So you want dinner?

So, we stayed overnight with some of our Afghan counterparts and had a great dinner. Yes we eat on the floor, but they always lay down a mat. I tell you the bread is great, as is the rice and beans. They make goat as well as some potatoes that have some sauce that is great. I wish there was some Afghan restaurants in the states because I would eat there. The best part is there are not very many dishes to wash. You eat with your hands and then roll up the mats when you are done. Well, I have a lot to do today, so I will get this posted and put some more pics up. Later, Russ

Avacados, and painful rain...

So, we were at a bigger FOB for some re-supply and they had lots of good looking avocados out. So, not getting such exotic stuff like that all time, a few of us indulged ourselves. I got about 11 of them, and thankfully they were not quite ripe yet. I have made some avocado and toast, guacamole, and it is so good. It is amazing how much you forget some of the conveniences of fresh produce, and 24 hours supermarkets. I know that it seems kinda weird to be all excited for some fresh produce, but it is a treat for us. So, anyway we got caught in a huge rainstorm as well. It just opened up in a matter of a couple minutes and was crazy. It hurt it was raining so bad. It is starting to cool off here now. That is a good thing. Also, Ramadan has started. That is the Muslim holiday that lasts for a month, where they can not eat or drink during the day. My terp gets up at like 0330 in the morning so he can eat and drink before morning prayer. Then he can not eat or drink until evening prayer around 1800. We try our best not to eat or drink in front of our terps or the ANP we work with, so as to show them respect. Well, I am way over due on posting this so I will get it going. Later...

Rememberence Day

So, it was business as usual today, on this solemn day that has affected us all. Well, kinda

sorta. We ended up at a very nice Ceremony at a large FOB that we re-supply at. It was very moving for all of us. There were a few soldiers and civilians that shared stories of how 9-11 affected them. One guy was from NY, and his dad and brother are both firefighters. It is also his birthday, so he had called in sick to work and his brother and dad went fishing with him, so they were not in the initial call. He was very emotional, and it spread through the crowd as well. Before we left for the days mission, we had a moment of silence followed by a prayer for everyone. Yes, us Federal employees had a prayer at work. Go ahead and tell all the liberals and atheists. Anyway, I hope all of you took a few moments to remember, and pay respects to all those who were killed and to all the rescue workers who made the choice to go in and try to rescue survivors. I also think of the soldiers who have gave their lives, some of whom were people I knew.

Well, other then that, things are good here. We are all waiting for it to cool of some more, as it is still warm here most days. I hope to be home in just over a month on R&R!!! I need the break and it will be great to see my family. My kids are frowning up so fast. It will be nice to have a break and just relax for a while. I thank you all for reading my blog and sharing it with people you know. We are making good progress with our Afghan police. They are starting to get better equipped and they pick up all the training we give them. It is great to teach them something, and then watch them put it into use on patrol. I feel better each week knowing we are making a difference. Well, time to sign off, so take care and more to follow...Russ

Mail Call!!!

So, we get mail delivered by helicopters most of the time here. It is pretty exciting when we hear the choppers coming. We all run out to the HLZ (helicopter landing zone) after they touch down. The birds are usually Chinooks, so they kick up lots of dust and the blast from the engines is terrible. They have two engines that blow right out the back, so when you approach the rear ramp, it is like a super sized hair dryer. But it is defiantly worth it to get mail and such. As you can see, we just got a load of packages from a great bunch of people from a Portland Oregon law firm. I put the boxes out and the stuff went fast. My troops send out a big thanks to all of you who help contribute to the packages. As you can see, my gunner was excited about the fudge stripes. We all enjoy the little pieces of home that everyone sends in the mail to us. You forget about the little comforts in life, and it makes you appreciate them more being deployed. Don't be confused though, there are good chunk of those we like to call "fobbits". These are the people who never go outside the wire and run missions, live and work in air conditioning, and have no idea what we who run missions do. I know they take care of stuff like chow and pay, but some of them live way to nice for a deployment. There are still troops over here who have it worse then us too. They only shower about every 3 days and eat worse food.

Well, there is also a pic of a little traffic jam in one of the bazaars. It is not to bad, as we actually have sirens on our HMMWV's like our patrol cars back at Lewis. They are quite nice for clearing traffic, camels, donkeys, and kids. I like to play different music through some of the areas over the PA system. They locals like it, and clap and smile and wave to us. It is pretty cool to see them enjoy some good music. If I can ever get this site to upload my videos, I will post them. Well, it is getting late here and I should sleep. Was driving for about 4 hours today. Stay cool and more later.

Oops, watch out for flying water bottles...

Ok, just a little safety note for everyone. Be very careful if you toss someone a water bottle, especially if it is frozen and the guy who is supposed to catch it is not looking. Ok, let me set up the story. I was trying to give some of my ANP water, and they were in the back of a hi-lux truck, (basically a 4 door ranger) and as I tossed the last of 5 bottles, which was a frozen .5 liter bottle, the guy who had been catching them bent down to pick up another bottle he dropped, and WHAM!! Another guy got clipped right above the eye by the bottom of the bottle. I felt so bad when I saw it and ran over to see if he was ok. It didn't seem too bad until I got up to him and there was a gash above his left eye and it was a bleeder. I hollered for Doc, who was right there helped get the guy a bandage. We were on the move, so he had to wait about 5 or 6 minutes to get fully treated. After we stopped up the road a little bit, Doc got going on some sutures. The ANP soldier was pretty cool, he really did not want stitches. I felt so bad for the accident, but he was like "hey, it wasn't on purpose." Doc got him cleaned up good, and we had the guy come back so we could finish up better at the camp. I figure I will do something or get something nice for the guy. Least I can do. Anyway, just another bit of excitement here in Afghanistan. Remember, catch, duck, or make sure your buddies can.