Happy Easter

Happy Easter Everyone, hope you all got your fill of yummy candy. I know I did thanks to my family back home, thanks again Mom and Nana.

I have a few interesting stories and events that have occurred the last few days. The first that jumps to mind is that I went to Church on Easter Sunday. It was interesting seeing passages being read by people wearing side arms and whose job is killing people for a living (an oxymoron that I don’t wish to get into). The service was nice, the Priest was funny and intelligent, and the message generic. And it also gave me an hour to sit down and relax with my radio off (Heck, I might no next week).

Easter Sunday on base is like any other holiday here. Everyone goes to work, but no one actually does any work, it is sort of an accepted thing. I just realize that it was the last holiday that I will experience on base; the end is near my friends.

On a somber note my buddy demobilized (went home). The management here is getting funny due to the reality our contract is winding down. They have started to make up ridiculous rules and many people are just tossing in the towel and heading home. JG is one of those people. Three and a half years here is enough and he decided to head on home to be with friends and family. He stayed long enough to pay off a house, car and to live it up for a few years (got his “bling” on, for lack of better terms).

I am already missing him. We ate breakfast, lunch and dinner together, and he taught me things that I couldn’t have learned from anyone else. He grew up in a NYC ghetto during the 70ies and got out. He couldn’t read or write well due to the fact his schooling was probably subpar at best, but his people skills were amazing. The way he received respect from these racist, bigot, Southerners still astounds me. He can walk into a group of people who make it obvious that they already hate him because he is black (and from the North) and still get his ideas and needs across. In no time at all he earned these guys respect and had them doing the work he needed them too. To add to the amazement, New York Ebonics is his first language I think.

I learned a lot of life lessons from him; everything from how to read people’s interactions to bullshitting like a professional. I could write pages of funny stories he told me about growing up in NYC, and leaving to join the military. I have already written down a few for my own records so that I don’t forget, ask me sometime and I’ll tell you one.

Other then that, I am just trying to keep my head above water. like I said before the management for my company is getting ridiculous. They are pulling every trick in the book to get people fired (it seems). One of the rules being enforced now is how to properly back you vehicle up. Everyone working for KBR has to “combat park.” Which simply means you back into parking spots, not pull in. But now you have to have your passenger jump out and guide you into the spot using hand signals which isn’t so annoying to do. However, if you are alone in the vehicle you have to:
Swing out and line up with the spot
Put on your hazard flashers
Get out of the truck
Lock the truck
Walk completely around the truck checking for hazards
Unlock the truck, and get in
Then put your seatbelt on
Honk Back the truck up slowly into the spot

Yeah, I know, a bit ridiculous. I think I have heard every curse word in every language on this base while blocking traffic to do this “back up from hell.” Anyone caught not doing that exactly as stated gets seven days off work with no pay and if you are caught a second time you are fired. Not to mention, no hat=fired, no lanyard=fired, caught taking lunch to long=fired. Also, if you truck is in a hit & run you get five days off work with no pay, how the heck are you suppose to control that? If you don’t like someone, you could kick in a headlight on there truck when no one is around and they would get penalized.

But I just have to last 70 something days, a walk in the park *knock on wood*

No elaborate decorations for Easter

They won't eat Peeps for some reasonCandy from Nana

Letter from Polish PenPal (Three months Travel time)

Me and my homeboy JG

Emergency Tank Empty Job

Krishna

Hey mom, ignore those danger signs. It's cool, It's cool.

Grrrrrrrr

AC

Well yesterday was the day I switched from Heat to Air Conditioning. The Iraqi summer heat is coming and I already hate it. It gets into the 80s during the day now and I very much miss those 35 degree mornings. On the bright side, the days have gotten long enough for me to catch the sunset on my ride home from work. I love tossing up my hammock for an hour at the end of the day before I go to the gym.


I’m down to 80 something days until I leave here and I already know I am going to miss this place. I have wanted to go home since I got here, it was weird when I realized that I am going to miss it here. I have a close group of friends that I will probably never see once I get outta here. Heck my roommate called my house when I was on R&R because it had been so long since we talked.


I have started a list of things I want to do when I get home, when I finish it I will post it up on here. But until then I want everyone to know I am looking forward to seeing each of you. I apologize for not calling or writing some of you guys back, I’ve been crazy busy here.

Happy Easter everyone!

Hey Mom, I'm thinking about a new job...

Photoionization (Fuel Sinffer)

Back in the Groove

It has been a week and a few days since I have gotten back from R&R and I think I am back in the swing of things; found my groove again, so to say. I am excited for my last R&R and returning home so I can get back to school. I am also very excited about attending Graduate School. I am looking into colleges now so I’ll be ready to apply next semester. I hope, with this job experience, that I’ll be a shoe-in for a research position or a Teaching Assistance spot. I hope to go to grad school for free; there is no reason at this point why I should have to pay to go. It would also mean a solid job for two years. I’ll check out what schools are offering in October at GSA.

I had a little pizza party for the guys to mark St. Patrick’s Day and did my best to explain to them what is was all about. In any case, they got some pizza and had an awesome lunch. Speaking of parties, I am having a grill made so I can have a cookout with my buddies and roommate one day soon. It is staying light enough to have one outside after work, and it isn’t hot yet. Now it’s just a matter of searching for things to cook. I’ll end up having to sweet talk some of the DFAC warehousemen.
I have gotten to the point where I referrer to this place as home which is kind of scary, but today actually marks 100 days until my next and final R&R! I’ll have to come back into country to pack up my stuff to send home, but in 100 days I’ll be done working.

Below are some photos I’ve taken here on base since I’ve been back. Also some photos MBH took of me while in Dubai, I had an awesome time that day, I can't wait to hang out with them again! Enjoy!

How Bout them Eagles??!?!!??!

How bout those birds? I heard on the radio today that we kick some New York butt… Again. Not only had the Eagles won, but Pittsburgh as well. PA teams are doing awesome! It seems like since I have left, Philly teams have been doing well. Almost makes me think leaving somehow helped the Mojo of Philadelphia. As if me being here is good luck. All this talk about the Eagles on Sports Center as made me think of Philadelphia a lot.

Cheese Steaks, Whiz Cheese, Cold Pretzels, Herrs Chips, Independence Hall, The Liberty Bell, Ben Franklin, and let us not forget Tastykakes. Philadelphia is an awesome city with lots to offer, maybe one reason why it is hard for me to stay here. I could see why people from the South can be here till the wheels fall off, from what they tell me they don’t seem have much to go home too. My area back home is so nice, why wouldn’t I want to be home?

My roommate, by sheer chance of luck, is actually from the Philadelphia area too. He is the only one on base besides me. He grew up and lived in North Camden NJ. On my birthday I was lucky enough to receive enough Tasty Kakes to feed a small army. The look on my roommates face when I handed him a few boxes was priceless. The first thing that came out of his mouth after inhaling some Krimpits was, “Tell your mom I love her.”

My roommate and I had a chance to share our Philadelphia-ness yesterday while eating dinner with a guy from Chicago. While finishing our meal TC (my roommate) said that he was skipping the ice cream tonight because he was going to scarf down a Tastykake when he got back to the room. Confused, the gentlemen from Chicago asked, “What is a Tastykake?”

For the next 15 minutes while we walked back to our hootch to give Mike a Tastykake we tried to explain to him what a Tastykake is and how great they are.

Me: By far the best cake ever, they probably ate it at the last supper after the whole bread and wine thing.

TC: A Tastykake, is exactly that. A really really Tastykake. The first thing you are going to think when you have one is, “Wow, this is a really Tasty cake.”

Me: Tastykakes are so good, from here on out all other snack cakes will probably taste like dog do-do to you.

TC: I am almost afraid to give you one. You’ll end up knocking on my door at three am this morning scratching your neck and looking over your shoulder asking for “a fix.”

Me: Dude, they are so good, after eating one you will shit rainbow…No lie.

TC: Right now, if President Bush airlifted Tastykakes and dropped them by parachute to the countries of the world, no one would ever hate the US for anything and we could probably get away with whatever we wanted. They are simply that good.

Me: People atop bridges and buildings in Philadelphia trying to commit suicide are usually talked down with a box of Tastykakes.

We had a great time reminiscing about the SE PA area, and even after all that hype Mike still loved the Tastykakes. I even tossed in a bag of Herrs chips for him to take back to his room. He tells us when he get back from R&R he is going to bring us some tastes of Chicago. Apparently there is a company that makes good chips and popcorn he is going to have us try.

I got a chance to use some of the new lenses for my camera, the telephoto to be exact. The other pictures are of me and my buddy from Kenya. He is the one who asked me why I looked and talked different from everyone else. (Because I am Irish and not from the South!)

Happy Birthday to Me

Today I turn 23 years of age. My Mother and Brother called me this morning which was nice. A few emails and IM’s have come in as well which has bighted my morning thus far. Before work I ripped open my presents from home and I got a book on Peru and a poncho for when I go. I also got a bunch of lottery tickets from my Nana (Mother’s mom). I had a stack of them and didn’t even win a buck, I’m almost afraid to hang outside to much today. I will keep in mind where the bunkers are just in case.

Your birthday in Iraq doesn’t really feel much different from any other day. The only difference for me is that I can justify not doing a gosh darn thing today, haha. After all it is my birthday.

Things here on base are way more hectic then usual the last week (hence why I haven’t written since the New Year). Without a supervisor or a secretary, or help, I am starting to stress out a bit. I now know why our supervisor is always a space cadet or looks like the undead from a zombie movie. Trying to make sure everything is under control, while at the same time making sure your co-make the department look like a joke is a lot harder then I previously thought it would be. It is sad that I am the youngest one here and have to babysit the persons with more “experience” then me.

For example, I sat in on the weekly conference call with “AS.” He was so nervous about the conference call that he kept dialing the number he uses to call his phone card. Once we did get on the line I had to explain to him that the conference call wasn’t a time to show off. He had a big list of things we have done in the last few weeks, and our yearly numbers. I had to explain to him that no one on the conference call really cared about the little things we have done on the base. He would have made himself look like an ass, not to mention the whole department. It was a good thing I was there to explain that too him. It’s really hard to explain that to someone without hurting his feelings or causing an argument, but I am getting good at handling those situations.

Because of situations like this I have to go the gym every night just so I don’t strangle someone. I really hope someday I am surrounded by fellow employees that are worth a damn. O well, I’m not on here to complain, this is just another one of those mild stones that comes with the working world I guess. It has helped me recognize that I am a good, valuable employee, and am going to do awesome once I get back to the real job market. I am looking forward to finishing school so I can work my way up that ladder (which might be a while now because I am interested in graduate school now).

The transition from the old food service to the new one is in swing right now. By the end of January the old company will be out and the new one will be completely in charge. I am nervous because I have seen the new company unloading MREs (Meals Ready to Eat) into their buildings. When the old company leaves they are taking all the kitchen equipment. The new company will not only have to learn this job overnight, but will have to set up kitchens that feed thousands of people a meal. I am worried we might have to eat MREs for a few days while all that jazz goes down! It will be an interesting event to say the least.

The pictures below are from today and yesterday. I somehow ended up wearing the same shirt both pizza party days so far, that's what the photos might look similar. Hope you enjoy.

USO SHOW

They had a USO show here on base a few days ago, and it is exactly what I needed to cheer up a little. It was a really entertaining and I took lot of video and a few pictures that you’ll see below. I had never been to a show like this before and it was interesting.

They had three country stars, the Army band, some Dolphin cheerleaders, and one of my favorite comedians, Louis CK. The country music was fun for me just because the crowd loved it. They kept asking, “who loves country music?” and every time they did the crowd went wild. All and all it was a great show. I was also lucky enough to have my picture taken with Leeann Tweeden who has been on the cover of FHM, was named the hottest Hooters girl of all time and has been in Playboy. She is also one of the hosts of “The World’s Best Damn Sports Show Period” on Fox. Truthfully I didn’t really know who she was, but I do now! I also got to shake Louis CK’s hand after the show, which was pretty awesome since I love standup. I should have waited in line to do the meet and greet thing, but it was long and I’m not a solider; it would have felt kind of weird.

Tomorrow is Christmas, So Merry Christmas to all! I can’t wait to see how the DFAC is dressed up! I will have lots of pictures her as soon as I take them. I also can’t wait to open my Christmas presents. I will have to wait until Christmas night to open my gifts because I am working all Christmas day. Everyone told me to save that vacation day for some other time since no one does any real work on Christmas. They tell me it ends up being a day everyone comes into work and just hangs out, no real work gets done all day. And besides, if I didn’t come into work I wouldn’t see any of my friends on Christmas. We are also having a small Christmas party here in the office, which the safety department is setting up. KBR Environmental and the safety guys usually don’t hang out, but I hear they are going to give some of our SCW’s certificates for a good job.