30 October 2007: Incoming? I'm trying to exercise here!

I'm on a different pace when I'm in Camp Liberty. I make it a point to keep appointments scheduled for later in the morning. That way I can "ramp up" for the day at my own pace. It's nice. This morning I hit the DFAC around 0730 and loitered over ESPN Sportscenter. About 0915 one of my NCOs came by my hooch and picked me up for our round of meetings. For the next four hours (excluding lunch) I was all over the Victory Base compound. We stopped by Camp Striker to present an NCO a coin and certificate of appreciation. He had taken excellent care of our team while we assisted his brigade. Next we stopped by one of the Multi-National Division HQs so I could hold a planning session with the G4 staff. That went well. Finally we stopped by the brigade we're currently assisting to make sure we were up to date on their needs. All was well. Work was complete by around 1500.

During the course of all this we made a stop at the Cinnabon in the Liberty PX compound. That place stays packed. We had to wait in line outside just to order coffee. Fortunately, the temperatures are much cooler now. While we were at Camp Striker we ate lunch at an old standby - The Commando Cafe. I'm not sure why it's called a cafe. The place is huge. I think it's the biggest DFAC in Iraq. You practically need some park benches to rest at the halfway point. I made the mistake of hitting the taco bar. That would come back to haunt me later.

Once back at my hooch I took a short nap. Then I was off to the MWR gym. It wasn't very crowded so I had my selection of equipment. I was breezing through the weights and was about to grab a treadmill when one of the MWR employees started running around saying something to everyone. He panted up to me and said, "I'm sorry sir but I just got a call on the radio. Everyone needs to get in the bunkers." I thought to myself "I'm trying to exercise here!" However, I complied. We all scurried outside like ants and gathered under the various concrete bunkers. I ended up in the same bunker as the MWR guy. He kept apologizing for interrupting everyone's workouts. I told him to never apologize for doing your job. In the meantime I got to listen to the Joes chatter about all kinds of stuff.

Airborne Josephine was telling the story about her jumps. "I'm so small I never quite clear the aircraft and end up bumping the fuselage on my way out. This one time I hit the door on the way out and lost my kevlar. We never found it."

War story Joe was comparing Camp Liberty to FOB Falcon. "Dude this ain't nothin'. When I wuz at Falcon we got mortared all the time. It wasn't like this. If they sounded the alarm you had about ten seconds to get in the bunker. Then there'd be shit flyin' all over the place."

Rumor Joe was doing his job. "I think I heard that nine rockets hit over near the PX." (Let me point out that he had been in the gym with me so there's no way in hell he had any idea why we were in the bunker)

Witness Joe was arguing with another Witness Joe about another IDF. "There was this girl at the entrance to the DFAC and she got hit by a rocket through the guard shack."
"No man she was in a humvee pulling into the parking lot - I saw it."
"No you're thinking of another IDF. I'm talking about a couple of weeks ago over at division DFAC."
"That's the same one I'm talking about!"
"Dude, whatever. I was there."

All the while I'm just rolling my eyes, biting my lip, and waiting for the all clear. C'mon guys, I want to finish my workout. After about thirty minutes we received the all clear. I never did find out what really happened. I guess I could have gone back and asked Rumor Joe.

Only in Iraq.....

29 October 2007: Back to Camp Liberty

Camp Liberty is a recurring location on this deployment. It actually would make more sense for me to be based out of here. Balad isn't ideally situated to support our missions. Camp Liberty is. That's a big reason why I keep coming back. I have my own hooch. Obviously, I'm back in Camp Liberty. Yep - It's mission time again. This time it will be a perpetual mission that will carry all the way into January. It's essentially a sprint to the finish line for this deployment.

My day began in Anaconda. After our morning meeting I hurried over to Catfish to see if I could fly space "A" to Liberty pad. There was one seat left for an evening flight. I took it. I had to catch up with some of my team that had departed a couple days previous. Since I was able to secure a flight I went back to my hooch to pack. I squeezed a haircut into the day too. After all, I can't go around looking like a hippie.

I closed out any outstanding business I had back at my office and rushed back over to Catfish for my flight. It turned out my flight had been delayed (no surprises there). That was a good thing because it gave me time to eat chow. Around 2100 we rolled out to the flightline to load the Blackhawks. It was a spectacular, moonlit night. The temperature was perfect. The summer days of sweating gallons on the helicopters are over. I had a rearward facing seat along the port side of the aircraft. We weren't crowded so nobody had to endure the "hurricane seat" (the starboard side rear seat that is notorious for blowing gusts of exhaust in the face of the unfortunate rider). It was an incredible flight. I really wish there was some way I could convey how beautiful the night sky, the lights below, the reflection of moonlight on the Tigris, and the slight ground fog we could see below. It was the most serene flight I've had. I was also happy to be leaving Balad and getting back out on mission. That's what I'm here for - not sitting around on my duff back in Anaconda.

By 2300 I was in my other hooch - at Camp Liberty. Time for me and my team to get back to work. This is sure to give rise to plenty of more entertaining moments. I hope you are looking forward to them as much as I am.

28 October 2007: Red Sox Nation includes Iraq

Red Sox Nation rules the baseball world. The Colorado Rockies found out for themselves. Another sweep. All hail the Boston Red Sox!

The rest of my day pales in comparison. I watched football. The Pats dominated again.
However, the opportunity to visit a KBR port-o-jon did arise. I seized the moment. It paid off. First, I learned some more about Chuck Norris. Did you know this?

“Chuck Norris Doesn’t get cancer. Cancer gets Chuck Norris”

I’m sure the person in the port-o-jon next to mine was wondering what I was doing when I laughed out loud over the next pearl of Joe graffiti. It’s the funniest one I’ve seen to date – for simplicity and pure humor it’s priceless. This quote was written on the back wall of the port-o-jon directly above the seat. An arrow pointed straight down from the quote to the toilet seat. The quote instructed occupants as follows:

“SHHH! LiL Marines Hatching”

As I said – priceless.

27 October 2007: Army wins over the bye weekend

It was a great day to be an Army Football fan. They won! It was close, but they squeaked through the bye weekend without losing.

Saturday was interesting – if not exciting. One of my soldiers joined the ranks of Noncommissioned Officers. He was promoted from Specialist to Sergeant. We held a promotion ceremony for him. In the old days a soldier couldn’t be promoted to Sergeant unless he/she had completed Primary Leadership Development Course (PLDC). About three years ago the Army waived that requirement due to a shortage of junior NCOs. I don’t agree with that decision. I believe soldiers should still have to complete PLDC before being promoted to SGT. Oh well…

During the afternoon the unit we’re OPCON to had a cookout. It was a decent event. We could play horseshoes, volleyball, and football. I partnered with the same soldier who’d been promoted to SGT for horseshoes. He flat out sucked. We were eliminated in the first round. It was probably the worst round of horseshoes I’ve ever been involved with. We lost 21-10. All of our points came from my tosses. We would have had more but one of my ringers was cancelled out by the other team.

The real world was evident though. The entire time the cookout was going on I had soldiers leaving to travel to missions. Everyone got something to eat before leaving though. I left the cookout in time to workout prior to supper. Then I retired to my hooch to watch college football. As always, I was at the mercy of AFN. Fortunately, a good game was on. I watched UCONN defeat USF.

What a day, huh? You’d think I was back in the States. However, did I mention that there was no beer? That puts it back in perspective.

26 October 2007: Sunny today, rain tomorrow

Another chapter of the deployment came to a close today. I guess I could say that it symbolized the official end of my R&R. While I was on leave I had a temporary replacement officer up from Kuwait. He’s a friend of mine that I’ve known a number of years and he did an outstanding job covering for me. Now he’s on his way back to Kuwait. I dropped him off at Catfish Air earlier today to begin his journey. He’ll be stopping off at Camp Liberty to pick up the rest of his gear and then on to Kuwait.

In the meantime it’s back to work around here. I’ve got team members heading back out to new missions daily. I’ll be headed south to the Baghdad area in a few days. Once I leave this time I won’t see Balad for at least a month. That’s good. It makes time go by fast. I’d rather be traveling on mission than hanging out here – especially after I learned from Geography Professor Joe that Balad doesn’t count as being in Iraq.

Have any of you been noticing the change in temperatures here? It’s not nearly as hot as it was. Rain is on the way too. That’s right, I said rain. It rains here a lot in the winter. Dust becomes mud. Mud gets tracked. Everything gets sloppy. It’s unavoidable. Right now the skies are clear. I’ll be packing my gortex for my next mission. Rain’s coming.

25 October 2007: The Deployed Sports Fan

Please bear with me everyone. I'm going through some kind of post-R&R funk right now. It's only intensified by the unusual sleep patterns of the deployed sports fan - and I am one. Before going on leave I was more happy-go-lucky. With R&R looming soon it was fun to work through every day. Now it seems like I'm just focused on coming home. There's no more R&R to look forward to. The good news here is that I've started the home stretch. My next trip home is for good. At least I've got some great sports to keep me fired up.

How about those Red Sox? They're two games up in the World Series. Interestingly, the last time they won the series I was deployed. It's old hat for me to get up around 0400 to watch the games. It's exciting times. Not only that, it's exciting times to be a New England sports fan. The Patriots are kicking ass again, Boston College is ranked number 2 in college football, the Bruins are looking pretty good, and the Celtics seem to be coming back. I'm missing a lot of fun nights at the Ivy this fall. I'm there in spirit. I'm not alone because there are a lot of deployed sports fans. They're not all fans of New England sports. However, you can always tell who was watching the games. By noon they look like zombies and tend to disappear around 1500 back to their hooches.

What's it like to be a deployed sports fan? Try this. Tivo the game. Set your alarm clock for 0345. Get up and watch the entire game. In the late innings (or quarters) get ready for work. Once the game is over go straight to work. Now work a complete day. Although you won't actually be deployed, you'll know the feeling. That's what it takes to be a true fan over here. You'd be amazed at how many of us there are. Sometimes sleep is optional. After all, how often are the Red Sox in the World Series? I better enjoy this while I can.

24 October 2007: Geography Professor Joe

Joes are a funny lot. They have a unique ability to grasp geography along perceived boundaries of cultural experience. Normally, their geography lessons are taught upon the same canvass of expressive thought commonly utilized by Joe – the port-o-jon. Until today I was convinced that Balad was in Iraq. When I glanced at any map it seemed to indicate that, indeed, Balad is just north of Baghdad. Joe has proven me, and many maps, to be incorrect. I stopped by a trusty KBR port-o-jon to empty my bladder. As fate would have it, I picked the classroom of Joe’s geography lesson. As my bladder emptied I looked to my left and saw that Professor Joe had made his statement.

“Balad doesn’t count as being in Iraq!”

One of Joe’s students offered a rebuttal. “It counts for those of us who go outside the wire.”

This brought down a stern rebuke from Professor Joe, who retorted, “Shut the fuck up bitch! Just go back out and lay by the pool!”

I’ve been schooled. All this time I thought Balad was in Iraq. Good thing for me that I actually travel to places that ARE in Iraq. Otherwise I would have been deployed for a year and mistakenly believing that I was in Iraq. Thank you Professor Joe. I look forward to your next geography lesson.

23 October 2007: Red-Eye Chinook to Balad

November is going to be a very busy month. For that reason, I’ve elected to return to Balad. It’s not for rest and relaxation though. I need to continue planning for the missions upcoming. I can’t effectively do that in Taji because I’m always having to borrow computers and phones. That can be a pain in the ass. I’ll be leaving part of my team here for a couple more days. In the meantime, I’ll fly back to Balad. Besides, the only thing I’m doing in Taji is getting more oil mud on my boots.

It didn’t take long to get back either. I hopped on a late night Chinook. The helicopter was completely full. It looked like most of the Joes were on their way to R&R. There are no fixed-wing aircraft flying through Taji so Joes leaving on R&R have to connect in either Balad or BIAP. That’s an extra day of travel that I’m thankful I didn’t have to contend with. For the flight I sat at the back of the aircraft looking out through the open ramp. Chinooks always fly with the ramp down because that’s where the crew chief man’s a machine gun. I wish my camera could record movies at night because the scene leaving Taji was awesome. We were the lead aircraft. The trail Chinook was surrealistically floating against the backdrop of ground lighting. I watched mesmerized for almost the entire flight. It was quite the impressive scene.

I was back at my Balad hooch around 0030. After unpacking I took a shower. I was in bed by around 0130. It will be a short visit.

22 October 2007: The Taji Routine

Yet another uneventful, unspectacular day in Taji… I’ve been here long enough for there to be a noticeable routine. My morning begins around 0700 daily. After getting ready, I normally hit the DFAC around 0800. I leave breakfast and walk across the street to the PX, where I buy another cup of “Seattle’s Best” coffee at the Cinnabon. There are two Josephines who’ve been working the ID-check at the gate I go through to enter the PX compound. I hadn’t noticed it was the same soldiers until today. As I came to the gate one of them said, “Sir, you come here at the same time every day.” I just laughed and said, “I guess my coffee fix is a routine requirement.” After I bought my coffee they both said, “Sir, we’ll see you tomorrow!”

I can’t really say that anything else of significance happened today. My team just kept up the steady drumbeat of work. The units we’re supporting are extremely happy and are already begging me to keep my team here an extra couple of days. I may be able to do that. For once, we’re not sandwiched right up to a follow-on mission. Were it not for the oil mud, Taji wouldn’t be half bad. I can’t complain about the freshly sliced melons and pineapples in the DFAC. That’s a nice touch.

21 October 2007: Oh Yeah,Oil Mud

Oil mud is back in force. I walked over to drop off some laundry and the shit practically ruined my running shoes. Fortunately, I was able to hose them off before the muck took permanent hold. Oil mud is everywhere in Taji. It’s only compounded by these trucks that drive around spraying water (I guess in an attempt to keep down dust). Joes are tracking in mud everywhere here. You’ll find boot scrapers outside the DFAC, the PX, and just about every other public building. I try to think of a positive spin for Taji but nothing comes to mind. This place is ugly, dirty, and depressing.

I woke up around 0700 and went to breakfast. When I got back I woke up my team. We then walked over to the office we’re sharing. Our intent was to get back to work. Nobody was there. I guess everyone decided to take Sunday morning off but failed to tell us. It turned out to be a good thing. We all had a chance to check e-mail and make personal phone calls. It was the first call I’d made home since getting back from R&R. That’s about the story of the day.

Everyone seems to be walking around in a daze here. I think it’s because we’re working with Joes who’ve been deployed for fifteen months. Old timers would call it a “thousand meter stare.”

20 October 2007: Army-Navy Game Prediction

It’s time for my prediction on the Army-Navy game. Yeah, the game is several weeks away but I think my prediction will hold up to the test of time. Here it is – Navy 49 Army 14. I had the unfortunate opportunity to watch Army get crushed by Georgia Tech today. Somebody reading this entry will counter by pointing out that Navy was smoked today as well by Wake Forest. To me it’s irrelevant. Navy runs a better system on offense. Army’s offense can’t keep the ball moving. That’s why Army’s defense is always so tired by the third quarter. You can bet on it – Navy will win going away (again). Army should have offered Paul Johnson the coaching job back when they had the chance.

This is my highlight for today. Taji simply didn’t deliver much excitement. It’s whisper quiet, the weather is nice, and our work was routine. On our way to one of the battalions we’re working with we passed an almost unending field of rusting tanks, artillery, engineering equipment, and armored personnel carriers. It’s another stark reminder of how the balance of power has changed in this region. The Iraqi army went from being one of the largest in the world to practically nothing. I personally think it was a huge mistake to disband the Saddam’s army. It was one of the few remaining unifying organizations remaining after the invasion. Instead of using it to help rebuild we gave the entire army pink slips. That adds up to almost 450,000 trained personnel that we sent packing. Voila! Instant insurgency! …. I digress.

Back to college football – I loved Vandy’s upset of South Carolina. LSU pulled off another miracle win. If Ohio State plays in the BCS championship against an SEC team they will get stomped again (see last year for reference).

19 October 2007: Straight back on mission

I wasn’t in Balad long. Most of my team is out on mission right now. That meant that I was back into the fire without delay. At 0700 I dropped by Catfish Air to catch a Blackhawk to Taji. I haven’t been back more than 20 hours and I’m already back in the fight. It was a cool, overcast morning. It felt strange to fly on the helicopter without sweating my ass off. Before long I’ll need to start packing my gortex and fleece.

Taji is the same ugly place it was a month ago. I’m not billeted as close to the artillery this time. I can’t say that anything exciting took place. I’m still on leave in my head. I’ve noticed a dramatically different perspective on deployment now that I’m post-R&R. Prior to leave I had an optimistic, happy-go-lucky perspective that was fueled by the approach of my R&R. Now there’s no R&R to look forward to. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still happy. I still enjoy the work. My eyes are more fixated on 140 days from now. That’s when I expect my deployment to end. All I need to do is stay busy. If I do that the time will fly by. Fortunately, there are lots of missions between now and then.

In the meantime, I’m in Taji. The water is out in my billets. The nearest functioning shower is too far to walk. All my personal hygiene will be done with bottled water until the showers are working again. After work today I stopped by the gym. My only choice afterward was to take a “whore bath”. That meant standing in the shower stall and pouring bottled water on my body while I scrubbed. Yeah, it sucked. That’s life though. Well, that’s military life sometimes. Freezing my ass off with bottled water beats smelling like a polecat from my own body odor. The soldier that looks after our billets assured me that the water pump would be functioning again in a day or so. Until then it’s bottled water all around.

18 October 2007: From Kuwait to Balad

I reported at 0300 as ordered. There were about sixty Joes returning to Balad. We all had a tired, dazed stare. Why did we have to be there for 0300? Very simple – our flight to Balad was at 0800. Wait, it doesn’t make sense? It does to me. That’s just the way the military works. We have a common rule. It’s called “hurry up and wait.” Even returning from R&R you can expect to live by that rule.

After the wait was over we were bussed out to the flightline to a waiting C130. After taxiing for about twenty minutes we took off for an uneventful flight. We arrived in Balad around 0900. In rapid fire succession I checked my e-mail, checked in with my team, and returned to my hooch. I slept most of the afternoon away. My hooch was just as it was when I left. Balad was the same as it was when I left except one thing – the temperature. When I left on R&R we were still over 100 daily. Now it’s only getting up to the low 90’s at most. It’s quite pleasant at night. Iraq is no longer on daylight savings so it’s getting dark a lot sooner.

16-17 October 2007: Flying back to Kuwait

I don’t believe in the saying “all good things must end.” However, R&R did run its course. Going back after leave was a lot harder than I thought it would be. It was harder than leaving at the beginning of deployment. Originally, my flight out of Providence was supposed to be at 0700. Fortunately, it changed to 1230. Flying back was the reverse of coming home. I flew to Atlanta, then to Kuwait, and then on to Balad. I was amazed at how efficient the return flights went. When I arrived in Atlanta I simply checked in with the R&R return desk. They had me on a manifest already. I had expected to wait for hours in the airport. It turned out to be a short wait. I saw most of the same faces I had seen coming home. Nobody seemed depressed or in a state of shock. By the same token, there wasn’t much talking. Some of the Joes had family with them to send them off.

A pleasant surprise awaited some of us on the R&R plane. On flights like these, the front section of the aircraft is always reserved for higher ranking personnel (LTC and above for officers; MSG and above for enlisted). Normally the seats are no different than coach. However, on this flight we had an actual first class section. I had a big leather reclining seat that had about twenty settings. There was a fold out flat screen TV and other neat comforts. The chair had a “sleep” setting. That’s where mine remained for the majority of the flight. We were in the air around 16 hours. I was asleep for about 12 of them. The plane left Atlanta around 2000. We stopped in Leipzig for fuel. We arrived in Kuwait around 1900 on the 17th. I was assigned a tent and told that my role call for the flight to Balad was the next morning at 0300. In the space of about 30 hours I went from my relaxed comfort of leave back to the regimen of military life.

My Thoughts on R&R

It wasn’t long enough. I was just starting to unwind when leave ended. Even so, my leave was wonderful. I told myself that I wouldn’t try to do everything or see everybody. I made few commitments other than my WP reunion. That was a good call. I must apologize to all of you who I didn’t catch up with. There just wasn’t time enough to go around. However, it was awesome to see the friends that I did spend time with. I’m really glad my parents and nephew came up. We didn’t exactly “burn the city down” but we did have a lot of fun. I saw a good number of the gang at Ivy Tavern too. All in all, I accomplished everything I’d hoped to over the course of two weeks. The best part is knowing that my next trip home is for good. I’m now starting the home stretch of the deployment. When I said goodbye to friends and family, I made sure to say that it wasn’t really goodbye but, instead, the beginning of hello. There’s going to be a big party when I get back and everyone is invited.

15 October 2007: R&R day 15

1. After breakfast, I took my family to the airport for their flight.
2. I spent the afternoon coming to grips with the inevitable – R&R was almost over.
3. My last official meal of R&R was anticlimactic. It was takeout Pad Thai that gave me heartburn.
4. Although I wanted to go out one more time I refrained. There will be plenty of time when the deployment is over.

14 October 2007: R&R day 14

1. The football marathon continued all day.
2. Titans lost to Tampa Bay in a very ugly, boring game 13-10.
3. The Patriots spanked the Cowboys 48-27.
4. Lots of beers were consumed.

13 October 2007: R&R day 13

1. I held an awesome cookout for my family.
2. We had a great day just hanging out, watching football, and enjoying the company.

12 October 2007: R&R day 12

1. We all went to Mohegan Sun casino.
2. I played Caribbean Stud most of the afternoon but only broke even.
3. The Pit Manager at the table I was playing was a very annoying person who is best described as the gay, Asian Buddy Holly.
4. Gay Asian Buddy Holly waited until I’d been playing for over an hour before he asked my nephew how old he was. (21 is, apparently, the legal gambling age in Connecticut. My nephew is about a month shy of his 21st)
5. Once back in Providence, we chilled at my apartment the rest of the evening.

11 October 2007: R&R day 11

1. Lounged in my underwear over coffee until around 0930.
2. Stopped by Providence College to visit the gang at the ROTC offices.
3. Picked up my parents and nephew at the airport.
4. Took everyone to supper at LJ’s BBQ

10 October 2007: R&R day 10

1. Lounged in my underwear over coffee until around 0930
2. Dropped by Ivy Tavern and watched Navy stun Pittsburgh.

09 October 2007: R&R day 9

1. Lounged in my underwear over coffee until around 1000.
2. Stamped out a “fire” that popped up back in Iraq – forcing me to stay online for a couple of hours.
3. Went to a friend’s house in Pawtuxet Village for supper and cigars

08 October 2007: R&R day 8

1. Lounged in my underwear over coffee until almost 1100.
2. Did practically nothing all day.
3. Watched Monday Night Football at East Avenue Café.

07 October 2007: R&R day 7

1. Slept in till around 1000.
2. Drove all over Newburgh, NY looking for a sports bar that had NFL Ticket.
3. Found a sports bar named “My Place”. (It’s a classy joint – shares parking with a strip club, had a wonderful free buffet of Bi-Lo hotdogs in sauerkraut, and seemed to be the home of the local Pittsburgh Steelers fan club)
4. Watched the Titans defeat the Falcons 20-13.
5. Drove back to Providence.
6. Attended a party with friends.

06 October 2007: R&R day 6

1. Slept in till around 0930.
2. Zipped back over to West Point for the class luncheon held at Washington Hall.
3. Marched across The Plain with my classmates as part of the Alumni memorial ceremony.
4. Found out that I still know every verse to the West Point Alma Mater.
5. Then I realized I don’t remember all the words to “The Corps”.
6. Assembled with my classmates on The Plain to watch The Corp of Cadets “pass in review”.
7. Attended the Class of ’87 tailgate party at Ike Hall. (Yuengling was on tap!)
8. Watched Army defeat Tulane in football at Michie Stadium. (final score Army 20 Tulane 17 in OT)
9. Continued the post-game party with classmates at a tailgate in “A” lot.

05 October 2007: R&R day 5

1. Slept in till around 0845.
2. Realized the hotel continental breakfast was pretty shitty.
3. Ate lunch at Eisenhower Hall at my class luncheon.
4. Attended the USMA Superintendent’s briefing to returning alumni.
5. Sat through the Class of ’87 meeting.
6. Continued to visit with old classmates at the formal supper at Ike Hall.
7. Partied on into the evening with classmates.

04 October 2007: R&R day 4

1. Slept until around 0800.
2. Lounged in my underwear over coffee.
3. Packed for my trip to West Point.
4. Drove to Newburgh, NY and checked into my hotel.
5. Met up with my old WP roommate Steve.
6. Attended the WP Class of '87 reunion social.

03 October 2007: R&R day 3

1. Slept until 0750.
2. Lounged over coffee in my underwear.
3. Ate a delicious breakfast of real eggs and a cinnamon bun from Whole Foods.
4. Went clothes shopping at Providence Place.
5. Had a shoulder and neck massage from the lady at Aveda.
6. The girl from J. Crew in the short plaid skirt blatantly flirted with me.
7. Went for a nice run on Blackstone Boulevard.
8. Had supper at La Laiterie.
9. Red Sox blanked the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 4-0 in game one of the ALDS.

02 October 2007: R&R day 2

It's wonderful to be home.

1. Slept until around 0800.
2. Lounged over coffee in my underwear.
3. Ate a delicious old-fashioned cinnamon bun from 7 Stars.
4. Took a great nap.
5. Went for a 4-mile run on Blackstone Boulevard.
6. Ate a great meal at LJ's BBQ.
7. Had a couple of Bass drafts at East Ave Cafe.
8. Stopped back by the Ivy to say hi to Rob the bartender, who wasn't working the night before.
9. Beers today? Bass, Hoegaarden, and Narragansett.

01 October 2007: R&R day 1

Although I arrived home yesterday my leave didn't officially begin until today. It's R&R policy that soldiers have fifteen full days of leave. If the soldier is on a fifteen month rotation then R&R is eighteen days. My deployment is a year so I get the fifteen days. As I experience my leave I don't really intend to get in depth on my adventures. It's just great to be home. I can't even describe how relaxed I am after just a few hours. I'm sure it's true for all the Joes coming home for R&R. We don't realize how much stress we're operating under until we come home and aren't living with it anymore - at least for a few days. I'm just going to tell you highlights of my days home. The rest of my time is for me.

1. Slept until around 0800.
2. Lounged with coffee in my underwear.
3. Had a big breakfast with real eggs.
4. Went for a 30-mile bike ride on the Bristol bike path.
5. Ate clamcakes in Bristol with a Narragansett beer.
6. Went to the Ivy Tavern to watch the Pats spank the Bengals.
7. Saw several of my friends at the Ivy.
8. Ate a wonderful Ivy burger with bacon and swiss.
9. In addition to the Narragansetts, I drank a Leffe Blonde.

29-30 September 2007: From Kuwait to Providence

As you know, I would normally report each day individually. In essence I still am. The past two days have been one continuous adventure. It's an experience that Joes go through every day. It's the R&R flight home. I just completed mine. Here's an overview of the journey.

I woke up on the morning of the 29th still at Ali Al Salem "Band Camp" Air Base. After breakfast I walked to the R&R tent for the 0730 update. The place was completely full of Joes who'd be traveling with me. After roll call we were all handed our flight itineraries. This was the follow-on flight itinerary to my home of record. The R&R bird only flew to Atlanta and then on to Dallas. I needed a flight from Atlanta to Providence. My itinerary looked good. Our next "hard time" was to be back at the R&R tent for 1145. That gave me just enough time to find the MWR internet cafe and let everyone know the latest update on my travel. Once I completed that mission I wandered the PX, continued to marvel at the Kuwait follies, and gathered my gear for the trip.

Once we returned to the R&R tent we went into "lock down." We were filed through customs to have all our bags searched for contraband. Once cleared through customs we entered a sterile area. This area had several big air-conditioned tents, latrines, and food. It looked like a small prison compound. We were not allowed to leave the compound. It was around 1300 when we'd all cleared customs so we would now wait until time to load the buses for the trip to Kuwait City International Airport. We waited for several hours. During that time I read my book. The TV was on AFN Movie and there was a parade of boring movies - "Batman Forever", "Minority Report", and something else that was totally lame. I'm not certain why none of the Joes didn't change the channel to AFN Sports. Our food was a choice of either a packaged meal, pizza hut, or Green Beans. I chose the package meal because it was free. This concoction (not to be confused with an MRE) consisted of a can of Del Monte fruit cocktail, a small can of Pringles, a bag of cookies, some kind of fruit juice, a bun tightly wrapped with a silica bag, and a can of a pasty beef BBQ-style mystery meat. It was less than appetizing. However, it was free.

Finally, around 1830, we formed up outside. The chaplain said a prayer. Then we loaded on the buses for the trip to KCI. The buses drove straight out to the flight line to a waiting MD11 aircraft run by World Air. I was very impressed at how quickly the plane was loaded. By 2130 we were in the air. The plane was full. Most of the Joes were on their way to R&R. There were also a few individuals redeploying or on emergency leave. We didnt' fly straight to Atlanta. Instead, we made a four and a half hour trip to Liepzig, Germany. Once there we off-loaded so the plane could refuel and crew change could take place. I guess we were on the ground about two hours. The Liepzig terminal has a special section for the R&R Joes. Inside we found pay-internet kiosks, pay phones, restrooms, and a gift shop. The gift shop was a tease. Because of General Order One, we aren't allowed to buy, possess, or consume alcohol. For R&R, GO1 applies as long as we are traveling. Well... For some reason the Germans running the gift shop have it completely stocked with beers, wines, and liquors. We all filed into the gift shop to stand and salivate over the rows and rows of cold German brews. The German girls running the shop had the music of Rammstein blaring. I didn't buy anything but a cup of coffee. Everything was overpriced. I was going to buy Kinder Eggs but they were $2 a piece.

Our next leg of the journey was the nine hour flight to Atlanta. Most of us slept. However, they served ample food. Movies played constantly for those who wanted to watch. I slept or read my book. The flight went surprisingly fast. We landed in Atlanta about 0700 on the morning of the 30th. Here's where I was amazed at efficiency of the R&R operation. We quickly filed off the aircraft and walked down an empty terminal to the waiting passport control. From there we went to a counter and handed in a copy of our leave form. Airline representatives were standing by to check us into our follow-on flights. They were helpful too. I wasn't supposed to fly to Providence until 1500. The Delta rep didn't even ask - he booked me on the next available flight (0940). Within twenty minutes of exiting the R&R flight I was clear of everything and on my way to my gate for the last flight. I went to buy coffee but a pilot from TransAir insisted on paying. I called home to let my ride know my earlier arrival time. I made a pit-stop at the restroom to shit and shave. Both operations were successful (except that I knicked the shit out of myself shaving). By 1000 I was back in the air headed to Providence.

It was a spectacular day for a flight. I got an awesome view of Stone Mountain as we flew around Atlanta headed north. Later in the flight we flew the length of Long Island. As we began our descent the flight attendant started making an announcement. I didn't realize at first but she was saying something on the order of "On behalf of Delta Airlines I wanted to thank our soldier onboard headed home for a much earned R&R." Everyone on the plane cheered. When we pulled into the gate everyone insisted I be allowed off the plane first. Unfortunately, my plane-side checked bag was the last to be brought up so I was still the last to leave the aircraft. By 1300 I was home.

I know all of you are wondering so let me share this. My first beer on R&R? It was a Yuengling Porter. I popped it open around 1700.