Pics from this week

Look at these boxes from Mike and Doris. They are friends of mine from the bike crew in San Antonio, TX. I did share the boxes with the office and they were really happy. I kept most of the popcorn (smile).

My friend Deirdra got promoted to LTC yesterday. It was a good ceremony and she had a lot of people and pizza.

This is me and COL Castro flying up to Taji to go visit my new home. This is inside a BlackHawk helicopter. I am not fat I just have on my flak vest (bullet proof vest) seems the Iraqis occasionally like to shoot at the passing helicopters. I think moving is going to suck but once I am there I will suck it up and soldier on.

Memorial for Karen

Here are pictures of the benches dedicated to the victims of the attack on the Pentagon. That inluded my friend Karen. She worked in Human Resources at the Pentagon. This memorial is dedicated to all the people that died on Sept 11, 2001. You can see all the benches with the pools of water below them. When I return I plan to visit the memorial.

They named a high school after Karen in San Antonio. If you get a chance you should Google "LTC Karen Wagner" alot of people loved her. There are numerous buildings and gyms named after her and her praises are sung all over the Army still. She left quite a legacy.

Here is a bigger view. You can see all the benches (most anyway). I have to thank Chuck Daly for taking the time to take the photos and send them to his sister who sent them to me.

Good week for pictures

This is a picture of some officers here in Iraq that do what I do in the Army. From L-R, MAJ Deirdra Briggs, LTC Mike Richardson, and me. Mike just got promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. We took the opportunity to get the senior PAD officers in country in 1 photo before we went our seperate ways. In fact, Mike has already rotated back to the States. It was good working with him over here. D gets promoted soon too now they will know what it is like to be the old "colonel" in the room at the party.

The unit had some fun with a Halloween party.

Here are a bunch of pics from that event.

L-R - me, CPT Medina (ER nurse), CPT Dejoseph (S1-Human Resources), CPT Whelan (Occupational Therapist, and LTC Lou Stout (Chief Nurse).

Good pic of CPT Whelan when she came to our office. She is the party planner for the unit/young officers. She even went on Google and learned how to make balloon animals. Sad looking balloon animals but funny to watch her make them. more later...connectivity is lousy. Okay I am back. Let's try loading some more pictures.

Here are some pictures from around the room. And before you ask, yes those tattoos are real.

L-R - Command Sergeant Major Hunt (clown), MSG ?? (Hooker), COL McGrath, The Hospital Commander(clown), LTC Stout (trying to get out of the way-smile). CPT DeJoseph again.

Taji or Bust

After being delayed over a week I am supposed to fly up to Taji tomorrow to take a look at the place. They are still building the clinic I am supposed to work in so I will go up to look at the frame. In fact, they are still building the holding cells for the prisoners so I will see where they are on that too. I am not thrilled about flying here in Iraq. You see in the States a helicopter ride is fun. Here they like to shoot at things that fly, not so much fun. Luckily our ground troops and technology help us avoid many of those from being a problem. I will take pictures of the new place and post them this weekend. I still don't know how I am going to get my bike up to Taji or any of my crap really. Think I can get Mayflower Movers to come pack me up and move me? Anyone got a truck I can borrow? Later-time to go ride my bike.

Saturday was a good day

The unit decided to have a Senior NCO versus Senior Officer volleyball game. We got our butts spanked! I hate losing but I have to tell you there were so many people there to watch it. It was a good unit moral booster. I was the coach for the officers based on my number of years as a pro volleyball player... no wait that wasn't it...based on I was the only officer that played on the league team last time...no wait...based on I was the sucker who was volunteered, yeah that was it. It was fun. Yes, it would have been better to win but we didn't so time to suck it up and not be a bad sport. Let me just say, we should have put up crime tape out there because several people had all their atheletic ability stolen. It was a crime to watch them.

I had some great packages this week. I think part of the fun of the care packages for me is to see what people want to send me as they are running around town. You all have seen my friend Mandy on the BLOG. She is the one who had a bike wreck and had her husband take a after photo (worth seeing if you haven't checked it out). She sent me a Halloween themed package.

Look at the Peeps that are made like Pumpkins! Then the strange gel with body parts in it and then the movie, "Hot Fuzz" is a comedy/murder mystery. The M&Ms are going with the theme and the cookies were so good it was scary too. I am excited about reading the book she sent too. It is about a college educated man that was wrongly accused of a crime and spent 13 years in prison. DNA freed him. He is not bitter which is the amazing part. Luckily his family stuck with him to keep him strong. I would be bitter and they would have to rename the city/state I was in because I would sue their asses off. Anyway, I cant wait to read it. Thanks Mandy for the package.

The other package I got this week is from a fun group of ladies that I work with back at Fort Sam. Just to give you and idea of what their packages have been like; they call themselves, "The Buzz." They are the Buzz because they get together every month or so to have a few beers and get a buzz. It is while they are "buzzed" they decided to come up with care package ideas for me. This is their latest. They saw that I now have a bike here and they stopped at a local bike shop and purchased me a basket, name plate, and a little Disney horn for my bike! Ladies, you do realize I am coming home some day right? I am going to have to buy a Tazer gun so everytime I see you in the hallway at work I can Taze your butts...wait I am the boss, I may get in trouble for that...I can see the union complaint now, "Management routinely tazed employees as retribution for little girl bike basket." Ladies, I laughed my butt off. The Soldiers in the office laughed too. My buddies at Cigar night all want the horn and basket too. The movies are great. "O' Brother Where Are Thou" will remind me of my time at Bragg where a good friend of mine and her husband play in a Blue Grass band, well maybe it was just her husband that played?? He was really good. "Iron man" is great because if I were home Iwould have purchased it already. Never seen "Joe Dirt" but my office guys tell me it is funny. The personal care stuff is always a winner. Two of you are married, please be sure and ask your husbands if it is okay that I taze you when I get back. I am sure they will be all for it. This is one of the funniest you have sent. The other was the one with the pictures of all you eating Sushi (cruel but funny). "Buzz" - Thanks for thinking of me.

Tons of fun emails this week. Allen, Kerri, Scott (from Korea some 19 years ago) Peyton and Rhonda (<--from High School!!!), Sam, Mei, Ellen, Kait, Twanda (my cousin), Rosie... just to name a few. Thanks for keeping in touch. I miss you all and can't wait to return so we can all get together. The first round is on me at the return party.

I fly up to my new location tomorrow (Monday) to see what it looks like. I will have to see what my new trailer and living conditions will be like when I move there in 2 months.

It's the weekend baby!

Ok but I am not at all that excited but it sounded like a good subject line. Everyday is groundhog day here but you know that if you have been following along from the beginning.

Here is a picture of my staff here at the hospital. Look at their young faces. There are two Sergeants and 8 Soldiers. In this photo they had just received their awards for completing a project. For some of them it is their first award in the Army so they were feeling really proud. Hell I am proud of them too. They do a damn good job. It is 2:30 am here. I have no clue why I am up but I am so I figured I would update the BLOG.

300 days left!!

43 weeks and a wake up! I will be home for my mid tour break in about 18 weeks. I am excited about going home but I try not to think about it too much. I would probably get really homesick if I did. No need for me to do that. I mentioned a few posts ago that they might be moving me to a different post. Well it is true still. I am flying up to Taji to see the clinic they are building. I guess I will see what my new living conditions will be like. I definitely do not want to move but I will soldier on and do what is asked of me. I just hope I can move all my stuff to my new place without any problems. We will see how bad it turns out for me. Funny I end up over here in a job that is too simple and they decide to unsettle me to resolve the issue. Fun times ahead!! It is still better than alot of Soldiers have it so my complaints are stupid. I guess it will require me to have a good sense of humor. My next thing is to start training for the Austin Half Marathon. It is 15 February and I should be home on my mid tour leave during that time. I am looking forward to the training. My running is pretty good right now.

More later...

something fun

I forgot to mention that on the 3rd all my Soldiers received Army Achievement Medals (AAMs). These are awards or medals given to Soldiers for jobs they do. An AAM is the entry level award in the award system. For 7 of the 8 it was their first award. At the ceremony they all were smiling their butts off. I asked one Soldier the next day if he called his wife to tell her and he said he called everyone in his family. I listened to his story and smiled. I remember how proud I was when I got my first award. I was just as proud to watch these kids get their first. They did some really technical things for which they deserved to be rewarded. Good kids all.

OCT IS HERE !!

I had a great week in letters and packages -

Monday - Kerri and Dwayne from Florida sent a package full of so many goodies. The salt water taffy is going to be enjoyed as soon as I am done with my weigh in and physical fitness test. I have eaten almost all the cereal...I just love watching ESPN while eating cereal in the morning.

Tuesday and Thursday - I got letters from my goddaughter and my other cousin Amaya. They are headed into 6th and 7th grade so those letters are all saved and I look at them to remind me there is a different place.

Then Friday came!!!

I got a package from Joyce, one of my oldest friends from the days at Fort Jackson,S.C. I mentioned in an email to Joyce that I really like Zest bar soap and they don't sell it here. Well she sent me this package; It has 48 bars of soap!!! I think I am good for the rest of my tour (45 weeks left!!!!!!) Joyce you are crazy!!! Thanks sooo much. Maybe I could sell it out the trailer sort of like a crack dealer? Hand some out at first for free. Tell them to share it with their friends. Get them all hooked on being clean. You are the best for taking the time to throw it together.

I also got a package from Chuck who I work with at Fort Sam. It included some goodies but it also has a blow up midget doll and "Fuck Off" pills. Everyone who knows Chuck please say goodbye to him now because when I get back he is dead. Chuck the office laughed thier butts off.

The shirt from Sam's is a great reminder of some good food there in SA. The burgers are the size of your head. Tough to maintain my girlish figure with that place around. The pills are pay back because once when I was in New Orleans I got him a bag of "Wake the Fuck Up" coffee - a very popular brand. The midget love doll?? I think it is part of his personal collection. Thanks for sharing. I may blow her up and invite her to cigar night with the guys. OUT OF CONTROL!!!!!!!!!

All, thanks so much for sending me stuff. It is so good to get mail and to know people are thinking about you back at home. more later...