Monday, August 22, 2011
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
The Bullpen
While this may not look luxurious, it is in a real building with a real telephone and (I think I can see) windows! I'll bet the walls have better insulation than a tent or a metal container so the AC should be better too.
Monday, August 1, 2011
Another Score! Office chair
Bret brought an inflatable exercise ball with him to lay on and stretch his back. Since it would have taken up the only available floor space in his first 'bedroom' he used it in his 'Deep South' office as a chair (it's good for the core). But it looks like his scavenging has paid off and now he has an official grown up chair! I asked if he has been dumpster diving yet. He said no, but he would if he needed to!
Road with blast walls
Imagine walking or riding a bike in 120 degree heat and all this dust. No wonder Afghans aren't exactly happy people.
The Office
Though Bret works either in a building or a metal container, this is not atypical for an office. This particular room was where Bret had training the first few days he was at KAF. This is also similar to the tents that are lined with bunk beds for soldiers and civilian workers (makes that metal box Bret calls home look pretty nice, doesn't it)?
Easter Scavenger Hunt/Competition
These are some of the people who participated in our annual Easter basket scavenger hunt. There are too many people to have individual clues and baskets so we divide people up into about 4 or 5 teams. The most competitive ones came all camouflaged and ready to battle the others. Since everyone is older than our first group hunt about 6 years ago, we now plant the clues over a 2-3 mile area. It's great fun (especially for the parents who watch)!
...I know it's not Afghanistan but it IS people in uniform! CJ Wheeler is the one in the middle. He served two tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. His finance, Kara is next to him and his younger brother, Kevin is in Afghanistan now.
...I know it's not Afghanistan but it IS people in uniform! CJ Wheeler is the one in the middle. He served two tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. His finance, Kara is next to him and his younger brother, Kevin is in Afghanistan now.
Saturday Street Bazaar
The Saturday bazaar when local Afghans are allowed in to sell their wares. Bret thinks their merchandise is left on base during the week so there is less opportunity for anyone to sneak explosives onto the base. Nothing sells for the original asking price, it's all at least 50%-70% less once the bargaining is completed. It's about the only entertainment there is on base.
First Room (7x9 ft)
(June ) Here is a picture of Bret's first room, taken from his doorway. Notice how the desk chair has to stay pushed in to get to the bed or open his wall locker! He also 'mops' it with a wet t-shirt because the dust/sand builds up so quickly on the floor (at least there isn't much to mop!)
Bunker Sweet Bunker
I know some of these pictures are repeats from earlier emails but I'm trying to put them all in one place.... This is the bunker that was outside his first CHU.
Osprey
This is a fuzzy picture of an Osprey helicopter (or do they call it a plane)? It used to be just used by the British but now the Marines have a unit that uses them as well. It takes off and lands like a helicopter but then flies like a plane...
Bret with classmate and classmate's son
This is a picture Bret sent in mid July. It is him, a classmate and a classmate's son (who looks just like the cadet I met 35 years ago!). This LT had been at a rugged FOB (Forward operating base) for 4 months with no shower and no contact with his family and they had engaged the enemy every single day. At this point there had been no serious casualties. The LT was back at KAF for a couple days of training/briefings. Bret saw him again this past weekend (July 30) but he was back for a much different reason. The day he returned to his FOB, 4 soldiers were killed by 3 separate IED's (improvised explosive device). His First Sergeant, the senior enlisted man in the company (a company has about 120 soldiers) was one of the men killed. This kid was back inventorying the Sgt's possessions, turning in his weapons, etc. When Bret saw him, Bret was with a recently retired Army NCO (non-commissioned officer.. as in private, Sergeant, etc. vs an officer-Lt, Captain, Major, Colonel). They were able to talk about 40 minutes which is really important for these young guys. The NCO told the LT that he had been in the Army for 12 years before he went to Iraq in 2003 (the first wave) and THAT'S when he became a soldier. Bret is also able to contact his parents and let him know he is doing well under the circumstances. I am so grateful that they were able to connect.
Manly Truck
He is a Big Man on Campus (Base?) with his own vehicle. A lot of people have bicycles. He drives with the air conditioner on but it's not too good so he also drives with the windows open. He has to quickly roll them up (manually) when another vehicle goes by because of all the dust it stirs up. There are many areas he can't drive right to. They are like little compounds and he has to park outside the compound and walk in (his first housing area was like that). This is for security reasons.
Poo Pond
This is an older satellite picture of KAF but look at the size of that poo pond! That is open sewage right in the middle of everything. I asked Bret if he's gotten used to it and he said, not really. It's especially bad when it gets into his room during the day (via the air conditioning) and, even though the wind is no longer blowing it that direction at night, when he enters his room it's like being in a septic tank. And I thought porta-pottys were gross...
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