Finally Online Again

Friday, 10/20/06
2020

Well, it’s been an interesting first week on the job. I have a lot to write about but it’s late. I just got my computer up and running this afternoon. I’ve felt very cut off all week, and sure enough, the first email I read today was from the XO, sent yesterday morning, telling me I was to brief the commander on some project status issues no later than the end of the day! Since my account was active he got no error message – there was just no computer attached to my account so I didn’t get my email until it went live.

I find it interesting that every installation (or at least every theater) has its own network and is separate from all the others. I already have an AKO account, yet I went through this same process in Korea and now again here in Kuwait. It seems to me that we should have the ability to simply log in wherever we are at, without having to identify people to the network all over again each time.

Oh, well, that’s just the way it is. (I think I’ll be saying that a lot over the next few months – the art will be in knowing when to push back and ask “Why?” and “Can we change it?”)

These computers have a lot of restrictions. I still won’t be able to chat on IM, and I am limited on what websites I can go to. All streaming media is (are) filtered. But at least I’ll be able to monitor some things without having to rely exclusively on trips to the library or the cyber café. I’ll probably end up going there about once a week for updates.

There’s a lot to tell about my week, but it’s getting late and I’m tired. I also have some information to look up. So I’ll post this, finish up, and get out of the office. I'll try for a real update over the weekend.

Mood: Busy
Music: The Cranberries – I Can't Be With You

The Library

Tuesday 10/17/06
2030

This morning when I wrote "Wind Sprints" I was optimistic that I'd be up and running on an Army computer in my office by around noon, and be able to post all my entries from there. I wish! Everything takes longer than you think it will.

I did manage to actually get a computer by the end of the day, but it was too late to actually get hooked into the network. So my plan was to set it up and the IMO is coming in the morning to help me get set up on the network. One problem - the brand new Dell was missing a power cord! Just bad luck - somebody at the factory made a mistake, and I got it on the downstream end. So tomorrow's plan is already blown - first I have to scrounge a power cord. But we'll manage somehow, and I'll finally be able to start getting email and posting my blog entries from there in my free time.

Meanwhile, I finally found a reasonable place to get on the internet - the post library. I knew all along they had computers, but foolishly assumed they'd have the same policies as the library in Korea. In desperation I finally came here and asked them, and surprise! I'm allowed to use my memory stick to upload text I've already typed in on my own computer. So I can compose my entries on my own laptop in my room, then bring the thumb drive to the library and upload them from here. Same with photos. It's a bit cumbersome, but it's free and it works.

Unfortunately they don't allow IM chatting, so I'm still stuck there. But the paid internet connections currently available here are just not up to speed and are a waste. So I'll have to wait for a better solution.

Meanwhile, I *finally* got all my photos loaded into the Sunday 10/15 entry. Remember to click on them for detailed descriptions that are not in the main blog entry.

Well, time to relax a little bit. I just checked out Robert A. Heinlein's "Starship Troopers" from the library and plan to read it next. My new commander sees it as a good paradigm for today's Army, and it is our assigned reading for this quarter. I've already read it at least three times, so the book is an old friend. But I'll enjoy it again, I'm sure. If you've seen the movie, it is *not* the same as the book - hardly anything at all like it. I think the movie was a travesty, and should not even have taken the title. Whereas the movie was just a typical grade B action flick set in the future, the book is much more sophisticated and thoughtful about the realities of a sustained conflict against an alien culture. Vintage Heinlein, and very high quality.

Mood: Good
Music: Nena - Fragezeichen

Wind Sprints

Tuesday 10/17/06
0700

I am beginning to overcome the jet lag, although I’m still not sleeping too well. I only woke up an hour earlier than I intended today. I decided it would be a good day to go to the gym and work out.

The zone where I am has limited facilities – both the zone with tent city and the zone with the most permanent buildings and the main PX have better and more extensive facilities. The only gym on this side of the base is in this latter zone, which is quite a walk. So I decided to run.

I haven’t run since my PT test in May. I do not like to run, but here I am in the Army, where it’s a way of life. Since I’ll have to take another PT test before long, I thought I’d better start in again. It’s probably less than a mile to the gym, but it will do me good no matter how short it is. I ran over there, and was once again amazed. This is different than the other gym. Instead of one huge room, it is more like a typical health club with a lot of smaller rooms dedicated to specific purposes (free weights, Nautilus, treadmills, etc.). When I passed the racquetball courts I just sort of smiled and shook my head. I don’t know whether to feel good because they are taking good care of us, or to feel bad because the troops further forward don’t have anything like this. Some guys on the bus last night had been conducting stability operations in Iraq for the past year and are on their way home. They were talking about this place and referred to it as “paradise”.

I found the room with the mats and did my exercise routine. Once again I tried to fall back into a bridge, but this time I couldn’t do it very well. And every time I tried reverse pushups I just pushed myself back over. So I guess I need to work on that. Aside from that it was a good workout. I went to run back my quarters, but I just wasn’t up for it. I jogged more and more slowly, and then started walking. I hate to run, and now I was tired from my workout and just didn’t have the motivation.

Then I remembered wind sprints, and that’s how I came back – running flat out for 100 yards or so, then walking until I caught my breath, and then running flat out again. I’d set a goal up ahead to run to, and then take off, trying to run faster with each and every step until I got there. It really got my heart going! I’ve read that those are actually better for you than steady jogging at a slower pace, so I think it was a good thing. Hill sprints are supposed to be even better. I’d try it, but there’s a marked shortage of hills around here. :-)

I got back and went to take my shower. Until now I’ve just turned on both hot and cold and gotten it to the temperature I wanted. This time I wanted a cold shower to cool down afterwards, so once I was clean I turned off the hot water. The shower stayed hot. I thought perhaps the handles were reversed, so I turned off the blue one and turned on the red one - wrong! It turns out that the “cold” water here is hot, and the hot water is *very* hot! I guess the water reaches the ambient temperature in the water tower, and they don’t cool the tap water. No wonder they gave me a refrigerator!

Speaking of hot water, I just learned that the little immersion heater I bought at REI works very well indeed. I was disappointed in it when I used it at home and in Georgia – it took a long time to heat the water. I almost returned it, it was so slow. But I kept it because I thought it would be better than nothing. I just used it here, on 220V current, and it boiled the water very quickly. So I’m glad I kept it! Now I’ll have my English Breakfast Tea with honey. I’ve been having it in the mess hall, but it takes too long to steep three cups and I don’t want to stay there that long. It will be much more productive to be able to have it here after breakfast, since I have a good two hours before they start in at work. Once I have a computer there I’ll probably just go into the office early and do this from there. I’m hoping to get the rest of my photos posted at the same time I upload this entry (today?)

Mood: Ready for work
Music: Beethoven (Immortal Beloved DVD)

Wind and Dust

Monday 10/16/06
2000

I hesitated to use that title, because I’m sure the weather gets much more extreme than it is right now. But there was a palpable change today, so I thought I’d write a little about it. I may have to write “Wind and Dust II” later.

I noticed the first time I went out that the wind had picked up considerably. It was blowing steadily out of the south, and carried with it the twin hallmarks of the weather here – heat and dust. It was nothing at all like a sandstorm – not nearly that intense. But it was enough to give a hint of what a problem such a storm would be (will be?).

I could see the dust blowing, and also feel it in my eyes. I had to blink a lot, and when I got inside I was glad I had the little disposable saline eye solution ampules I had gotten at Ft. Benning. I also bought some saline nasal spray that I’m carrying in my pockets. Between those and drinking lots of water, it isn’t really a problem. But I was glad I had my wraparound sunglasses, and even considered whether it would make sense to break out my goggles if it gets worse later on.

The dust gave a weird appearance and texture to the air. Even though it didn’t obscure visibility, there was a sort of a haze in the air and the sky took on a yellowish tinge closer to the horizon. It was a strange feeling, a sort of closeness or mugginess almost like it was going to rain, except there is almost no moisture at all in the air – it’s the dust.

I was asked just yesterday if anyone here wore masks to protect from the dust, and I answered that I hadn’t seen any. Today I saw my first one – a TCN (Third Country National) was wearing a surgical mask of his nose and mouth walking around outside. So I guess it is something they do use to protect against it. I felt more like protecting my eyes than anything else – I really had to blink a lot when I was outside, and there were times I kept one eye completely closed. I can only imagine what a real sandstorm must be like, and I don’t want to find out.

Today was my first official day at work, and we got a good start on things. The office / tool room is kind of a mess, and was set up with only two desks. Making room for a third desk was a good excuse to do some housecleaning without making too big of a point of it. We’ll keep cleaning and organizing as we go. But at least I have place to sit down tomorrow. Tomorrow I’ll also exchange my computer for a new one – the one I have has been sitting in a cabinet for quite some time and is out of date and not working right. So it needs to be either repaired or exchanged, and I’m betting they’ll just issue me a new one.

After work I was also able to get some of the photos inserted into my entry from yesterday, so if you’re interested you may want to take a look at them. It took forever, so they are only partly done. I hope to be able to do it more efficiently from work once I get a computer there. The internet service available here is just too slow for the free time I have available.

From now on I suspect my entries will be fewer and farther between. We were lucky that today was a slow day, since I was just getting started getting organized. But even on a slow day I could see that it is an interrupt-driven job, and it will take some focus, discipline, and organizing skill to get any sustained work done on the projects we need to get started. First project – figure out what projects we have to do! :-)

Mood: Good
Music: Altan – Horse With a Heart (An Feochan)

Living the Life of Riley

Sunday 10/15/06
1830

Living the Life of Riley

I don’t know who Riley was, or why his life is the standard of luxury and comfort (if I had an internet connection yet I’d Google it), but the phrase definitely applies to life here at Camp Arifjan. I am now installed in my permanent quarters, and by the standards of an army at war they are luxurious indeed. I’ll describe them a bit further on, but first an update of the past couple of days:

Saturday morning I went into the STB offices to finish inprocessing. After jumping through some hoops to verify my security clearance (more of the same old left hand – right hand nonsense), I got my access badge for the CFLCC headquarters building. (CFLLC {pronounced “see-flick”} is who we are - Coalition Forces Land Component Command – I seem to have an affinity for Army-level headquarters these days). We are in the middle of an organizational transformation, so you see it written all different ways – Third Army CFLLC, Third Army ARCENT, CFLLC ARCENT, etc. I’m not sure what the correct transformed designation is, but I gather that many people want to retain the Third Army lineage through the transformation, because of the unit’s history as Patton’s Third Army in WWII. Many of the street names here are evocative of Third Army history (e.g., one building I noticed was on the corner of Avranches and Bastogne).

Here is my address:

MAJ Bradley J. Foster
CFLCC – STB
APO AE 09306

Now I only have a couple things left to do, including going to TMP to get my driver’s license. My section has a vehicle assigned, so that will make life much easier.

I had turned out to be more jet lagged than I thought I was. Friday night I got to sleep around 2330, but woke up at 0230 and couldn’t sleep. I got up and went out to the gym to do PT. I was surprised to see quite a few people out, and took some photos. People here work at all times around the clock, and most adapt their schedules to do PT during the cooler hours. Here are some photos from the tent city area of the camp: (Click on the photos for more detailed descriptions of each)

*My Tent

*Basketball at night

*Volleyball at night

*Entrance (or...?)

I knew I’d fade fast as the day wore on, so after I got my inprocessing done, the 1LT who’s been doing this job showed me around the area. I got a lot of information very quickly, and I’m sure I only retained a small portion of it. But it was a good overview, and got my mind working on quite a number of things that will have to be done. I alternate between thinking this is just not the kind of job I had in mind when I volunteered to come over here, and thinking that it’s not only something I can do well, but also that it’s a very good situation given the requirement that I finish CGSC/ILE by the end of next year. I’d have a hard time doing that from a tent someplace.

Just as I was deciding that I had had enough new information for the day and needed to go get some rest, I ran into the Sergeant Major who said they had my room assignment ready. Now *that* was something I could handle – just my speed given my state of exhaustion and also the incentive to have a room to sleep in (and hopefully a better bed!).

I was surprised at how quickly they got me a room, and even more surprised by how the housing people treated me. It was definitely the “royal treatment”. I began to realize that I am considered one of them, and that we are going to be taking care of each other. An unexpected perk. And the actual room was even more unexpected. My first surprise was that I was assigned a single room. *Everybody* shares rooms here, with at least one other person if not more. I don’t know how high you have to be to rate a single, but I don’t’ think many majors have them. There are hardly any singles in this whole building. So they took care of me.

The next surprise was when I got there. Not only do I get a room to myself, it has a refrigerator and cable TV (yes, cable TV!). Unbelievable - every room in the building has a fridge and a TV. When I was in the Army before, we used to make fun of the Air Force for living in luxury. Now I think we must be trying to catch up. It sort of reminds me of the beginning of “Apocalypse Now”, when Martin Sheen’s character (an SOF captain) is briefed in an air-conditioned trailer and served lunch on china. It seems a bit out of place in a war zone, but I guess it’s nothing new.

Here are some more photos:

*Buildings

*Pallet of Water

*Hallway

*Looking In

*My Bed

*My Desk

I spent most of today getting settled in and searching for an internet connection. I went to the PX and picked up a few things for my room (PC speakers, reading light, etc). That was pretty straightforward. Finding an internet connection was not. I was sent on wild goose chases all over the base. Nobody had what I want, but they all knew for sure that it was available in a different shop on the other side of camp. So I’d board a shuttle bus and ride/walk to wherever, only to find out they didn’t have it, but if went to this other place…

*Shuttle bus

The bottom line is that I have to go off post to get what I want. I can’t do that right away, so I’ll have to do without for awhile. It also may turn out that I don’t need to. They are supposed to have wireless service up and running here in a month or so. Since I can get a secure connection by walking over to the CZee and paying for an Ethernet hookup, I could use wireless in my room if it were available. I may just bag it for a few weeks while I get a handle on my new job. If they don’t have wi-fi available here in a reasonable amount of time, I will have to go off-post and buy the service. But for now I’ll just compose my entries offline, and then go over there to upload and edit it at $5/hr. I can download email at the same time, compose answers, and upload them next time. It’s not as immediate, but it’s good that there’s at least something available.

Besides not being able to do my online courses, the other thing I miss right now is the IM capability. I was enjoying having AIM and Yahoo Messenger up and being able to chat with friends and family from time to time. But since I’ve been here I just haven’t been able to do that.

Oh, well. I should have such problems! I have come to the conclusion that this is a very good deal. As much as the hard-core military officer in me thinks I’d be of more use further forward, this will be a very good place to be for the next year. I’ll solve my internet access problem and finish my required education, while doing what I can to have a positive impact on the situation here.

Tomorrow is my first “real” day at work. I have my notebook organized and a few thoughts about what to start on. After I upload this entry, I plan to relax and watch a movie (I checked out “The Bourne Identity” from the community center today). Tomorrow I start to earn my pay.

Mood: Optimistic
Music: Altan – Another Sky, Blackwater, Harvest Storm