latest on my deployment to Iraq

Good Morning Baghdad... and goodbye. (travel plans)

2010-09-30T08:17:00.000+03:00

My chu is looking pretty bare, everything has been shipped home, or sold, my one bag is packed (a little more full than I had planned), and I'll be on the way to Baghdad International Airport (BIAP) in a couple of hours.

As I mentioned in my last post, I don't have a direct trip home, but at least I'm on the way! I should have some time to post more pics over the next few days.
Oh, and I'll probably be able to have a beer in a couple of days. I see the potential for my waistline to take a hit in the next couple of months... access to beer again, and not able to exercise because of a hernia. Oh well, I'll just have to work a little harder once I'm all healed.

Drop me an email, text, call if you know of something I/we should do these places/dates:
- Vic and I will be in DC, Columbus Day weekend
- I'll be in China Lake for the next week
- Vic and I will be in San Diego, about Oct 15th - 20th
- I'll stay in San Diego for another week or more (probably have hernia surgery there)
- A quick stop in Norfolk
- Then back home to Allentown!

What day is it today??

2010-09-29T22:12:00.000+03:00

It's the day before GOING HOME DAY! I'm just about to get to bed for my last night in Baghdad (as long as everything follows the plan - and no, I would never bet on that, but everything looks good).

I need to get to sleep, so this is gonna be really short, but I'm really looking forward to seeing everyone, at all my stops along the way, and getting home to my wonderful bride!

I should be in DC for the Columbus Day weekend, then I'll be in San Diego for a week or two from Oct 15th, then home to Allentown late Oct or early Nov. (I'm not sure of the schedule because I have to have surgery somewhere in there, probably San Diego, which may add a little time to that stop. I guess I was trying too hard to get in shape for my homecoming and gave myself a hernia, but it should be an easy fix and I'll be in good shape again soon.)

I've been taking lots of pics, now I just need to get them posted to my Picasa site, keep checking there for updates:
http://picasaweb.google.com/bultar

Goodnight from Baghdad - for the last time!

It's still hot as hell, but there's snow on the mountains!

2010-08-30T11:44:00.000+03:00

I thought about "improving" my home away from home a long time ago... one idea was to grow some grass in front of my CHU (by the way, I've been calling my "home" here a "Compartmentalized Housing Unit", but Pat tells me that it actually stands for "Containerized Housing Unit" - I stand corrected.
Anyway, "home improvements"... I never did get any grass growing. I looked at ordering some grass seed, and dirt, online - but you can't get that kind of thing shipped out here. It's against postal regulations, or international trade rules, or something. There are places with grass growing here on base (grass kinda like weeds), so I thought I could dig up some and make it grow here. But that never happened.
I also thought about painting a nice tropical landscape scene on the big T-Wall right outside the door on my CHU - that would be a much nicer view that of the plain old giant concrete wall... But that kind of went the way of the grass lawn idea... never got to it. (And that would take a lot of paint - blue, green, brown, white, some mixes, etc.) I did do some things to fix up my CHU - plenty of carpets on the floor (helps with the heat too, a layer of insulation), fridge, microwave, TV, DVD player, sound insulation pads on the wall, curtains over the ugly window, nice chair that probably came from one of Sadam's palaces, etc.
I have a nice table with storage shelves in my room, that someone made out of plywood years ago, and early on I thought I would paint the bare wood base to make it look nicer. So I bought a gallon of white paint at the True Value. Yes, there is a True Value hardware store here! It's not quite what you are used to at home, but it does have a lot of stuff. There are all kinds of stores around here, and you can get just about anything you want (that isn't illegal here).
So, I've had this gallon of (expensive) paint sitting here in my room for many months, I never got around to emptying the shelves of the table, cleaning all the junk off the top of it, so I could take it outside to paint...

Then a couple of months ago - in the heat of the summer, when it gets to almost 150 degrees in the sun, my mind wandered back to the home improvement ideas, and I decided to use that gallon of white paint... I looked at the big concrete wall (where I had pictured the tropical scene), and thought I could use the white paint to turn the wall into snow-covered mountains. Brilliant!
So I searched the web for a good shot of mountains covered with snow (I only had one color of paint, white, so I needed a simple design). It didn't take long to zero in on the Coors logo mountains (after some detours looking at a few Coors Light painted ladies). A little photoshopping to give me a one-color design, and I was set.
Last night I finally opened the can of paint. The wall is 12 feet or more high, and I don't have a ladder handy here, so I used an old mop handle from the trash, duct-taped a brush to the mob head, and went to work! It took less than a couple of hours, and I love it! I really should have done that a long time ago.

And I have a lot of white paint left... what else can I do...

a MacGyver moment...

2010-07-15T10:41:00.002+03:00

I bought these nice comfy boots before I came out here (the issue boots felt like crap), but the other day one of the metal vent things broke off one boot, it's like a rivet with a quarter-inch size hole through it and a fine wire screen on the outside to ventilate the boot...

When it broke off (I think I snagged the outside part of the vent with part of my pistol belt), the inside part basically looked like a flat brass washer, and the outside part looked like it could be "snapped" back through the "washer" part...

(see the pics)

The vent part would sort of snap into the hole in the boot, and it stayed, but it wasn't really secure, and fell out the next day.

So yesterday, I had a great MacGyver (or MacGruber) moment, it went something like this (and yes, I was talking to myself)...

Hand me that angled mounting bracket I found in a drawer,

and that scotch tape - so I can tape the "washer" piece of the rivet over the hole in the bracket that's just bigger than the hole in the washer...

Now hand me that blue Sharpie, so I can mark the center of the hole on the tape to be able to see it through the hole in the boot,

Hand me that 12" crescent wrench, and the tape again, so I can tape the mounting bracket to the head of the wrench which is just big enough to fit inside the boot and span the distance across the inside of the boot...

Now, with the washer, on the bracket, on the wrench, inside the boot, positioned so I can see the blue dot through the hole in the boot, and so that the wrench goes across the width of the boot laying on it's side, on the desk... hand me the outside part of the rivet vent so I can push it through the hole in the boot, lined up right over the hole in the washer piece of the rivet...

And hand me that 10 pound sledge hammer (our emergency destruction tool in case I have to smash up classified equipment) so I can smack the rivet and force it to snap through the washer...

Three good whacks and it's in!

Hand me that phillips head screwdriver - that's just a little bigger than the hole through the rivet - so I can put it inside the boot, into the hole through the rivet, and smack it with the sledge hammer to bend the metal of the outside part over the washer part on the inside to lock it in place.

Done! Better than new!

(see pic)

Now if I can just figure out out how to get some cool water in the bathrooms...

Before I left on R&R last month (when the highs were around 100), we had hot and cool running water, seemed pretty normal.

Now (with the highs in the 130's) we have scalding hot, and just hot running water.

The fresh water is stored in big plastic tanks that sit outside next to the bathrooms and showers, and they have normal water heaters inside those buildings - but obviously no water "chillers"...

now you can call me from any phone!

2010-07-05T14:37:00.001+03:00

let's see if this works...
click this, enter your phone number, and Google will call you and connect to me!

Happy Independence Day to everyone!

2010-07-05T13:54:00.000+03:00

My 4th of July celebration out here consisted of a normal workday, with the added security and nonsense that goes along with a visit from VP Biden. USF-I held a naturalization ceremony to give US citizenship to 156 soldiers from almost 60 different countries. If you didn't already know, you don't have to be a US citizen to serve in the military, and this crowd raised their hands, recited the oath, and became citizens in a nice ceremony with the VP as guest speaker.
I 'almost' got to meet the VP at lunch after the ceremony. He was working his way through the DFAC (dining facility), was almost in front of me, then his folks had him take a different route. I gave up on that and went back to work.
It generally sucks being out here away from home, but I can tell you that it definitely stinks to be away from my wife, and home, and friends, on days like this. I hope everyone back home (and I'm thinking of Allentown and San Diego) had a great weekend enjoying family and friends - and I can't wait to get back to spend times like this with all of you!
I'll keep taking some pics, and posting some here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/bultar/PicsFromVictoryBaseComplex#
Work is kind of slow frankly, as I continue to try to find new things I can do and new missions for my Det - to keep us busy now, and maybe provide meaningful support/service down the road.
If you use Skype, look for me online and give me a call sometime! "Bultar2020"
Take care! B

I'm still here!

2010-06-21T09:30:00.000+03:00

I know it's been a LONG time since I posted anything here... sorry! What can I say, I've been pretty busy, I've been just keeping up with folks on Facebook, and there was a period there when I was kinda in a rut.
I did just post some new pics to my Picasa site (http://picasaweb.google.com/bultar/PicsFromVictoryBaseComplex#), and I'll just have to get better about updating this.

The big news is that I just got back from a couple of weeks or R&R! I got to go home for 15 days of leave - that was a fantastic break! Hopefully that is about the halfway point in my tour. When I returned to the base a couple of days ago, it was about 15 degrees hotter, and the water level in the lake around the palace was about a foot lower. And it's just going to get hotter in the next couple of months. If I can make it through these next two months, I'll be home free!
It's really too hot to run during the day now (about 115, and going up to mid 120's probably), so I'm going to have to run right at dawn when it's coolest. Of course I use that term loosely - "coolest" means about 90. But I ran around sunrise this morning and it was really pretty comfortable.

I will probably be traveling around the theater quite a bit more during the rest of my time out here, checking up on my guys I have working at different sites. So that should help the time go by quicker too.

I'd better get in to work, but I'll write more soon!
Skype me sometime if you can!

A quick note

2010-04-24T03:30:00.000+03:00

Hello everybody, so what's going on back home? Life and work here seems to keep getting busier. I'm definitely ready for a break.
I did a little traveling last week, and it looks like i'll do some more the rest of my time here.
Well it's really late and I have to be up really early, so, goodnight!

It's been 3 months already?

2010-04-11T13:16:00.000+03:00

Yep, past the 3-month mark, 1/3 of the way done, but I'm not counting days or anything, still way too soon for that... (But I might start counting days until my R&R break, that's coming up pretty soon! 2 weeks at home - yea!) I sure wish I was at home right now, to take care of my Honey after her nasty spill yesterday... good news is that nothing is broken, and her face will be back to normal gorgeousness soon (well, maybe a few weeks).

Everything's fine here. If anything, it's a bit boring... I have plenty to do, mostly management of my detachment, day-to-day business of running a unit. Sometimes I wish I was doing something a little more exciting (but I don't think Vic would like that). But all of us play a part, and I'm doing my part. I have been working on taking on a larger role though, same mission but more locations, that will be nice, and all that planning is keeping me busy too.

The weather has actually been pretty nice lately. It's getting up to 100 these days, but that doesn't feel too hot, and the evenings are really comfortable - there could be a resort here! Oh wait... that's pretty much what this place was for Saddam and his cronies... but all of the nice amenities are long since ignored, run down, or blown up. But it's going to keep getting hotter, and I'm afraid that the 120+ weather will probably feel miserable.
We haven't had any bad dust storms yet, but they should be coming soon too. We did have a thunderstorm the other day that was really weird - instead of typical black storm clouds, the clouds were tan/brown, because the clouds were mostly dust. Lightning and some rain from big dark brown dust clouds rolling overhead. Freaky. I took some pics, but they don't do it justice.
Sounds like it's really nice back home (Allentown and San Diego) with Spring weather and green everywhere - I can't wait to see that again! It's just brown everywhere here...

So, it's been over a month since I posted an update... but I have been a little better about posting pics on my Picasa site, be sure to check those: http://picasaweb.google.com/bultar/PicsFromVictoryBaseComplex#

It was great to get a Skype call from Deep the other day... if you use Skype, give me a call sometime! Take care of each other!
Cheers, B

Update from Baghdad...

2010-03-05T13:21:00.000+03:00

I know, I know, I'm terrible about posting updates here... I'll give you a couple of excuses (they may not be good excuses, but it's all I've got!) First, it's kinda like the movie 'Groundhog Day' around here, so it feels like there may not be anything worth writing about. And second, I have been pretty busy - but busy with things that either I can't really talk about, or more likely busy with things that would just be boring to talk about!

I do try to take pictures whenever I see something new, or something interesting, or just something strange (lots of that here!) And instead of trying to paste pics in here (not so simple in Blogger), I'm just posting them all on my Picasa site (that's really easy): http://picasaweb.google.com/bultar/PicsFromVictoryBaseComplex#

Last night I tried to take some pics of the army of spiders crossing the sidewalk from the lake to the palace, but it was too dark (no flash on my iPhone), but that was pretty weird! No, they weren't those big camel spiders (I would have pulled my weapon on even one of those things!), they were just little things, but lots of them, partially illuminated by distant headlights.

I think that last pics I posted were from the X-Dog Race I ran a few weeks ago, the "Slayer Scramble", and there are more pics of that on their website: http://www.xdogevents.com/slayerscramble.php. There are a few other 5k or 10k events coming up that I will try to run. And this weekend, I'm going to my first hash out here!

The Lost Lake Hash House Harriers (L2H3) has been hashing here for years, but hasn't been active since last fall... so we're bringing it back to life! (We would be me, an old SD hashing friend, and a couple of hashers I met here through the Las Vegas email list.) Hopefully we'll get some interest and get a regular hash going.
Oh, and can I talk about the weather some more?! It's sure not what I expected! Since I've been here, we've had clear sunny days in the 80's, comfortable nights in the 50's, then days with highs in the 40's and lows below freezing, beautiful clear deep blue skies, then dust in the air so it looks like orange moonlight, rain both when it's hot and cold, and rain when it's dusty which means the rain is really drops of mud! But it hasn't been uncomfortably hot - yet, I know that's coming, and we haven't had a 'real' dust storm yet where we need to where goggles and dust masks... can't wait for that... :-/

There are interesting things going on around here these days... but you'd be better off watching the news, or digging around with Google to find out about things like the elections going on this weekend.

Several folks have asked what kind of things I might like sent to me in a care package, and I really appreciate the offers, but honestly, just an email, letter, text msg, etc., is about all I need. I can get just about anything out here that one can get back home (well except beer, but that will have to wait til I get home - don't try to send beer, I'll get in trouble!) Keep in touch!

Cheers, B

Is it still snowing back there??

2010-02-13T21:53:00.000+03:00

And by "back there", I pretty much mean everywhere except in Iraq and Vancouver... No snow here, but we get some nasty yucky messy mud when it rains! Or, when the fire department hoses down parts of a race course. I ran the "Slayer Scramble" this morning, an X-Dog event, http://www.xdogevents.com/slayerscramble.php which was great! I'm pretty beat now though. I'll post some pics of that too.

I know I've been really bad about posting here, and I've been pretty bad about keeping up with writing anyone (except for Victoria), but I'll get better! As I mentioned in last post, it's much easier for me to post pictures by just loading them on my Picasa site, and just include the link here, so check there for pics! No good excuse for not writing much, but I have been pretty busy (and the internet is not nearly as fast or reliable as it is back home).
So pics will always be here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/bultar/PicsFromVictoryBaseComplex#
(I just need to start putting some labels/explanations on them)

And I've been working on pimping out my chu (that's compartmentalized housing unit) - it's a mess now, but I'll post some pics soon. Vic sent me some things from home, and I've been ordering things online. Pretty much all online stores will ship out here (with some exceptions, like I don't think anyone will ship electronics out here).
My room is in a mobile home-like building split into thirds, I'm in the middle room. There are no bathrooms or showers attached. The showers are in a trailer, and the bathrooms are in a different trailer. But I'm lucky because I only have about a 50' walk to either trailer - that's about the closest of anybody out here, I'm in a good spot.

My "trailer" where I work is tucked around behind the Al Faw Palace. I posted a few pics of the trailer already.
I don't have any pics (yet?) of the dinning facility (DFAC), because we're not supposed to take pics in there. But I'll get some sooner or later. The one shot I posted of guy cooking on a makeshift grill was at a local Iraqi restaurant in the Iraqi forces section of the base. That was an interesting dinner, pretty good food actually.

Do I ever leave the base? No. I don't have any reason to leave the base. Whenever I run, it's always inside the wire. If I were to leave the base for a meeting or something, I'd probably fly out to another similar secure base. I don't think I'll be driving out of the gate, but if so, I'd be all dressed out in body armor, in an armored vehicle, in a convoy, with lots of pros at that work... but I really don't see that happening.

The weather has been mostly nice since I got here. Highs have been 60's-70's, lows mostly in 50's, but lately some nights down to freezing (hit 28 a while back). It's drizzled a lot, but really rained a lot just once - what a mess! I really didn't expect this much cold... But I'll miss it when it gets up to 120-130!

And to answer a couple of questions...

1. Do you have much contact with the locals or should I assume you guys are fairly insulated there?
-- Since I never leave the base, no contact with "locals", but there are a bunch of TCNs (Third Country Nationals) or all kinds of nationalities that work here, and I try to interact with them. (I'm working on my Ugandan... "Sula Bulungi"!)

2. And no, I haven't found the hot tub in the palace... yet.

let's try this again...

2010-01-25T01:11:00.000+03:00

and again... I've tried to post an update a few times lately, but I've had internet issues that kept it from going through. Let's face it, the internet is just not as fast or reliable as it is back home. (and it's expensive!)
So, this is gonna be short, just to let you know everything's going fine out here. Tomorrow is my change of command when I take over as OIC of the detachment. And I'm looking at easier ways to post photos here (I've been taking a ton, but only posted a few), so let's see if this link to a Picasa Web Album works:
http://picasaweb.google.com/bultar/PicsFromVictoryBaseComplex# I'm thinking of uploading lots of pics to Picasa, then just post a link here in updates, we'll see how this works.

Oh, and for those of you that asked for my mailing address, please email me again and I'll send it to you, I don't think I'll post it here.

Keep in touch!

To the Bat Cave!

2010-01-14T18:47:00.000+03:00

You'd probably never guess, but that 'adope teepee looking thing' is a bat cave... I don't have the full story yet, but aparantly there were bats around here, living somewhere that was somehow disturbed by the shooting/bombing, so we built this thing so they'd have a place to live. But I guess they didn't like it, and never moved in. Pretty strange.

The next shot is another look down one of the "lanes" between rows of Chus. The concrete blast protection is called "T-wall" (if you could turn one of the 12 foot high things upside down, it would look like a "T").

All of the Chus are surrounded by T-wall, each building, then the entire complex, it's quite a maze of concrete and gravel. The ground everywhere is covered in gravel - it's kinda difficult to walk around, but when it rains it's more than worth it, without the gravel it turns into a really nasty mud pit (I haven't seen that yet, but have heard stories).

The 3rd pic is taken from me sitting in my bed, looking across my room, at my new (used) tv! Big ol' blank wall with a little 13" tv sitting on a box on the floor - it's a far cry from my usual tv set up at home! I'm going to get more furniture, and spend the next few months pimping out my Chu. (the Taj-Ma-Tent comes to mind, for any of you that get that reference ;)

I just got back from my first run around the base, it was only 2-3 miles, but was nice to get out and start to see the place on foot.

Timed to get cleaned up, and hit the DFAC (Dining FACility) for dinner.

More later!

(if you have Skype, call me sometime! "Bultar2020")

(if you don't have it, it's great, give it a try!)

view from palace roof

2010-01-14T14:46:00.000+03:00

looking down at outdoor gym and pool (never has water in it)

visiting VIP quarters across the water

lots of stuff up on the roof

more across the water

more palace pics

2010-01-14T14:33:00.000+03:00

one of my guys inside the top of the chandelier

one of the hallways

long chandelier down 3 flights of stairs

me in the "photo op" chair

the main palace chandelier

2010-01-14T14:25:00.000+03:00

bottom part

top

inside the top, inside the dome

me inside the top of the chandelier

and more pics...

2010-01-13T23:27:00.000+03:00

more pics...

2010-01-13T23:25:00.000+03:00

some pics here...

2010-01-13T23:20:00.000+03:00

I'm here, let's catch up a little...

2010-01-13T17:36:00.000+03:00

I know, I know! I haven't posted much of anything lately! So shoot me! (no wait, I take that back, wrong thing to say around here... ;-)
Seriously, it's really safe where I am here at Camp Victory. I got here yesterday morning, about 0900. That was Tuesday... I left China Lake, CA last Saturday morning, about 0500... so "only" about 3 days. Looking back I guess that's not too bad, but it seemed a lot worse at the time!

An hour flight to LAX, 3 hours layover, 4 hour or so flight to Washington Dulles, about 6 hours layover, then an over 13 hour fight to Kuwait International. I slept a few hours on the long leg, but I was pretty beat when we got to KWI. Then we stand around waiting for bags - until the baggage claim belt stopped moving, and there were no more bags... yep, mine was lost. Great. There were 3 of us traveling together (2 of the guys on my team were with me, one more will show up in a month or 2). Only one guy got his bags, the other 2 of us were out of luck.
We filled out the lost bag claim, but I didn't have a lot of confidence that I'd ever see it again based on a little language barrier, and way they do things... then off to the bus to the military side of the airport (the APOD), to catch another bus to Ali Al Salem air base, for the military flight up to Baghdad... (yes, there is a lot involved in getting here). But since it took a while to file the baggage claim, we missed the bus with the rest of the folks on our flight. Great. A couple of hours later (after a few more folks joined us in the wait), the next bus shows us, and we're off.
At KWI we get on little busses (seats about 20, or 25 if you fold down the little jump seats in the isle), and convoy around to the other side of the base. It's probably only about a mile away as the crow flies, but you have to go off the airfield, around, and back into the base side, through security, so it takes about 20-30 min. At the APOD, we unload with our bags, and wait for another bus (full size ones) to take us up to Ali air base. That is about an hour and a half ride...
Once at the LSA there, you check in at one place, go wait about an hour at another desk for the Navy LNO to come back, and they help you figure out what to do next. Since our baggage didn't arrive, we couldn't get manifested on a flight up to BIAP (Baghdad International Airport), which meant checking into billeting, and getting something to eat.
By now it was about 0200, and we'd been up for about 36 hours (with a couple of naps), and hadn't showered... (I made the mistake of not bringing change of underwear and basic toiletries with me in my carry on bag.) So we walk over to the PX to buy a few things and get cleaned up, and get some sleep... not so fast! The PX had just closed at midnight (normally everything is open 24/7) for inventory. Great. But it will re-open at midnight the next night.
I walk in the USO, and one of the wildcard playoff games is on, so I watch some of that, then head for my rack, in a tent with about 6 or 8 other folks. It's pitch black in there, but I just get undressed and get in bed, then I'm scared ---less by the HVAC that blows hot air (it's cold at night) in through a canvas like tube from the hardware outside, and makes a huge racket as that tube inflates! Well, that happens about every 20 min as it cycles off/on... so I pretty much didn't get to sleep until it quit running in the morning when it starts to warm up. I think I slept for 2-3 hours before I woke up sweating (it's hot in the day!) Great. So I call to check on my bag - no news. Grab something to eat, walk around explore a bit. We decided to just take the bus back to the airport to meet the flight (ours, but next day) in hopes that our bags would be on it. So, we go through the whole bus routine in reverse (with a longer wait at the APOD this time), get to KWI right after the plane landed, go to look for our bags - but we can't go to baggage claim ourselves, we have to wait for the folks there to look for them... stand over there and wait for about 30 minutes... great.
But eventually our bags came rolling out with a porter!! Yea! Let's get back on the bus and go through that routine again. But wait, the busses have already gone, we missed them while waiting for our bags to come out. Great. An hour or so later, next busses are here, and we're off. This time, an even longer wait at the APOD for big busses to Ali. That's ok, I have my stuff, and sooner or later I'm going to get a shower!
We got back to the LSA around midnight I guess. I checked on the flights up to Baghdad, and sure enough there's one scheduled for check-in at 0330. Perfect, time for a shower and dinner, then try to get out of there. So we walk over to the PX to get soap, a towel, etc., - and it's still closed, they delayed the opening for another day. Great.
That's ok, it's been about 60 hours of traveling, and I take a shower! The showerhead was horrible, but it was one of the best showers I've ever had! There's really not enough time to try to get some sleep, so I check out of my tent, get my body armor and helmet, grab a cheeseburger at McDonalds, and go wait for the flight. The 0330 roll call finally happens about 0430, but we're on the flight! Take your bags out to get palletized, and be back for 0545 muster. At 0600 we're mustered for the flight and get on a bus to the flight line. At 0725 we're airborne in an USAF C-130, on the way to BIAP. At about 0845 we're on deck, and after a quick check in (O-5's and up get a little special treatment, so we were through there in no time).
The current OIC picked us up, drove us over to get our badges, checked into billeting, and some lunch (the DFAC is amazing, more on that later), and I was in my room ready to pass out a little after noon. I made a quick Skype call to my wife (that was great to see her!), and I was ready for a long winter's nap. It had been a little over 3 days, with only a couple of short naps, and I was out. I slept about 8 hours. I woke up to go to the bathroom (more on that later too), decided I really needed another pillow, so walked over to the PX, but they were out of them... I did get a few things, went back, fell asleep again and slept another 8+ hours (except for bathroom break).
Whew!
I haven't taken a lot of pics yet, but I'll post some in a minute, and I'll be taking a lot more.
Gotta run right now, more soon!

I'm here!

2010-01-12T11:22:00.001+03:00

In Baghdad, at Camp Victory... no time to really post now, but I'll update soon!

BOG counter starts tomorrow...

2010-01-09T08:00:00.000+03:00

Well, I guess it will start day after tomorrow since it takes over a day to get there... But we leave early in the morning on our flight to Kuwait and we'll get there the next evening (I'll have several hours layover at LAX and IAD on the way). Oh, and BOG stands for "boots on ground", that starts my counter for days in theater.
I first found out about my mobilization on Sep 3rd, a little over 4 months ago, and now I'm about to get started on the actual work of this deployment. Those 4 months have gone by pretty fast, so the good news is that I imagine that the next 4, and 4 or 5 after that, will also go by pretty fast - so I'll be back home again before I know it!!
I'd better get to sleep, it's an early go tomorrow morning...

Now it's really hitting home...

2010-01-06T06:01:00.001+03:00

After about 3 weeks at home (over the holidays), now I'm flying to China Lake, on the way to Baghdad in a fees days...

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NArmy Training is done... enjoying a little time at home!

2009-12-23T20:35:00.000+03:00

The last week or so of N-Army training at McCrady really flew by, it was over before we knew it, and all the whining and complaining (much of it was absolutely well-deserved) came to an end in a flurry of uniforms and equipment crammed into over-stuffed seabags... (I have some pics of all the packing the last night there, but they don't do it justice!)
In a nutshell I'd describe the 3 weeks at McCrady as some really good/valuable training wrapped up in a "hot mess" that is poorly managed by two competing organizations. The overall experience for the training audience could be much better. I tried to give some constructive feedback/critique, and I'll do more of that through the NOSC.

But for now... I'm at home! Woo-hooo! I get to be home for the holidays, before I fly out to Iraq. I'm really lucky to have this schedule, and really feel for everyone else in my NIACT class that had to get on a plane for the desert the day after our last training day. Good luck to everyone!

I have a bunch of photos/videos to post, I'll upload a few at a time.
Merry Christmas!!

That's McCrady Training Center in my rear view mirror as I leave the base (and a bus full of guys going to the airport right behind me).

the end (of the first step) is in sight...

2009-12-11T04:35:00.000+03:00

whew! that was a fast few days! It's Thursday night, tomorrow morning we get up at about 3:30am, to start the day with some low light M9 shooting before dawn, then a full day of shooting/training on M16 and other larger weapons. The last few days have been mostly M-16 firing/qualifications, with a little humvee driving and training, and a few classroom lectures thrown in. We should be done the middle of next week, and it certainly feels like we're close to the end. The time really has gone by fast - hopefully my time in Iraq will go by even faster and I'll be home before I know it!
I haven't taken nearly as many pictures as I had hoped to take, but I'll make an effort to really get some pics the rest of the time.
A couple of pics, firing (not me) on the LOMAH range, and me at the range:

Well, really slow internet connection here, and I couldn't get a second photo to load...

Yikes, the helos are flying really low overhead tonight... shaking the barracks pretty good.

Stay tuned for more

A little "white space"

2009-12-08T00:06:00.000+03:00

Quick nap waiting for next medical screen...

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We're gonna fire a lot of rounds while here...

2009-12-06T00:48:00.000+03:00

We spent a few days this week qualifying on the M-16 and 9mm pistol. It's a pain to wear all the gear, but pretty good training. (I really feel for, and have a LOT of respect for, the kids that actually go to battle in all this gear.)
We'll spend a lot of time on the ranges over the next two weeks, and will have some classroom instruction too on various topics.
I usually don't have much time each day to jump on the computer, but if you use Skype, try to give me a ring sometime - "Bultar2020". And once I get over to Iraq, I'd really appreciate an occasional call. We do have a little time off this weekend, so I get to relax a bit.
Stay tuned for more!

some training here...

2009-12-05T13:02:00.000+03:00

practicing putting on Chem-Bio Defense gear...

and firing the M-16...

and cleaning the M-16!

did I say bored??

2009-12-02T06:00:00.000+03:00

That didn't last very long! Sunday night was a rough night of not much sleep with so many loud snorers in the room (about 40 guys in here), and up at 0500 for 0530 formation. First day was some check in processing, and issue of a couple more bags of gear. Last night (my 2nd night) I slept a little better, only because I had my iPod cranked up loud enough in earphones to drown out the snoring. I'm starting with that plan right away tonight, before the snoring even starts (I'd better hurry, one of the loud guys is already going to sleep).
Another early start tomorrow, and I need some sleep, so that's all for now... stay tuned!

At least I was able to swap out my boots yesterday for some that fit!!

Crap, the snoring already started...

Oh, and to answer one question... yes, as many may know, it's common for O-5's (and junior) to have private "rooms" in Iraq, I should have one of those when I get there. But as a few of us were discussing over dinner tonight, I believe that a lot of the "hardship" here is purposefully exaggerated, to put you through a stressful situation (in a controlled environment) to prepare you for whatever possible stressful situation awaits you in theater. That might be one reason they call it immersion training.

Sunrise this morning:

bored...

2009-11-30T02:16:00.000+03:00

Well, in case you haven't picked up on the recurring theme so far... there's a lot of "down time", otherwise known as white space in this whole process. We got here to Ft Jackson, SC Saturday morning... only to find out that we really don't have anything to do until Sunday night (about an hour from now). We're actually staying at McCrady Training Center, which is about 15 miles across the big wooded base from Ft Jackson.
Since I drove down here, I offered to take a few folks into town (Columbia) with me. I got a room at the Hilton and we went out for dinner nearby. It was nice to sleep in a nice comfy king size bed with real sheets and pillows! And the shower this morning was great too! Now starting tonight I'm in my little bunk bed rack that's barely as long as I am tall, and the showers are the pits. I guess this is all part of the process of getting us used to the 1-star accommodations in Iraq...
I'm in a barracks with 40 racks, and there are supposed to be 38 of us in here. There are 4 showers (things could get crazy in the mornings). There's a dining facility about 100 yards away, and it sounds like most of the time we'll get up, eat, and get on a bus to go over to Ft Jackson proper for training, then back here for dinner, and back to sleep. I here it's about a 30 min drive over to the other side.
Time to go over and see what dinner looks like here, then we have our "welcome aboard" at 7pm. Here are a few pics of what I've seen so far... Stay tuned!

2009-11-26T21:49:00.000+03:00

That's me getting fitted for my gas mask, and the contents of my first (of 4) seabags of uniforms and other gear...
Happy Thanksgiving!

1 day of work crammed into 4 days...

2009-11-25T06:38:00.000+03:00

yep, you read that correctly... this is a "short" week due to the holiday on Thursday, so we only have 4 days instead of the usual 5. Which means we only have 4 days to complete about 1 day of work instead of 5 - whew, rough week. ;)
Well I cleared medical today, so that pretty much means I'm cleared to go on the mobilization... tomorrow I'll finish up changes to my pay records to put me on active duty, then after I pick up my new uniforms on Friday I'm off to Ft Jackson, SC to start the Aaaarrrrmy training! That will be about 3 weeks of what they call "immersion training" - that pretty much means they try to make it difficult for us on purpose, so we're prepared for the typical difficult conditions in theater. So we'll have a bunch of guys sharing big tents or barracks, sleeping on cots, showers and heads a short walk away, long days of carrying around all your combat gear and weapons, etc... I imagine we'll be up early in the mornings (5am?), spend a lot of time on the ranges firing M-16 and 9mm, and some time hiking through the woods, and pretty much be really tired when we get back to our barracks and go to sleep.
But I'll let you know how it goes when I get there!
And here's another request for anyone using Skype to give me a call sometime - that might be my primary means of communicating from Baghdad, and I'd like to make sure it works well before I leave.
(This pic shows how we spent most of the past 2 days...)

it begins...

2009-11-20T22:19:00.000+03:00

Well, I'm in Norfolk, just finished checking in at the NOSC (that's Navy Operations Support Center) to start my mobilization. There were about a dozen other folks with similar dazed and confused looks on their faces also checking in today. I talked with a few of them, they're headed to all sorts of places, and I feel kind of lucky that I'm going to Camp Victory to work on something that is at least related to what I usually do in the Navy Reserves.
Today was another day (ok, half day) of kinda frustrating administrative requirements and waiting around for someone else to work on checklists, forms, etc. (Maybe I just have a low tolerance level for this kind of bs... I think I'm really going to be tested over the next year! ;) We're done for the weekend until reporting to NMPS (Navy Mobilization Processing Site) on Monday morning. (Kinda funny, we show up to start active duty on a Friday, "work" for a few hours, then have the weekend off... why not just start on the Monday morning?)
The weather is nice, I'll enjoy a nice weekend, and get back to the "processing" (medical, shots, uniforms, etc.) on Monday.
If you use Skype, give me a ring sometime, "Bultar2020".

Aaaaarmy Training Sir!

2009-11-18T06:07:00.000+03:00

It's Tuesday night, and Thursday morning I drive down to Norfolk to go on active duty on Friday... I'll spend a week there (that's Thanksgiving week...) doing more admin stuff, medical, get uniforms, etc., before heading to Ft Jackson for some "N-Army" training (is that pronounced "Narmy"?), that would be the Army training all Navy folks go through before heading to the desert. Hopefully I'll be able to post frequent updates while I'm there to tell you all about it! (I hope it's just like what Bill Murray went through in Stripes!) I'll be there about 3 weeks, and then I'm getting a good deal among good deals as I get to come back home for Christmas and New Years!
More soon, stay tuned...

Could they make this any harder?

2009-11-06T17:46:00.000+03:00

I'm down to just 2 weeks before I report for my MOB, and I have to say, it's been pretty frustrating lately with all the admin requirements... Lots of paperwork, that really doesn't seem to matter much, but has to be done anyway (and then once I get to NMPS I'll have to do some of it all over again!). And anyone that has ever had to use NKO knows how difficult - and time-wasting - that can be, but let me tell you... some of the courses you have to take for a mobilization are pretty bad (content and presentation, on top of the impossible-to-use interface). I'm not usually one to publicly bash anyone/thing, but what a mess. I'm actually looking forward to being in Iraq - just to have all the preparations and training behind me. Of course I don't want to leave home, and wish I had a lot more time at home with my wife and friends before I go!!
Well, I'd better get back to the NKO training...

a trip to San Diego before I go?

2009-10-13T04:52:00.000+03:00

So, with the change to my orders (I don't have to report to China Lake until Jan, instead of mid-Dec), I won't be making a visit to San Diego mid-December like I planned... It's great that I get to spend the holidays at home before I head out to Iraq, but I would still like to visit friends in San Diego before I go. We're trying to figure out if we can make a trip to SD over New Year's Eve, and that weekend - and we're looking for ideas and input on making a trip out then... any thoughts?

a new plan...

2009-10-10T19:58:00.000+03:00

Time is flying by, but there's a new plan... I finally found out what my schedule is supposed to be (well, at least some of the details). I still report to the NOSC in Norfolk to start my mobilization on Nov 20th, but after I finish my "Army" training in South Carolina I don't go right over to Iraq. Instead, I'll report back to the NOSC for 2-3 weeks (over the holidays, and I can take some leave), then to China Lake early January, and to Iraq a couple of days later. So I get so spend Christmas and New Year's at home!

Stick Me Baby One More Time...

2009-09-28T17:12:00.000+03:00

I'm still here in Norfolk supporting a couple of C2F exercises (part of my normal work with the Reserves)... and have been trying to get ahead on some of the preparation for my mobilization. So, I've been taking care of some of the medical requirements - and let me just say this, I'm not an IV drug user, no matter how many needle holes you see in my arms... Yikes! drawing blood (missing the vein), shots for small pox, anthrax, hepatitis, Flu shot, PPD, TB (or was that TD?), Typhoid, and who knows what else. You can't get all those at once (I guess it's bad to shoot more than one live virus into your body at a time). So, I'll be back for more next month!
Meanwhile, I'm still finding out more about what I'll be doing, my schedule, etc. Stay tuned for more!

what are those 7 steps?

2009-09-11T05:37:00.000+03:00

I don't remember if it's 5, or 7, steps... but I kinda feel like I'm in "acceptance" now - after the initial shock. (Not that the steps of coping with grief really apply here!) Anywho...

Whew! Lots of info rolling in now... and lots to think about, and do to get ready. So the billet I'm going to fill is the OIC of a small detachment in Baghdad, at Camp Victory. It is a "Tactical Dissemination Module" job. The short description of that is that it's a way for ground forces to communicate with aircraft, to pass along call for fires, targeting information, etc. (you can find some info through online searches). And there's lots of info online about Camp Victory too - I'll hold off on posting anything about that until I have some first-hand experience! The folks I'll be working with are already talking about a possible change in my reporting date, so we'll see when I actually have to go (it might be later).
Well, I'm in Norfolk now, working on some C2F exercises that I already had on my schedule, so will be busy with that for next 2-3 weeks, but I'll add to this when I can. But once I get going with the MOB, I'll try to post often!
Cheers.

(Oh yeah, for friends in San Diego - I think I should have time for a quick visit before I go, but it depends on how/if my schedule changes. As is, I should be able to get to SD around 18-20 Dec...)

It begins... (What? I'm going to Iraq??)

2009-09-09T19:29:00.000+03:00

Well, here's the start of my blog about my mobilization back to active duty, and tour in Iraq. I just got "the" phone call last week, Sep 3rd, and still don't know much about what I'll be doing, and my head is swimming with all the different things I need to take care of before I go...
Here's a little of what I do know - I report for duty in Norfolk, VA on Nov 20th, head to Fort Jackson, SC for some training, then out to China Lake, CA mid-December. Beyond that I don't know my schedule yet.
The "Noble Eagle" billet that I'm going to fill is "TDM Watchfloor, Officer in Charge"... no, I really don't know what that means either! (I think TDM stands for Tactical Dissemination Module - do a search for that.)
Stay tuned, I'll post more info when I have it, and plan to document the entire experience here.
Cheers,
Bryan
(I hope to have easy access to my email while gone, bultar@gmail.com, and I plan to set up a Skype account.)