Father's Day + 1

Yesterday was Father's Day and I feel so greatful that I had the opportunity to see my babies on Skype. Technology is wonderful! There are a whole bundle of Dad's over here and it seems like the average number of kids is 3 or so. I think we're ahead of the national average. I had a piece of chocolate cake with chocolate icing and chocolate syrup topped with chocolate ice cream to celebrate having such wonderful kids. They would've told me to do it.

Grandpa turns 93 today. I love you Grandpa! Hope you enjoy the cake.

Honoring Heros at the Hunting Palace

It's amazing to me I'm walking where Saddam walked. Last night I went to Saddam's Hunting Palace for Operation Proper Exit. Wounded troops returned to Iraq to visit the locations they were wounded at and get closure for what they experienced. This is an activity organized by the Troops First Foundation. These men are truly amazing. It's one thing to go into battle, but facing the adversity with the can do attitude these gentlemen have is heroic. These young men contributed of their flesh, blood and bone to provide people they'd never met a better life and their friends and comrades gave their last breath. It's amazing to think that back between 2003 and 2007 chaos reigned in Iraq and to see where Iraq is now. Things have really changed here. The environment in Iraq has improved drastically. People are still wary, but the streets are bustling. People stroll to the ice cream shop with their children at night. The 99% of Iraqis desiring peace and stability for their families are optimistic. Here's a link to the story about Operation Proper Exit: http://www.army.mil/-news/2010/06/15/40870-wounded-warriors-return-to-iraq-find-closure/

Touring and travelling

Yesterday I dined with the Iraqis for the first time. We had rice, poultry, beef and fish (carp). There were some other foods I wasn't familiar with, but all was good. The Iraqis are very welcoming and truly try to share the best they have with you.

The Iraqis gave us a tour of their air force base. It was great to look at the work the Iraqis had done. They are moving forward. A portion of the base used to be a prison and they're converting the old prison buildings into facilities for their troops. The Iraqis are very optimistic.

It was hot today, but it didn't feel as hot as it was. The temperature was close to 120, but I think I'm getting somewhat used to it. One thing you must do is travel efficiently in such oppressive heat. Figure out the short routes that hit lots of shade along the way and drink lots of water. The soda or juice may taste better, but they don't alleviate the heat.

Now that I'm down a little further I'll tell the rest of the story for my visit to the Iraqi air base. I went to the restroom and saw two urinals. I chose the urinal on the right. I began to relieve myself and noticed leaking from the urinal. I stopped and stepped back. The urinal wasn't connected to any type of plumbing. I peed on the floor for the first time since I was 32. Afterward I noticed a sign in Arabic clearly stating that urinal was out of order.

Happy 235th B-day to the Army.

A couple weeks in

I fill as though my bucket is getting fuller, but there is still lots of sloshing going on. I've been assured after five weeks I'll get the hang of things. I think the person telling me that was someone who grasped everything after three weeks, but didn't want me to feel badly. So, they put in a couple weeks worth of buffer time.

I'm totally frustrated with the slowness of the internet (I want to post pictures), but that is something very whiney on my part. Ten or eleven years ago we would've been extremely happy with what we have now.

Okay, I can't believe it's been a week since I last posted. Lots has happened in the past week. I've received a couple of man kisses . . . that means you're in with the Iraqis. It's a cheek kiss. Americans are cooler from an outward emotional standpoint than the Iraqis. The weather has been much cooler . . . still over 100 though. 105 is much more tolerable than 115+. The dust helps to cool things off, but the dust gets everywhere.

Missing my babies. Hope you guys are having a good time so you can tell me about it. I look at pictures of you everyday and know you're growing bigger.

122 degrees

It got up to 117 yesterday, but we still played the weekly soccer game. It was very fun, but hot. I drank 1/4 of a gallon before the game, 1/2 gallon during the game, 1/4 gallon after the game and ate a pack of Smokehouse Cheddar wafers before the game (for salt). YUMMY! My favorite cracker. Today was hotter . . . 122, but I swear it didn't feel a degree over 115. Just to think it's not even summer yet.

Went to Al-Faw palace today and sat in the chair Yassar Arafat gifted to Saddam Hussein. It was remarkable to see how the palace had been Americanized with cubicals. I'm sure they will leave when we do. The palace was very impressive. Lots of marble, lots of space, it looked very impressive. Dictators manage to accomplish some impressive things, but the ending ususally isn't so good.

BTW: I'm trying to upload some pictures, but must have a bad connection.

Missing the kids

It really didn't take so long to start missing the kids. I saw them last night on Skype and thought it would be awesome to give each of them hugs and thought how lucky they were that they could give each other hugs. They are probably too young to appreciate the each other hugs. They tell me about the kittens, bunnies, hampsters and the dog and I miss observing the way they act together and the little discoveries we would make. I also think about how much they are changing and growing and really want to be there when they have questions about life.
Skype has done a pretty good job. I think about Allied Force and the primary means of communication was through letters.

It was hot in Baghdad today. It was 110 by 10 A.M. I managed to get in a good workout for the third consectutive day. I've been focusing on cardio and am wanting to start doing weights. I'm just not a huge weight fan. Anyway, time to call the kids.

Overcame Jet lag

I've overcome the jet lag. I slept very well last night. The fact that I've been incredibly busy has helped immensely.

I went to church Sunday morning. The worship service was Lutheran. I'd never attended a Lutheran service before . . . very liturgical. I gained insight into a service I'd never experienced before.

I was up early a couple of days ago and got to see an interesting sunrise. At first I thought the sun was the moon, but after some contemplation I realized I was staring at the sun. I'll probably end up with cataracts now.

I did a quick whirlwind tour of Iraq and got to see the crossed swords and a few older palaces. All in all pretty interesting stuff. The surprise was dining at the U.S. Embassy. I saw three women sleeved in tatoos. Not a correlation I would've made on my own.

I found myself praising God at three a.m. the other morning. It's always the right time to praise God!