My day usually starts out at four in the morning. Not too bad if last nights mission didn't get extended till midnight. It takes us about 15 minutes to get ready, down to the trucks, and to the staging area, which leaves us ample amount of time to fix any problems with the radios or trucks. Actually gives us way too much time.
We generally run what they call vigilant guard twice a day. Once in the morning, and once in the evening. We get back in for the tail end of breakfast chow, and normally don't miss it. However, our illustrious commander, his name shall remain anonymous, but as a codename we'll use Cpt. Chaos, generally likes to make things hard on us, by giving us frago's, and or extending our mission. We often times make fun of him, as every enlisted man does of his superiors. After we eat breakfast, we make sure we get our priorities of work done. Meaning, we take care of government equipment, and then ourselves. Like cleaning a weapon, or fixing radios. Then we are generally released to ourselves for the afternoon. In this time, my routine, though disturbed every other day, has gone as such; go to the gym for an hour or two. Take a shower, do personal hygiene, go to lunch chow, and then back to my barracks for a two hour nap before prep time for our night mission starts.
When we get back from our night mission, dinner chow has already closed, but fortunately they have a sandwich bar where a nice Indian man (the dot kind), fixes us plates up with a selection subway wouldn't approve of. We eat chow and watch AFN for any kind of significant news that has gone on in the world. Then it's too bed and sleep, only to start over 5 hours later.
Other things that we do during the days are; go to the barber shop, the px, the phones/Internet, Green Beans Coffee House, and the Haji shop, where you can buy tons of pirated dvds. I bought the Seinfeld series for $20 there.
So other than the long hours of going out, this place could be a lot worse. It's not as hard a living as the boys in the initial invasion had, or even the guys in my unit that were here in 07 had. Mail and care packages are still highly prized and touted. We all appreciate the support from home, and I thank you all personally for thinking, and praying for me. Thanks.
Feel free to post comments and ask me any questions about things you want to know. I will do my best to answer them.
you are the best...i laughed out loud at 'the dot kind' because it's so typical of what you'd say and it was cute.
ReplyDeleteI just wonder where, during your day, you fit in time to think about me? :)