01 July 2007

Making Nice with the Locals

Hey Everybody,

A quick one today. We went out on a short patrol this morning (Sunday...7 day work weeks) to meet with a local business man who owns a flour mill. The purpose of the visit was tactical but we do it in a way that gives the locals some ownership of the project and makes them happy to help. Can't tell you what the real purpose of the visit was (I'd have to kill you) but we made sure that his suppliers weren't being stopped at any illegal checkpoints, that his electricity was reliable, and that he didn't have any issues with our nearby base.

Things are otherwise good for me. It's still hot. It's still dry. I finally found out that I am going south to work with the Afghan National Police. I start training for that mission on the 5th. Can't tell you exactly where I'm going (not because I'd have to kill you...I really don't know yet). Anyway, here's a picture from this morning.
Pray for improved communications home, cool weather, and no more Oriental food at the DFAC.


10 comments:

Judy said...

oh my goodness it is good to see you!! Even in a picture! That's right sweetie you make nice with the locals and get your keester home!

My eyes and heart still cannot believe all this.. Dad and I read Psalm 91 for you..and dad has really been praying for you...me too of course..Thank you fro keep in touch..Talk w/ Ha and the boys more now that you are gone..she calls and dad is happy about that.

Well, be alert, head down and don't you need a bigger gun???

Love you so much.........

Mom!

Judy said...

Gosh.. we have spelling police here so that was suppose to be "for keeping" LOL

AmyWhit said...

Hey, Jeff! Good to see you! Thank you for keeping in touch with us through the blog! We enjoy getting updates from you and on you! Your mom printed off the picture of you and your comrades and brought it to church this morning. All I could see was your dad in that picture! You look just like him. Stay safe and keep us posted when you can. But PLEASE don't tell us anything that you'd have to kill us for later!

Heather said...

Oh, I wish I could hug you! Don't sweat off too many pounds! I really loved hearing from you the other night. Just email as much as you can, we can deal with just email since the phone is rather expensive.
What is an AKO account? There was a lady from the 'stan at church today and she asked if I had an account yet.
The computer guru is still trying to figure out what's going on wtih the computer. Of all things, did you know that elf bowling is a virus? I told him to take off anything questionable.
I'll try another email tonight.
Love you more and more each second.....Ha

Jeff said...

AKO stands for Army Knowledge Online. It's a one-stop site for all things Army. I check myPay, iPERMS, and my email from there. Sis can tell you how to get one. I'm not exactly sure of the process to get you an account. You'll probably have to go to Mullins. Surprise, surprise. I'll email you some more later.

Anonymous said...

So good to see you posting again Jeff. Everybody at church is praying for your safety. Of course I'm praying for you and Heather to have better communication. I know how hard that is, right now Heather is feeling like a single parent and you both have a heavy burden to carry. Stay safe my friend.

Anonymous said...

Just took a closeup view of your pic. Boy you have to carry alot of stuff!

jamie said...

Pretty cool pic!! Shane says he can tell you guys just got there!! Your neck gator is way to clean.. He says it will turn black the longer you are there!! YUCK!!LOL!

AND, Don't make too NICE with the locals, remember they blew us up!! And they don't mind setting up IED's and sending RPG's your way!! Be wary of ALL of them!!

You know God has you in the palm of his Hand!! And we all pray daily for you as well!! Stay safe BuB!!! Love ya!

(I just noticed that you have this set to military time! HAHAHA!!)

Judy said...

Your sister and Shane are right..
That guy gives me the creeps..he's looking off to the side..kinda shifty lookin..you can see it in his eyes...or maybe he's scared too no I'd have to stick to shifty..But you pay close attention to ALL of them!

From your Mother!

Jeff said...

He was looking off to the side because we ticked him off. The patrol leader just kind of barged in and asked to see his factory rather than focusing the visit on him. We didn't get an invite to tea from this guy (not good). He's just a normal business man, not a terrorist. The whole social structure is way different over here than what we're used to.