just messing around

Thanks Colleen for the letter you sent. It was real nice hearing from back home. I got the pictures of dad and his bike. He looks pretty happy with it. All is still well here. I went out this afternoon for another sweat fest in the bradley. They really need to put some AC in there. Luckily they still have enough drivers so I was riding in the back. The diesel engine is up front next to the drivers seat so it is about the hottest place you can find. Our rotation for the UN guard is coming next monday. Ill take some pictures this time so you can see the bombed out buildings.

sept. 25th-ish

Ill be home in late September. whooo hooo!

desert brown

From reading the past posts you can gather that we do 3 things, guard the base, go on missions, or wait around as a quick reaction force. I was working on guarding the base yesterday but got pulled off today. With everybody going home on leave the bradleys are short on drivers. Since I dont have any DUIs and still hold a civilian drivers license this somehow qualifies me to become a temporary driver. I ride in the back all the time but I dont know the first thing about working one so this should be interesting. Gulf coast catering served up some catfish, sweet potatoes, and corn on the cob for lunch. It was a good change of pace from the normal fare. Everybody came over here expecting to lose weight but its just not happening. During the first Operation iraqi freedom in 2003 all the food came from MREs and many say it was an effective diet. People who were here the first time around have commented on how much better the quality of life is. For the smokers, cigarettes are only 50 cents a pack. Free laundry service is available if you get tired of washing your clothes in the river. The swimming pool certainly is nice.

to the left

pool side

confused

I was dozing in and out of my siesta today when someone came down the hall asking if anybody wanted to go swimming. Waiting for the punch line I figured it was a joke. It was not. It turns out the Iraqi army base next to us has an indoor Olympic size pool. I heard rumors about this place but no one in our platoon was for sure it existed. They were looking for volunteers for a guinea pig run to go see if the pool was legit. Ten of us grabbed our shorts and flip flops and climbed in the LMTV (large truck). Before we got there I was expecting a crusty cattle tank for a pool but instead it was a remarkably nice setup with 3 dive boards, 10 lanes, showers, and cool water.

this link was on the drudgereport>
Baghdad suffocates as sandstorm leaves Iraqi capital breathless

These are some views from my window to looking outside at the orangish red dust. It is keeping the temp down to a nice cooling 75*F. Thank you Ed and Evelyn for the package you sent. The cookies and brownies were still fresh when I got them. Everybody who tried them said that they were righteous and that you know how to cook.

poser

Cattle crossing

illegal music downloading

Pics 2

Donkey Cart

side view

The back of my head while planning the best route to burger king

Pics

the local crowd

me looking down the street

gunner of the day