Member: drippingwords

Hi,
I noticed that you like books about cats. I do too. In fact I've written a book about cats. This book is like no other cat book that I've ever written. It's completely different than the other seven previous cat books I've written. This one is illustrated with actual photos of cats. Anyway, I was wondering if you would like to get together at an out of the way closed rest stop along interstate 95 to review my newest cat book. If you have some sort of cat costume, that would be great. Meow!
Anyway, I have to go feed my cats now. Mother won't help out and that really makes me Hissing mad.
Mike

posted by mhatchett at 3:25 pm (EST) on Oct 6, 2009

Hi!

posted by mhatchett at 8:54 pm (EST) on Jun 3, 2009

Comments like these make my day!

posted by mhatchett at 9:06 am (EST) on Apr 14, 2009

Dear Friend,
It is good to see you active on LT again. I was concerned. Now I'm not.

Your Fiend,
Mike

posted by mhatchett at 4:27 pm (EST) on Apr 13, 2009

Hi,

Saw you liked Trainspotting, and I was wondering if you'd be interested in reading my new novel and posting your comments here (as well as on a few other book-related sites). Thought you might like my novel since it's also about a group of disturbed kids and a bit dark. I could e-mail you the novel in an e-book format if you'd like. Let me know if you're interested. Here's a link to a summary in case you're interested:

http://christophertusa.com/

Thanks,

Chris

posted by cmtusa at 11:19 am (EST) on Apr 8, 2009

Happy New Year! I found two crazy fantastic revolving bookcases. Almost 4 foot tall 2 foot square. Can't wait to show them to you.

Mike

posted by mhatchett at 9:47 am (EST) on Jan 1, 2009

March 3: Not home yet!! But we are in Kuwait. We got here on March 1 and were sent to Camp Virginia to wait for our flight home. Our flight out has already been rescheduled to 0220 March 4th. Not sure when we’ll arrive at Pope Air force base. I’m on the baggage detail, which is hard work, but it makes the time go by faster and you feel like you’re moving things along. We’re also supposed to get first class seats for the flight home. I’m pretty wore out, not surprising considering the work and our 01:45 wake up call. We had to dump all of our gear for customs inspection and then spend between half an hour and two hours repacking, depending on your skill level. I’m amazed at how bad people are at selecting and packing gear, especially the officers and senior NCOs. Come on folks how hard is it. If you can’t carry your own gear, you either packed too much or packed poorly. Folding chairs strapped to the outside of nearly exploding duffel bags, too many bags, too many oversized bags. I don’t get it. Did they mail anything home??? Is there in fact a folding chair shortage in the United States that they’ve been keeping from us? Needless to say, most of those extraneous items that were getting hung up on conveyors, nearly gouging people’s eyes out, were grotesquely cumbersome or unsightly, were jettisoned. The company is holding it together, despite the tension that exists between some of the officers and NCOs. A clique of officers seems to be trying to reassert control that they never had. Of course, my guy is in the middle of it. Too late friend, way too late. I’m still reading Thomas Perry, but I also picked up a WW II memoir called God Isn’t Here by Richard E. Overton. He served as a Marine corpsman during the battle of Iwo Jima. Talk about perspective. We’re finally through customs and now we’re just sitting around drinking our last Green Beans Coffee, killing time till it’s time to get on the plane to head home. I’m really happy!!
March 4: We still haven’t left Kuwait. The plane we were supposed to fly out on developed engine problems. So we spent one more night. Once again, I’m amazed at all these friggin, infernal optimists. They really believe everything is going to go just right, so they never carry any food, extra clothing, emergency Hygiene kits or extra CASH. I just can’t feel sorry for them anymore. They should all know better. These final hours are taking an emotional toll on lots of folks. I think many of them were at the end of their tether when we started movement back to Speicher, or where ever they flew out of Iraq to Kuwait. They just didn’t have any thing left in reserve. I’m just trying to keep it all in perspective. I’m semi-comfortable, nobody is actively trying to blow me up, I’ve got coffee, a book and I’m surrounded by friends. It could be a helluva lot worse. Hopefully we fly tonight.

posted by mhatchett at 1:23 pm (EST) on Jun 16, 2008

Feb 19: Finished a Coffin for Demitrios, top notch. The new team was supposed to fly in tonight but a dust storm kicked up and locked down our heliport. So they won’t be in and if that’s the case, they’ll convoy down on the 21st with the company. We’re planning on getting out of here by the 26th so we’re down to a week. We went to the Turkish Café for lunch today. Our first time. Jane from the PRT took us out as thank you/going away present for all the work we’ve with them.
Feb 22: We picked up the new team on the 20th, after another nasty sandstorm. They seem like nice guys, CPT Ferreira, SSG Lear, who was the Team SGT I relieved, SGT Chang and SPC Link. We got them settled in and made our last trip to FOB O’Ryan. We visited the Ad Dujayl city council for our last meeting. The Captain said his good-byes to the local dignitaries and introduced the new team. Several people recognized SSG Lear and welcomed him back. While I’m glad to be leaving, I will admit that I felt a touch of sadness leaving that muddy little FOB behind. I do have some fond memories of my time with the CAV. A few rushed final farewells to some of the interpreters, the KBR folks and the guys that run the Haji mart and we’re ready to head back to Anaconda. One of the interpreters, George, bought me a man dress with making shoes, mad by KIA. It was a very nice gesture. George is a great guy and I hope things work out for him. The hand over is going very well, and Team 12 is chomping at the bit to start running things their way. That’s the way it should be. We are scheduled to fly out the 26th and 3?320 has us going out on a mission the 25th. They’re just that kind of unit. No need to say anymore about that. I’m reading Thomas Perry’s Nightlife. I might have mentioned earlier that I think Butcher’s Boy and Sleeping Dogs, two of his earlier novels, are fantastic. This might be my last book in Iraq!
Feb 23: The RIP continues! I called Irene this afternoon. Only a few more phone calls until I get home. That’s almost too good to be true. The Battalion gave us some coins for all our “good work”. I’ve certainly done a ‘good job” these last two months. It’s scary how well I’ve remembered how to “play Army”. Fingers crossed, I’ve smoked them at every turn. I was glad that SSG Alexander and SGT Graves got some much earned recognition. Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and out!! We might get out of here the night of the 25th, we’ll see how it goes.
Feb 25: RIP completed. We did our last mission today, a run out to Bakir Village. Bakir village used to be the Housing area for Iraqi air force personnel assigned to what we now call Anaconda. It has held up well under new management. The guy that runs things over here now is rumored to be some sort of serial rapist, but as long as he keeps the wastewater treatment plant working to capacity, I’m sure these rumors will remain unsubstantiated. If the 2/320 was trying to make our last trip out of the wire difficult, they failed miserably. It was an absolute cake walk. They even stopped to go shopping. Needless to say, none of us got out of the truck. Twelve hours before we’re scheduled to leave and they had us out in sector. What losers!! Unfortunately our flight got cancelled due to serious rain. Better luck tomorrow! I’m sleeping in and I told everyone to stay away for the office and Battalion Area. We’re done!!!
Feb 28: Well we made it to Speicher yesterday about 2:00 AM on a C-130. SSG Lear gave us a ride out and saw us off. A class guy. I wish him all the best. The team from Paliwada joined us, SGT Schulze, Graves’ fiancé and Captain Starz. It was nice to have them along for the ride. That pilot kept the plane twisting, dipping, hopping and banking the entire 25 minute flight. We got our money’s worth, that’s all I can say. The company is finally reunited and now it’s back to the waiting game. Right now we’re supposed to head for Kuwait March 1st, about 0230 AM. Everyone’s here and that’s good and bad. I’d forgotten how loud and annoying some of these guys are to be around. Just too loud for me continually. I need my peace and quiet at this stage. We’re going to have a cookout with replacements tonight, which should be nice. Picking up some laundry at 1800, repacking my bags, reading and trying to call Irene round out my day. I’m finally starting to fell Short. A psyops patrol just rolled by, loudspeakers blaring Arabic, practicing convoy TTPs. Just another day for some folks.

posted by mhatchett at 10:27 am (EST) on Jun 10, 2008

FEB 11: This week should be pretty smooth. Nothing big planned. The maneuver Battalion has finally figured out we’re leaving in two weeks and that has slowed down the madness. My goal is to curtail our out of the wire time. So far, so good. I opted off of active duty in 1983. It was a tough decision. I was on the fast track, made E-6, had about eight years in, but I wanted something different, something better for myself and my family. I was sick of the Army. After 25 years it’s nice to be validated. I made the right choice and I see that everyday that I’m here. These people, particularly the officers, are a total disappointment. I’m reading a western, Outlaw by Charles G. West. I like it. Fast paced, enjoyable. Just what I need. The replacement unit’s advance party arrived at Speicher today. So things are on track, so far. The rest of the company is expected to join them this Saturday, the 16th. Tick-tock, tick-tock.
FEB 14: Happy Valentine’s Day!! I hate Valentine’s Day!! We won’t go into the why’s and how’s, but I resent all the pretend Holidays. But this should be my last Holiday, pretend or not, away from home. We’re down to two weeks. This hand off is not going as smooth as I want. The new Team is already coming in two days late and the battalion is going to be running a major operation during the RIP. We’ll do what we can with the time we have. I finished Outlaw and watched 3:10 From Yuma, which I thought was very good. Russell Crowe played a great bad guy and his right hand man, Ben Foster, wicked crazy!! I just started Eric Ambler’s A Coffin for Demitrios. I called Irene and got off a few emails.
FEB 16: Eric Ambler’s Coffin for Demitrios is going great guns. The mystery is interesting, as is the historical background and setting, pre-WW II Balkans and Eastern Europe. I’m also watching Babylon 5. Work, such as it is, continues. Graves and I are setting up commo on the new truck tomorrow. The arrival of the new team is still up in the air and that’s going to complicate the handover. I want things to go well for the new guys. We want to give them a leg up, a good start. Time isn’t crawling, but it certainly isn’t flying, that’s for sure. It’s hard to concentrate on anything other than getting out of here. Short-timers disease. I think we’ll be heading up to Speicher on the evening of the 26th. I hope so anyway. We have one more trip to O’Ryan and Ad Dujayl coming up this week.

posted by mhatchett at 3:16 pm (EST) on Jun 7, 2008

Cool.

posted by noblechicken at 11:08 am (EST) on May 6, 2008

FEB 4: The New York football Giants are Super Bowl Champs! Yet another benchmark reached. It seems only a short while ago that we started our Fantasy League. I thoroughly enjoyed the game. It was well worth getting up at 2:00 am to watch. SSG Alexander, SSG Dumont and I had a great time passing snacks around, just enjoying the moment. Afterwards, I slept in till 10:00 AM, woke up, cleaned my room, took a combat shower, hit chow and made it to the office by noon. It was really the first day off, or rather half day off, I’ve taken since we’ve been in country. I needed it and I felt recharged. It was really relaxing. I’m getting together a box to mail sometime this week. Might be my last. I’ve thinned my shippables considerably.
FEB 7: We got back from ORYAN today. Nice visit, didn’t get much done, but we were away form the Battalion, which was the main purpose of the trip. Out of sight out of mind. I’ve been reading Yogi Berra’s (with Dave Kaplan) Ten Rings: My Championship Seasons. A very interesting book. Yogi Berra played in the last golden decades of baseball 1947-1962, when it truly was the national past time. And what a team to play on, DiMaggio, Mantle, Rizzuto, Larsen and of course, Casey Stengel. From trains to planes, Berra paints a homey picture of a time in American sports that we never be repeated or replicated. It makes me wish I was a fan of the game. I wish I could be, but it’s just not to be, not with steroids, HGH, “Clear” and God knows what else out there in the world of sports. Berra had a phenomenal career and never took it for granted. This book makes that career accessible to anyone interested in reading about Baseball’s greatest Dynasty. I’m looking for something new now. I’ll poke around at the Red Cross, MWR and USO when they open tomorrow. I was able to get online and order a few books from Amazon while we were at ORYAN. Anew Snake Detective book by LIZ Williams, a new Neal Asher and a couple of others. They’ll be waiting for me when I get home. The first week of February down. That’s great. The weather has been gorgeous! It feels more like Spring than Winter. Warm temperatures, regular rain showers, slightly chilly mornings. Just enough rain to keep it muddy. Let’s keep this train rolling.
FEB 8: I like books, but the books I especially like are older, well used, well loved books. Like the one I picked up at the MWR today. The Pocket Book of Verse: Great English and American Poems. A paperback published in 1941. Inscribed inside were the names and addresses of two previous owners, Evelyn H. Bancroft, 404 Evergreen Ave East Lansing Mich. And on the title page Mrs. F.A. Wheeler, 216 N. Francis. So who were these people? What did life hold in store for them, all those years ago? When you hold a used book, you’re holding a small piece of history, a small piece of someone’s life. It’s almost like you’re linked, for just a moment, with someone who’s already far, far away. Somebody once said “Books are ships that sail the vast sea of time. And this one washed ashore in Iraq 67 years later. I have three Red Ryder books, of Christmas Story fame (You’ll shoot your eye out!!) that I found in a used bookstore, ChopSuey, a few years ago. They were in great condition. The colors of the dust jackets just popped, despite the fact that they were cheap Whitman pulps, published in the 1940s. According to the inscriptions, the books were given as a Christmas present to a boy all those years ago. I don’t know why, but these things just sort of speak to me. I love finding books with interesting marginalia. Not library books!! But, I sure some of you know what I mean. Our replacements are due to arrive at Speicher on the 16th. Fantastic news!! Still looking for something to read. Called Irene yesterday and had a great conversation about our plans once I get home. I have throttled down on operations, just trying to get ready for the handover. We don’t need any great adventures at the end. Got the late, great Brook Benton, Rainy Night in Georgia, on the Zune. If that doesn’t choke you up, nothing will.

posted by mhatchett at 12:41 am (EST) on Feb 10, 2008

JAN 27: I’m watching the second season of Dexter. It’s quite the edgy little show and there’s a character in the show that reminds me of Jennifer. You’ll have to watch it to see. If I’m wrong, I’ll go to Iraq. Ooops, too late!! Work is winding down, we’re putting together briefings and preparing to turn over our equipment to the new Team. I finished the Larry Niven Man-Kzin wars book and I’m looking for something new.
JAN 29: The PRT (Provincial reconstruction Team), my absolutely favorite in theatre organization, has struck again. They have figured out a way to turn this whole thing around. The Way ahead. The Way forward. It’s so simple, how could we have missed it. I Quote “The PRT is establishing an NGO to produce educational magazines----promoting moderation and Tolerance---for Iraqi Youth.” We will flood the Iraqi media market with Iraqi inspired versions of Cricket, Jack & Jill, Totline, etc. Titles could include “Don’t beat your Women too hard or they can’t Work” “Cutting off Heads isn’t Always the Answer” and most importantly “Infidels don’t count.” This is truly The Way Forward.. Do you know how crazy this insane crap drives us? We’re sick of these inept losers. We are down to 30 days today. The clock is ticking. We head out to O’Ryan tomorrow and will come back Thursday evening. Otherwise things are fine. I’m still looking for something new to read. I flipped through a short story collection, Murder and All that Jazz, edited by Robert J. Randisi, couple of good stories. Dexter is winding down and it’s been a heck of a ride. Can’t wait for season three. Freakish news. The Team replacing us includes SSG Lear, who we replaced last year, along with Captain Banks. He wasn’t even home a year. I’m sure he volunteered. Some people really enjoy the job or just need the extra money. I think, bless his heart, that SSG Lear is a true believer. It was a blustery day today and looks to be a blustery night. I feel like an evil, digitally camouflaged, Winnie the Pooh. The wind was terrific though, driving all the clouds from the sky. I could use a few more days like this. Balancing the want to go, with the have to stay. Just a little longer!!
FEB 1: We go home this month. The trip to O’Ryan was fine. The visit to the JCC was not good at all. Lots of security issues that I can’t even go into, but we got back in one piece and that’s all that matters. The bad news is that the Captain had a negligent discharge at the clearing barrels once we returned to Anaconda. He scared the crap out of me. I went flying around the HUMVEE and found poor SGT Graves just standing there with her mouth open. She was standing right next to him when it happened. I tried to get him out of the soup, but no dice. It is a big deal. If he was enlisted, he’d probably lose a stripe, but as an officer he’ll most likely get a temporary letter of reprimand, that will go away once we leave Iraq. We have been reduced to one combat shower a week. Three minute, rinse, off, soap up, on, rinse, off and shower. The canals up north are closed for repair so our water supply has been curtailed. No fast food, no loss there and limited laundry. The poor Fobbits are losing their minds. Tomorrow is shower day for our pad.
FEB 2: Went to the movies last night to see Cloverfield. It was pretty good from an action point of view, but as a Horror film it didn’t work for me, because I didn’t care about the characters. They were too whiney, shrill and undisciplined. They were like cartoons. The action sequences however, were top notch. C+, nice effort. Hit the combat shower this morning and turned some laundry. Another one bites the dust.

posted by mhatchett at 1:20 am (EST) on Feb 6, 2008

Jan 18: Trip to O’Ryan went OK, after our run through the IEDs. Went to the dentist today and got a temporary filling. Why temporary? Well, because the Army can’t afford permanent fillings in theatre. Does that make sense? Not to me either. I also got my glasses repaired and ordered two replacement sets. 2/320 has a big operation kicking off, so they’ll be busy for the next three days. Keep them out of my hair. This week coming up is the beginning of the end. The company is coming down to do an inventory and pick up our konteako boxes. The replacements are about a month out. They’re probably home on leave now. I’m reading a collection of sci-fi short stories by Larry Niven, et al, The Best of All Possible Wars: The Best of the Man-Kzin Wars. Good, fun stuff!!
JAN 21: CMO MEETING 1600, LSA ANACONDA, CONFERENCE ROOM 2/320 “BALLS OF THE EAGLE”. You are about to enter the inner sanctum for Civil Military Operations in the Southern Saladhin area, also known as the absolute pus sac of the country. Captain comes in at 1550 rummages through a bowl of snacks. He can’t pass snacks up, ever! Public Affairs NCOIC comes in, to talk about the Battalions photo op last week, closely followed by the G-9 rep. Major Crawfish, the Battalion XO sticks his head in to say hello and to let us know he won’t be at the meeting, “Got more important things to do today”. Things are looking up. Maybe he’s actually planning a combat operation, instead of a circle jerk involving local Sheiks. This unit loves the Sheiks!! The physician’s assistant and Jane (USDA) from the PRT have appeared. Captain Wk. followed by several others shows up at 1600. 1sgts show upon their heels. My captain begins by quizzing everybody about who they are, what they do, even though he should already know most of these people. Inane murmuring around the room ensues. First Item on the agenda CLCs (Concerned Local Citizens) or as I call them, TOVs (Terrorists On Vacation). Next up, all the CERP projects (Commanders Emergency Relief Program) were turned down. We told them they would be, but the Battalion doesn’t want to listen. Road work by the 20th Engineers, paving, gravel, grading. Might or might not get done, don’t if or when. Company updates. What’s going on in your sector stuff. Claims procedures outlined. Trash projects, aimed at cleaning up the roadways and villages turned down. Good, I think. Why should we pay the Iraqis to clean up their own roads and villages? Let the GOI (Government of Iraq) pay them. The Captain once again engages in distracting sidebar conversations with various people around him. And then launches into and ill-considered and conceived diatribe about surplus medical supplies, no such thing, and the Provincial Director General of Health, way above our heads. In his defense, this line of discussion was opened up by another nit-wit. The meeting is adjourned and I lead SGT Graves out of the room before we get cornered by some nimrod who wants to go out on patrol with us. These meetings are truly character building!! CMO in action!!
Jan 24: The company has come and gone, like a crazed whirlwind. That’s how it almost always is with them. I went out last night with the 1sgt, commander, Tee and SSg Alexander. We picked up some Pizza and brought it back to the CHUs. We were going to go to the Turkish restaurant, but the power was out. Stayed up BSing till about 10:30. Everybody’s ready to get the hell out of dodge. Except the 1Sgt. He told us if he didn’t have a wife and kids back home, and he could make a little more money, he’d stay. I told him he was friggin’ insane! I’m so sick of filth, sloth, incompetence, ignorance and phones and computers that don’t work, water shortages, officers, the Army, well hell, this list could go on a while, but I wouldn’t stay here for any amount of money. I want to go home. My patience is being surly tested. We had a huge rainstorm yesterday, so I spent part of the day cleaning and moppingthe CHU. I am a domestic God. I like my area clean and orderly. We also unloaded our old truck for turn in and started setting up our new truck. Have to get my workout in tonight.
Jan 26: A dreary drizzlely day. Back home, I enjoy this kind of day, occasionally. Gives me an excuse to enjoy the great indoors. Put on some music, sit on the couch, reading, drinking tea with Irene. Maybe watch a movie, piddle around rearranging my books, doing some chores around the house. As long as it doesn’t stretch out too long, a little dreary weather has its place. Our konteako boxes are up at Speicher and I’ll admit, I’ve started counting down. About 30 days till we leave for Speicher and start working our way home. I’m also getting a little paranoid. We aren’t out of the fire yet. And that message is reinforced by HHC 431 CA BN, our headquarters element, losing a soldier the other day in a Humvee rollover. No hostile action, just bad luck or bad driving. That’s the kind of shit that makes me sweat. Dying is bad enough, dying in an accident over here, well that’s unacceptable. 3,931 deaths to date, almost 800 are non-combat related, including accidents and suicides. They don’t count the combat stress induced suicides back home into these numbers or the post deployment homicides. Maybe they should. Anyway it puts me on edge. Needless to say, I’m not a particularly pleasant individual to be around. I don’t know how I’m going to survive without swearing once I get home. It’s almost like oxygen for me. Death form lack of profanity. Now that’s a bad way to go!!

posted by mhatchett at 1:02 am (EST) on Jan 28, 2008

JAN 14: OK, one of the Mannings is playing football next week and it’s not the one I thought. I watched the Chargers Colts game until half-time and then dozed through the rest, listening in and out of sleep. Sometimes I like listening to the gather better than watching it, especially if I’m tired. SSG Alexander and my roommate SSG Dumont stayed up and watched the whole game. We had to wait till morning to find out about the Giants/Cowboys game. No one could stay up that late and go to work the next morning. So for next week, we have Green Bay/Giants and Chargers/Patriots. January 20 is looking interesting. Something else to look forward to. We have a patrol scheduled for tomorrow and then two days at O’Ryan. That will move the week right along. Next week the company comes down from Speicher to pick-up our conteako boxes. Things are moving along.
JAN 15: Mission out to Jamboriah with Archangel 7, the Infantry Platoon assigned to HHB. It went well for what it was, a photo op for a bunch of G-1 Fobbitts. We were in sector for about five hours. A great way to choke the life out of a day. We head back to O’Ryan in the morning. We’ve got two days of meetings set up, plus a trip to the food distribution warehouse site. Finished Bellows Falls and have picked up a quirky little horror/crime novel called the Beast That Was Max by Gerard Hovarner. Get some chow and hit the sack early tonight.
JAN 16: A fairly uneventful day. The trip to O’Ryan took more than two hours while we waited for route clearance/EOD to take care of two IED’s, one on Milton and one on Heather. We were stuck on Heather, because we took it as an alternate route to Milton. The Captain is upset with me because I told him he talks too much, especially to the Iraqis and about operational issues. He still hasn’t grasped the concept of opsec and frankly, he likes and trusts the Local nationals and interpreters way too much. Blount but true. It all goes back to acceptance and impressions with him. He has to show how much he knows. Oh, and never being wrong. He just can’t take responsibility for a mistake. I’m sure there is a physic profile in there somewhere, if anyone is interested. Took a quick walk around O’Ryan. The size of O’Ryan, it would have to be quick. Little remains of Chaos’s time there. I’ll be honest, I choked up a little as I walked by the football field. All things change. I hope all those guys are doing well. Though I’m not officially counting days, I can say, more down.

posted by mhatchett at 11:37 pm (EST) on Jan 26, 2008

Jan 9: Ate in the room after working out, tuna, instant tomato soup, some chips, cup of tea and some banana bread from Irene. The mess hall is fine, but sometimes it’s like eating at a huge Morrison’s Cafeteria full of angry people with guns. These Fobbits are a tough crowd. They wear wrap-around Oakleys, knee pads around their ankles, dirty Acus, they almost fool you. Until you notice they’re carrying m-16s and have an embroidered diaper over the dust covers. I have grown to loathe the battalion staff. That didn’t take long!! I’m sorry, but they’re just to stupid for words. I mean unchecked stupid. No checks and balances in the Army. If the guy in charge is stupid, guess what? So is the unit. This is your brain. This is your brain destroyed by what, an exotic STD? The only acceptable explanation. We had a lengthy discussion about fish farming and its benefits for the locals. The XO wants to know where we’re going to get clean water for the fish, if we don’t have clean water for the people. The point that we were talking about using the water in the irrigation canals, diverted into pools to raise fish, using existing resources, went completely over his head. This is the same rocket scientist that wants to do an HA drop primarily as a photo-op for the Public Affairs Office and the 2/30 FAR, brave soldiers interacting with cute Iraqi waifs, while the waif’s fathers are out emplacing IEDs. I truly miss the CAV. They hated everybody! My poor Captain wants to be accepted by these losers so badly. He really bends over backwards trying to please them. As a counter point, I walk around with a scowl on my face and dodge meetings. When I’m cornered into a meeting, I look distracted and take notes.
“Anything to contribute SFCHatchett?”
Like it’s a real exchange of ideas.
“Negative sir.”
They just look at me in disbelief. Nothing to contribute after ten months? That’s right, suck it up losers. Of course, we share everything we have with the companies, sorry Batteries and platoons. Listen to the three big projects PRT South has on the slate.
1. Food Distribution Warehouse in the middle of an operating garbage dump. That’s right food warehouse in a trash dump.
2. Landfill built in the middle of a lake. Once it’s drained of course. To recap, trash dump in the middle of a lake.
3. A canning factory in the middle of Balad that hasn’t been operational for years, is slated to be renovated at a cost of ten million American dollars.
God knows how many boondoggles exist around the country, costing the American Taxpayer trillions of dollars. It boggles the mind. But only if you have a mind. Almost done with Michael Connley. Got Irene’s last two packages. I told her not to send anything else. That goes for the rest of you as well. I can hold out till the end of February.
Jan 10: Finished Echo Park and moved onto Archer Mayor’s Bellows Falls. Good start. We were supposed to go out on patrols Friday and Saturday, but they were cancelled. Out of my hands. I’m not going to fight to go out on patrols. If the patrol tracker changes or the patrols get recommitted, that’s someone else’s concern not mine. And the band played on! Ten days down, next week we’ll be half-way through the month. Then we will be on a slippery slope. These guys are putting the poor Captain through Hell. Part of the problem is that, as his choleric intake has increased, his brain capacity seems to have been even further impaired. I really think he is suffering from stress induced memory loss. I swear, he can’t carry an idea from one room to the next. He doesn’t get Army culture. It can be cruel, Hell it is cruel. He’s getting his Ass kicked, despite my best efforts. SSG Davis, our Commo guy, is supposed to come down from Speicher tonight. Sergeant Graves and I are going to pick him up around 11:00 PM.
JAN 12: SSG Davis wasn’t able to get in but we’re supposed to pick him and two new guys from the PRT tonight. We’ll see how that goes. We actually had snow yesterday morning. It didn’t stick, but it came down pretty heavy for part of the morning. I don’t know who was more excited, Sergeant Graves, the Floridian or our Ugandan security guards. It was a nice change of pace. Nothing has changed, relationship wise, with the Battalion. We’re still marginalized, which is fine by me. Please keep me on the sidelines six more weeks. I’m calling Irene in the morning and I might try to watch some football tonight. Go Seahawks! Go Patriots!!

posted by mhatchett at 6:57 am (EST) on Jan 18, 2008

Thank you all for your kind thoughts and prayers. Can't wait to see you all again.

Mike

posted by mhatchett at 9:03 am (EST) on Jan 15, 2008

Dec 31: Happy New Years Eve!! The last day of 2007, the beginning of play-off football and the drive for the Super Bowl. Tick-tock, Tick-tock. Things on the work front are murky at best. We’ve been joined with the S-5 and the satellite PRT. I’m more inclined to help Captain Wackerhagen, we’ve never had a good relationship with the PRT because they are opportunistic spotlight Rangers. Unfortunately the Battalion XO has spoken and he favors the PRT. Fortunately we don’t really care. The poor Captain is completely out of his depth. He doesn’t know how to handle this kind of power play. It’s beyond his experience. Luckily, underhanded, dirty Army infighting is my specialty. Army Jujitsu baby! Always give them too much of what they want. Never refuse to do anything, just don’t do anything particularly well. As I said, the last few months will be interesting. I finished watching Dexter. It was very entertaining. I’ve almost finished First Light. I’ll hit the hay and when I wake up, it will be a shiny New Year, full of opportunity, good times and of course, a few challenges to spice things up. Watch out 2008, I’m going to squeeze you dry.

Jan 1: Happy New Year! The first day of the New Year was fairly typical. A meeting, some errands, a little administrative work. Sergeant Graves is compiling and formatting local village information. She is doing an excellent job. We’re headed back to O’Ryan for a city council meeting and a project assessment Thursday morning and returning Friday evening. I wish I could say things are settling down, but they’re not and probably won’t before we leave. I finished reading First Light. It really made me think. Here was an 18 year old kid thrust into war, I mean real war, the fate of your country, your way of life in the balance. The sort of melancholy part of the book was that Geoffrey Wellum, looking back over sixty years, felt that he’d reached the pinnacle of his life as a 23 year old Spitfire Flight Commander over Malta in 1942. The pride he feels, the triumphs and tragedies of a fighter pilot soar off the page. I’m shifting focus to the pacific theater tonight. I’ve just started Dallas Woodbury’s Midway Inquest.

Jan 2: Surf & Turf night. It’s sad, yet interesting, how important routine becomes to you over here, of course we don’t call it routine, we call it battle rhythm. Same thing. That’s actually part of my problem right now, I’m out of sync. We haven’t established a comfort zone to operate from yet. We’re making progress. The office is starting to come together and we’ve taken care of a few small projects. We’re headed back to O’Ryan tomorrow tohit the JCC and a couple of other things. We meet the CLP at 0615. It’ll be nice to get away from the Battalion for awhile. Out of sight out of mind!! Speaking of sight, I went and got my eyes checked today. The guy did a great job and boosted my prescription.
Jan 4: It was a nice visit to the country. O’Ryan still feels like, what passes for home over here. Everyone seemed happy to see us. The city council meeting and subsequent sidebars went on for far to long. Four hours. Security was extremely lax. Officers wandering around without their IBA, Kevler or M-4s, playing Junior Diplomat. I was disgusted and put my guys on their toes. The 2/320 is looking to get a 2X4 kicked up their butt and I’m making sure we don’t get any splinters. We took Jane Brussard from USDA with us to the meeting. Jane works for the PRT and seems to think we can do great things in Iraq. Like building a Food Distribution in the middle of an exsisting trash dump, no lie, is a great thing. God bless her. I do like her. She is very nice and truly committed. Anyway, back to security. When I talk to people about how their supposed to do things, I get told I’m thinking the old way. Things are different now. Today’s meetings were with contractors and Sheiks. Two of my absolute favorite kinds of Iraqis. This unit is all about the Sheik love. The trip back to Anaconda was uneventful, thank goodness. We went to chow at the “Air Force” mess hall. Not impressed. I’m finishing up the Midway Inquest and have started two others, Archer Mayor’s Bellows Falls and Michael Connelly’s Echo Park. Play-offs start this weekend. Called Irene with big news today. We have a fly date. Up wheels from Iraq February 29, Damn leap year!! Not sure how long we will be in Kuwait or at Fort Bragg, but there is light at the end of the tunnel.

posted by mhatchett at 6:07 am (EST) on Jan 7, 2008

Dec 24: No laughing. I just lost Alan Dean Foster’s Lost and Found. I was about half-way through and left it someplace. Merry Christmas Eve!! Our first full day at Anaconda and it was a complete shambles. I’m almost gleeful, it’s so funny. No office yet, most of our stuff is sitting in the back of the LMTV. They were in such a rush to get us here and they aren’t even ready for us. Two weeks at least before we’re set-up to do any real CA work. We attended a couple of meetings, did a few office things, but it was an easy day. Went by the Iraqi bazaar and treated myself to a few bootleg DVDs. I’m watching Dexter, based on the Jeff Lindasy book, Darkly Dreaming Dexter. It’s very good so far. I also picked up Farscape, all four seasons, 88 episodes. Babylon Five: A Call to Arms and Shoot ‘em up. We shall see what tomorrow brings.
Dec 25: Merry Christmas!! Not a bad Christmas in a Combat Zone. I called Irene and Erin early this morning, made it Christmas Eve at home, which is fine, because both are big days at our house. Dropped some laundry off, ran a few errands, rearranged my room again. We all went to chow together. Sergeant Schultz, Graves Fiancée from Paliwoda, joined us. What a difference between this and Thanksgiving. It was like we were back in the States. Good food, enormous selection. I can’t help thinking about the guys on O’Ryan or even smaller FOBs. After lunch we went back to Sergeant Graves’ Chu, she has a palm Christmas tree up, and open presents. I gave everybody a Barnes & Noble gift card and the Captain came through with AAFES gift cards. I used mine to buy a 14 inch TV/DVD combo, so I can watch the rest of the NFL season and the playoffs. Oh, didn’t I mention that our Chus have Cable here on Anaconda. Only the best for the Fobbits baby, on the best. I’ve been watching Dexter and I have to say, it’s very interesting. It delves deep into the all the inner aspects of humanity, life, death and Floridians. It’s strange that a”Good” serial killer is leading the lecture, but that doesn’t make the inner discussions any less valid. Between episodes I’m reading First Light, a WW II memoir by Geoffrey Wellum. He was an 18 year old pilot during the Battle of Britain. Very well done and moving. We’re heading out to Green Bean for a Holiday cup of Joe. Merry Christmas all my loves!!
Dec 27: Continuing to fight the good fight. Just saw on the news that Bhutto was assassinated. Anybody surprised. As much as they mention her, they mention President Bush and Democracy. It’d be nice if President Bush worried more about Democracy in America, the Hell with the rest of the world. The savages in the Middle East aren’t ready or worthy of Democracy. You have to earn it, no one can Give it to you. Women’s rights and Religious freedom have been zeroed out since the end of the war. Not in the best of moods tonight. 2/320 is proving tobe a big disappointment. First we’re moved into a totally new sector with just a few months left and then they try to treat you like you’re an FNG. (You have to look that up) That ain’t happening. We’ve paid our dues. Losers. This too shall pass, just not fast enough. Went to the Movies, yes Anaconda has a huge movie theater, to watch Will Smith in I am Legend. This is the third re-make of the Richard Matheson novel by the same name. Vincent Price starred in The Last Man on Earth, 1964 and Charlton Heston in The Omega Man, 1971. I enjoyed the Will Smith version but I thought Heston kicked the most ass.
Dec 28: We went out to ORyan today to drop off the LMTV and to pick up our second humvee. Our connex still hasn’t been picked up. 2/320 continues to deliver. These guys haven’t followed up on a single thing. That’s fine with me. I can do the Army two step with the best of them. In fact, I’ll enjoy trying to drag the dance out as long as I can. This is the Army at its worse, bloated, slow and stupid. As you can tell, I’m tiring of my Army Experience. I’m sure it would be different if we were still with the Cav, with Chaos. I do miss those guys. But we have to push on despite our frustrations. Hopefully we’ll have phone and computer access soon.

posted by mhatchett at 4:04 am (EST) on Dec 31, 2007

Dec 11: The Captain is back sowing the seeds of confusion as he goes. Not that bad, but bad enough. The company brought him back yesterday, along with our new 1151. We also had a promotion ceremony for Graves. I mean Sergeant Graves. I have to admit, I was surprised and pleased that she asked the First Sergeant if I could pin her. Well deserved. She’s done a good job. I’m a little irritated because we lost our good tool bag in all the confusion. We spent part of the day setting up the new truck, the rest of the day we spent trying to figure out what our new role would be as a battalion, rather than a company asset. We’ll finalize all that when we meet with Captain Wackerhagan at Anaconda. Lots of stuff to sort out. We had a mission scheduled to visit 50 Dar South in the morning, but Automatic ( A 2/320) cancelled because of other mission requirements. Worked out and enjoyed some of the good food that Irene sent me. Shout out to newly wed Phil Ford of the Bookmobile, who sent me Dan Simmons The Terror. Great book about exploring the Artic during the 1840’s. Sort of a Naval Adventure, Historical novel and oh yeah, scary, Man-eating monster book. Obviously right up my alley!
Dec 13: We spent yesterday at Anaconda finalizing our arrangements for the Big Move. We’ll settle in on December 23 and maintain living areas and a small office space at Oryan. The visit was very productive and we had one of the best meals we’ve had since we’ve been in Iraq. Compare and contrast, Anaconda VS Oryan. Anaconda: Surf and Turf Wednesday. I had steak, shrimp, Corn on the cob, sautéed mushrooms, ice tea and for desert, watermelon. Oryan: trucked out mystery meat. After eating, we went to the West side MWR and then the Green Bean Coffee shop, open 24 hours. Almost civilized. I’m sure we’ll make a successful transition. We came back this morning rested up and went out on a mission to 50 Dar North with LT Springer’s Platoon. Not a very good area. We’ve taken fire from there in the past. The visit and the HA drop seemed to go well, right up to the very end, when loaded up to leave. As we pulled out of the village, someone got up on a roof and started firing into the air with an AK. Now bear in mind there are little kids all over the place. If one of our guys had been trigger happy, it would’ve been ugly. That’s how these Heroes conduct business over here. No respect for women and children. An entire culture base on pretense and posturing. Over 40 women have been murdered down south, around Basra, for wearing make-up, or failing to wear a headscarf. And some people insist that these people are just like us. What udder BS. Did we do some short term good? Maybe. Long term? No! Religious rights and women’s rights are being snuffed out all over the country. We’ve tried, but whatever you read, believe me, very little of it is taking hold. I just feel so bad for the women and kids. Most of the males, I won’t call them men, I’d smoke in a second, given provocation. I really have to work to keep myself in check. I finished The Terror by Dan Simmons. What a great read. I’m buying a hardback copy when I get back home. It makes you think about the nature of good and evil, character in the face of despair. The book is loosely based on Sir John Franklin’s Polar expedition. Lots of interesting historical tidbits, Artic lore and Inuit Mythology. So much more than a good horror story, it is a philosophical exploration of Doom. A keeper. I had a microwave meal tonight, one of about 20 that Irene sent me the other day. That woman sure takes care of me.
Dec 16: Up early to use the phone, but they’re down, so I’ll try again this afternoon. We had a surprisingly quick mission to the JCC yesterday for a Sheik Council meeting. A couple of interesting incidents. Because of the threat of car bombs, we require that all vehicles move from around the JCC when we arrive. The Iraqis always kick up a fuss, especially the Police. Yes they have to move their vehicles too. At last the lot was empty, except for one police car, that according to the IPs couldn’t be moved. So I walked over and pulled out a hand grenade and told the IPs if they couldn’t move it, I’d blow it in place. Guess what? They were able to move it afterall. It was hilarious! You should have seen the look on their faces when I pulled out that grenade. The Captain’s face was even better. It just goes to show, that even the “Good Guys” over here will lie to you for no good reason. Humor aside, we’ve had people get hit by IP vehicles and people dressed as IPs, so I don’t cut them any slack. We also observed a couple of guys maintaining surveillance on us from a “broken down van”. I took a couple of dismounts out with me and shook them down, got some photos and told them their vehicle better get fixed pretty quick. It was and they left the area. We later passed all the info to intell. I let everybody sleep in today, since we don’t have anything big planned. We only have a couple of missions left with Automatic. I’m in between books for the first time during my deployment. Not that I don’t have books, I just can’t get into anything right now. Usually about this time of year, I start reading Dickens A Christmas Carol, Truman Capote’s A Christmas Memory and Nick Schaefer’s Stubby Pringle’s Christmas. All very different, all very good. A Christmas Carol has been done by everybody, from Mr. Magoo, my first introduction to literature adapted for TV, to George C. Scott. Hard to believe some people can even screw up that great Christmas Classic. Christmas Memory is near and dear to my heart, because I watched it when it first came out on ABC Stage 67 with my Mom. My Dad was in Vietnam. I remember sitting on the couch we her, watching it on our old fuzzy black & white tv, suddenly my Mom just started to cry. I didn’t understand the tears then. I do now. Stubby Pringles Christmas I discovered in a paperback western anthology years ago. I’m all over the place with this I know, but bear with me. The Fourth Wise Man is another little holiday gem out there. Miracle of 34th street. Why a remake? ODA the solid gold badasses in our sector, swooped in with gunships and snatched four guys out of a field just down the road from the FOB. I watched the whole thing with binoculars form on top of Major Santiago’s raised Chu porch. It was impressive. We have two missions tomorrow, clinic assessment and the Teachers Academy assessment. The Division Commander might go out with us. Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy!!
Dec 18: Interesting day yesterday. Went on a patrol to assess the Teachers Academy. The Clinic assessment was handled by somebody else. We’ve purchased furniture, air conditioners, a big generator and paid to get them hooked up to the power grid. The contractor Raffi Bonder, has done a fantastic job coordinating everything. The assessment went well, didn’t take to long, but we had to wait for the General and the Battalion commander to join us. They were doing a walking tour of the city. Why? I don’t know. What I do know is that while they wandered around the city, for an additional hour, the neighborhood kids decided to start throwing rocks. Kids are kids. If they get bored and they think they can get away with throwing rocks…duck. I got on the radio and basically said
“Hey, lets pick up the pace before we’re in the middle of a full blown rock fight.”
Not that it moved anybody along, but at least I got it off my chest. By now, I’ve just about single handedly cleared the kids out and restored some calm. The General, his PSD and assorted hangers on show up. I direct them into the Teachers Academy, introduce the contractor and walk back out to the Humvess. And what to my wondering eyes should appear?? The Devil kids are back, surrounding some guy, soldier, whatever, who is entertaining the living Hell out of them. Lo and behold, it’s the Battalion Commander doing tricks with his thumb. I know what I’d like to tell him to……never mind. Now this is the same group of kids that had been throwing rocks at us because we didn’t have any soccer balls to give out. Oh, what a great time they’re all having.
“ And when we come back kids, we’ll have a whole truck of soccer balls to give out.”
Needless to say, as king of the soccer balls, that ain’t happening. The new guys are killing me.

Dec 20: Five days till Christmas!! We went to Anaconda yesterday for a final meeting before we move up with the Battalion on the 23. It won’t be smooth. They haven’t secured an office and to be truthful, I don’t think they know what they want to do with us yet. They haven’t even gotten themselves together yet and I believe that when they finally do, it will be time for us to leave. The meeting was a fiasco and I will be ducking them in the future if possible. The Captain can handle them. Speaking of… We had a mission today, a village assessment. I won’t go into too many details, except to say that the Captain wandered off with an interpreter and a group of Iraqis. He disappeared for about ten minutes. I was on the other side of the village and didn’t catch onto the fact that he had wandered off on his own until I saw him walk out of an alley surrounded by man dresses. Not another soldier in sight. I gave him Hell when we got back. It’s no use. He’s been doing the same thing since Bragg. If he doesn’t get it after nearly ten months in country, he never will. I just don’t want to loss his dumbass this close to the end. So, things are in a state of flux and will remain so for the foreseeable future. I have passed judgment. I like Automatic, not to sure about the battalion. Time will tell. I’m sure they feel the same way about us.
Dec 21: Friday. Laundry day. I turned a ton in. Our last laundry drop here at Oryan. From now on, we’ll turn our stuff in at the Laundry site on Anaconda. Maybe. I picked up a quick Sci-Fi book to hold me until something better comes along. The Cyborg From Earth by Charles Sheffield. Good pulp science fiction. It’s moving right along. We start packing our bags tonight.
Dec 22: Our last night on O’Ryan as our permanent home. When we come back, we’ll be visitors. It feels strange to be moving to Anaconda with only a few months left, but that’s how things go. We must remain rigidly flexible at all times! Good news for 1SGT Puckett, he made the SGMs list. Good news for our Team as well, we finally got orders for our Combat Action Badges. We’re all very pleased. I don’t know how things are going to work out at Battalion, but I guarantee we’re going to finish out this tour on out terms. Busy, busy, day tomorrow, but we can handle it. I worked on the new 1151 today, packed up the chu and office and arranged for the connex to be picked up. SSG Alexander is going to get some ammo boxes mounted on the turret in the morning and we shoulkd be good to go. Got lots of Christmas cards and I’ve enjoyed them all. Phil and Lisa sent me some wedding pictures. They looked Marvelous!! I just started Alan dean Fosters Lost and Found.

posted by mhatchett at 7:35 am (EST) on Dec 30, 2007

Nov 27: Tuesday. I’m reading Richard Hawke’s Speak of the Devil, a crime novel that opens with a shooting spree at the Macey’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. The book has a lot of interesting elements, but so far it is slow going. I finished Harry Turtledove’s The Tales of Krispos. Every bit as good as I remember. The last of the Cav, about 30 guys, is heading out tonight. How times can you say goodbye? It doesn’t matter because it hurts every time. It’s weird seeing them float around the FOB, like memories or ghosts, just holding on. The 2/320 has tough act to follow and so far they’re following short. Not enough troops, not enough equipment, not enough training, poor concept of operation. They aren’t bad guys, they’re just in over their heads. Plus they’ve come into the sector while it is quiet and that’s giving them a false sense of confidence. They better use this time wisely or it will come back to bite them in the Ass. Thanks to everyone who has sent letters, packages and emails. Your thoughts are appreciated. Thank you Mary and Lynn, your package hit the spot. I’m all over this sweet wallet! Great news from Irene today!! Michael landed a fantastic job out in Washington. A real job with benefits, retirement and potential for advancement. He’s very excited. As a parent, seeing your child succeed, making his way in the world, well it doesn’t get any better than that.

Dec 1: Well the September Song has finally run its course. Hard to believe. 2/320 is settling in, learning the AO. We went on an inspection of Sheik Hassan’s CLC checkpoints yesterday. Quite a trip. Toward the end of the mission we had to clear an obstacle involving a ditch and a berm. A little pick and shovel work, some fancy driving, a little towing and we all got through. Graves did a great job of driving. We were the first truck through and wound up pulling the second Humvee clear once it got stuck. Sgt Weber, the guy driving the mine roller equipped Humvee, did a fantastic job of driving and popped right out. We were in the middle of a bad sector so we had security out covering us. Once through the obstacle, we continued on Python, a particularly bad route, always covered by IEDS, to hit Tampa and head home. It was a good mission. We have been out of the wire a bunch and I expect this to continue for about a month and then things should slow down. Chow continues to deteriorate. It’s just horrible. If I didn’t have Care packages from home, I’d be in trouble. My workouts are back on schedule and I feel a lot better. I think I mentioned that I read the first two Harry Potter books and now I’ve started Philip Pullman’s Dark Materials Trilogy, starting with The Golden Compass. It’s very Dark, so far. Maybe a little more sophisticated than the Harry Potter books. I’m looking forward to finishing these before Christmas. We have a Sheik council meeting tomorrow, so it should be a fast day.
Dec 2: The rainy season has arrived with an exclamation point last night. I enjoy storms. I’m sure that’s come up somewhere before and the storm last night was a definite keeper. Being in a good storm is a rush that’s hard to beat. You can feel the power moving right through you. Any way, last nights inaugural winter thunderstorm scored high marks. Wild wind, wicked lightning and driving rain. The whole CHU was shaking. To make matters more interesting, SSG Alexander and I had to run out and secure the hatches on the Hummvees so we wouldn’t be flooded out for the Sheik council meeting in this morning. Weather aside, it cleared out early this morning, theSheik meeting lasted for almost four hours because the Battalion Commander wanted to impress and assess. Thank God it wasn’t Summer or we would have fried. I told them they better watch their engagement times. If not, they’ll pay for it with heat causalities. We’re rolling. All our equipment is up, vehicles are in good, and Morale is holding strong. We’re in a good position to finish the tour up strong. Which is good, because I don’t want us heading out of here with our heads down and our asses draggin. Because, fingers crossed, we’ve had a good tour so far.
Dec 4. Two missions under our belts already this week. Sunday we had Sheik council and Monday we accompanied 2nd Plt, Lt Hale, on a visit to a small village called Sheik Ibraheim. It was out in the middle of nowhere and we had to travel between canals (not my favorite thing), down tore up roads and over some skinny bridges to get there. Lots of interesting driving. Lots of small family farm compounds. God only knows what goes on in these remote areas. We left Oryan at 1:00 and were back by 4:30. Not a bad day at all. The weather has settled down nicely after this weeks ferocious thunderstorm. Clear skies, highs in the 60’s lows in the 40’s. It’s a lot easier to work in this weather than when it’s 160, that’s for sure. I finished up the Golden Compass. Talk about the parents from hell, fighting bears, witches Tartars. Need I say more?! We’ll see how the rest of the series holds up. I’ve jumped right into Robert Crais’s, The Forgotten Man, another Elvis Cole novel. I recommend this title to Jennifer because there are Carnies involved in Cole’s background. Excellent so far, I’m about half way through. We’re heading to the LSA tomorrow and we’ll be staying there until Saturday evening. We have some meetings scheduled and we’re going to meet the company on Friday. Hopefully we’ll be able to promote Graves to Sergeant, but basically we’re making a trip of it. Take in a show, do some Christmas shopping, some fine dining at one of 3 or 4 mess halls. We’ve been on the road a lot the past few weeks and we deserve a break. I’m stopping at the Post office to mail three boxes home. I like to be ahead of the game.
Dec 6: So far our “vacation” to Anaconda has been productive. Graves and Alexander got new ID cards, we attended our two meetings and made good contact with our new s-5 Captain Whackerhagen and the folks at G-9. The upshot of everything is that we might just be spending our last two months in country at Anaconda. The battalion wants to bring us back to Anaconda at the end of December. They’re interested in having us work in some different areas of 2/320’s battle space. Has potential, might be nice to finish our tour at Anaconda home of huge gyms and an indoor swimming pool. I’ve made arrangements to get new CHUs tomorrow. The company rescheduled their visit and won’t be here till Sunday. So we will meet them Sunday at Oryan. There’s a limit to how long I can stand to be around Fobbits.
Dec 8: Or Monday. We’re back at O’Ryan. We’ve returned with a truck load of wheelchairs, shoes and coats. A very good haul. We went to the movies last night and watched Gone Baby Gone, based on the book by Dennis Lahanne. It was good, but somewhat disturbing on several levels. I’m listening to Frank Sinatra: The Reprise Collection. “It was a very Good Year” is on. A truly haunting song, one of my favorites. The company is supposed to come down on Monday the 10th and bring us a new 1151 Humvee…..”I think of my life as fine vintage wine…..” We’re going out on a ton of missions in the next couple of weeks, but after a four day vacation, who can complain? I had seven, count ‘em seven boxes waiting for me when we got back. Five from Irene, one from the bookmobile and one from the library. Thanks for all the stuff guys. I decorated my door for Christmas and George, one of our interpreters, helped out. Graves added a few touches. I think it looks pretty good considering. I’ll send a picture. The Captain is due to return on Monday. That will take some adjustment for everybody, including him. I just finished a piece of banana beard. I swear that woman takes good care of me. I called real quick to let her know that I got all of her boxes. I’ll call again later if I can, phones being the way they are. Carolyn’s box had some garland and a small tree, all put to good use already. Well, time to hit the shower and get some sleep. It was a long day.

posted by mhatchett at 1:49 am (EST) on Dec 10, 2007

October 3: Oh, my butt hurts! It was a game for the ages, but the Sleepers slugged out a 19-18 win over the Wild Boom-Boom. It was a classic flag football struggle pitting youthful exuberance, against seasoned wiles. That’s me! It really was an exciting game, during which I acquired road rash from my right knee to buttock. I am a walking Technicolor bruise! Time to break out the Blue Star Ointment. The mission yesterday went well. Handed out a bunch of school and HA supplies. The crowd wasn’t too unruly, but every event has the potential of turning into an ebook nightmare. We’re planning another HA/Med pick up from Anaconda next week. We’ve got a few missions planned for later in the month. I’m still reading The Italian Secretary. It’s moving right along. Mail day yesterday and I hit the jackpot. Irene sent me three packages, one was the Super Bowl trophies, and Mike snet me a box with a great Halloween card and three DVDs. I called Irene this morning and as usual it was very nice, just too short. We talked about leave and the kids, just nice normal stuff.
Oct 7: Two trips to the LSA this week. One because the Captain had a dental emergency and the second to pick up HA/Med supplies. We played the super Bowl last night and lost 19-18, an ironic score to be sure. It was a great game that lasted till dark. We wound up finishing the game with Humvees lighting the field. I really don’t feel like we lost, just ran out of light and time. Any way, I’m sore from the top of my head to the tips ofmy toes. I think today should be considered our first real day of Fall. It only got up to 91 and was cloudy all day long. A radical change from the blue, blue skies that usually hang over the desert. Chow was terrible tonight, so I’m going to have one of Irene’s Mexican meals later. I‘m still reading The Italian Secretary, but I’ve also picked up two other books I’m reading, Lawrence Watt-Evans, The Mis-enchanted Sword and Lawrence Block’s Hit Parade, featuring Keller, the stamp collecting Hit man. Talked to Irene today and we’re both getting excited about my upcoming leave. Our deck is coming in handy, now that it’s cooled off. I can sit out with a cup of tea and enjoy the evening. We have a quick mission tomorrow, should be routine, fingers crossed.
Oct 8: Monday, a nice easy mission to start the week, radios are working, got some office work done and played a heck of a football game. We had our pro-bowl. I was honored to be selected. We lost, but everyone had a good time. It really was a lot of fun. Graves is supposed to be back tomorrow. Some kind of flu, illness, plague is sweeping the FOB. Two soldiers had to be medivaced back to the States. No one knows what it is.
“Here take some 800mm Motrin. It’s good for leprosy.”
Mail and Laundry coming on strong. I finished The Mis-enchanted Sword and Hit Parade. Loved both of them. I’m still reading and enjoying Caleb Carr’s Sherlock Holmes novel, the Italian Secretary, but like the original, it is a litlle ponderous. I’m listening to Michael Bubles’ Call Me Irresponsible. He does a great cover of The Best is Yet to Come. Irene sent me that CD.
Oct 12: Time can get away from you sometimes. Went out with the MITT today to help recon an HA drop site out on Tampa at CP28. We also went to Zulu10 where insurgent blew up an overpass. Gone most of the morning, returned in time for lunch. Graves mad it back. She’s beat, but had a fantastic leave. Now I can start thinking about mine. Did some truck maintenance and admin work, trying to get my team promoted. Rumors, rumors everywhere, can’t keep up with them. Mostly talk about the incoming maneuver unit and where we might wind up. The cav is getting ready to hit the road. The poor guys are beside themselves with excitement. I got a couple of boxes in the mail Tuesday. One from Christine and a couple of boxes of books from GL that I put down at the MWR. Fairfield also sent me a box full of Fall. Pictures will follow!! The illness/sickness/flu/plague continues unabated. SSG Alexander has it. I told him I would smoother him in his sleep if he got me sick before I went/during leave. As I said, lots of rumors, very disconcerting. I bought Irene a bunch of turkeys on ebay, I’m sure she’ll like them. Still reading the Italian Secretary, but I also picked up Camp Ford by Johnny D. Boggs. A civil War/Western/baseball book. Very entertaining.
October 16: Less then a week before I head out on leave. Mail day today, we’ll see how that goes. SSG Alexander is still sick. We took him to the TMC at Anaconda for a check up and some meds. Upper respiratory with an ear infection. The Captain gave him 2 IV’s last night. If he isn’t any better in the morning we’ll take him back to get seen again. Busy week coming up, including a meeting with the new satellite PRT guy LTC Madison at Anaconda, an HA supply pick up and a city council meeting, the first since Ramadan. Saturday we have an HA handoff to a local sheik for some village kids. Still fiddling around with the Italian Secretary. It might go on hiatus.
October 17: The PRT meeting went OK according to Graves. Lots of issues still to be worked out. The Captain is put out with me because he gave me the option of opting out of the BN BUB up at Paliwoda this evening and I took him up on it. Well then he acted like he was pissed because I didn’t want to go. Look if you want me to do something, tell me to do it and I will, otherwise I’m going to please myself. He’ll get over it. The JCC meeting is cancelled due to kinetic operations. We’ll have to meet with the crooks later. Cleaned up the CHU, packed, got ready for leave next week. Have to admit, I’m pretty excited, it’ll be great to get home and practice being retired. Fifteen days down time. I’m really ready for it. My body aches from head to toe. In celebration of Halloween, I’m reading Stephen King’s The Stand, Since I don’t have a copy of A Night in the Lonesome October.
October 19: The Company comes by tomorrow for inventory and I’ll catch a ride with them up to Speicher. It beats sitting around waiting for a helicopter at 2:00 AM. I’ll spend the night at Anaconda, head to Speicher on Sunday, take care of some administrative chores and fly out for Kuwait sometime on Thursday the 25th. Lots of stuff going on. The new PRT guy, LTC Madison has some ideas, I don’t necessarily agree with them, but I’m willing to give them a chance. The 101st should be on the ground when I get back, so we’ll see how it all comes together. I’m wooried about Graves, Alexander and even the Captain, but I really need this down time. The Captain and I nearly had another big blow up. I can tell I need a break.
November 20: Back to Iraq and all Hell is breaking loose! My time at home was fantastic. Irene had lost about 70 pounds going to Curves and Weight Watchers and she looked great! She made me all my favorites and we just enjoyed each others company doing the things we like to do. I got by the Library briefly and saw most of my staff. It made me miss them even more, if that’s possible. I don’t want to dwell on my leave other than to say it was hell getting there and back, at one point in transit I went 48 hours without sleep, back worth every bit of suffering. Even when the Army does something nice, no way is it going to make it easy too!! I met the Captain at Speicher on the way back, as he was heading home. I hope he has as good a time as I did. The Cav is pulling out lock-stock and barrel. I had to say good bye to some of the guys as they were heading out this evening. It was very painful. I’ll miss these guys. The Cav is being replaced by a field artillery unit from the 101st ABN, A battery, 2/320 FAR. Them seem like good guys, we’ll see how everything shakes out. I’m frankly concerned about the small number of troops we have on the FOB now. Alexander and Graves did a good job keeping things running while I and the Captain were gone. Graves’ promotion packet went forward and our CABs were finally approved, so everyone is very happy. How do I feel being back? Good. Like I’ve crossed another milestone and I’m ready to finish this up strong. Thanksgiving is This Thursday, my absolute favorite holiday. I think I like Thanksgiving so much because it’s basically a very honest simple celebration, a celebration of our bounty, our lives, families and God. I like to think of it as a Pagan tradition that we didn’t screw up. Fall is my favorite time of year and the weather has finally caught up with the calendar over here. My time in Iraq is coming to a close, maybe even faster than I realize. We’re down to roughly three months. Atleast part of that time will be spent ripping with the new team and prepping to leave at Speicher. Benchmarks are easily measured. Thanksgiving, Christmas, Football playoffs, superbowl, arrival of replacements. And we’ll be busy as Hell working with A Battery. Time will fly. While I was traveling, I read Lee Child’s new Jack Reacher novel ____________. It was good. Reacher expresses some doubts about his vagabond life style after he reunites with his more affluent Army buddies, while they work to solve the murders of several of their old team members. Good fast read, as always. I’m re-reading Harry Turtledove’s Krispo’s novels. All three published together under the title, The Tales Of Krispos( Krispos Rising, Krispos of Videssos and Krispos the Emperor).
November 22: Happy Thanksgiving! Mine was sub-par. The weather was fantastic. Our mission to the JCC, a success. And I got to call Irene, always a highlight to my day. Things are chugging right along. The only downside? Our Thanksgiving meal absolutely sucked!!! No Turkey, gravy, rolls, sweet potatoes, corn on the cob, some nasty pasty dressing, dried out ham and Cornish Game hen at cutting it. And ten miles up Milton in a giant mess hall, people who near leave the wire or even know what an Iraqi looks like, get a feast beyond compare, I guarantee it! Fobbits get all the trimmings and the small Patrol Base gets screwed over. If I was in charge, someone’s head would roll, but I’m not. Where’s all the SGMs now looking out for the soldiers? I’ll you, shoving pie in there faces! Thank God most of the CAV are at Anaconda enjoying their last Thanksgiving in Iraq. I would’ve hated for this to be it for them. The last of 3/8 leaves next week, November 28th. The 101st guys are OK, it just takes time. Lots of changes, but very few that affect us directly. I believe we’ll be getting ready to leave before any of the projected Civil Affairs changes take place. Though not totally accurate, I keep thinking we’re leaving in three months. Close enough!! I feel certain Christmas dinner will be better. We went to Anaconda yesterday and I mailed home the first of my going home packages. Two boxes of books and DVDs. I plan on shipping home as much as I can, so I don’t have too much to carry once we head back to Bragg. Got another mission tomorrow, our 4th this week. Things will slow down once 2/320 has to start doing their own missions.
November24: It’s early morning. About 6:30. I’ve been up for about an hour. The weather is still beautiful. There’s a huge orange harvest moon out. The air is crisp, probably in the 40’s. It finally feels like fall. I’m going to enjoy it until the winter rains roll in. The HA mission went well yesterday. We saw hundreds of people. The sad part is, you have to maintain strict crowd control or you HA drop will turn into an HA riot. People will literally beat the crap out of each other for a soccer ball. The FOB seems almost deserted now that most of the CAV has left. No tanks, no Bradleys, and a lot less people. A lot less. I’m not sure the 2/320 can accomplish its mission with so few troops. They will be stretched thin. Alexander and Graves have been steady on, especially since we’re short-handed with the Captain still on leave. Oncehe returns all of us will have been on leave. Another deployment milestone. It’s hard to believe we’re rolling into the last week of November.

posted by mhatchett at 12:20 pm (EST) on Nov 25, 2007

Sept 26: I just came down from the overhead deck that Major Santiago from the MITT built between their chus. It was very nice up there watching the full moon come up. The night breeze had just picked up and in the distance you could hear the nightly convoys starting their north-south runs on Tampa. Further out, you can just barely hear the big cargo jets taking off at Anaconda. Closer in you can hear the feral dogs yipping and howling. The wind has a nice cool edge, almost like it’s the very first Autumn breeze. As it gets darker, you can see Anaconda’s lights blazing, and you can see the convoy headlights winding down Milton, headed for Tampa. No lights here at O’ryan, just six miles away. When night falls here, it falls hard and fast till morning. What a difference six miles makes. Eventually the bugs find me and it’s time to head in. Talked to Irene today. A good way to get over Hump day. The end of the week looks busy. The company is coming in Monday. Saturday we have a log run into Anaconda and Sunday we have to go out with Green platoon to do a water treatment plant assessment. Talked to some on the guys today. The Cav will start heading out early to mid November. Took a kid over to see the Chaplin yesterday. We had fallen into conversation at the mess hall the other day, turns out he’s a sniper with 2 ID. It didn’t take long to figure out he was having some issues and needed to talk to somebody. After he talked to the Chaplin, they shipped him out to Anaconda for some help. Later on, one of his sergeants stopped by and thanked me for listening and helping one of his soldiers. I have to admit, I felt pretty good. I hope he can get the help he needs and is able to get his life on track. He’s a great young man.
Sept 28: The Sleepers are now 6-2, thanks to a last minute forfeit. We’ll take it. The play-offs start next week. We shall see. I have put the Machine Crusade aside, after 200 pages, in favor of Caleb Carr’s take on Sherlock Holmes, The Italian Secretary. So far, so good. We head to Anaconda tomorrow to pick up HA/medical supplies. The company arrive Sunday for the monthly inventory. Our Sunday mission has been pushed big to Tuesday. Big raid coming up. The much appreciated weather change continues. Only 100 again today. I would say by the end of October it will be positively comfortable. Got my ADO today, Boots and a shirt.
Oct 1: Happy October!! Lots of stuff scheduled to go off this month, most importantly, my leave. Had a few truly strange things happen in the past couple of days, but I can’t talk about them. Just want t6he dates referenced. The main thing is that everybody is safe. The much delayed water treatment mission kicks off tomorrow. It has since morphed into an assessment/ha drop. Should be a busy morning. We SP at 0715. They, the company, was talking about moving me to Samara, because the Team Chief is an out of control jerk and needs to be reined in. Frankly, I don’t see it happening. I of course, would much rather stay with my Team.

posted by mhatchett at 3:10 am (EST) on Oct 3, 2007

Sept 21: I know a lot of times, Hell most of the time, I sound cynical and frustrated about what we’re doing over here, but sometimes we are able to do good things for regular people. Today a family that had been in a car accident showed up at the front gate. Mom, Dad and little girl, they were messed up. Our medics, who are the best, quickly stabilized them and called in a medavac. Last we heard, everyone’s going to be OK. Now watch, the next time someone shows up looking for help, they’ll be suicide bombers. But today we were able to do something good. A big part of the company went up to Paliwoda for Regimental days, celebrating the unit’s activation. I think everyone had a good time. Talked to SSG Alexander about his trip home and stay with the company. He says word on the street is that we will be pulled back up to Speicher when the Cav leaves. I’m ambivalent, at best, about our options. We’ll have to play it by ear. I finished up The Knights of the Black and White. Very literate, but sort of hollow. I’ll stick with Robert E. Howard’s gritty tales of the Crusades, though I will probably give the sequel a chance. I just finished watching Hondo, one of my favorite John Wayne movie’s and one of my favorite louis L’amour books. I have the original Gold Medal paperback in my collection.
Sept 22: Last day of Summer! Just finished off a bottle of Move Free advanced Triple Strength uniflex joint fluid Glucosamine & Chondroition. My new bottle has a 53 day supply. Yet another measuring stick. Game tonight against the 1SGT and SSG Rouse’s team. We’re trying to hold onto 1st seed for the playoffs.
Sept 23: We lost 13-27. We’ll catch them in the playoffs. We’re still number because of strength of schedule. We are using the BCS standard. Well, I can say it. I made it through the Summer. Though it still topped out at 106 degrees. The evening cools off quickly and lingers until midmorning. Worked on a few ongoing administrative issues. We have a mission Tuesday. Heading out with the commander to reconnoiter the Sheik Militia checkpoints, I mean Concerned Local Citizens, we were calling them TSF (Tribal Security Force) but that was too close to the truth, so abracadabra, a Combat Manager waves his Skilcraft and things are right with the world. I like going out with the Commander, you just never know what’s going to happen. The company is coming down the end of the week. Talked to Irene this morning this morning. We kicked around a few leave ideas that don’t involve sitting on the couch, chilling around the house. We’re supposed to get a new interpreter soon. A woman who has already been moved around for personnel issues. I had the Captain explain our situation out here in the boonies, but she’s still coming. Just not sure when. Football tonight! I might watch some of the games, see how I feel. I just started The Machine Crusade, one of the Dune spinoffs. Dune is absolutely one of my favorite Sci-Fi novels of all time, but I haven’t been impressed by the rest of the series. I’ll settle for entertained instead of impressed. Fried chicken and corn on the cob for super. Not bad at all. I’ll tell you something I miss. Bathes. I’m all with the Japanese and Romans on this one. A nice hot bath loosens up the body, mind and soul.
Sept 25: Went on an area recon/checkpoint visit up north, towards Balad today. I have to say it was very Pleasant outing. The driving down narrow dirt roads flanked by irrigation canals, was challenging, but the temperature stayed under 100, 98, for the first time since late May. We were back at the FOB by 2:00. Had some lunch and pulled weapons and vehicle maintenance. Watched the game tonight between Wild Boom-Boom and the Strippers. Boom-Boom beat us last week, but I was pulling for them to win. They didn,t. Good game though.

posted by mhatchett at 7:51 am (EST) on Sep 26, 2007

Sept. 14: I finally got everything caught up and posted on Librarything. I have to admit I feel a small sense of accomplishment. Did some Chu maintenance today and worked on commo/radios, the never-ending story. Why can’t the army come up with a simple, reliable, secure radio? Charlie Company launched a successful heliborne raid today. This was Captain Wahab’s, the new company commander, first major operation since assuming command. It went off without a hitch. Several bad guys were nabbed and the populace duly impressed/intimidated. All the guys were really pumped. The Captain is getting fidgety again. I swear, he is always looking for validation or a stamp of approval from somebody. Who, I don’t know. I tell him to relax, but he can’t.
“People don’t value what we do!” He rages. Hell, I don’t value what we do, it’s BS. Working with government officials who would be in jail back home under the RICO act isn’t exactly praiseworthy. If I was in a line platoon, I’d shake my head too. We’ve done what we can do. We’ve submitted several project proposals. They’re pending, personally I hope they don’t get approved, I can’t stand the idea of wasting any more American money over here. Hell, there’s only two of us here right now, how much action do you want? We have a rematch against Lt Couch’s team tonight. It’s a grudge match. They handed us our only defeat so far. SSG Alexander should be back early next week. Tick-Tock, Tick-Tock. Light supper, have to be fast on my feet tonight. Knights of Black and White is going well. We won the rematch 18-0. Skunk rule! Man, I’m whupped!!
Sept 16: The month is half over, can I get a hallelujah! It has been a nice slow Sunday. Sometimes being a good soldier means doing absolutely nothing. Just being still. Lots of people, type As, insecure folks, have a real problem with that. It’s funny and sad to watch. There are so many external intangibles that impact our activities over here, you just have to remain at a state of rigid flexibility. The Captain has a problem with the concept of Down or dead time. If left to his own devices he would complicate our lives with make work, like useless inventories of HA supplies. Plus, if he doesn’t actually see you doing something, than you’re not. Well, he spends most of his time in the office, I spend most of my time in the motor pool, or working on weapons, or hanging out with the line platoons. Those trucks don’t maintain themselves. That’s one of my duties, just say no to nonsense. He’s getting better, but he worries way too much about what other people think. So Sunday was sinfully lazy. There will be plenty of those with Graves and Alexander gone and Ramadan kicking into high gear. Hell, we just got the crap mortared out of us. Three big ones, just outside the Hesco. Might watch some football tonight. Called Irene this morning, sounds like everything is going OK. Erin was in for a visit, but she didn’t have much time for her Mom. I think that made Irene a little sad, buy she understands. She’s a great mom, among other great things. Whew, really bad chow tonight. Had one of Irene’s lifesaving dinners. Graves sent me a quick email today. She’s in Kuwait and should be flying out tonight. She will begin her return sojourn on October 3.
Sept 18: I’m wore out. Had a great game last night, beating our arch nemeses, the Strippers, don’t ask, 25-6. After a close first half, we got and kept the upper hand. It was a true team effort. Puts us at the top of the rankings, 5-1. This morning I was out helping Sgt Fraim and Sp4 Richardson with their 50 cal out on the 800 meter range. We got a call from Chaos Main, the TOC, to go look for a UAB that had gone down. We married up with some South African/Texan contractors who had seen it go down. We walked around about 2 hours searching canals, cane breaks, stumbling through fallow fields. We never did locate it, but QRF found it about 500 meters from our furthest location. It was big, a nine foot wing span. I’m hitting the sack early tonight. Mail day today. Got lots of school supplies for the kids, so that was a good haul. SSG Alexander is supposed to be back tomorrow. We’ll see.
Sept 20: Big news! I was voted the game ball for my defensive performance on the 17th. Nice surprise. SSG Alexander might be in later today. A Lt from the PRT is here today. I met him coming off the CLP. Poor guy looked completely lost, as most people on their first visit to FOB ORyan. Older guy, seems sincere in his desire to get things done. I don’t see much changing. The Captain had to go to Paliwada for the BN BUB on his own, since we were short a driver. I think he expected me to go along just for the ride. Ha, Ha! I got him a seat with the commander. I think he was a little put out. Green went out on a raid last night/early this morning, capturing nine proable IED emplacers. Lt Couch does a good job. The week CA wise has been uneventful because of Ramadan and operational tempo. I’m not complaining. We’ve had a few claims come in and the Captain has pushed those up. Still winding my way through Knights of the Black and White. Jury is still out, just like Phil Spector. Walking down the hall, I was accosted by 1SGT Person.
“Sergeant Hatchett, would you like to meet the golfers? Sure you do. Come on.”
Obviously, I was just racially profiled. Older white guy, must love golf. Set up. He literally pushed me into the conference room. I found myself face to face with a roomful of…….golfers. I mean what do you say? I don’t like golf. I’m over here life on the line I’m going to say what I mean, golf bores me to tears. I know nothing about the game or personalities involved, unless you count John Daly, who apparently learned how to play golf at the same trailer park that Tanya Harding, my all-time favorite ice-skater/female boxer, learned to skate/box. Uncomfortable pause.
“Hi, Sergeant Hatchett. How are you? Thanks for coming. Have any of Y’all ever got that windmill thing on the first try? That’s good for a free game right?”
No, I didn’t say that, but putt-putt references kept bubbling to the surface of my brain. I beat feet as quick as I could. Golfers on FOB ORyan. God Bless them for coming, but it was a little awkward. We get Golfers, Anaconda gets the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders. See what I mean. It doesn’t matter, they just would’ve gotten dusty. I’ll be honest, life on the line, I can say stuff. I would love to be visited by a traveling troupe of Japanese female midget wrestlers. Cats out of the bag. UFC has nothing on these babes! GRRRRR!!!!

posted by mhatchett at 6:53 am (EST) on Sep 21, 2007

Sept 1: Quick last minute mission to Anaconda, escort for THT team and Iraqi representative to the CSH to visit wounded IA soldiers. Only two trucks, I was pissed because I believe the captain volunteered us and we had words about it. I’ve talked to about volunteering before. If he wants to volunteer himself that’s fine, but he is not to volunteer our Team for anything. Every trip outside the wire can be deadly, all I ask is that the missions be vital and essential. Is it worth getting one of us killed to visit wounded IA soldiers? Sure enough, on the way out we had a vehicle approach us in an erratic manner. I stitched the road in front of him. He pulled over and put his hands over his head. He knows the rules. If you see American Vehicles you pull over, put on your 4-ways, wait for us to pass, continue on your way. This guy almost bought it for nothing. Trip back was uneventful. We didn’t go up to Speicher because the trucks weren’t ready for pick up. September is finally here.
Sept 2: Worked on radios, Graves submitted final paperwork on a project, I took care of some admin/award paperwork that has been pending way too long. We had a brief practice today. PFC Dunkentell our young supply clerk , quarterback, coach has ordered team jerseys. Everyone’s kicking in. I’m telling you, this football league has perked up morale. Meteorologically speaking, the tide is turning. The sun is going down earlier, it’s already well on its way to being dark and I mean pitch black dark, by 8:15. Its even slightly cooler in the early morning and at night, though still blindingly hot during the day, but the end is in sight. Talked to Irene today, that was great and had two very nice emails from Emily and Jennifer. I had a deadly serious sit down with Captain about the dangers and prohibitions of volunteering. I laid it squarely at his feet, that if he volunteered us for something and one of us got killed, than it would be his responsibility, bottom-line. So don’t volunteer the CA Team for BS non-CA missions. I was slightly wound up because he’s trying to go around me on some of these issues and its not going to happen. We have missions coming up the next couple of days, we’ll see how they go. Labor Day tomorrow, the traditional last blast of Summer. Let’s hope so!!
Sept 5: Busy start to the week. Rolled with Green Platoon to do a clinic assessment in Ad Dujayl. That went fine, though the people in that part of town are unfriendly. The following day we went to a village assessment in Alani, a small farming community just off of Tampa near D49. The village was fairly clean and well laid out, the people friendly. Given the proximity and number of IED attacks around the village, and the fact that they were Sunni, we felt they were at least sympathetic to AIF, if not active participants. That didn’t stop the kids from taking the offered candy and soccer balls. The area is definitely getting more hostile as Shia militias, some funded by us, start to flex their muscle and the Sunni insurgents retaliate. We lost a soldier and a Humvee out on Python today. This is the area where we were doing fuel point assessments about a week ago. The colonel’s PSD (Personal Security Detail) was out on a mission and got hit. It was bad. That’s all I’m going to say. The whole FOB is angry. We were at Anaconda today dropping off our truck for air conditioner repair. It was blowing hot air, but it has held up through the worst part of the Summer pretty darn well. We should be able to pick it up in the next couple of days. We lost our football game last night 21-14. It was a very good game and we were driving as time ran out. We’ll get them next time. I’m bruised literally, head to toe. We don’t play again till the 10th. We should have our jerseys by then, team photos to follow. The BN, 431st, just makes me sick. What a bunch of losers. The want me to sign a statement concerning my utter lack of interest in the promotion process. I don’t want to play!! I’m perfectly content being an E-7. If I was interested in Promotions, I’d be the Brigade Commander. I used Army Jujitsu on them. I’m sure I won’t be bothered again. Losers!! The front gate just took some small arms fire from across the road. Guards returned fire and the QRF scrambled. I hope they whack somebody. Like I said hostile. I finished Dead Folks Blues ans four Louis L’Amour books, Heller with a Gun, Utah Blaine, Flint and To the Far Blue Mountains. Right now I’m reading Jay Caselberg’s Wyrmhole. It looks promising. One of Irene’s packages got here just in time. Those Taco Bell Mexican meals hit the spot.
Sept 7: We lost another soldier from the attack on Python. Our company recovered the vehicle, seeing it, I’m grateful and surprised anybody survived. Today was mail day and I received a really nice package for Jean and the folks at Varina. Super-Duper pampering hygiene products. She even got me the right kind of shaving gel, Edge. Thank you, Jean. Continue to work on commo issues. Our good truck is still at Anaconda. We should pick it up Sunday. Football season has arrived, another measuring stick to count down on. Once the Super Bowl gets here we’ll really be short. Apparently there’s lots of issues surfacing between the Teams and the company. I don’t have any issues with the company, but I have no use for the Battalion. We’re heading out with Green platoon to do an ndustrial assessment tomorrow. Shouldn’t take too long. We got our Jerseys today. Man are they red! Very sharp.
Sept 8: The mission this morning, assessment of the Flour mill at Ad Dujayl, went fine. We followed that up with a quick run to Paliwoda. We were back at O’ryan by 1430. I’m really behind on posting to Librarything, but the computers have been up and down and I’m pretty tired. I’m going to work on getting caught up this week. Chow was bad, it was hot, looks like I’m still in Iraq.
Sept 12: Football season is officially underway!! We’ve been getting to watch rebroadcasts of the games and the mess hall is packed. Just sitting around watching the game eating snacks, drinking Gatorade, it’s a lot of fun. Our football team, the Sleepers, played onMonday the 10th. We won 21-7. It was a great defensive struggle till the very end. Graves took some pictures, which I’ll post in the future. Speaking of Graves, she headed out to Speicher for R&R yesterday the 11th. She arrived in one piece. We went on an atmospherics mission today and delivered some school/HA supplies. The Captain and I had another minor dust-up today because he wanted to pass on some information to the Iraqis at the JCC and I nixed. He tried to over ride me, but I told him I would bring Captain Wahab into the discussion if necessary. I felt he was violating operational security, by passing information to the JCC that they didn’t need. That ended the discussion, but then he goes on to say that he has never met anybody who hates Iraqis more than I do. That I was without compassion. That’s not true. I don’t hate Iraqis, I just don’t trust any of them and I will drop the hammer on anybody that I feel is a threat, no questions asked. That’s how I treat them all, like probable enemies. I know most of them would kill us in a second if they could get away with it. My job is to make sure they don’t get the chance or even think they have a chance. The Captain still doesn’t appreciate the seriousness of our situation. He still forgets to load his weapon unless prompted. He’s not a bad person, just a truly horrible soldier. He’s damn lucky he’s got a mean bastard like me around. As for the Iraqis, I just view them as slothful, ineffectual, and corrupt, just flawed people, who can’t muster the gumption to overcome their circumstances. Continue to work on the trucks. Small nagging problems. I’m going to take it easy tonight and enjoy some of these great snack items that Irene sent. I finished Wyrmhole by Caselberg. Can’t recommend it. Started Jack Whyte’s mammoth Knights of the Black and White. I’ve always enjoyed crusading adventures, having stumbled upon Robert E. Howard’s Sower’s of Thunder in the mid 70’s when Zebra press reprinted a great collection of Howard Material. Fantastic! We’ll see how this stacks up.

posted by mhatchett at 12:07 pm (EST) on Sep 14, 2007

Aug 12: Got a call into Irene today, in spite of the phones crashing all around me. Like I’ve said before, phone and computer service is tenuous at best. It has been a nice quiet Sunday. I joined a fantasy football league. I’ve never played before, but I’ll definitely have time to learn. We’re supposed to have the draft in the next couple of days. As we say in our sitreps, nothing significant to report.
Aug15: Second trip to Paliwoda/Balad in two days. Yesterday the Captain and a bunch of military and local representatives, attempted to recover/gain the use of a mobile power station that had been stolen/misappropriated over two years ago. It didn’t happen. These Iraqis won’t work together on anything. I can’t even think of them as a country, they’re just a bunch of people who live in given geographical region and will minimally work together, if necessary, to kill or steal. No redeeming social or cultural values. We back again tonight for the BUB. Got some really great mail yesterday. Irene’s packages arrived loaded with lots of cool stuff, including some DVDs I’d asked for. She’s the best. I also received a package and a tube from the Library. The package had a bunch of snacks and school supplies I can pass out to the kids. The tube contained some posters that Courtney and Dee had made, including the one shot with the helicopter crew reading. The other shot was of me reading on the helicopter, signed by the library staff. It’s too nice to keep here, so I’m sending it home as soon as I can. That poster was just too neat! Since chow was horrible, which is becoming the norm, I fixed one of the quick heat and eat Mexican meals that Irene sent. We will be going to the Mexico when I get home on leave. The Paliwoda team lives in a real house and there are some advantages, but I like having separate living/working arrangements. Most of 3/8 Cav is stationed here at Paliwoda, so it’s pretty crowded. Graves picked up some commo supplies for Sgt Ellis. We’ll probably get home, look how that slipped out, I mean, back to Oryan about 10:30-11:00. I might stay up and watch some football. Sleep in a little in the morning. Things are about to get hectic, that’s all I can say. We had our football draft in the mess hall and every had a good time. Called Irene this morning. She had to cope with a couple of small emergencies, but seems to have everything under control. We are rapidly coming up on the five month mark. Time just sort of eddies and flows, as it will. We might have a bar-b-que tonight we’ll see. We did have a bar-b-que and I had the best steak I’ve had since we left Fort Bragg. The trip back was interesting and uneventful. Traveling down Tampa at night is a unique experience. We passed four huge convoys, lights blazing, headed north. It was pretty impressive. We arrived back at O’ryan about 10:15, in time to wind down with a little pre-season football, banana bread and a cup of coffee. Traveling at night is always an adrenaline rush!! Just before I went to bed, we got lightly mortared. Aircrews responded and shut that nonsense down.
Aug 16: Slept in till 8:00. It has been a very laid back day. Ordered some supplies, piddled around the office. Word is we might head up tp Speicher for Labor Day to pick up a new truck, brand new, top of the line 1151. We would have to swap out all the commo, bells and whistles, but it would be worth it. Still finishing up Speaks the Nightbird. What a weird wonderful book! One small dust up last night. The Captain wanted us to wear our seat belts. I have to tell you, I absolutely refuse to wear a seatbelt or gunners harness in a Humvee and I won’t make my crew. There are two horrible ways to die in a Humvee, drowning and burning. Seatbelts increase the likelihood of both. Imagine hanging upside down, tangled in a seatbelt, drowning in a three foot deep canal. See what I mean. I don’t have time to fight with a seatbelt in the middle of a crisis. I’ll be honest. Riding around in a Humvee is claustrophobic at the best of times, throw in seatbelts and it would be unbearable. I’ll take my chances with a rollover. His argument was that it was SOP. Weak argument. Short standoff, issue settled. Rolling around a COB is one thing, seatbelts outside the wire, ain’t happening.
Aug 19: Happy anniversary to us! Five months down, seven to go, but the significance is that, that’s about how long it has taken us to be assimilated into Charlie Company. They are very comfortable with us and we’re very comfortable with them. That’s a real achievement. Being an attachment is difficult at the best of times, when things don’t click, it can be damn dangerous. It’s looking like we’re the only Team that made the necessary adjustments, built the right relationships, did the right things. I’m very proud of my guys. We spent the day at Anaconda getting the Duke, an anti-IED jamming device repaired. It took some finagling, but SG Alexander and I got it done. Graves and the Captain picked up a repaired Harris radio, so it was sort of an electronics day for us. We grabbed a good lunch, cream of mushroom soup, grilled cheese and some chicken wings. Ran a few errands and made it back to O’rayn by 4:00. Called Irene this morning and as always it perked both of us up. A nice little jolt to get through the week. I finished Speaks the Nightbird. Good read, but not a fast read. I thoroughly enjoyed it, have ordered the sequel the Queen of Bedlam and have recommended it to several people at work. I’m starting Randy Wayne White’s Mangrove Coast. I’ve also been watching the TV series Eureka on DVD. Hat show is really funny. Football season is just around the corner, another easy measuring stick. When they play the Super Bowl, we’ll be getting ready to come home.
Aug 22: I’m a little ticked off tonight. One of Green Platoon’s squads, they’re the infantry platoon, is parted outside the TOC. I know the squad leader, a damn good young SSG. It turns out they got busted for making “bathtub Gin”, homemade hooch. Hell, that’s damn near an Army tradition. They weren’t on duty. Hell, I know it was against the “Rules”, writ large, but why does everything have to handled administratively in “today’s Army”. I would’ve dressed them in full battle rattle, IBA and run them till they puked their guts out. A little community service. Don’t do it again. Lesson learned. But no, we run things by the book now-a-days, lets ruin folks careers over basically youthful indiscretion. The Company/BN acts like they bear no responsibility. I’m going to tell you, we’re on a small FOB with no real recreational/off duty activities. Nothing organized. No game nights, no movie nights, no organized athletics. We can’t even play softball or football, because we might get hurt. These soldiers are young men with time on their hands, when they aren’t out getting shot at. And just five miles up the road, Anaconda has a pool, two pools, excuse me, two huge mwr/gym facilities, two PXS, huge messhalls, that serve a variety food that we’ll never see here. Nobody thinks about the soldiers out here on the edge. We just got mortared. Thank you for the timely punctuation. A shoot and run job. No damage. SSG Alexander madeit back to Speicher to head out on leave. Irene took Erin up to JMU yesterday. I wish I could’ve been there for that. Hopefully, I’ll be there to pick her up in the spring.
Aug 23: Day before mail day! Yes, that is an official day of rejoicing on Team 14. Pitiful aren’t we!! The line platoons launched a successful raid early this morning, nailing a major target from Baghdad. I’m really proud of our guys, no one was hurt. If they only turned us loose, then these folks would see some real Hell and rethink their position. I’m dedicated to giving every person who wants to be a martyr the opportunity. Had a bit of a scare later in the day, one of the soldiers who got busted last night for making and drinking bathtub hooch went missing. We were all really worried that he had gone off and done something truly horrible, but it turned out he just found someplace together his thoughts. Thank goodness. There is a lot of sorrow and angst here. Almost 60% of the company expects to be divorced upon redeploying home. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve found soldiers slumped over a phone, sobbing, talking to someone back home. Rage is pretty typical over at the phone center. It’s very painful to be over there sometimes. I just finished the Mangrove Coast, Randy Wayne White. Lot of build up, not much payoff. It was OK. I won’t revisit it, but it moved along. Not sure what I’ll hit next. Shower, lights out!
Aug 25: I’m whipped! Up and at ‘em at 4:30 because my air conditioner is wounded. I tossed, turned, opened the door, fought off huge man-eating Iraqi mosquitoes. Finally got some sleep, but woke up slick as a seal from sweat. Got up, went to the office and got some work done. We went to Anaconda to pick up some HA Supplies and run a few errands. Stopped for chow and I was really disappointed because I couldn’t get my customary Grilled cheese sandwich. That’s right, they couldn’t make a grilled cheese sandwich. I clearly saw cheese, bread, butter, even a stove. Bear in mind, this is a huge mess hall, defac, dining facility, whatever the Hell the Army wants to call them these days, that serves thousands of people, but can’t serve them grilled cheese. I later discovered that the “official” grilled cheese maker, a very important TCN, was indisposed. I had to settle for a stinkin cheeseburger, which most of you know has cheese, bread, don’t get me started. SGT Fogelburg and PFC Hughes from Green Platoon, yes the infantry Platoon, stopped by for a short visit. Actually they’re both on extra-duty and needed a place to rest and hideout. Good Kids! Fogelburg reenlisted last night, six years for $16,000.00. He invited me to the reenlistment ceremony and I got some great “re-enlistment under the Stars” photos. Just keep in mind Sgt Fogelburg is on his third tour. A kid out of high school coming into the Army will receive a $20,000.00 bonus. Make sense? Not to me either. I’m re-reading Steven Womack’s Dead Folks Blues. It’s hilarious! I also picked up some Louis L’amour westerns for quick reads when I’m between things. Hitting the sack early tonight and calling Irene in the morning.
Aug 26: Sunday! First day of the last week of August. Man does that sound convoluted?! Called Irene today. She misses Erin, but is coping well, as she always does. The FOB is literally a buzz because we’re going to be allowed to play flag football. They held sign-ups and drafted last night, five teams total. Practice tonight, first game tomorrow night. Championship game October 4th. Irene is going to check into getting us some trophies. Everyone, including me, is very excited. Spent the morning working in the connex and distributing HA supplies to the Platoons. My air conditioner is running like a top. Billy the KBR guy, who is on his third tour and plans to leave when we do, came by and jimmied that thing right up. Thank goodness, cause it is Hot in that little tin box I call home without A/C. real character building. SSG Alexander still hasn’t made it home yet. His flight to Kuwait got cancelled. He is rescheduled for tonight. Fingers crossed. I’ve been watching Eureka, a cute little show with a catchy theme song. I still think Monk has two of the best theme songs. Fans know what I mean. Rumor has it that another Cav unit (Maybe 3rd ACR) will replace 3/8 once they leave. That would make sense.
August 27: Football practice/Scrimmage went well. We have a game tonight. The morning CLP that brings in chow, water, etc, got hit with an IED this morning. We heard and felt it on the FOB. It is estimated that 35 pounds of explosive was packed around some mortar rounds and placed in a culvert. It was a command wire. It left a crater seven feet deep. Luckily they missed, but it still pushed the Humvee thirty feet off the road. Thank God, no serious injuries, cuts, sprains, bruises and off course headaches. My response would be to send out a psyop team warning of the consequences of future IED attacks. The Iraqi citizens that live along Rt Milton would have to pay the price. 1. The Road would be closed to civilian vehicular and pedestrian traffic. 2. All buildings within 300 meters of Milton would be bulldozed and the residents evicted. 3. Selective mining of the area would be instituted. 4. Either side of Milton would be declared a free fire zone for American forces. Quick easy punitive, but non-lethal responses. Actually I think we should begin a serious campaign of imaginative non-lethal brutality. Inconvenience the Hell out of everybody in the AO. No more free passes. We won the season opener 21-20. I scored an extra-point and was stalwart on defense.
Aug 28: Early morning SP, 0630. A quick mission with Red Platoon, Lt Ruesnick, to do an assessment of Fuel points in the area. There were five all together. 3 non-operational, 1 functioning government station, 1 private semi-functioning, depending on fuel availability. Yes, for all of its oil resources, Iraq is in the midst of a crippling fuel shortage. The main issues contributing to the problem, old infrastructure/facilities, security and as always with the Iraqis, corruption. By far corruption is the chief culprit, once again the Iraqis prove to be their own worst enemy. Imagine waiting 36 hours in line for fuel, not just for your car, but for your generator as well, because you don’t have electricity. It’s very frustrating for everyone. The mission went well and I promptly got back to the FOB and slept for six hours because I have a horrible Summer cold. Still enjoying Steven Womack’s Dead Folks Blues. I also read Louis L’Amour’s The Tall Stranger and To the far Blue Mountains. Louis L’Amour really got me reading the Summer before I went into ninth grade. He was certainly an early favorite along with Edgar Rice Burroughs, Robert E. Howard and C.S. Forester. My first L’Amour book was Callaghen. My Dad had just finished it and left it lying next to his recliner. I think all of the men of my father’s generation had some kind of recliner. If not an actual throne, because it certainly dominated the room like one, it was working-class a status symbol. Anyway, I spent that whole Summer looking for and reading Louis L’Amour books. I remember it plain as day. There’s full moom out tonight and it really looks nice!
Aug 30: Joint meeting of the City and Sheik Council. We were there almost three hours. I was gunning. The meeting was held at the Youth Center, which I hate, because it’s right down the street fro JAM headquarters, no hesco barriers, we’re also surrounded by tall buildings on three sides, great vantage points to fire RPGs down at us. It’s just not good. The meeting was important because Captain Blankenship the outgoing C 3/8 commander was saying his goodbyes. But other than that not much else got done, because corrupt officials on both sides just accused each other of being, you guessed it, corrupt. It was smokin’ hot. The best part of the mission was working with green Platoon, Lt Couch. His guys are always top notch. We had a football game today and won 12-0. I’m wore out. The company comes by tomorrow and its payday!
Aug 31: Well, mail day didn’t work out. This is the first week that I didn’t get a package from somebody. It was bound to happen. Better luck next week. The company came by. It was good to see everybody. They did the monthly inventory and brought some supplies. There is a growing sense of resentment between the teams out in the field and the company. That’s unfortunate, but possibly inevitable given the way were spread out. I think some people had an unreal expectation of the kind of support they could get for the company. I didn’t expect them to do anything, si I haven’t been disappointed. I just tried to embed ourselves with Charlie Company. Make ourselves part of their company and that has worked for us. Speaking of Charlie company, they had their change of command today. Captain Blankenship turned thing over to captain Wahab, who is a West Point graduate. It went very well and since we had a boatload of visitors flown in by Helicopter (read big-wigs), we had a fantastic lunch of grilled chicken, steak, burgers and hot dogs. I skipped supper. Well, August has drawn to a close. A pretty good Month (high:160 degrees). Hopefully the pace will pick up somewhat. Still lots to learn. I’m still switching off between Steven Womack and Louis L’Amour.

posted by mhatchett at 1:16 pm (EST) on Sep 13, 2007

ug 1: The Captain and Graves went to the LSA today. Did some paperwork, cleaned up the office and posted on librarything. Internet fever continues unabated, as people try anything and everything to get faster service. Access to myspace is a must for some of the younger soldiers, it’s almost like an electronic addiction. Glad I sort of missed the boat. Phones are still down, so I missed my call to Irene. Hopefully they’ll be up soon. Chow doesn’t look too good tonight, so I’ll fix one of the meals that Irene sent me. Upped my workout today to three sets, boy do I feel it. Glad I’m taking tomorrow off. I’m lifting two days in a row and resting the third day, schedule permitting. Cut my runs out until the weather breaks. It’s just to hot, even in the morning. It was a nice day to get caught up on things. Good start to the month. Still rolling through Speaks the Nightbird, lots going on. Listening to Norman Brown, Better Days.
August 5: Busy few days. SSG Alexander is back. I took Graves to the TMC (Troop Medical Clinic) on the LSA. She has had a serious sore throat. We went out on a Area Reconnaissance with the company commander and Red Platoon today. Since Graves was sick, I drove. Quite a workout. We left at 7:30 and didn’t get back till 2:30 PM. We went down South to route Python which is AIF infested. This is all part of the Sheik security program that is getting started up. It’s part of the larger Reconciliation effort that has become quite fashionable throughout the country. The term “Reconciliation” coming to mean, just about anything a Brigade commander wants it to mean. I’ve ordered Graves and Alexander to use often and improperly. Obviously, I’m not a big supporter of “Reconciliation”. Just another gimmick. Nothing replaces success on the battlefield. I don’t know when these “Combat Managers” are going to learn that. Anyway, its way over my head. We were well off the beaten path, path often being the operative word, because the “roads” were some kind of tore up. We oftem found ourselves doubling or even tripling back because of crumbling shoulders, improvised road blocks and uncross able canals. Lt Ruesnick did a fantastic job navigating. The entire trip took about seven hours and we saw a lot of country. We also designated where we’d like the “Sheik patrol” to establish check points. Did I mention, they’re going to wear red shirts. I’m cringing. Chow was wanting, yet again. I got a couple of dried up chicken cutlets. I’m trying my hand at building some bookends. It’s actually going pretty well. A little rough, but they are prototypes. Called Irene today. She and Erin are spending some extra time together before the little one heads off to college. That’s a great thing. Still reading, Speaks the Nightbird. I don’t know how I missed it when it first came out. Pre-season football has arrived! Of course, Michael “I’m a thug, word that” Vick, has already doomed my Falcons.
Aug 6: Laid in today till about 7:00. Sent Graves down to the motorpool to get the truck checked over. Captain Silva is back from emergency leave. She might be getting a compassionate reassignment because of her home situation. She’s not on a team any more but I heard she might take over as the operations officer. She’s a really nice person and I hope things work out for her. One of the interpreters got sent back to Anaconda for sexual harassment. I don’t know what to believe. The latest story is that he was caught on his hands and knees trying to peek into one of the female shower stalls. I just have to shake my head. People just keep living down to my expectations. Drama on the FOB. My bookend project is coming along nicely. Watched a little of the rebroadcast of the Hall of Fame game. Irene’s birthday is coming up on Friday. Hope her present gets there on time. Not a bad Monday at all. Still reading Speaks the Nightbird. I found a hardback copy on ebay. I also ordered the sequel, The Queen of Bedlam, form Amazon. It’s due out in October.
Aug 7: Mail day! Got a nice card from my brother Chris. The line units staged a raid today. Net take 6 detainees and a few weapons. No one hurt. I read a policy letter concerning “Reconciliation” that was the most disingenuous document, I have ever seen in my life. The individuals who produced this masterpiece of delusion, have the privilege of leading thousands of U.S troops into battle, but seem to be without any sense of integrity or moral courage. The sheer B.S. took my breath away. I have to question the ethical make-up of the officers ultimately charged with our success over here. The level of self delusion that exists in theatre is truly astounding. They should all hang their heads in shame. Thank God, I don’t have children over here. If this is the best we can do, we need to leave ASAP, so the Iraqis can begin to fix their own country. They are the ones who have to do it, not us. They’ll kill each other for awhile, but that’s the price of rebuilding a nation. We went through it ourselves.
Aug 10: Happy birthday Irene! I’m going to call her later today, when she’s awake. This time difference can really be confusing. We took a trip to Paliwoda yesterday, which is the battalion FOB in Balad. White Platoon, Lt Pedderson and SFC Von Gohern, escorted us up. The Mayor of Ad Dujayl and the director of electricity rode with us. They had a meeting with the their counterparts in Balad about securing a mobile power station that Balad had stolen two years ago. Like everything else over here, it’s a very complicated story that involves greed, selfishness and corruption. We rolled with three tanks and three Humvees. It was a very pleasant trip up in the gunners hatch. A nice breeze sprung up from some place, it was only in the mid 90’s. It seems the meeting was very productive, with a follow on scheduled for next week. Got a very nice surprise because Major Meyer, our CERF manager, was onsite; we had a long visit that touched on a lot of subjects, principally the deterioration of the company. Lots of things going on that shouldn’t be. I’m trying to keep my distance. One of our soldiers is being sent home for a court martial. No one knows or is saying why. One of our team sergeants quit and went home, using some obscure loop hole because of a previous stateside deployments. Some feel he was entitled because things were so bad with his team. I don’t know. Again I have to say, I’m disappointed that our company hasn’t held up under the stress of development, but I’m very proud that my team has. And much of that has to do with our close relationship with Charlie company. We started today with a “Fun Run”. I did much better on this one. If you remember, I was sick as a dog last time. I would class this as a “Almost Fun Run”. I did get a shout out. Once the run was complete, we stood by for a Health and Welfare inspection after chow. They came through the chus checking general cleanliness and searching for illicit booze or porno. It was cake walk for us, because SSG Alexander and I keep our area straight. Mail day toady! I got some really nice boxes from Carolyn Cook, Gloria Manning and Emily Mandelbaum. Thanks guys, books and snacks!! What could be better? Well, never mind. Graves and I went junking and found two old field desks. We fixed them up and are using them as Chester drawers. Will forward photos.
Aug 11: Bad news. Captain Fematt has been working with this little girl and her father, trying to get the girl some medical care. She has some form of cancer. The captain actually got her up to Baghdad to see a specialist. He was working to try and get them back to the stated fro some medical care, but apparently she was worse than anyone knew because she passed away today. It was very sad. The captain drives me crazy, especially out in the field, where he is completely out of his depth, but he worked very hard to help this little girl. He does have good intentions. Got a haircut, worked out, piddled around the office. Around 4:00 PM, Graves and I got chow and wound up watching the New Orleans Saints-Buffalo Bills pre-season game. Sgt Rodriguez form red platoon got promoted to SSG yesterday. He’s a really good young man, who wants to join the border patrol or police department when he gets back home. Have to start getting some pictures of everybody befor they start heading home. Leaves start soon. SSG Alexander heads home August 21, Graves heads home September 12, I leave sometime in October and the Captain leaves sometime in November. We might make it up to Speicher for Labor Day. The end is in sight for Speaks the Nightbird. I haven’t figured it all out yet.

posted by mhatchett at 2:48 am (EST) on Aug 12, 2007

July 24: Big day yesterday, finally got my shelf up over my bed. Sort of like a little loft. It really cleared the chu up. It took me and Graves most of the afternoon build. I use the word build loosely. She thinks she wants one, but she’s not sure. She wants to see if mine falls on my head during the night. Oh, ye of little faith. We were supposed to go monitor gas distribution/rationing today, but we didn’t. Which I think is a good thing because we don’t have enough information yet. Lifted at lunch. Today is mail day, hurrah! Struck out with mail and chow. That’s OK, just means I’ll have a lot of mail on Friday. Had a couple of frozen pizzas for dinner. There are some days that you absolutely know, you’re are going to make it home. It’s simply a matter of riding the calendar, putting in your time. And the minute you think that, you know it’s a mistake. You always have to know that there’s chance, you won’t make it home. You can’t take it for granted. You always have to work at it.
July 26: I switched back to James Lee Burke’s Last Car to the Elysian Field. Ironic title to be sure, since there is very little of paradise to be found in these pages. Count on Burke to load his novels with the most mayhem, molestation, racial & social bigotry, insanity and still be able to pull it all together into a Catholic morality play. Jesus, Dave Robieheaux’s longing for peace or alcohol, whichever, almost makes me want to start drinking. I ordered some books from Nightshade publishers today. They had a 50% off sale. They put out some really neat titles, including a traffic set of Manly Wade Wellman books. I picked up David Drake’s Balefire, Grimwood’s 9Tail Fox, Glen Cook’s Sung in Blood and The Spiral Labyrinth. I really wanted the David Drake limited edition. Of course, I won’t be able to read them till I get home, but they’ll be waiting. I’ll have to keep track of how many books I’ve bought since I’ve been deployed. Just what I need, another list to keep track of.
July 27: Gunned for a few hours today. Between 130-140 degrees. An attention getter, that’s for sure. Just got back from checking out the scene of an Apache helicopter attack. Two guys had set of an IED and were observed by the gunship running into the house. Needless to say, the house isn’t there anymore. We spent a couple of hours nosing around the AO. We also did an assessment of the Ad Dujayl Teachers (Women’s) Academy. The U.S. Government spent $475,000.00 building it. What a dump!! Another CA project gone horribly awry. It’s not ever furnished. The City Council can’t, won’t? Allocate funding to take care of the needed furnishings. So, it has sat empty for two years and will probably stay that way for a long time to come. While we were there the line platoon handed out soccer balls and sundries. My God, what a riot! It was actually dehumanizing. Adults got into the mix, knocking kids to the ground, wrestling the balls and candy away from them. I swear, I felt like shooting a couple of them. Nothing is ever orderly. The strong just take from the weak and the slow. Well, today is mail day, fingers are crossed.
July 29: Check point 49 got whacked today and I mean whacked hard. We heard the explosion ten miles away. Thirteen IA (Iraqi Army) dead, the toll later rose to eight-teen. They just won’t learn. The crater was ten feet deep, twenty-five feet wide, they estimated it was a truck bomb carrying between 2-3,000 pounds of explosive. One of the Sergeants from the QRF (Quick Reaction Force) showed me some photos of the damage. It was gruesome. These Iraqi soldiers have got to get on the stick. So far, they make terrible combat troops. I got four packages from Irene Friday. She sent two boxes of movies and two boxes of snacks. She also included Robert McCammon’s Speaks the Nightbird. It starts out great. The Iraqi interpreters are going nuts because the Iraqi soccer team just beat Saudi Arabia (Now there’s a country, I’d love to smoke) for the Asia Cup, 1-0. The whole country needs something to cheer about. The month is winding down nicely, other than a Sheik Council meeting, we don’t have much planned for this week. SSG Alexander should be back soon.
July 30: Internet and phones down again today. Pretty inconvenient. Went to the Sheik Council today. Lots of fireworks as the new Iraqi Commander, General Fawsi, asserts control over the area. Of course, no one really wants to work together. We had a peaceful demonstration going on outside during the meeting. We were all on the look out for VBIEDS after the check point 49 incident. The citizens want Captain Hussein, who is a homeboy and possible JAM supporter, to come back from Samarra. Probably not going to happen. LTC West and this jerky Major went out with us. We were there about 21/2 hours. I hate sitting around that long, too easy to get a set-up on us. Continuing with Speaks the Nightbird, great read! Payday today, mail tomorrow, Living large!
July 31: Very, very good day. The company stopped by for the monthly inventory. It was really nice to see everybody. I meant to get pictures, but didn’t get around to it. SSG Thorton and SGT Dickerson came down for the first time. They’ve been fired off the their team by a real jerk. They’re very good soldiers. This is a classic example of a dirtbag senior NCO, screwing over good people, and a screwed up unit (1/319) letting him get away with it. CSM Schultze 431 CA, came down as well, she seems nice for the breed. I don’t care for SGMs much either. Most of the are officer’s lapdogs. Haven’t seen one of them over here, do anything for a soldier. SFC Ingram was also there, he just got fired from working with Captain Smith. Another scary individual. They stayed fro lunch. Got to visit with 1SGT Puckett and SFC Hoffman, kick a few things around. All in all, a very nice break. Mail came and I got a couple of anysoldier package full of HA supplies for the kids. I also got a box of books and a box of Healthy snacks from Glen Allen Library. They have done me proud, that’s for sure. And last but not least, I got a box of books fro the mystery writer Steven Womack. What a great guy. He and I have struck up a little internet friendship (no, I’m not stalking him). He’s one of my favorite mystery writers. (Harry Denton, set in Nashville: Dead Folks Blues, Torch Town Boogie, Way Past Dead, Chain of Fools, Murder Manual, Dirty Money. Jack Lynch, set in New Orleans: Murphy’s Fault, Smash Cut, Software Bomb. Non Series: By Blood Written). He was kind enough to send me some books to share out with the guys. He also sent me inscribed copy of Murphy’s Fault. What a great gesture. So get out there and read Steven Womack!! July has careened to a satisfying close. Tomorrow we start working our way through the truly, Dog Days of August. How hot can it get? I suspect we will find out. Speaks the Nightbird is great. I love everything about it.

posted by mhatchett at 7:14 am (EST) on Aug 1, 2007

July 19: 1/3 done! Eight months left. The Captain made it back last night, beat like a rug. We went to the JCC meeting today. I was gunning since SSG Alexander is still on leave. I think he’ll be back about the 26th or so. During the meeting Sheik Hassan threatened to kill General Dahfir, the chief of police, for being a terrorist. They’re cousins and hate each other from way back. The rest of the meeting was pretty uneventful. Someone a few streets lit off some small arms. It wasn’t directed at us, but the whole security detachment did that flinch, drop and scan thing, we do when we take fire. Good fire discipline, no one just cut loose. Convoyed back to the FOB, did some paperwork, filled reports, wrote letters. We’re getting rid of John, our interpreter. He’s just not cut out for small FOB life. He’s an old grouch to boot. Finished Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. It was OK. Good enough to try the second title a try. I’m about ½ through the Scepter’s Return, 3rd in the Dan Chernenko series.
July 20: Finished up The Scepter’s Return. The whole series was good and the conclusion was satisfying. Worked on a couple of office projects today. Graves is ill again. Could be the heat, the food, the water, or the bugs, take your pick. I told her to make sure she’s drinking lots of water and sent het to her chu to rest. The Battalion is making a big mistake I think. They have hired Sheik Hassan to form a local security force. If that doesn’t have private militia written all over it, I don’t know what does. Mercenaries at best, Death Squads at worse. I don’t feel good about this at all, but it’s way beyond me. Some of these dummies have confused reconciliation, with pay off. I think I’m going to start James Lee burke’s Last Car to Elysian Fields. I’m trying to watch a movie tonight, MI:2. It’s not working so far. Me and movies just aren’t clicking for some reason.
July 22: Jumped into action at 5:30 this morning. Just rolled over, wide awake. Got the vehicle ready to roll to Anaconda today, guns and Commo up. I don’t usually like going to Anaconda simply because the trips are too hectic. But the Captain didn’t load us down with a bunch of junk stops today. Our primary reason for going was to drop our interpreter off, trade him in, if you will. We’re going our separate ways. There were a lot of issues, but the bottom line is, John just isn’t suited to be at a small FOB like O’Ryan. There’s really nothing to do here but work, unless you’re willing to keep yourself busy, reading, exercising, visiting, improving your living area. You can’t be passive. The other problem was that John didn’t get along with the other interpreters. He was old enough to be most of their fathers, around 60, and he felt like they didn’t respect him. One less problem as far as I’m concerned. I’ve got too much to do to worry about a cry baby who’s making almost $175,000.00 a year. The rest of the day was very pleasant. We spent some time with the Paliwoda Team, had a good lunch, in my case tomato soup, grilled cheese, salad and sweet ice tea. Picked up a few books from the MWR. Comic Book Killer Richard A. Lupoff, One Step Behind Henning Manhell, Revenge of the Hound Michael Hardwick, Devils Night and Other Tales of Detroit, Strange Secrets Nick Redfern & Andy Roberts. I also picked up Swan Song Robert Mccammon for SSG Alexander. I stalled in the middle of James Lee Burke, picked up the Hobbit instead. Passed the Scepter of Mercy series onto Sgt Spoonmore, who works in the TOC. An avowed fantasy fan. We are few and far between over here. Last full week of July! Roll Summer, roll!!

posted by mhatchett at 11:38 pm (EST) on Jul 25, 2007

July 13: Happy Friday 13th! Thirteen has always been a lucky number at our house, so we’re not afflicted with paraskevidekatriaphobia. The Captain has left the building. He is headed out to another FOB to visit a CA Team Chief he knows there, to compare TTP’s and whatnot. It works out very well, because his daughter is stationed nearby, so he’ll be able to visit her. After reading The Chernagor Pirates, I picked up Robert Crais’s Sunset Express. I’ve read him before and I’m enjoying this one. I heard Joe Pike has his own book out, so I’ll look forward to reading that. I’ve got a little Larry Carlton on the CD right. A little Smooth Jazz chu action going on.
July 14: Not a bad day, clicked right along. I’ve put this off for awhile, but given all the water we have to drink and the so-so food we have to eat, I’ve got to address the……port-a-john issue. And it’s an important issue, because if it weren’t for port-a-johns we’d be (fill in the blank) out of luck. On our FOB there are few indoor facilities and those are located in trailers at the other end of the FOB, away from the work areas, clustered near the chus. So other then early in the morning or in the evening we don’t have access to them. The ubiquitous port-a-john is your only option. Now I know port-a-johns get a bad rap back in the states, but the port-a-johns over here aren’t like the ones you encounter at fairs, state parks, or low rent rock concerts, maintained or not maintained for weeks at a time by out of work carnies or deposed city council members, these are cleaned and pumped every day, sometimes twice a day. So they are a viable, if not all together pleasant option. A few port-a-john tips. Always knock, for your own sanity, always knock. Not everyone takes the time to throw the latch. Some neglect to throw the latch out of necessity, but most fail to latch the latch out of spite or a truly twisted sense of humor. Always carefully peek inside. We call it scanning in the business. After the initial scan, do through search to make sure everything you need is present. Just as importantly make sure no ones left anything extra behind. Spider Check: Look all around, keeping your head on a swivel, ceiling, corners, floors, jiggle the lid. Any sign of suspicious activity, move onto the next port-a-john. OK, you’re clear. Now lets say you’re in the midst of…..whatever, and you see a spider the size of a white land lobster. You have a split second decision to make. Do you fling yourself out of the plastic outhouse, in God knows what state of undress, in front of God knows how many people, bearing in mind that soldiers have a long cruel sense of humor. Or you play it cool. Pretend that you don’t see the spider or know about its jumping ability and craving for sweet, sweet, human flesh. Episodes like this actually hurry me along. Spiders aside, the heat and the smell are a deadly combination. No, I mean it. It’s like walking into a stinky, steamy sauna. If anyone ever turns up missing, I’m searching the port-a-johns first to make sure they haven’t been overcome by methane. The port-a-john. The real reason we get hazardous duty pay. I finished Sunset Express and I’m going to look for The Forgotten Man. In the mean time, I’m at loose ends, reading wise.

posted by mhatchett at 3:33 am (EST) on Jul 15, 2007

July 7: The Captain and John, our interpreter, went to Anaconda. It made for a very quiet day. Wrote some thank you letters to people who donated school supplies, straightened up the office. I finished the Green Mile. I haven’t read Stephen King novel in years, simply because his books just started getting enormous. I enjoyed The Stand, The Shining, Dead Zone, Cycle of The Werewolf, and as I’m sure I mentioned, I think ‘Salems Lot is a classic. I also think Stephen King is one of our very best short story writers. I liked the Green Mile. It was full of life. The best books are, regardless of genre. The platoons are running high tempo operations, almost around the clock. I wish you could see these kids, setting out in all their gear, fighting heat that literally dries your eyeballs out. I can’t say enough about these soldiers. I only wish it mattered, that their efforts and sacrifices were going to make a difference. I’m going to give Tyrannosaur Canyon, Douglas Preston, a shot. I’ve read a few of the books he’s penned with Lincoln Child and really liked them. First week of July down. Hell, Summer will be done before we know it. Might try to watch a movie tonight.
July 8: I did try to watch a movie last night, the rambling Chinese martial arts epic, Seven Swords. I started to lose interest after the wicked looking villainess with the shaved Goth haircut got killed. I’ll try to pick it up later. Sheik Hassan, the most persistent of the local crooks, showed up for a meeting today. Graves and Captain Fematt dealt with him, while I worked on the trucks. We got the residuals of somebody’s sandstorm, so it was dusty, almost overcast today and that kept the heat in the low 100’s. I haven’t talked much about our interpreter. He’s a 58 year old naturalized U.S. citizen. Originally from northern Iraq, John is a Christian who hates the people, the mission and everything else about Southern Iraq. He hopes all the Moslems kill each other. He really hates the whole country.
“I hate it. Why do you think I left?! I’m only here to make the money. I swear to God. Swear to God, they’re all devils. They deserved Saddam Hussien. They only understand killing.”
Anyway, most of John’s family lives in Detroit Michigan. He loves Michigan. He’s about burned out, in the middle of his third tour. I hope he gets shipped back to Mosul. It’s hard enough being here, without being miserable. Lifted at lunch today and had chicken for supper. I think we’re going to cut up the rest of the watermelon tonight. Called Irene this morning, sounds like everything is going pretty good. Fingers crossed.
July 9: The IA are taking an ass-kicking in this sector. An exlosion and small arms fire woke me up and 1:30 AM. The ran into another ambush. Similar results. This afternoon, they suffered 9 KIA, 18 WIA from a single IED. Catastrophic! They were piled into an unarmored truck traveling down MSR Tampa. No Force pro, or at best inadequate force pro. They just won’t do, what needs to be done. And they’re paying the price. Every time they get stomped, soldiers quit. I didn’t know that was an option, but you learn something new over here, every day. I spent a big part of the day getting SSG Alexander’s paperwork together, so he could go home on emergency leave. He heads out in the morning. I got some really good helicopter pictures. I’ll post them later. Long day. One of the Bradley’s burned to the ground today, the result of a suspected electrical fire. Quite a mess. Doled out watermelon last night.
July 10: SSg Alexander got out OK, this morning. The Bradley that burnt to the roadwheels, has set off a witch hunt. No one is sure what happened, but by God, we’re going to blame somebody. You should have seen the helicopters, circling like carrion crows over s charred carcass. The black smoke just kept pulling them in. No one was hurt but he vehicle is a total loss. The built in fire extinguisher didn’t even kick in. Got a couple of pictures. Had to lightly smoke Graves today, late for work again. I made her wear her IBA till lunch and write an essay, explaining how, as a sergeant, she would handle an otherwise good soldier, who couldn’t make it to work. She knew she was wrong and took it with good grace. Haven’t read the essay yet, I’m sure it will be enjoyable. The two Dan Cherneko books I was waiting for arrived with the boxes Irene sent. SSg Alexander’s birthday present, a copy of the Annotated Dracula also arrived, along with peanut butter(Chunky) and jam (Grape), tuna and lots of other treats. She’s the best. Lifted at lunch, tuna, soup and Gatorade afterwards. Supper was some kind of pork chop. No worries, Irene packed me plenty of munchies. Worked on some reports, wrote a few letters. Might be able to bribe a Sheik or two into behaving. That’s the new Corporate Army Way. We don’t kill people who misbehave, we bribe them. No wonder this ‘War” is costing 12 billion dollars a month. A month. That’s sin. Hell, if they want to go corporate, go all the way and run a risk/return investment matrix. What domestic program are we investing that kind of money in? If you’re an American, those numbers have to disturb you. Not to mention the deaths and human misery that continue unabated. I’ve discovered something about myself over here. I’m probably harder to get along with than I thought. Example; I don’t like “people” asking me what ‘m doing. Do you know why? Because it leads to other questions.
“What are you doing?”
“Writing an email.”
“To who??”
“ None of your damn business!” See what I mean. Or.
“What are you doing?”
“Eating.”
“Eating what.”
“None of your damn business.” See, hard to get along with.
I’m a full grown man. Don’t stand there quizzing me about inconsequential matters. Some people don’t get the whole personal space, privacy, intellectual property, none of your damn business thing. I gave up on Preston’s Tyrannosaur Canyon. Started Dan Chernenko’s Chernagor Pirates. Shout out to Great Books, Lakewood, WA, on Abebooks, for great service.
July 11: Listening to the incomparable Chet Baker, trumpet player, drug addict, lost soul, playing Moonlight in Vermont. I’m trying to force down a big bottle of water first thing this morning. You can't drink enough water. It can literally be the difference between life and death. For supper tonight, I had a Taco Bell Salsa Chicken Bowl, some Tostito chips and a strawberry Fanta. I have found that Fanta is very popular abroad. Irene sent me everything but the drink. It was pretty darn tasty.
July 12: Generators are seizing up in the heat. The KBR guys are right on top of it. We’ve only lost power for about 20 minutes at a whack. Worked on a couple of trash clean up projects today. Hope to get them funded soon. Passed some medical supplies onto the MITT team today. I’m working on building a table for our deck tonight. Might finish it tonight. Lifted at lunch. Cucumber and tomato sandwiches for supper tonight. I might get some ice cream later. I’m running right through the Cherenagor Pirates. Good sword & sorcery does that to me. I’ve got herb Albert and the Tijuana Brass on. Have to get my laundry together for tomorrow.

posted by mhatchett at 9:13 am (EST) on Jul 13, 2007

July 2: Company stopped by on the way out to Speicher. They had to drop off and wait for a Intelligence Analyst to meet with a local asset. The meeting went very well, I facilitated most of the setup and got the guy to ask a few specific questions about atmospherics in Ad Dujayl. Simply verified what we knew, for the most part. The Mahdi army is keeping it on the down low. No trouble expected from that quarter for awhile. We’re slated to go out and assess the electrical plant and the teachers institute this week sometime. Still haven’t started a book yet. I’m eyeing a western. The phones are still up and down. Lifted today, I’ll stretch tonight. Did manage to leave Irene a quick message. I wrote quarterly counseling statements for Ssg Alexander and Spc Graves. They’re both doing a great job. Another day down. Chow pretty soon.
July 3: Went out on a mission today. Had a scary patch when we lost commo with White Platoon (Lt Pederson), but everything was OK. Just crappy commo, as usual. How hard can it be to equip us with good, easy to use radios? Apparently, pretty damn hard. We went to the electrical office for a pre-assessment meeting. Only in Iraq!! The electrical office has no power of its own. It ”borrows” electricity from the neighboring water department’s generator. No electricity but a very nice indoor pool, in the electrical administration building. I don’t understand either. We went out with Green Platoon, Lt Couch, who made great Civil Affairs observation, when we arrived at 2:00 PM and no one was at work.
“How the Hell, can they rebuild the Friggin’ country, when no one works more then six hours a day, except us.” In all fairness, I feel some of the insurgents put in more then six hours, in a pinch. I got three watermelons for tomorrow’s 4th July celebration, which includes a traditional “Deck Raising”. The guys at the Iraqi Mart tried to charge me $20.00. I told them they had me confused with an officer. We negotiated down from there, eventually agreeing upon a mutually satisfying amount of compensation. Phones are still down. Big news, a Fun Run is scheduled for the morning!!
July 4: Happy 4th one and all! Mine hasn’t gone well, at all. Woke up at 5:30, sick as a dog. See, that’s part of the Fun, getting up earlier than you normally would on a duty day, on a day that you’re sort of, kinda off. Once you complete the Fun Run, of course. I thought these kinds of sick tricks were reserved for April’s Fool day. Finished the Run in pretty good time. Went back to the Chu and puked my guts out. That set the tone for the rest of the day. I went and got my blood pressure checked, 120/80, got some medicine, filled the bucket a couple of more times. Graves’ deck fell through, not because of my illness, I was actually out there, but because of inferior building material, selected by the commissioned member of our team. Felt 100% better, when I woke up at 6:00 that evening. I wish, I was a backwards bear and could hibernate through the Summer, instead of the winter. SSg Alexander went out for a fire mission this evening. He should be back around 9:00 PM, then we’ll cut up some watermelon. I took one over to the mess hall. Another day down.
July 6: Well, for one reason and another, Ssg Alexander was out till after1:00 AM. Mission accomplished, just not smoothly. I spent the 5th recovering from my Independence Day puking binge. Hopefully not an annual event. It wasn’t a pleasant 4th for any of us. Since none of us were up to par, Captain Fematt went to the JCC meeting with Captain Blankenship, C Co. Commander and White Platoon. About 45 minutes into the meeting, they got word that one of the IA mobile checkpoints had benn ambushed, IED and heavy machineguns. They terminated the meeting and headed north, past Balad, on MSR Tampa to investigate. It was bad. The IA units that have just deployed aren’t particularly well trained, led, or disciplined. They have very bad habits, bunching up, poor scanning skills and they are horribly predictable. They got hit with a complex, three sided ambush. Lots of brass left behind. The best that can be said is that they didn’t run. Believe me, that’s an drastic improvement. Still, they took a hard hit, 7 KIA, several WIA. The follow on action was very messy, lots of collateral damage. Messages spent both ways. A price will be paid. If not by you, by someone you know. Our Folks arrived well after the ruckus had died down, but Captain Fematt was shook up by what he saw. I hate to sound hard hearted, but he needed that reality check. He’s very complacent when we go out to Ad Dujayl, despite what has happened to other CA Teams. He’s so busy trying to help people, that he forgets that a good part of the population would like to cut our heads off with rusty knives, in front of video cameras. I never forget that! Ever! I hope this ugly incident refocuses him for the rest of the tour. Graves and I worked on the truck today. With the Captain’s approval, we put Graves in for an Army Achievement Medal. She’s certainly earned it. Called Irene and the was great!! I finally settled into Stephen King’s Green Mile. Never read it when it first came out. I started and passed on Vernor Vinge’s Deepness in the Sky. I’m sure I’ll comeback to it. The day’s half over, so I’m heading back to the office. Mail arrived at 3:30 and my gosh, the boxes I got. Bill and Andrea, Adams Elementary School, way to go Gators, Carolyn and the Bookmobile staff coming on strong with tomato soup and Cheez-its. They know me too well. I mean, I got a ton of stuff to share out. Plus letters from kids who hoped I was “having a fantastic time in Iraq” and wanted to know if I was going to have to fight in any other wars. I love kids. Graves got a wedding book and forty pounds of Girl Scout cookies. Short note on the heat. 138 degrees. The generators are starting to fail.

posted by mhatchett at 4:07 am (EST) on Jul 7, 2007

June 29: Pay day!! The Humvee is down getting some work done. A nice slow day, that hasn’t happened in awhile, I slept in till 8:00 AM. Not sure if we’re going out tomorrow or not. That irritates me no end. Sometimes the Captain can’t get his head up out of it. I got a letter and a package from my brother Stephen. He and his wife Irene are in their 40’s and are going to have their first child in November. A little baby Scorpion, it looks like. Worked on my deck a little more. I’d like to put a rock garden, we’ll see. Started Iain M. banks Look to the Windward. The company is coming down tomorrow, it will be good to see everybody.
June 30: I’m writing at lunch. The company was supposed to be here at noon. It’s almost 1:30 PM, so their held up somewhere. I’m sure everything is fine. The FOB is in the grip of internet fever. The Iraqi-Mart owners, focusing on customer demand, have brought in outside contractors to wire the Chus for internet access. The price is $3,000.00 for set up, than between $30.00-$100.00 dollars a month, depending on weather they like you or not. Price is personality and position driven. If you’re a lowly private and they don’t like you, cha-ching, you will pay out big time. Hated officers are also charged a lot, because they make a lot. Supposedly, they already signed up 100 FOB O’ryan subscribers. I’ll wait my turn at the MWR. Graves is experimenting with the service and will keep us posted. Now, if we could only get decent phone service, I’d sign up for that in a minute. But anyway, everybody is very excited that they will be able to get online without the Army looking over their shoulder. A little lethargic for the past couple of days. Have to shake it off.
July 1: Well, the company made it down, despite being mortared on Tampa. We met them at Anaconda for a belated promotion ceremony for Captain Starz, SSgt Alexander and Sgt Schultze. All well deserved. While we were there, I exchanged a movie that wasn’t working, for all things, a Looney Tunes Cartoon Collection. I think, I mentioned that I was having a hard time sitting through movies for some reason, but these cartoons fit the bill nicely. Reminds me of how much I loved cartoons with I was a kid, Jonny Quest (1964), King Kong (1966), Space Ghost (1966), Underdog (1966), Archies (1970), Hong Kong Phooey (1973), Pink Panther (1969). When Michael and Erin were younger, I used to watch Pirates of Dark Water (1991) with them, getting ready for school. When I was a kid, we were lucky to get three TV channels, two clear, cartoons were pretty much limited to Saturday mornings. I can still remember how we couldn’t wait for the new cartoons to come out in the fall. It was the only thing that made starting school bearable. Oh, that and Halloween being right around the corner. Anyway, the est of the day was thankful uneventful..The news around the company is somewhat strained. Every Team, but ours, has been at least temporary reorganized, primarily because of internal issues, personality conflicts, infighting, call it what you like. I think we can hold it together. I would do whatever I had to do, to keep Alexander and Graves with me. The captain, though irritating, has his good points. And As I’ve said before, we can work with him or around him, as needed. I was disappointed because the phones were down today and I didn’t get to call Irene. Had to settle for email. I’ve tried to start several books (Julie E. Czerneda, Survival; Engines of God, jack Mcdevitt; Junktion, Matthew Farrer and Iain Banks Look to the Windward.), but none of them bit. I’ll come back to them later. Sometimes, you have to be in the mood. One time I had a book, I had to start three times (Witches’ Hammer, Jane Hitchcock), owned it for over five years. Turned out to be one of my favorite books once I got into it.

posted by mhatchett at 4:20 am (EST) on Jul 5, 2007

June 24: Mahdi Army has arrived. With all the Shia heading for Samara, I knew it wouldn’t be long before they showed up. Things are going to get a lot more complicated. That’s not the big news. The big news is that our deck is done. I feel like Tom Sawyer. I didn’t drive a nail on this last part. Just brought out the tools, moved some wood around and in no time I was surrounded by Bob Vila want- to- bes, coming out of the woodwork, to do wood work. Sorry, I apologize. But really, about 8 guys showed up at one point, pitched right in, done in about 40 minutes. Men, we’re all suckers for power tools and barbeques. Finished The Bastard King. Enjoyed it so much, I bought the rest of the series. Started and finished Michael Crichton’s Eaters of the Dead, a modern spin on Beywulf. This book was the basis for the Antonio Banderos movie, the 13th Warrior. This is one of the few times I liked the movie better than the book. (Another instance being the Natural.) B were good, but oddly enough, the narrator Ibn Fadian, is more fully developed in the movie, rather than the book. The very nature of the book limits character development, confining Ibn Fadian primarily to the role of observer. If you get a chance to see the movie, I think you’ll enjoy Banberas’ understated performance. Not to mention an unknown and over-talented supporting cast. Heading to Anaconda tomorrow, mainly to pick up chairs and supplies for the big reconciliation conference on Monday. I’m driving the LMTV. My favorite.
June 25: The big event has arrived!! Graves and I w provincial watched two Blackhawks drop off dignitaries from Tikrit, the crookedess provincial capital in the country. They still have a street named Saddam Hussein boulevard. Rumor has it that the mayor of Balad, another big corrupt city, won’t even show up. Even the local JCC guy, essentially the head of security for Ad Dujayl, tried to back out. I think we’ll be lucky if we don’t get seriously mortared. Overall though, security looks good. The conference center (mess hall) cleaned up nicely. I’ve started Kazuo Ishiguro’s When We Were Orphans. I’m about 100 pages into it. I have to admit a weakness for books set in Shanghai between the wars. Two of my favorites are James Bradby’s Master of Rain and J.G. Ballard’s Empire Of the Sun. Shanghai was just such a melting pot of chaos and nationalities, evil and what not. We didn’t get mortared, but someone did fire an RPG over the Wire. Just a reminder. It came form the Iraqi Army side. Lt. Starz and his Team came down for the Reconciliation Conference. I think they’re doing OK. In the end, the meeting didn’t accomplish much, but it did get Iraqis talking.
June 26: Called Irene this morning and talked to Mike and Erin. Mike is heading back to Washington tomorrow. After that, got a cup of coffee and read on the roof till the CLP got here with breakfast. It was a nice way to start the day. It was comparatively cool, with a slight breeze, and what passes for a “view” around here. The crops are coming in and the surrounding fields are distantly green and lush looking. It takes talent to climb a ladder with a cup coffee first thing in the morning. Maybe not a paying talent, but talent. When We Were Orphans is progressing nicely. I’m sure it’s intentional, but the style is awfully stiff and formal. Yet oddly enjoyable and interesting. We shall see. Mail today, I am the envy of the FOB. Not only did I get my package from Irene, I also got packages from FA, DU & VA. I was literally overwhelmed. I must admit, I am pleased to see that the wrist tattoo has caught on in a big way. Thank you all so much. Ah, we just got mortared again. They’re getting a lot of practice, I just hope they don’t get any better. The LSA got hit with 9 consecutive rounds last week. They shouldn’t be able to set up that long without getting whacked. We’re so small, it would be a real problem if we got hit that many times, especially if we were loaded with CLP vehicles.
June 28: Usually, a soldiers most sincere prayer goes something like this, “Dear God, don’t let me…..mess this up.” This is especially true when you’re in charge, because if you do mess up, people get hurt or killed. A few nights ago, a convoy of 12 civilian vehicles, mostly trucks loaded with produce, ran into one of our checkpoints. Not my unit, but an adjoining battalion. You might ask why farmers were driving their produce around at 3:00 AM. One reason is that the produce keeps better if transported at night. They don’t have access to refrigerated trucks. The other is that they were Shia farmers, driving through Sunni areas. Unfortunately, they ran into a blacked out checkpoint. Lights came on, startled the farmers opened fire. Remember, almost everybody carries a gun over here. It was bad. Before it was over a helicopter made a pass, a house was hit, bunch of trucks destroyed and 7 civilians were killed, 3 wounded. They civilians were innocent, but stupid. The soldiers had every right to return fire but should have exercised some proportionality of force. A little fire discipline. Anyway, our team wound escorting the unit commander and a Platoon to the City Council so we could all make nice. In CA talk, this is called Consequence Management. The only problem is that 3/8, my unit, didn’t want their troops involved for political reasons, so I got stuck with being in charge of movement and security, with an experienced platoon at the last minute. Of course, the whole countryside is in an uproar, understandably. It was tense, no kids out. Bad sign. Got the cordon up, made a lot of folks mad because I set up a hard perimeter. Nobody in, once we started the meeting. Inside things started out tense, but once apologizes and reparations were offered, everyone calmed down. We finished up in about an hour and a half. The town has changed though. It is going to take awhile to win everybody back to our side, if they ever were on our side. The new guys did well, but it’s only a matter of time before we get into a scrap with the Mahdi Army, Ad Dujayal chapter. I finished When we Were Orphans. I liked the Chinese Lieutenant. Most of the Europeans, including the protagonist, seemed absurd and tragic. Uncle Philip, what a treat!! I’d recommend it, but it is a different kind of book. I’m at losse ends right now. Quite a few to pick from, just can’t make up my mind yet.

posted by mhatchett at 8:30 am (EST) on Jun 29, 2007

June 17: Sheik Council meeting went fine. Most of these guys are hereditary crooks, as opposed to the City Council who are the elected crooks. Keep the players straight. Went out with Red Platoon. They did a good job with security. Spent the day working on our deck. We ran out of wood, but we’ll finish it up and start Graves’ deck in a couple of weeks, maybe over the 4th of July. I sent a few photo’s off to Irene and the Library. Finished Dewey Lambdin’s The French Admiral and started his HMS Cockerel. Good historical fiction, but in many ways I prefer Alexander Kent aka Douglas Reeman, but Lambdin’s still enjoyable. I haven’t been able to watch many movies, just not in the mood I guess. Had cucumber and tomato sandwiches, with some chips that Irene sent, for supper. The mess hall had two kinds of mystery meat with gravy of questionable pedigree. Not in the mood for that tonight. It seems I’m doomed, unless it’s chicken. We have a mission tomorrow to visit the local water treatment facility. That should be interesting. Talked to Irene and Mikey today, that made it a great father’s day.
June 19: The mission was a success, but the Captain and I got into it because he has no tactical sense and little situational awareness and he gets upset when I over-ride him. I think what bothers him is that the team looks to me for leadership and guidance instead of him. Then he gets snappy with everybody. Well I put a stop to that nonsense and laid out his options, including asking the company to transfer me. No problem, but I couldn’t leave Graves and Alexander. These small flare-ups are going to continue because we’re just not all that compatible. I’ve told him before and I’ll tell him again, you take care of the CA stuff, I’ll take care of the shoot, move and communicate stuff. He really works hard at the CA part, but he’s just not a field soldier. Just how it is. I finished HMS Cockerel and moved to a Fantasy title The Bastard King by Dan Chernenko (aka Harry Turtledove). Got a load of boxes today from FA, NP, GL and VA. Thanks guys, you are doing a great job keeping me loaded with reading materials and sundries. In fact the Chernenko book came out of the NP box. Mike Baker sent me an email asking if I have a super secret Army name. And I do, sort of. My call sign is Blackjack 5. That’s just between us though. Blackjack 5 out.
June 22: Busy few days in and out of the wire. Our big trip to Paliwoda, 3/8 Cav Bn BUB (Battle update Briefing) was Wednesday night. As usual, an adventure. Captain Fematt and LT Migliorie, C co. EXO, finished up about 9:30. As we headed out, the artillery opened fire. Nothing like 155’s to get your attention, outgoing and incoming. I have to admit, I felt pretty good, 3 tanks and a Humv, running along like Kings of the Road. We were in the middle, the rabbit hole, all of a sudden, the second tank shuddered to a halt. Breakdown on Tampa. Lights out ,security up, while the tank crews rigged for towing. Now it is tense, sitting in the middle of the road, in the of the night, in the middle of Iraq, with a disabled vehicle. We all deal with stress in our own way. Unfortunately our Captain routinely deals with it by vocalizing all of his anxieties.
“Any minute, I expect tracers to hit us. Probably RPGs too, huh?”
“Sir, knock it off.”
“I’m just saying. What’s taking so long, huh? They just have to hook up a tow strap, right, huh?”
Sir, they have to disconnect the differential and a couple of other things. It’s a little more involved than just hooking up a tow bar.’’
“here comes a truck. Where’s it going???”
A small pongo truck is moving about 500 meters in the distance, lights glaring, crossing the road at a right angle, tracked all along by the recovering tanks maingun.
“Keep an eye on it Sir.”
“I will” Excitedly.
“Good job.”
Cursing drifts down the gunners hatch. I tap Ssg Alexander’s leg, Graves’ shoulder, we’re good.
On the road and back to Oryan by midnight. Success. I just don’t know. But we’ll keep working on things. Thursday Captain Fematt and Graves met with visitors from city council. Ssg Alexander and I worked on the trucks and weapons. Nice easy day. Rumor has 3/8 Cav will move back to Anaconda in September for redeployment to the States between November and December this year. I hope for their sake it’s true. It could be bad for us though. New unit to work with, possible transfer to another FOB, lots of weird possibilities, none of them all that good. I’m ¾ of the way through the Bastard King and have already ordered the other two books in the series, The Chernagor Pirates and The Scepter’s Return from abebooks. Ssg Alexander has started reading the Historian and was surprised at how much he enjoyed it, so far. He’s never read Dracula, so I ordered him an annotated copy for his birthday, which is coming up in July. If you’re going to read about vampires, you have to start with Bram Stoker. My favorite modern vampire novel is Salem’s Lot Stephen King, followed closely by Blood Sucking Fiends: A love story, Christopher Moore and Already Dead, Chalir Huston. Maybe I’ll get SSg Alexander a copy of Salem’s Lot for Christmas. Little Pizza for lunch for lunch today, with Gatorade, to replenish electrolytes. Have received several great boxes from CHPL. Thanks for thinking of me Guys. I really miss you and our patrons. It will be great to get back to being a Librarian!!
June 23: Just for the heck of it, I thought I’d list all the stuff I carry around in my uniform. Now, this is just my FOB hopping uniform, noy my outside the wire, kick ass and take names uniform. Starting at the bottom left side trouser pockets, just above my boots, I carry a sure fire flashlight, right side I carry a 9mm magazine. Left thigh pocket I carry an all weather leaders/notebook, right side my wallet, 2 Hemcon pressure bandages, 2 packs of Oral Rehydration salts, right pocket handkerchief. On my belt, I wear a Gerber tool on my left side, a 9mm Berretta on my right side. I also wear suspenders, it’s more comfortable. My uniform also have replaceable knee/elbow pads, a real bonus if you’re a klutz like me. Jacket, left side lower pens, Left upper pocket camera, right upper sleeve, glass case, GPS, ROE (Rules of Engagement) card, dog tags. I don’t load the front pockets, because things et crushed if you have to get your IBA on in a hurry. I sometimes carry a small boot knife, but not always. I figure, I night as well use a grenade, if they get that close. Speaking of which, they found those two missing soldier’s ID cards up in samara. If I had my way, we’d truck the whole population out to a relocation camp and bulldoze the entire town, than they could rebuild the Mosque in piece. If I was in charge, those poor engineers would never get a rest. Every time an IED or ambush was triggered, I’d bulldoze everything in sight. Sometimes brutality is the easy and right answer. Not always, but lots of times it can be the answer, the show stopper. And if you don’t want to use that tool when needed you’re in the wrong business. Not ever using it, is as bad as overusing. That’s a fact. I’ll tell you this right now, if we fought WW II, the way were fighting this war we’d all be speaking German and Japanese. I can’t see Patton, Macarthur or Curtis Le May putting up with this nonsense. I don’t want to hear that this is a different kind of war, if it’s important enough to fight it, by God, it better be important enough to win it. Heck, we actually won the war four years ago, now they’re trying to recreate the success of the post WW II reconstruction, without the genius, drive and commitment of the people that were involved. Sorry for the rant, but I found myself worrying about these kids over here and I just get furious.

posted by mhatchett at 5:38 am (EST) on Jun 23, 2007

June 13: I am within striking distance of finishing The Historian. I really like it. The book is a weird mix of novel, travelogue and history, sort of Bram Stoker meets Robert Kaplan (Balkan’s Ghost). It makes me want to tour Eastern Europe. I should finish it tonight. Unloaded and sorted medical supplies for pick-up and distribution by the Iraqi Army. Heard they bombed the Golden Mosque at Samarra again. What more can I say, the event speaks for itself. The 1Sgt is back and apparently there’s been some kind of big reorganization up at HQ involving the CAT A/B teams at Speicher. Don’t know what it all means, but I’m sure I’ll hear about it soon. Hope we have chicken tonight!! Ssg Alexander goes on leave July/August, Graves goes in September, I head out in October. Will Downing “Cool Water” just came on. Great song!! Captain Fematt goes in November, in time for Thanksgiving. So we have a few things to look forward to, especially football season. My baby Erin graduates from Highland Springs today. I’m really proud of her, she’s such a good kid. Headed for JMU this Fall. Wish I was there, their having cake!!
June 14: It is so hot, it’s like walking around in a dryer. The wind blows hot, hot, hot. Early morning, between 5-7, are really the only comfortable times. Went to the City Council meeting, Captain Fematt and Graves dealt with various issues, including welfare fraud by the several council members. One guy had ten family members signed up. I told you before, they steal everything. As I mentioned yesterday, the Golden Mosque got hit again. Inside job. So much for our credibility, not to mention the Central Government. National treasure we’re supposed to be rebuilding and we can’t even manage to keep it from being destroyed. Oh, the new twist, let’s arm the Sunni’s. Boy geniuses at work again.
June 15: I finished The Historian. I enjoyed everything about it. So who was the Historian, in a book full of historians? I’m guessing Dracula. Can you imagine living through so much history? It boggles the mind, mind boggling if you would. He certainly didn’t strike me as a remorseful, melancholy character, certainly ruthless, but not particularly “Evil Incarnate”. And what an opportunity for a librarian, a scholar, to handle, read and learn from the greatest books and manuscripts of the ages, not mention learning from a teacher who had been there, lived it, maybe even shaped it. That would be a temptation wouldn’t it. I’ll admit, I’d probably be a vampire. A helpful, considerate, well groomed vampire, but yeah, my curiosity probably would’ve gotten the better of me. Maybe. Just started one of the books my Dad sent me, Dewey Lambdin’s The French Admiral. I love good naval adventures. I started with C.S. Forrester’s Hornblower series, when I was a kid and haven’t looked back. I’ve scrounged up a bunch of scrape lumber and Ssg Alexander and I are going to try our hands at deck building. The finished product won’t look any worse than some of these other decks. I’m not going to mention how hot it is anymore, it’s just too redundant. I’ll just mention when it finally cools off. I got the 2 boxes Irene sent me today. Excellent stuff, as always, including salsa, a dart board, banana bread, crab soup, and lots of sundries. Just got word, we’re heading out on another mission in the morning. See how it goes. June is half over.

posted by mhatchett at 12:05 am (EST) on Jun 17, 2007

June 6: Slow day today. Some minor office work, vehicle maintenance. Worked out at lunch. Continuing with The Historian, it’s still holding up. We were able to promote Sgt Alexander to Ssg today. He was pleased and surprised. We invited Ssg Edwards, who is the HQ Platoon Sgt and was deployed with SSg Alexander in 04/05. No action planned this week, ther than a supply run to Anaconda on Friday.
June 7: Horrible news today!! One of the Air Force EOD kids got killed today. I spoke to him briefly on the way to the shower this morning. I can’t tell you how angry we all are. He only had three weeks left till he went home. He was a good guy, had a young wife waiting for him. H e loved to play basketball in the evenings. It happened late morning here, back home his family is still asleep. When they wake up, he’ll be gone. They won’t have a husband or son coming home in three weeks. I know he didn’t feel anything, just as I know he’s in a better place, but the pain he left behind will linger with all of us until we all met again, in that better place. As terrible as it sounds, our luck is still holding. Seven soldiers were the blast radius and we only lost one. No one else was even nicked. You have to count your blessings, especially in the midst of tragedy.
May 8: Quick run to Anaconda. Mostly to pick up H/A and Medical supplies for the Iraqi Army. Graves is still dragging from her dental adventures. Had a couple of little pizzas for lunch today at one of the big mess halls. It was pretty good, they have ice tea, which is a treat. Sometimes, they have really good watermelon, but not today. I got a couple of letters today from Joanne Bowman, singing the praises of new libraries and Faye Kellerman. I also got a really nice card from Miss Preston and the Ladies at the Carriage Hill Book Club. A nice way to wrap up the day.
May 9: Every army is usually accompanied to war by camp followers and our army is no different. Many of our camp followers are American contractors who work for countless companies that provide a myriad of services from helicopter maintenance and security, to food preparation and janitorial work. The other camp followers are TCN (Third Country Nationals), usually Indian, Sri lanken or Filipino. KbR and other large companies, even AAFES (Army Air Force Exchange Services) employ thousands, maybe even tens of thousands of these people. Some hold highly skilled positions, but most are manual laborers who perform the most menial back breaking work. Imagine coming to a war zone to clean latrines for a living. It happens. And these people are the lucky ones. They have work and at least by local standards they’re paid well. Most of the send a big part of their checks home. You can see then standing in line every pay day at western Union. One of the workers came to me asking for help for his brother, who works at Talla Far, north of Mosul. He told me his brother and about 150 other Indian workers were being kept in virtual slavery, having not been paid for seven months, housed in poor conditions and only fed a small amount of rice each day. I obviously reported the company involved to the chain of command. I hope someone does something to help these people. I wish I could say I was surprised, but this country is si corrupt, even this craziness wouldn’t surprise me. And it affects us too, we just turn a blind eye to corruption, because it is so widespread. The officers just look at you like you’re extra slow child when you complain. “it’s their culture. We can’t do anything about it. We have to work with them to get things done.” In the meantime projects are skimmed and skimmed, until there’s nothing left for the poor people we’re supposed to help. Oh, wait, we only help crooks and rich people. What was I thinking? The crooks steal everything and anything, oil, gas, money, pipes from irrigation projects, wiring from schools. Nothing is safe. And nothing will be until they get a real strong legitimate government.
June 10: Trip to Anaconda to pick-up more medical supplies. They also had the memorial service for the Air Force EOD kid who was killed earlier this week. I’m still reading The Historian, but I cheated and started and finished another book, because I didn’t have access to The Historian. I read Jack Campbell’s first installment of this series, Lost Fleet: Dauntless. The second book, Fearless is pretty good. Not up to Weber at his best, but not bad. One of my favorite titles of the military/sci-fi genre is, “We Died at Breakway Station” by Richard C. Meredith. Very dark and compelling. Long out of print, only available in used bookstores or on abebooks.com, but well worth the search.

posted by mhatchett at 10:06 pm (EST) on Jun 11, 2007

June 3: Went to Anaconda today with the CLP (Combat Logistics Patrol). We had to meet with the company, do an inventory, and draw some equipment. On top of that, Graves had to have two wisdom teeth removed, I had to stop by the Harris shop for some parts and to schedule some training and we still had to swing by to pick-up some HA supplies. Oh yeah, my Captain had to pick-up pizza and chicken wings for Captain Huessian, the IA (Iraqi Army) officer that we work with sometimes. Obviously it was a tight day. We have to meet back for the CLP at 2:30 PM. Lots going on, tight schedule, overloaded vehicle, because the Captain insisted we bring the interpreter. Now the interpreter is a nice guy, way overpaid, but nice guy. But if he’s not translating, he’s just taking up space, space we need. That’s just the way it is. Last time I checked, they spoke English in the PX, Philippine influenced English, but English none the less. “No we can’t leave him, he’s part of the team. We’ll hurt his feelings, blah, blah”. So at the end of this madness, Graves gets quarters and stays at Anaconda. Extra seat?? Not really, because we’ve picked up so much gear from the company, the crew compartment is packed. The trunk is full of kotex pads, toothbrushes and beanie babies and Captain is freaking out about getting Captain Huessian’s Pizza and Wings. And once it’s picked up weather it’s secure. Well, it’s as secure as it’s going to get in an overloaded Humv, heading down a road where we’ve been hit by IEDs twice already. God, what mess that would be, Kotex, Pizza, toothbrushes and Beanie Babies all over MSR Milton. He still wants to stop for chicken wings. We just make the CLP. By just make it, I mean we get there at 2:30. CLP leaves at 3:00 PM. That’s just in time for the Army. Oh, no!
“We have ½ hour. We can go get chicken wings.”
“No sir, we can’t”
“We have time.”
I put my foot down.
“Sir, we are not leaving here to get chicken wings. It’s not going to happen.”
He starts to sulk. My gunner wants to shoot him.
“Hey!! Who put stuff on my (Expletive) pizzas. (There lots of expletives used in the following exchange. I’ll leave them blank ans you can put in your personal favorites.)
“Sir, the Pizzas are fine. I had to move some gear so Sgt.Alexander can move around in the (Expletive) gunners hatch.”
A voice wafts down from the gunners hatch>
“(Expletive) those pizzas!! We shouldn’t even have them in the truck!!”
“ I just paid $42.00 for those (Expletive) Pizzas. If they were your Pizzas, you’d be more careful with them.”
“I can’t believe we’re arguing about (Expletive) Pizzas. The gear is barely touching them.”
“I should’ve just put them in my lap.”
“You want something in your lap? How about my (Expletive) loaded weapon, since I’m driving. (He’d left his M-4 back at the FOB). He shakes his head No.
“No! Well sir, that’s a bunch of (Expletive). I don’t want to hear anymore about (Expletive) Pizzas, the rest of the (Expletive) trip.
We arrive safe and sound, Pizzas, Beanie Babies, Kotex and toothbrushes, thankfully intact. Mission accomplished. Now my rant. This is a guy, who just spent $42.00 on Pizza for an Iraqi Captain he just met. I’ve been keeping this guy out of trouble for months, since Ft. Bragg and he hasn’t bought me, or anyone else on the Team, so much as a hotdog. Oh’ by the way, I bought him and Graves combat patches today. No good deed goes unpunished. Pizza in the Combat Zone, hot and fresh, sort of. This is the kind of stuff that accelerates into craziness. Enough ranting. OK Jennifer and Emily, I’ve started The Historian. Another 800 page book, what have you gotten me into? I like the way it feels, so far. Called Irene today and sent Erin her graduation card. Happy and sad at the same time, bittersweet. Life’s like that a lot of times. Why is that? I guess because much of life is pretty fleeting. My Dad sent me a box of books. Mostly Dewey Lambdin naval adventures. He did include a copy of “Panzer Aces: German Tank Commanders of WW II.” Great picks. A few loose ends to finish up and I’ll call it a day.
June 5: Ran this morning. What a difference! I was running at 7:00 PM but it’s not even cooling off until 9:00 PM, so some days it was 90+ when I was running. It wore me out! But, I’m hard-headed, I like to try to keep my schedule, once I set it. Anyway, I won’t call it cool at 6:00 AM, but it’s much better. I’m lifting at lunch. Not very crowded and everyone, including me, is working out in tee-shirts, ACU (Army Combat Uniform) and boots. Our gym is a tent, GP Medium, with a hard floor and A/C. I’ll send some pictures. It’s not bad at all. Today is mail and laundry day. I got a couple of packages from Carolyn Cook and a letter from Kathy M. Thanks guys!!! Boz Scaggs is on my Zune playing “Payday”. Laundry is good basic service without bleach. I don’t get it. But clean socks, underwear and uniforms are a great thing. Simple pleasures. Had an omelet for supper tonight. The chow continues to crash and burn. Picked up a truck from service. Sgt Alexander is getting promoted to Ssg this week, he doesn’t know it yet. Well deserved, he’s a great young man. I wouldn’t trade him for the world. Graves’ dental woes continue. They’re keeping her at Anaconda for follow-up work. Who knew getting a grill, would be such a pain? The heat continues to impress. I’m 200 pages into The Historian. Very Atmospheric and a gypsy, as promised. The Line Platoons are running 24 hour kinetic operations. Things are very hectic right now. We’ve been very lucky, our kids are going out and coming back in one piece. Most of them are very good at what they do, but I always like to have a little luck on my side, after all Caesar and Napoleon were fond of lucky soldiers. Good night Gracie.

posted by mhatchett at 6:21 am (EST) on Jun 7, 2007

May 22: In three days of heavy kinetic operations 4/9 Inf, part of the Stryker unit that is on our FOB, has lost 11 troops KIA/WIA. I suspect Summer has arrived. It’s only going to get worse for them and us. A lot worse for them, I guarantee that. Packing for our trip to Speicher and our meeting with the PRT (Provincial Reconstruction Team).
May 24: We arrived at Speicher at 0330. We were supposed to depart Anaconda at 0115 and arrive at Speicher at 0200. We got diverted to Taji, which is almost in Baghdad, completely opposite direction of Speicher, then we went to FOB Warhorse, back to Taji and then onto Speicher. We were in the helicopter so long, I thought we earned an Air Medal. But that’s travel in Iraq. I still get a huge kick out of flying at night. I feel bad for those who don’t. They really suffer. Plus this pilot threw that bird around like it was an Apache and not a Chinook. Good Times!! Our ride was late, so I stretched out on a picnic table and got a few minutes sleep. 1sgt found me sprawled out. They just get a huge kick out of me being able to sleep anywhere at a moments notice. Why waste the time, I say. Got settled in took a 2 hour power nap, much needed shower and off to chow at 0745. First decent breakfast in a month. Spent the rest of the morning getting the lowdown on what’s happening in everyone else’s AO. Listening to Willie Nelson’s rendition of “September Song”. Still reading and enjoying Jonathan Strange. Napoleon has just abdicated.
May 25: Had the PRT Conference today. It was at once, informative and frustrating. Informed that August was the tipping point. Show results or……..what. Who the hell knows? We are spending money and lives in a reckless and misdirected effort to “Save Iraq”. This “Country” has been lost since its inception. You can’t save what never was. We should be using this money to save America and assisting our neighbors to the South, Mexico and Central America. We should be working to build stable healthy countries in our own hemisphere. Every cent and life spent here is a waste. I even spoke to a State Department guy and he agreed. He told me we had never spent his kind of effort and money on so frivolous a cause. This was a professional State Department employee with years of experience. You can’t save a tree by pruning, when the roots are rotten.
May 27: Called Irene today. Always the highlight of my day. We are flying out tonight at 2145. It was great to come up and see the other teams. Some are doing better than others, but we’re all safe and intact. Fingers crossed. Leave forms have started going in, some folks are going on leave as early as mid-June, a little more then two weeks away. 1Sgt Puckett’s grandmother passed away and he returned home on compassionate leave. He should be back by June 5. The heat is getting intense and steady. Even the nights remain hot, only dropping into the 80’s. But you have to stay out in it, get acclimated, you can’t try to hide inside all the time. Air conditioning is a crutch!!!! I like it, but you can’t count on it. They found one of the three missing soldiers, recovered his body from the river, signs of torture. This poor guy was already wounded. Sad, frustrated and angry, you’ve got to go down smokin’. There are no POW’s here, just deferred dead people. Believe it.
May 28: Flight was scrubbed, sandstorms. We are trapped at Speicher with its excellent mess hall, surround by our friends. How cruel a fate! Some people seem really upset. They seem to forget we are in a war zone, schedules and plans are flexible at best. I try to take it stride. If you’re not at home, does it really matter where you spend the night? We’re all safe, definitely comfortable, what the hell else matters? Happy Memorial Day, semi-official first day of Summer, 110, lots of sand, no beach. I prefer the mountains and lakes anyway. Our second holiday in country, the first being Easter. Jonathan Strange’s wife has just “died”. I’m enjoying the book, just don’t get time to really sit down and read big chunks at a time. The only downside to being at Speicher, as far as I’m concerned, is missing our mail. Nothing here is simple. A ten mile drive can take an hour and a half. Very little long distance driving, that doesn’t require a major convoy. That’s because we’ve surrendered operational tempo along the MSR’s ( Major Supply Routes) to the enemy. It irritates me no end that these field grade officers can’t get their game on. I know we’re fighting with our hands behind our back, but securing movement in your AO is job one. If you aren’t doing that you aren’t soldiering. We’re having a cookout today. I hope it goes well. The company has changed since we’ve deployed, that’s to be expected. Stress and strain have taken a toll on all of us. I know, I have to work extra hard to keep my temper in check. I’m too much of a realist, not a pessimist, to see where all this is heading. Everything is an exercise in lunacy, utter futility. Looks like we’re heading out tomorrow night at 2245. I washed my own clothes using a weird looking but effective washing machine. I used bleach, what a treat, my whites were almost white. Irene’s never going to let me bring this stuff in the house!!
June 1: We got out Early on the 29th, a rare daylight flight. We got to fly on a Blackhawk. It was neat. Got a few pictures. Finished Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell. I liked it. I’m sure there will be a sequel to answer all the unresolved issues. I really enjoyed all the secondary characters and their stories, many still left unexplored. It was almost too long and the magic wasn’t quite right, my only complaints. I wish I could have read it at home, during the winter, when it was too damp and cold to get out comfortably. Maybe I can read the sequel that way. I know I said, I was going to read The Historian next, but I need something a little lighter, so I’m reading a sci-fi book, The Clone Republic by Steven L. Kent. I’ll tell you some books I liked a lot, the Mickey Rawlings baseball mysteries by Troy Soos. The books chronicle the adventures of utility player/amateur detective Mickey Rawlings, who played for some really great baseball teams during the early teens and twenties. The first book, Murder at Fenway Park, sets the standard for the rest of the series. These books are the complete package, great to read and look at. The books are designed to look like old baseball cards. I own all of them. Fun, fun books. Spent most of yesterday pulling security at the JCC (Joint Coordination Center). Today was vehicle maintenance and office work. Worked out pretty hard this evening, so I’ll get to bed pretty early, 8:30-9:00.

posted by mhatchett at 8:43 am (EST) on Jun 2, 2007

ay 18: An interesting couple of days, though today was quiet. I finished Clive Cussler’s Traesure. It was wild ride. I might read another one, we’ll see. I’ve jumped right into Charles Todd’s Long Shadow. I like Charles Todd and Rennie Airth, who also writes post WW I mysteries, River of Darkness, Blood Dimmed Tide. The people who lived through that turmoil, WW I, influenza pandemic, millions and millions of people dead, lives ruined, Russian Revolution, it’s a wonder they muddled through at all. God bless ‘em. Puts things in perspective around here. We were coming back from Ballad the other night, after the battalion BUB, light rain, but an awesome lightning storm, the kind of lightning strikes that put your hair up just looking at it. As we continued down MSR Tampa, the AIF (Anti Iraqi Forces, who makes this stuff up) fired flares to mark our convoy’s progress. Then we got a call on the radio, notifying us of a potential ambush. I wasn’t too worried, but with the lightning going off, you felt like you were already under fire. Muzzle flash, lightning strike, hard to tell, especially when you’re already jazzed up. I didn’t feel like anyone really wanted to tangle with five up armored Humvs and an m-1 tank. Tanks don’t make people smart, but they do make people think. We passed through the ambush site without incident. Went to City Council meeting the next day. Graves and Captain Fematt are doing a good job imposing some structure and expectations on the council. Progress is being made, maybe, who knows.

May 19: Finished Long Shadow. I liked it. Not much going on today, weapons maintenance, vehicle maintenance, office work. Civil Affairs work is a strange, strange world. Who’s lying, who’s stealing, who’s corrupt, and who’s plotting to kill you?? They all are. They’re all crooks, just varying degrees of crookedness.
May 20: Started the day with a Fun Run. A Fun Run consists of two laps around the FOB. A kind of steeple chase event that involves jumping over ditches, huge ruts, left over from the rain, and dashing through a hazmat area that used to be the fueling point. The CA Team acquitted itself well, finishing in the top 10%. I smoked quite a few youngsters. I was like an old (older I should say) shark, swimming through a pod of young playful dolphins. They never saw it coming!! Some got indignant, when they realized who was passing them and tried to put on the extra burst of speed. No way, once I pass you, you stay passed friend. After the run, when no was around, I puked. After all, it was a Fun Run!! I have started a tanning regimen. Not because I’m vain, as most of you know, but because, well because having real tan hands and face, while the rest of you looks like the underbelly of a fish is…….ugly. At my age, I’m all about functionality, but it was bad. Half hour a day. I’m not looking to become the next George Montgomery, but it’s bad, just bad. I would tan by running without my shirt on, but that’s a no go. Just like you’re not allowed to walk and smoke. I’m sure there is a tie-in somewhere. Lunch today, little frozen pizza, diet Pepsi. Started a new book, Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell. In the batters box, The Historian, highly recommended by Jennifer and Emily M. More crazy ROE (Rules of Engagement). Aircrews can not engage individuals emplacing IEDS, if those individuals do not pose an immediate threat to the aircrews themselves. The enemy can not demoralize us, only our own chain of command can do that. Cry Havoc, I say!! Once again politics are placing American soldiers in untenable situations, making them weigh split second decisions, with an eye towards adjudication. I believe Civil War here is inevitable and well under way. The Iraqi’s only see “Little Iraq”, they don’t understand the concept of “Big Iraq” No sense of Manifest Destiny at all. Everyone is a victim. Let them stay small if they choose.
May 21: Listening to “Sneakin” by Nils off the Pacific Coast Highway CD. I’m about 250 pages into Jonathan strange and it’s almost “too Charming”. But I’m enjoying it. The magic part, is of course completely off base, but that’s to be expected of a lay person. We went to the range today and fired quite well. Came back, cleaned weapons and restocked ammo. Had a cereal bar for breakfast, a frozen pizza for lunch which was both frozen and burnt simultaneously and at the same time. I know, it’s a gift. Omelet for supper, Girl Scout Thin Mints for dessert. The food here for the past couple weeks hasn’t been very good. It looks like the whole chain of command here is getting relieved. They’re trying to keep it low key and make it look like it’s just everyone’s time to rotate, but you don’t rotate the commander, executive officer and 1Sgt at the same time, without “cause”. Rumors abound, which I won’t discuss. Another murder down south on MSR Tampa, 7 people, including women and children shot for religious reasons. And God wept.

posted by mhatchett at 3:10 am (EST) on May 22, 2007

May 11: I see, I’ve neglected to write about how, I almost pulled my finger off. Well, I didn’t neglect to, I waited till I told Irene first. That’s what usually do, hold back bad stuff till I can let Irene know first. Anyway, I was loading supplies on the PLS (flatbed truck), jumped off and hung my ringer finger. Ouch! Almost broke my finger, left a huge gouge. Irene can tell you how I am about doctors. So, I slapped a hanker chief on it and went about my business, waiting for it to magically heal, like it always does. Yes it hurt like hell, but lots of stuff was happening, time sensitive stuff. Anyway, long story short, finger is not broken, just swollen like a Bratwurst, eight stitches, that come out in a week. A little pain can serve as a big reminder. Plus I’m sick as a dog. Don’t know what I ate, but it is not sticking around. I’m going to catch some rack time and take it easy today. That’s a luxury that a lot of people don’t have.
May 12: “Zelazny’s best book. Joe Haldeman, Author of Worlds’. I like Joe Haldeman, I like Zelazny. I didn’t like this book. Nice concept, some good points, but it stumbles in the end. I’m starting Randy Wayne White’s Dark Light. We’re supposed to go to Anaconda tomorrow to find good used tires for Ad Dujayal’s fuel trucks. I’m 95 pages into Dark Light and I really like it. Still feeling sick, so off to shower and hit the hay.
May 14: Finished Dark Light. I thought it was good, a little convoluted at the end, but good. I hate to say this, but any book set in Florida that involves boats, reminds me of Travis Mcgee. I heard years ago that there was one last Travis Mcgee novel yet to be published, tied up by his heirs who are fighting publication because Macdonald killed off Mcgee. Interesting rumor any way. It’s beautiful morning today. Nice breeze, not hot yet, blue skies. Hope the rest of the day holds true. Couldn’t call Irene for Mother’s Day, because the phones were blacked out for disciplinary reasons. These guys just don’t get it. How can you do stuff like that to soldier’s in a combat zone. Poorly done. I just started Clive Cussler’s Treasure. I’ve never read one of his books, but my son Michael loved Raise the Titanic. Lots going on, we’ll see how he pulls it together.

posted by mhatchett at 1:07 am (EST) on May 18, 2007

May 10: Busy couple of days securing HA/medical supplies from Anaconda and distributing to outlying clinics with the assistance of the IA (Iraqi Army). The heat is settling in, it was 111 today. I was soaking wet when I peeled out of my body armor, after the JCC mission. Got a letter off to Irene, helped the Captain with some reports. Graves is returning from Speicher in the morning. Sgt Alexander has been put in for a well-deserved promotion. A good day. I’m almost done with Loren Estleman’s Poison Blonde, an Amos Walker Novel. Not bad, but I liked A Smile on the Face of the Tiger, better. Cover art and title go to Sinister Heights. Estleman also has the best personal logo locked down solid. Find it and admire it. I also found my “lost” Zelazny book, so back to that next.

posted by mhatchett at 6:18 am (EST) on May 11, 2007

May 7: Picked the truck yesterday from Anaconda with Sgt. Graves and Captain Fematt. Graves is up at Speicher doing EWO (Electronic Warfare Operations). The Captain dropped off and picked up water sample kits. The big excitement is that the long waited Stryker PLT has arrived. We’ll see how having 40 extra bodies on the FOB impacts things. I’m frankly happy for the extra firepower. I’m sure things will heat-up this Summer. Worked out last night. I’m going to watch my calorie intake over the next week. Be kind of strict on myself, see what happens. Still have to load the radios. I picked up the Sharpe DVD series, based on the books by Bernard Cornwell, very enjoyable. Got the radios loaded, some paperwork done, talked to Major Meyer briefly, about our generator issues. She has hopes that this issue will be resolved in Ad Dujayal’s favor. Meaning new generators. We got mortared today. Just one shot. No one hurt. We’ve been on Commo blackout, no phones or internet, for two days. They do this when someone gets hurts or killed, so they have time to inform the family, before the media, or blogger releases the names and details. This time some poor kid hung himself. I was very sad. Just very sad….. Lost another book, Eye of the Cat has gone missing. I’m not sure what I’ll try to start and finish next. Mail today, fingers crossed.

posted by mhatchett at 6:03 am (EST) on May 8, 2007

May 1st: You have to start the new month optimistically. Today is of course May Day, laundry day, mail day and the day after payday. What’s not to like? I sent and received several emails, finished up some Thank You Letters for folks who sent us school supplies via my ANYSOLDIER post. Sgt Alexander and SP4 Graves are working on some radios that we got from 1SGT Puckett, the other day. On a calamitous note, Graves misled my Glen Cook, Tyranny of the Night. I was about 300 pages into it. I see extra duty in her future. What to read next? C.S. Goto’s Warrior Coven, a War Hammer novel. Dark fantasy Sci-Fi from the Black Library. I’ve tried several, but I find them a bit overwrought for my taste. Or Charles Todd’s Long Shadow, an Inspector Rutledge mystery. I like this series a lot. We’ll see. I’ve still got some work to finish up, so I better get to it.

May 3rd: WarHammer won out. What the hell was I thinking? I’ll start with a few simple questions? How Black, is Black? How Bleak, is Bleak? And finally, how Dull, is Dull? I get it. It’s a Bleak, Black Epoch. Does it have to be Deadly Dull as well? I guess you could label this stuff Goth Sci-Fi. I will conqueror this Bleak, Dull Mire. I will finish this book, in the Emperor’s name and foreswear this series evermore!! In Marvel speak, ‘Nuf said. Sgt. Alexander and I have to go up to Catfish Air and pick-up Major K., Sgt. T and LTC Bond. A pain in the neck, running back and forth between O’Ryan and Anaconda. Got a haircut today at our local Iraqi Mart. Guy does a good job. As small as we are, we have two Iraqi marts. One is actually run by a Turk. He had sole proprietorship on O’Ryan. As far as the eye could see, was his commercial empire. But he got greedy and started overcharging for cigarettes. Don’t mess with the tobacco. 1SGT French, the CAV 1SGT, called in the equivalent of the Iraqi Walmart. Two Iraqi guys, one the barber, who not only sell cheaper cigarettes, but cut hair, cook a little food (the famous O’ryan’s falafel burger) and offer a huge selection of bootleg DVDs. Inventory grows daily. Kinetic operations are on the up swing in our AO, so CA projects are sidelined for the time being. Still plenty to do though. I want to put in some plugs for people who do great work over here, but you might not hear much about. EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) Made up from all branches of service, these folks do a great job clearing Duds, IEDs, etc. You name they get rid of it. Route Clearance Teams work vigilantly day and night to keep roads clear of mines, IEDs etc. Helicopter Aircrews, they do it all. And finally KBR and all the civilians that work very hard to make our lives a little easier, from maintaining facilities, to hauling ice cream, it’s amazing what gets done over here. Sometimes, more amazing than what doesn’t get done.

May 4: I finished Warrior Coven. I also started and finished Max Alan Collins, Road tp Perdition, based on the movie, based on his graphic novel. We had a long wait at Catfish Air. We didn’t get to bed till about 1:30 am. Anyway Road to Perdition was quick and fun. True Detective is another Max Alan Collins book that I recommend. Private eye Nate Heller, returns from the war wounded, 1940’s, very good series. I just finished working out. Ran for about 35 minutes, stretched, lifted weights for a while. We had a 100% equipment inventory today. Major K. and LTC Bond conducted the inspection. Everything went OK. Rumor has it we might be moved back to Speicher. I’d rather stay here, but we’ll see. I posted some pictures to Irene and work today, cleaned weapons. “Dancing in the Moonlight” just came on my Zune. That song always makes me smile. Next up, Roger Zelazny’s Eye of the Cat.

posted by mhatchett at 12:31 am (EST) on May 5, 2007

April 25: At this very second, I’m eating some “Master Zen Party Mix”, listening to Kim Waters’ version of “Midnight at the Oasis”, and jumping back and forth between reading Classical Fighting Arts Vol 2 no. 11, (issue 34) and Peter Robinson’s “Blood At the Root”. The protagonist is having murder and wife trouble. I like it so far. Irene’s package got here last night, so it was a little like Christmas. She sent me her great chocolate chip cookies, Master Zen Party Mix, I just like the way that sounds, cashews, they’re gone. Hey, I shared!! Newspapers, soap, cream, chap stick and two fantastic letters from my wife and daughter. No mission today, but tomorrow we go to the City Council meeting. And we might spend Friday and Saturday at the Shire. We might get pizza.

April 26: City Council canceled due to combat operations. Finished up Blood At the Root. I liked it. I’m going to try and catch up with the rest of the series. I think the series would look good on BBC. The San Francisco Chronicle says “Chilling”. I don’t think so, good but not chilling. We just got mortared again. Anyway, I think I’m going to start Glen Cook’s Tyranny of the Night.

April 29: Have in fact started Tyranny of the Night. I like Glen Cook’s books. I know the “Black Company” series is his claim to fame, but I’ve always been partial to the Garrett PI books and his classic stand alone science fiction novel Passage of Arms, Just re-issued by one of my favorite small presses, Nightshade Books. We spent two days at Anaconda. I did have pizza. A highlight to be sure. The other highlight was to meet up with 1Sgt Puckett and the gang. We picked up some supplies, equipment and just got to visit with our buddies. Spent the day visiting the neighboring Iraqi Army compound, which is under renovation, catching up on paperwork and getting ready to go out for the Sheik Council meeting. 3/8 Cav lost a tank and a Bradley out on MSR Tampa last night. Lots of broken bones and injuries, but Thank God, no one killed. Hopefully they’ll all make a full recovery. IED’s don’t kill soldiers, people kill soldiers. The answer is obvious. Kill more people. I’ve gotten some very nice emails, cards and packages, from patrons and staff at the Library. All I can say is thanks. The small things really make a difference.

April 30: Provided security today for the Sheik Council. Worked with Red Plt, 3 Humves and a tank. I understand from Graves, who accompanied the Captain, that the meeting went well. It wasn’t bad, but standing around in all that gear, on concrete, in the heat, is character building. Afterwards, we headed for Anaconda to pick up some Humvees that had new turrets installed. On the way down, while traveling on route Milton, we got hit by an IED. They missed, but it was a near run thing. Shook the whole truck. We maintained a blocking position on the road, while Red PLT maneuvered in an effort to locate the trigger man. The Air Cav even showed up to help, but they got a way. Better luck next time. I just found out we can send and receive mail only twice a week, Tuesday & Thursday/Friday. Who knew?

posted by mhatchett at 10:25 am (EST) on Apr 30, 2007

April 24: We did our first solo Ca mission today. SFC Von Goren’s White PLt providing security. They’re good guys to roll with. Went down to Ad Dujayal and dropped medical supplies at the clinic and some HA(Humanitarian Assistance) items at a local girl’s elementary school. Ad Dujayal is a bustling little market town. Lots of buying, selling, even some building going on. It was a challenge driving the LMTV through the crowded streets, but it was interesting. Just so you know, American/Coalition convoys have the right-of-way in Iraq. We drive right down the middle of the road, to avoid IED’s, ambushes, etc and all other traffic, must pull off the road. This allows us some standoff room to protect ourselves from car bombs, VBIEDs, and just bad drivers. If the Iraq’s don’t comply, after due warning, they’ll probably get lit up. We haven’t had that issue yet. Most people don’t want to take a chance, so they give us plenty of room. I don’t blame them. The people seem to take it in stride, some glare, but most just wait for us to roll by and they get on with their lives. The Bad-Asses have arrived. Special Forces guys in three sweet, 50 cal., 240 armed HUMVs just hit the FOB. They had six insurgents in tow. I have to admit these boys look like they mean business. They’re sporting beards, baseball caps, all kinds of semi-authorized stuff hanging off their uniforms. I know the 1Sgt here is losing it. He’s an absolute Reg freak. Anyway, there are a wicked looking crew.

posted by mhatchett at 7:03 am (EST) on Apr 25, 2007

Hi Jennifer,
Finally caught up. Hard to believe. How are things your way? I might be home on leave in October or November. I'll try to call y'all when we get a chance. We're 8 hours ahead of y'all.

Take Care, I miss y'all
Mike

posted by mhatchett at 10:03 am (EST) on Apr 23, 2007

April 6: Whirlwind four days. Lots of last minute changes. My team will be stationed at FOB O’Ryan, near the city of Balad. Quiet sector at the moment, buy lots of potential trouble. Balad is north of Baghdad near the Tigris river. Mixed population, Shia in the town, Sunni in the country side. The good news is I’ll be running with the First Cav, a mech heavy unit, lots of tanks and Bradleys. Firepower Baby!!! Sgt Alexander used to serve with them, so he might still know some people. Today is Good Friday, Saturday is my 29th Anniversary, and Sunday is Easter. I’m glad I was able to send Irene a card before we left Kuwait. We’re supposed fly out tonight, so I’m going to call Irene in a little bit. All the teams are being sent out today. Everyone is a little tense, including me. I had to apologize to a guy I cussed out earlier, normally I just let things roll, but he caught me at the wrong. Felt bad afterwards, but that’s how it goes sometimes. I’m a little upset about Sgt Cox. He’s such a good kid, I wish we could take him with us. I hope we’ll all be OK. I’m brooding a little as I load ammo for the flight South. Seven thirty round magazines, 210 rounds of 5.56. I load five ball, one tracer. The tracer will alert me that I’m running low on ammo. My first five rounds are tracer, so I can mark targets for crew served weapons, if I have to. Everybody has their own technique, little things make a difference. How do I feel? A little scared, can’t show it, people are looking to me for support. We’ve got a good team and I feel confident that things will go alright. Infernal optimist, fingers crossed. Flight scrubbed. We go out tomorrow night instead.

April 7th: 29th wedding Anniversary. I’m calling Irene later today. Slow day so far. Managed to get on a computer for a few minutes at MWR. Everyone else is sleeping in. I just don’t seem to be able to do that. We are going to be the last team out. We fly out about 10:00 tonight (2200 for you military types). I’m actually looking forward to a night helicopter trip. It should only take about an hour to get to LSA Anaconda. I’m still working my way through Wolf’s Hour. I like it. Captain Fematt is reading on the Frontline by Tom Neven. Sfc Hoffman, our super-medic, is reading Four Against the Artic by David Roberts, plus a bible study guide. He’s a great guy.

April 9th: After being scrubbed on the 6th & 7th, we finally flew out on a Chinook on the 8th, landing at Anaconda (AKA Fortress America) at about 2330. The flight was neat, wind, stars, darkness, real darkness flying over a country without a power gird. It was eerie neat. We overnighted and proceeded to our new home, FOB O’Ryan, the domain of Chaos, Charlie Co. 3/8th Cav. So far, so good. It’s very small, only about 130-150 troops. No mess hall, food is marmited in from Anaconda. Sgt Alexander and I are sharing a small trailer, a CHU (Compact Housing Unit). A very well maintained shower and latrine area is around back. Captain Banks and SSG Lear are the CA team we are replacing. They have been very helpful and accommodating. We really have to pick their brains before they leave in about a week. Though the conditions are somewhat primitive, it’s good to be away from the “Big Army” mentalities that thrive at Speicher and Anaconda. Too many SGMs with nothing to do but bother troops. Worse rank the Army ever came up with. All pretense and BS. Lots of armor, a comforting feeling. We spent the day getting settled and doing some lite training. I found a bookcase, surprise, at the wood drop. It rough hewn for sure, but it will work. We inherited a couple of plastic chairs and a table, so we’re in the process of making a home for ourselves for the next year or so.

April 10: We went to the range today and a funny thing happened. We got shot at!! I’m not kidding. We were out on the firing line, about 8 of us, when wham, a mortar round fell about 100-150 meters away. I just dropped to the ground and curled up in a ball, like the worlds biggest, (onliest?) digital roly-poly. Other folks were running for cover, but my Dad always told drop, don’t run. Another shell fell on the other side of the range, throwing debris high into the air. It was a fine attention getting welcome. By the way, we were really shooting well. I’m reading James Lee Burke’s Heartwood, after finishing Wolf’s Hour. As I said before, it’s hard to beat werewolves and Nazis. James Lee Burke is one of my favorite writers, Neon Rain, one of my favorite books. Almost all of his books deal with violence, sin, forgiveness, redemption and just a touch of Catholic mysticism. He writes from the heart, that’s for sure. This book is moving right along. I read all of the Dave Robichiaux novels almost as soon as they come out. Great Series. I’ve missed a couple of the Billy Bob Holland novels, so this is a chance to catch up. Oh, he also wrote a great stand alone western, when he was wandering the publishing wilderness, Two For Texas.

April 14: Been out of the wire twice. Once to a city Council meeting, second time to Camp Anaconda, Fortress America, or the Shire, because of all the Fobbits, soldiers who don’t leave the wire. They aren’t held in very high regard, obviously. The change over is going well, Captain Banks and SSg Lear are doing a good job, showing us the ropes. I got to call Irene the other day and that always makes me feel good. We stayed ay Anaconda for two days and a night. Learned a lot, mostly learned that I like being on O’Ryan. We also met our 1sgt and bunch of our guys who’s just delivered our boxes. The boxes we shipped from Bragg. Finished up the James Lee Burke and have started Jack McDevitt’s Polaris. I also bought the complete run of Deadwood. Looking forward to watching that. We have another mission, Sheik council leaving at 9:30. Last mission for the old team. I’ll let you know how it goes.
God of our Fathers,Bless, Guide and Protect us through this day with all its Danger and Tribulations, One God Forever and Ever Amen.
Meeting canceled at the last minute.

April 15: Not a particularly good day. Things will get better, by and by. Lets leave it at that. SSG Lear and Captain Banks loaded up on the clip, the escorted convoy that runs between Anaconda and O’Ryan twice a day, bringing food, water, mail, all the necessaries, and headed for home. I’m very happy for them and couldn’t help thinking that would be us in less than a year, God willing. Calling Irene in the morning. It’s good to have that to look forward to. Always good to have something to look forward to.

April 16: Called Irene. Great way to start the day. Coffee, bacon, one French toast. First day on our own. Sgt Alexander and I had to move into the old team’s CHU. We didn’t realize we were staying in the VIP quarters!! No biggy, just a little extra work. Captain Fematt had three meeting today and worked in the office. He’s doing a good job with the reports. Sgt Alexander, Graves and I worked on the vehicles, cleaning, loading, trips to the connex, sorting ammo. Good day all in all. The new CHU looks good. Finally unpacked and settled in. Upgrade for us, we have a refrigerator. I also found a nicer bookcase. Things are rolling. I hope the pace stays steady.

April 19: Well, hard to believe we’ve been out of the country for a month already. It’s been a wild ride so far, but we’ve been very lucky and I for one, have learned a lot. Yesterday was aver good day. We spent the morning on the range 240, 249, 50 cal. Graves and Alexander even got to fire a 50 cal. Sniper rifle. Ouch! It was very neat, especially since no one fired back. We were out with HQ PLT, the XO and some South African contractors, who had a weird assortment of weapons of their own. That evening we went up to Palawada with the company, Captain Blankenship, for a BUB (Battle Update Briefing). A Humv and four tanks driving through the night, down MSR Tampa. It was interesting and we made it back home, safe and sound by 1130 (2330 for you Army types).

April 20: What a weird great day! Went to Anaconda today to pick up some surplus medical supplies to give to the clinic at Ad Dujayl. It was a bit of work loading the truck (LMTV), but not to bad. Had lunch, went to the PX, got a haircut. On the way back, the truck I was driving, with Sgt Alexander riding Shotgun, literally, narrowly missed getting hit by an IED. It made the hair on my neck stand up. We laughed all the way back to the FOB. When I got back, I had cards from Irene and Erin waiting for me and a box of books from the library. Not a bad haul. Later that day our FOB got hit by a rocket attack. They were trying to hit the fuel point and missed. It was reassuring to see those Apaches in the air.

April 22: A really easy Sunday. A little office work and some vehicle maintenance. It makes for a slow day, but some times we need the down time. Just finished Polaris. It was very good. Jack McDevitt does a good job with the Alex Benedict series. I started right up with Peter Robinson’s Blood Root.

April 23: Slept in a little this morning. Still in the office by 7:30. Quick breakfast loaded new commo settings, worked on the HUMV for a bit, sorted through some files. Started a new regimen today, vegetarian lunch, see how it goes. The 1sgt here has started a beautification program, which thus far, has resulted in the area looking worse than ever. It is a real mess, but maybe we’re just in a transitional phase. We weren’t mortared or Rocketed last night, probably because we had a load of helicopters in the air. That is a sweet, sweet sound. Got a card from Lynn, Mary, Beth and the newly retired Chuck yesterday. It was great to hear from them. It is now 4:20 and we just got hit by a single mortar round. Nobody go hurt. Folks are starting to get irritated. I suspect they’re going to get serious about getting this guy. Oh, my bad. It was a rocket. They think QRF (Quick Reaction Force) might have caught 4 guys. We’ll see.

posted by mhatchett at 9:54 am (EST) on Apr 23, 2007

April 1: 191 lbs.
Been a busy few days. We went out to the field for three days of training, a quick reaction firing range and full slate of convoy ops training. Things went well. All of the instructors are contract hires, retired senior NCO’s, who come over and teach for a few months at a time. They did a much better job than the folks at Bragg. I hope this isn’t the future for the Army. One disturbing point was the unit that we had to work with. They were ate up to say the least. They were so bad, that our guys started calling them “Dead Men Walking”. Not only are they bad, but they’re going to a particularly “Hot” area. God Bless them is all I can say. I still feel very confident about our unit’s ability not only to defend to ourselves, but to take the fight to the enemy, given the opportunity. We will Kick your Ass. I went to another camp today to pick-up some additional body armor. What’s another 8 lbs?? It was an interesting trip, interrupted by camels, who always have the right-of-way in Kuwait. I finished Dark Pageant. I’m on a run of almost good books. Maybe Robert McCammon’s Hour Of The Wolf can turn the tide. I don’t know Nazis and Werewolves, what’s not to love. Besides, I really enjoyed Swan and Boy’s Life. Fingers crossed. I called Irene yesterday and got to talk to her. That was great. She told me that both of my cards had arrived in about five days. I felt very good about that. We do get to send letters home for free, which is a very nice benefit. We are only two days away from “Going North”, as they call going to Iraq here. Howa many ways can you say it? Going Downrange, Going to the Sandbox, Going to the Catbox, In Theatre, it all means the same thing, Going to where people want to blow you up. We had a battalion briefing today. I wasn’t impressed. Please God, let me be wrong. They were more worried about paperwork, than anything else. I found two neat books in one of the donation boxes that are scattered around Camp Buehring. These are books donated by individuals and groups like “Operation Paperback: Recycled Reading for Our Troops” Thanks folks. You make a difference. Anyway, I picked up Frontline Airline: Troop Carrier Pilot In WW II by John R. Lester and Fighting the Flying Circus by Captain Edward V. Rickenbacker. A WWI flying classic. Pretty cool to find books like these over here. Coffee break tonight with LT Silva, MAF Meyer and some of the other folks. Read a little while and then in for the night.

April 3: We landed at Speicher 8:30 am local. I’ve been up 32 hours. Things aren’t looking to good right now. I’m exhausted. My body is actually tingling from lack of sleep. We flew in on a C-130 and I have to say our pilot did a fantastic job. Smooth trip all the way. The bad news is that we won’t be staying together after all. We are going to be split between at least 5 FOBs (Forward Operating Base) Our temporary accommodations are adequate. We’re living at the “Crack House”.

posted by mhatchett at 1:22 pm (EST) on Apr 22, 2007

March 25: We have had a leisurely adjustment period. A few classes, some administrative tasks, otherwise a very lazy time. We are going to be assigned to camp Spiecher near Tikrit, in support of the 82nd Airborne. Just can’t get away from them. I feel pretty good about it so far. We’ll see. We are still supposed to fly on April 2nd. It looks like we might get a sandstorm tonight. It’s very cool and feels somewhat damp. I ran down to the Green Bean, Army version of Starbucks, got a cup of coffee and a card for Irene. I’ll mail it in the morning. 1sgt Puckett managed to secure an SUV, a bus and two cell phones for the company. He’s always wheelin’ and Dealin’. We’re living high on the hog for sure. I washed my PT uniform and some sock with me in the shower. Anything to save a little water.

March 26: Good news, I got to call Irene today. Spoke for about ten minutes. Erin has been accepted at JMU, which we’re all very excited about. Taxes are another matter. I also mailed out a few postcards. I hate to admit it, but I’m starting to get bored. There I said it. I think it’s a sin, but I am succumbing to boredom. I’ll work harder at something, anything.

March 27: 193 lbs.
Big rain storm all night long. The tent creaked and groaned all night. Yet still it stands. Thank goodness. My best night of sleep since we started movement. In fact, I finally had a dream I can remember. I apparently bought nine old soda machines off of ebay and was supervising their installation around the house. We all seemed to be having a good time. Hard to believe we’ve already been in Kuwait a week. Time is clicking right along. Now we’re supposed to head for Spiecher on April 3rd. Still working my way through the interesting but ponderous, Dark Pageant. Joan of Arc has just been burnt at the Stake.

posted by mhatchett at 12:39 pm (EST) on Apr 22, 2007

Feb 27: I’ve been feeling pewny for the past couple of weeks. Hopefully I’ll pick-up some steam today. Yesterday we worked on convoy ops. We still need a lot of work. I’m sure we’ll get plenty of practice. We are down to about three weeks. Friday we go draw our RFI gear. I might even get some new uniforms. I finished Jack McDevitt’s
A Talent for War, which I liked and started Donald Tyson’s The Tortuous Serpent. An occult adventure set in 1587 Europe, involving the cult of Lilith, a cursed book and beleaguered magicians. A great start, I hope it holds up.
A short list of things I have used up and had to replace: 1 tube of toothpaste, 1 bottle of Move Free, 1 bottle of Men’s 1 a day vitamins and 3 bars of Oil of Olay soap. With little or no hair, my shampoo is going the distance.
I continue to be disappointed with the deployment process. I can’t help feeling that our level of training, our housing, our equipment, even our chow, is driven by our Reserve status. It is blindingly obvious that no one at Ft Bragg is interested in our situation. Fort Bragg has a history of not wanting to support peripheral missions, for better or worse. If you aren’t 18th Airborne Corp that don’t give a Damn.
Despite the external issues, I remain optimistic. We have a pretty good little unit coming together here. With a little more training, good training, we should be able to put it all together. Three weeks will be here before we know it. Rumor has it we might get a couple of days off this week. If we do, I’m heading for the house. I really miss everybody.

Feb 28-Mar 1: Home!! Great visit, stopped by work, Irene made some super spaghetti and Erin loaded my Zune with Iraqi language lessons.

March 2: Tactical Christmas has arrived. “He sees you when you’re shaming, He knows if you are late, He knows if you are a dirtbag, so be Gung-Ho for goodness sake!! Tactical Santa is coming to town” We’ll see what soldierly gifts are bestowed upon us this morning. I’m in the middle of Tortuous Serpent, so far so good.

March 7: Nice few days of training. Urban ops was interesting. It was like being a kid all over again. Army, Cowboys and Indians, Cops and Robbers, Shoot’em up on a grand scale. I think we all learned something, I know I did. The clock is really ticking. Our window to ship opens on March 17, ten days out, so we’re winding down on our training. Today we’re doing ”Selection and Use of Interpreters” I’m sure all the interpreters have already been selected and are probably about all used up, if not shot, tortured or killed. Today was SP4 Graves 21 birthday. I gave her a big Ass knife. Finished up sorting my new issue. Lots of good stuff, lots of shortcomings. I wound up buying two new pairs boots, because the issue boots SUCKED. Sorry, but they gave me blisters the first damn day. I like the new uniforms. Very comfortable.
Later this week, we start doing practical exercises. I hope we have a good time and learning experience. People are getting restless, me included. It’s been a long five months. Lets get the show on the road. Literally!!
Do I think we’re totally ready? No. We will have to do a lot of On the Job Training and in war that means a cost will be exacted. I think we’ve been kept in the dark about a lot of things, but I could be wrong. I would rate my own performance, in relation to my peers as an A- to a B+. I have room for growth in a few areas, that is for sure.
I miss my family and my job very much. I feel fortunate that I have I have them to come back to. Still winding my way through the Tortuous Serpent. Should be done tonight. I’m not sure what I’ll start next.

March 12: Last Major training event today, Convoy live fire. So far, so good. The time change blew everybody’s mind. Instead of getting up at O-dark-thirty, we’re getting up at o-shit-dark-thirty. The company came through the field exercise in pretty good shape, lots of hustle and motivation. We just finished our last run downrange. Good news, we came in second in our group of four companies, defeating our ultra military rivals, Bravo Company. We are going out to Lonestar steakhouse tonight to celebrate the end of training. We hope to go on pass the 14th or 15th before we fly. I finished Tortuous Serpent. Ultimately disappointing. Good concept, mediocre execution. I’ve started the new Charlie Huston book No Dominion, the second in the Joe Pitt series (Already Dead). I love this guy. Can’t say enough good things. Caught Stealing was his first book, I believe. Destined to become a classic, watch and see.

March 13: The pass issue is somewhat in doubt. Last minute bureaucratic Bullshit training or actual mission needs, you can’t separate the two around here. Anyway, come hell or high-water, I will be spending time with Irene and Erin at the end here. Supposedly we have a departure date of March 19th. Lots to do between now and then. We’ll see how it all comes together. We’re going through our last SRP today. Once again a cursory inspection of records and people. “How do you feel? Feel Great. How do you feel? Bad. Good news your records say you feel great. That’s great” If you’re not a hunchback, with a clubfoot and a cast over one eye, your ass is going Downrange. A couple of the officers are becoming issues. What’s new.

March 18-20-21: The Eagle has flown and landed in Kuwait!! I had a great four day pass thanks to the hard work and finagling of the 1sgt and Major K. In Summary, the training by the 1st Trng Brigade was inadequate on lots of levels. I can’t blame any one person, or even one organization, because the entire process is criminally flawed. Unfocused training, lack of resources and especially a lack of mental finesse and imagination highlighted the entire experience. There were a few highpoints, a few good instructors, but the whole process needs to be revamped.
The flight over was one of the best I’ve ever been on. Alpha Company was detailed for baggage detail, which earned us seating in the first-class area. It was spacious and comfortable, but I’d never pay to fly first class. The work was hard but fun and it helped pass the time. The movement to Kuwait was handled well, approximately 19 hour flight, with a stopover in Leipzig, Germany, where ¾ of the passengers took advantage of the opportunity to indulge in alcohol for one last time. At least for a year. ¾ of the flight got drunk off their ass. They slept it off before we landed.
Camp Buehring is well laid out and the cadre here have been very considerate, giving us a couple of days to recover from jet lag. We have an additional two weeks of training and then we move onto Iraq. Everyone came through the trip OK and seem to be adjusting well.
Captain Matson and his crew came down from Mosul and Talafar to give us a briefing about our Areas. Small worls Captain Matson is a police officer with Henrico County and He works in the East End. (He should be home by now). Just started Edward Lucie Smith’s, The Dark Pageant. A novel about Joan of Arc’s Champion, Gilles De Rais, reputed to be the evilest man in 15th century France.
The weather? Surprisingly comfortable, mid 80’s in the day, mid 60’s at night. Combat showers. Rinse, water off, wash, rinse, water off, you’re done. I admit, I cheat a little, because I know several people who aren’t using their allocation of water. So, I rinse just a little longer. I am now officially in theater, the war zone, and I can’t say that I like a lot of what I’m seeing or hearing. But Hope springs eternal. Time to fight the body clock and get some sleep. Jet lag is lagging.

March 22: Ran out of water at our shower point(that’s what I get for the extra rinse), so the 1sgt and I had to hunt around for a shower. We found one, but the hot/cold water facets were switched around. Psychological warfare at its worse!! I want to send out some postcards, call Irene and get on the computer. I repacked a bag and shifted some gear around. They say we should head for Iraq on April 2nd. Still not exactly sure where we’re going. Got to call Irene and Erin. Local time here was 1:00 pm, time at home 5:00 am. They sound like they’re doing OK, so that’s a relief to me. I can take anything as long as I know they’re doing OK. I ran down for lunch, a bowl of mushroom soup, tomato/celery salad and some tuna. It was very good. I’m waiting to see if I can get onto a computer at the USO. My Zune is coming in handy, I’m enjoying it. Took a power nap 3:00-4:00 pm. Not my normal routine, but I try to listen to my body, hopefully, I won’t pay for it later.

posted by mhatchett at 11:59 am (EST) on Apr 22, 2007

Feb 8: Well, we’re back at it. Commo class is over and I feel pretty good about the training. Today we’re doing classroom IED training and drawing weapons. Not going too well. Civilians again. If I had my way, I would eliminate at least 50% of all civilian positions. Things would go smoother, I guarantee it. Played football yesterday for three hours. I held my own and than some. Everyone wants to try the old guy. Not anymore.
As a soldier, especially as an NCO, much of your authority, your place in the pecking order, comes from your ability to handle yourself physically, how tough you are. That’s just the way it is. You’ve got to have heart, show you can dish it out and take it. If you can’t, you can’t lead troops into battle, it’s that simple. Your conduct on the playing field is seen as a preliminary validation of your conduct on the battlefield. You don’t have to be the best, but you have to contribute, you have to shake off pain, leave some blood on the ground if needed, your’s or someone else’s, face up to an opponent and show some hustle.
Some of my peers, guys my age and even younger, didn’t play at all, some with good reason, but they lost big points with the teams they will be expected to lead into battle. I put a few people on the ground, always offering a hand up when needed, or taking it when it was my turn. I was beat to hell when it was done, but I feel great.

Feb 22: It has been two weeks since I’ve written. I haven’t had the time or the inclination. Mostly inclination. I’ve been very busy, tired and bitchy. The training continues and I have to say, I find it lacking in most respects. We aren’t shooting enough. We haven’t started patrolling at all yet. I know we aren’t Infantry, but these people need to know how to protect themselves.
On the personnel side, the unit is coming together, though we have serious weaknesses across the board. Some can be cured with training, some with a boot in the ass, others we’ll just have to live with and work around. The barracks is just a pesthole of disesase. Everyone, including me, has some sort of hack, cough or stomach. The only reason the asbestos won’t kill us, is because of all the lead based paint holding it in place.
I was able to get a two day pass and get home to Irene and Erin. It was great. All I did, was lay on the couch, watch mysteries, eat, rest and recuperate from this nagging cold. I felt 100% better once I returned for training.
Morale wise, I think the unit is in very good shape. I really appreciate the energy these young soldiers bring to the table. They’re a little rambunctious at times, but hell, you’re supposed to be rambunctious when you’re in your 20’s or even your 40’s if you feel like it and I do.
Just finished Lee Child’s Die Trying. I think this was his second book. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Child’s books are always filled with interesting characters, good and bad. He writes a thinking persons mystery/adventure story. Always a good pick. I’m in the middle of Talent for War by Jack McDevitt. Not a typical frenzied Sci-Fi Novel, its slower pace might put some people off, but I’m having a good time with it. I found a really nice Mollie vest for sale at the Flea market for$50.00. They go for almost $300.00. I couldn’t pass it up.

posted by mhatchett at 7:58 am (EST) on Apr 19, 2007

Feb 2: Still working my way through Walter Jon Williams Conventions of War. We started our communications classes today. I learned a good deal. I went to a flea market and picked up a few odds and ends, including knee and elbow pads. I’m still behind on typing and posting my entries (surprise) but it’s getting better (and by better, I mean not better). The Super Bowl is tomorrow. I’m really pulling for the Colts. I had a good workout yesterday. Look forward to another tomorrow, if we get off early enough. I might even treat myself to Chinese Buffet. Oh, I replaced my broken chair with a nice plastic lawn chair from Walmart. It’s actually more comfortable than the old chair.

Feb 5: Commo class continues. Day after the Colt’s Super Bowl 41 victory. I stayed in and watched it last night. I got a really nice compliment last night. One of the teams might get broken up and a really squared Sgt asked to be on my team. There were others to choose from, but he asked to be with me and my guys. Made me feel pretty good.

Feb 6: Commo classes continue to continue. I am losing momentum with the third Williams book, Conventions of War. In fact, I’ve parked it. I’m about half way through and I just can’t go on. I’ve switched over to David Gemmell’s Legend. One of the very best modern Sword and Fantasy novels, first of the Drenai series. I’ve read it before, several times in fact, but I always enjoy it. What are my comrades reading? Sp4 Cale Wilborn of Tulsa, OK is reading Robin Hobbs Forest Mage. Sgt Dustin Cox is reading Death Ground: Today’s American Infantry in Battle, by Daniel Bolger.
Anyway things are going pretty well. The alternator went out on my truck, but it shouldn’t cost too much to fix it. I haven’t been watching what I eat as closely as I should, but I have been working out at least three times a week, so I haven’t gained any weight. Hard to believe how fast a week can go sometimes. I’m enjoying my Zune. I’m going to get Erin to help me load some more songs.

posted by mhatchett at 12:14 am (EST) on Apr 18, 2007

an 5: Early morning entry. Up at 4:45. First one up. Hit the shower, head for chow at 5:20. No one stirring. Thank God, I’m a morning person, it makes a huge difference in the Army. For some of these people getting out of the bed in the morning is an act of physical courage. Have a bowl of total, couple cups of coffee. On the way back from chow, I listen to Nina Simone’s “ I Feel Good.” And I do, as good as I can, on an unusually warm, foggy January morning, at Fort Bragg North Carolina. Back at 6:10. A few folks are stirring. I flip on the lights. Oh, the moans and groans!! Welcome to the Army Men.

Jan 9: Just finished Richard Morgan’s Altered Carbon, a great “Bladerunneresique” science fiction novel. It’s the first in a series that includes Broken Angels and woken Furies. I read them out of order, but that didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the series. Warning!! This is an Adult book that depicts graphic violence, sex, and a world almost completely devoid of human compassion. Despite a seemingly bleak and pessimistic background, philosophy, morality and justice are the threads that bind the story together and drive it forward. I highly recommend this series to all science readers.
Currently our training is stumbling along with fits and starts. This is the Army at its worse, unfocused, cumbersome and vindictive. Our group of 160 soldiers wasn’t supposed to arrive until the end of January 2007. We are almost a full month ahead of the main body. With limited resources, personnel and imagination, our keepers with the first training brigade are at a loss. They can’t find much to keep us gainfully employed. Coupled with the lack of leadership vacuum that exists, few of us are getting the level of training required to be successful at war.

Jan 11: Map reading and Land Navigation training for the past couple days, culminating with a night and day land navigation course. Our team consisted of five folks. Me, 1Sgt Puckett, Sgt Alexander, Sp4 Garcia and Msg Fiero. We had a great time. The course started at 3:30 AM, so we were up pretty early. We got all three of our night points and all six of our day points. A lot of hard work, but we laughed quite a bit, as all of us, at one point or another, went spinning out of control crashing through thickets and briers. Oh, did I mention nearly frozen streams? It was 25 degrees. We were done and back at the barracks for lunch (more grilled cheese) by 12;30. The GPS I picked up at the pawn shop worked like a charm.
I’ve started a new science fiction series, yes I know I’m getting predictable, James Allan Gardner’s Expendable. I thought I’d tell you what some of the other guys are reading. Mitch Gibson, my bunkmate and former Ranger, from Houston Texas, is reading Thomas Harris’s Black Sunday. He also likes Dan brown and Robert Ludlum. Sgt. Hamous, Cedar Rapids Iowa, is reading Christopher Paolini’s Eldest, the sequel to Eragon. He loves the book and told me it’s the best thing he’s read in three years. SFC Rhinehardt is reading Steven Pressfield’s Gates of Fire, a novel of the Greek and Persian wars. Sgt Meyer another, former Ranger, is reading Nydell’s, Understanding Arabs. Weapons training tomorrow and then who knows?

Jan 15: Happy Monday!! What a great weekend! Got to run home to see Irene and Erin. A nice break. Every time I get home, Irene loads me up with great food. Watched some football, Colts beat the Ravens in a defensive struggle, field goals only. It was really hard to leave, but you have to take the pain with the pleasure, the ups with the downs.
Training this week looks interesting, IED and weapons ranges. We spend way too much time waiting around. Time and resource management are not a Army strength, which I don’t understand. Even getting light bulbs and ballasts changed is a major undertaking, no reason why it should be, but it is. I finished reading Expendable. I can’t recommend it. I have two more of his titles, hopefully they’ll be better. I’ve started Walter Jon William’s Dread Empire’s Fall: The Praxis. A three book series I picked up at the Pope Air Force thrift store.

Jan 16: Total cereal and coffee for breakfast. We spent several hours at CIF drawing equipment that we were short. We went on a brief IED reaction driving course. Five to a vehicle. It was a little cramped. The course was fun, after all, who doesn’t like driving like a complete nut through a simulated Iraqi village.
This was the first exercise that we wore IBA (Individual Body Armor). It weighs about forty pounds. It can also be very dangerous. One of our gifted soldiers broke a toe when one of the plates he was putting into the vest, slipped and fell. Ouch!! We are surrounded by danger. I think I did pretty well humping all that gear around. My back doesn’t hurt.
I can’t get to a computer to type my notes and it’s driving me crazy. Spaghetti for supper it was so-so. I’m enjoying the lawn furniture I bought at the flea market for ten bucks. We also have a small rug next to our bunks. A 49 year old man sleeping in a bunk-bed. It just doesn’t seem right. At least I have the bottom bunk. We’ve made our area pretty comfortable, so we expect to move any day.

Jan 23: A week later and I am indeed in another barracks, but it has worked out pretty well. I’m now living with the unit I’ll deploy with. We’re broken into teams, me Sgt Alexander and captain Richard Fematt are all raking together as team 11. My little area is locked down tight. I have a rug, a little bookcase, my box, a nice cozy nest. Order in the midst of chaos. A coffee pot magically appeared on my bookcase, along with a printer/copier. And of course, I have a bottom bunk. We continue to train, filling time as we wait for additional personnel to join us. We’ve been to the 249 (Squad Automatic Weapon) range. I learned a lot there, assembly/disassembly and firing procedures. Put a couple of hundred rounds downrange, not enough but a beginning.
Drew our deployment weapons. Mine is an M-4, a chopped down version on the M-16, with improved sights and an adjustable stock. Not new, not even clean. The 1st trng brdg claims they don’t have enough cleaning kits to go around. Pretty weak.
We spent two days and most of one night zeroing(adjusting sights) and qualifying. It was wet, cold and miserable. But I like to shot, so it wasn’t a big deal, though I didn’t shot particularly well. I feel that they are keeping us gainfully employed, but I know they could do a better job.
I finished Walter Jon Williams Praxis. It was pretty good. Standard space opera, well executed and entertaining. I’ve already started the second book in the series, the Sundering.

Jan 28: I haven’t written for a week or so, because I haven’t had a good week. The Military decision making Process class I took was terrible. The instructors broke the class in two, maintaining a semblance of unit integrity, unfortunately the other group consisted of real staff officers and nco’s. It was a shambles. The practical exercises and briefing products were so substandard. It was humiliating.
I went into shutdown mode. Minimal compliance. I was there in body alone. I absolutely refused to participate. The rest of the sheep baaaed along, but not me. I refuse to set-up for failure, to build someone else up. No way. I tried not to waste those days, but I was not at my best. It really affected my attitude. I was one angry, angry man.
On top of that the team isn’t coming along the way I want it to. The team chief and I aren’t very compatible. We’ve been joined by PFC Michelle Graves. She’s a real CA operator, just out of AIT.
My five dollar chair just died. Back to the drawing board. Anyway, we had drivers training today. It was classroom instruction, so we finished up early. Tomorrow we go through the driving course both day/night. I’m looking forward to driving the HUMV(High mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicle).
I’m really getting sick of the mess hall, but I’m spending too much money eating out and it’s not like I’m getting good food. Today I ate Wendy's. I hardy ever eat fast food anymore. So I have to get back on the stick.
I finished Walter Jon William’s the Sundering and have started the third book in the series, conventions of war.
Sgt Dustin Cox of Texas, just finished reading The Deadliest Men in the World by John Gilbey. He likes martial arts books of all kind. SFC Clayton Woodbridge is working his way through A history of the Arab Peoples by Alber Hourani.

posted by mhatchett at 10:42 pm (EST) on Apr 11, 2007

Jan 4 2007:
Happy New Year! I had a great leave. I didn’t get to see everyone, time and holiday schedules being what they are. Everyone at work seems to be doing well. I miss them.
My family gadgetized for Christmas. My daughter Erin, bought me a portable DVD player and Irene bought me a ZUNE. Erin helped me load about a 1,000 songs on that little deally. I was so glad to be home with my family. Michael was in from Washington. It was great to seem him before I leave. The house was beautiful, we picked out a nice tree and Irene stuffed me with great food from the minute I walked into the house.
I was able to finish the Lyndia Davis Charles Addams Biography, which I enjoyed; however, I was expecting the entrée and only got an Appetizer. This biography is certainly adequate, but there’s got to be more. Addams comes across as a talented happy go lucky, serial womanizer, who was never able to come to grips with the adult world and its responsibilities. Flaws that cost him his first wife and left him in the clutches of a virtual demoness until the very end of his days. The book left me wanting to know more about Charles Addams. This book will serve until a more scholarly work comes along, as it must.
We broke into teams today and some people got a nasty surprise. Many soldiers were under the impression that they were going to Afghanistan, oh afraid not friend, you’re Iraq bound. The cries of lamentation were multitude. They’re wailing fell mostly on deaf ears, misery loves company and many of the whiners were crowing their good fortune.
Received a 21/2 hour pre-emptive butt chewing for nothing. Just a gentle reminder, that despite long holiday hiatus, we still belonged to the Army. Our new Company commander, Major O’Leary, who strikes me as a hardass, but in a good way, just laid it out there, said we were here because the Army is in a bad way. They must be, if they’re counting on some of these soldiers they’ve called up. We’ll see, but O’Leary seems like a straight shooter.

Jan 5: Early morning entry. Up at 4:45. First one up. Hit the shower, head for chow at 5:20. No one stirring. Thank God, I’m a morning person, it makes a huge difference in the Army. For some of these people getting out of the bed in the morning is an act of physical courage. Have a bowl of total, couple cups of coffee. On the way back from chow, I listen to Nina Simone’s “ I Feel Good.” And I do, as good as I can, on an unusually warm, foggy January morning, at Fort Bragg North Carolina. Back at 6:10. A few folks are stirring. I flip on the lights. Oh, the moans and groans!! Welcome to the Army Men.

Jan 9: Just finished Richard Morgan’s Altered Carbon, a great “Bladerunneresique” science fiction novel. It’s the first in a series that includes Broken Angels and woken Furies. I read them out of order, but that didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the series. Warning!! This is an Adult book that depicts graphic violence, sex, and a world almost completely devoid of human compassion. Despite a seemingly bleak and pessimistic background, philosophy, morality and justice are the threads that bind the story together and drive it forward. I highly recommend this series to all science readers.
Currently our training is stumbling along with fits and starts. This is the Army at its worse, unfocused, cumbersome and vindictive. Our group of 160 soldiers wasn’t supposed to arrive until the end of January 2007. We are almost a full month ahead of the main body. With limited resources, personnel and imagination, our keepers with the first training brigade are at a loss. They can’t find much to keep us gainfully employed. Coupled with the lack of leadership vacuum that exists, few of us are getting the level of training required to be successful at war.

posted by mhatchett at 8:36 am (EST) on Mar 26, 2007

Dec.16: Day one load out, pick-up weapons, move to the field. I got to the mess hall early to enjoy a large but uninspired breakfast, tomato cheese and onion omelet. Nowhere near as good as Irene’s. I linger over a couple of cups of Army coffee, the kind that, instead of turning creamy brown when you add milk, turns grayish green? But, it’s hot and sweet, helps wake you up on a cold late fall morning. I’m really looking forward to hot tea in the mornings with Irene when I get home.
During the load out, I’m revisited by an old friend of mine, a truly nasty fighting temper. I haven’t felt like this in years. Not since I was last on active duty. I’ve spent twenty years getting my temper in check, with a great deal of success, I might add, but I just don’t take being spoken down to, well at all. As one of the instructors learned to his cost.
I asked a reasonable question, which is rare, because I usually avoid talking to the cadre, but we needed some information clarified. The instructor retorted with an off the cuff smart-ass answer. Game on, off to the races. I was so mad, I saw white flash in front of my eyes. I can barely remember what I said, but I was in his face in a skinit. I didn’t yell and I didn’t cuss, as I succinctly pointed out all of his military and intellectual shortcomings for one and all to hear. He stepped close, not touching me, but close enough for me to have to fight the urge to punch him right in the face. It was almost an automatic response.
My classmates separated us and he found somewhere else to be. Whew, that was really close. All the rage and pent-up frustration just about exploded. I didn’t even know it was there. But it was.
The upshot of the whole situation was that the instructor came over later and apologized. I apologized in turn, because I was truly sorry that I nearly lost my temper. I recognized in hindsight that he was really the problem, just an available target. The entire course, despite the camaraderie of our class, has been an ordeal from day one. But now that we are freezing, out in the piney woods inhabited by the jersey devil, things are creeping to a close.

Dec 19: You Really lose track in the field. We are living 19 to a tent, stacked on cots almost one on top of another. A leaky, smelly diesel stove, Air Force cast-off, sits in the middle of the tent, alternately over and under heating, as flame heat always does. We have a couple of power cords running along the floor, with dozens of gadgets plugged in at any given time, charging. We have strung up three strands of Christmas lights that actually lend an absurdly festive touch to our cramped quarters.

Dec 21: Endex!! We are packing up to head to the rear. We were extremely lucky with the weather. Highs in the 40’s-60’s during the days, lows in the 20’s-30’s at night. Very little wind, no rain or snow, in New Jersey, in December. What a break.
The exercise was very unbalanced, some parts were very good, some very bad. Most of the cadre, as usual, stink. We shared a building that served as mess hall/administration/log center. Now in the old days, there were three things that you didn’t screw with about; his mail, his pay and his chow. My how things have changed.
We only get one hot a day, supper, which is fine. So what do they do? They schedule a cadre staff meeting right in the middle of supper. And threaten to put people out in the dark to eat, if they aren’t quiet! Unbelievable, one meal a day and you can’t enjoy it. That’s why I haven’t eaten a meal in the mess hall. I just pop a can of something on the stove.
Anyway, the actual exercise was pretty fun. I got to brush up on my map reading. We pulled the rug out from under some opfor guys, fire some blanks, played Army. Games that will be for real in a few months. But today we head back for food, hot showers and warm beds. I can hardly believe I’ll be home this weekend. Christmas is just around the corner.

Dec 22: Recovery continues!! Weapons and vehicles have been serviced, cleaned and turned in. Rooms and common areas are slated to be cleaned the rest of the day with graduation at 1900 (7:00 PM for all you civilians out there), proceeded by practice. That’s right, graduation practice.
The interesting news is that, after helping at least six people pass this class, I will not be awarded the coveted 38B MOS because 1. I’m an E-7, too much rank. 2. ASVAB taken back in 1976 is out of date. In reality, it makes little difference, as my military career is winding down towards its conclusion. These guys are clowns though.
The graduation tonight was an absolute fiasco. I would and indeed did, use several expletives, but out of consideration for others, I won’t write them down. We were going to go out to the club for a small get together, but of course the club is closed for the holidays. What a hoot! Literally all dressed up and no where to go.
I turned in early, others are determined to celebrate, what I don’t know. The real celebration is tomorrow, when we get to go home for Christmas.

Dec 23:
1Sgt Ray Puckett and I rent a car from Enterprise and began our Holiday Trek home, apparently with at least half of the East coast. We get hung up around Washington, but make it to Richmond by evening. Ray has several more hours on the road ahead of him, as he lives in Roanoke. I’m Home!! Merry Christmas Everyone!!

posted by mhatchett at 8:29 am (EST) on Mar 24, 2007

Hi All and Sundry,
I will be leaving for Iraq on Monday, March 19, 9:00 PM. It will be a 19 hour flight with stops in Shannon Ireland or Frankfurt Germany. We will actually land and stay in Kuwait for two weeks, before moving to our duty station in Iraq. Where that is, no one knows or is telling. I will contact y’all when I get a chance.

Take Care,
Mike

posted by mhatchett at 9:25 am (EST) on Mar 16, 2007

Hi Jennifer!
Hopefully I'll be able to post something soon.
Mike

posted by mhatchett at 8:57 pm (EST) on Feb 9, 2007

Nov 29: Where to pick-up? I was lucky enough to get home for Thanksgiving. Msg Aaron Baugh gave me a ride home and back to Fort Bragg. Even though I was only away for a week, it was great to get home to Irene and Erin. Dinner was, of course, fantastic.
Fast forward. The bus trip to Fort Dix, New Jersey. Ten hours trapped with bad movies and really crappy seats. We arrived bleary eyed, hungry, almost hung over with smoldering anger, at 0500 am. Oh dark thirty!!
The in processing staff, cadre, virtually everyone we encountered, made it crystal clear that we are ruining their Holiday. Unbelievable!! It took us nearly 12 hours to get into our rooms. I honestly, have never seen anything run this poorly.
We are here at Fort Dix to Reclass to Civil Affairs 38B. I’m in class six. Our instructor is SGM Adrian Hendren, a Civil Affairs Vet with tours out the ying-yang. This guy looks like a SGM and talks like a SGM. He’s 6 8” tall, bald and homely. His by-words are bitter and cynical. He hates everyone equally and is hilarious. The school. I’m not impressed with. The prohibition on alcohol consumption is the big student compliant. Which I find just weird. You can’t go a month without a drink?
Fort Dix is a Zombie post, not quite dead, but not alive either. The signs are just up for decoration and are not meant to be informational in nature. These are just suggested hours. It is hard to believe that literally thousands of troops went through here on their way to Vietnam or other Cold War posts. Now it’s just haunted, empty and half-empty buildings, dark byways, abandoned training sites. One of the shuttle bus drivers named Ralph, is a spirited tour guide. He points out areas of interest and tells you shortcuts you can take if you miss the bus and have to walk.

Dec. 2: Have had a cold for about a week. Feeling a little better. Rented a car for December 9, when we’re supposed to get a day off and December 23, when we graduate. 1SGT Ray Puckett, from 2/319th is going in halfs with me on the car to go home. He lives in Roanoke. Had a good day. Got up at 0400 AM, washed laundry, skipped breakfast, had a cup of coffee and a cereal bar. Class is pretty interesting. We’ve already had two tests. I’ve done pretty well on both. We have a test coming up on Wednesday, Dec. 6 and our final test is Friday Dec 8. You do have to study, make the most of your limited free time and keep a good attitude. The weather has been unseasonably warm, but that’s about to change. A thunderstorm has just ushered out the last of the warm weather. It’s much colder today, nice brisk wind, beautiful sky, a perfect fall day. I wish I was home to share a day like this with Irene. I plan on skipping supper tonight and heading for the gym. Hopefully that will workout.

Dec. 6: I took a walk around Fort Dix last night. It was clear, cold and silent. The post Christmas tree was lit(lighted?). Main post is arranged around a central parade field surrounded by interesting brick quarters and offices built by the WPA/CCC during the 1930’s. Almost all of them are empty. Army posts are often like time capsules unchanged and unchanging, especially these posts that have been “drawn down”. It’s hard to imagine how vibrant they were during wartime. Now, Fort Dix is just a sleepy National Guard enclave, waiting to be devoured by neighboring McGuire Air Force Base.
I finished Neil Geiman’s American Gods, between studying my Civil Affairs course work. I really enjoyed this book. It’s a love story, a mystery, a fantasy and a philosophical study. One of my favorite lines in the book…..
“A town without a bookstore doesn’t have a soul.” How true. It is a thought provoking book focusing on sacrifice and the nature of friendship. Watch for more than a few twists and turns. Low Key Smith bears watching.
Our final CA module exam is coming up. Heavy review and study hall. SGM Hendren does a good job shepherding the weak and wounded through the process.

Dec 8: The cold has truly arrived at Fort Dix New Jersey. It rolled in during the night, riding 25-40 mph winds. Wind chill in the single digits. Walking to chow with 1SGT Puckett this morning was like walking through a wind tunnel. I don’t know, I just love the wind and the cold. I know it can be dangerous, but it’s so invigorating. It really makes you feel alive and tingly.
We completed the classroom portion of our training and I was pleased to find out that I finished at the head of the class with a 95% average. SGM Hendren and MSG Smith named me king of the class. SFC Susan Kemmerer was named class queen. Our “Court” consisted of SFC Hall, MSG Spencer and MSG Braceros. We all received chocolate gifts which were freely shared around. It was great fun. (photos are posted).
I’m not sure if I mentioned it or not, but I’ve had a draggy cold since we arrived, but I’m finally getting over it, thanks to the power of Nyquil/Dayquil. Plus we have a day off coming up tomorrow, so I feel great.
We had PT this morning. It was freezing cold, with a whipping, cutting wind. None of the cadre showed up to do PT, but several were huddled in vehicles to make sure that we were out there freezing important body parts off. SGM Henden witnessed our plight and put a halt to our agony.
“This is crazy BS. Get these people inside before someone gets frostbite. Jesus Christ!!”
I love this guy. He almost, single-handedly, makes up for all the other useless turds that hold the rank of SGM. Best way to ruin a great 1SGT. Promote im to SGM.
I finished David Weber’s Off Armageddon Reef , the first of a projected fantasy/Sci-Fi epic. Weber is also the author of the Honor Harrington series, which I’m a big fan off, despite the increasing role of treecats and genetically engineered protagonists. Lose all cute, smart, fuzzy creatures in Sci-Fi.
But back to Off Armageddon Reef , which starts off as Sci-Fi and ends up fantasy. It is really a chance for Weber to pay homage to C.S. Forester, Horatio Nelson, the Protestant Reformation and Ninjas.
Just a quick question. Why are all these Neo-Republican Science Fiction/Fantasy writers such ardent Monarchists? I don’t get it. If they had their way, they install some sort of Constitutional Monarchy here in the United States, right now. And as a member of the Armed Forces, sworn to defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic, I would have to hunt them down and mercilessly eliminate them.
But, I really like their books!!
In a nutshell, I highly recommend Weber’s latest.
Last, night I started Philp Macdonald’s The List of Adrian Messanger, always at the top of mystery/suspense reading lists.
“ Some time between the end of the second world war and the beginning of the final third world war.”
Ominous indeed.
Coming up on the training schedule, Drivers training, capability briefs and prep for field exercise. We are at the half-way point.
I can’t wait to get home to Irene and the kids. As bad as things might be, and to be honest, things are irritating and disappointing, rather than bad, I try not to let it bother me too much, because I’ll be home for Christmas.
“ I’ll Be Home for Christmas” That song really means something, to lots and lots of people.

Dec. 9:
The Day Off!! Woke up at 4:30. Just can’t adjust that body clock. Went down to the dayroom and watched some early, early morning Spanish language talk/news program. Older heavy set man, two attractive women, one conservatively dressed, like a news anchor, the other seemed to be having a hard time staying in her colthes at 4:45 AM. I might start getting all my news from Spanish TV.
Cleaned up. Took a long hot shower, out the door at 5:45. My destination? Club Dix, the Java Coffee shop and computer lounge is supposed to open at 6:00. The sign clearly states Saturday 6:00-10:00 AM.
By the way, it’s still frigid cold. I get to club Dix at 5:55. Prefect. And wait…..and wait. Recheck sign. Yep. And wait. That’s life sometimes, waiting in the pre-dawn darkness, buffeted by artic winds. The price of coffee and computer time.
Oh’ here’s someone.
“Morning.” I say.
“Good Morning” She says.
Up the steps and lock the door. No explanation. Now if I saw someone waiting in the frigid pre-dawn darkness, obviously in need of a restorative cup of coffee, I would probably say,
“These very professional looking, expensive signs are wrong. We don’t open at all on weekends. I’m here at the crack of dawn, because I’m the cleaning lady. You should go somewhere and get warm.”
But exhibiting the common screw you attitude that I have found prevalent among many civilians who work for the Army, and apparently hate soldiers, or at best apathetic to their needs, she leaves me shivering on the steps without a word.
I abandon my quest for Club Dix coffee and head for the mess hall for a quick breakfast. SGM Hendren stops by for a quick chat and gives a ride to the barracks. The Day Off is slightly off kilter, but I vow to make the most of it. I pick up my rental, three of my classmates and make a dash for freedom. I had planned to head out alone for some “Me” time, but I couldn’t leave MSG Baseros, SFC Comer and SFC Hall at loss ends, so off we went.
I looked up a few bookstores and we headed for Bordertown, NJ, in search of Old Books and DMQ bookshop. DMQ was closed and I didn’t find anything I was interested in at Old Books. We stopped for some soup and hot chocolate at a nice café. Overall Bordertown made a good impression on us. Just being out in a car, in civilian clothes had a restorative effect on all of us. We continued down the road to a big flea market, where I picked up 7 vintage martial arts magazines, Argosy Self defense Manual 1975, Oriental Combat & Self-defense 1970?, Fighting Stars- October 1975, Action Black Belt-September 1975, Argosy-He/She Self Defense Techniques 1975 (sounds scary, I know), Teach Yourself Self Defense-Fall 1975 and Masters of Self Defense-June 1974. They’re in great shape.
Seeing them, especially Argosy, reminded me of the men’s adventure magazines that my Dad used to leave laying around the house when I was a kid, much to my Mother’s chi grin. They were always full of stories about lost Nazi gold, half dressed women being menaced by dirty Commies and people being attacked by all kinds of wild animals, from tigers to weasels. And all of those were buxom women to say the least. The wikipedia has a great article these magazines.
I also broke down and bought the new Charles Addams biography by Lynda Davis. Addams is of course the famous macabre New Yorker cartoonist who created “the mysterious and kooky” Addams Family. I can remember flipping through the New Yorker cartoon collections in the library, avidly searching for Addams cartoons. The librarian made my day when she showed me Addams own books, Drawn and Quartered, Monster Rally, Our Crowd, Black Maria, etc.
The biography is very interesting, but I can’t help feeling that the material is a little thin. Certainly, I don’t expect an academic tome, but there must be more to Addams than I’ve read so far. Don’t get me wrong, I’m enjoying the book, but more as an appetizer not a main course.
We finished our day out with a meal and a quick trip to Walmart for some odds and ends. It was good to be free for a while.

Dec 10:

Started FBCB2-BFT training today. As I told Christine, It’s a combination battle computer GPS. Now we can find people, kill them and not ask for directions on the way. Totally a man thing. The training is pretty interesting and it makes the day go by quickly.
We played football today for PT in the dark. It was great. The MVP was SFC Klocke, a big ol’ farm girl from Iowa, who caught three touchdowns. Knocked me down at least twice.
“Back off Hatchett, you’re crowding me!”
Never get between the goal line and a dedicated corn-fed Hawkeye. For her gridiron heroics, SFC Klocke was named CA soldier of the week.
SFC Nebel was last week’s CA soldier of the week, for among other things, always having a pot of coffee on.
The FBCB2 training is pretty intense. I feel really sorry for people who don’t have basic computer skills. They’re lost and they aren’t going to be able to catch up. I see this at work all the time. People who can’t even click a mouse, trying to apply for jobs. Regardless of age or educational background, people must develop basic computer skills. It’s no longer optional, it’s a survival skill.

Dec 15:

We were having too much fun playing football. So the cadre required a two mile run for our next PT session. Now usually with a group as large as ours (160), you break into ability groups, fast, medium, slow and profiles, who can’t run for various reasons. They didn’t do that. After dismissing the profiles for their exercises (picking up cigarette butts and general police call), they set off on this mass run. Or should I say mess run, because it was a mess. 23 year old Rangers who want to sprint and short 56 year old women lurching along at best, just aren’t a compatible running group. Since I’m a pretty good runner, I was posted as a road guard at the front of the formation and had a birds-eye view of the ensuing pandemonium.
Fast, slow, fast, slow, the whole accordion affect, people strung out up and down the road. People crashing and burning, left and right. Oh, the cursing, it was like running through a profanity hail storm, every known curse word, in multiple languages, swirled above the formation in the early morning darkness. I was actually more disappointed in our class than the cadre. I don’t have any expectations of the cadre, except for SGM Hendren and MSG Smith, the rest conduct themselves like fearful jailors, rather than soldiers. They are uniformly rude, disrespectful and astonished when confronted which their own professional shortcomings. My own tactic is to ignore them whenever possible and outperform at every given opportunity. Not a great task, but an entertaining one.
We finished the run in shabby fashion, broke for chow and prepared to tackle our FBCB2 final exam.
Whew, FBCB2 BFT is finished. We started the exam at 10:00 and finished at 2:00. We skipped lunch and I only took a couple of quick breaks. It was four solid hours of plotting grid coordinates, producing overlays, sending messages and reports and responding to sitreps. It was interesting, but also frustrating because of some computer glitches. It was really a tough exercise and I was glad to put it successfully behind me.
Since we finished up early, I hopped the shuttle to the commissary to pick up some pogey bait(field snack food). Plus I’m a firm believer in getting away form the barracks ASAP, out of sight out of mind. If they can’t see you, they can’t call you, and if the can’t call you, they can’t give you something stupid to do. Added bonus, no cell phone.
I’ve often considered getting a cell phone, so I could call Irene whenever I wanted to, and I’m sure I will have to attach myself to a cellular umbilical cord at some point I the future, but not today suckers. I used to think that TVs and computers were the greatest electronic evils perpetrated on mankind, but after careful consideration, I’ve moved the cell phone to the top of Satan’s favorite electronic gadget list.
I picked up a few cans of tuna fish, assorted Chef Boyardee products, fruit cocktail, nabs, and some hard candy. Never count o the Army to feed you, especially in the field. Always have back-up.
We are almost down to a week. It seems that my stint in the Army will be broken down into a string of countdowns, life by digits. How many days till class is over? Enjoy my Christmas leave. Depart for Fort Bragg. How many days till per-deployment training is done. How many days till……….see what I mean?
Tomorrow we head out for our FTX (Field training exercise) It should be interesting.
In addition to the Charles Addams biography, I’m also reading Poul Anderson’s Flandry of Terra. Originally published as two novellas in 1969 & 1970, the book chronicles the adventures of Terran intelligence operative Dommick Flandry, in the twilight years of the once powerful Terran Empire. The Jig is up, the writings on the wall, and the clock has struck for humankind and it’s up to Flandry and agents like him to salvage what they can with intelligence, daring do and humor. A paperback to carry out to the field. Adieu, for now Charles Addams.

Dec.16:

posted by mhatchett at 9:15 pm (EST) on Jan 28, 2007

Hi Everyone,
I made it home late on the 23rd. I'll be in some time next week for a visit.

Merry Christmas,
Mike

posted by mhatchett at 3:30 pm (EST) on Dec 24, 2006

everyone seems to have 'The Story of the Eye'

posted by poliphilus at 9:38 am (EST) on Dec 16, 2006

It's me again. Finished a test early! Three days since I’ve written (Nov.22). Time has been tight, but to be honest I haven’t felt much like writing. The weather has taken a definite turn for the worse. Pretty cold and lots of rain.
The highpoint of inprocessing has turned out to be a big bust for me and lots of other people. We went to CIF but it didn’t turn out to be the tactical Christmas we’d hoped for, rather Army April Fools day. No new uniforms, no highspeed Army stuff, just crappy Korean War era TA-50. Not really, but close enough. Nothing neat! I own better gear than this and I would’ve brought it to, except our welcome letter clearly states, “Enlisted personnel will with receive an initial issue shortly after arriving at fort Bragg.”
And by shortly, they mean not shortly, because they’re sending us up to Fort Dix with what we’ve got. Some folks only brought one uniform. Not me. I never believe anything the Army sends out. I hope for the best and plan to be disappointed. We pointed out the dilemma that some of the soldiers faced and the head shed’s response was sluggish and pedestrian.
“We’ll give you all DCUs. Sure they’re obsolete, but this solution almost solves your problem, while creating others. That’s what they teach leaders in the Army today. It’s called unsymmetrical thinking, and it passes as sheer genius at the highest and indeed at the lowest levels of command. The upshot is that we’re all running around in different uniforms and it just doesn’t look right and it’s not contributing to any sort of unit building. I’m not impressed to say the least. Very rigid linear mindsets around here. I see no problem solving skills at work. My overall impression is that we are an inconvenience to everyone we come into contact with. The most professional people we’ve worked with so far, were the ones who handled our urinalysis, and the less said about the episode the better, for everyone involved. I mean, here we are the help out with the global war on Terror and no one seems happy to see us. I don’t get it. We’re warriors’ people, hear us roar.
Rumor has it, we’ve lost 3 out of the original 30. One bad back, one high blood pressure and one no is talking about. The strenuous activity hasn’t even started yet.
We have crossed a milestone however. Our group has completed inprocessing. We are fully integrated components of the Green Machine, evidenced by our pay vouchers for December 1, 2006. My first real Army paycheck in over 20 years!
Another milestone looms in the near future, as we prepare to depart for the 38A reclassification course at Fort Dix, New Jersey. We load the buses on November 25, right after a short, but sweet, Thanksgiving break. I am Anthrax resist!! Fear me!

posted by mhatchett at 4:55 pm (EST) on Dec 14, 2006

Jennifer, Please prepare to copy yet again. I’m a wanderer, just a wanderer, I wander, wander, wander around Fort Bragg. I took the scenic shuttle bus trip around Fort Bragg today (Nov.19).
Stops at all the right places including the library.
I finished Matthew Reilly’s Area 7. If you are looking for a book that combines racist secret societies in the armed forces, rogue biological warfare research, conducted on evil serial killers, bears, Komodo Dragons, nuclear doom, space shuttle to space shuttle dogfights, looming Chinese world domination, special ops action out the ying-yang and breathless, almost insane action, this my friend is the book for you. Reilly writes like Tom Clancy on human growth hormones. It reads like a movie or a video game. A crazy, crazy video game. I was exhausted when I finished. If you like or want to recommend a techno-thriller, you won’t go too wrong with Matthew Reilly’s Area 7 or any of his other titles in this series. Back to Geiman’s American Gods.

posted by mhatchett at 4:11 pm (EST) on Dec 14, 2006

Jennifer prepare to copy again.The last three days haven’t been too bad. Hectic, slightly organized, typical hurry up and wait Army stuff. If you aren’t use to it by now, you’re never going to make it.
The barracks are vintage WW II, James Earl Jones, From Here to Eternity, WPA construction. They always are. Open bay, two- story, originally white clapboard, now oversided by asbestos and God knows what. Twenty-four to a floor with bunk beds, two shower heads, four sinks, two urinals and three toilets. I’m satisfied. A roof, hot water, a bed and electricity, what more could a soldier expect. It’ll do. The mess hall, DFAC in modern Army lingo, is great! Good simple food and lots of it.
I have to say, Fort Bragg suffers in comparison to Fort Lewis. Lewis is a fantastic post.
There are about 30 of us. So far we’ve completed most of our inprocessing, paperwork and mandatory briefings. We’re off for the weekend, we can’t go off post, but we are off. I’d just as soon work and gets things done, if I can’t get home. We’re supposed to be an Army at War, but it’s hard to tell by the lackadaisical pace we’re setting. I just don’t get any sense of urgency about things. But I guess it’s crazy to complain about time off!! One Sgt Major put a chill down my spine while he talked to us about zipping body bags closed. The whole point of his “pep talk’ was not to freeze up under fire. Only training can separate the rationale mind from the reactive instincts needed to survive.
God, I hope there’s more to it than that.
Monday we’re supposed to go through dental processing and our equipment draw from CIF(Central Issuing Facility). In the meantime we’ve been joined by about 160 IRR augmentees. They are mostly younger and angrier than we are about our future deployment. I can’t blame them. They’ve all been called back after getting out of the Army, in fact most of them are 11B Infantry soldiers who have already been deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, and have been out of the Army for two or three years. Most were in the middle of starting new careers, families, school. Was it really necessary to recall these folks when there are plenty of Reserve and even Active duty soldiers who haven’t even deployed once? We need the experience that many of them bring, but I can’t help feeling things should have been handled better.
I walked about five miles today (November 18), all over post, just checking things out. Stopped at the thrift store to see if they had any good books. No luck, but I found a good little floor rug. I found a pretty good little gym off of Grueber, about a half a mile form the barracks.
The menu today:
Breakfast: Bowl of bran flakes, three cups of coffee.
Lunch: Grilled cheese, bowl of soup, tomato salad, two glasses of diet Coke.
Supper: Two grilled cheese, French fries, two glasses of diet Coke. I try not to drink soft drinks, but the drink selection is pretty weak.
Food can become a fixation for institutionalized people, so I’m being careful that meals don’t become an obsession, but mealtimes are a way to measure the slow dribble of time.
I had a great day really. I got to talk to Irene, posted a few emails, one to Allan Grossnickle, a Reserve buddy and Jennifer and Jane Sumpter, two work buddies. I always feel very lucky when I think about my Family and my work Family.
Just a quick tirade about gadgets. The American people are gadget addicts and American soldiers are even worse. The cell phones are just the beginning. You’ve got laptops, portable DVD players, miniature tvs, GPS, blackberries, you wouldn’t believe the obscene number of electronic devices the festoon this barracks. Oh’ I’ve got to go and listen to my satellite radio. Hey, that’s different, because while I’m listening to smooth jazz, I’m also reading Matthew Reilly’s Area 7. Lots of action, but it feels, well it’s almost too much. It is fast paced though. I expect I’ll be finished with it tomorrow and I’ll get back to Geiman.

posted by mhatchett at 7:05 pm (EST) on Dec 13, 2006

Jennifer prepare to copy. I didn't make it to Thanksgiving, as most of you know. I don’t blame the Army, or anyone else. That’s just the way things go.
Truth will be found in these pages, but so will untruths. Some of the untruths will be intentional, to protect the innocent, to make a point or rely a story, or just because sometimes fibbing is just more fun the telling the truth. No untruths will be found here of malicious intent. I mention this just in case Opriah takes an interest in what we’re doing. I don’t want to end up like that other guy.
I arrived at the Richmond Greyhound Terminal at about 6:15. If you claim to be a people watcher, you have to visit a bus terminal. The very young, the very old, the traveling poor, the confused, wander around, waiting for cheap, normally reliable transportation, to whisk them off in a diesel cloud of hope.
I kiss Irene and Erin. Hug them close for awhile and then I try to shoo them out. I’m too weak for drawn out emotionally overwrought good-byes. Irene knows this about me and doesn’t resent it too much. God knows she’s had enough practice. As I walk them to the doors, holding hands, Irene turns to me and says.
“It finally feels real now.”
I think we both almost start crying. One last family clutch and they’re away.
I find a chair by my bags and rummage around for a book to kill the time, while I wait for the bus to take me to Iraq.
I’m still reading Neil Geiman’s American Gods, but sitting in the bus terminal is strange enough. I opt for Matthew Reilly’s Area 7 instead. A military thriller about an attempted Coup, staged by a crazed Air Force General. Can he be foiled by a brave, resourceful, Force Recon Marine captain, Codenamed “Scarecrow” Resourceful Marine? I have my doubts, but I’ll keep you posted.
We’re humming down 95, about half full, not unusual for the middle of the week, I would guess. The old man across the aisle from me, keeps asking when he should change the time on his watch, you know because of the time zone thing. He’s traveling from New York to Florida to visit his daughter. He could’ve flown he assures me, but he just loves the bus.
“Are you going to Vietnam?” He asks.
After trying to explain the concept of time zones, I knew trying to explain Iraq Vs Vietnam was a lost cause.
“Yes, I am.”
I finally convinced him that he didn’t have to change his watch at all, because of daylight savings time. I hope I did the right thing.

posted by mhatchett at 8:12 pm (EST) on Dec 7, 2006

Mike? Mike. Hope all is well. We have had a bunch of DUmb folks asking what we can send you. Let me know what, where and how and we will get on it right away.

Take care bud.

posted by stinkyone90 at 6:55 pm (EST) on Dec 7, 2006

Hi,
I'm supposed to be doing classified top secret Army stuff, not dropping you quick hello. Are Y'all OK? So far, So good. I'll try to send some details later.

Take Care
Mike

posted by mhatchett at 7:38 pm (EST) on Nov 29, 2006

Jennifer,
Just a quick note. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! I'll try to get some stuff posted soon. Busy, Busy, Busy. Lots of shots, ouch!

Mike

posted by mhatchett at 6:49 pm (EST) on Nov 21, 2006

Jennifer,
I will be sending some more entries soon, including my discussion with an elderly men I met on the bus who was sure we were supposed to change our watches once we crossed into North Carolina, "because of that crazy time zone thing."
Hope Y'all are doing well. The food here is good. The food is good. Notice, I'm only mentioning the food. 24 to a bay. Give my best to all and sundry!

Mike H.

posted by mhatchett at 6:29 pm (EST) on Nov 18, 2006

I deeply appreciate your lively and attentive spirit and understanding of the requirements and sacrifices of a soldier. Hope you find some comfort knowing that there are many of us who "recognize" what you are doing...should you ever have any of those low moments.
I am not much older (b. 1950), and never saw combat (drafted in last month of The Draft, Viet Nam was over), but I am "wounded" just from the training. My reading tends toward the story-telling Cambell FisherKing Wounded Warrior themes, but that's because my body just will not "War" any more. I think I am supposed to gracefully transition into a WiseMan, but that is way far off.
Thanks for the reading tips. I look forward to some good Reviews off of you on your amazing library.

posted by keylawk at 9:10 pm (EST) on Nov 16, 2006

What I’m reading
In Iraq.

Pre-Prologue:

My father’s war was in the jungle. Mine will be in the desert, maybe the mountains. I won’t really know till I get there. My father was a professional NCO in his mid-thirties when he stepped off the plane at Tan Son Nhut airbase, Republic of Vietnam. I’m not and I will turn fifty in Country, November 11, 2007.
I spent seven years on active duty, before getting out, going to college, starting a family and a career. I stayed in the reserve because the money came in handy and to be honest, the Army gets under your skin, in good as well as bad ways. My life in a nutshell has been great! My wife Irene, my two, nearly grown children, Michael, 23, Erin 17, they are the focus of my existence. They are the best part of me.
My career as a librarian has been rewarding, stimulating and totally satisfying. I have worked for the County of Henrico Public Library for 17 years. I started as the Bookmobile Librarian and today I am the Fairfield Area Librarian, managing three libraries and the Bookmobile. I take a great deal of pride in our staff and the services that we provide to our community. I am truly fond of everyone that works for me.
I’ll miss them. So, I decided I need a way to keep in touch with all my friends, co-workers and patrons. A way to share with them, what I’m doing, thinking and yes dare I say it, reading. Long, long distance Readers Advisory. It will be a way for me to stay in touch and retain at least a portion of my “Real Life”.
Begin at the beginning? What was I reading, when I was notified that I had been “Involuntarily Cross-Leveled” to the 431 CA Bn, North Little Rock Arkansas, for subsequent training at Fort Bragg, Fort Dix, back to Fort Bragg and hence to Iraq? By the way, my staff has become enamored with army speak and they try to work “Involuntarily Cross-Leveled” and other pithy bits of military jargon into every conversation. “Are we tracking?”
I was, and still am reading, George R.R Martin’s, Feast for Crows, the fourth book in the Song of Ice and Fire series. I’m disappointed so far. The book is fine, but where is the dwarf? The Imp’s presence haunts each and every chapter, but where is Tyrion? I’ll be patient.
I’m also reading Roger Zelazny’s A Night in the Lonesome October. A traditional Halloween treat for someone like me, raised on the horror films of Roger Corman and the infamous Hammer studios. I read it every year, one chapter, everyday in October, because that’s the way it’s written. One chapter, one day. A simple fun tradition.
Kage Baker caught my eye, with Anvil of the World. A well written fantasy involving a number of Demons and interesting people name Smith. Jerome Gold’s Sergeant Dickinson, was a quick hallucinogenic piece of Vietnam fiction. Not a favorite, bur compelling.
That got me thinking about two of my favorite Vietnam novels. The Soldier’s Prize by Dan Cragg. Not only does the main character read H.P. Lovecraft, and steal pastries from generals, he introduced me to William Goldman’s classic military novel, Soldier in the Rain. And finally, I have to mention A Reckoning of Kings: a Novel of the TET Offensive, Chris Bunch and Allan Cole.
I don’t want anyone to think that I’m taking my deployment to Iraq lightly. How could I, when almost a hundred soldiers have lost their lives this month already. But, I’m going to make the best of it. A solder’s greatest enemy is boredom and apathy. (Hopefully we won’t have to include raging incompetents) I won’t give in to those attitudes. Whatever time I have, not being scared to death, will be spent in productive, useful pursuits.
It’s time to draw this Pre-Prologue to a close. As of October 26, 2006, I have approximately eight weeks to squeeze as much love into my family as I can. Prepare my friends and co-workers for whatever trails and tribulations they might face in my absence. I still have to clean up the yard, seal the roof, get the bills straight, get my motorcycle inspected and stored, fill the propane tanks, tack some chicken wire up to the bottom of the fence so that Reilly, our little Dachshund can’t wander off. The list always grows, it never gets shorter. I’m so grateful that I have thanksgiving. And one last thing. Though I consider myself a Unitarian, Irene and I were raised Catholic, so at some point, at Irene’s urging, I will go to confession for the first time in twenty years.
I will pick this story up once I’ve made my way to Fayettenam? Fayettedad? Fort Bragg, North Carolina, Home of the 82nd Airborne, and Special Operation types everywhere. Hoo-Ah!

posted by mhatchett at 5:23 am (EST) on Nov 7, 2006

We share 7 books, including "Cold Comfort Farm." I think this goes into a category called MOVIE VERSION OK. . . wonder what else fits there? (and if you agree!) Esta 1923

posted by Esta1923 at 4:58 pm (EST) on Aug 9, 2006

Jennifer,
Please call us at work. We're very concerned about Patty....and you. of course. are you at your Mom and Dads?
Mike And Crew

posted by mhatchett at 3:25 pm (EST) on Jan 25, 2006

Get back to Work! I'm watching you Missy.

posted by mhatchett at 2:25 pm (EST) on Jan 6, 2006

I like your Books. They are gooder then other books, I seen!

posted by mhatchett at 8:31 pm (EST) on Jan 5, 2006