A New Dawn

This morning my boss finished his year and a little plus and flew off to rejoin his family back in Nebraska. The folks that were in my office when I showed up here are now gone and the new blood is all that remains. Work is hectic, but I like it. I like having more to do than I could possibly do. Things are clicking. I feel as though the progress on behalf of the Iraqis has been slight, but there is an air of momentum about. We'll see where it takes us.

I listen to my MP3 when I'm working. Usually, I listen to Christian music. I've been introduced to Pandora.com and listen to that at night, as I fall asleep. Sleep is vital and I try to make sure I get at least 8 hours of sleep per night. I haven't used an alarm clock since I've been here, except when I participate in runs.

This morning I participated in my fourth run. With each run you get a free T-shirt. I'm up to four T-shirts now. We have another run next weekend. Most are 5k's with 10k's mixed with 'em. The 10k's are a little more work. Tomorrow the plan is to start my daily workouts. We'll see how it goes. I'm ready to hit it hard. Sometimes the work load is remarkably heavy, so I've decided . . . instead of veging at the in the dining facility every night for an hour plus, I will go work out and take my dinner to go. This should cut down on my snacking problem as well (I like cake and icecream).

I'm pretty much done with my application to Liberty University. I'm applying for a seminary degree in Intercultural Studies. Basically, it's a degree on how to go out and be a missionary. I'm excited about it. It's been a while since I've been in school, so I'm going to take it a little slow for the first semester and probably ramp it up for the next semester.

Glad to hear the kids are doing well back home. They are a bit homesick, but have had a busy summer and have had the opportunity to do plenty. I miss those little monkeys and can't wait to give them hugs and kisses and hang out with 'em again.

Surf, Turf and Concerts

Every Friday is Surf and Turf. I happily partake of lobster and steak. I'm sure I will have gobbled up more lobster during my stay here than I did previously in my life. One of the guys I work with has now been in the desert for just shy of two years. He's adamant he may no longer eat steak or lobster for the remainder of his life. He's tired of it. He said he got tired of it about 4 months ago. I'm only supposed to be here for one year. Using his tolerance level as a possible barometer for my own (which I know is unscientific)I should be safe by about 8 months. For the sake of diversity and just to prove I can deny myself I may skip the surf and turf occasionally.

Concerts occur here very frequently and there is always a meet and greet afterward. I really appreciate the people coming out here to perform. So far I've been to a "former-lead-singer" of the Spin Doctors concert and an Uncle Kracker concert. The Spin Doctors sang "Little Miss" and "Two Princes". I remember 1993 where these guys were all over cable and you hear cars driving down the road playing their music. Pretty cool. As far as Uncle Kracker goes . . . I'd heard of him, but wasn't sure what he sang. I thought it was awesome he opened with the old John Anderson song "Swinging". I'm an old country fan so, when he sang "The Gambler" I was sold. After the concert we arm wrestled.

In another picture I have the "Victory over the United States and Great Brittain" palace. Originally, this was the "Victory of Iran" palace, but after the first Gulf War the name changed. Saddam Hussein was in the middle of constructing this palace until the U.S. came in, 2003. So the Victory over the United States was never completed. The cranes remain standing as they did in 2003. In Saddam's eyes and the eyes of his "constituants" the fact that he was still alive after the first Gulf War was a victory. Every nook and cranny of this place has a pretty interesting story.

Born on the 1st of July

This is one of the more interesting places I've been. I've been a lot of places. I've got to write about my interpreter. He was born in Zakho in northern Iraq. Zakho is a beautiful place in the pictures I've seen. You won't hear about Zakho on the news, because there is no fighting. People, including Americans, can walk the streets and not worry about being bombed or shot.
Anyway, my interpreter is indispensable. He understands the Iraqi culture and Iraqi military. He served in the Iraqi Army at one time. He later served in the American Army and rode in our convoys facing fire and bombs from the terrorists to repay a country that's done so much for him. He's now an American citizen and truly a remarkable human being. When I'm speaking with the Iraqis he steers me culturally and makes communication possible. He provides vital insights into the Iraqi culture and people. His name is S###### and I will miss him dearly when he returns to the United States to his family.
One day we were discussing birthdays and S###### mentioned he was born on 1 July, just like his mother, father and brother. I found this amazing. The odds are astronomical. He then explained that a judge assigned his birthday. When he was in third grade he was in court and the judge asked his father how old S###### was. His father looked at S###### and then looked at the judge and said "I don't know, what do you think?" The judge asked S###### what grade he was in and S###### stated 3d grade and the judge told him he was 9 and his birthday was 1 July.
The culture of rural Iraq used events to mark birthdays. S######'s mother told him he was born about the time a well-known Peshmerga warrior died, but couldn't get any closer.
It's amazing how important structure is to our western society. Another advisor mentioned to the Iraqis that today was S######'s birthday and the Iraqis found it funny and childish that he still celebrated his birthday. We accept structure as intuitive, but it's something taught to the west from the day we are born.