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Preparing to leave Baghdad 8 July 2004 Hey! It sure was good getting to talk to you all on the phone today. I'd never gotten to use one of those "morale phones" before, and I appreciated getting the 20 minutes of free talking time with you. The building that I called you from was generally abandoned, save for the phone and some abandoned air conditioner units that I helped myself to. Our unit took the AC units out of my room and the MLRS repairmen's room, so I got two abandoned ones out of that building for us to use over the next few days. Neither of the units fit in the holes that were going through our walls, so we beat them with hammers and our kevlar helmets until they fit. Now everything's peachy. I think it won me some points with the guys in the MST, because today the temperature was 126 degrees, and that is just plain miserable if you don't have a place to cool off. Shoot, I rode around in it all day long, and the soles of my boots were actually burning. In our vehicles, the insulation on the floorboards was removed to put makeshift armor in them. We had to remove all the armor from them before our convoy (ironic, isn't it!?) for supply purposes, so now the armor is gone and there's no insulation. So, I'm trying to find a way to keep my legs from catching on fire when we hit the road. Well, KKK and I are getting along rather well here lately. It's tense sometimes, but we're working through it. Each time that we force ourselves to cross our personal demilitarized zone and really talk, I know we are both relieved. Every time I walk away from a confrontation with him, I feel like Guppy does right after she gets a bath, hyper and happy. I think, "Yay! Now the burden of THAT problem is gone and I'm free to have fun again." But working with him really makes me value certain things about SSG Goodwater, bless her heart at Warrant Officer Candidate School right now! She was very good at maintaining the NCO and officer relationship, and she was a real people person, making things at work pleasant. KKK is good at making things happen effectively enough, but he just isn't nice and doesn't care if he hurts anyone's feelings in the process of "telling it like it is." But we are forcing ourselves to be better at this, one day at a time. This will probably be the last email that I send from BIAP. I will certainly find an Internet cafe once we get into Kuwait and let you know that we made it safely. Just so you know, the route that we are taking has been very quiet here lately, so I wouldn't worry too much about it. The worst thing we'll probably have to endure is the two straight days of driving at extreme temperatures. But it is truly amazing what your body will tolerate, especially if you condition it to take abuse. :) So, anyhow, I love you, and I look forward to talking to you again soon, and of course, seeing you at Christmas. Love, |
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