Being out here in Iraq has not been much fun. But when is being deployed away from your family ever fun. I guess maybe it is for those whose marriages are on the "rocks" but not for me; a day does not pass that I think about them and how much I miss them. I have been here since March 4, 2004 and it seems like an eternity right now. I hope to be done with the Army, believe it or not, March 5, 2005; however, the Army has me under stop loss for at least 90 days after I return. The Army is already discussing indefinite stop loss for all its ranks, which really has me worried. It seems more like a "draft" at this point. But hey, I did sign on the line...so here I am until they release me.
Right and below are some of the pictures I have taken while out here. |
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I took this picture , initially, because I wanted to get the helicopters taking off in the background. Every couple of days, I would see the helicopters come or take off; I could never get my digital camera out fast enough and started to capture them. Here, I finally got them but as you can see they appear as only specks in the background. Oh Well... |
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Trying to capture the Palace on camera has been difficult from the start. Our trips to that area were only in passing so We would drive by it and it would seem like I could never get a good shot. Here, as you can see, the camera caught it but it warped the foreground images, like the humvee. Humvees don't have that slant like this one does. I did get great shots later on though of the palace.
Going to see the palace is really all there is to do out here. Not that I am looking for excitement....oh not me. It just gets a little boring sometimes. A new PX opened but I found myself spending everytime I go in and that is definitely not good. I am very thankfull for God's protection while I have been out here. Other FOBs have not been so blessed. |
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A great number of soldiers attempt to fish out this and several other lakes. Supposedly, Sadaam had the lake and the others in the area stocked with a special kind of "carp." I have not been much a fan of carp but here it a treat. This carp may be the wild looking fish they keep catching and throwing back. I had just thought it was some fish mutated from nuclear waste or some other contaminants....just kidding! |
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I do have to say, though, that Sadaam has built an incredible palace. I guess I should back up and say that his slave labor did an incredible job. I have driven past the palace at night, and unfortuanetly the lighting is not sufficient for a good photograph, but at night with lights cascading accross the palace and across the water, the whole place is quite picturesque. |
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This is me, here to the right, with all my gear on. That particular day we were tasked to guard an Iraqi work force as they placed sand bags around our living area, which by the way is one massive trailer park. It was an interesting day to say the least. Our job was basically to just watch them and insure they didn't place any object that could be used for harm later like an IED.
Interestingly enough, most of the workers were between the age of 12 and 19; there were a few who were older but for the most part they were just high school age kids. After talking with the head foreman, I found out that the workers made a whopping $6 a day for a 8 hour day of work. |
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To the left, I am at work and the other is in front of my hooch, I basically live, as I have said before in one massive air conditioned trailer park covered with sandbags. You got to love the new Army. Some of the soldiers have even went out and purchased satelite dishes for thier own convience. |
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To the left, I finally caught the Helicopters taking off! It seemed I would never get a good picture of them. I did, however, the quality was not that great here. To the right, I was working on the CG's computer and thought I would get a quick picture while he was out. Hey, you have to take these pictures while you've got the chance. |
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Our Beloved Gym We are supposed to be getting another soon; however, till then this is where we work out. We get some pretty good workouts here. Where I work!This shot was taken in the morning; the sun was just comming up. I have been working on night shift and it has been a blessing beause I am on approximately the same timezone as those stateside. |
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Me and Trigger! I was planning on mounting up but then I was told that trigger is not real!!! I was shocked....she is made of really thin fiberglass and wont hold my weight.... |
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