Me and My Ride

Hey everybody. Well I got a little break so I thought I would add this one. This is my ride, Bumper # H107. It's an 1151 model uparmored humvee. It's got a lot of factory extras (and a few homemade extras) including Frag 5 armor package, navigation and communication system (think Magellan dash mount GPS on steroids), two radios but no CD player, and A/C believe it or not. The A/C works most of the time. But there ain't one cup holder in the whole thing. I'm thinking about adding spinners to it.

I'm going to bed now....

Camel Cavalcade

I promised Charlie and Luke I would post this. We ran into a temporary road block the other day on the way to Gardez. Can you imagine having pet camels? Well that's pretty much what these are...sort of. These people are Coochies. That's right...I said Coochie on my blog site. I swear that's what they're called. They are nomads that move their herds around and sleep in big tents with their whole family. Their camels, sheep, and goats just follow them around. Well anyway, after a few encouraging words and whacks with a stick from the Coochies, the impediment to movement was resolved and we continued on our way. Is it just me or are the two up front giving us the eye?

On a side note, communication is gonna be a litte difficult for about the next week. I was about to get into a discussion on time differences and stuff, but I haven't gotten enough sleep to figure that out yet. Suffice it to say, my schedule is a little different for a while. Also, we're gonna be doing a little traveling, so I may be out of the loop. I'll holler at everybody when I get a chance. Love you all.

Pretty Little Girl

If anybody asks you why I'm over here doing what I'm doing, tell them this is why. She deserves a future, too.

Latrine Rules

I told you all that our living conditions were spartan at best. Well, even in spartan conditions they are rules for civilized living. The latrine (bathroom) is no exception. I'll warn you before you look, there's a little bit of rough language - it is the Army after all. But I think it only adds to the humor of the situation. I apologize for the bad focus. It's tight quarters in there and the lighting is poor.

The first thing I have to explain is the pump. We don't have a typical home setup where the pump comes on automatically to fill a bladder tank. Nope, our water comes directly from the pump. No pump, no water. So when we're done, we have to cut the pump off or it'll burn up. Hence the reminders throughtout the latrine:

Then there is the general summary of rules:

The other thing I have to explain is that the toilets here are not like at home. They're backwards. At home, they slope from front to back with the hole at the rear. Here, they slope from back to front with a hole at the front. And unlike home, there is no water in them. So we layer paper in them prior to conducting our "sit-down" business. Hence, the next admonishment:

Once you sit down and close the doors, there is the following reminder and encouragement for those who didn't layer the paper first:

Like I said, there are some rules, even out here in a bathroom. I get a chuckle everytime I go to the latrine and read these.

If you ain't Cav.....

...you ain't sh*%. At least that's what they say. Got a chance today to ride horses. The SF guys on our FOB have about a dozen that they use occasionally. They came down and asked us if we'd like to help exercise them today. Of course we said yes. The only thing that would have made it better is if I had my Stetson.

Me and White Devil

White Devil

Pakistan

I know that you all were sitting in your quiet homes wondering what in the world Pakistan looks like. Well wonder no more!!! Just over my shoulder is a line of trees. They tell me that that is the border. Who knows? It's not like there's a line painted on the ground here. Off in the distance (don't know if you can make it out in the picture, it's real hazy) are the Hindu Kush mountains - Rooftop of the World.

But if you ever want to visit here, you better come equipped like this. It's not exactly a tourist haven.

Afghan Roads

The roads in Afghanistan are something else. You never know what you're gonna see. Take this for instance:






Just a boy and his donkeys out for a stroll...20 miles from the nearest town....at around 9000 feet above sea level....temperature around 100. Just another day in Afghanistan. By the way this is the only paved road in Afghanistan. At least it's the only paved road that I've seen so far. This is at Terra Pass. Off in the distance, about 40 miles or so, is Kabul.




Or this....apparently there is some farming to be done...somewhere. Not here. Again, we're in the Terra Pass....9000 feet or so. About 2 feet to the right of Habib's right tire is a drop of about, I don't know, 1000 feet. It's not straight down, but it'd still be a sad-face day for Habib and his three buddies at the bottom. And Massey-Ferguson has a monopoly on the tractors here. I swear everyone of them is M-F. Maybe that's the cause of all the malcontent in this part of the world. They don't know the joys of a John Deere.



And then there's the jingle trucks. You guys won't believe these things. I'm not even gonna start to describe these things. Once I get some good pictures, I'll post them. They defy description.

New Digs

Hey Everybody,

I have finally moved into my permanent post...if there is such a thing in the Army. I'm at Chamkani which is about 7 km west of the Pakistan border. I'm here with my team to mentor the Afghani Border Police.

My conditions are spartan by the standards of most, but really they are cushy. Here's my room.

Yeah, yeah...the windows are bricked up and the walls are concrete and plywood...sure, it was just sectioned off from an old warehouse...the bathroom is outside, 50 meters away, I know, I know...there's dust everywhere, yadda, yadda....but I've got a RUG!!! And a COT!!! And SHELVES!!! And my OWN fluorescent light!!! You come to appreciate the little things.

And, oh yeah (oops, top left), I started smoking again, Mom. But, I'm 7000 miles away. LOL. Yeah, that and I'm 36 years old. You know I love you...I'll stop if you want me to. Or at least I'll hide them next time.