Gen X in Iraq

Holiday Week in the IZ

For some strange reason, the military does not recognize holidays here in Iraq. Both the Iraqi and US governments do, but not the military. Instead of a holiday, we have DONSA (Day of No Scheduled Activities) days. I am not sure of the origin of DONSA but it feels like something the Army invented. Anyway, we received one DONSA for Christmas and New Years. We had a Christmas Eve dinner at a local IZ restaurant. It was nice seeing my fellow Navy officers all in one room. The dinner was traditional Iraqi; bread, beef kabobs, chicken kabobs, lamb kabobs, tomatoes, cucumbers and hummus. 

Christmas Day was spent relaxing, reading and Skyping with family.One of my recent purchases was a set of noise canceling headphones. These are wonderful for Iraq. We have a large amount of construction and the CHU's aluminum walls reverberate with every opening and closing of a door. When you factor in numerous low flying aircraft and 24/7 cleaning/maintenance crews, it's like having dorm room within a hospital. It was nice just to kick back and listen to uninterrupted music for a change.

KBR did a great job with Christmas Lunch and Dinner. We had all the traditional foods with the trimmings, including Green Bean casserole. They decorated the DFAC with Gingerbread houses and had silver, red and gold tinsel decorating the walls. I finished the day with a nice long run.

New Year's Eve will be even more subdued. I am having dinner with a couple of IT contractors I met earlier this year. When I could break away from my military duties, I would help with some of the larger IT projects. This was considered my "moonlighting" job but in actuality it had much more  impact than what I was sent here to do.

I will spend the rest of the weekend packing up to leave Iraq. Like most others, leaving Iraq is a cause for celebration. I don't believe I have met anyone who is sad about leaving. My next stop will be Kuwait and then the US. I will be de-mobilized (taken off Active duty) a few days after returning to the US.    

Gingerbread Village - Iraqi Style

One of our team members received a "Gingerbread Village" last week. Work has slowed in the office and we decided it was a good time to break out the kit. We each took a building and the results are below.

  
 

  

In case you are curious, my building is the chalet in the middle of the building. Of course, no Iraqi village would be complete without its T-Walls. I made the T-Walls from Pop Tarts and Cliff energy bars. We added guards and a VIP helicopter.

The following picture shows the confectionery architects.

Embassy World Cup

Soccer, or Football, is the main sport at the embassy, particularly with the Peruvians. Grass is uncommon so an outdoor basketball court has been converted to a soccer field. The game has the feel of an indoor game...but outside. A tournament started a couple of night's ago and it was amazing to see all of the participants and pageantry. Each team has uniforms, banners, music, cheerleaders and a couple dozen of fans. The tournament began with an opening ceremony. I have posted a couple of pictures from this event. Our embassy team, named the C-Rams after our alarm system, lost its first game 1-0 to a Peruvian team. 

Christmas Party at the British Embassy

The British Embassy has been hosting Scottish Country dancing sessions over the last few weeks. I didn't find it too different from square dancing, two-stepping and some of the other country dancing we regularly do in Texas. In addition to the dancing sessions, the British Embassy hosted a holiday party last week. It was a black tie event and everyone looked much different from their normal daily appearance, almost unrecognizable in the case of the some of the ladies who exchanged their camouflage for evening gowns. It was a good time with food, a live band , pipers and yes even some silly British hats. The party committee had planned for some Scottish Country dancing but it was cut from the program. We thought it would have been ironic to see so many Americans demonstrate SCottish dancing to the Brits. I saw quite a few Scots with their kilts. For some reason, my kilt didn't make the trip since it was not on my packing list last year. One of the Scots told me that they have decided to have a Burns Night in January. Unfortunately I will miss the Baghdad Burns Night but I will be back home in time to celebrate Burns Night in Dallas.

Navy Wins

The Navy pulled out a 9th straight win against Army yesterday. I guess the "Beat Army and Beat Navy" segments on AFN will be shelved for another year. The game was close and it was fun to see so many people take an interest in the game.

Go Navy.....(I Guess)

This is the eve of the Army-Navy game. The AFN channels have been full of various Army and Navy personnel exhorting their respective team. The best one involved three goats (the Navy mascot) in a barnyard. One goat asked another one why the Army football team did not have a website. The other goat replied that it was because they could not put three W's together. It is fun to see the rivalry and antics but I don't feel too engaged since I went to Texas Tech and I am follower of Big 12 football. We are having a watching party tomorrow night and it should be fun, especially since Navy is heavily favored.

Good Day, Bad Day

Since my arrival in Iraq I have noticed a pattern of good news that is often followed by a tragedy. The last couple of days have fit this familiar pattern.

A couple of days ago, Iraqi politicians were able to agree on a political compromise regarding the composition of the Council of Representatives. The original election date was set for January 31. However, Iraq's Vice President vetoed the original plan and it was given back to the Council of Representatives. But a compromise was reached and the election is back. An election date is set for sometime in February or March.

Unfortunately, this good news was followed by multiple car bombs in Baghdad today. It is an overcast, rainy day and I first thought the loud boom was thunder. After a couple of seconds I saw the ominous sign that it was more than just thunder as the birds began taking flight. A few minutes later the news came in that there were several explosions in downtown Baghdad.

New Career Opportunity

I believe I have discovered a possible new career opportunity as an Audio-Video Entertainment Consultant. With Christmas around the corner and everyone purchasing Christmas gifts, I have become an expert on all things digital. I have been giving advice on the differences between the XBOX 360 and the PS3, audio-book formats and the merits of the MS Zune. I also find myself troubleshooting iPods, wireless networks as well as answering dozens of work related questions regarding anything which runs on batteries or electricity. I certainly don't mind since anything electronic is my passion. I often find myself going into Best Buy and educating the sales staff, OK I know that is bad but what can I say. All this knowledge makes me a bit of an electronic gift counselor this time of year.   

H1N1 Immunizations Available in Iraq

In case anyone is looking for a H1N1 immunization, I know where you can get one. The only catch is you have to fly to Iraq. I received mine yesterday. The Swine Flu is in Iraq but it is in small numbers, although I suspect that it may be under-reported due to the nature of the medical system.