First off, I want to say thank you to all of you who have sent me cards and packages. They are very much appreciated! Life over here is going well. It's hard to believe that I'm almost half way through my 13 month deployment. Time has been absolutely flying by since we arrived in Iraq. I'm stationed at Joint Base Balad (formerly LSA Anaconda), which is on the Tigris river about 45 miles north of Baghdad.
This is a picture of me at the firing range in Kuwait. It got HOT down there...
Yes, its 114 at 10:41 in the morning. The heat there was absolutely unreal. Highs in the 130s weren't uncommon at the time of year we were there (August). We spent about a month there getting acclimated to the climate and performing a last few tasks before we headed in country.
Getting to JBB was a blessing. We finally got a chance to get settled somewhere we would be living for more than 6 weeks. It was nice to unpack and get all my gear in one place. The temps only got to around 120 so it felt very nice and cool. The work days up here help the time to fly by. I had been putting in around 80 hours a week at the office. While that does get draining, I enjoy knowing that it feels like I just got here, but I'm almost half way done. The past week or two my workload has really dropped off and we starting to get to "steady state" operations. My section and I are responsible for running all the automations for the Task Force Headquarters and helping our subordinate Battalions when they need it. I am very blessed to have the team that I have. I have a little over a dozen people working for me. Most of them run the help desk, some manage our Communication Security and some help me with putting together projects to make the IT world here a little better. We have been upgrading computers and switches, replacing copper wiring with fiber optic cable and a whole host of other base improvement projects. One of our main goals is to make the base a better place for the follow-on unit.
My life here outside of work is a lot like Bosnia was. We have a PX to shop at, a large gym, and a nice dinning facility. Being a Major now, I'm entitled to my own room which is definitely nice. It's 1 of 3 11 x 13 rooms in a construction style trailer. The trailer is about the same size as the Sea Hut I had in Bosnia, but instead of 3 of us in one room, we each have our own rooms. I have a desk for my computer, a table for a TV and dorm fridge, 2 small dressers and a wall locker. I'm splitting the cost of a satellite internet system with 6 other people. Its slow and expensive, but well worth it. I'm still amazed at how quickly the internet got ingrained into day-to-day life. The times that I'm in my hooch and the satellite is down are almost painful.
For the most part I never leave the wire (go off post). I did take a trip down to Baghdad to meet my counter-part at our higher headquarters. The base they are on consists of one of Sadam's old palaces. Very ornate on the inside. Makes out work area look very austere. While I was done there, I did get to hit a few golf balls into the man made lake that surrounds it.
I guess that's all for now, I just wanted to give everyone a synopsis of what I have been up to.
Mark
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