Reporting from Camp Victory, Baghdad, Iraq
So, I sent out a mass e-mail last month and I've been meaning to post it and start writing on here a little more. Here it is (slightly edited for mass consumption):
Roughly a year has passed since my last mass e-mail and I really couldn’t have gone through more of a transition than the past year has taken me through. First, thanks again to everyone that helped support the Rural Education program in India. The fundraiser was a great success and with your help we were able to sponsor one of their schools for an entire year. I receive updates from time to time and their program continues to grow and gather interest in India and abroad.
After graduation, I took advantage of the gap in my orders and spent nearly 6 weeks in Europe, seeing the sights and visiting friends, it was just what I needed after a stressful year of grad school... Returning to the states, I moved to Norfolk and began my training as the Assistant Navigator on the USS Theodore Roosevelt, only to find that the ship was about to start a long refueling and overhaul period. You’ll remember that I was confused as to why they wanted a helicopter pilot driving a ship – compound that with a ship that doesn’t have any water under it… (Actually, maybe THAT IS why they gave me the job!) Well, despite being handicapped by a lack of water, I managed to spend some time at sea and earn a qualification as an aircraft carrier Officer of the Deck. Shortly after returning to dry land, I was informed that I was the lucky winner of a one year vacation in Sunny Iraq! Needless to say, I was thrilled at the chance to put my life on hold for a year, but not given much of a choice, I made the best of it and started my preparations.
It’s been a long journey, but after six weeks of packing and unpacking, marching and shooting, planes and buses, swamps and deserts, I’ve arrived safely in my new home for the next year: Camp Victory, Baghdad, Iraq.
First, I just wanted to thank everyone again for all their well wishes, prayers, thoughts, and kind words as I went through this process. Knowing that I had your support made it that much easier as I was leaving everyone behind. In truth, despite some austere living conditions, the training that I’ve been going through hasn’t been bad. The most common complaint has been that there’s a lot of time spent waiting around. The Army calls it “White Space”, which is not to be confused with “Free Time”, “Down Time”, or “Personal Time”… OK, I digress.
As I was saying, the training was pretty good. We started off at Fort Jackson, South Carolina and between simulator rifle ranges (huge video games) and the real thing, I probably shot over 500 rounds on my M9 and M16, and, as a bonus, it turns out I’m a pretty good shot. Looks like all that time at summer camp as a kid paid off! Besides shooting, I also had an opportunity to drive Humvees, assault buildings, rescue wounded soldiers, and, of course, march around the base! After leaving the beautiful swamplands of South Carolina, we found ourselves in the Kuwaiti desert. Even in early March we hit triple digit temperatures a few times. Our time in Kuwait was mostly spent acclimatizing to the time and climate. We had some paperwork to do and a day of convoy training near the Iraqi boarder, but it was otherwise uneventful. It was even relaxing if you consider sleeping on a cot in a tent with 30 other guys relaxing.
This video is a funny look at the training. It was filmed a few years ago, but still hits the essence of what I was doing. (I’m not in Baghdad to look for explosives though… more on that in a minute) The official video is a little more “motivational” and not quite so funny unless you consider the irony of it all.
I arrived at Baghdad International Airport (or BIAP in Army lingo) on the 13th after having been given 6 hours notice to pack up all my stuff and get on a plane. It was only a 2 hour flight from Kuwait, but sitting in the back of a cargo plane wearing body armor makes even a short flight seem interminably long. Fortunately, since we’d arrived early, I had Sunday off to explore before starting work on Monday.
The base is fairly nice, as nice as you could expect for a the forward headquarters of an invasion force. The US Army took advantage of Hussein’s private compound and communication systems to create a functional headquarters. Because of that it seems a bit schizophrenic at times, with huge elaborate palaces next door to portable buildings and makeshift barriers. On my walk to work every morning I leave my CHU (Containerized Housing Unit, which is about as lovely as it sounds) through a serious of blast walls and walk along a dirt road until I get to one of the canals. From there I wander along the paths created for Iraqi leadership that wind along several manmade lakes and between a few more palaces. My office happens to be about as far away as possible, in the house that my friends and I suspect Hussein would put his “friends” that he was considering for summary execution.
As far as my job goes I would have to classify myself as a “Warrior Accountant”. Warrior because I’m always wearing a gun and accountant because, well, that’s what I do. I work for General Odierno’s Comptroller and try to keep the Army from spending too much money. I’m tasked with “preserving the treasure of our nation” and it’s quite a challenge. Those Army guys love to buy stuff. Last week I processed around 250 million dollars in requests, no big deal… Of course it really couldn’t get too much more like Office Space than this, I don’t think I would survive the scrutiny of the Bob’s (“So you take the requests from the customer?”, “No, my secretary does that.”)
At least I do feel fully employed, which is more than some of my friends are saying as they sit around waiting for work to come. One of my challenges is that I don’t have much personal time, I work 7 days a week, 10-11 hours a day, with 2 half days. It does make the time go by fairly quickly though, I can’t believe that I’ve been here for over 2 weeks already! The unexpected highlight of my time here is the frequent 5Ks which are fun to run and have the added bonus of getting me out of work (culture of fitness and all that...)
I really don’t need much of anything here. The Post Exchange is relatively well stocked. Being at the headquarters for the Army does have its benefits. I’d love to receive your mail though, and I promise that if you write, I’ll write back (I’ll even try to get it out before I leave Iraq!) If you really are interested in providing aid and comfort to me and my fellow deployed Sailors, Soldiers, Airmen, and Marines, please consider donating to either the USO or the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society. They’re both great organizations that help military members in times of hardship and distress. They are both full of hardworking and helpful volunteers that make great efforts to make the lives easier for everyone serving.
Oh, one more
video about being in the desert, this time by some Air Force pilots (clearly with too much time on their hands)
I love you all and miss you. For all my family about to celebrate Easter, I wish that I could be there with you and look forward to rejoining next year! I’m sorry that I’ll miss Sabrina and McKenna and Mille and Zach’s graduations (they must be from Junior High, right? I’m not that old…)
Oh and as far as the subject line goes, it just rained for the last two days, turning all the fine sand and dust into mud. It sticks to everything and apparently takes several days to dry up. Surprises every day!
You’re all in my thoughts and I’m looking forward to my return home to see everyone again (343 days left!)
Stephen
