Chris in Iraq

25Dec11 Last Iraq Post

2011-12-26T02:55:00.001+03:00

25Dec11 Last Iraq Post

I've not posted in a few months now. There's a reason as I've left
Iraq and have moved on to Afghanistan. I really didn't think my
departure from Iraq would be so sudden as the Army made all
indications that there would be a presence after December. The
sticking point was the SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement). Iraq wanted
all US soldiers to fall under the Iraqi judicial system. That wasn't
going to happen so all US soldiers will be out of Iraq (except for
about 200 trainers) by 31 Dec. That directly affected my job.
So...one day in October I got a call saying that I had 5 days to
finish what I was doing and be out of Iraq by 31 Oct. Long story
short, I left and have moved on. It turns out that I probably could
have stayed. In fact there will be about 24,000 civilian contractors
that will continue to work in Iraq for the Department of State (yes,
24 thousand!) So remember that the next time someone tells you that
the US has 'pulled out of Iraq'. Anyway, above are some final pics
of my trip out of Iraq. In case you're interested. I'm now in
Afghanistan (cafghanistan.blogspot.com) So far I'm still trying to
get into a routine there so I've not been posting too much either.
But I'm still a contractor in the middle east.
R/Chris

02 Aug 11 Kuwait sucks

2011-08-03T12:55:00.001+03:00

02 Aug 11 Kuwait sucks

The first stop on my R&R is Kuwait. Civ and mil from both Iraq and Afghanistan fly to Kuwait in order to catch either a commercial flight (United 981 KWI to IAD non-stop) or the freedom flight (mostly military) to either Atlanta or Dallas and generally not non-stop.

By Kuwait, I mean the Ali Al Salem airbase about 60 miles west of Kuwait City in the middle of the desert.I have to stay here in a tent until my flight is ready and Ali has been here for years now. Some of the tents are getting pretty raggy and as you can see need to be replaced. Also you can see what it looks like in side. It's pretty much just bunk beds and a bare mattress. Any sheets or blankets you may want you'll have to purchase at the PX. Also the weather in Kuwait (on this trip) was particularly bad. It was blowing dust and sand during the day and again, damn hot. With my 'bank robber' mask I'd be sucking in a lot of dust and there is some bad stuff in that dust. New guys here get the 'kuwait-crud' which is your basic upper respiratory infection. Fortunately I'm either immune to it or the bank robber mask worked.

R/Chris

02 August 11 A short R&R

2011-08-03T12:35:00.001+03:00

02 August 11 A short R&R

First, again I've been remiss in updating and while I have excuses, it's really no excuse. So I'm posting and stuff again. So here goes.
As a contractor in Iraq, we get a break either every 4 or 6 months. It just depends on your contract, etc. Soldiers also get a 6 month break but many (but not all) get a 'weekend pass' in Qatar at the 3 and 9 months mark. BUT of course with the drawdown everything is changing. The main action is Afghanistan and NOT Iraq. Whether or not the US will have any presence in Iraq after December in 5 months is anyone's guess. (I think there will be such.) But my last job will be closing this contract and moving on, when that happens.
Anyway, I got a whole week off in July and got to fly to the US mainly to get some needed dental work. (Bridge fixed and a cleaning.) To get out of Iraq I have to take milair (military aircraft) and above are a few pics inside the cramped C-130. Under the new DoS (Dept of State) contract, we'll fly 'Embassy Air' (whatever that is.) You can see how packed we are and honestly, it's dang hot and muggy inside (since it's 120F outside). Our luggage is on a pallet in the back and you can see they threw a body on the very top! (Actually one of the air crew napping during the flight.)

I'll post more soon.
R/Chris

062511 Why'd the AF turn off the hot water? To say 10 cents per shower...

2011-06-25T11:39:00.001+03:00

062511 Why'd the AF turn off the hot water? To say 10 cents per shower...

Iraq is very much winding down. The plan is to have all combat troops out of Iraq by 01 Dec (which is only about 5 months away). Any 'combat troops' still in Iraq after that date will become 'training troops. For most contractors and military personnel the drawdown has affected our housing. The CHUs that we lived in WERE supposed to be moved to the bases that will be maintained by DoS (Department of State) after the military departs Iraq. But the rumor is that DoS didn't want them (not good enough) so our CHUs were still removed and then sent to the DRMO (the Army's version of a junkyard/disposal facility). URGH! So everyone had to double up in housing. The pics above are of the old housing areas. If ANYTHING the AF here could have left the housing units in place for the incoming Iraqi personnel. It just doesn't make sense. And neither does turing off the hot water.
Now the AF is planning on turning off hot water to everywhere except the DFAC (dining facility) and the hospital. Fortunately it's hot outside (at least 110 here everyday) and the cold' water isn't really cold. While the nights cool to the high 80s and low 90s a shower in the morning will now be a tempid shower at best. And no more hot water to wash your hands either. All this to save about 10 cents per day per person (the facilities guy gave me that number).
Removing perfectly good housing units to just be sent to the junkyard and turning off the hot water are just dumb. Eh, we'll see how the drawdown continues...
R/Chris

053011 Memorial Day in Iraq

2011-05-29T14:04:00.001+03:00

053011 Memorial Day in Iraq

Today is Memorial Day in Iraq and it's basically a day off (or at most half-ass effort day.) Yesterday, there was a picnic for lunch followed by games, basketball, horeshoes and 'inspirational music and dance'. BUT this was only for the military and DAC personnel. As a contractor, if I wanted to participate I would not be allowed to charge for my time. BUT there wasn't a rigid enforcement of this rule either so as in all, I suppose it all washes out (so to speak if you follow me here.)
Anyway, today is the big pool day. There will be water bottle boat contests (similar to milk carton boat race) later but overall the pool is just a great place to hang out (see pics). In the pics above you can see the outdoor stadium next to the pool and I usually run stairs there on week days. It's also about 110F (see pic) here today. While that is hot, it's not 'hot-hot' (115F or so plus). When it's hot-hot you can't touch metal since metal can get much hotter than the air temperature.
R/Chris

052911 C Block is coming down

2011-05-29T13:47:00.001+03:00

052911 C Block is coming down

As part of the drawdown at Balad, the housing areas are being dismantled and the hooches are being shipped to other sites. What this means is that the boardwalks get ripped up, the steel stairs and railings are removed and the sandbags are emptied and disposed. The windows also get boarded up. (see pics above) C block occupants had to move out over a month ago and either funding restrictions or 'something' prevented progress on moving the hooches to their new location. As with a lot of Government projects, they sometimes just stop, with no explanation. Progress will be made and the Army is on schedule to move out of JBB by the end of the year. Honestly though, who knows what will happen. The Iraqi government may as the US to stay a while. Maybe the Department of State will work something in conjunction with the Army. Honestly, I don't think anyone really knows. Urgh, the life of a contractor overseas is fickle.

R/Chris

051611 There are some very interesting people in Iraq...like SGT C!

2011-05-15T19:05:00.001+03:00

051611 There are some very interesting people in Iraq...like SGT C!

One of the cool things about working in Iraq is that you get to meet some very interesting people. Last year I met 'LT Dan' (Gary Sinise) in the DFAC as he was signing photographs (dang he is short!) I've seen more celebrities in person while in Iraq than I have in my entire life. But there are some very cool people in the Army too here in Iraq. The pic and story above is of SGT Cordell. An article came out in the Army paper and it's pretty interesting his life story and all. What stands out is that he really likes being in the Army and being deployed here in Iraq. Well a few weeks back I'm in the gym and lo and behold there is the guy from the paper. Pretty cool huh? I said hi and how I enjoyed hearing his story and ask him if he really did like being deployed here in Iraq. Well, all he had to do was say "yes, I really do enjoy being deployed and here in Iraq." But after about at least a 5 minute answer (that did not seem to have an ending coming soon) I had to stop him and say 'I really do appreciate the reply but I do need to get back to my routine'. Maybe he just felt the need to defend his answer but after being in Iraq for over 6 years now I somewhat have to agree with him. It's not that bad and it can be very productive if your manage your time well. I'm glad (no, make that damn glad) that I'm not in the Army or Navy but I do kinda/sorta like being deployed. I'm ex-Navy, deployed and living the Army life here in Iraq and damn glad to be here.
R/Chris

051511 No more lattes? War is hell!

2011-05-15T17:35:00.001+03:00

051511 No more lattes? War is hell!

JBB is scheduled to close at the end of this year. At least that is the plan. A lot of people recall the military mission into Bosnia during President Clinton's term. Well, Camp Bondsteel is still there in Bosnia as are contractors.

I'm just saying...the best laid plans of mice and men...

Anyway, as a continuing part of the drawdown to base closure is the closing of the fast food joints here. Gone is Subway and Burger King that made up part of after DFAC-hours evening meal. The last one scheduled to go is the Green Beans coffee trailers. While they may not seem much they really are pretty damn good. And I sure do enjoy a double venti vanilla chai espresso latte with sprinkles! It's like liquid candy! Anyway, the article is in the link below.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110514/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iraq_gis_lose_their_joe

R/Chris

051111 Supporting the Warfighter!

2011-05-15T16:11:00.001+03:00

051111 Supporting the Warfighter!

As a contractor, my job is to 'support the warfighter.' In other words, contractors do jobs that either the military doesn't want to do (cooking/cleaning) or can't do as efficiently (IT and other specialty type jobs.) The Army here puts out a publication that highlights some of the jobs that contractors have and how they support the warfighter. It's an interesting publication and a tad propaganda but here are some of the more interesting pages.

R/Chris

041311 Iraq sucks but Afghanistan sucks more!

2011-04-13T10:09:00.001+03:00

041311 Iraq sucks but Afghanistan sucks more!

The last few days have been nothing but blowing dust. It's miserable to be outside and even inside at the DFAC you can see a lot of dust in the air. Last night at the DFAC all the fire alarms were going off since the dust is so thick the fire alarms think that it is smoke and thus it's a cacophony of beeps. The dust isn't good either. Next week there'll be a surge at the TMC (troop medical center) for upper respiratory infections (aka Iraqi crud or Kuwaiti crud.)
The pics are from a nearby camp that a friend took. They go through the same thing in Afghanistan but they live in tents or SEAhuts there. At least we have sealed hooches in Iraq. So yea, Iraq sucks but Afghanistan sucks more!
R/Chris

040511 Mud, dust and incoming mortar rounds

2011-04-05T11:41:00.001+03:00

040511 Mud, dust and incoming mortar rounds

The last few days have been dusty and last night was very dusty (see pics.) This is pretty typical and when it's dusty and windy but still not too hot (summer just started), it'll also rain (which really falls as mud) but only enough to get the ground wet. And even then any moisture immediately dries up. Soon there'll be afternoon lightening shows and we'll see and hear the rain but the ground will never get wet. And as usual, when it's dusty, we get incoming. Above are a few pics of one sprung that got 'hit' the other night. In one pic the round came in the big hole on the left, and struck the concrete in the middle and then produced a large exit hole on the right. And all those little holes? That is shrapnel. Fortunately the sprung was empty (this happened at night) and no one was hurt. Otherwise a 'kill zone' is probably about 100 feet.
Such is life in Iraq.
R/Chris

040211 02 April - Run, bike and swim...

2011-04-02T09:54:00.001+03:00

040211 02 April - Run, bike and swim...

For the last month I've been running off and on in order to lose some omentum (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_omentum) but my efforts didn't seem to be producing any results. so a co-worker recommended a different program that is basically a mix of running, biking or swimming for minimum of 40 minutes a day. If I were mil or a DAC I'd get time 'on the clock' to do this and if I were really fat I'd get even more time on this clock to get in shape. But as a contractor I have to do it on my time. Yesterday was my first 'bike' day and I went to the track to ride my bike. It's against the rules to go shirtless while running (or biking) on base but the track is a closed area so some rules are relaxed there. It also took me about 10 attempts to get any decent pic of me on a bike but I've posted a few here. Also the pool was crowded last night after work. There some swimming races and a few night BBQs going on. It'll probably be that way every weekend until the Army pulls out.
R/Chris

040111 01 April - The official start of summer in Iraq - the pool is now open!

2011-04-01T18:53:00.001+03:00

040111 01 April - The official start of summer in Iraq - the pool is now open!

Today is 01 April and the outdoor pool was opened today. This marks the offical start of summer in Iraq. Not all the bases in Iraq have a pool and if they do they are not as big as the one here at JBB. I don't think there is ANY base in Afghanistan that has a pool (indoor or outdoor!) The Olympic-sized pool at JBB is where Uday Hussein shot many of the Iraqi soccer team when they lost an embarrasing World Cup game.
http://www.joshalley.com/node/120
Now is just a great place to chill and even when it is 120F outside, somehow it's still cool by the pool. Today (Friday) there weren't too many people out (see pics above) but it should be much busier this weekend. such is life in Iraq.
R/Chris

033111 Waiting on DoS

2011-03-31T15:18:00.001+03:00

033111 Waiting on DoS

March is almost over and still nothing but rumors about Department of State (DoS) taking over the 'nation building' process here in Iraq. The Army seems to want out of Iraq but even after the Army pulls out there'll still be an Army (and Air Force and Navy and USMC and 'other' (CIA/FBI)) presence (personnel wise) here in Iraq with DoS. I think a lot of people (including me) intrepreted "Army pulls out of Iraq" as "US pulls out of Iraq". But that doesn't appear to be the case. I honestly never thought that I would have have been in Iraq working for the Army as long as I have and now I may be doing the same thing for the Department of State. That is IF the DoS does move in here and takes over for the Army. So far there is nothing but rumors and speculation. Nothing in writing.

And so for now, here we sit, waiting on DoS.
R/Chris

032911 "It's a recruitment tool...uh, it's a moral builder!"...yea sure.

2011-03-29T14:15:00.001+03:00

032911 "It's a recruitment tool...uh, it's a moral builder!"...yea sure.

As a contractor in Iraq I work 7 days a week and 12 hours a day. so there's not much time left at the end of the day to do other stuff such as keep in shape. A few guys in the office go to the gym at 0400 but dang that's early. And up to last week, it was just too cold (for me at least) to run in the dark. So recently I've been using my lunch hour to go running. Soon it'll get a bit hotter and I'll start my run by soaking my shorts and shirt in cold water and then putting them on. It's actually pretty effective in the 120F heat (for about 20 minutes or so). But until then I'll just do my 2 miles or so and a few pushups. Above are a few pics of me running at JBB.

It's also against the rules to wear headphones while outside but if you wear some sunglasses and a floppy hat you can barely make out the headphones (so I've been told....LOL).

Recently I've also seen this 'monster' Army truck here at JBB (see pics). It's pretty cool but totally useless. And yes, they use a ladder to get in and out. I asked the guy what is the purpose of the truck and with a straight face he told me it was a recruitment tool! I asked how much recruitment was really needed on a base in Iraq that only had contractors and soldiers and he said that it was also a moral builder! Well..I suppose so...yea sure.
R/Chris

2011-03-27T03:56:00.001+03:00

032611 The Downsizing Continues

As part of the Army downsizing in Iraq all wooden will be torn down. The sprung structures will be taken down as they can (and will) be reused probably in Kuwait or Afghanistan. And while the end isn't probably till October or December gone already is the battalion BBQ and just last week the gazebo went as well. It's not that the wood will be reused (as it was just tossed in a dumpster) but the Army policy is 'if it wasn't here before, it won't be here after'. So goes the gazebo. The end continues to draw neigh.

032511 The SPO BBQ

2011-03-24T14:39:00.001+03:00

032511 The SPO BBQ
Last weekend our office did a BBQ. The DFAC also serves hamburgers but frankly when they are cooked an hour or so before eating, they just kinda suck. Also as part of the 'downsizing' our Battalion BBQ was turned in (where, I have no idea.) so it became part of my mission to uh...'get' a BBQ. They didn't have them at the PX (sold out) and during my running the last few days I 'found' a few BBQs that hadn't seemed to be used in a while. So...voila! a BBQ. Anyway, the SPO (Support Operations Office) seemed to be quite envious of our BBQ event so their office decided to do one and as usual, they got too much food and asked our office to join (which we did).
R/Chris

032411 It's finally warm enough to start Running again

2011-03-23T11:45:00.001+03:00

032411 It's finally warm enough to start Running again

It's March in Iraq and up to about last week it was still 'coat weather' at night. But a co-worker here in the Battalion office was going running at lunch time and so in the last few days I've joined him. Urgh! It really sucks to run when you haven't run in quite a while. But it's supposed to be good for you and so I'm out there. It's nice to run when the weather is nice and hot as you can really work up a sweat. But too hot can certainly be not good as well. Anyway, I need to run more (as you can tell from the pics) but then again, who doesn't?
R/Chris

032311 Happy Birthday Lucky!

2011-03-23T09:20:00.001+03:00

032311 Happy Birthday Lucky!

Working as a contractor in Iraq doesn't leave much free time to do anything but the essentials (eat, sleep, laundry, clean the hooch and maybe get to the gym.) So recently when a co-worker was having a birthday party (put together by his sister who also works here at the same camp) I was hesitant to go. But we don't do these things very often and his sister really did a good job putting it together and it was sorta fun to do something different. About a little over a dozen people showed up and there was plenty of pizza for twice that many. There was cake and candles and non-alcoholic beer and there were the party poppers that toss a bit of confetti with a 'pop'! Also in one of the pics you'll notice the silly string. Silly String (popular in the US oh, 30 years ago) is VERY popular in the mideast. In Kuwait after Ramadan (a ding dong) there is a the celebration of Eid (a night of celebration). During Eid, silly string is everywhere!

But ANYTHING you do in Iraq has to be planned well ahead. There is no store for cheap party goods and a cake can be made to order but you'll have to give the PX a 3 day notice at a minimum. In short, if there is a will, there is a way. The party started at 7:30 and I left at about 8:20 and rode my bike 'home.' I then did some cleaning and watched an episode of Californication and was in bed by 9:30 PM. Whadda life?!

Happy Birthday Lucky!

R/Chris

031711 What do firefighters do best??? ....hump hose.

2011-03-17T09:30:00.001+03:00

031711 What do firefighters do best??? ....hump hose.

Many but not all jobs in Iraq are 'contracted out'. For example, the US Army does the Army stuff like fighting battles, running convoys and monitoring Intel. But for non-Army stuff like food preparation, base cleanliness and computer support is generally done by contractors. Of course there are always exceptions and it can certainly differ from base to base. Commanders are given a 'budget' to accomplish their task and to some degree there is a bit of freedom as to how they spend their budget. I've also discovered that if the US Army needs something from the State Department, they have to 'pay' for it out of their budget. In short, nothing is free and if you only get more money if you spend all your money and if you don't spend your money you get your budget reduced. Needless to say, there are some odd incentives that arise because of rules like this.

The firefighting mission is a good example of the above. On certain bases (like JBB) the firefighting mission is done by the US Air Force. At VBC (Victory Base Complex) the job is subcontracted to KBR who then subcontracts the job to Wackenhut. There are lots of stories about what it's like to be contractor firefighter overseas and here are a few links.

http://www.firerescue1.com/fire-news/289138-firefighters-find-opportunity-in-iraq/

http://firelink.monster.com/topics/1779-iraq-fire-fighters/posts

http://lincolntribune.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=639

http://omgili.com/contract-firefighting-iraq

The job certainly isn't for everyone. I've met some of the contractor firefighters and a few were real dicks while a few were really cool guys. Anyway, they do seem to have the 'chip on the shoulder' regardless of whether they are contractor or military firefighters. Attached are the pics from the JBB firefighting (Air Force) newsletter. This is sent out regularly and there is some valuable information in it (such as don't plug a 110 volt device into a 220 volt circuit.) But the 'chip on the shoulder' attitude still comes through and of course the (sexual entendre) quote 'What do fire fighters do best? ...hump hose.

R/Chris

031311 Happy Eostara...I mean Easter, or whatever

2011-03-13T14:30:00.001+03:00

031311 Happy Eostara...I mean Easter, or whatever

The Army is really quite represetative of society as a whole and I think it does a great job of accomodating as many as much as possible. Never when I was in the Navy did the military even mention any faiths outside of Cathloic, Protestant and Judaism. Now I regular services for Muslim, LDS, pagan and other (but so far not The Force, which IS a recognized religion in Australia.) Any any research on Easter will mention the Germanic goddess of Eostre or Ostara. So Happy Eostra!..or Easter, or whatever.
R/Chris

031211 More closures at JBB and where will I get a haircut after Oct. 9th?

2011-03-13T10:42:00.001+03:00

031211 More closures at JBB and where will I get a haircut after Oct. 9th?

The other day we received the notice above. There are now many empty spaces on base where previously there was a trailer and some sort of business. There are also a lot few soldier and airmen at Balad but I heard somewhere that there still are between 5,000 and 7,000 military personnel at Balad (JBB). As a taxpayer this should interest you since YOU are paying (some small part) of JBB. About a year ago I naively thought that when the President said the "US would completely withdraw from Iraq by December 2011" meant exactly THAT! And yes, the US ARMY is on schedule to do just that, pull out by December 2011. BUT the US Department of State is ramping up it's presence here and though there's been no official notice, it sure looks like there'll be a US presence in Iraq for many years to come. I came to Iraq for a job and an experience and I'm also getting an education in 'how things work', so to speak. Most (if not all) of the other contractors (and some military) are hoping to transition to State jobs (I being one of them.) This blog is about what it's like to be a contractor in Iraq for the US Army and it sure seems that part of that is the eventual transition to State (Germany, South Korea, Bosnia...etc!)

It's been and it will continue to be interesting to see how the transition goes. Heck, where am I supposed to get a haircut after October 9th? Maybe it'll be like the beginning again where we all lived in tents and you got your haircut from a buddy.

R/Chris

01 March Back at Balad...and things are changing

2011-03-01T12:31:00.001+03:00

01 March Back at Balad...and things are changing

I've been traveling for work and a few weeks of R&R. That long flight(s) from the mideast to and from the states is REALLY wearing thin on me.

Any way, I wanted to update things as this blog is for my record as well as those seriouly contemplating a contractor job in Iraq.

I currently work for the US Army here and while Army said that its time in Iraq would eventually come to an end, it only now that I'm seeing serious indications of such. I really see the US Army truely ouf of much of Iraq by the end of this year. Normally this would mean the end of my job (and thousands of other jobs) and the end of any US presence in Iraq.

BUT, Good bye US Army and hello my new overlords the Department of State!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/01/AR2011020106523.html

So the DoS soon hopes to have 4-5 locations in Iraq employing anywhere from 8,000 to 17,000 people (mostly contractors.) (And you thought the US would REALLY pull out?!)

Anyway, this is the current rumor and we'll know by June or July whether or not A) the DoS comes to Iraq and at what locations and B) whether they'll use the application I help to administer for workorder and maintenance recording.

R/Chris

011711 Expeditionary Times - Keeping Informed

2011-01-17T13:12:00.001+03:00

011711 Expeditionary Times - Keeping Informed

The Army does a pretty dang good job of keeping people informed via the Expeditionary Times. This paper is published by the PR side of the Army and here is nothing but good news in it. The Stars and Stripes is an independent paper that get funding via advertising and the DOD (Department of Defense). So every now and then the Stripes will 'bite the hand that feeds it.'

I suppose any information is better than no information. Still I can only read so much of the Expeditionary Times before I feel a sugar overload coming on. Anyway, above are some of the pages from this month's ET that I thought I'd share.
R/Chris

011611 So you think you know your co-worker - 'Contractor Hid in Iraq for Seven Years Over US Rape Charge'

2011-01-16T11:23:00.001+03:00

011611 So you think you know your co-worker - 'Contractor Hid in Iraq for Seven Years Over US Rape Charge'

I have, er, 'had' a coworker I've been working with for about 4 years now. He's not in my office but rather the next office and I've seen him just about every day I've been here for almost 4 years now. That doesn't include my R&R times which I take about every 6 months. My coworder Dan, rarely took vacations and he would brag about how long he'd go between his R&Rs (which were maybe once a year). Well, he evidently did this for good reason!

DANG was I surprised! Dan was big and goofy and he had his quirks but I certainly would not have guessed this! It's funny now that about a year ago Dan and I were arguing (friendly) over who would be in Iraq the longest! Dan wanted a digtal clock on my desk and I told him if I left before him, I'd give him my clock. Dan, in kind, said that if he left early I'd get his 27" Flat Panel TV that was on his desk. I just found out about this today. So when do I get my TV!

http://motherjones.com/mojo/2011/01/contractor-hid-iraq-seven-years-over-us-rape-charge#

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Contractor Hid in Iraq for Seven Years Over US Rape Charge

— Courtesy Norfolk Police Department

The excellent contracting watchdog, Ms. Sparky, drew my attention to this developing story: A Norfolk, Virginia, man was arrested on a military base in Iraq and brought back to the States in police custody this weekend for allegedly raping a "juvenile female," then hiding out in the Middle Eastern nation as a contractor for the US government.

For seven years.

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010911 Iraq sucks but Afghanistan really sucks!

2011-01-09T15:17:00.001+03:00

010911 Iraq sucks but Afghanistan really sucks!
As a contractor in Iraq the conditions under which I (and soldiers) live are not the best but they certainly are better than Afghanistan. I know several other contractors and a few soldiers that have (for various reasons) moved on to Afghanistan. One contractor is at FOB (Camp) Sharana and is now living in a tent with 15 others (whoopie!) For him the showers are about 150 yards away and he says it is cold now. The camp is at about 7500 feet and it is hard to breath. Fortunately he says that the camp has not been hit for some time and he hopes it stays that way. Yeap, sure sounds like Iraq circa 2004-2005. Frankly come June he'll be dang glad to be that high up. Attached are a few pics of the camp.
R/Chris

010211 Where's Waldo?

2011-01-02T07:18:00.001+03:00

010211 Where's Waldo?

About once a month or as needed the Commander will hold a group meeting for all the contractors on this base that work for him. Since this is a maintenance battalion (vehicle and light/heavy equipment repair) most of the contractors are mechanics. The meeting will be billed as a 'Safety Standdown' and in the pic above the Safety guy is tell us to be careful in the cold weather (bundle up, wear layers, drink hot liquids, etc.) But REALLY, 'cold' weather in Iraq means it may get to the 30s or 40s at night but it will still warm up to 70 or so during the day! And where is Waldo (me)? I'm in the red pullover fleece jacket on the far left.
R/Chris

010111 Happy New Years! What Do We Do New Year's Day?

2011-01-01T14:31:00.001+03:00

010111 Happy New Years! What Do We Do New Year's Day?

It's 010111, the beginning of probably my last year in Iraq. But until then, I still have
one more year here. One of number one questions I get is "What Do We Do New Year's Day"
(or any other holiday)? We work every single day here. Now, on any given holiday, things
really are not too busy so working on a holiday isn't really that bad. Besides, what else
would I do? There was a New Year's Eve 'Bash' last night and fortunately we were not
interrupted by any undesired explosions. In fact, it rained much of yesterday here at
Balad. Attached also is a pic of Mike in Afghanistan celebrated. It's not much but like a
lot of things here in Iraq and Afghanistan, you make do with what ya got.
Happy New Years!
R/Chris

123010 More pics from Afghanistan...Continued

2010-12-29T16:26:00.001+03:00

More pics.

R/Chris

123010 More pics from Afghanistan

2010-12-29T16:21:00.001+03:00

123010 More pics from Afghanistan

Here are some more pics from Afghanistan from Mike. See the posting on 122910 to find out more information about Mike in Afghanistan.

R/Chris

More (Pics of Brits)

2010-12-29T15:18:00.001+03:00

More pics. And yes, those are opium poppies.

R/Chris

122910 Meanwhile in Afghanistan....(Pics of Brits)

2010-12-29T15:14:00.001+03:00

122910 Meanwhile in Afghanistan....(Pics of Brits)
I'm an Army contractor in Iraq and I've been doing this for about 5 years now. When I originally applied for work in the mideast I wanted to go to Afghanistan since it (really) was safer then. But I was need in Iraq so off I went. In my five years in Iraq I've been on every major base and many of the smaller FOBs. I've done the corkscrew takeoffs and landings out of BIAP (Baghdad International Airport) while the plane fires off flares to confuse incoming RPGs. I've been on both fixed wing and rotary aircraft and there where certainly a few times on the helo where I felt I went one way and my stomach went the other way. Fortunately Iraq is much safer now but that is not the case with Afghanistan. Afghanistan now is like Iraq was 3-4 years ago. A few days ago I received the message below from my friend Mike who is a PAO in Afghanistan.
"Hello gentlemen, night three of rocket attacks ... one dead on Christmas, one dead last night, no report from tonight ..."
So maybe I was better off going to Iraq first afterall?
Also, as a PAO Mike (in Afghanistan) gets to take some awsome pics and he also travels to the other NATO sites. Here are some pics taken at the British camp.
R/Chris

122510 Christmas pics continued

2010-12-26T09:21:00.001+03:00

Here are more pics.

122510 Christmas in Iraq

2010-12-26T09:14:00.001+03:00

122510 Christmas in Iraq

Everyday is a work day in Iraq and holidays are no exception. The Army does put out a great meal and Christmas this year was no exception. I've attached a bunch of pics of the meal and included the menu too. You'll notice that crab legs were on the menu but were not served so 'Christmas Lobster' (a favorite of mine) was substituted (fine by me!) Something new this year was ice sculptures. They were...'interesting'. Also there were many displays of breads and fruit sculptures too! I think fruit sculptures are big in India/Nepal which is where most of the DFAC staff comes from. Unfortunately all this fruit and bread is for display only and goes into the garbage that day. It seems a waste and there is not a particularly warm reception when that fact is pointed out. Two years ago on this day it was snowing and that hadn't happened for some 50 years. But Christmas 2010 in Iraq is warm and sunny (see pic of me outside).

R/Chris

2010-12-21T21:43:00.001+03:00

121910 Camel Spider

2010-12-19T15:17:00.001+03:00

121910 Camel Spider

The other day some guys caught a camel spider in the sprung (a big tent) behind the building where I work.

The critter is only about 2 inches big but as you can see from the pics (and the mp4 file) they can be very aggressive at times. I guess they kept him for a few days and fed him a grasshopper and gecko. I know camel spider can get much bigger and I've seen a few 4-5 inches big but understand that they can get even bigger They're not really a spider nor are they poisonous but they make up for it by being aggressive. I heard that when they were done with the guy someone encased him in resin for a desktop conversation piece.

R/Chris

121810 It's cold and wet in Iraq but still running weax

2010-12-18T15:33:00.001+03:00

121810 It's cold and wet in Iraq but still running weax

It's cold and wet in Iraq right now but compared to much of the US, it's not that bad at all. I try to get out running at least a few times a week but like in the US, motivation can be a problem. I don't have too much time during lunch to run and grab a quick but I try to make a good effort. For the military and DAC (Department of the Army Civilians), they will get time 'on the clock' to go to the gym and keep in shape. Depending on your job and your supervisor you might get an hour a day to go to the gym, run, play volleyball/baseball, or just about anything as long as it involved rigorous physical activity. And for some military units you might even get more time given mission requirements, etc. In short, physical activity is encouraged for military and DAC.

For contractors, at least in my experience, that is not the case. If I want to go running I either have to do it before work (7 AM), at lunch (12-1 PM) or after work (7 PM). If I do it after work, I'll want to be done and showered before 8 as that is when the DFAC closes and I cannot get dinner after that. Now I'm certainly not complaining. I chose this and things certainly could be much worse but it's just another part of being a contractor in Iraq.

Any way, here are few pics from the other day.

R/Chris

120610 Hi, is this your first time to this rodeo???

2010-12-06T18:39:00.001+03:00

120610 Hi, is this your first time to this rodeo???

Today we got attacked. Two mortar rounds, big boom, probably a couple hundred yards from the building that I'm in (judging from the 'medium' amount of shaking the building did.) About half the people in the building are contractors (who come and go one at a time). And the other half is a mix of military and DAC (Department of the Army Civilians). The Military/DAC get switched out as one big group (once a year, 1 year tour, Oct to Oct) except for the Commander. He will finish his one year tour this coming June. So, all the DAC and military are new and we've not had any significant attack until today.

So the 'Big Voice' alarm goes off ("INCOMING, INCOMING") and I hit the deck (floor) but I can hear people running in the hall. One BOOM….silence… Two BOOM… We're on the floor for 2-3 minutes before we figure we can now make a run for the bunker. Once in the bunker the new DCO (Deputy Commander, a civilian) has us 'sound' off, 1, 2, 3….and she asks "are we all here?" Huh? There are three bunkers around the building and you are supposed to go the closest bunker in a time of attack. So 'are we all here' just doesn't make any sense. Later, after being in the bunker for only 20 minutes or so we hear the recorded announcement by the 'Lady'. Now up to this point the announcements were male voices. But the 'all clear' announcement is always the 'lady voice' so as soon as we (those who have been coming to this rodeo for a while) hear her voice, we start to depart the bunker. As we depart, we're passing by those listening intently to her words and waiting to hear "all clear, all clear". I see this is your first time to the rodeo….

R/Chris

26 Nov 10 Why'd the turkeys cross the road...in Mosul?

2010-11-26T08:50:00.000+03:00

26 Nov 10 Why'd the turkeys cross the road...in Mosul?

I use a Government computer at work and every day there is an Army 'pic of the day' that accompanies the standard security warnings when accessing any Government computer. I was just a bit surprised to realize that there are genuine turkeys in Mosul, Iraq! I honestly had no idea that one might find free ranging turkeys in Iraq and I have no idea if turkeys are indigenous to the area or if these turkeys are just escapees. Here's the caption that went with the original pic.

"Soldiers in a Stryker vehicle stop for a muster of turkeys crossing the road in the outskirts of Mosul Nov. 3. The Soldiers are with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division. Sgt. Antonieta Rico, 5th Mobile Public Affairs Det. (Photo by U.S. Army)"

Why'd the turkeys cross the road? Obviously to get to the other side.

R/Chris

112610 Balad is 'a changing'

2010-11-25T19:15:00.001+03:00

112610 Balad is 'a changing'

Yesterday we traveled to the west side to go to the DFAC there for Thanksgiving day. I've not been over to the west side for several months now and there were significant changes. One of the pics above shows what seems to be an empty yard. The last time I saw this yard was several months ago and it was packed with portable buildings and military vehicles. Now all of that is gone. Maybe there'll be something in this yard soon as smaller bases close and then that equipment/infrastructure needs to go some place before it gets shipped out of Iraq and back to the US (or Afghanistan?)

The pic above of the building is the DFAC at Balad.
Another pic shows the flags that hang from the ceiling in the DFAC. All of flags are either state flags or sport teams flags EXCEPT this one that I saw from Cooley Law School. In another life I would have gone to law school but I still very much appreciate my copy of Black's Law Dictionary. Contractors (civilians) here in Iraq run the gambit. Most (90%) are male and between 30-50 years old. There are some younger and a few older. Dave (pic above) aka 'pops' is about 63 and certainly is one of the older contractors here in Balad (or Iraq). About a year back he had a heart attack (or something close) and was flown out of Iraq on an emergency flight to Landstuhl Germany. I'd say he was gone for almost a month and then one day showed up again at work! He's been going strong ever since but he's going home for good in March of next year. I guess he finally knows when to say enough is enough. I wonder how long will it take me to learn that lesson???
R/Chris

112510 Thanksgiving Day Meal

2010-11-25T17:36:00.001+03:00

112510 Thanksgiving Day Meal

Having a Thanksgiving meal with your co-workers is very similar to having a meal with those distant relatives whom you tolerate for that special day once a year. It simply is what it is so suck it up and deal with it as it will be over when it's over. Anyway, here are some pics. The two chefs are the Commander and Sergeant Major of the Battalion here. In the military, the tradition is for the senior enlisted and officer personnel to serve at meals. This was done when I was in the Navy too. The group pic is me and my coworkers here. The turkey was deep fried in peanut oil and was really pretty dang good and only took 30 minutes to cook. I've never had deep fried turkey until I came to Iraq and evidently it is much more a 'southern thing' to do. The DFAC personnel also go a little crazy with paper-mache. Heck, why 'not' make a paper-mache turkey out of discarded pop cans!?

Unfortunately Thanksgiving and Christmas can be very stressful times for those miss family and are unhappy about life in general. The previous Brigade chaplain use to come around the Battalion office about once a month the say 'hi'. The new chaplain hasn't been around in few months so maybe he's really busy or just has more territory to cover and is needed elsewhere. Between now and Christmas there'll be about one suicide-prevention message a week now through the New Years.

R/Chris

112510 Thanksgiving Day Menu

2010-11-25T16:41:00.001+03:00

112510 Thanksgiving Day Menu

Today is Thanksgiving Day in Iraq. The Army and Air Force really do a great job for those on base to make sure there is a really nice meal about once a month. As you can see from the menu, Thanksgiving today is no exception. I've been told by the DFAC staff that all meat served in Iraq (on US bases here) comes from the US but fruits and vegetables come from Jordan. Any pies or milk products will come from Kuwait. The cooking staff has to also be careful not to cook any pork or shellfish on the same surfaces as other meats in order to maintain 'halal' (Muslim food restrictions.) And yes, today is still a work day

R/Chris

21Nov10 The war is winding down, I now have to empty my own trash....

2010-11-21T15:05:00.001+03:00

21Nov10 The war is winding down, I now have to empty my own trash....

I returned to Balad on Thursday night a few days ago. Fortunately my boss let me have next half day off so I didn't have to be in the office until noon. Did I sleep in?? No...I got up at 8 AM (slept in a little) and started cleaning. The dust was everywhere. I usually clean on a continual basis (a little here, a little there). And so after cleaning for 3 hours I then got dressed and walked to the office.

Now the 'sights and sounds' at Balad are much different from Irbil. You'd think that a small camp like Irbil would be quiet but just the opposite is true. Since there is no power grid there, everything must run off a generator and there are generators everywhere (big and small) and each is a engine running at full power. So at Irbil there is a lot of generator noise but Balad is frankly quiet. Since Balad is also bigger there is more 'stuff' always going on. At Balad you'll hear general auto traffic and people but fortunately no constant generator hum.
Friday night was in bed by 8 PM (as I was still bit tired from traveling).
Saturday night was poker night (Texas Hold'em). Gambling (on anything) is prohibited by General Order 1A which applies to both civilians and soldiers here in Iraq. So all that all we can play for is pride. I came in 5th which wasn't too bad considering we started with 10 players that night and I ONLY won 1 hand the entire night!
Also in an effort to appropriately prepare for drawdown and eventual departure from Iraq, we've been told that several services will soon be reduced in the coming months. The first to be reduced will be the office custodial services. Currently some facilities have trash removed and are swept twice a day and others once a day. As of Sunday 24 October 2010, office facilities now have trash removed and are swept/mopped every other day (it used to be once a day.) We've further been told that "You are encouraged to empty individual trash cans into larger trash cans and dumpsters in and around the office buildings if needed between scheduled custodial services. Extra trash bags will be placed in the trash cans on the days when trash is collected."
As the 'war' winds down, the Army is seeking to reduce costs (of course), so I now have to empty my own trash (but only every other day.) Such is life in Iraq...
R/Chris

17Nov10 More Gerbil Pics from the frontier post

2010-11-17T17:06:00.001+03:00

17Nov10 More Gerbil Pics from the frontier post

Here are a few more pics from Gerbil (aka Irbil). Iraqis (and more so Kurds) are not all poor. In the (relatively) peaceful north there certainly are some Iraqis that have seen the financial advantage to a US presence. One of the vendors at Irbil parks his BMW 7 series on base. While driving from the airport to the camp this was certainly not the only BMW I saw. Another pic is of a building that is being built by the locals on base here. Poor construction seems to the rule rather than the exception in the middle east. Another pic is of a feral dog here at Irbil. Generally, you don't see too many dogs in Iraq. Dogs are considered 'unclean' by Muslims and aren't kept as pets like in the states. There are several that roam the base here and if any were to act hostile the Army here would have no choice but to shoot them. For now the dogs are tolerated and docile and will gladly accept any food handouts (which the Army policy forbids as well.) Another pic is of the inside of the tent I was in. On the last few days here I had roommates (up to then I was the sole occupant of the tent.) These guys didn't like the tent at 70F so they cranked the heat up to 85F! That was the first night and I wasn't happy that occurred. On the second night I came in late and adjusted the temperature back to 70F. There was some 'tent etiquette that should have been followed that wasn't (probably on both our parts.)
Port-a-Johns are everywhere (thankfully) at all bases in Iraq. They're generally maintained twice a day. There are also 'Muslim' Port-a-Johns since the muslim tradition is to squat (rather than sit or 'hover'.) So a muslim Port-a-John will be identified as such and will be much lower and will have foot outlines on either side. The pic of 'Salahs' is the general store here on camp.

There are a lot of similarities between Camp Gerbil (aka Irbil) and an Army fort on the American frontier 100 years ago. Back then a fort occupied a small defined area outlined by a log wall in a hostile frontier surrounded by indians. There was an Army Garrison in charge, a local store, post office/pony express and barracks for soldiers and civilians. (Yes, even George Washington's Continental Army employed civilian contractors!) Today the fort is called a COS (Contingency Operating Station) and occupies a defined area outlined by barbed wire and Hesco barriers. There is an Army 'mayor cell' in charge, a local store (run by AAFES), a post office (and WiFi Internet) and CHUs/tents for soldiers and civilians. But instead of being surrounded by indians we're now served by Indians (and Pakistani, Nepalese, Ugandan) (DFAC, laundry, cleaning and security respectively).
Sometimes the more things seem to change, the more they stay the same.
R/Chris

16 Nov Questions

2010-11-16T17:32:00.001+03:00

16 Nov Questions

Q- In the photo of the tents, what is the concrete block in the center with the red cross painted on it?

Answer - Just about every base in Iraq experiences some incoming mortar rounds every now and then. Irbil get VERY little (the north is Kurd land and frankly peaceful. Kurds are also not Arab but are Muslim. Balad (in Suni/Shia territory) gets much more incoming. The concrete block is a concrete bunker where people can take refuge should there be incoming.

Q- Why are the showers and toilets called Caddilacs? What are they like? Gold plated or something?

Answer - Why call them Cadillacs??? I don't know. They are important though as having a clean place to use the toilet and take a shower can certainly make all the difference in the world when you're out....camping...in Iraq...for a year...or so.

R/Chris

16 Nov 1LT Ashley Henderson Huff went to Iraq and got a gym named after her

2010-11-16T13:00:00.001+03:00

16 Nov 1LT Ashley Henderson Huff went to Iraq and got a gym named after her

Iraq can be a tough place and it seems a daily reminder here of the things that want to kill me. From working 12 hours a day (or more) everyday to the heat, the snakes, the bugs (which carry malaria and leishmaniasis (according the Vector Control, 1 in 50 mosquitoes or sand flies carry one or the other diseases)) and of course to the family/social separation, most contractors don't make it as long as I've been here in Iraq. Having said all that, I do have it easy. I rarely go outside the wire and I sit behind a desk for much of my job.

For soldiers though, they have to do that soldiering thing and that involves going outside the wire. I did my time in the Navy (long time ago) but still...

The gym here at Irbil is named after Ashely Henderson Huff. Ashley came to Iraq and was killed by a suicide bomber in 2006. These stark reminders are all over the place in Iraq and behind each there is a human story. The camp at Tikrit (Camp Speicher) is named after a Navy Pilot who was one of the first casualties of the war. Anyway, here are some links to Ashley's story.

http://www.legacy.com/guestbook/onlineathens/guestbook.aspx?n=ashley-l-henderson-huff&pid=19372488

http://www.soldierwall.com/wall.php?segmnt=47

http://ourfallensoldier.com/HuffHendersonAshleyL_MemorialPage.html

It also seems that everywhere I've been to there is the American icon, coke. Iraqis like glass over aluminum and Coke seems to be preferred over Pepsi. This is only an observation from the 'haji stores' that I've seen here at Irbil and at Mosul. Anyway, here are a few pics of me and Coke.

R/Chris

15 Nov Here in Irbil (aka Erbil, Arbil or Gerbil)

2010-11-15T19:23:00.001+03:00

15 Nov Here in Irbil (aka Erbil, Arbil or Gerbil)

I finally made it to Irbil (aka Erbil, Arbil or Gerbil) and it's a very small camp in northern Iraq. There are probably only about 100 people here and that includes soldiers, US civilians and contractors and foreign contractors (TCNs). Walking around during the day I might see one or two people out and about. The biggest group I've seen has been at the DFAC and that might be 30 people or so. Anyway, here are some pics. The round structures are tents and inside are cots. Right now I've got a whole tent to myself. The pic with the twalls is the main housing area for permanent residents. Hooches are behind the twalls. The pic with the guard tower is the edge of the camp. Like all bases and camps in Iraq, the guard towers are manned by Ugandans. The pic with the far away shade structure is where I work. I actually work in the white building to the left of the big shade structure. And in the center of camp is a US flagpole. This is kinda cool since only a year or so back it wasn't authorized to fly the American flag. Evidently it was a sign of foreign invasion. Rules change...

R/Chris

11Nov10 Two Weeks at Mosul

2010-11-14T19:17:00.001+03:00

11Nov10 Two Weeks at Mosul
I ended up being at Mosul for 2 weeks before I finally got a flight out. Mosul is a nice base and it's supposed to close next year but we'll see how that works out. Mosul can be a great to place to have been stationed. It's got a Food Court with a Gazebo in the middle (see pic) and a few restaurants like King's Restaurant (see pic.) Laundry serivce at Mosul was great too. You turn in your laundry in the morning and can pick it up that late afternoon in a nice square package with everything folded. At Balad (my home base) there is a 24 hour CAP (combat air patrol) F16 always in the air. At Mosul there is a blimp (see pic). The blimps are actually very efficient. The don't burn thousands of gallons of fuel and have onboard cameras that can read a newpaper on the ground. Just about all the small bases have one or more blimps in the air. Why doesn't Balad use efficent blimps instead of burining thousands of gallons of jet fuel a day? Well, pilots don't get air time with blimps. The CHUs (containerized housing unit) at Mosul are 'dry' (no plumbing inside the CHU) so one has to walk to a nearby Cadillac (shower and/or toilet unit). The walk wasn't so bad at all. Above are few pics of me on my way to the Cadillac. Overall Mosul was a good trip but I'm dang glad to finally get out of there.
R/Chris

110910 Mosul Trip

2010-11-11T11:59:00.001+03:00

110910 Mosul Trip
I've had to do some traveling over the last month and the first stop
was Camp Marez near the city of Mosul in northern Iraq. A lot of my
travel is via black hawk helocopter. As a contractor I travel the
same way that military has to travel to get from point A to point B.
In the pics you can see Major Beall who sat across from me on my
latest flight. You can also see some of the countryside around Mosul.
The highway runs right along the base too. There are also two pics
of what Camp Marez looks like at ground level. The pic with the sign
is the main street and it a dirt road. To keep the dust down the road
is kept wet and so it really makes for a muddy walk at any time of the
year. The last pic is another selp portrait. Such is life in Mosul.
R/Chris

24 Oct 10 Mosul - 'Drug Deals', GO1 Violations and Chai!

2010-10-25T10:00:00.001+03:00

24 Oct 10 Mosul - 'Drug Deals', GO1 Violations and Chai!

The computers we work with get terrible dusty due to the conditions here in Iraq and I suggested that they get cleaned. Unfortunately in Iraq, there's quite a bit of 'that's not my job' attitude I was the unlucky stiff who got to travel. I'm at Mosul and have done what I can here and am now trying to get to Irbil. Irbil bills itself as the world oldest continuously inhabited city in the world. (around 5,000 years) It's only 50 miles away but getting there has been very difficult.

So for the time being I've been stuck at Mosul for 4 days now. Mosul is in Kurdish land, not Arab and there's a difference. Also since Mosul is farther away from Baghdad (the flagpole) there are different ways of getting things done here. In short, if you need something you make a 'drug deal' (aka trade this is unofficial) and things happen. Need a container of parts? Call up a 'friend', who'll put you in touch with a 'friend' and wham a box shows up. No paperwork needed. Also, it's much more relaxed here and alcohol is legal in Iraq but not on a military base. But after the week is over (which it really never is) you might want to wind down with a gin and tonic or maybe a Jack and coke. Pick your poison, it's there and very much on the DL.

There are also a few Iraqi restaurants on base. I went to one when I was here last year that evidently is no-more as it was burned to the ground (supposedly a turf battle). The drink of choice is chai which is simply a strong tea with LOTS of sugar (lots of sugar!) We then ate lamb and kabobs (didn't get sick) and played dominoes which is very popular here in Iraq. Chai is served in small glasses (just like the pic).

Hopefully I'll get to Irbil within a day or so.

R/Chris

It’s October in Iraq and the days are still over 100F. (yes, I'll try to post more often - how else would anyone know I'm alive?)

2010-10-10T09:58:00.001+03:00

It's October in Iraq and the days are still over 100F.

I came in to work this morning and there was an email to immediately remove a few people's access from the work order maintenance program that I support. I knew this email ahead of time as I did some customer visits around 6 PM last night and the event that led to this had only occurred an hour or so before that. It seems that a few employees had gotten off work on Saturday night and decided to celebrate another week gone by whooping it up and having a few drinks (of vodka). Evidently they were being too boisterous and the neighbor called the police (military MPs who are generally pretty cool) came by and asked the couple to keep it down but by then they noticed the booze. So one thing led to another and well, General Order 1A says no alcohol due to 'host nation sensitivities' (and no, NATO countries don't adhere to such a rule over here) and the two spent today packing and will be gone tomorrow. The kicker is that it was a man and woman who got busted and the guy is married AND is wife works here as well! (she was not busted, but rather another woman) I suppose when it rains it pours.

Speaking of rain, it did try to rain at JBB last night. There were obvious dried raindrops on car windshields this morning.

R/Chris

091910 Iraq can sure suck, but 'ghan' really sucks!

2010-09-19T18:50:00.001+03:00

091910 Iraq can sure suck, but 'ghan' really sucks!

I was talking to a friend about 'ghan the other day and he sent me the following. Sorta makes one think twice about all this.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Many DynCorp LOGCAP IV employees disgusted

March 31, 2010 — Ms Sparky

http://mssparky.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Dyncorp-Housing-Kandahar1-300x225.jpghttp://mssparky.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Dyncorp-Housing-Kandahar2-300x225.jpg

I can't even count the number of complaints I've received regarding the pay issues and the working and living conditions for Dyncorp LOGCAP IV employees in Kandahar , Afghanistan . All in all it has to be close to 100% that being an new American expat working for Dyncorp sucks. Many are saying it's worse than working for KBR. But I'm sure if you're Scott Mount, Jeff Archie or Conrad Cannon your living conditions are premium. Below is an email from a Dyncorp employee.

Friends,

If you are thinking Dyncorp for your job, let me give you some true blue facts. I know everyone at one time or another has ask, "what have you heard about Dyncorp", well you are hearing it from the horses mouth.

Dyncorp is not what you expect from a company of this size and reputation. The HR is as bad as it gets. The finance (pay) is a hit and a miss. Some people get paid others are not paid for up to three months. The living conditions are as poor as there is. We start out in a circus tent with 300 people double bunked with 2 foot of space between bunks. Then we are moved to an 8 man tent but they have placed bunks in for 20 people. The top bunks are only 2 inches from the top of the tent and the lights. We are given 3 to 4 foot between bunks and this is our permanent living assignment, even for Supervisors. There are CHU 's(Civilian Housing Unit) with TCN's (Third Country Nationals) running everything. There is no such thing as a waiting list for CHU 's and nobody can explain why most xpats are in tents. I can see most xpats demobing once they all get their clearances.

The laundry goes this way…you turn your laundry in with an issued bag which holds 2 sets of clothes. It takes 72 hours to receive your laundry back. They wash your clothes without removing the clothes from your bag. If you do not put the soap powder in your bag your clothes are washed with dirty water only. When you receive your clothes back they smell, most have dirt stains on them (which were not there to start with) and they are waded up and wrinkled beyond belief.

The chow is bad, C-Rations are better. The working conditions are bad, I will not go into this. Think the worst and then add more bad things to it and you have the work conditions.

There is no safety or any kind of QAQC around the company.

We all share the bathrooms with the TCN's. These guys are from all over the world. They are doing their laundry in the showers and sinks. Absolutely disgusting people. There is nobody around to enforce rules or regulations in the camps. It looks and smells like a group of animals just spent 24 hours in the showers. Nasty to say the least.

One of the Transportation Managers (name edited out) here just got busted with drugs and having classified material in his computer. Real class act management. I thought KBR was bad until I came here. I found out some supervisors and managers that KBR fired – are here. It's hard to get away from idiots.

Stay away from DynCorp Intl.

I know this will guarantee some hate emails but I stand by my opinion there are inherent safety issues with American expats living in close quarters with unvetted TCN's from SE Asia , India etc. At least Americans get a back ground check and you know there are no convicted felons sleeping in the next bunk. With regards to TCN's you have no idea who the person is sleeping next to you and then there are health issues. Diseases such hepatitis and tuberculosis are near epidemic conditions in some countries and it's a well known fact that labor contractors lie about getting these people vetted including medical checks.

Ms Sparky

1. sail says:

March 31, 2010 at 7:33 pm <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/#comment-9887>

Gee – wasn't it DIGUY who said that Dyncorp had bid far less than KBR and was saving the Government millions. Maybe this is the type of housing a services employees get when the company bids that low. Substandard Subsistance.

I sure hope they are not doing the Soldiers laundry in that manner if they are they are asking for a CAR big time as they are violating DFAR Clause 252.237-7017 Individual Laundry – which actaully state the number of pieces and how the laundry is to be done.

Reply <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/?replytocom=9887#respond>

* Ms Sparky <http://mssparky.com/> says:

March 31, 2010 at 7:37 pm <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/#comment-9888>

I am also concerned that DI is not provided the TCN's with an appropriate means to do their laundry. They should not be washing clothes in the shower.

Reply <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/?replytocom=9888#respond>

* sail says:

March 31, 2010 at 7:43 pm <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/#comment-9890>

Deb – just curious – did you take a close look at the ovehead wiring and lights in the second picture – I don't know a thing about electricity – past turning on the switch – but that does not look like anything I could like to be that close to.

Reply <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/?replytocom=9890#respond>

2. Ms Sparky <http://mssparky.com/> says:

March 31, 2010 at 8:00 pm <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/#comment-9891>

Yes I did see that. I am also concerned about the occupancy issues. I don't know what the occupancy is for those tents, but it looks to me that access and egress is very limited. Especially if you are in a top bunk.

Reply <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/?replytocom=9891#respond>

3. Widowmaker says:

April 1, 2010 at 3:04 am <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/#comment-9897>

Dyncorp has made billions of dollars and this is what the employees get? I think the prisoners at most prisons live better than this. Disgusting and Unacceptable!

I wonder if the Executive leadership at DynCorp ( William Ball haus and Pals) care that the employees live this way? My guess would be NO!

Heres a list of the "elite" – they look pretty comfy dont they?

http://www.dyn-intl.com/executive-leadership.aspx <http://www.dyn-intl.com/executive-leadership.aspx>

Reply <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/?replytocom=9897#respond>

4. Ksniper says:

April 1, 2010 at 3:53 am <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/#comment-9900>

Lost for words, see what you get when you hire another contractor trying to save the government money. Yes i hear all of those hater KBR sucks and KBR this and that but when they get the DYncorp and Fluor well fluor will pay you and they have the head guy Mr Reuter former KBR and who started afghanistan at least he will get you in to a tent sooner or later you can forget about CHU's don't believe the hype. A lot of folks i know who jumped ship to especially Dyncorp are always calling to see if there any openings with KBR. Remember folks the grass is not always greener on the other side.

Reply <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/?replytocom=9900#respond>

* Ms Sparky <http://mssparky.com/> says:

April 1, 2010 at 4:48 am <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/#comment-9901>

Ksniper, you're right the grass is not always greener on the other side. But I look at it this way, Dyncorp got the the LOGCAP IV task order for Southern Afghanistan . They are supposed to be supporting 1000's of US troops. They have at least 1000 (if not more) if not more employees (many are Americans) living in horrible if not unsafe conditions. They can't seem to get much transitioned. Dyncorp is acting like the DoD just dumped this LOGCAP IV contract on them at the last minute. LOGCAP IV was award June 27, 2007 and Dyncorp's Task Order 4 was awarded in July 2009. They knew it was coming and apparently they were and still are ill prepared on virtually all fronts. Rumor is a Level IV Corrective Action Request (CAR) has been issued or is in the process of being issued. At this point it's hard to say what specifically the CAR is/will be written for unless it is just general non-performance.

Reply <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/?replytocom=9901#respond>

5. world-upside-down-WHY? says:

April 1, 2010 at 4:49 am <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/#comment-9902>

It would be difficult to bring all the hardshell hooches to a base in Afghanistan as all cargo has to be flown in, BUT each man/woman can have their own tent or share one with another. Make certain that the wiring issue is corrected (I vote Ms Sparky to oversee that project-pay her $650.00 p/hour :). I have seen the Army use a transportable laundry unit, seems like that would be better and cleaner for a corp. that says one thing and does another. Where is the base fire dept? How many would be allowed to sleep in that tent pictured if it were in a tent city in Arizona -the prison where the Sheriff plays tough? Fire Codes? Take one of those tents to the Dyncorp headquarters, set it up, put a sign on it that says – "New living quarters of our Executive Staff- provided by the shareholders, call the media from around the world for this photo op.!

Reply <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/?replytocom=9902#respond>

* Ms Sparky <http://mssparky.com/> says:

April 1, 2010 at 5:08 am <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/#comment-9906>

$650/hour!! I'm all about that! Hell I would probably do it for half that. :)We have been in Afghanistan since Spring 2002. If the Military has planes that can fly in heavily armored vehicles, then there are planes that can fly in the material for modular living containers. Even if Dyncorp has to foot the bill for it. Think about it this way. People are not staying. They are incurring the cost of mobilization (unless they are charging that back the employee) but more importantly you are losing the person who is supposed to be doing the job and supporting the Mission . And clearly the mission is not being supported. The smallest things can make a big difference, like the laundry. What the hell is up with that. Laundry is not rocket science! If Dyncorp can't even get the laundry right, how can they get anything else right.

Reply <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/?replytocom=9906#respond>

* sail says:

April 1, 2010 at 7:07 am <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/#comment-9910>

Truely these are deplorable living conditions and should not be tollerated. I agree that the good people are not going to put up with this for long – they will just leave.

Each contractor was required to submit a detailed 'Transition Plan' for the TO's that was then suppose to be reviewed and accepted by the Client. Apparently what looked good on paper lost something in the translation to execution.

It may however not be totally the contractors fault that they are not able to bring in hardshell housing or CHU 's right away.

I have been working on North Face Man Camps for the Artic Oil Fields in Canada – and there is such a tremendous requirement for this type of housing all over the world at this time that the back order delivery dates are at least 6 months in the future. This includes units from manufacturers in Romania , Turkey , Denmark and even China . Tents are not an option in the artic area – so the oil contractors are getting priority by paying premium prices for fast delivery and still having to wait months.

I however, don't see any reason why they can not obtain – at a bare minimum via lease – a sufficient number of tents to house people realistically. There are a dozen large companies in europe that lease, deliver and assemble man camp tents. I have used a few of them and they are excellent. There are even companies that lease out Tractor Tailers that are built out like dorm's that have privacy curtians, built in electrical, HVAC and operate off of their own generators. I used some of these on Katrina. They were quite nice.

As a good number of the locations in Afghanistan are new camps – taking over the assets of the incumbent is not an option – as there are none.

The TOP priority for every contractor should be the comfort and services provided to the troops (those they serve) so I hope that they are providing better housing, food and other services for them than they are for their employees. If not I am not sure there is enough paper in the whole country to write up the details of the supposed CAR that may be issued.

Reply <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/?replytocom=9910#respond>

6. world-upside-down-WHY? says:

April 1, 2010 at 2:23 pm <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/#comment-9932>

I would hope that Dyncorp would also provide separate latrine's for Americans', also make the Americans Latrines off limits to anyone other than badge carrying Americans. I remember having no other alternative than to use a latrine that was also used by folks from India , etc., (One hand-One bottle of water-No clean-up – I wanted to Up-Chuck!!!

Reply <http://mssparky.com/2010/03/many-dyncorp-logcap-iv-employees-disgusted/comment-page-1/?replytocom=9932#respond>

091710 SrA James Hansen Memorial

2010-09-18T10:14:00.001+03:00

091710 SrA James Hansen Memorial

One of the main jobs of the military here is to blow up old ordnance and recovered IEDs. The AF and Army goes out off the base here with IAF (Iraqi Army Forces) and this stuff is brought back on base to be disposed of via controlled detonations. The controlled detonations occur about 2-3 times a week and there is announcement beforehand that such is about to take place. Newbies here rarely seem to hear the announcement though and react to the big booms as incoming mortar round. Generally the controlled detonations go off without a hitch. But routine leads to complacency. Such is probably what happened the other day when the email below was received.

----------------------

JBB,

It is with great sadness that I inform you of the loss of Senior Airman

James Hansen, an airfield manager with the 332 EOSS. James died in an

explosion Wednesday morning during an ordnance disposal operation which also

seriously injured one Soldier.

Our deepest sympathies, thoughts, and prayers go out to his family, friends,

and co-workers during this difficult time.

The memorial service for Senior Airman Hansen will be held at MWR East on

Sunday, 19 September at 1500.

CRAIG A. FRANKLIN, Maj Gen, USAF

Commander, 332 AEW

Joint Base Balad, Iraq

----------------------

R/Chris

US in Iraq till 2016?

2010-09-12T18:57:00.001+03:00

US in Iraq till 2016?

So, I've been asked quite a bit about how long the US will be in Iraq. As a contractor I truly am at the bottom of the information totem pole. In more ways than one, the best source of what is happening here in Iraq is the news. Still I've been doing a private poll of coworkers (civ and mil) here and anyone who'll venture an opinion on this topic. Frankly I'd be willing to bet that a counter part of such existed in South Korea about 50 years ago when the 'truce' then was announced (yea, how'd that turn out?)

Any way, I've certainly talked to several people who 'know' what's going on (Commanders and high ranking, planning type civilians here). Long story short, when posed the question 'Will Balad Air Base and the maintenance mission that I support be here after December 2011' the opinion seems to be about 50-50. Now it might be a few months or a year (or two or 50) after December 2011. I just find it interesting that the consensus seems to be 50-50. And honestly, some of these guys really should know but I don't think the Army knows because the Government doesn't really know because there is no prevailing opinion on the part of the American or Iraqi public as to what will happen come December 2011. So...we'll see.

R/Chris

2010-09-06T18:30:00.004+03:00

090610 Congrats to Johan!

My job as a contractor here is to support the SQL database that stores the data for retrograde (Army equipment) that is being shipped out of Iraq. I'm 'generally' in an air conditioned office as there are other contractors that spend most of their time out in the field entering the data from units that are redeploying (returning to the US). Recently one of the guys in the field (Tobias) made a video for his father (Johan) who just graduated from college (eh, better late than
never!)I think he did a pretty good job at creating the vidoe and he coordinated his efforts with some Army units too.

As you can see it worked out for quite a gift to Johan. Congrats to Johan! (and I hope you enjoy the video.)

090210 Operation New Dawn (aka Morning Wood)

2010-09-02T14:29:00.001+03:00

090210 Operation New Dawn (aka Morning Wood)

As as yesterday, Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) is no more. We are now in Operation New Dawn! (aka Morning Wood). As you can see (barely) from the pic above, the US has made significant strides to reduce its presence in Iraq. There are no more 'combat' troops in Iraq. They are now called 'training' troops. And while 500 bases have been 'closed or transfered' there are still over 100 bases and these include the biggies like VGC, JBB (where I am), Tallil, Mosul, Al Asad, Speicher, etc. I cannot think of even one 'big' base that has closed or been transferred. There are also still lines at the DFAC, and a waiting list of 5 months to get a hooch for incoming personnel. So from my perspective (which is what this blog is about) things haven't changed much. Things will also probably be steady until about March 2011 which is when the coming rainy season will be ending. That will be the next big push of equipment out of Iraq....maybe.
So to close, things are same ole, same ole.
And to answer the question you were thinking, yes, I have been in Iraq too long!
R/Chris

082510 Dang I've been procrastinating and then some...

2010-08-25T19:26:00.001+03:00

082510 Dang I've been procrastinating and then some...

Sometimes it's tough to keep up a blog. You never know what to put in there or what people might want to see. Also I had to do some traveling to get my eyes checked and my sinus/nose checked. It was of course, good news and bad new. My nose/sinus is OK but my eyes are bad.
Part of my trip took me to Tallil AB (air base) where I 'smoked the hooka'. Typically flavored tobacco is smoked in the hooka, but you can put about anything you want to smoke. The hooka bar is outside a restaurant on Tallil and I've included a few pics of the outdoor patio as well as the inside of the restaurant (and me smoking the hooka.) It pretty much looks like a sports bar. They sell a lamb chop dinner which frankly is very good.

The 'spots' in the pictures are dust in the air. It's always so dang dusty here, except for maybe the winter (wet season).
As a contractor here we work per a contract with the US Army and the contract is usually October to October. The current contract will end the 1st of October and we've been told that the contact will be extended another year. So that will take me up to Oct 2011 BUT the Army can certainly change things at a whim. The re-deployment of 'combat troops' in Iraq has not changed things that much here at JBB (Joint Base Balad).
Well, I'll try to post more often going forward. Thanks for checking my blog.
R/Chris

062210 Art Imitates Life

2010-06-22T18:26:00.001+03:00

062210 Art Imitates Life

The US Army has had to 'modernize' in many ways. Some are good (much
better food now), some are not so good ('Stress Cards' for recruits),
and some are well...they are. I can't relate to the some of the old
propaganda posters (Rosie the Riveter) but I can certainly relate to
Homer J. Simpson. I might just wear my PPE now!
R/Chris

061810 The Saints (cheerleaders) are in Iraq

2010-06-18T14:45:00.000+03:00

061810 The Saints (cheerleaders) are in Iraq

At Balad there are all sorts of visitors to Balad, Iraq here that come
from the states. About a year back the Speaker of the House (Nancy
Pelosi) was here. Of course that visit was an official visit but the
USO routinely schedules 'moral' visitors (coaches, B-TV star, comics,
entertainers, WWF wrestlers) and even Cheerleaders. From what I've
seen and heard, the coaches and entertainers and even WWF wrestlers
are allowed to 'talk'. That is they get a mic and can say what
inspirational words they might want to say. Cheerleaders do not get
to talk. They are introduced and get paraded around and might say
'hi' but that seems to be about it. I'm not sure if it's a good thing
or not. But like alot of things in Iraq, it is what it is. Above are
some pics. Whoop-di do...
R/Chris

061710 I'm sorry, I cannot call you. There is bad weather in Austria.

2010-06-17T06:54:00.001+03:00

061710 I'm sorry, I cannot call you. There is bad weather in Austria.

The last few days have been fairly dusty but today it's a little
clearer. Probably not clear enough to go running at noon but
certainly better than the last few days.
When I was in the US Navy 20 years ago a personal letter was about the
only means of communication off the ship to the real world. Today
from this 'ship in the desert' (JBB Iraq) there are a myriad of
communication avenues but with this progress comes new dependencies.
So far this morning our internet connection here has been severely
degraded and so I cannot check the server status on machines at other
bases. Also the phones here are all VOIP (voice over internet
protocol) so no calling or receiving calls from the states for a
while. All of this is because there is bad weather in Austria. Who
would have thunk it!? Another hub of concern is northern New Jersey.
Bad weather in northern New Jersey means no communications in Iraq.
In fact I've been told that the connection between here in Iraq and
the states 'hits' a dozen or so intermediary sites. So if you can't
call me (or anyone else in Iraq check the weather in Austria, or
northern New Jersey or...
R/Chris

061610 How hot is it anyways ('bama speak)?

2010-06-15T14:26:00.001+03:00

061610 How hot is it anyways ('bama speak)?
If you've ever been to Las Vegas when it is 110F outside you know it's
really not 'that bad' since it is a 'dry heat'. And if you've ever
been to Singapore in August (I have) when it is 99F out AND 99%
humidity you know how bad that is even though it's not over 100F.
Well, at 123F, it's hot whether it's a dry heat or not. The rocks on
the ground are even hotter as I found out with a IR sensor the other
day (they registered 130F). If you walk by a t-wall at night you can
still feel the radient heat long after it's dark. And Lord you have
to be careful touching any metal that is outside during the heat of
the day. So how hot is it in Iraq??? Damn hot!
And yes, proper English would be 'how hot is it any way?' However
this is Iraq and most people here are from south of the Mason-Dixon
line and...when in Rome...so to speak. So 'oil' and 'tire' are now
one-syllable words. And it's 'how hot is it anyways?'
Such is life in Iraq.
R/Chris

061510 Army Birthday, Lots 'o stuff to do at JBB and 'All this for just one beer?'

2010-06-14T14:46:00.001+03:00

061510 Army Birthday, Lots 'o stuff to do at JBB and 'All this for
just one beer?'

Today is the Army birthday and they put out this flyer with all this
stuff to do. I've said it before that the Army does a great job of
extra stuff to do while here in Iraq (because otherwise it can really
suck!) I've attached a few of the posters above here too. Now the Air
Force (not the Army) has decided to 'really celebrate' the Army
birthday and has declared it a beer day (Just ONE beer that is.)
Below are the conditions but ya gota wonder...is it really worth it???
(remember, all this for just ONE beer!)
----------------------------------------------------
Ladies and Gentlemen of JBB,
You know what they say about all work and no dePLAYment. it's BAD! So
indulge in a little dePLAYment this week and make sure your folks do,
too!
Enjoy a celebratory beer in honor of the Army's birthday TODAY!
We are offering one beer to Airmen who are 21 years of age and older.
Serving times will be on Monday, 14 Jun 10, from 1800-2100 at the H6
MWR. A
few ROEs:
o No bags will be allowed into the facility during that time, and
bags leaving the facility during that time are subject to search
o Loaded Weapons + Beer = No
o Beer must be consumed in the H6 MWR and empty cans must be thrown
away in H6 MWR
o No operating vehicles (cars, bikes, etc.) after consuming beer
For additional instructions or questions, please contact your chain of command
----------------------------------------------------
R/Chris

061410 Iraqis on base

2010-06-14T11:20:00.001+03:00

061410 Iraqis on base

Soon (maybe a year or so) JBB (Joint Base Balad) is to be turned over
to the Iraqi Army. Whether or not there'll be an American presence is
truly anyone's guess (truly). There are already Iraqi Army (IA)
personnel on base and I've seen them at the DFAC during lunch as well.
For the most part, their English is pretty good and they're cordial
individuals. I've never discussed politics nor religion with them and
I get the impression that neither is that important since being an
Iraqi soldier is just a job they are doing.
Above are a few pics.
R/Chris

060810 Combatives and Uniform Posture U3

2010-06-08T09:52:00.001+03:00

060810 Combatives and Uniform Posture U3

The US Army used to have a game where the goal was to push a big (10'
tall), rubber, inflated ball past the other teams goal line. While
it sounds pretty innocuous, it evidently wasn't and after enough
twisted ankles and broken bones the 'game' was forbidden. Similar
'games' have come and gone and here at Balad, they're trying another
one. It's called Combatives and it's 'sorta like MMA' but you cannot
'strike' your opponent. Other wise you get points by doing the
following:
2 Points---------Take Down: From the standing position, the fighter
places his opponent on the ground but fails to gain dominant position.
3 Points----------Take Down: From the standing position, the fighter
places his opponent on his back and gains a position past the guard:
side control, mount, knee in the stomach, north-south, etc.
3 Points----------Pass the Guard: From between his opponent's legs,
the fighter clears the legs and gains side control or the mount.
3 Points----------Sweep: From the guard position, the fighter changes
positions, placing his opponent on his back.
3 Points----------Knee on belly (Knee Mount): From side control, the
fighter establishes one knee in his opponent's chest / abdomen and the
other knee up and away from him and stabilizes himself.
4 Points----------Mount: The fighter establishes the mount with both
knees and feet on the ground.
4 Points----------Back Mount (Rear Mount): The fighter establishes the
back mount with both feet hooked in position.
1 Point --------Stalling: From either within the guard or side
control, the fighter must try to improve his position. The judge will
give three warnings and then award a point to the other competitor. If
the stalling continues, the judge gives three additional warnings, and
then awards an additional point, continuing this pattern until the end
of the match or action is conducted.
2 Points--------Passivity: Fighter disengages from the top position,
the referee awards two points to the other fighter.
We'll see how long this lasts before it too is forbidden.
Also we've been in Uniform Posture U3 for about a day now. This means
that one has to wear a flak jacket and helmet unless one is in a
hardened structure. The ONLY hardened structures are the DFAC, the gym
and the chapel. Fortunately the dust is keeping the heat down. But
carrying aound an extra 40 pounds or so of gear is still a hassle.
And yes 'technically' I'm supposed to wear this gear while in my hooch
and sleeping (like THAT will happen!) Generally we go to this
condition when the intel warrants it. Soooo, something is up... We
just don't know what it is.
Above is a pic of the Combative flyer and two pics of me in Uniform
Posture U3. The reason the pics above are blurry is due to the dust.
Also, here's a pic of my recovered bike. Not a bad bike but certainly
not worth stealing and risking one's military career or one's job in
Iraq.
Such is life in Iraq.
R/Chris

060710 Dusty but not a 'hot hot' day and 'My bike is back!'

2010-06-07T12:16:00.001+03:00

060710 Dusty but not a 'hot hot' day and 'My bike is back!'
Today it's a very dusty day here at Balad. We've had great weather
the last week or so (clear blue skies). But with the clear blue skies
comes the heat. The other day it was 123F. Today it's VERY dusty and
noticeably cooler. We may not even break 100F today!
Also my bike was stolen about a week ago. I left it unlocked for
MAYBE 15 minutes when I went to the DFAC and BAM, it was gone. I
mentioned the theft to several people asking them to keep a lookout
for it and the other day someone came back from the DFAC and said a
bike matching the description of my bike was over at the DFAC. I
jumped in the car and went over there and BAM, there it was. So...I
'stole' it back! The theft hadn't even bothered to cut off my old
lock but I sure did cut his lock off right away.
Anyway, here are some pics of life around Balad that were posted on
the shared drive. They show what goes on around here. It's
certainly not exciting work but it needs to be done. Parts of Balad
will soon be turned over to the Iraq Army by the end of the year. So
while there are a few Iraq Army personnel on base now, by the end of
this year there'll be many more.
R/Chris

052710 "Let's have a run, but not some pansy-assed run where ALL you do is run!"

2010-05-27T17:39:00.001+03:00

052710 "Let's have a run, but not some pansy-assed run where ALL you do is run!"

So being on an active Army/Air Force base in a deployed 'hazardous
duty' zone there are some genuinely tough guys (and gals) out there
that just don't want to do a 5K run where all you do is run! For some
they feel the need to 'run' in full combat gear (with weapon - but not
loaded) under barbed wire and around all sorts of objects AND through
a bona-fide mud puddle in the desert! So this is just what they're
going to be doing this coming weekend. And maybe afterward, if they
feel up to it, they'll do the bad-poetry/spoken word thing (uh, but
that was last week.)
The point is this isn't your Army of even 10 years ago and I gotta
wonder what it'll be like in 10 years from now...here in Iraq?
(still???)
On another point it's certainly getting hotter here (as the poster
above mentions.) Yesterday I had to spend the day in bed. I had a
headache, nausea and cold sweats. I guess I need to heed the warning
and drink more water there.
And on another point further, my bike was stolen the other night
(which made me upset and probably started my headache). The living
area where I am is only accessible by US civilians and US Army
personnel so take your pick. It's a big base, people are people and
stuff happens. I'm first phase of grief (that being denial) so anger
is right around the corner. It just sucks but it's not the end of the
world. After all it was just a bike. But it still sucks.
R/Chris

051410 Bodybuilders are short so they can accentuate the size of their...trophy!

2010-05-14T15:34:00.001+03:00

051410 Bodybuilders are short so they can accentuate the size of their...trophy!

At JBB this last weekend there was a bb (that's Body Building!)
contest. I knew one of the contestants (the guy with the pics and the
severely pierced ears). But DANG, I didn't recognize him at the show
since he was all globbed up with the tanning stuff and had a weird
hair-do (he usually wears a hat though.) Otherwise it was uh
'interesting'. If you ever want to feel tall, just go to a body
building contest. The commander handing out a trophy in one of the
pics is maybe 6'2 max, but she sure seems to tower over the guy to
whom she's giving the trophy.
This last week was also the first week where every (dang) day was over
100+. It'll be this way until mid September or so.
R/Chris

043010 Things that want to kill me...and things that go BOOM in the middle of the night.

2010-04-30T08:07:00.001+03:00

043010 Things that want to kill me...and things that go BOOM in the
middle of the night.

The weather now in Iraq is great. It's just barely hot during the
heat of the day and pleasantly cool at night and just right all other
times. It's also the time that snakes start moving around to find
that hunting ground for the summer. In all my time in Iraq I've not
seen any live snakes. I've seen a few dead ones that have been caught
and my reaction to seeing one of the worlds most deadliest snakes was
"that's it!?" Honestly the thing was barely 12 inches if that and
barely thicker than my pinky finger! So every week were told to be
careful of snakes.
Above are a few pics but what really should be noted is the comment
that "the biggest risk comes from soldiers turning to serpents for
entertainment...the cause of 85% of snakebits during Desert Storm".
LOL just soldiers? Ever seen a camel spider and a scorpion tossed in
a bucket to go at it? (hint - always bet on the camel spider!)
And the last few days it's been pretty dusty here at night and when
it's dusty, 'Akbar' out there just can't help but toss a few incoming
onto base. And so it happened last night. Around 9 PM, I'm watching
'Kindom of Heaven' and BOOM, the damn hooch shakes and I think "dang
that was close". So the alarms go off saying take cover, blah blah
blah but I'm not going to put on pants just to go out to a dusty, hot
bunker. I go back to the show. After the alarms stop, I did what a
few dozen other people did and finally put on some pants to go see
what got hit. I didn't have to walk far (as it was only a few hundred
yards away) and there are lights flashing on about a dozen emergency
vehicles. I can't get too close and asking 'what happened' is just
poor form. I don't seen any obvious damage and the self-service
laundry building is still standing so I go back to the hooch to bed.
A few years ago a round landing that close would give me reason to
pause. Now I just don't care. It's not a big deal.
R/Chris

041210 Zac Brown and USO Entertainment

2010-04-12T07:25:00.001+03:00

041210 Zac Brown and USO Entertainment

Every now and then the USO manages to bring some decent entertainment
to the troops here in Iraq. Next week on 18 April is such a case when
the Zac Brown Band comes to Balad. This isn't a band that I would
hack their songs from Limewire or Bearshare but it is a popular band
and will probably be a dern good show and its FREE! (And it's
something to do.)
R/Chris

041110 In Iraq....it rains mud.

2010-04-11T14:50:00.001+03:00

041110 In Iraq....it rains mud.

It's April in Iraq and surprisingly it rained the other day. Since
it's Iraq there's also a lot of dust in the air (as usual). So when
it rains just barely enough to wet the ground and if there's a lot of
dust in the air...it rains mud. It sucks, it's Iraq. Also the next
day after a rain is really sunny and lots of blue sky so there's a
silver lining to that dark cloud.

But overall the weather here is very nice stil. It's not too hot
during the day but is hot enough to work up a sweat on a run during
lunch. At night, it's nice to walk home wearing just shorts. Dang I
hate wearing pants here.

R/Chris

040910 Mine is bigger (and better) than yours

2010-04-09T10:38:00.001+03:00

040910 "Mine is bigger (and better) than yours"

Competition and (in general) other hyper-masculine traits are not in
short here at Balad (or for that matter all military bases here in
Iraq.) You can see this at the gym and at work and for the most part,
it's all in good form. But like two neighbors vying for the best lawn
in suburbia America, I've noticed a similar bit of competition here
between the 1st and 2nd Battalion Commanders.

A while back ago, the 1st Battalion Commander got a gazebo for the
porch area and short afterward There was a similar structure at the
2nd Battalion. Next came a 'sun porch' (or tarp) at the 1st Battalion
and later the 2nd Battalion put up a nice steel porch. The other day I
noticed a gargantuan BBQ at 2nd Battalion (seriously - it has a
counter weight for the lid and could cook a whole cow!) that REALLY
puts to shame the 1st Battalion BBQ (which looks like a tetanus shot
in waiting!)

Anyway, see for yourself (pics above)

R/Chris
(to send me an email/comment, email chrisiniraqcomment@gmail.com)

040410 Question? - Send me an email

2010-04-05T14:38:00.001+03:00

040410 Question? - Send me an email

I've seen questions posted in comments and generally cannot respond to
the sender since there is no 'reply address' associated with the
comment.
For this reason I've created an email account. Send your
questions/etc to chrisiniraqcomment@gmail.com and I'll do my best to
answer.

R/Chris

2010-04-02T19:19:00.001+03:00

Why the U.S. will never leave Iraq.

040210 A good routine...is good

2010-04-02T10:00:00.001+03:00

040210 A good routine...is good

Living in Iraq and working 12 hours a day every day demands a good
schedule. There is no 'weekend' to sleep in or catch up with personal
stuff like cleaning the hooch or going to the post office.
Fortunately too, most 'stuff' here is open every day (such as the post
office and PX) and many places are open 24 hours a day (such as the
gym and pools.) But it can still be very difficult to get everything
done and make progress.
Part of my schedule is getting a haircut every three weeks.
Fortunately I've been going to the same guy now for a while and I
don't even have to tell him how I want it cut. He already knows.
We also have the Iraqi Army (IA) on base and they drive around in
MRAPs that are painted blue. I have no idea why they like blue but
the US Army uses a 'sand brown' color.
Also I saw this freshly painted t-walls and thought someone did a
great job there. The USO has a service here where a soldier (only
soldiers/military) can come in and read a book and that video is then
sent home to the soldier's family. It's really a great way (for
soldiers) to keep in touch with their kids.
R/Chris

01Apr10 Kidnappings

2010-04-01T10:03:00.001+03:00

01Apr10 Kidnappings

I had to stay at BIAP (US military side of Baghdad Internation
AirPort) recently on my trip to Kalsu and ended up being there 3 days
waiting for a flight to Balad. Camp Stryker (aka Stryker Stables) is
there as well and so I stayed in one of the hooches there and did
training for a unit that uses the program that we maintain. Anyway,
on the last night all military had to muster around midnight and the
next day there were obvious extra security conditions going on. I did
some asking and was told that someone was kidnapped the night
previous.
The bases are pretty big in Iraq and some are fairly close to outside
civilian populations. At any time there are hundreds, if not
thousands of contractors on any base of which more than half are
either TCN (third country nationals) or HCN (host country national).
There's a lot of security to get ON the base but frankly very little
to get OFF the base. (see previous posting 'Dude! Where's my
HUMVEE???')
While I can't confirm whether there was a kidnapping or not, I've
heard similar in the past and also there are more posters up such as
'Where's your Battle Buddy?' and this poster (see above). I do wonder
from where did they get the 11 year old kid to draw this poster
though!
R/Chris

PS - Yes, for some reason Camp Stryker is generally referred to as
'Stryker Stable' rather than Camp Stryker. I guess a horse stud ranch
sounds better than a summer baseball camp.

040110 Living at a small FOB

2010-03-31T11:38:00.001+03:00

040110 Living at a small FOB

Above are a few pics that show some of the other aspects of a life at
a FOB. One pic is my bed while at Kalsu and another is me standing in
the housing area. One of the pics is the 'food court' where you can
get a Pizza
Hut pizza or a cup of Green Beans coffee. The other pic of me under
the tarp is at the APOD (air terminal) at
Kalsu. Finally, there is no sewer system at the FOBs (or for that
matter at Balad either.) When you flush the toilet the waste water
goes to a 'black water' tank. From there it is moved via taker trucks
to 'ponds' on
the edge of or outside of camp where evaporation and algae do their
job. Potable water is in different tanks
and generally (of course) is heavily chlorinated. As you can see it's
a Spartan-sorta life.
R/Chris

033110 Kalsu and What's is that blimp up there?

2010-03-31T11:11:00.001+03:00

033110 Kalsu and What's is that blimp up there?

Pretty much all the camps in Iraq look the same. Up in the north you
will see more (the only) trees while in the south at Tallil, I think
things looks dustier and it sure seems hotter in the summer. But for
the most part, 'you've seen one, you've seen them all.' So above are
a few more pics of Kalsu. In one of the pics you can clearly see the
blimp above the camp. Attached to this blimp is a very expensive
camera which can probably see the print of a newspaper better than I
can at arm's length. The blimp is there to 'keep an eye on things' and
just about every small camp has one. If the camp gets incoming (as in
mortar rounds) the camera will swing around to find the source an
appropriate action will be taken (usually from a few armed helo
mounted rockets.)

At Balad there is no such blimp but rather a 24 hour around-the-clock
CAP (Combat Air Patrol) consisting of two F-16 aircraft. When we get
incoming at Balad, the CAP is vectored to 'intercept and destroy'.
Whadda life huh?
R/Chris

032810 Flying Over Iraq

2010-03-29T09:13:00.001+03:00

032810 Flying Over Iraq

A few weeks ago the weather was great here in Iraq and perfect for
running at noon. Last week though it got cold and even it rained here
yesterday. I've had to bring my jacket out of summer storage since
it's so chilly at night now. But at just over 1000 feet in the air
traveling via helo it's downright cold! One has to wear a long sleeve
shirt or jacket while in a helo and I wish I would have worn a jacket.
Anyway, bitch, bitch, bitch...
Here a few pics over Baghdad and Camp Kalsu. The pic of people in
helmets and flak jackets is the group that was headed out to the helo.
This is the Camp Kalsu Air terminal waiting area. There's also a pic
of a palace. There are quite a few palaces in Iraq that Sadaam had
built and he moved from place to palace on a daily basis I understand.
You can also see that Iraq has fairly modern freeways now and the
houses are jammed next to each other. People in Baghdad generally
live in different neighborhoods depending upon what 'tribe and sect'
they were born into. And how do they know this? It's printed on your
passport! Whadda life huh?
R/Chris

032610 Traveling in Iraq...sucks

2010-03-26T15:48:00.001+03:00

032610 Traveling in Iraq...sucks

Every now and then I travel to different sites in Iraq. Usually I
travel to do server maintenance or training. Traveling in Iraq is not
generally a pleasurable. Sure you get away and go see different
things but honestly, one base in Iraq looks about like any other base
in Iraq. To travel to the smaller FOBs (Forward Operating Bases) we
travel via helo (affectionately called Catfish Air). On the first day
of 'trying' to get to FOB Kalsu the weather was too dusty (see pic
above with me outside in the blue shirt). Now honestly it's really
not that dusty but since the Air Force runs air ops, they tell the
Army helo pilots it's 'too dusty' to fly. So, on day one, I sat
around at the Catfish Air terminal all day and watched TV and read my
Seattle Times Sunday paper. Fortunately, there is a Green
Beans Coffee nearby (pic above) enclosed in T-walls so it wasn't such
a bad day. Just waiting...travel in Iraq can sure suck.
R/Chris

16MAR10 Rules...we meant to be broken...

2010-03-15T15:43:00.001+03:00

16MAR10 Rules...we meant to be broken...

Living on an Army base overseas in a hazardous duty area comes with a
certain amount of rules. Some are just plain dumb but I do try to
follow...most of them. My pet peeve is riding bikes on the sidewalk.
It used to be a non-issue until some AF major (the base mayor at some
time past) thought it would be a good idea to
prohibit bikes on the sidewalk and make them share the road with 10
ton HUMMVs and MRAPs. The guy is probably long-gone now but his
'legacy signs' are still there.
Another pet peeve is wearing headphones in non-designated areas.
Basically the whole damn base is a non-designated area (evidently)
except for in one's hooch, the gym and work areas. That means wearing
a headphone anyplace else is prohibited (like running outside.) In a
recent 60 Minutes interview with General McCrystal in Afghanistan, the
general pointed out that he starts his day with a run around the base
WEARING HEADPHONES. So much for that General Order 1A rule! Anyway,
if you're a general, you can disregard that rule (or you can just wear
a hat, that works too!) The pic above is me as I go running. I
always wear a hat (see above) and I've started running now with a flak
jacket to increase my endurance. I'm not sure yet if it's working but
after a few miles I sure feel it.

R/Chris

15MAR19 Pics and stuff

2010-03-15T09:02:00.001+03:00

15MAR19 Pics and stuff

In two weeks the outdoor pool opens up for the summer. (for a pic see
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11072377/). The temps will probably hit
100 this week or next too. Today it is very nice out there and the
evenings still cool down to where you don't need or want a coat any
more. Basically, it's just right. In the north near Mosul it may
rain again before summer but there'll probably be no rain here. In
the south near Tallil, I'm sure the temps are already hitting 100 and
over. As places go in Iraq, Balad is pretty nice. I've had to live
in tent for many months while at Tallil and certainly have had to take
'water bottle showers' when there has been no water here at Balad.
The conditions that solders and contractors have are pretty much the
same. In the housing area where I live it's about a 50/50 mix of
mil/civ. And 90% of the mil in my house block are reserves so that
makes it even easier. The 'hard core' Active Duty mil (Special Forces,
etc) generally have their own housing area and don't mix well with civ
or even the reserves. I try to post a mix of pics and comment on this
blog but am really sure if I have the right balance yet. For more
pics of Balad/Iraq you can visit the following link. There's lot of
stuff there but it is somewhat 'sanitized'.
http://www.balad.afcent.af.mil/photos/index.asp
As a contractor I can only relate what I've seen and experienced. It
is certainly not all-inclusive and my pics can be pretty bad at times.
Eh, overall, it is what it is.

R/Chris

031410 Winter is too cold to run and summer can be too hot to run

2010-03-13T21:41:00.001+03:00

031410 Winter is too cold to run and summer can be too hot to run

I try to run at lunch time here in Iraq to keep in shape. The Army/AF
does a great job of providing the facilities to keep in shape but you
still have to go there to take advantage of such. By far, most of the
guys (and women) in the gym are under 30. Iraq can be a tough
environment so it helps to stay in shape. Military personnel are
generally given 'time on the clock' to work out. For contractors
that's generally not the case. I've been running at lunch time every
other day now for about 2 weeks. I leave at 12 sharp, change, run,
shower and ride my bike back to the office. It's a tight schedule but
I can do this in about 1 hr +- 5 minutes. I'll then suck down a
protein shake for lunch and I'm good to go.
The weather will be quite tolerable until Jun or so when it gets
really hot. Anyway, here are a few gratuitous pics.
R/Chris

031310 Winter is over, spring has sprung, summer is right around the corner

2010-03-13T21:22:00.001+03:00

031310 Winter is over, spring has sprung, summer is right around the corner

Winter (uh, the wet season) is over and spring has sprung. The best
time to be in Iraq is the spring and fall. But in temperate regions
of the earth there really is only a wet season (winter) and a dry
season (summer). Only recently have I had to start running the AC at
night and I safely pack away my light
jacket until this coming October or so. The weather is pretty nice
right now but soon enough it'll get dang hot.
Two of the pics show the new sidewalks (aka Iraq public works
projects). They were put in by an Iraq company and are about a foot
thick (I don't know why). After the sidewalks are poured and hard,
the Iraqis come back and using a diamond saw, cut lines across the
sidewalk every 5' or so. This is so that when the slab cracks (which
it eventually will do) that it will crack along that line. But they
could draw the same line across the concrete while it is still wet and
save a lot of time and energy and efforts. But that is not the Iraqi
way....
Alson in one of the pics is you can see the American flay painted on a
t-wall. That is the post office. The other pic is of me in front of
where I work.
We still get attacked about 2-3 times a week but they're still damn
lousey shots. Pretty damn exciting huh?

R/Chris

022610 I've been bad and have not posted in a while.

2010-02-26T18:22:00.001+03:00

022610 I've been bad and have not posted in a while.
I've not posted in a while. To those who have checked and looked for
updates, my apolgies. Frankly I live a pretty boring regimented life
here. I get up at 6 AM, I'm at work at 7 AM and I leave work at 7 PM.
I'd say that about 4-5 days a week I then go to the gym and am there
an hour and I follow up with dinner at SUbway since the DFAC is closed
by then. About 2-3 days a week, I'll skip the gym and go from work to
the DFAC to eat dinner. In either case, I'll 'surf the net' and watch
some TV (AAFES TV, so no real commercials) for an hour or so and then
go to bed. The next day, I repeat and will do so until I get an R&R
break. I get one R&R break every 6-8 months...if I'm good. I'll try
to post more soon but on pic below shows Balad. It's been building up
over the last few years and now there's a push to put sidewalks
everywhere. At first this may not seem a big ideal but when you
equate living in Iraq with mud and walking on (crushed) rock, it's a
real milestone. I'll post pics of the sidewalks tomorrow or so. On a
good note there were only 5 attacks this last week. As usual not all
impact sites were found. Such is life in Iraq.
R/Chris

122509 Christmas in Iraq...again

2009-12-25T22:58:00.001+03:00

122509 Christmas in Iraq...again
Today is my 4th Christmas in Iraq. And nothing says traditional
Christmas dinner like 10 lobsters for lunch! (but in my defense they
are small lobsters) The holiday meals in Iraq and Afghanistan are a
big deal and the Army does a great job at ensuring, that for that day,
a great meal is served. There was of course turkey and prime rib as
well as mashed potatoes, yams, cranberries, etc. But my favorite is
lobster! Presentation is also important and the DFAC crew (mostly
Pakistanis and Indians) bake many cakes that are just for presentation
or will carve fruit or will make a paper-mache manger scene. Overall
it's a very nice meal and sets the tone for the day. All soldiers,
DACs (Department of the Army Civilians) and contractors eat at the
same place.
Fortunately too there was no incoming so there was no bunker time
(which is always a good thing.)
Also the weather here at Balad is pretty dern nice right now. Sunny,
warm (70s) and clear is surely a great way to enjoy Christmas.
R/Chris

112809 How much Does a Contractor cost???

2009-11-28T10:51:00.001+03:00

112809 How much Does a Contractor cost???

For planning purposes, budget planners at the Pentagon and White House
come up with a 'number' that represents the amount it costs per person
here in Iraq and Ghan. There are direct costs (pay, equipment,
bullets, etc.) and indirect costs (food, MWR, electricity, etc.) and
when added together and divided by the number of warm bodies here is
evidently somewhere between $500,000 to $1,000,000 per year. Dang! War
is hell and sure is expensive too!
At a minimum I'd say a third of the people at JBB are contractors but
it certainly may be closer to 50%. And come December 2011, any combat
troops here will then be designated 'training troops'. But any
contractors will still be...contractors. The weather here is pretty
nice but a bit chilly. One needs a coat in the morning and in the
evening on my 'commute' home.
The lows are mid-high 40s or so at night. It'll continue to get
colder and there'll be a few mornings when there'll be wisps of frost
out there too. This does make for a few nice sunsets as the pic above
shows. It's supposed to rain here this weekend which means there's
the potential for flooding and at a minimum, mud!
R/Chris

112609 Thanksgiving in Iraq

2009-11-27T14:37:00.001+03:00

112609 Thanksgiving in Iraq

Yesterday was another Thanksgiving in Iraq. Here are some pics above.
The meal was much better than usual meals but not without some flaws.
For example there were two lines into the DFAC and I think the idea
was to let in groups of 5-10 or so at a time in order to keep the
crowd outside and not inside. Well, one line went a lot faster since
the SGT there seemed to decide to let in groups of 10-20 or so. Which
meant the line I was in went a LOT slower. Poor coordination. The
DFAC is run by Pakistani, Nepalese and Philippino and in these
countries 'colored rice art on the floor' is evidently pretty popular.
So there were many areas one could not walk and it made for congestion
inside. The English language is not a strong point among all the
workers either so no matter what you asked, the answer was always
"Yes, yes sir!" ('Does that turkey suck?' reply - "Yes, yes sir!") I
had a piece of pumpkin pie but when I bit down, 'crunch'! The pie was
not fully defrosted - Urgh.
But overall it was really nice. There was also a lot of carved fruit.
The peacock in the pic above is covered with fruit loops too. On
holidays it's 'traditional' that Army officers serve food so you'll
see that as well. And the 'bar' was just stocked with canned eggnog
and sparkling juice. Just another Thanksgiving in Iraq.
R/Chris

112009 Kandahar Rocket Attack

2009-11-26T18:17:00.001+03:00

112009 Kandahar Rocket Attack
This came from my friend in Kandahar as they got hit by a rocket a few
days ago. We still get about 1 rocket attack a week here at Balad but
it's not a big deal. The bad guys have such lousey aim. The pics are
self explanatory.
R/Chris

112509 Traveling in Iraq and Actions Speak Louder than Words (pics 2)

2009-11-26T16:28:00.001+03:00

More pics

112509 Traveling in Iraq and Actions Speak Louder than Words

2009-11-26T16:26:00.001+03:00

112509 Traveling in Iraq and Actions Speak Louder than Words

I'm a contractor in Iraq working for the US Army here at Balad Air
Base (Joint Base Balad) in Iraq. I came over here over 4 year ago
because I got really, really of working in a cubical at a 'large
software company' in Seattle/Redmond Washington. I've known many
other guys who also were/are very tired of the same ole, same ole.
But I eventually found someone who knew someone who knew someone who
knew somebody (John Bishop) who offered me at job initially at KBR.
So without knowing too much about what I was getting into, I came to
Iraq. I really wanted a change. Actions speak louder than words. I do
computer stuff here and every now and then get to travel to exotic
locations here in Iraq such as Speicher Air Base and Marez Air Base.
The last few weeks I've been traveling. Iraq can be very green where
there's water and the Tigress river nearby flows all year round.
Traveling by helo carries inherent risks as well and the 50 cal is
'hot' when in the air. Helos also never travel alone as every now and
then, a helo goes down. As you can also see the accommodations are
generally Spartan at best but
to get a 'room' to myself is actually a luxury. More often than not I
can only expect a bunk bed (sans linen) in a tent. And like the
poster says 'actions speak louder than words.'

112509 Kids in Ghan

2009-11-26T14:38:00.001+03:00

112509 Kids in Ghan
The pics from the previous post and this post were taken in
Afghanistan, not Iraq. Many (if not all) of the bases in Iraq and
Afghanistan are surrounded by tall fences. At Balad here in Iraq just
on the other side of the fence the Iraqis grow tomatoes and
sunflowers. In Scania (which is in Southern Iraq) there is an active
bartering/market right at the fence. Soldiers and civilians meet
locals and transactions occur right through the fence (it's just the
way it developed.) If you buy something that can't go through the
fence you can just toss it over the fence. In Kabul (the pics above)
local kids hang out on the other side for anything that might be
tossed their way.
R/Chris

111909 It's officialy the wet season

2009-11-20T07:02:00.001+03:00

111909 It's officialy the wet season

It's offically the rainy season in Iraq. What this means is that
we'll have 3-4 months of wet, cool weather. It might snow here (like
it did two years ago) but it's unlikely.
There are also many, many bases in Iraq all the way from Basra in the
south to Mosul in the North. But in Afghanistan there really are only
two and those are Kabul or Bagram in the north and Kandahar in the
south. I have a friend (another SQL DBA) at Kabul who is leaving in a
few months as his year-long contract is up and he's going back to
Kansas and the wife and kids (anyone looking for a SQL job and
adventture???)
He's sent me a few pics of what Kabul is like and as you can see it's
right up to the mountatins. The village is pretty poor looking and
at Kabul airbase, 'footprint' space is expensive so the showers are in
a trailer on top of the trailer where the toilets are located. In
Iraq,
space is not a problem.
R/Chris

110309 Halloween, the best holiday and Lightning in the Desert

2009-11-03T16:22:00.001+03:00

110309 Halloween, the best holiday and Lightning in the Desert

For Halloween I asked a former co-worker in the states to send some Halloween stuff for the coffee break room. I then decorated the break room and you can see my efforts in the pic above. Frankly Halloween is the best Holiday. Thanksgiving and Christmas have too much connection or association with family and loved ones. And try as they might, sitting at a DFAC table with coworkers for a Thanksgiving meal just isn't the same. The DFAC does a great job and there is (camel) steak, prime rib and even lobster but it's just not the same (it sucks and is kind of depressing).

Also it has started to rain here. I don't think I've ever seen it rain in Iraq without lots of thunder and lightning. I remember it raining once when I was at Tallil where it was raining and lightning and thunder but it was still so warm that what rain did make it to the ground quickly evaporated. Dang good lightning show though. Also there's so much lightning that it's possible to get some pics by just taking random pics. I took about 30 pics at random times the other day to get the lightning pics above as well. Unfortunately the pics really don't do justice to the amount of lightning there was but it does give one an idea.

R/Chris

24Oct09 The life of a Contractor is feast and famine

2009-10-24T18:26:00.001+03:00

24Oct09 The life of a Contractor is feast and famine

As a contractor in Iraq life can be feast or famine. I do SQL database stuff here used by another company (ITT) to monitor vehicle maintenance. Two years ago ITT underbid the previous contract owner (L3) and just today came notice that LSI has officially lost the contract for the next two years. What this means is that soon there will be LSI reps here that will go to each LSE shop and ask each current LSI employee here if he wants to continue in his present job as an LSI employee BUT at a reduced salary. In this particular case, I also found out that the 'new salary' is that you work 7 days a week instead of 6 days for the approximate same pay. So doing the numbers, one will have to work about 17% more in order to get the same pay. We'll see how many goys out there will stick around. From an informal survey I'd say it's about half. But LSI is already looking for people who want to work here and I found one link and here it is. My contract still is not signed and I find out by the end of October. Yes, it's already almost the end of October but the US Army moves at the speed at which it wants to move.

So for a job in Iraq, see the link below.

http://jobsearch.monster.com/Search.aspx?co=xursx,xursax,xurscax,xursco1x,xurs01x,xurs02x,xurs04x,xurs06x,xurs07x,xurs08x,xurs09x,xurs10x,xurs11x,xurs12x,xurs13x,xurs14x,xurs15x,xurs19x,xurs01x,xurs03x,xurs05x,xurs16x,xurs17x,xurs18x,xurs20x,xurs21x,xurs22x,xurs23x,xurs24x,xurs25x,xurs26x,xurs27x,xurs28x,xurs29x#brd=1&q=contingent%20balad%20iraq&cy=us&lid=316&re=0&pg=1&dv=1

R/Chris

101809 KA-BOOM! Wow, that was the closest one to date!

2009-10-18T15:12:00.001+03:00

101809 KA-BOOM! Wow, that was the closest one to date!

On Friday we I had the closest call to date. A rocket hit the bunker next to the building where I work (and about 100 feet from where I sit) and it rattled the building pretty bad. Lights fell down and there was dust everywhere. For a minute we thought some part of the building was hit since it was that loud. Instead of running to the bunker THIS time I hit the deck flat in case there was another explosion. There was but it was farther away so we got up and ran to bunkers. Surprisingly there was still a lot of yelling going on! Anyway, that was certainly the closest one to date. The rocket hit the top of the bunker and blew the plywood off (in the pics above.) In some of the other pics you can see part of the recovered casing and the shrapnel. There was shrapnel everywhere so I gathered up a few pieces. What the heck do I do with them though?
R/Chris

101309 Happy 234th U.S. Navy

2009-10-13T09:56:00.001+03:00

101309 Happy 234th U.S. Navy

Today (the 13th of October) is the Navy birthday, so it's lobster for lunch! I've had more damn lobster in Iraq than I've had in my entire life! (and dang it's good!)

R/Chris

101309 Work in Iraq? Are you Crazy?

2009-10-12T18:31:00.001+03:00

101309 Work in Iraq? Are you Crazy?

Recently a co-workers job came open where I am located. Frankly I suspect the job is already filled but the position was listed online and I took a look at what was there. The standard stuff is listed but at the end of the job description the work environment is detailed. Dang, what person is crazy enough to work in an environment like that?!

Work Environment: Work environment is typically indoors in an office environment. However, outdoor work will be required in austere conditions (dusty, extreme temperatures). Substantial hours with minimal time off are called for – an 80-90 hour week is standard. The duty station for this position is located in Iraq. This assignment is hazardous. Employees may experience insurgent attacks on a regular basis. Certain operations may require 24 hour support. Accordingly, individuals may be assigned to work during non-routine shifts, and long hours.

R/Chris

101309 So you want to be a rockstar AND be in the Army? Heck, why not both! (part2)

2009-10-12T17:12:00.001+03:00

R/Chris

101309 So you want to be a rockstar AND be in the Army? Heck, why not both!

2009-10-12T17:10:00.001+03:00

101309 So you want to be a rockstar AND be in the Army? Heck, why not both!

Most people join the Army to fight the enemy. Well there are lots of jobs in the Army where you won't ever have to worry about breaking a nail! The Army band is one such example. (Yes, there is also an Air Force band and Navy 'sea chanters' (urgh!))
Recently the Army band came and did their show here at Balad. They did a couple of songs at the DFAC where I heard them and also about base. Someone else posted these pics and I'm reposting.
R/Chris

101209 Battalion Farewell Picnic...."you're saving lives." (pics part2)

2009-10-11T10:23:00.001+03:00

R/Chris