Hello All,

Well it's an offical Army experience, we had enough rain to get my socks wet through my boots. You know it isn't quite the same with DRY socks all the time. My Aunt once asked me, when I was smoking in the rain (there was no overhead cover), "Didn't your mother ever teach you to come in from the rain?"

"Yeah, but the Army beat that out of me!"

It's been drizzling on and off for about 2 days now and the dusty ground has been transformed into a soupy quagmire that makes driving seem like a demented slip and slide. However, you've got to make the most of every situation and I decided to take this opportunity to perform a full function road test of the 4x4 capabilities of my humvee (yep, I went playing). It was a valid and thorough test of the vehicle's performance capabilities in inclement weather (oh yeah, I was ALL over the place) and the truck only sustained minor cosmetic duress (dirty as a whore). Now some of you might be thinking that I went off-roading for my own personal enjoyment and that this test has no military function whatsoever. You would be right, but I needed to blow off some steam and (for everybody that knows me) I did NOT get stuck. This time.

That is another story because somebody else got stuck today. Stuck bigger than shit. Stuck for 4 hours and no winch was able to pull them free. Stuck so bad for so long that the troops with the truck finally said, "to hell with it," and rodded that sucker long enough to break free, and their transmission. This was funny to watch, but grew to hysterical proportions after I found out that a SMAJ was leading the convoy that took a wrong turn and ended up stuck in the mud. Not the same SMAJ as I dealt with at KNB, but funny all the same.

I'm told by the veterans of the first gulf war that this is only the beginning of the rainy season, and that the monsoons will be descending upon us in about a month. After that, the sand storms will begin anew and I should be getting close to rotating out of here.

I love you all,

Will

Hello All,

Well Ramadan is practically over and we haven't seen any real excitement. Our motto here is a slow day is a good day. My boys are making some adjustments to the Combat Bun-Hugger environment, the strike vote didn't pass by the way, but overall things are going alright here in Iraq.

I would like to talk for a moment about the Hummer. The HMMVEE (it's too early for me to remember what the acronym stands for) is a pretty good vehicle for the most part, but here are some things that I would like to change.

First is Armor. The only way you can have too much armor on a truck is if it can't move and becomes a bunker. Speed is a shield in an ambush, but if it takes more than one RPG to knock you out, time will be your ally and allow you to return fire. You might have read about the 'up-armor' that is currently being deployed throughout the Army, and from what I've seen I'm green with envy.

Second is the space inside the truck. Not enough leg room for tall soldiers and the width of the seats is also too small after you pack on all your crap. Granted the reason for this is to keep everything important above the frame so we can drive through rougher terrain, but I'm gonna bitch about it anyway.

My third gripe come down to the heater vents. They're centrally located in the dash and while they work well, I feel like I should be on a spit for even cooking.

These aren't big things and are easily worked with/around and comparatively minor on the long list of things that irk me daily, but it's a slow news week and I wanted to get something out. I know that some of you might think that no news means trouble, but believe me when I say this... No News is Good News.

I hope you all enjoy your Thanksgiving. They are cooking up turkeys and stuffing and REAL potatoes (YES!) for us here so that will be nice.

I love you all,

Will

Hello All,

Well the first annual Iraqi Day of Resistance (see Terror) has come and gone and my sector has been REALLY quiet. How quiet? The dogs weren't even barking that night which was nice, weird but nice. Maybe it's too cold for them too?

How cold is it? Lemme tell you all about it. When I was back in Nebraska I would make fun of people that shivered in 40 degree weather. "HA! What are you from Hawaii? It gets WAY colder than this around here!" Oh what a jerk I was. Last night when I went to work I had on long johns and a Gortex Jacket and was still cold. I'm not happy about what I have to do today, but it's got to be done. I'm buying underwear.

Hold on a minute? Doesn't he already have underwear? Well, no. You see I chucked it all back at Camp Coyote when it was hitting 120 degrees by 1100 (that's 11 o'clock for all you lucky and warm civilians) and it looked like the war was over. The logic being that the war was over and we'd be heading home. Ah fate, what cruel games you play. The good news is that we've a PX here. The bad news is the selection.

Normally I like boxers. A little space and that makes 'em comfy. Here, however, I'm limited to briefs and not just any briefs, Army briefs. At home you might call them tighty whities, but in the Army they are brown. Nope, tighty brownies isn't what we call them, they're affectionately refered to as 'Combat Bun-Huggers' (that's a nod and a wink to John L. III). I'm not sure how the 'Boys' will handle the restricted environment, and there is already talk of a strike vote. I'm a little worried but I'm sure we can work something out.

In the mean time we're a little over a week away from turkey day and I am thankful for Jake. The little guy is growing, and according to my sister his lungs are working great. Especially when he's hungry. I started counting the days to when I get to leave this hole but then realized that we haven't hit double digits yet... too depressing so I'll wait a little while longer.

I love you all,

Will

Hello All,

Just a quick note to let you alll know that I'm alive and doing fine here in Southern Iraq. You might have heard about the attack in Nasiriyah (Just down the road) but my troops and I are doing ok.

I heard the blast and thought it was just the EOD (see Bomb Squad) making war left-overs go away. Nope, it was way worse than that. I think that I might have had my last day off for a while... Have I ever mentioined that I HATE terrorists? Big time.

GOOD NEWS! Our Relief Unit (the one replacing us) has been identified! Yep, we know who's coming here to replace us, just not quite when... but it looks like we'll be home around the beginning of April. The REALLY good news is that this means the Army knows we're here and haven't forgotten about us... for I awhile I was beginning to wonder.

Well, gotta go. I need to get the S-2 (see Intel or Military Intelligence) report. This one should be pretty good. For a change. Hopefully.

I love you all,

Will

Hello All,

Just a short note from Iraq where dental care is as non-existant as personal liberties (hopefully both will be big in 2004). The weather is cooling down, and I'm afraid that General Winter is making a comeback. Not even close to Wisconsin, but I've dug out my thermals and find myself shivering more than I thought possible in the desert. No rain here, surprise, but I'm hoping that the skies will open up someday and keep the dust on the ground and out of my lungs. Of course that will mean mud, and boys being boys I know that mud=fun! Trucks, football and body armour... I think you know where I'm going with this and those that know me are not surprised.

Morale is picking up. I don't know if it's the weather cooling down, the idea that we MIGHT only have 5 months left on this deployment or that our new mission makes us (at least me) feel like we're making a difference. I know that every soldier has an important job, but this one actually feels like we're making progress.

I'm not taking leave. I think it would be too hard to come back here AND I have better plans for a vacation after I get home. Think Central America and really good rum. Yep, Belize.

I love you all,

Will

ps - Jake is doing great and looks like a keeper. I'm gonna spoil that kid rotten!