Turn on, tune in, drop out

With this not being the "kick in the door, shoot 'em the face" deployment that may or may have not happened in years previous we as soldiers have found other means to pass the time here in Iraq. Namely movies & TV. Some guys finish entire series of TV in a matter of weeks. I too have done so. Since being here I have finished all of the The Unit, Deadwood, season 1 of The Wire & 2 seasons of Penn & Teller: Bullshit!.

But recently I discovered a shared folder on our network at work. Loaded with movies. I think over 50GB of movies. So being the only film degree holding officer in probably all Iraq, I decided to create a some special posts on what I'm watching & maybe a quote or two. I'm behind about 3 movies so be on the look out for those. Just another way to make things go by here in Iraq.

...What's a poor man to do?

Twenty-Ten, 2k1k, 2010 whatever you call it its here. A decade behind us and the whole year before us. As always no New Year would be complete without some resolutions that all of us will make, few of us will keep and even fewer of us will admit failing by end of this month. So in the spirit of so many quiting smoking, losing a few pounds and paying off the debt they never should have gotten themselves into I too came up with some resolutions too. But since I don't smoke, I'm not overweight like the majority of our nation and my debt is so closed to being paid off I can taste don't look at these as being nearly as interesting. Challenging possibly. But this isn't going to be anything like Tiger Wood's 2009 grand finale but I don't think ever will. So here we go:

1. Take more pictures (including a picture a day of myself for 100 days straight)
2. Memorize the Ranger Creed
   
3. Do at least 1 Rosetta Stone Spanish lesson a day (for at least the rest of the deployment)
   
4. Do more Crossfit & Crossfit Endurance
   

So there it is. Nothing fancy or interesting. But hey what else am I going to do in Iraq?

Baby it's not cold outside

Christmas in Iraq. It went as well as it could have. The sun was shinning no clouds in the sky nice breeze. Just everything anyone could have wanted minus being home with their families of course and that white stuff that falls from the sky this time of the year. But then for a second it seemed like it was going to get a little cooler in Iraq. Not snow cool but cooler. Then BAM! High of 71 degrees Fahrenheit. So much for the wintry feeling.

Bus Rides in Iraq

So I don't have my own car here Iraq. Not sure if that's news to you back home but it's true. So we ride the bus to work. I know that may seem even stranger to you but it too is true. On today's ride back to work after lunch we had a classic play over the radio:



Needless to say it was pretty silent on the ride back to work.

Merry Christmas From Iraq

Well if you weren't one of the privileged few to receive a personal and handwritten Christmas card from yours truly consider this it. Unfortuntaly for you that didn't get anything its your own fault. The Santa Clause here in Iraq (i.e me) didn't have your address. So I guess you could say you're not on the "Naughty List" but the "Not Known List". Tough break kid, better luck next time. Moving on...

For some reason the lack of any Christmas bombardment like many of you are experiencing now in the states, (the music, lights, food, traffic, screaming kids, artificial snow, artificial trees and artificial smiles) Christmas here doesn't exactly feel anything like Christmas. Which is good thing. At least I think so. Honestly it has allowed me to think more about what Christmas really means. At the very least it has shown me the true feelings of being away. Now this is my 1st deployment and I have always had Christmas with at least my immediate family so it's different to be away. But today an soldier told me this was his 5th, yes the number after 4 but before 6, Christmas's away from family and I was speechless.

So today or anytime this Christmas season as your scrambling around shopping, complaining about how bad the traffic is, the airlines lost your luggage or how the cashier screwed up your checkout or whatever it may be that made your perfect Christmas, in-perfect, stop. Stop and think of the soldier who sat next to me at a bus stop on a FOB in Iraq going home to his 14x14' room who hasn't Christmas with his family in 5 years but was leading convoys across a country that could claim his life at any moment. Just a thought.

Merry Christmas & Happy News