A Typical Day

I wake up early in the morning, before the sun rises, and head out to work for the day. The mornings are starting to get cool here now. It’s very dark over here, there’s no such thing as light pollution. You can see every single star in the sky. Sometimes when I look up at the sky, its beauty makes me forget that I am in the middle of a war zone.

Everyday at work is very much like the next. I have my regulars who come in at the same time every day. These guys are the cooks, guards, medics, mechanics, and others who usually stay inside the wire and have a regular schedule. Everybody else is unpredictable, coming in when they come off missions, about to go out on missions, or sometime in between sleeping and eating. There are some guys that come in every few days and some that haven’t come in a month; some have more time than others.

Every now and then I get a few guys who sit down and talk with me while waiting on their buddies to finish calling home. They tell me about their missions; about how many times they’ve been blown up, how life is at Roe and Joe, and then what they’re going to when they get home.

Some days sounds of the artillery are heard, other days there are explosions. Every time those rounds go off, the whole internet café jumps almost out of their seats until one of the more informed guys says that it’s only outgoing. One day we heard an explosion in the early afternoon and found out at dinner that it was the sound of our guys getting blown up by an IED. That day the guys weren’t so lucky and a few of them had to be medivaced out.

After work I sometimes hang out at the MWR tent and watch a movie with the rest of the guys until chow time. Most movies never make it all the way through because they are poor quality bootleg DVD’s bought from the local nationals. Movies are the best selling items here on FOB St. Michael, it takes peoples’ minds off of reality for a while.

The other day I went to the guard shack about a shipment I had received the day before. While I waited on the Sgt I needed to see I hung out with a few of our guards who were on call for emergencies. I sat and played catch with one of the guys while the others got haircuts from a talented Sgt with a pair of clippers. He tried to lure me into the chair for a trim, but I had to decline. They sat around just talking since their DVD player was broken. They have a little can on top of the TV for donations to buy a new one. I’m not sure if they’ll be able to buy one before we leave at the rate they are going.

Chow time is a great time for me to talk with people I don’t see very often. It’s also a good time to watch the news. There’s a TV with a satellite connection in the chow hall, so it’s the only place to watch “real TV”. The food is pretty good here for the most part. Our cooks do well with what they have, and they always make sure to fill your plate. The best thing we have had so far is a cheese cake that was shipped in one time. I have no idea what brand it was, but it was incredible.

I usually go to sleep just as the sun sets here on our tiny FOB. Some nights it’s hard to sleep because the wind is blowing so hard that the tent hits up against the cots inside. Some nights the sounds of artillery keeps me awake. It’s also difficult because everyone has a different schedule in the tent. Some work days and some work nights, and others work sometime in between the two. A few of the people in my tent have put up partitions in an attempt to gain a little more privacy. That is definitely one thing that is hard to come by here.

Most days here are indistinguishable from the next here, but they are going by steadily. I only wish they would go by faster.

Sunset at FOB St. Michael's

A little visit

On September 6th FOB St. Michael got a special treat. Actor Vince Vaughn came to our remote little FOB for a USO sponsored visit. They put flyers up a few days prior to the event, but most soldiers here (including me) were skeptical of the event actually taking place. But he showed up! He came to the MWR tent and signed autographs, took pictures, and talked with the guys. He also went on a tour of our camp and visited some of the various work areas to see the guys who couldn't come to the MWR tent because they had to work. He was only here for about two hours, but the visit itself meant a lot. He's the only USO entertainment we've had so far. Nobody else it seems, wants or is able to visit our tiny FOB. Not even the visiting government officials. But I'm sure it's just because it's too dangerous here.

Mad props to Vince Vaughn for the visit! Thanks for coming out and supporting the troops.

A Second Memorial

A memorial for our two fallen soldiers from Echo Troop was held on September 5th at 1900. Just like last time, the tiny stage held the two soldiers’ inverted rifles, helmets, boots, and dog tags. The second memorial was much harder then the first. The same guys who were there consoling their buddies over the death of the four soldiers a few weeks ago, were now gone themselves.

Our Battalion Commander spoke again, along with the Echo Troop Commander and the Cavalry platoon leader. Upon hearing the platoon leader speak, you could see how close these guys were to each other. These guys not only lived and worked together, but they also fought together, faced danger together, hurt together, prayed together, loved together, and died together. Our much-loved chaplain was here this time to speak. His words were comforting and dear. He read a poem that struck a nerve in all of us.

Freedom Isn’t Free

I watched the flag pass by one day.

It fluttered in the breeze

A young soldier saluted it,

and thenHe stood at ease.

I looked at him in uniform

So young, so tall, so proud

With hair cut square and eyes alert

He'd stand out in any crowd.

I thought how many men like him

Had fallen through the years.

How many died on foreign soil?

How many mothers' tears?

How many Pilots' planes shot down?

How many foxholes were soldiers' graves?

No Freedom isn't free

I heard the sound of taps one night,

When everything was still.

I listened to the bugler play

And felt a sudden chill.

I wondered just how many times

That taps had meant "Amen"

When a flag had draped a coffin

of a brother or a friend.

I thought of all the children,

Of the mothers and the wives,

Of fathers, sons and husbands

With interrupted lives.

I thought about a graveyard at the

bottom of the sea

Of unmarked graves in Arlington

No, Freedom isn't free.


As the two soldiers’ names were called out during the Roll Call, the pain and grief in the faces of those left behind permeated the room. Tears were in the eyes of most everyone present as many of the fallen soldiers’ closest friends fought to maintain military bearing. These guys were there when their country needed them, there when their fellow soldiers needed them, courageous soldiers and friends till the end.

Thank you Lord for the lives of these two remarkable men, we will do our best to honor them by never forgetting the legacy they leave behind. We will remember them for the rest of our lives. As our Battalion Commander said, they are now in a better place securing the objective there for all of us.

God Bless these soldiers and their families.

Two of our fallen

Some thoughts...

A few guys who just got back from leave stopped in and talked today. They told me stories of all they great food they had, the shows they watched, and the great visits they had with their wives. I can't wait to go on leave myself, I have no idea what I want to do yet. All I really want to do is see my hubby. One guy who is leaving soon said he was going fishing down in Florida with his buddies. Another guy who just got back went to a log cabin in Tennessee with his wife and watched the Dixie Stampede. He said once he got home, this place over hear seemed like a dream.

Chow has been doing a number on my stomach lately. I've been sleeping through dinner and stuffing myself at breakfast. The motivation to stay awake for dinner is gone. In fact, motivation in general has been hard to come by the last few days. The first big slump of this deployment is here and I'm sure many more will follow.

I can now accurately tell the difference between outgoing rounds and incoming rounds. What a skill to possess.

There was supposed to be a remembrance ceremony yesterday for our two guys that got killed. I'm not sure if it went on or not as I was working during that time of the day. I know that people were supposed to speak about things that they remember about the two guys. A formal memorial will be held sometime later this week. It's hard to do another one of these things so soon after the first one. I hope this is the last one we do.

Senseless

Somedays everything in the world just seems so senseless. WHY? Why did that hurricane have to cause so much destruction and death? Why did that IED have to go off then, and why did it have to do what it did? Why did those two planes have to hit those towers? But shit like that will never make any sense.

Thoughts and prayers go out to the families of the two E troop soldiers. May God bless them.