Still here

Hi all. Borrowing some internet to check in. For those of you that have passed on toys in your packages, I've got some pics of the children that have received them. Thanks so much. These kids have never seen toys as such and are always so excited to get stuffed animals, cars, dolls, balls etc.

Not much else occurring here. Our missions have gone well without issue thus far and we take every one as serious as the one before. Safety first and stuff!

Anyway, not much else to report.

Still Here

Hi all. I'm borrowing one of the Romanian Security Forces computers and riding their net. It's about as effective as throwing a frog against a wall and hoping it sticks, so emailing everyone is tough. I love you all. Hopefully, our internet will be up in a week to two. Security issues have kept the guy from coming down to hook it up. Meanwhile, check out my buddy Partamian's website. He's up north in a "fun zone" and sees some good stuff. I love the pic of him the Marijuana plant. It's so..............him! Anyway, I'll start posting and emailing again when I get a chance.
Thank you all for your continued support ie. packages, thoughts and prayers etc. In the last couple missions we've ran I've been able to give away some of the toys some of you have sent. The children are very grateful and love anything they get.

N

New Blog

Some of you actually use the links to the right so I thought I'd give you and update. Corrigan decided to start his own blog. He's an very smart albeit interesting character with an interesting perspective on life and war. The views posted on his page, Helmand: 911, are not necessarily the views of this author, or him for that matter. Anyway, he's become a good friend of mine I promise it'll be interesting reading as he develops his page. Corrigan is serving his third tour, 2 in Iraq and now here. He volunteered for the last two. For me, that speaks enough on his behalf, despite his quirks.
For a softer look at life, check out the Malone's webpage, featuring Karli, their beautiful new daughter. I can't be held responsible for any content there as well, the parents are a little odd!!
Below, holding the beloved Maisel's is one of my best friends and college roomy, Scotty. He's a professor of Sports Medicine. One of his concentrations is researching head concussion and he probably got the interest in it by how many times we bumped heads drinking what he's holding.

N

Enough Said!

Um, has anyone seen the right side of my Humvee?

I find myself in a moment of reflection, while I listen to a little UB40. A momentary flashback if you will. Imagine driving to the local car dealer to pick your new vehicle of choice. Imagine driving it off the lot, traveling a little while through town to show it off to the locals, running a few errands and while doing that you turn a corner a little close and hit one of the few trees in your state resulting in the peeling off of the right side of your brand new vehicle. Well, that was a little like my day. Yes, while driving at a hefty 10 plus MPH I strafed one of about 10 trees on this post. It was a narrow road and this particular tree had some serious scuff marks from prior incidents. At any rate, the two right side uparmored windows were sheered right off. Gratefully, the mirror didn't break. The security team that stopped told me it happened about every other day which left me wondering why the damn tree was still in the ground. Then I thought, maybe some rogue Afghan tree hugger found a rare species of, lets say anything that can live here, under the tree roots. Maybe that’s why we spend thousands of dollars on vehicle parts instead of removing the tree. Anyway, the thought made me feel better. I didn’t really care much about getting the vehicle fixed as much as I knew the harassment that would be coming my way from “perfect” team mates that would nevvvvvver damage a vehicle. I could feel the sarcasm from miles a way. “OOHHH, doc wrecked the Humvee. Don’t ever let him drive again.” The fun started Corrigan and our interpreter, Habib. Corrigan cocked his 9mm and said, “no you didn’t just wreck our brand new vehicle and delay our stay here at KAF!? I was thinking it was nice to be close to the “S**t Pond” again and we could stay a few more days to let our clothes permeate before we head back. So, pictures had to follow along with berating behavior throughout the night.
OK, it's out in the open and I’ve officially owned up to it. I had a rough day and I’m glad it’s over. On the upside, my USAA premium shouldn’t go up!!

Thanks to my mom, R&R and the GMC Ortho day shift for the packages/letters. Love you all. It was like Christmas around here when we got out mail.

N

I got pics on. Below is us on 4th of July. The other half of the team is up north and we don't get to hear much from them. For more info in there direction link to Partamian Report on the right.
Our internet is being turned off tomorrow so it may be awhile before I'm on again. MWR in all their wisdom is cutting off funding to us because there aren't enough US soldiers here to warrant the funding. So, we are looking for other solutions. I'll email and update you all as I fly to other FOBs and hope we get this under control soon.