The name's Bentley.......Andrew Bentley

I am not counting down the days until my next R&R, today makes 24 days left. I am more excited then a little bit. However due to the close time proximity the days are starting to seem longer and longer.

Besides the R&R on the horizon, I have had many things here to keep me busy. I have been meeting with the owners and operators of the Serka Company to help them with their Hazmat, Hazcom, and Environmental issues. Soon I should have them up to speed on OSHA, RCRA and DOD regulations.

Meeting with the owners of this company is fascinating. Once you enter their office you forget you are in Iraq. The inside is more extravagant then a five star hotel. Hardwood floors, hand woven Turkish carpet, intricate wall paper, and elegant lighting. They also have a “butler” at the door that takes your coat and asks you if you need anything. This is not a place you want to walk into without wearing a suit jacket and a tie. The owners are multi-millionaires and clearly love to live the high life. One of the only things they don’t have is an understanding of the mentioned regulations. They have never operated in a place that has Environmental or Safety standards. This is where I come in.

The first time I went over there I was blown away by the quality of life these gentlemen live her in Iraq. The well dressed door man took my jacket, and had me sit in the meeting room until he could summon (yeah he used that word) the owner, translators, and head staff. These guys were serious about getting down to business.

The meeting room is pristine. Large round hardwood table, well lit oil paintings of Arabic horses on the walls, and a small ornate podium in the corner. They even had a little jazzy Arabic music playing in the background.

After a few minutes of soaking up the quality of this room a small jittery man with a British accent comes into the room and tells me the boss will be with me shortly and he apologized for the wait. I told him no apology is necessary and he runs off. At this point I was wishing I had worn a tie.

Then the boss came in. He walked in with 3 other people and was followed by the jittery British fellow (who ended up being the translator). He sat across the table from me with two of the gentlemen standing on either of him side. The British dude sat at his left. Now I’m thinking this is almost a joke because it is starting to play off like an old Bond movie, and I was 007. I kept wishing in the back of my head he’d not understand why I was here and offer me a briefcase of money to make his problems go away. It was intimidating sitting on one side of this room by myself, I had a small amount of tunnel vision for the first few minutes.

To help break the ice I thought ahead and learned a few words in Turkish before I went and was able to say hello and introduce myself. I couldn’t resist saying, “Benim adım Bentley…..Andrew Bentley” (Hello, my name is Bentley….. Andrew Bentley). It was probably the worst sounding Turkish this guy has ever heard in his life, but he appreciated the effort and had his translator tell me my last name was a very powerful one and he respected that.

After the introductions, the boss man yelled out of the room to the butler guy and in a minute I had the smallest cup of coffee I have ever seen sitting in font of me. It was in one of those little tiny cups little girls use to play tea party with. The cup looked like it was painstakingly hand painted and had a gold inlay on the handle. I was almost afraid to touch it in fear I would break the damn thing. I drank it in 2 small gulps then looked up to see the blank looks on the Turkish guys faces. I soon realized why they were so shocked.

In about 30 seconds I became so wired I felt like I could flip the desk and take out the two “goons” standing behind this guy. It felt like I had just drank ten Red Bulls. Later I found out Turkish coffee is some of the strongest in the world. They use some special bean with the coffee bean that is super caffeinated.

The meeting went well (even more so once my hand stopped shaking under the table). I just explained to him the basics of why I was there, why he needed to comply with what I had to say and what the military would do if he didn’t. I didn’t go into depth on what exactly he needed to do, that was the job of his workers. I was just asking for his help and permission to get things started.

By the end of the meeting we were joking and having a good time. I have discovered that in all cultures many underlying themes exist. Women are a pain in the ass; government is corrupt and has too much power; the weather in Iraq sucks; and your hometown will always be your favorite place. I found it easy to get along with anyone if you can start conversations with topics such as these. The meeting went so well, he even offered me a job which I politely declined.

He has been a valuable powerful friend. His kindness is unmatched. He offered me the use of his facilities, his workers, and assets. If I ever needed anything built, made, or fixed he told me not to hesitate to ask. At the end of the first meeting he said with the best of his English abilities, “Mr. Bentley, you are a man of many good things. Often show your face. Turkey you come, I promise good times.” (It was something like that)

However, I make it a note to keep my distance from gentlemen with this much power. People with this powerful usually have had to toss a few people under the tracks over the years to get where they are. I will enjoy his hospitality, but will keep myself removed from him.

Here are some recent pictures from below. They may be the last ones for a while. My SD card seems to have quit on me and I can't seem to find the other one I had. So enjoy these ones for now.

Working hard and staying clean

Proud owner of a new Forlift Licence

Pizza party, Doewinder is an Uncle

"Blue Steel" pose from Zoolander (caught him off gaurd with the camera)

Me and my Buddy Emir