform, inside Iraqi territorial waters (and within viewing range of Iranian forces), getting ready for a ceremony to turn the defense of the platform over to the Iraqi Navy. My, how much life has changed in three months…

Photo - Khawr Al Amaya Oil Terminal (KAAOT) – aka ‘Waterworld’ – the oil platform and my home for a night

KAAOT, the north oil platform, is over a half mile long structure that in pretty poor condition – has been involved in both wars plus the Iran-Iraq war, and Iraq has no OSHA! However, 2/3 of the Iraqi economy flows through this and another nearby oil terminal. They also happen to be close to Iranian territory… see below.

Photo - Iraqi sailors practicing. If you look carefully, you can see an Iranian observation tower in the water – between the bayonet of the AK47 and the red beret – on the horizon

The ceremony, led by the Iraqis, went off almost without a hitch. There were press there with TV cameras (no US…) and I think I was caught on camera, but you can only see that in Iraq. It was one of those small, but important things that help Iraq transition, and they were justifiably proud. Odds are you will not see this in the US press. But, you can Google ‘iraq oil platforms’ to get an idea of how critical they are.

I interacted with Iraqi sailors quite a bit – a lot of picture taking, even swapped memory cards with one for a moment to transfer some pics. My few words of Arabic helped a bit – but need to practice. Of course, they were walking around with loaded AK47s, which took some getting used to.

New friends. I had found some pins so the gent on the right could attach his flag to his uniform. Very proud, very nice – but he would not let me pick up his AK47.

Photo - Post ceremony celebration – cake, ice cream, and the ubiquitous bottled water.

Bottom pic shows a bit of the travel aspect… getting to the Northern Arabian Gulf from Bahrain is a bit more complex than driving to work. It involved a Navy helicopter (sort of cool riding at 500 feet over the Gulf, passing lots of tankers and fishing dhows, with new Green Day blasting on the iPod), a refuel stop in Kuwait, and then another helo ride to a Royal Navy ship, followed by a transfer to a small patrol boat (crewed by mobilized Navy reservists from the west coast) to the platform.

Photo - On the small boat, heading into RFA Cardigan Bay for the transfer to the helo (on the back of the deck) for flight home

There is also a link at the NAVCENT website which also has pics on the ‘photos’ link – most of me (but not my head) is in one of the pics.

Today, I day-tripped up to Basra , Iraq – for a meeting. My first time setting foot on Iraqi soil, and a return to body armor and the friendly 9mm pistol. An interesting trip – my first biz trip where part of the pre-travel briefing included instructions on what to do in case of a mortar or rocket attack.

However, the biggest danger to me, it seems, is not rockets or IEDs – it is CBDs – Crazy Bahraini Drivers. I walk over a mile to get to work and have to cross three major intersections. I guarantee you there is no sign that says ‘yield to pedestrians in the crosswalk’ here – as if there were crosswalks.

Not in Kansas anymore, Toto…

2009-04-26T13:58:00.001-07:00

Had you told me exactly three months ago that I would be drinking a Guinness at the Hard Rock in Manama, Bahrain tonight, I would have thought you were smoking crack. Of course, I would have been wrong...

Night two in Bahrain was nice – went out for dinner (Thai) with a friend from Ft Jackson (he was on same flight over as I was), and stopped back on the way from dinner at the Hard Rock. Bahrain reminds me a lot of Seoul – big, bustling, lots of construction, and diverse. OK, Seoul is not exactly diverse, but other than that – Manama is a hotter, dustier, and smaller Seoul. Though a Muslim country, it is relatively liberal. Heard my first prayer call tonight, and saw plenty of traditional folk in the expected garb. But many foreigners / ex-pats, and a lot of Western influence, including traditional Western chains (BK, McDs, Pizza Hut, TGIF, Bennigans, Baskin Robbins, Starbucks, etc etc). It may be newcomer innocence, but I felt safe on the streets as a Westerner. Mind you, there are certain neighborhoods where I would not be welcome, but those are marked.

The new job is great, though slightly overwhelming. I will write more about it as I can. Today was the usual check-in process (forms, lines, and more forms) but have already started to dig in.

Hopefully, none of my friends from Ft Jackson read this. The great majority of them rode a chartered DC-10 to Kuwait yesterday and are sleeping on cots in tents tonight, eating MREs and drinking bottled water that is at ambient temperature – no Guinness in their future for quite some time, as both Iraq and Afghanistan are dry per General Order #1. Link attached is pictures of them going through last stop in US at Bangor, ME. I feel a bit of guilt, but as I settle into my comfy bed, wash in my private bathroom, flip on the tube, and contemplate room service, I recall a line from ‘Forrest Gump’… Either way, a soft bed does not get me home any sooner – just makes the separation a tiny bit more bearable.

On to ‘the show’

2009-04-25T13:38:00.001-07:00

Done with the Army thing, and spent my last night in the US. Now safely in country, camped out in a 4 star hotel in the heart of a major city. Am MOST definitely enjoying having my privacy back, and it will be a joy to have my own private porcelain again.

Reflecting on the NARMY experience, it was good, albeit inefficient training. Easy to blame the Army, but really it is one of those ‘Army conducting training for the Navy on a South Carolina Army National Guard Facility on an Army Training Base’ issues – lots of seams. Still sort of shocked that after 8 plus years of this, we have not perfected it, but…

The last week was pretty laid back. Highlight was convoy ops – we formed up in eight HMMWVs and conducted a simulated convoy through hostile terrain. Instructors were stationed to ambush us with simulated IEDs and small arms fire, then one last surprise which quickly pushed us past our limited training. Intent is not to make us experts, just give us enough knowledge to be able to help if we are passengers in a convoy and we get attacked. Then, we turned gear in (waited in line for 2 1/2 hours to turn weapons in), packed up, and I headed off to the airport. Looking forward to actually starting my new life, being gainfully employed, and starting the countdown calendar.

Finally, a plug for the USO. I had a 7 hour layover in Philly (my choice – the alternative was an hour which, given my recent track record of luggage missing connections, seemed like an unacceptable risk). Rather than hang out in an empty gate, I went to the USO lounge – open to all military personnel – and it features free food / snacks / drinks (at least coffee and soda), wi fi, and nice comfy chairs. Just a nice chance to sit back in a relaxing, un-airport like environment and chill. Should you be searching for a place to donate money to, they are a good choice.

Clearing M9 pistol (verifying it is unloaded) prior to entering barracks.

On the radio as vehicle commander of ‘Razorback 7’ during our convoy

Last stop in the US – Philly Airport

Beers in Frankfurt enroute – at 7:00 am local

Home on the Range Parts 2, 3, and 4

2009-04-19T01:34:00.001-07:00

Two weeks of NARMY training down, less than a week to go… though still have no idea of when I fly… find out Monday night.

Did a few more long days at the rifle range doing fun stuff, and am getting pretty good with the M16, but I will not have one in theater. Also fired some machine guns (20 or so rounds on three different weapons) just to get familiar… though we will not normally man these, you never know someday you may be in a convoy and your gunner is hit and you might have to man the gun in an emergency. Excellent training, though not very efficient. For example, we spent all day Wed at the range – arrived at 7am, did not start shooting until 9am (range safety crew was late), and then were there ‘til 4pm because everyone had to shoot. For 100+ people, 15 shoot at one time, for about 30-45 minutes, the rest wait… and wait. They don’t let us bring phones or iPods along, so there is not a lot to do. I shot around noon, they did a bit of training for us while we waited, and the rest was sitting around doing – nothing. Upside is very low stress and some good nap time in the sun, but on some level it is frustrating because it is soooo wasteful.

7.62mm MG in turret

50 cal MG – heavy duty and loud!

Impacts downrange

And waiting…

An eclectic bunch of folks going through the course with me. Besides ship drivers like me, as well as pilots, there are a lot of different ‘professions’ here – nurses, doctors, lawyers, engineers, supply corps, intel, and even a couple of chaplains. All except the chaplains qualify on the weapons – I was surprised that medical folks would be armed, but they are responsible for protecting their patients. About 15% of the group are women. My barracks is mostly senior folks who are married with kids, so in the evening after chow pretty much everyone is on a computer or phone.

Today we had some time off, so I wandered into town and savored a Starbucks. Possibly my last weekend in the US for some time, so good to enjoy suburbia.

Last few days will focus on convoy ops and urban combat, as well as gear issue / turn in and final packing. I could be leaving as soon as mid-week and in country by next weekend!

Home on the range…

2009-04-14T18:03:00.001-07:00

Another exciting day of waiting at Ft Jackson. Today we went out to the rifle range to practice shooting the M16 at pop-up targets – we actually ‘qualify shoot’ tomorrow. Alas, the weather did not cooperate and after a lengthy period of waiting, we ended up going back to base camp for some power point training.

0545 formation – in full ‘battle rattle’ – with my M16

Shooting at pop up targets with the M16 – the targets are the small black semi-circles about halfway up poking above the ground

Then the rains (and lightning) came….

A picnic under the bleachers - MREs for lunch – chili and beans.

At the halfway point. Someone asked me if this challenging. The answer is no, not remotely. The only difficult part is putting up with the poor planning, the waiting, and the training BS (e.g. putting on and taking off body armor several times in the course of a morning). Though wearing the body armor is a pain – we measured the full kit at 60 pounds plus – it is just something to deal with. The ‘physical’ portion is a joke – we did one ‘run’ as a group, singing songs and such. The run was easy. But frankly, we are not here to get in shape – our goal is to learn to get comfy with the gear we will wear in theater (body armor) and know how to shoot the weapons we will carry. And, for that, the place gets a passing grade – the Army does have a knack for teaching that.

My Cousin Vinny...sans hottie.

2009-04-10T00:10:00.000-07:00

Am finishing up week one of 'NARMY' training here in SC. Title refers to my initial thought of coming to an Army base in the South... not only being in the South as in the movie but dealing with the Army, which generally is seen in the Navy as a more 'primitive' service. Turns out, like Joe Pesci in the movie, have learned to appreciate both - though I don't have Marisa Tomei to keep me company... sigh. Was a bit worried that we would be treated like boot camp, but it turns out the Army drill sergeants are a great bunch of guys who are focused on training us.

Has actually been a good experience so far. I live in a barracks with 36 other guys, and a bunch of them snore as I am experiencing now as I sit awake as security watch at 3:14 am. (upside is there is plenty of WiFi bandwidth at this time...). They gave us a bunch of gear, including full body armor /helmet and weapons - I am owner / operator of an M16-A2 rifle and an M9 9mm pistol, which I have to have with me 24/7 (they are hanging on my bunk right now). Every morning we suit up in our gear and go to training, and if you have never worn the body armor, it is a pain in the butt. The full suite weighs upwards of 50 pounds, then tack on a full Camelback water pack, ammo, assorted gear, two weapons, the helmet... after three days of that, have plenty of aches and pains. Spent all of Thursday at the firing range getting acquainted with my new weapons.

Picture is of me and my bunk buddy heading to chow - the 'light' uniform of cammies, Camelback, eye gear (around neck), gloves, and the weapons. Am also wearing issue black fleece simply because it was chilly. We have to carry the M16 in the 'low ready' position at all times - except when in the dining facility, where we can sling it on my back. An M16 gets pretty heavy by the end of the day... For those who know weapons, we are 'locked and loaded' with blanks as we are outside; to enter a building you have to 'clear' the weapon prior to going in, EVERY time. The blanks just add some fun to it... part of the clearing process is pointing the weapon into a sand-filled barrel and taking safety off and pulling trigger - if you forget to remove a round, you will know.

Looking forward to having Sunday off - need to catch up on reading and rest. Today is going to be long - woke up at 2am for security watch and will be up until 9pm with a long day at the rifle range. Weather has warmed up, and even in the 70s, body armor gets hot quickly - cannot fathom wearing it non-stop in 110+ Iraq - developing even more appreciation for our soldiers / Marines.

8/0 down - 412/350 to go - or Great Expectations exceeded

2009-04-03T17:57:00.000-07:00

Gas mask leak checks (3 working machines....)

Uniform Issue... more lines

Another Exciting Lecture

Week one is done. Have completed the grueling first week here at NMPS, and am packed up for the flight to the next duty station.

Title part 1 refers to the day counter - have officially 8 days done total, albeit ZERO in the Middle East; my orders say 420 days max / 350 days 'boots on ground' (i.e. in the Middle East) required. So, though am getting stuff done and counting down on the 'max' counter, still on ZERO on the one that matters...

This week was spent with the Navy transitioning from the reserve world to full-on active duty. In a nutshell, a bunch of lectures, some admin (mostly getting switched from the reserve to the active pay system...), medical review, and uniform issue. A few pics above capture the excitement... I am now the proud owner of four sets of desert cammies, plus all of the claptrap that goes with it. Came here with one full seabag (duffel bag) plus a backpack, leave with two full seabags (and I shipped some stuff home) and the backpack.

A mildly frustrating week - lots and lots of wasted time (e.g. finished Tues at 1:30 pm and did not start until 10am Wed). Frankly, they could knock this out in one day if they wanted to - and if it was a civilian company, it would be one day MAX. However... it is a government org, and that never ever leads to efficiency.

One 'cool' thing was a smallpox shot today - it came with a 10 minute lecture and a home care kit that includes rubber gloves and zip lock bags. Basically, they poke you 15 times with this virus-laced needle and after a couple of days, it oozes pus then scabs over. The ooze and the gunk under the scab contains live virus, and it is bad stuff - do not want to touch it and then touch other parts of the body - esp the eyes. The gloves are for a reason, and you just can't dump dirty band-aids in the trash - need to go in the zip lock bags. Only a few weeks of that...

Finally, have been swapping notes with my sponsor, and sounds like my living conditions at my final location will be pretty nice. So, 1) don't think I am bopping about in the desert, living in a tent - am not and 2) please do not send me care packages - I will NOT need them. Should you feel the need, I have a USO link on the blog - please send to the folks who actually need it.

Day ONE is in the bag!

2009-03-29T19:41:00.000-07:00

Am now back on active duty - day one is done. (well, sort of...) Today I flew down to NMPS Gulfport, MS and am getting ready for an 'action packed' week of Navy life. My flight arrangements were not the best - had only a 35 minute layover in ATLANTA and was late leaving home airport due to weather. Luckily, only had to go from 'A' to 'B' and there was a train waiting in when I walked up. Still, even though I power walked / ran, the door was shut at the gate and the dude gave me crap ('you're late' was his snotty reply). I bit my tongue - wanted to tell him that it was his friggin airplane that was late - but given the way air travel is, I would have been tasered, zip-tied, and locked up... so I was polite and they opened the door and even got the free upgrade to first class (think I had that coming anyway). However, though I made it, my bag did not. It is supposed to be arriving on a flight as I type, and they are supposed to bring it over... Being older and wiser, I packed everything I need for tomorrow in my carry on - just in case.

The last couple of days were good. Excellent weather made it very enjoyable - did a lot of stuff with the kids. Had an normal last full day home - bike rides, housework, a few last little 'honey do' list items, take-out pizza for dinner, and a quiet evening watching TV, some PS2 with the boys, and a late bedtime. Up in the morning, which was a bit rougher - hard to count down the final minutes - and the goodbye was rough. But then I drove off and now this has finally started - the dark cloud hanging over the future is here. Though the separation is going to be difficult, am thinking (hoping..?) today was the hardest part.

Final bit - my neighbors conspired a bit to show support - yesterday I noticed that good many of them had put out US flags as a show of support for me. Much of my block is retirees who do not get out much, but I think my next door neighbor, a retired surgeon, made the rounds and let people know. It was a very nice gesture - very much appreciated.

Battlestars, Cats, Legos, and Goodbyes

2009-03-22T20:43:00.000-07:00

A variety of topics as I enter the home stretch

First, was in contact with the new employer and all sounds good - sounds like I have a great job waiting for me, and sounds like living arrangements will be good as well.

A lot of goodbyes in the last week. First, folks I work with threw me a couple of VERY nice going away parties - extremely thoughtful and generous. My kid's grade school classroom also donated a very nice goody bag (movie tix, popcorn, stationary, etc) which was very thoughtful. Am touched by the generosity.

Also wrapped up a bit of travel - trekked down to DC first part of last week with the family. Sick kids and bad (cool, rainy) weather made it a bit more challenging, but it was still fun. No. 2 threw up in the car on the way home in upstate Jersey on I-95 (in a bag, thankfully) and we had to tolerate the smell for about 15 miles until we hit the last rest stop on the road before the GW Bridge.

Said goodbye on Friday to my favorite TV show (OK - the only one I watch), Battlestar Galactica. If you have not seen it, you may think of the 1978 namesake or Star Trek, but it is actually a very good show with a bit of sci fi in the background. Edward James Olmos kicks butt. An excellent finale which tied things up nicely and wrapped up the four years in a good way. Bit of trivia - I bumped into Richard Hatch (who starred in the original and the new version - not the guy from that Survivor show!) in O'Hare last year - just said 'hi', did not ask for autograph or anything.

Cats - we have a DVD of the Broadway show CATS and my youngest loves watching it and dancing along. The soundtrack is drilled into our brains - though I am probably one of the few people in the world who did not see it on Broadway - and I never actually saw the whole thing. Our local h/s put on a production on Sat and we all went to see it - was FANTASTIC. Amazed that high schoolers could pull of a musical like that.

Boys' birthdays this month, so we are swimming in new Lego sets. I am normally very fond of Legos and especially new sets, but 1) this is even too much for me and 2) I used to help them put them together, but now they don't need my assistance any more. Guess they are growing up....

That's about it. As I enter the last few days, am going to be packing up and getting ready for the big goodbye. The last few weeks have had enough distance, plus we have been busy doing stuff - now it is the final days and there is no avoiding it. I'll post again in the next couple of weeks with my actual Navy adventures - no more random theraputic ramblings.

No news is... no news.

2009-03-14T21:40:00.000-07:00

A whole lot closer since the last post, and now it is getting close. Trying to wrap up all of the remaining loose ends. Am in pretty good shape - all of the military prep is done, think I have everything I need, and have done about as much as I can think of on the homefront. Am still debating whether I should splurge on a new iPod Touch - don't really need it, but... Frankly, have sort of been spending freely as of late (stuff for the trip, the home front prep, and 'quality time') - will be on a tight budget (and without vacation) for the rest of the year if this thing gets cancelled! Going to start packing - trying not to take too much stuff since I will be lugging it around in a seabag - on top of the 3 or so seabags full of stuff I will get in my first week or two.

A bit of 'finality' in that I have the plane ticket to my first stop, so there is a firm date / time now. Still living life as normally as I can, though I know from past experience there will come a point where I start putting on the emotional shell to get ready for the separation, and I know Les will do the same. A necessary evil.

Also savoring the last vestiges of privacy... mil life tends to remove that. A couple of days or weeks here or there is one thing - sharing hotel rooms on drill weekends, for example, or living in a six-man stateroom on the USS Blue Ridge or a 200 man open-bay barracks in Korea for a two week exercise... Am dreading that aspect almost as much as the separation. Mind you, as a relatively senior officer, I will have it relatively good - I can't complain. I am just older and used to my creature comforts - and spoiled by biz travel, so I will just have to suck it up.

Finally, no news from my future employer since the one note a few weeks ago. No news is just that - not good or bad.

One week closer, and am learning more

2009-02-22T18:12:00.000-08:00

One week closer. Kids had vacation this past week, so I took a few days off from work and spent some time with the family. Nothing too special, though did take the boys skiing which was a lot of fun. As I was "flying" down the slopes with only a limited semblance of control, I sort of wondered what would happen if I broke a leg. Fortunately, I did not...

I did get in touch with folks in theater and actually have a good idea of who I will be working for, what I will be doing, and where I will be - even received an e-mail from my future boss. If my orders are not changed, it sounds like a great job and a good location. Of course, I know well enough that orders can change and until I am actually in country on the job, I am not going to get too excited just yet. But it is nice to have an idea of my future 'home' and points of contact. With that, am not too worried about the rest - have traveled half way around the world on orders enough to know how to find my way. Had a couple of humorous experiences in Korea trying to communicate with cab drivers who really had no idea where I wanted to go... not a good sign when they stop and ask other cabbies for directions.

I'm RC1 - The 70th line of defense...

2009-02-16T21:50:00.001-08:00

Back from my last 'reserve' weekend in Fort Worth - at least for the near term. Strange how things change in a month - last month I was deeply involved with what was going on and getting ready for the next big fleet exercise, and this weekend I was handing my job over and was pretty much disconnected from the unit as they did preps for the exercise while I prepped for my 'mob'. On the bright side, I did manage to take care of all of the reserve paperwork I need to transition to active duty, so I will not need to trek back to Texas again. I still have some things to do - training courses, power of attorney, etc, but I will fit that in over the next several weeks.

Title of the post refers to my reserve 'mobilization status' code. On a unit's roster, everyone has a code (MAS code, in Reserve lingo...) which indicates their status... examples include 'RC1' (mine) which means person is called up and waiting to start active duty, 'RD2' - which means someone was called up and has returned (and also means you 'in sanctuary' and cannot be called up), and 'RDA' which means you were called up a while back and are now available to be a called again. Lots of folks called up more than once (e.g. Sept 2001 then again for Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003) were RD2, but now find themselves on the hot seat again in 'RDA' status... lucky them. As an aside, there are other codes - 'VOL' - volunteer to be called up (yes, people do that!), blank (available for call up - I used to be there), and also codes which refer to single parents / families where both parents are military. NOTE - single parents and both parents of a child can and will be called up - that status does not protect someone from a callup. People in such situations have to have a plan in place to take care of their child / children should big Navy come calling... it is not an excuse to get out of a mobilization. To a civilian, this policy may sound REALLY harsh, but the fact is if you are serving in the reserves, you are volunteering to be ready to be called. Plenty of cases of that happening, too...

Spent Saturday night (Valentine's Day) with several friends from my unit - we were all stuck away from wives since we were at drill in Texas. Tried one restaraunt for dinner but it was packed, so we figured the local 'Hooters' would not be crowded - did not envision it to be a romantic dining place for couples. Oddly enough, it was packed - with couples and families! (maybe it is a Texas thing...) Anyhow, one of the guys with us is on 'the list' - he is most likely going to be called up in the next year. One little caveat is that people in his status HAVE an option - they can 'transfer to the IRR' - go to a non-pay status and they drop off 'the list' and WILL NOT BE CALLED up. Though they will not get paid and will not get promoted in this status, they can still work towards retirement via correspondence courses. AND, they can come back to paid status in the future, once they are 'clear'. I bumped into a guy from our unit at medical who was doing that - opting to hide rather than do his duty... But, the guy at dinner is NOT going to do that - even though his first child is a few months away and odds are he will be called up in the next few months. Working with guys like him is why I still like serving in the Navy... most of us really don't want to be called up, certainly aren't going to volunteer to go, but will go if their number is called.

Oh, and just in case you are curious, I already have orders in hand so I cannot transfer to the IRR even if I wanted to. But, I wouldn't.

Finally, the title refers to a 1998 Simpsons episode - Homer and his buds join the Navy Reserves and one of the jokes is "The Navy Reserve is the country's seventieth line of defense between the Mississippi National Guard and the League of Women Voters"

Disclaimers, Top 5, and Movie Pick

2009-02-09T20:47:00.000-08:00

Disclaimer: I received a couple of questions about security - i.e. am I saying anything that I should not. I don't think so - going to NAVCENT is a common destination for Navy types, and am not going to mention my final home until I get there, nor will I get into the details of my travel or anything operational. This blog is more to share the overall experience for those who will not have to experience it.

Good Afghanistan Article

Top 5 Deployment Song List: ( I loved the movie High Fidelity, though John Cusack sort of went into the tank a bit later on - Must Love Dogs? Even Lloyd Dobler would puke...). In honor of that, my top 5 list of deployment songs:

Still thinking, but:

Unchained Melody - Righteous Brothers - I didn't really discover this one until my second deployment, about 2 months in to a 4 month run -but it really resonated with a Navy deployment.

Babe - Styx. Yeah, just a bit cheezy - still recall it playing about every 5 minutes on WLS in Chicago (before they became talk radio) back in the 80s. But the light bulb went on while driving around with girlfriend the night before I headed out for my first Navy cruise - a 2 month sub deployment after freshman year in college.

More to follow...

Movie Pick - not sure if I will watch this before I go, but will definately hit Netflix when I get back. The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) - did not see this one until a few years back. It is a bit schmaltzy as well, but in a nutshell, it tells story of three WWII vets returning to their home town after the war after having been gone for years. The story focuses on their readjustments to their lives. I would not call it a 'chick flick', and though it lacks the staples of modern movies (violence, sex, maybe drugs) it is a great movie.

There is a process

2009-02-04T18:08:00.000-08:00

The next logical question is 'what happens now?'. Not a lot for a while, at least near term. In the next few weeks, I will be focusing on turning my day job over and getting the family prepped for my departure. The Navy's part in this phase is pretty low-key, I have a bunch of web training to knock out (M-16 familiarization, a variety of general military training stuff, anti-terrorism training, etc). That, and sending info to my first Navy stop (clothing sizes, etc). A great improvement over the past, as they gave me more than enough time to get ready - not days or a couple of weeks as they did initially.

My employer has been really good. They are working to replace me in my day job with sufficient time to turnover and give a decent handoff. The process there is pretty easy - I fill out a form and give a copy of my orders, and that's it. They are also supportive on the pay side - they will pay me the difference between my current pay and my military base pay. There are plenty of horror stories of folks who go from good paying jobs to essentially borderline poverty since their employers don't take care of them - not an issue with my company.

My first Navy stop will be NMPS (Navy Mobilization Processing Station) in Gulfport, MS. This will be five days of stuff that could easily be done in a day if the process was optimized, but the typical Navy way is to set the schedule to the least prepared person in the group. So, I expect it will be the stereotypical 'hurry up and wait' Navy exercise. That will be aggravating, as I know I could have spent a couple extra days at home. So be it. This place will transition me from being a civilian back to a full time active Navy officer, and it focuses on medical and paperwork readiness.

Next is three weeks at Ft Jackson in SC for "NARMY" training - the Army trains us how to be quasi-soldiers. I am not sure of all the details, but basically it gets you used to wearing body armor and shooting lots of weapons. If you have never dealt with the Army, the individuals are normally great people but systemically the Army is a bit painful... so I am not looking forward to dealing with that. The weapons stuff sounds like fun, however.

After that, I believe that I hop on the big bird for the Middle East. Again, not sure where I go yet.

That's why it is called fine print

2009-01-31T21:45:00.001-08:00

This blog is my way of documenting my transition from my normal civilian life to active duty military life in the Middle East. Hundreds of thousands of folks have done this since Sept 2001, but this is intended for my friends and family who probably do not know a lot of military folks.

As a Navy reservist, we have always been told to be ready for recall, though as a submarine officer one may think I would have really no use in places like the Middle East. Ha! Turns out, we fit rather nicely in a variety of roles doing typical staff officer work. Indeed, a good buddy - submarine officer turned attorney - spent his year training the Afghan Army. And it is not a bad thing - if one of us gets called every 5-6 years to take one for the team so some Army or USMC guy / gal gets to avoid a third tour in four years, it is a good thing.

The title of the blog does not reflect a 'surprise' at getting called up - that was always a possibility. It refers to a VERY recent Navy Reserve policy - instead of having folks like me on pins and needles all the time, they decided to publish a list. If you were on it, you were on the short list to go for the next year. If not, you could relax for the next year. The list came out about two weeks ago, I was not on it, so I thought I was clear and even told the wife... The fine print was that the list process does not start just yet... As an aside, there are already some issues with this policy - not sure how it will actually work - and frankly I would hate to be on a close leash for a year. Imagine trying to plan anything for that year... and if you were called up at the end, it would mean pretty much two years affected.

How does one get called up?
Simple. Your cell phone rings when you happen to be on the toilet at work - 12.04pm on Thursday, Jan 29th. You don't answer it - one place the phone is a no-no. Once I am done and washed, check the phone expecting it to be a call from Leslie (the spouse). Instead, it is an UNLISTED number, and the voice mail is from a YN1 (Yeoman Petty Office First Class) from my Reserve Center in Fort Worth and I am supposed to call back. So I do... and he was presumably at lunch for the next hour. However, from his voice mail I know pretty much I have been called as his voice mail states his is 'Mobilization Desk'.

I waited very impatiently for the next 50 minutes, tapped a few e-mails, and attempted to engage in conversation but pretty much I was in a 'holy f^*k' fog. But, at 12:55 or so, YN1 answers the phone and yes indeed, I am mobilized, leaving in two months, but he has no idea where. So I log in to the Navy web and find my orders and they say 'Operation Enduring Freedom' and list a billet (job) number. I call a couple of points of contacts on my orders, and get some limited idea where I am going, but until I actually have a better handle I will just not say since I still am not sure, other than it is the Middle East and not Iraq specifically.

That is step ONE of the process. I will cover the notification process in a follow on post.